Allen invited him to the base for a welcome party for becoming a C-ranked adventurer and for Keel to join him.

　Keel said he couldn't do that because he had a family.

(Family or was it family, after all?)

　Allen has been wondering why Kiel has so little money for the past month or more.
　Almost every day he gets a reward that is given to him after defeating the lowest level boss of a C-class dungeon.
　I conquered the third dungeon today, and even with two rewards, I can earn at least 40 silver coins.

　That seems to be enough money to earn in one day.

　I can think of three reasons
　The first is that I have a debt and I need money to pay it off
　Second, I need money because I have a family to feed.
　Third, I just love money!

　Thirdly, when I was Kenichi in a previous life, I remember that there were quite a few money-loving gamers. With a minimal amount of weapons and armor, they just kept on scheming for money. Even if your assets are in the billions or billions of dollars, you won't stop scheming. I tried to think that even in real life you need a plan to survive, but you love money in games.

　But this is real life in a different world. I was thinking that maybe it was the first or second reason.

"Family?　Are there a lot of them?

　There are still all five of them among the dungeon bosses. Allen questions Kiel's confession.

Yes, there are only seven of them.

That's a lot. Well, it's said that only students of the school are exempt from the capitation tax. So, what does that mean?

　At first Allen thinks that he's sending money for his poor family back home. But that doesn't explain why he can't come to the base.

"You mean you're in school town with your family?　And you work alone, Mr. Keel?

No, no, I'm working a little bit.

　Something tells me that the whole family came to Gakuen City. Those who can work are working to earn a little money. But with no help and no referrals, there are no good places to make money.

(Huh?　(Did you all come all the way from your hometown to live together?

"Huh?　Just in time. We've got him. Hey, Allen.

"Huh?　Oh, Cecil. That's right!　Mr. Keel, why don't you come move into the base?

　Cecil's words remind me of the problem of the base.

Hmm?　Huh?

　Keel just can't keep up. Talk to Keel about the problem of the base. Four of us live in a house that can house 20 people, but we are too busy with school and dungeon life to clean the house and eat. I'd like to invite all seven of you to live at the base. They say it's a job and that they can kill two birds with one stone.

Of course, we'll pay you if you work from home.

"What, why are you there?

Because we're buddies. Honestly, I don't see Mr. Keel's situation right now.

　The other three nodded at Allen's words.

　Kiel seems to be thinking about it.

(He seems to be pretty stubborn or proud.)

　It's a tough situation, and yet you didn't say anything. It's a tough situation, and all the while, you're holding yourself back.

So how about this?

　Cecil makes a suggestion to a distressed Keel. The reward you just got from the dungeon is divided into five equal parts and distributed to five people. Divide it into six equal parts, and use one sixth to pay for living expenses at the base and the salary for Keel's family.

　In return, the magic stone will belong to Allen.

I see. Isn't that a good idea?
"Yeah, yeah, that's Cecil!

　Both Dogora and Krena agreed. Since Allen didn't recruit the magic stones at the time of the first recruitment, he has been giving them to Kiel for a long time.

　Now that we've moved in, we'll provide you with a place to live and a job, and all of your magic stones will belong to Allen. He says we're square. This will also erase any guilt in Keel.

　When he heard that much, he raised his face from its depressed state and looked down.

"I'm sorry, could you do that for me?

　From the look on his face, it looked like he chose to enter the base thinking of his family.

'Of course!　Well, let's exchange the adventurer's certificate and get ready for the welcome party.

　Kiel is to be invited to the base.

　Go to the Adventurer's Guild and change all five adventurer's certificates from D to C rank. Then Kiel will return to his family and bring them all back to their place.

　Meanwhile, Allen and his friends prepare for the welcome party.


　Tomorrow is another day off, but instead of going to the dungeon, we all talked about getting our stuff out of Kiel's house.

　Gladly we exchanged our adventurer's certificates.
　The Adventurer's Guild staff lady told me that you are already a C-ranked adventurer. It's different from a C-class dungeon, so you should do some research before going to a B-class dungeon.

　He said that the whole family would be there before the evening. Since we were told that there are also small children, we will buy not only meat and bread, but also sweets and fruits at the store.
　There is no one who can cook, so we have to buy everything from the store.

　You buy a blanket and dishes for everyone, and soon it's the time you promised.

Okay, we're ready for the minimal welcome party. Now you're ready for the welcome party, Keel.

　It was still feeling a little distant and the three of us other than Allen had hardly had a conversation with Keel but I think that would soon dissipate.

　It was nearing evening.
　While the three of them prepared for the welcome party inside the base, Allen was outside the base, waiting for Keel's family.

　Then a group of eight people, including Keel, comes in.

(Huh?　You're not that young. (I mean, you're a kid, right?)

　The first thing Allen thought when he saw these eight people was that there were no adults. The younger one is about eight years old. The older one was around 15, a little older than Keel, I think. It was that kind of group.

　Fifteen is an adult in this world, but in Allen's mind, it's a child.

　I thought my parents were there too. I thought maybe a disabled grandparent, but that wasn't the case.

"I'm sorry, I thought I'd bring what I could today. Am I a little late?

　There is a large furoshiki on the back of the keel. There are several other people with large bags.

"No, no, it looks like we're finally ready for the welcome party too. Then show me the house: ......

　When Allen is about to finish, a girl about ten years old, probably about the same age as Mash, comes in front of Allen. She's a blonde, just like Kiel.

"My name is Nina. Thank you for this invitation.

　Then he bowed his head, plucking at his ruffled skirt and doing cartouches.

"Yeah, nice to meet you,

(Huh?　What's this?　(Or rather, the one behind)

　Quite a polite greeting, which is puzzling. It's a greeting that no commoner would ever make. But that's not all.
　I also look at the people behind the girl, Nina, who greeted him.
　The clothes they all wear are not the finest, but they look familiar. The boy's clothes are similar to the ones Allen wore when he was at the mansion for about four years.

　Nina's outfit is not very nice, but she's wearing a frilly skirt that a commoner wouldn't wear.

"Sorry, I'm having a little trouble with my stuff. I'll talk to you later.

"Yeah, I get it.

　Puzzled and invited to the base. Apparently, Keel will brief you later.

　We'll leave our bags secured on the first floor and later bring them up to our assigned rooms.

　It seems that Allen's reaction was not wrong. There were eight of us who had moved to the school town with only small children and were living in poverty.

　I was surprised, but I wanted to make sure we had a welcoming party. I will take you to the multipurpose room on the first floor, where the four of you usually eat together. The house is big enough for 20 people to live in, so the room is large enough for 20 people to have a meal.

(Hmm, good thing there's a table provided.)

　A large table with enough chairs for everyone, and on top of the table, there was still plenty of food to make you feel welcome.

　This is an adventurous area, and the food is often wild. The meat and bread are quite large. Meat and bread are cut up and placed on the tables. Fruits and sweets are piled high.

　It was time for a welcome party for the eight of us, including Keel, who never expected it.