Chapter 831 Nora's Birthday
Nora has a home in Castells.
Hughes' promise that Castells would be her home wasn't just empty words; he actually assigned Nora a house.
Not only Nora, but all residents of Castel have a free housing allocation. The land in Castel is not privately owned, but all property rights are publicly owned. Apart from residential housing, individuals are only allowed to rent.
This could fundamentally solve the problem of landlords exploiting other social classes, but it is difficult to implement. Even for lords, it is extremely difficult to touch the interests of a certain group.
However, Castel was a special case. Castel had experienced the Deep Sea War, and most of the island had been destroyed. Hughes took the opportunity to take over the land.
Blood Harbor has the same policy. Bettis rented her shop from the city hall, along with Gwen and Amy.
This is because Blood Harbor is quite special. Blood Harbor experienced the descent of the Mother Goddess, and most of the port was destroyed. Hughes took the opportunity to take over the land.
The North is a special case, which is simpler: Hughes threw all the nobles into the court of judgment, and the land naturally appeared.
Of course, there are also those like Grand Duke Alvarez, who voluntarily handed over all the land deeds before they even had a chance to throw them away.
Shops need to be rented, but personal housing is different.
The housing in Castel was built in a cluster, and there were all kinds of housing, including single rooms in churches, two-story detached houses in the community, and even taller buildings, such as villas.
These houses can be purchased by individuals based on their home purchase qualifications, and the price is really cheap, just the cost of construction—houses are cheap things, what's expensive is the land.
Once these houses are sold, the individual can own them for life, and even after their death, their legal heirs have the absolute right of first refusal.
Yes, it's just the right to buy. Everyone has to buy their own house, which on average costs about a year's salary.
Nora's house is relatively cheaper because her room is smaller.
She chose to live in the residential area within Castel Cathedral, mainly for convenience.
Nora wasn't short of money. Although she didn't have many regular jobs, she also didn't have many places to spend money.
In addition, she received a stipend while at the testing site, and Gaia even made a special application to help her obtain the special funds for experimental animals, which were then distributed to her.
This makes sense, since her participation in the experiment would indeed save the testing grounds the cost of purchasing coyotes.
But Nora ultimately chose the small room.
She's now just a head; a big room is useless to her, and cleaning it is a huge hassle.
Given Nora's stubbornness, she had no choice but to ask Monica or Gaia to help out occasionally. In fact, Hughes also planned to send someone to clean regularly, but Nora refused.
Sometimes they would bring some sweet fruit wine over, and grill some meat in the house, chatting while eating. Chloe would also come over for a visit, but she couldn't help with cleaning or eating the meat.
However, it's happened less often lately—once, a few of them got drunk and fell into a barrel of liquor. One of their heads was bubbling around inside, and if she hadn't survived, she probably would have drowned.
Chloe fell in while trying to save Nora, and there are still wine stains on her diary. She's been secretly washing them for a long time but hasn't been able to get them off.
Aside from the hassle of cleaning, another reason is that Nora somewhat likes it here.
The churches of the Silent Church have always been small. Stone is hard to find in the North, and the land is cold all day long, so people prefer to huddle together in small houses for warmth.
Nora had both love and hate for that land, but the tradition remained. She loved the thick concrete walls and narrow windows of Castel Cathedral, and even though the room was a little dark, she only felt warm with her companions.
"Uh, Lady Helena, you don't need to help me clean. Monica and Gaia are helping to watch over my place."
The Silent Sanctuary also has a tradition of mutual assistance; people in frigid places always tend to be closer together.
Helena didn't say anything. She just patted Nora's head, walked to Nora's room, and opened the door.
That was Nora's little home. She didn't have many things, but it was always tidy and organized. There was a small bed with a big pillow and a thick quilt. You could see it as soon as you opened the door. There was also an empty flowerpot on the windowsill.
—That's how it should be.
Nora, nestled against Helena's chest, stared at the people in the room, momentarily stunned.
In the center, Monica carefully holds a large cake with six hands, which is beautifully decorated with various fruits and a fish head.
Gaia and Hughes clapped on the side, Chloe bounced on Gwen's head, Grisha peeked over using his steel prosthetic leg, and the Temple's Burialers crowded into the room, making a jumble of celebratory noises.
Happy birthday, Nora!
The candles on the cake flickered, casting a glow on Nora's stunned face. The people in the room struggled to make way for her, singing songs to celebrate.
The people here come from all walks of life, and the birthday songs they sing to her are all different tunes. Hughes even sings the version of "Happy Birthday" from Earth.
But the song, mixed with laughter and out of tune, made Nora's nose tingle with emotion.
She speculated on many possibilities, but forgot that today was her birthday.
Nora had been fighting in the North with the resistance army, and after returning, she went to the front lines to fight the Empire. She had long forgotten when her last birthday was.
Perhaps it was the quiet prayers I had as a child in church, preparing a more substantial dinner for myself, or perhaps it was something I neglected in my daily busyness.
"Why did you come here? Is this for me? I mean, this is clearly unimportant."
Nora spoke somewhat incoherently, no longer displaying her usual composure. She was flustered and instinctively wanted to refuse, but her heart was filled with emotion, and her face flushed slightly.
Helena looked down at Nora, chuckled, and gently patted the top of her head.
"Little Nora, hurry up and blow out the candles on the cake."
"Blow out... blow out the candles?"
“Ah, that’s a tradition from where we’re from,” Hughes said with a smile. “On your birthday, you make a wish and then blow out all the candles in one go!”
"Yes, really?" Nora stammered. "My...my wish is..."
"Don't say it out loud, or it won't work. Close your eyes and make a wish!"
Nora quickly closed her eyes, and the room fell silent. The candlelight flickered, casting shadows on everyone's faces.
"Okay!"
Nora's eyes crinkled into a smile, and she puffed out her cheeks to blow out the candle.
"As expected of a superhuman, I couldn't blow out all these candles in one breath," Hughes exclaimed.
The people inside cheered.
(End of this chapter)
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