Level Down 21 (Patreon)

Volume 1 Chapter 21 - Renovation

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Allen almost reflexively said that he didn't know him, but he managed to stop himself from saying that. Nera, who conquered the Demon Dungeon by himself, is now known to everyone in Lilac City. It was impossible that he didn’t know him.

“Uhh, you mean more than rumors, right?” (Allen)

“Yeah. Last night, we tracked him down and he went in this direction. He managed to shake us off on the way, and we searched all night after that, but we couldn't even find a clue. But there have been a lot of reports of his sightings in the slum area for some time now, so we think they live around here.” (Eric)

At Eric's words, Allen thought in his heart, ‘no wonder the voice sounded familiar,’ and was at a loss as to how to respond.

In particular, Allen did not commit any crimes while acting as Nera. He supposed jumping over the wall to go in and out of the city can be called a crime, but it's not like he's causing any trouble to anyone else. Well, there is a possibility that the patrolling soldiers would be punished if that was discovered, but at present, that doesn’t seem to be happening.

That's why Allen had no idea why the soldiers were looking for him.

“Or rather, why are you chasing him? Is he a criminal?” (Allen)

“No, as of now there is no evidence that he has committed a crime, but... Actually, the Lord has secretly ordered us to investigate him. He seems to be wary that a person who is capable of walking through dungeons on his own is from the slums.” (Eric)

“Aa─h, so it’s like that.” (Allen)

Eric told him in a whisper, and Allen was deeply convinced. Certainly, he could imagine that a person in power would be feeling uneasy at the existence of a powerful person who was not under his control with an unknown background, what’s more he was lurking in the slums.

If Allen had dangerous ideas and started a rebellion against the Lord, in all probability, he could accomplish it. Allen could easily imagine this because he knew Eric, who had the highest level of ability among the soldiers.

“Hmm. Sorry, but I don't know anything more than rumors. I've never seen him before either.” (Allen)

Allen responded while thinking ‘I can’t actually see myself, so it wasn't a lie,’ in his mind, and Eric simply replied, “I see,” and laughed a little, then got up from his seat.

“Sorry, Aniki. I asked you something strange. Well, I don't think there's any need to be that cautious myself, so don't worry about it. The food was delicious.” (Eric)

“Ou, come again, future knight-sama.” (Allen)

“Haha, then next time we meet, maybe I'll ask Aniki to prostrate before me.” (Eric)

“Like I’ll do it, i─diot.” (Allen)

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After exchanging such jokes, Allen and Eric parted ways. Allen saw off his younger brother who had grown up, and continued to stare at the closed door for a while.

After Eric left, Allen was thinking about Nera's future actions, but just as he was able to sort them out a bit, he remembered what he had been thinking about yesterday.

It's about his home repairs.

Regarding the gold coins, Allen had decided to keep them for emergencies, but his house was in tatters. It's located close to the slum, and the building itself was so tattered that even though he closed everything, cold air still comes in through the crack. Allen's nerves are not thick enough to calmly leave a large sum of money in such a place.

It's not like he can’t put them in the magic bag and always carry it with him, but partly due to a habit he had developed in his adventuring days, Allen thought it impossible to carry a large sum of money with him on a dungeon exploration where he might lose his life at any moment.

That was because if Allen left them at home, there was a chance that his remaining siblings would discover it and put it to good use, that would be better for him.

“I guess I’ll just have to renovate it. I should build a hidden room afterwards.” (Allen)

Having come to that conclusion, Allen began preparing to go out to the city to procure the things he needed.

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Since his recent days off were spent smithing with Dolban and going to the Demon Dungeon as Nera, he hasn't been walking around the city other than going to his regular shops, so he hasn't seen much of the city, but it hasn’t changed much from before.

Although it was obvious.

Allen walked slowly through the city while thinking about what he needed. This Lilac is one of the largest cities in the country, so even though it was a half-assed time at 10 a.m., the streets were lined with people who, like Allen, were out shopping or sightseeing. And stores are making strong calls to attract people.

