Caesar was pointing at one of the most eligible bachelor pads in this street. The house was a two-story building with a balcony. It had two large rooms with each its own bathroom.
The house was made out of cement, an imported product that was much stronger than stone and wouldn't burn easily. It was also retro-fitted to have basic electricity lights, a very luxurious addition in the house.
Beside the house itself, its location in the town was also one of the best. It was only a few streets from the business area, which meant that if the tenant was an office worker, they could walk to their jobs and wouldn't have to pay for carriages.
Not only that, it was sandwiched right in the middle of one of the busiest parts of the town. There were restaurants and bars just walking distance away from the house.
It was a very valuable house that many people would be willing to buy or rent. The only reason why no one was currently living in this house was that the previous tenant was moving to another town.
Erica scoffed. This poor teenager kid who didn't have fresh clothes was planning to rent this house? Does he not know the concept of money?
"Listen here kid, to rent this house, you have to pay 20,000 Parou per month! Parou is the currency that you need to have to buy something, understand? Now, go back to your house and stop bothering me."
Erica almost pitied the kid. She thought that Caesar was so stupid that his parents didn't taught him that he can't have anything in this world without paying for it. Why else would he even say that he wants to rent this expensive house?
"Would this change your mind?" Caesar said as he spread out ten sheets of money in his hands each worth 1,000 coins.
Erica's eyes widened as soon as she saw the money in Caesar's hands. Her eyes subconsciously counted the money and figured out that there were 10,000 coins in Caesar's hands.
She never expected a kid like Caesar to have that kind of money in hand. Especially since Caesar looked like he was from the South part of the town, where poverty was the norm.
Most of the teenagers she knew who worked part-time only earned about 5,000 coins per month. And that was from teenagers who are in university and from a middle-class family.
Caesar definitely didn't seem like he was educated or was from a middle-class family. Therefore, there was only one conclusion in Erica's mind: Caesar stole the money.
"Where did you get that? Return that money now or else I'm calling the police!" she shouted.
Caesar shook his head. "I earned this money myself. I didn't steal it."
Erica saw the clear eyes of Caesar and hesitated. Those eyes didn't seem like the thief or crook type. However, how else could Caesar have gotten the money?
"Did you steal it from your parents? Did you find it on the street? Or wait…did you sell your body?!"
Caesar almost laughed at Erica's imagination. "It doesn't matter where I got the money. What matters is that I want to rent this place."
Erica looked at Caesar and saw that he was being serious. Why would a kid, who suddenly got all this money, be spending all of his money for a house that is way over his pay-grade.
Even if Caesar rented this house, would he be able to sustain it? He would have to pay P20,000 every month, which added up to 240,000 Parou a year.
"I won't rent it to you, kid. Trust me, use that money for something else rather than one fast-fleeting moment of living in this house. Enroll in some academy or save up," Erica said with genuine advice.
"Is the reason why you won't rent it to me because of my appearance?"
Erica sighed. "Yes. As a real-estate agent, I have to make sure that my tenants stay in my house for a long time. This is the only way that I would make profit. Do you know how much I paid for this house?"
What Erica said was true. She was still paying off her debt for this house, which is the strategy most real estate agents do. They were relying on the rent money that tenants give them to pay for the debt.
They were on a tight schedule, and if there was one month that there wasn't a tenant in the house, they would lose money and have to pay for the debt themselves. She needs someone who was willing to stay long-term.
"Do you understand?" Erica said as she looked at her watch. She was late on schedule and needed to go back to her office for paperwork she needed to file.
Just as she was about to turn around, Caesar spoke.
"Article 13, section 5 of the ethical code of standards for Real Estate agents: One must not discriminate against a person willing to buy or rent a property."
Erica stopped and confusion hit her face. That was a real code of standard in the business of real estate agents. These were rules that they had sworn to uphold once they received their license.
"I could report this to the Association of Real Estate agents and make you pay a fine. They could suspend your license, or even worse, you would be disbarred."
Caesar's threat sent a thrill in Erica's spine. Being disbarred meant that she would lose her license and will not be able to work as a real estate agent ever again. She would lose her job permanently.
"How do you know that?!" Erica asked intensely.
"I read a lot of books," Caesar replied casually.
Erica couldn't believe it. Even if Caesar did read a lot of books, how could he pull that specific code right on the spot. Did he memorize every single line in that book? That's impossible!
But it was possible. As stated before, Caesar's mind was absolutely sharp and genius. It was only a small feat to remember every single detail as long as he saw it once.
For almost all of the years in Caesar's life, he had nothing better to do. He couldn't earn money because of his age and the only thing he could do was go to the library and read every book there.
He could recite every law, every code and standard of every job. Either it being about lawyers, engineers, doctors, and even real estate agents, he knew everything about them.
"I don't know how you know those codes, but there's another reason why I can rent you this house—and that is money. You only have 10,000 coins. This house is rented for 20,000 coins per month."
Caesar nodded. "I know. But this is not the only payment I can make. I can give you what you want."
Erica frowned. Whatever Caesar was promising, it sounded like it was illegal. Erica's mind wandered and she came to a conclusion that disgusted her.
"What? Are you trying to sell your body to me?" Erica had a disgusted look on her face.
Caesar snickered and shook his head. "Why does your head go to that conclusion every time? No, I'm offering you something that you desperately need."
Erica frowned and thought to herself. What does she need? Money, but the kid definitely can't give her more money. A new contract? A better scenery in her house? What does she need, even the person herself can't figure out.
"Let me help you realize it. Do you sleep well? Do you feel like you can close your eyes and instantly sleep? Can you sit in one place without having the urge to do something?"
Erica scratched her chin as she was in deep thought. What the kid said was right. She couldn't sleep at night without having to use sleeping pills, and she always has to move her feet every time. She gets insomnia, headaches, and irritation these days.
Does Caesar have the cure for her illness?
"Let me clarify. You don't have a disease. What you have is stress."
With Caesar's words, everything inside Erica's mind clicked. The reason why she can't sleep, why she can't stay still, and why she was feeling ill. It was all because she was stressed at work.
There were some shady people she was dealing with who were putting pressure on her. She also has to make sure that Theresa's dream home can't be sold yet. Everything was piling up on her.
"What you need is stress relief. What you need…" Caesar said as he took out something from his pocket, "what you need is Joy."