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Evan D. Sherden, Improving (3)
Elizabeth seemed to have been determined to spend the rest of her life in Evan’s arms, just like a baby koala.
“Aba woo woo!”
“Come on, Liz. Come to your mother’s arms.”
“Oh, look! How strong she is! Your brother’s sleeve will be ripped off! Liz, leave it.”
So, at the breakfast table the next day, Elizabeth completely broke down. She continuously shed tears and grabbed Evan’s sleeves, as her mother and father urged her gently to let go of him.
“Abu, aba, aba!
“You have to focus on eating your food, Liz, dear…”
“Liz, you have to start treating your brother with a little more respect, alright? There aren’t many people like Evan in the world.”
“Yes, Liz. Look at your eldest brother. He has successfully adapted to this difficult world, and he’s still pretty just as ever.”
“My younger brother is handsome, too.”
Evan replied with a smile at Eric’s words and drank some soup. Then Eric spoke in a serious tone,
“Evan, there is something I have to tell you.”
“What is it, brother?”
“I am also thinking of entering the dungeon soon. Of course, unlike you, I would have to get help from the knights, but I want to test if I even have the abilities or the skills to survive in the dungeon.”
“Oh! Really?” this was a very surprising but welcoming development.
Eric spoke more clearly now while staring at Evan directly,
“Previously, I firmly believed that I had to go to the dungeon only when I was an adult. But looking at you, I realized that it was a foolish thing to set my own limits due to my own thoughts.”
“Yes! I also came out safely, so it would be better for my brother to go in as early as possible. If you are able to evolve your abilities or even get new skills, you won’t have any problems in the future.”
After hearing Evan’s encouraging words, Eric felt himself calming down from his anxiety. Eric had no basis or guarantee for his success in the dungeon, but Evan was so sure in his words that he felt like it would come true for some reason.
“Thank you for thinking so, Evan.”
“You know your abilities well, brother. You have the magical talent that no one in your generation currently has.”
“If that’s what you think, then I must surely do my best to achieve my dreams…”
When Evan praised him, Eric became happy and coughed. After that, the Marquis intervened with a smile,
“It all seems to be settled then. Then Eric, when shall you be going? Shall we prepare for your 15th birthday?”
“Not yet, father.”
Eric shook his head at the words of the Marquis. Like Evan, he had grabbed everyone’s attention by talking about venturing into the dungeon.
Since the older brother was following in his younger brother’s footsteps, he was still a little shy about declaring his final decision.
“I don’t need to be noticed for dungeon-related things, father. It’s up to Evan, who will be the Dungeon Knights Commander. I just want to prove that I am able enough to dominate the dungeon under the name of the Marquis of Sherden.”
“Indeed. I understand you completely.”
“Yes, father. So I will go in without telling anyone and come out the same way. Even if the forces are not excellent, I only need to prepare two knowledgeable knights to assist me in my actions.”
“… Alright, son, I get what you mean. Your father is proud of you.”
Although the Marquis wasn’t involved directly in all the fields every moment, he still quietly managed everything and supported his family. He was very happy that his eldest son was beginning to head in the right direction. Eric was also very satisfied to not be jealous of Evan anymore, as he had now clearly recognized his duty and was willing to act on it strictly.
“Well, after all, they are both my courageous sons!”
“That is because they resemble their mother in every way.”
“Haha, Redine is still joking. They resemble me more.”
“Oh, your thoughts are very different from mine. Ugh.”
Evan, who had already become accustomed to such trivial fights between the Marquis and his wife, tried to finish the meal quickly and quietly.
Elizabeth squirmed in her seat and tried to reach out for Evan again, but the Marquis told him that it was nothing.
“Today, His Majesty will be leaving for the Royal City.”
“Aah. His daughter will be leaving along with him, right?”
“I know your desperate heart, Evan, but you shouldn’t say so in front of His Majesty, the King or his daughter. I decided to have a farewell ceremony. Please be sure to participate, and behave politely.”
“I can’t help it…”
The farewell ceremony was being held briefly in the morning at the north gate of the dungeon city.
The King had emphasized that he had come only as a close friend of the Sherden family. The connection between them was also greatly emphasized.
“I will always remember my visit to the dungeon city. Thank you, Marquis Soline D. Sherden.”
“We will always try to uphold the Majesty’s name. The dungeon city of Sherden, and every single one of its residents, will always be loyal to the Royal Family.”
As the adults said their farewells in complicated and useless manners, the children’s goodbyes were simple and honest.
“I look forward to seeing you again, Evan. Get stronger.”
“Let’s just hope for the best for each other and continue to struggle instead.”
“Master Evan, we’ll discuss it again later, for sure!”
“I had a great time, Your Majesty. I will see you in person in the future.”