(Even if I left the exterior as it is, as I thought, I’ll have to reupholster the whole interior. Is the basement the best place for the hidden room? The ground around there is solid, so it shouldn’t collapse. But first I should fix the leaks, right?) (Allen)

While window-shopping, Allen’s plans for the renovation were solidifying. By seeing the orphanage being repaired, he naturally understood how it should be repaired. As time went on, Allen gradually began to have fun. He's building a secret room, so he can't rely on others. In other words, Allen had to do everything by himself.

Up until now, Allen had been doing things like repairing the bad leaks himself because he didn't have the money, but he had never done any major renovations like this before. However, now that his stats had risen, he wanted to test how much he can do.

When Allen arrived at the lumber shop where he usually buys lumber to fix bad leaks, he was asked by a familiar clerk, “Fixing the leaks again?” and checked the items he needed while being chatted up by the talkative clerk.

He had been thoroughly refining his plans just a while ago, so he knew the approximate amount of materials. And just as he was thinking about buying them, he realized. That he shouldn’t buy them.

Although it was small to begin with, if he tried to renovate an entire house, he would need a considerable amount of lumber. It's not like he can't buy them with the money he has now, but if he were to buy them, he would stand out quite a bit. Because if Allen was planning to completely renovate his house, it would be natural for him to hire a carpenter.

Besides, Allen doesn't intend to do much to the exterior to prevent it from standing out. He realized that if the exterior still looked worn-out even though he had bought a lot of wood, it would be unnatural instead.

Allen was relieved that he realized this just before he failed, but at the same time his shoulders slumped as his plan stumbled from the beginning. Not buying anything after coming all this way would also be unnatural, so as usual, Allen only bought enough wood to repair the leak, and trudged back home.

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After arriving home and quickly repairing the roof, Allen decided to revise his plan.

Buying lumber normally at a lumber shop is impossible. If so, the only way is to obtain the lumber himself. But that has its own problem.

There is a forest outside Lilac City. However, it is the property of the Lord who governs Lilac. It's not a problem for licensed lumberjacks to cut down a set amount of trees, but cutting down trees without permission is, of course, a crime.

If he were to cut a tree in one go in the middle of the night as Nera, he might not be noticed, but it’s common knowledge that wood that was just cut contains a lot of moisture, so they cannot be used as building material.

It is common for new adventurers to make the mistake of trying to burn raw wood while taking on a request, such as when camping out, and Allen was well aware of this because he had actually experienced it.

He can't buy them. Cutting the trees himself is also impossible. After coming to that conclusion, ‘fuu,’ Allen let out a sigh.

“In that case, there's only one option after all. I'm a little worried since there are too many people there, but I’ll be wearing a mask and dressed differently, so I guess they won't be able to tell.” (Allen)

In fact, Allen was aware that rumors were spreading about a mysterious person who has been repeatedly conquering the Demon Dungeon alone, and that the Guild is also having trouble with inquiries about him, as he had heard from Matilda. Furthermore, Eric, a soldier, had also come to ask about him, so there was no doubt about it.

However, there didn't seem to be any suspicion on Allen. Allen has been active as an adventurer in this city since before he became a guild employee. His ability was a well-known fact, so no one should connect him with Nera.

Having roughly decided on his future plans, Allen quickly crawled into the futon and closed his eyes. After a while, Allen's breathing as he slept was heard.

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Then, late at night, after waking up and finishing his meal, Allen changed into Nera's clothes as usual, put on a robe that covered his entire body over it, and left the house carrying a backpack filled with various items. He then quickly passed through the slum, jumped over the defensive wall, and landed outside the city.

“Now then, shall we go?” (Allen)

Allen said that in a mutter, took off his robe, stuffed it into his backpack, and started running toward his destination. The direction was not west toward the Demon Dungeon, but south.

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(T/N: the title is actually ‘reform’ in katakana, but it actually means renovation. I started capitalizing the ’Lord’. It seemed like an official title.)

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