Raised in Dungeon



"Father! I brought the fertilizer! Can I go now?"

"You're not done yet! Bring ten more bags!"

'Aaah damn it! Why do I have to work on this dirty garden? I'm supposed to meet Mr Wyncall today!'

My name is Pascoe, and I'm eight years old. My father has been one of the gardeners at the Barkaley estate for 15 years. That's why our house was placed near the garden.

As the son of a gardener, my father has taught me many things about gardening. But to be honest, I wasn't interested in it at all. I didn't want to grow up to be a gardener.

The reason is that gardeners aren't cool!

All they do is get their hands dirty in the dirt, and they don't make much money either; that is why we can't eat delicious food. Instead of being a gardener, becoming a knight or a soldier is better. Then we can go to war and kill many people for the kingdom!

Fighting is a man's romance; that's what Mr Wyncall said. By killing many enemies, we can earn honor from the king, and if we're lucky, we can become knights of the princess!

I hope one day I can become the princess's personal knight and then end up marrying her.

What? Do you think it's not possible?

Can't a commoner possibly marry the princess?

Of course it's possible!

The proof is that heroes in the past could do it.

The hero who defeated the demon king, among the seven of them, there is one person I like the most.

The human exterminator, Allen!

Unlike the other heroes, he was not summoned to the human kingdom but to the elf kingdom. As a peasant in the elf kingdom, he made the elf princess his wife. Then he could kill many demon armies alone.

One day I want to be as great as him, become strong, marry the princess, and then kill many enemies.

"Hey! Don't daydream! Hurry up and bring ten more fertilizers!"

"OKAY!!!"

'Aaah... but unfortunately, it will be a long journey, and it might be impossible if this father is still alive,' I thought then.

As I brought in the fertilizer and was about to put it in its usual place, my attention was abruptly captured by an extraordinary presence that came before me.

Mr Rodion, he was our regular customer and father's close friend, followed by a girl and a boy behind him.

I stood there, amazed at the sight of the boy. It was as if his mere existence had reignited a sense of wonder and excitement within me. I couldn't help but remember the tales I had heard about the hero.

The hero from a thousand years ago, the human exterminator, Allen. He has strict black hair and fiery red eyes. And that boy resembles that trait, as Allen had come back to life and walked toward me.

...

...

...

The Estate of Barkaley Region

It is situated close to the Barkaley family's residence, specifically below it.

The Barkaley residence is situated on elevated ground, encircled by a garden, and the house is attached to a cliff located beneath the Barkaley residence. The estate is divided into plots, each allocated to a gardener family, with the nobility entitled to 40% of the estate's profits.

Rodion frequently visits this estate to purchase reasonably-priced cooking ingredients from his friend Peter, who manages one of the plots. Peter, an elderly man who is 50 years old, operates the farm run by his friend Peter. An old man who was already 50 years old.

"I didn't expect you to actually come," Peter said, wiping his sweat.

"Did you think I was lying?" asked Rodion.

"You didn't even promise anything about it. It doesn't matter if you don't come. Besides, your tavern is having a successful period, so it's best not to abandon it."

Peter was slightly taller than Rodion. When Susan looked at them, they looked like brothers because they had the same expression, always frowning like they were angry.

"The water month is near, and you've only just loosened the soil. If this continues, you won't have enough food for the water season," Rodion said.

"Usually without your help, I can harvest it before the water season starts."

"That's because you do it together with your wife and son, right? With your wife's current condition, there's no way she could help you work."

They chatted as they walked to Peter's house near the cliff. Allen and Susan could see Rodion and Peter are seemed fighting but enjoying their time.

As they reached Peter's house, they were welcomed by a woman who looked as if life had weighed down on her shoulders. She was around thirty years old, but the lines on her face told a different story. Her eyes were exhausted but still shone with a hint of warmth. An eight-year-old child stood by her side, holding her clothes thightly.