“Evan, I will earn my place in the Dungeon Knights!” the Princess patted Evan’s shoulder while bidding him goodbye, all the while emphasizing the Dungeon Knights Squad.
“I’m sorry to tell you this Princess, but the Knights will not accept people with higher status than me.”
“It’s okay. I know the social status is tough and thorough, so I would always follow my oppa’s orders. I can obey all of them unless you order me to hate the worms.”
As expected, words didn’t work on her. Evan stroked Ruby and Lucy on both her shoulders, ignoring Serena, who was feeling smug.
“Your Majesty, you look very proud.”
Evan turned his head to the second Prince in search of hope, but the second Prince, whose impression was weaker than the first Prince’s, smiled and shook his head.
“Serena, come. We have to go back to the Royal City now.”
“Ooh, I’ll get back to you quickly, Evan oppa! The next time we meet, you’ll be giving me the position of the vice commander of the Dungeon Knights!”
“The vice commander’s position is already allocated to Shine.”
“Then I will fight Shine for it!”
Evan shook his head and tried to say something, but Serena struck him with a kiss on his lips. It was only for a brief moment, but the effect remained. It felt very hot.
“What the…”
‘Last time she kissed me on my cheek but this time she did it on my lips. Besides, her speed was weird just now. After only training as a tamer, she has grown up to such a level of existence!?‘
“Then I’ll see you next time, Evan oppa!”
In the middle of Evan’s stiffening, Serena felt embarrassed and giggled. She then blushed intensely, laughed, and ran back. The twin pony-tails of pink hair fluttering in the air caught Evan’s eye with extraordinary clarity.
Evan still couldn’t move.
The three men who were present there kept staring at Evan. All of them were purely curious about his reaction.
“What just happened?”
Finally, Evan found his words.
“Everyone knows that what happened here wasn’t my doing, right…?”
“…Hmm, I will have to report it to the King first.”
The second Prince said with a prosecutor-like expression. It felt like he wanted to say,
‘This is the case for the judge to handle and decide upon.”
“Let’s just get people to testify to the scene: Master Evan kissed Princess Serena…”
“Master Evan, congratulations!”
“No, wait! Wait, that’s weird! What are you celebrating! What are you testifying!? I didn’t do anything! Everyone saw it! You all know that, so why are you looking at me that way!”
Evan’s desperation ended the scenario without being reported to the King, but his anxieties only amplified.
That afternoon, Count Pellati also left the dungeon city. In fact, it was unusual for nobles to stay so long in the first place, but there were two things of great importance that he couldn’t ignore.
First, Count Melto Von Pellati wanted to see with his own eyes the achievements of the twelve-year-old dungeon challenger.
“Evan, I am very impressed. Looking at you right now, I feel great too. My son should also be sent to the dungeon as soon as possible.”
“Uh… Master Crow will have to give it his all then.”
“Don’t look at me with those eyes, Evan. He can do it, too. Not right now, but just with a little more training!”
Melto, deeply impressed with Evan’s remarkable performance and improvement, tapped on Evan’s shoulder and praised him with a pat.
On the other hand, the Grand Master Crow seemed to be under pressure because of his father’s proposal, but a wild will seemed to be burning inside his eyes, Evan thought.
“Ms. Belois, I will come back much stronger than right now. Please look forward to it!”
“…I really hope you do.”
“Woah, now it sounds like Ms. Belois is supporting me despite her cold cheers. Even though I may not have gained your love for the time being, I will return as a confident man in front of you soon!”
“That may be a bit of a problem. Would you like to receive divine magic training to help you with that?”
Then the Countess spoke,
“I was worried about where to find the perfect husband for our daughter, but now I am convinced that Evan is the perfect choice. Arisha, don’t you agree?”
“Perhaps he can be.”
Arisha stood next to Evan, hugging her parents in turn. Yes. She was standing next to him. It was natural for her to stay in the Marquis’s mansion, considering her safety and future education.
“Evan, please take care of our Arisha.”
“Hahaha, you’re joking, right? I’m still too young and weak to take responsibility for someone.”
“How can you be so humble? We believe in you, Evan.”
‘No, don’t believe in me! Don’t leave her!’ Evan’s internal screams did not reach either the Countess or the Count.
‘If the people’s emotions here are the same as that of the people of Earth, then why can’t they seem to understand my expressions?’
“Ah, I hate nobles. I hate royalty.”
“You say funny things every time.”
“It would be nice to have fun in my life. Just for once!”
“It wasn’t until now… But you’re going to have a lot of fun in the future.”
‘Oh, I hate this too!’ Evan looked down at Arisha and bowed his head.
That was when a former member of Geari joined the Dungeon Knights, which had not even been officially established yet.