Mafia's HQ

"Ah... But why does it look so... Cartoonish? Like, didn't you guys think to change it to blend in better with the surroundings?"

"It's not as simple to do so as you might think. With the times changing quicker than ever with the competition to be more advanced against the rest of the Domains, this place has transformed too many times. But, according to the old folks, this place was much more friendly and warm."

"A place where Mages and Humans once coexisted with each other in perfect harmony. Now, if you so much wear the wrong clothing or praise the Mages, you would be marked for death regardless of your status, age or gender," said Vincent, refusing to look at me.

"I never knew Humans and Mages could live happily together back in the day... Then why was there a need for the Arks to be established? Their main goal is to live alongside Humans and create a home for their future. If harmony was already in place, what happened to it?" I quizzed.

"The Congregation had a very Corrupted ruler, and everything went south from there. I'm unsure of the details because I've got fragmented reports about the incident. But, whatever the details were, the most I know is that Mages and their craft aren't welcomed in this part of Teuton."

"And another side note... This house belongs to VK and has been passed down the generations, so you better don't say anything mean about this place. If he loses his mind, I can't help you. No offense, but I'd like to live this life better than the previous one."

"Oh, is that so? Well, you should've thought before going to Medusa's island without knocking!" I yelled.

"You are never letting me go off the hook with that problem, aren't you? Why are you so salty about it?! It's not as if I broke into your home... Oh wait."

"You did, you absolute walnut! That's why I'm so angry at you!"

"Alright, alright! I'll apologize to Gorgon when we meet her, okay? So please, don't be angry anymore..."

"Take her out for dinner before you kill her..."

"Don't ask for the impossible. As I said, I like living in this place."

The door swung open with an eerie creak, without any signs of life within the house or anyone behind the door. The candlelight lamps on the walls activated when the door opened, making me think Magecraft was at play. Or, Vania was messing with me again.

Great, now this thing had turned from the gingerbread house to the Red House. Despite everything, Vincent strolled into the house and beckoned me to follow.

I did as I was told, only to have the door slammed shut. I was on high alert, so I instantly jumped and hugged Vincent out of fear. The man started giggling as it took me a while to figure out what I had just done. When I came to my senses, I pushed him away.

"Shut up. We are not to speak of this ever again, you hear me?! Or I'll make sure that the only thing left to bury you would be your memories!" I threatened, punching Vincent in the gut.

The man laughed as he walked towards the small door underneath the stairs. The place looked well furnished now that I've overcome my embarrassment and fear of haunted houses. Everything out of a storybook...

"You are okay with ladders, right?" asked Vincent, breaking the immersion.

I nodded and ran towards Vincent before he could start climbing down. The man was quite puzzled when I did so.

"This is the first time you've been here, so you don't know your way around here. Best to let me take the lead," said Vincent, trying to climb down.

"I'm alright for you acting as my guide but not at this point. I have to go first because I'm wearing a dress! Eyes front, soldier!" I protested, pulling on the man's left ear.

"Ow, Ow, ow! Okay! I got it... My eyes are always front..." complained Vincent as he allowed me to climb the ladder.

"Mine aren't..." I said, smirking.

"Huh?"

"Oh, nothing. How far does this go down?" I asked, taking another step down.

"About ten plus meters? Not sure because I wasn't the one who built this thing."

As I looked further down the ladder, there was nothing but pure darkness. I requested Vania to activate my night vision eyes and saw the bottom. Damn... This isn't 10 meters at all; it's got to be at least 30.

This was going to be a very long climb, and I might go insane if I didn't find a faster way to get down. Vania, activate the Skill, Fortitude. Concentrate it on my legs as I might be shattering them now.