"This is my wife Iva, and my son Pascoe" Peter introduced them to Allen and Susan, gesturing towards them.

"She usually helps me with the gardening, but, you see, she's in no state to work right now."

She was pregnant and had reached an old age of pregnancy.

"Welcome Mr. Rodion; thank you for wanting to help my husband; sorry for the trouble,"

"No need to be reluctant; these two behind me will also help you two. They are still young, so they can do any kind of hard work.

You two, come here and introduce yourselves."

Susan and Allen approached them and started introducing themselves.

"My name is Susan,"

When Allen began to introduce himself,

"I'm Alle-."

"ALLEN!"

Pascoe, the little boy beside Iva, shouted with sparkling eyes.

"Allen the human exterminator! You really are a hero Allen!"

'Allen the human exterminator?' thought Allen, confused.

"Allen... Oh, you mean one of the heroes in the holy book? Come to think of it, you look just like the description," Iva said.

"Allen! I can't believe I actually met a hero!"

Rodion said, "There's no way this kid is that hero; he just arrived in this world for two months."

"But he looks alike!" the boy shouted again,

"Ooh, so he's the rumored other-worlder. It must be because of his cooking that your tavern became successful."

"I really didn't want to hear it from you, but yes, he is."

"Eh?! Cooking?! Allen! Why are you cooking?! It's women's work! It's not cool!"

"No-not cool? What does that have to do with being cold?" said Allen, confused again. It was a new phrase he had picked up.

"You should kill-"

"That's enough, Pascoe. Talk to him later; you're making Allen uncomfortable."

"But I want to-"

"Mom said enough!"

"Okay, okay! I'll just go away!"

"Pascoe! Come here; you have to greet the others too!" shouted Iva, but Pascoe was gone in a flash.

"Allen, please forgive our son; he's still young and loves the hero stories."

"uhm," Allen only replied with a slight nod.

Peter said with a slightly worried face, "It's a bit worrying because he seems to want to enlist as a soldier because of that story. Of course I'm against it, I don't want that boy to be close to death."

"Instead of talking here, please come inside. I've prepared some food." Iva said.

"That's not necessary; we can get right to work. Our time is already tight."

"Oi oi... my wife has prepared breakfast for you. Do you want to waste it? Come in first and eat with us," Peter said.

"Oh my… Okay. If it's already prepared, then what else can we do. Tomorrow you don't have to make food for us."

Susan whispered to Allen, "He said that, but actually he must be happy to eat with his friends."

Allen nodded and replied, "Yes, I know."

'Master is weird, but I love how weird he is.'

They went inside.

It was a simple house with only one chair. The front room was a cooking area surrounded by stones; they ate around the cooking area.

"I heard Allen is a good cook; I'm sorry if the food isn't good," Iva said.

"It's okay," Allen replied.

"Hey, that's where you should said it's still delicious!" said Susan.

"Just tolerate this kid's attitude; he still doesn't know much about this world. If he makes a mistake, just hit his stupid head," said Rodion.

"No, it's okay. I'm very happy just having you guys eat together. I really like the crowd at meals. You see, since he left... I feel a little lonely when I eat," Iva said with a sad look, making Susan curious.

"Who is he?" whispered Susan to Rodion.

Even though she was whispering, Peter beside her could hear her. So he answered,

"What she means is our first child. He died at the end of the last water month. A stupid child, he insisted on joining Prince Leofric's dungeon raid. As a result, he was killed there by a boy with black and white hair."

As Peter recounted the devastating news of his son's passing, Allen's hand froze mid-air, still clutching the morsel of bread in his hand. A shiver rippled throughout his body, an eerie sensation that left him feeling both numb and uncomfortable in the position he found himself in, sandwiched between two grieving parents. Deep down, Allen knew that he was responsible for the death of Peter's son, and the weight of that knowledge was suffocating him. Tears pricked at his eyes as he struggled to hold back the overwhelming emotion that was threatening to consume him.