Life Dungeon Game

This bus route is one of the longest in the entire city of Witland, spanning the Plant, St. Roth, and North Witland districts.

The route passes through Plante's old industrial district, several working-class neighborhoods, several prestigious private schools in St. Rothschild, and finally returns to North Witland, passing the city council building, the Ellensard Palace where the mayor of Witland resides, and the University of Witland.

This route is not only a regular bus route, but also an important tourist route in Witland. Many budget travelers choose this bus route to see most of the sights of Witland for the least amount of money.

Since it's a sightseeing route, the fare calculation method for this route is different from other bus routes.

In Witland, there are two types of buses: a cheaper, self-driving yellow bus and an more expensive, manually driven blue bus.

The prices are 1 Federal Dollar and 1.5 Federal Dollars respectively.

Of course, you can also subscribe for a month. The monthly price for the yellow bus is 75 Federal Dollars, and the monthly price for the blue bus is 97 Federal Dollars. You can ride unlimited times during the monthly subscription period.

Both types of buses allow passengers to transfer to other buses at half price within one hour of boarding. However, yellow buses can only be transferred to other yellow buses, while blue buses can be transferred to either blue or yellow buses, but the price will still be calculated at half price as for blue buses.

The bus route that He Ao is currently on is slightly different from ordinary bus routes.

The fare for boarding and alighting within the zone is the same as for regular public transportation. For example, if you board and alight in Plant District, the fare is the same as for regular public transportation, which is 1 or 1.5 Federal Dollars.

However, if you cross district boundaries, you will have to pay an additional half-price ticket for each additional district you cross.

For example, the yellow bus that Heo is currently riding normally costs 1 federal dollar, but this time he boarded at the station in Plant's old industrial area and will ride all the way to North Witland, crossing two districts, so he will have to pay an extra full-price ticket, which will cost 2 federal dollars.

But this wasn't actually the first time 'Jayce' had taken this line. During his high school years, Jayce often took this bus home.

However, Jess had never taken the 2 Federal Dollar route before, because he always boarded at Trison High School in the St. Rothschild District and rode to his home in North Witland District, crossing only one district, so he only had to pay an extra half-price ticket, making the total cost 1.5 Federal Dollars.

As the bus approached the edge of Plante district, the faces of the passengers changed.

The number of workers gradually decreased, while the number of students gradually increased; these students all went to school in the St. Roth district from Plante district.

Some private primary and secondary schools offer boarding services, so these students live at school and go home every weekend because they live too far from home.

Today is Sunday, and they need to get to school the night before so they can make it to school for the morning classes the next day.

Of course, such homestay services also...

Not all students from ordinary families can enjoy this; even the four-person or six-person dormitories at the school are not cheap.

Of course, compared to the high tuition fees of private schools, these boarding fees are not too much.

Some schools reduce or waive boarding fees for students with exceptionally high grades to help those from impoverished backgrounds with their studies, while also improving the school's college admission rate.

However, such students are ultimately a minority.

Therefore, students who can attend private schools in St. Rothschild generally come from well-off families, even if they live in the Plant area.

The students' school uniforms were generally neat and clean, and some even had personalized alterations.

In addition to students, some young people dressed in formal attire also boarded the bus.

They were company employees working the night shift in the St. Rothschild district. Although they worked among the bustling buildings, their wages were not enough to cover the rent they paid for living near these high-rises.

Therefore, they mostly live in Plantation, where rents are lower and the safety and living conditions are worse.

Every day, I often spend several hours commuting by bus or subway.

Students chatted about the latest idols and the most popular figures on campus, while office workers leaned back in their chairs, dozing off and looking at news or videos on their smartwatches.

The bus moved slowly forward, with people getting on and off.

He passed through old residential areas, bustling company buildings, and magnificent parliament buildings before finally arriving near Whitland University, where he got off at the North Gate station.

Starting from the bus stop, walk a few hundred meters ahead, and you'll find a quiet apartment building.

This is where Jess's parents lived, and where Jess grew up.

He Ao, clutching the cloth bag, walked into the apartment building, his figure disappearing into the darkness.

This is also where Jess's mother committed suicide.

Chapter 569 Side by Side (Long Chapter, Requesting Monthly Tickets)

There were also hidden sentries near the apartment building, lurking in dark corners and watching everyone who entered the building.

The room where Jess's parents were looking.

However, since the main force of the mercenaries was wiped out by He Ao in that abandoned building, the mysterious man's forces are probably not enough.

There weren't many sentries monitoring Jess's parents' residence; they were only stationed in a few key locations.

They thought they were hiding in the darkness, but in He'ao's sight, they were extremely conspicuous.

He quickly bypassed several obvious checkpoints, then hid in the blind spot of a hidden sentry in a nearby apartment, and entered the apartment building where Jess's parents lived.

This apartment building is somewhat old and was developed by the real estate company affiliated with Waitland University. Professors and faculty members working on campus can enjoy certain discounts when purchasing a property.

Back then, Jess was young and had saved some money, which he and his wife took out a loan to buy this apartment building.

Later, thanks to the father's increasing income and the mother's royalties, the couple was able to pay off their mortgage.

