The archmaiden had a taste for quality, however, as the town lacked gravely in that aspect; after only the first shop that was shown to her, her standards had to take a back seat to functionality. As long as the shop had room for their goods and some decent accommodation, she would be more than happy to purchase it on that very day.
"Hmm, I think that place would've sufficed as a starting point," not exactly thrilled by the possibility of walking around all day, Freya's right eye twitched at Aura with a hint of annoyance. "You are quite the spoiled slave, I must say."
"Spoiled, me?" Rolling her eyes at the mockery, Aura smiled at her. "Being loved by your man isn't exactly being spoiled, now is it? But of course, you must know better, you're my elder, and I'm sure you'd had quite the charming husbands in your past."
Furrowing her brows with fury, Freya almost wondered if this girl in front of her knew her whole life story. To prick her exactly where it hurts, how could she know? Perhaps some of her life story had bled out through her words, but even then, Aura's words felt way too specific.
"Whatever, enjoy it while you can. Men tend to die young around these parts." Taking the lead on foot, Freya began walking a little further.
Following her with her gaze, Aura couldn't help but wonder what made this woman so arrogant. Not even her dead husband's name was given any mercy, and the daughter of that man seemed to have it worse.
'And they call us demons.' Scoffing at the thought, she quickly caught up with her. Freya tried to stay one step ahead, but her feet got sore quickly while Aura still had a pep in her step. Whistling beside the woman, the devil further drove home the fact that she was younger, and the many looks of the bystanders honing in on them, angered Freya further.
"Fucking jerk-offs…"
"Did you say something?" The devil asked, but the woman simply shook her head.
After a few more minutes of back and forth, the two finally arrived at the next location. A shop at the end of the road that cut sharply into another that led deeper into the everyday market. A perfect place at a glance, but after Freya knocked for a while and an old man peeked through the crack in the door, Aura's expectation waned.
'Probably smells like the grim reaper's camp inside.' And sure enough, as the two were let in, dust and the smell of old people hit them right in their faces.
"Sorry for the mess, I…" Mumbling something to himself, the man began walking towards another door that led further inside. "Just follow me, I'll show ya the place."
As the two followed the man, Freya nudged against Aura's elbow and whispered while leaning against her.
"I know you're not gonna like this, let's just go. I don't want to break that old man's heart." Tilting her head lightly, Aura wondered why she felt the need to add the last part. And to sate her curiosity, she looked back over to the man and peered into his mind.
The very first thing she saw was his wife dying on her deathbed, and then came the sight of a young child coughing up blood and wheezing with every breath.
'A victim of living rot? What's the problem? It should be an easy condition to fix.' Puzzled by the old man's problem, Aura stared at him for a while. Even as he showed them the spacious hall and the upstairs, her mind kept returning to a single thought. 'Are these people intentionally crippling themselves?'
At the end of the tour of the two-story building with a hall, a backyard, a kitchen, and a small bedroom downstairs, as well as a larger bedroom and a balcony upstairs, Aura folded her hands and awaited the man to spill his price.
"I won't ask for much since I need the money quickly," squeezing his fingers on the side, painfully so, it ached for him to let the place go. "Two thousand, that should cover my grandson's medicine for a few months…that's all I ask for."
"I would say that's fair," Freya chimed in, offering her opinion. "You won't find a better place and deal, minus the dust and some cleanup cost, you should be good to go."
"Yes, the dust has been a problem. But I'm too old to do any manual labor anymore." Looking up at Aura, the man threw his hands to the side. "So? What will it be? Do you want it or not?"
"Hmm…" Squinting her eyes, Aura leaned forward and stared into the man's eyes. "HMMMMM!!!!"
"W-what are you doing?" He asked, taking a hasty step away from her.
"Say, old man," Freya almost bit her tongue as Aura discarded what little respect that she'd shown thus far with her silence. "Would you trade this place and everything in it for a bottle of magic goo that could cure your grandson?"
"What?!" Struck by her words, the man stood as still as an idol.
And before he could even snap out of his daze, Freya grabbed Aura by the arm and yelled.
"His grandson has the rot! How the hell do you intend to cure it?!" Grunting with anger, she wheezed through her lips. "I told you not to break his heart already, so why would you make such baseless promises?"
A bit tired of Freya's winging attitude, Aura turned her head to the man and reached into her bosom. Taking out a small vial that had been kept close to her heart like many other things, she waved it at the man with a wide smirk.
"Do you want it, old man?" Faking a throw, she almost made the man tumble face forward in an attempt to catch it. Eyes wide and his body stiff from old age, his eyes still remained glued to that vial for the life of his grandson might depend on it. "How about it? You give me this place and everything else you own, and I'll give you this vial, but we make the trade before you give this to him."
"What?!" Exclaimed both the man and Freya in perfect unison.
However, breaking their shocked expression, Aura faked another throw. Sending both of them falling on their faces.
"GahAHAhahA~! Counting to ten! One…two…three." But of course, in the end, being as desperate as he was, the man took the deal. Not knowing whether the vial would work or not.