Chapter 116 A Surprising Owner
Weakening the adaptability of the players and making them dependent on himself would allow Arthur to take the most advantage.
Not only would it allow him to reap more profits, but it would also raise his reputation.
Of course, the players didn't know the harm they were getting by using the guides. It was basically the same as spoon feeding them and stunting their growth in the long term.
"That should be fine for now…" Arthur said as he looked out of the window.
The streets and buildings had changed and looked a lot better than the place Arthur was in before.
"Certainly a better place to live than my shoebox apartment…" Arthur muttered to himself as the bus finally came to a stop.
He put away his smartphone and got down from the bus.
"Hmm… it should be this way," Arthur looked at the map on his phone and followed the navigation.
The Apartment building he was headed to was just a couple minutes from the bus stop and was easy to get to. The building was about twenty stories tall and had a small garden outside it.
Several wisteria trees adorned the garden while freshly watered grass could be seen shimmering under the sunlight.
The vast difference between Arthur's current apartment building and the one he was looking at was astounding. The nameplate of the apartment hung above the wide entrance as if announcing to everyone.
"Wisteria Apartments." Arthur read the name, finding it to be pleasing. "Let's head in," he muttered before entering the lobby of the building.
"Excuse me!" The concierge sitting in the lobby called out to Arthur upon spotting him.
"Ah yes, I believe I have an appointment for an open house?" Arthur replied.
"Are you Arthur Grey?" The concierge said after looking through the register on a tablet screen.
"Yes, that's me." Arthur nodded his head.
"Alright, can you wait a few minutes? The property manager will be here with your shortly." The concierge requested.
"Sure." Arthur took a seat on the couch while looking around.
The lobby of the apartment building looked rather pleasant and had white and golden embellishments. A fish tank was embedded into the wall on one side, while several colorful fishes swam in it.
On the wall opposite the fish tank, a few plants were kept. The plants all had flowers and vines also hung down from them, adding to the beauty of the lobby.
'This is a bit too good for an apartment building lobby, isn't it?' Arthur couldn't help but think.
To him, it felt more like a hotel lobby instead.
While there were indeed apartment buildings with lobbies like this, it was usually in upscale ones. Wisteria Apartments might be better than most others, but they weren't exactly 'upscale'.
If they were, the cost of renting would be a lot higher. This ended up making Arthur wonder about a few other things.
'They aren't gonna flip the price or something, are they?' Arthur had doubts.
He didn't want the price to change after he came to take a look after all. While it was rare, there were sometimes listings that changed prices once someone came to take a look, or they would hide the extra charges behind it.
For example, the base rent would be 2000 UC, then there would be extra fees like building maintenance fees, cleaning fees, management fees and more.
Arthur felt a bit anxious after thinking about this and wondered if he should look at more alternatives.
"Hello, are you Arthur Grey?" but just a moment later, Arthur heard a person.
He looked up and saw a middle aged man that was dressed in a work suit.
"Ah yes, that's me." Arthur stood up.
"Good to meet you. I am the property manager for Wisteria apartments. You can call me Johan." The man smiled while extending his hand in greeting.
Arthur shook the man's hand, feeling a bit more at ease. He could see no judgment in the eyes of the man, and he seemed to have a professional attitude. Having spent years observing people, Arthur knew when others looked down on him.
It was something he had somewhat gotten used to, but it was still an irritating thing.
But being treated like a normal person was refreshing.
"Let's go take a look at the place, shall we?" Johan said, maintaining his smile.
"Alright." Arthur gave a nod and walked alongside the man.
"This place is nice." Arthur spoke. "I don't think I've seen many apartment buildings with decor this good."
"I'm pleased to hear that. Our owner has a hobby of doing decor and design. She personally picks and directs the decor." Johan replied. "This is her fifth building that she's designed and possibly the best in my opinion."
"Oh?" Arthur was surprised.
Arthur could easily guess that the price of property here wouldn't be cheap at all. Thus anyone who could own a place like this would be very rich, not to mention having multiple buildings. People like them wouldn't do work like this themselves and would hire other professionals to decorate.
"Yes, many people are surprised by it." Johan nodded.
"Who is the owner though? I didn't see the name anywhere on the rental site." Arthur inquired.
"Do you know about Martel Holdings?" Johan replied.
"Yes… they own several businesses and are even an investor in Starfall City." Arthur recognized the name easily.
"You are correct," Johan confirmed. "The owner is Miss Felicia of Martel Holdings." He revealed.
As soon as Arthur heard that, his eyes went wide.
"Felicia Martel? The third daughter of Arnold Martel?" Arthur tried to maintain his composure, but the surprise was evident in his tone.
"Indeed," Johan responded, though he seemed to be a bit surprised too. "How do you know about Miss Felicia though? She doesn't really appear in the open that much…" he asked.
Arthur couldn't help but wondered what kind of luck this was.
'Felicia Martel is one of the top players in Morpheus too! And also the second ranked healer!' Arthur remembered.