Some hours later, Luke found himself truly penniless. He didn't even have money to buy data on his phone and had to look up house rental information on a computer instead.
Among the mass of advertisements, he randomly picked a few that were near the police station. Showing no regard for work hours, he threw on his jacket and left the workplace.
As for Dawson's investigation, Luke didn't have high expectations. If just a few of his words could solve a cold case that had been plaguing the Special Crimes Unit for ten years, it would really be the joke of the century!
Executed by lethal injection but having escaped death and crossed over, and then obtaining the technical, so-called Crime System had put Luke in a great mood. As he strolled down the street, the sun beamed upon him warmly as he walked with an extra spring in his step.
He started realizing that being a crime detective might not be so bad. Catching criminals and getting rewards, not to mention some special privileges. That kind of life did not sound bad at all!
Maybe it would be better to stick around for a bit, and not think about going back to his old business just yet.
Luke's first rental possibility was in a shopping district near the police station. The house was being advertised by a shopfront called Dalton Fruit Company.
The owner was a pale, fat man named James Dalton. He was highly personable and was often laughing. Seeing Luke arrive with the advertisement, he hurried forward and greeted him warmly.
As it turned out, James's fruit shop was located within a standalone three-story building. The first floor was the shop, the second was his own home, and the third floor was an open space spanning about sixty square meters. Conveniently, the man wanted to rent it out.
Luke looked around and decided he really liked this place. One, because it was convenient for traveling. Two, because there weren't any tandoor places or other food stands around to disturb his sleep at night. Lastly, the house was even furnished, allowing him to move in immediately.
The chubby James also suggestively told Luke that the neighboring shopfront was similar to his own, with a few college students living upstairs. "The students are like models, if you rent my room, you might even be able to take care of some of your…personal issues!"
Through the bars on the balcony, Luke indeed saw many feminine articles of clothing that were being hung dry on a drying rack.
'Wow! Nice place!'
His eyes narrowed at the idea, his thoughts were decided. "The place I need is this place right here, right now!"
Luke asked for the price and was immediately shocked. The house was more than three-thousand dollars a month, and must be paid biannually. Right now, he wouldn't be able to pay that much!
"Any discount?" he asked.
James Dalton was also very straightforward and immediately nodded, "Then 3,980 dollars! If it's too much, you can also pay seasonally instead!"
"Holy Moly!" Luke immediately started cursing, "Is this place so expensive? Is this a robbery? I'll tell you now, as a policeman, I can arrest you now! Do you believe me?"
But James knew the rules, "There's nothing wrong with me renting out my property. Why would I be afraid of you? This is downtown–the perfect area. Not to mention the daily eye candy. My price is already dirt cheap! If you don't want it, fine, I've got a line waiting for it!"
"Jesus! Who the hell do you think you are? I don't want it, then!" Luke cursed angrily as he left the fruit shop, mumbling to himself, "If this were my previous life, I'd have already gotten a bunch of people and wrecked the shop! You'd have to pay me to live there!"
Hmph!
Luke left the shop angrily. His good mood had been killed by the stupid fatty. He walked into a cheeseburger stall and ate three cheeseburgers before he felt like he had let off some steam.
If that one wouldn't work, then he had to go to his backup. The other house was a boarding room for rent. To get there, Luke had to cross through the narrow gullies in the L.C. District.
This area looked just like his previous world. He had often brawled in these gullies, and knew the area like the back of his hand. Luke easily found a shortcut.
It was exactly noon, the residents were all preparing or eating their lunch. The gully was basically empty.
As he crossed through, Luke suddenly saw a suspicious shadow running through one of the gullies. He wasn't sure why, but he reflexively hid before whoever it was saw him.