323-291 Party day (1)

The day of the first anniversary party.

The first to arrive were Aella and Luce.

Haruka and the others were preparing the food, so it was up to me and Toya to greet them.

Thank you for inviting us today.

Thank you very much. We're celebrating.

Thank you for coming. I know you're busy.

I accepted the small keg offered to me, and thanked him.

Is this alcohol?

We don't drink much, but some people do, so we're grateful.

Is there anything I can do to help?

Well, I'm sure it's fine, but can you go over to Haruka and the others?　They're in the kitchen.

I'm in the kitchen, and Toya is working on setting up the table in the garden.

I don't want to ask them to help me, so I point to the kitchen where Haruka and the others are.

They are professional cooks and caterers, right?

"I understand. I'll see you later.

Excuse me.

A few moments after they entered the house, the next group of craftsmen arrived: Tommy, Ganz and Simon.

They also brought a barrel of alcohol.

It was two sizes larger than the one Aella and the others had brought, and Tommy was carrying it as if he were carrying it.

It seems that the three of us bought it together.

Since there was nothing for the three of us to do, we asked them to sit and wait for a while, and continued setting up.

When the food was ready, I asked Mary and Mitya to run to the orphanage.

There were more than 20 children in the orphanage.

It was a little ...... doubtful that that many children would be able to wait quietly, so we decided to call them when we were ready.

Before Mary and the others returned, Diora arrived.

If the orphanage group arrived now, all the guests would be invited.

Thank you for coming today, Diora.

"No, thank you for having me. I was a little surprised when I heard you were having a party for your first anniversary, but it's good that you can afford it.

Is that unusual?

I'm sure the party members will have a toast in a bar, but they won't be inviting people over like this. ...... In the first place, it is impossible for ordinary adventurers to have a house that they can invite people to in a year.

Diora smiles at that.

Well, that's understandable.

We are able to do this because we had enough skills when we became adventurers.

Are you okay with your work?　Ms. Diora, you're the vice-chief, aren't you?

I'm fine. I need to take a break once in a while. Besides, I've asked Nao and the others for a lot of help, and I'll be there to celebrate.

That was ...... well, it helped us grow as well.

It's a good idea to have a good idea of what you're looking for.

This and that regarding Viscount Nenus.

If I say it was troublesome, it was troublesome, but there were also many rewards.

We were able to get a dungeon, we were able to get some rice, and we had to face this and that about the nobles at some point.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.

If you say so, ....... Also, I have received this and would like to give it to you. It's a formal document granting ownership of the dungeon and its surroundings. And here is my congratulations.

The document was written on a rather expensive looking piece of paper, and a bottle was handed to me as if it were a complimentary gift.

The bottle, from the looks of it, is probably alcohol.

...... Hmm?　Bottled liquor is pretty rare, isn't it?

Not to mention, isn't it a luxury item to think about?

Oh, thank you very much.

No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. I'm sure you high ranking folks will be able to help me out a lot?

Diora's smiling face made me feel a little scared.

She's not just the vice-chief of the Adventurer's Guild, she's also a very clever person.

Diora, please be gentle with me, okay?

"Haruka ......

I'm not sure what to do, but I'm sure I'm not the only one.

I'm sure you will. Coexistence and co-prosperity is the relationship between adventurers and the adventurer's guild.

I hope so.

I'm sure you'll agree that this is a great idea.

The document was then passed on to Natsuki and the others who had gathered there curiously.

"Are you sure?

"Yes. Yes, it's a property right officially recognized by the king. The king has officially recognized your property rights, and you are entitled to a wide range of privileges within the land.

Privileges?

You can kill any commoner who enters without permission without any problem at all.

Diora said something scary to Natsuki, who asked back.

"...... That much?

Yes. In the event that you have a lot of money, you can use it to buy a new home. If the opponent is a lower class nobleman and there is evidence that he is stealing, it is okay. Hunting in the forest is gray, but entering a dungeon without permission can be considered black.

A lower class nobleman is a nobleman below the rank of baron.

It's also amazing that the commoners are allowed to be "cut off", but it seems that this "ownership" is much greater than I imagined, as it applies to the nobility as well, albeit with conditions.

Well, it's only allowed, so I wouldn't recommend it.

I'm sure you're right.

Of course, unless the person you're dealing with is very troubled, doing such a thing will cause resentment.

You don't need to think about what will happen if you get a grudge, especially from a nobleman.

You can't spend the rest of your life in a dungeon.

If Nao and the others have reason and advantage, they will move to protect Viscount Nenus, but he is a Viscount. We can't expect that much from him.

"No, we're not going to do that, okay?　We're not.

Yeah, yeah.

We're not going to kill nobles or commoners just because they break into our dungeon.

We don't have a problem with people hunting us in the meat area.

I don't like it when people pick fruits without permission, but even in that case, I will confiscate them and throw them away.

In some cases, report them to the adventurer's guild.

That's about it.

But Diora looked around at us with a vague smile on her face and slowly shook her head.

"Toya, most troubles are not planned, you know?

"Mr. Diora, would you mind not saying anything sinister?　Diora, would you mind not saying anything ominous? We're having our 'happy new year' party.

To Yuki's protest, Diora-san was silent for a moment and then smiled.

...... If you can call the past year peaceful, there's no problem.

Yes, "peaceful" is a bit of a misnomer.

I'm not sure what to make of it.

A year ago, it never occurred to me that Haruka and I would be forced to attend a nobleman's party. .......

But we've managed to get through it.

I don't want to have the luxury of "peace", but I just hope that we can get through the next year without any problems.

◇ ◇ ◇ ◇ "Today is our first day.

Thank you for coming to our first anniversary party today. Thanks to your support and encouragement, we have made it to this day. We hope you will continue to support us. Please eat and drink to your heart's content today.

When Mary and the others returned with the orphanage group, the party began.

I don't know why I'm the one greeting them today.

I don't know why I'm greeting the guests today, but I know them all, so it's nothing to get worked up about.

As soon as I finished my brief greeting, the kids started to move.

They were headed for a table with a lot of food on it.

As soon as they arrived at our house, they were so engrossed in the food that it was unavoidable.

Haruka and the others were aware of this and separated the table from the adults so that the children could eat without hesitation, so there was no problem.

Now, I'm going to eat too.

What would you like to eat? ...... There is a good selection of dishes that I and Toya have requested, so I'm not sure what to look for.