Although professors at Waitland University belong to the higher-income group, their salaries are actually not as high as those of truly high-income earners.

Even after obtaining a professorship, the salary from Waitland University was only 150,000 federal dollars. However, Jess's father often helped companies with some simple projects or served as a consultant for some companies, receiving consulting allowances.

In summary, after Jess's father became a professor, his annual income was between $35 and $45.

When he was younger, his income was even worse, at around 100,000 federal dollars.

This income actually exceeds that of the vast majority of federal residents, but it is still slightly insufficient compared to the average house price of 20,000 federal dollars per square meter in North Witland.

In particular, the price of the apartment they purchased was even higher due to its proximity to Whitland University, reaching as high as 34000 federal dollars per square meter even after enjoying the teacher discount.

The apartment building that Jess's parents bought, which is over 90 square meters, cost around 340 million federal dollars including tax. In addition, the property tax is 1.7% of the total property price every year.

Because property tax is levied based on government valuation rather than the purchase price, Jess's parents, who received a discount, paid a higher property tax than if the tax were calculated based on the purchase price, approximately 70,000 federal dollars.

If it weren't for Jess's father's consistently successful career and his mother's substantial royalties as a bestselling author, the couple might not have been able to afford this house.

Even so, the two didn't pay off their mortgage until Jess was about to start high school.

During that time, the couple didn't actually save much money because they had to pay for Jess's expensive private school tuition.

Once their lives stabilized, aside from keeping some savings for investment or as a reserve, Jess's parents donated almost all of the remaining money to help people in need.

Jess's philanthropic habits were formed during that period of time through constant exposure to his surroundings.

As the elevator in the apartment building rapidly displayed the floor number on the monitor...

Changes occurred, and Jess's past memories flashed through Heo's mind like phantoms.

Finally, the elevator stopped on the fifth floor, where Jess's parents lived.

He Ao looked at the familiar door, walked over step by step, and verified his face and fingerprints.

With a mechanical turning sound, the door opened.

A gentle female voice echoed in He Ao's ears.

"Welcome home, Jess~"

He Ao paused for a moment, then pushed open the door and entered the room.

Jess's mother has a somewhat eccentric personality and often has wildly imaginative ideas. Jess's father doesn't stop his wife from doing these seemingly outlandish things; in fact, he often supports her creativity.

The two encountered many obstacles in their efforts.

This recording, placed inside the smart lock, is the work of Jess's mother.

Although most smart locks in the Federation support customized unlocking voices, these voices are usually played as voice packs of certain idol stars.

But one day, when Jayce's mother saw him come home, she suddenly wanted to record a voice message for him, saying that she wanted to help Jayce find the feeling of coming home.

Then Jess's father immediately agreed. The two men, both in their fifties, spent an afternoon recording, selecting the best voice and setting it as the unlocking voice for the smart lock.

Although Jess felt the voice was too embarrassing afterward and strongly requested his mother to change it, the voice was ultimately kept.

On the afternoon this voice was recorded, the mother's voice was as happy as a child's. Her son, who was working on his computer, was sitting not far in front of her, and her husband, who was standing behind her, was cheering her on.

The afternoon sun was warm, and its golden rays spread evenly across the floor.

He Ao walked into the house and slowly closed the door.

He didn't turn on the light; in the dark, his vision was even better than under artificial light.

The room was simply furnished, with light-colored floors, light-colored sofas, and the necessary furniture neatly arranged throughout.

Jess's parents didn't have high demands for life, so the furnishings in their home were very simple.

The most expensive thing in the whole house is the bookshelf that fills an entire wall in my parents' study.

In the federal government, paper books are expensive and rare; unless you go to a large library in the city center, it's difficult to see a dense collection of paper books in your daily life.

He Ao's hand rested on the light-colored sofa, where some dust had already settled in the crevices.

It has been a year since Jess last returned here.

Although a home cleaning robot has been cleaning throughout the year, its cleaning capabilities are always limited, and some crevices or corners are difficult to clean.

Since his mental health deteriorated, Jess has been returning here less and less frequently. Every time he comes back, he just sits on the sofa in a daze, trying to regain his senses, and it's hard for him to pay attention to any changes in the house.

He Ao turned his gaze away from the simply decorated living room and walked toward the study next door.

He gently pushed open the study door, and an exquisite bookcase covering an entire wall appeared before him.

The books on the bookshelf, densely packed with books, represent Jess's father's lifelong collection.

In fact

After his mother's death, Jess had searched the entire study in search of clues about his parents' deaths.

While cleaning the house with his wife, they also searched all the other corners of the house, but found virtually no clues.

At first, Jess thought his father would leave the book containing occult knowledge in the apartment, but he found nothing.

They did not obtain the book, nor did they obtain any research leads from their father.

Apart from the suicide note that his wife Tini later found in a crack in the bedroom closet, the mother left nothing else behind.

It seems that both of Jess's parents were unwilling to leave Jess any relevant information, preventing him from investigating the final truth.

Since then, Jess has given up searching for the apartment, only occasionally coming over to visit.

However, all of the above was based on the premise that Jess did not know what his father was doing, nor did he know what the mysterious person was funding his father for.