Never Die Extra

Evan D Sherden’s People (5)

The construction progressed day by day, and the children were striving for a level of martial arts that felt natural to them. Time went by quickly, and it soon became January. Arisha came to the dungeon city to celebrate her birthday.

“Congratulations to Arisha von Pellati’s thirteenth birthday!”

“Congratulations!”

“Congratulations, young lady!”

“Cheers!” It was a birthday party in which only the Marquis’s people and the children participated without much publicity. For Arisha, however, it was more special than ever. The reason was simple: everything around her had changed. If Count Melto knew her heart, he might be a little disappointed, but that was Arisha’s true intentions, so that it couldn’t be helped.

“Happy birthday, Arisha.”

“Thank you, Evan.” There were two gifts Evan had prepared for her. The first was Arisha’s custom-made clothes he had requested from the boutique on the royal road. It was a dress that could be worn as casual wear, made of pure white fabric and accented by a gold ribbon around the neck, shoulders, and waist. It was a design originally from a woman’s wear seen in modern times, but the designer had transformed it into a wonderful dress. Arisha had a small but clear smile as she held the dress in her arms.

“Now, I can share those memories too.”

“Don’t bring it up.’ Evan drew his lips together. At her request, Evan, Shine, and Belois were all wearing matching clothes from the royal road.

“I’ll change into them right away.”

“Uh…” Excited with her gift, she headed straight into the dressing room without giving Evan any time to hand her the second gift. Shine shrugged as he watched her leave.

“I’ve never seen Miss Arisha smile so purely.”

“Not even when she was younger?”

“Hahah, not since she first came to our mansion. Evan, that’s how you changed her.”

“Isn’t that Arisha’s own growth?” Evan secretly questioned his father. The Marquis had to have been on Evan’s side; he wasn’t setting up some secret engagement date without telling Evan.

“I’m here.” But before Evan could pursue that line of thought further, Arisha returned. Indeed, the workmanship was outstanding, resulting in a perfect dress that perfectly fit Arisha. Perhaps its ability to adjust the size according to the wearer played a part in that.

“…Pretty.”

“I know… but thank you.” When it came to Arisha, it didn’t matter what clothes she was wearing; she could make any of them look good. The dress harmonized with her platinum hair, however, giving her a fairy-like quality.

“I’ll wear it on important days in the future.”

“Don’t wear it in the dungeon…oh, this too. The rapier I promised.” Even Evan became embarrassed for nothing, which was a rare but joyous sight to Arisha. However, he hurriedly brought out the second gift to hide his shyness, astonishing all people present.

“…It really became an artifact.”

“Yes, I was lucky.” The first weapon produced by Evan and Horta Benus was a rapier made of the magic metal ‘Arisha,’ reborn as an artifact.

“Is it okay to end by saying you were lucky with this?!”

“I had a hard time with Horta because we set today as the production deadline. I’m glad we made it somehow, though. With the potential of the metal, we were able to reach the realm of artifacts.” Others began to awaken to the unbelievable news that a natural artifact had been born today.

“An artifact created by Evan…”

“It wasn’t made by me, but by Horta Benus, my exclusive blacksmith…oh, but that’s confidential for the time being. For now, there’s no good to come from other people hearing about this.” Evan calmed the people around him, but nonetheless, some of the party’s participants still looked at the rapier with subtle expressions. In particular, Belois was struggling to rid herself of jealousy, knowing that Evan had made the first artifact for Arisha.

“…Thank you so much. I will use it carefully.”

“It’s a weapon, so you shouldn’t. Besides, that’s an advanced artifact, but it won’t last forever. If you head down to the 60th floor of the dungeon, I will make a better one.”

“The 60th floor…”

“The 60th floor…” For others, that was as good as saying it would last a lifetime. Arisha smiled and held the rapier as Evan’s words defied common sense. At that moment, it felt as if a refreshing wind moved around her.

“…Ah.” The rapier responded to her, as if recognizing her as its owner, and created a cool flow of air. She felt lighter as the peculiar flow of mana in the rapier of the whirlwind flowed through her. She could tell it would strengthen her magic swordsmanship.

“Now, Evan is creating artifacts himself.”

“I didn’t make it myself.”

“Young master, I really want one.”

