Li Jiehao could only continue packing with trepidation, stuffing his few belongings into his old suitcase. He took one last look around the house where he had lived for some time, feeling no nostalgia, only relief that he would never have to come back.
He picked up the suitcase and followed the two men out the door.
"Don't we need to contact the landlord to terminate the lease?" Isaac asked.
Although the rental agreements he had previously made were not finalized, the rent was agreed upon and payments were made monthly, quarterly, or even yearly. If he terminated the lease early, he would have to ask the landlord for a refund and would also be charged a penalty.
"The rent here is paid weekly, and if you can't pay, you're kicked out," Li Jiehao said, scoffing.
Carlo walked ahead. "Short-term rentals are better than long-term rentals here. After all, few people are willing to live here and can afford to pay the long-term rent upfront. It also makes it easier to set peak and off-peak rents."
Isaac looked at Carlo: "Peak and valley rent?"
"If there are many renters, we'll temporarily raise the price to make more money; if there are few renters, we'll lower the price to prevent existing tenants from running away because they can't afford it."
"It's the same as the electricity price," Li Jiehao said.
On the way back, the buildings along the route changed from low and crowded row houses to neat terraced houses, and the streets became wider and cleaner.
Comparing the scene on Gray Pigeon Street to what he had just witnessed, Li Jiehao exclaimed, "The difference is just too great! Even the air is different. The streets there stank, vividly illustrating what poverty really means... It's infuriating to compare yourself to others!"
Soon, they arrived at Red Maple Street. The three got off the tram and walked along the street for a while before Carlo stopped in front of a two-story house.
Li Jiehao peeked out and saw that the address read 122 Red Maple Street. The building's exterior was simple and not luxurious, but it was much better than his apartment.
"This is my office. The first floor is for my office Asa's living quarters, and the second floor is for me." Carlo opened the door.
Li Jiehao looked inside. The living room had a desk and bookshelves, and a cushion was lying on it...
It was a rather large black dog, which looked over when it heard the door open.
"You guys keep dogs?" Li Jiehao, somewhat surprised.
"His dog," Carlo pointed to Isaac, " Asa, bring Fenri out; we'll need him later."
Isaac went inside, Fenri stood up, shook his fur, and Isaac tied him to a rope and led Fenri back to the door.
Li Jiehao sized up the black dog. It was a size larger than an ordinary domestic dog, with glossy fur. Standing there, it exuded a calm and imposing aura, unlike a pet dog. It looked more like a guard dog, or even... a wolf?
He tentatively reached out, wanting to pat its head: "Good dog--"
Fenri tilted her head, dodging his hand, and gave him a disdainful look.
Li Jiehao awkwardly withdrew his hand, feeling that the dog's gaze was a bit strange. It didn't seem like the simple curiosity or wariness of ordinary animals, but rather... contempt?
It doesn't seem to like me very much.
"It's rather... cold," Isaac said.
Fenri cannot be judged by the standards of an ordinary dog, and Isaac had no idea how it considered its attitude towards different people.
He has an inexplicably high level of affection for Isaac, is rather afraid of Carlo, and while he doesn't show hostility towards outsiders, he is quite cold and won't let them touch or rub him.
Carlo didn't rush off. He pointed to Fenri and said, "Let's get you to a hotel to settle in first, but there's something I need to make clear. You'll be staying at a hotel, but given your current condition, your safety is questionable. Asa and I can't be with you like a nanny every day, so let this come along."
"Let Fenri live with him?" Isaac asked.
"Anyway, it usually just lies down to sleep, so it doesn't matter where it lies down."
"Is this dog a master too?" Li Jiehao asked doubtfully. "I think it's just a dog. Even if it's a bit big, what can it do?"
"It can pull a cart, it can chew on a big dog, and it can even sneak out for a date in the middle of the night."
"Ah?"
Li Jiehao was taken aback, and Fenri, upon hearing the last sentence, also shivered uncomfortably.
"Anyway, it's more capable than you," Carlo said. "If you doubt its abilities, you can try fighting it and see who falls first."
Li Jiehao shrank his neck. "Should I feed it? What does it eat?"
"No need to feed it, it's not a real dog."
Li Jiehao glanced at the black dog, which still seemed indifferent. He even doubted whether the dog was truly willing to protect him.
Isaac thought for a moment, "That thing... can Fenri handle it?"
He was referring to the being that hunts down time travelers. If the being had really set its sights on Li Jiehao, Fenri, though equally unknown, was still uncertain whether it could provide protection against such a being.
Carlo shrugged. "That thing targets outsiders, but it's not that much of a threat to locals. It's inherently regionally discriminatory. Besides, if we're really talking about it, Fenri is closer to the essence of that thing than most beings in this world."
"Besides, what came wasn't the main body, but just an extension of it. If it can't even handle this, this bastard should just go back to the Wilderness and sleep soundly."
Fenri gave a low hum in response.
"That thing also exists in the Wilderness?"
"I guess so. There are a lot of things in the Wilderness, many of which don't even have names. That thing that hunts down transmigrators is one of them, except that its range of activity is rather special, as it can extend into the real world through some medium."
" The Wilderness is a bit like the ocean. That thing is a predator swimming in the ocean, and the transmigrators are like drowning people splashing on the surface of the sea. The bigger the splash, the easier it is to be noticed by it."
Li Jiehao's scalp tingled. "Then wouldn't I have been thrashing around the whole time...?"
"So you're lucky; you haven't been targeted by it yet. But whether you can maintain this luck is up to you." Carlo turned and walked out. "Let's go."
Li Jiehao followed with the suitcase, while Isaac led Fenri at the back.
There are several hotels near Red Maple Street. Carlo chose one that looked relatively clean, spoke briefly with the front desk to confirm that pets were allowed, and paid for a week's stay.
The room was on the second floor, with windows facing the street and decent lighting. It was much cleaner than Li Jiehao's previous apartment and had a private bathroom.
Li Jiehao placed the box in the corner, looked around, and nodded in satisfaction. "Much better than over there. Life really is moving uphill!"
"If you're too useless, things will take a nosedive." Carlo leaned against the door. "From now on, you'll go to the Joint Investigation Bureau during the day, report to my office, and bring Fenri with you."
Isaac handed the leash to Li Jiehao: "Take it on a leash when you go out. Although it won't run around, it's quite big and might scare passersby."
Li Jiehao took the rope and squatted down. Fenri turned her head away, completely ignoring his attempt to be friendly and too lazy to pay him any attention.