The inn was no longer enough.
Seven people sharing two cramped rooms wasn't sustainable, especially with two children involved. Lio had made a noble effort with extra blankets and splitting meals, but Red knew they needed better.
That morning, he led them all through the merchant quarter of Silverhaven.
Lia and Lana clung to Lio's hands, while Yuzu shyly walked beside Selena, eyes wide with wonder at the city's liveliness. Rika trailed near the back, arms folded but alert, and Hina held a light pack of herbs over her shoulder.
Red said little.
When they reached the rental office near the southern district wall, the manager gave him a startled glance, then quickly nodded when Red produced a sealed voucher, a Guild-backed rental permit, usually reserved for Silver-ranked adventurers or above.
"It's not fancy," Red said as they entered the new house. "But it's ours."
It was a modest 20x20 stone-brick house with wooden floors, two small bedrooms, a communal washroom, and a shared kitchen-living space. A narrow staircase led to a loft storage space that could easily be used for sleeping.
The girls ran inside immediately.
"We have our own room!" Lia shouted.
"It doesn't smell like soup anymore!" Lana added.
Lio stood in the doorway, eyes wide. "You… paid for all this?"
Red nodded. "One silver a month. Paid in advance."
Lio: "But… why? For us?"
"It's not charity," Red said, placing his bag by the door. "It's a foundation. You can't grow strong if you're sick, cold, or hungry."
Selena looked around, arms crossed. "It's… actually kind of cozy."
Hina smiled. "I'll make sure the sleeping spaces are clean and warm."
Rika rolled her eyes. "You're all getting soft already."
Red gestured for them all to sit in the central room. There, on the worn wooden floor, they formed a loose circle around him. He looked at each of them in turn, Lio, Selena, Rika, Hina, Yuzu. Even the twins sat quietly, sensing the shift in tone.
"We're stable now," Red said.
Red: "But this isn't free. The world doesn't hand you food or shelter because you deserve it. It trades in sweat, steel, and skill. And if you want to keep this house, eat every day, and support yourselves, you'll have to work for it."
Lio nodded. "Then what do we do? We can't rely on you forever."
Red reached into his pouch and tossed down a stack of parchment scrolls. Each bore the official wax seal of the Adventurer's Guild.
"There are two paths you can choose from," he said. "The way of the worker, or the way of the adventurer."
He picked up one scroll.
Red: "General work means hauling cargo, farming, cleaning stables, or working market stalls. It's safer. Pays a little. Just enough to survive. But you'll stay at the bottom. Always dependent on someone above you."
He laid down a second scroll.
Red: "Adventuring is riskier. Goblins, monsters, bandits. You might get injured. Might even die. But if you succeed? You can rise. Learn skills. Choose a class. Earn more than any worker could dream of."
The group was silent. Only the crackling of the fireplace filled the room.
"How much more?" Lio asked.
"A rookie adventurer makes 200–250 copper a month," Red said.
Red: "A Bronze rank can earn double. By the time you reach Silver, you're making bronze coins instead of copper. Higher still, it becomes silver and even gold."
Selena crossed her arms. "So why isn't everyone doing it?"
Red looked at her. "Because it's hard. Because people die. Because most don't have what it takes."
Rika smirked. "Sounds fun."
Hina hesitated. "And if we choose to work instead?"
"Then I'll help you find something stable," Red said.
Red: "You won't be abandoned. But I won't train you. That path's for fighters."
He leaned forward.
Red: "You all came from pain. Slavery. Poverty. Loss. I brought you here because I saw something in you, not because you're strong already, but because you could become strong. But that choice is yours."
Yuzu swallowed. Her hands trembled, but she spoke first.
Yuzu: "I want to be an adventurer."
Red nodded.
Lio followed immediately. "Me too. If it means giving my sisters a better life? I'll do anything."
Selena gave a slow nod. "I already made that choice the day I left that cage."
Rika stretched her arms behind her head. "You think I'm here to mop floors?"
Hina took a breath. Her fingers clutched the hem of her cloak.
Hina: "I… I want to help. I want to heal people. And I want to protect them, too."
Red stood, looking over them all.
Red: "Then tomorrow, training begins."
And as they each looked around that small room, warm and worn and filled with a quiet sense of something beginning, none of them realized it yet:
That house would become their home.
And from it, a new legend would rise.
They didn't wait until morning to make the place feel like their own.
With sleeves rolled up and laughter bubbling through the air, the group began cleaning. Hina directed the sorting of linens. Selena swept dust out the door. Rika cleaned knives in the kitchen like she was preparing for battle. Yuzu gingerly dusted shelves, often glancing to see if Lio noticed her efforts.
Lio tried lifting a heavy water bucket from the well.
"Don't hurt your back, Big Brother!" Lia shouted from the window.
"Maybe he'll fall in and come out as a water monster!" Lana added with a squeal.
Lio groaned. "I liked you both better when you were sick and quiet."
Lana stuck out her tongue. "Lio has a girl~ and a bucket!"
Selena chuckled from the porch. "You might be the first adventurer defeated by twin sisters."
Yuzu turned beet red and nearly dropped the rag she was holding.
Red watched them all from the doorway.
It was noisy. Messy. Chaotic.
And exactly what he hoped for.