“You have twin blood.”

“…Young master.”

“Oh, well. I’ll make yours someday.”

“…Hm.” While Shine, Belois, and the other children clung to Evan with sad expressions, Arisha laughed and cradled the rapier.

***

Two weeks passed, and by the end of January, the HQ of the dungeon knights was finally completed.

“It’s done!”

“Everyone worked hard!”

“Wow…it really came out just like the blueprint.”

“We were able to build it because of the perfect design!” It was a seven-story building (nine including the two basement levels), equipped with a spacious training center that would be the core of the dungeon knight’s HQ. It, of course, also had private rooms and lounges for individual members, as well as a kitchen and dining hall, and a reception room for guests. It was a fully modern building. Since the dungeon knights hadn’t become official yet, the sign hadn’t been attached, so no one knew that this would become the HQ of the dungeon knights led by Evan.

“A masterpiece! A masterpiece born with master’s deep knowledge, the essence of modern architecture, and magical engineering!”

“I feel like my skills have grown just by being involved in this work. I will continue to work hard!” Evan had spent a lot of time overseeing the construction, spending long nights working with the engineers. He had made sure to pay out bonuses to the workers. Additionally, he had magicians hired by the Marquis fill out the interior of the building. He could say with confidence that this building was perfect.

“You’ve been working hard. In the future, this building will be a symbol of the dungeon city, along with the Brotherhood Bathhouse!”

“No, it’s nearby, but could you not lump it in with the bathhouse?”

“Haha, wasn’t that also made by you?” The others laughed at Evan’s words, saying they admired his excellent sense of humor. Of course, that made him feel worse. It was Shine, who was looking up at the building beside him, that saved him.

“It’s the first time I’ve been overwhelmed by looking at a building, young master. Even looking at the palace didn’t surprise me this much. But this…it feels like something out of human perception.”

“Oh, your senses are sharp as expected. That’s right. This building has various secret spaces built into it, achieving incredible convenience and complete security. In particular, everyone will be surprised to hear of the security applied to the dressing room. There is a trap from the moment you go up to the top floor hallway…”

“Ah, I’ve heard it 367 times already, so you can stop explaining it, master.” While building the HQ, Evan had fully exercised the privileges of the dungeon knight commander. That was, the whole seventh floor had been converted into his own private space. Indeed, it was a shameless abuse of authority, but in the first place, he had built the HQ with his money. There were some complaints raised that the building shouldn’t go higher than what the Marquis had built, but all of those had been resolved by the Marquis.

“I have rooms for all of you. The sixth floor is for executives. Raihan, Shine, Belois, and Arisha can choose their own rooms on the sixth floor. For reference, each room on the executive floor has its own shower room.”

“…Master, have you divided them by class?”

“Huh. The fifth floor is equipped with training facilities, and the fourth floor has room for regulars. The children will use that one.” On the first and second floors were various amenities, including a restaurant and parlor, as well as a room for servants who would work at the lodge. Because he was planning to expand the knights, there were still thirty rooms remaining at this point.

“…We would have had enough room if you stopped at the fourth floor.”

“No, I wanted to build it high…” Evan turned to avoid Shine’s gaze. He thought it was a bit silly himself, but when someone else put that in words, it became unbearable. Even Belois’s gaze, expressionless as always, stung.

“It’s the fourth floor, kids!”

“Woaaaahhh!” Meanwhile, the children were excited to see the massive building and ran in. They probably intended to find the best room, but they had already been decided upon.

“Ah, Lin and Ran. There’s a shared room prepared for you. Would you prefer that one?”

“Yes!”

“Thank you, Master!”

“These guys.” Lin forced Ran to bow her head to Evan. Evan gently pinched their cheeks and let them in with a wicked smile.

“They are smiling naively because they don’t know the hell that awaits them.”

“It’s really scary when you say something like that.” In the future, the children would have to practice a lot while living in this dorm. Evan had already devised a schedule that made the most use of their time.

“…Young master, let’s go in.”

“Yes, let’s.” However, when he tried to enter the building, he felt someone rush up from behind. Looking back, it was a knight belonging to the Ironwall Knights.

“Young master!” The knight ran up to him and whispered quietly to him.

“They have returned. Everyone has returned safely.”