I Become a Landlady in the Game World

"I want to go," Allen quickly raised his hand.

"Me too, me too," the younger Jamie and Oston also eagerly raised their hands, even reaching up in front of Locke and Beth's faces, firmly asserting their presence.

They were much livelier than before.

Seeing his sons so cheerful, Locke felt a great sense of contentment.

He said warmly, "Since you have the day off, let your mother take you."

"Dad isn't going?" Allen couldn't help but ask. He felt that it was best when the whole family was together.

"Dad has some work to do these next few days, but once it's done, I'll accompany you," Locke reassured him, "Plus, I also played a part in these buildings' constructions. You can go and see them and, in the future, work hard to build up our territory just like me."

"Yeah, we know, the territory is our home, its development depends on everyone!" Allen recited the slogan without a second thought.

Locke was taken aback, then rubbed Allen's head, "Did they teach you that at school?"

"Yes," Allen said.

"Well, it's not just about remembering it, but also about doing it," Locke advised earnestly.

"Yeah!" Allen nodded vigorously. "Our teacher said that they would take us on practical lessons, to do planting, breeding, and so on. We'll learn skills and when we grow up, we can better protect our territory, our home—the big family relies on us all."

"Then you'd better work hard," Locke continued to encourage.

Beth, standing to the side, watched this scene with the corners of her mouth lifted ever so slightly.

It was too beautiful a scene; she didn't want to break it.

"Allen," just then, a childlike, crisp voice called out from nearby.

Hearing the familiar call, Allen looked over and immediately greeted with excitement, "Rijef!!!"

Following that, the two children hugged each other in the crowd, or more precisely, Allen enveloped Rijef in a one-sided embrace.

"Uncle, Auntie, hello," Rijef, not as tall as Allen, managed to extricate himself from Allen's embrace with some effort, then, his cheeks blushing, he shyly greeted Locke and Beth who were smiling at him, his face growing redder from embarrassment.

"Hello, Rijef," greeted Locke and Beth, then they turned to Rijef's parents, Brooke and Lola.

The children from both families were classmates; although the parents hadn't had deep contacts before, they were familiar with each other's faces.

Of course, everyone had been too busy to socialize much before.

After exchanging greetings, they naturally started chatting.

"Is your family also planning to take a look around?" Locke asked.

"Yes, I've been on rotation in the territory recently. When I heard about the upgrades in the territory, I decided to take my family for a walk in the territory, to rest a bit, and to have some fun," Brooke explained.

"Do you know what the new building is all about?" Locke questioned since he wasn't quite in the loop himself, because that was the City Construction Management Office's business, and they were mostly out and about, and he had been too busy to find time, so he hadn't had the chance to understand what was happening with those buildings. Knowing about these buildings was advanced notice for him.

"It's something I heard mentioned by a teammate in my Mercenary Team," Brooke said. "They used to be from Hope Village and knew the situation well. They mentioned it in passing."

"Could you tell me about it?"

"I only know about an amusement park. They said it's a place where both adults and kids can play freely. For the kids, it's like a paradise of fun, with all sorts of enjoyable little projects. Of course, there are also thrilling activities suitable for adults," Brooke elaborated. "Because I knew this, I decided to take my wife and kids out to have fun. I'm usually busy, and sometimes when I go out with the team, I'm gone for days at a time. Time spent with them is scarce."

Brooke's expression held a hint of wistfulness as he spoke.

Continuing as a mercenary meant less time with his family.

But the good thing about Hope Village was he could do his job without any worries.

"Why not choose a stable job then?" Locke asked spontaneously; he himself had grown tired of the mercenary lifestyle and had chosen to work in the territory.

He had thought it would be a hard adjustment, but once he started, he fell in love with his job and felt a strong sense of fulfillment.

"The reason I came to Hope Village was due to oppression in my previous territory, and life was hard. After coming to Hope Village, even though life improved, staying in the territory didn't give me a sense of security. I still wanted to become stronger, and of course, a mercenary earns more money and enjoys more freedom," Brooke explained simply, also hinting at his past.