Raised in Dungeon



"Oh gosh, I've told you how to carry them. Just hug him like I taught you; it'll be fine."

"Look at him; his body is so small and weak; what if I accidentally crush his body?"

"Why are you suddenly afraid? Didn't you hold Judith when she was first born?"

"At that time, I somehow held her in the right way because I wanted to show her to you. But now it's somehow difficult."

The next day, Iva forced Allen to try holding the two children. But Allen kept refusing because he couldn't hold them.

"You promised, right? Let's quickly hold your hands. Since you've already held Judith, let's try to hold Hamnet," Iva forced with a big smile on her face.

Giving in to Iva's grin, Allen raised his hands, trying to hold the baby in his arms. The other child was carried by Susan beside Allen.

"Hahaha, they really look alike. I can't tell which one is Hamnet and which one is Judith," Susan said.

Allen just watched the baby squirm on his hand. He watched the baby's tiny face.

So this is... how every human looks when they are born..."

Then he recalled all the events that happened last night. And he realized that giving birth to these two children required a lot of struggle.

The child wriggled and shifted in Allen's arms, fixating its wide, curious eyes on his face. As the infant's tiny fingers began to reach towards Allen's face, he obliged by leaning his head closer to the child, allowing them to explore his features.

"So soft," Allen murmured.

Suddenly, the baby's small hand connected with Allen's cheek in a swift slap. A warm feeling spread through Allen's chest, finding humor in the playful interaction with the child.

"How's Allen? Aren't they cute?" Susan spoke up beside him, joining in on the moment.

Couldn't take her face off the baby, "I suppose this is what cute is," he responded, chuckling as the baby continued to wiggle in his hold.

Allen's red eyes glazed over at the two children who looked back into his eyes.

"Allen, they are my children who were saved thanks to you," said Iva.

"But I saved Iva, not these kids."

"It's the same thing, Allen. If it wasn't for you, these children might not have had a chance to live. If I had died before giving birth, then the child wouldn't have been able to survive in the middle of such a storm."

"I see..."

Allen didn't understand...

Iva said that they survived because of Allen, whereas what Allen saw last night was Iva's incredible fight and effort while giving birth to her two children. There was no way the little effort Allen put in could compare to that. Allen couldn't even imagine what it would be like if he were in Iva's situation.

"Hamnet and Judith," Allen muttered.

Then suddenly Hamnet burst into tears.

"Huweh?! What's wrong?! Did I mess something up?!" shouted Allen, panicking.

"Allen, calm down, he's probably just hungry!" said Susan.

"Hu-hungry? Oh he wants to eat. Then I'll get some bread."

Iva took Hamnet back and started feeding her.

"Fufu, no need, Allen. When they were babies, they only needed to drink their mother's milk."

"Only drink water? How can they be full?"

"Duh, don't confuse a baby's stomach with yours Allen! Their bodies are small, and of course their intake is also small," Susan explained.

"J...I see, I see."

Looking at Iva, who was breastfeeding her baby. Allen began to wonder about himself. All this time, he didn't care because he believed there was only one mother, Queen Orc. After seeing Iva's struggle while giving birth to her child, Allen became curious about his mother. Did his mother also give birth to him with such difficulty? Where is she now?

Since Allen and Rodion's business with Peter's family was over, they prepared to go home.

"Then, we'll leave now; thank you for everything," Allen said.

"No need; we should be the ones who thank you. Thank you Allen, and thank you Mr Rodion."

"Just pay me by taking care of the baby," Rodion replied.

Allen, Rodion, and Susan stood before their house, saying goodbye. As soon as they started walking away, Iva put her son on the bed and ran towards Allen.

Since Allen was walking behind Rodion and Susan, they realized that Allen was lagging behind, so as soon as they turned around, they saw Iva on her knees, hugging Allen gently.

-Hug

"Allen... Thank you for all the effort you have given us. Because of you, I was able to give birth to my two children safely, and because of you, I can now still live happily with my family."

"I-I only did it out of curiosity."

"I don't care about your motives, nor do I care who you are. Since you've given me hope for the safety of me and my babies, I will still believe in you.

Even though you might be the killer of our eldest son."

"!!!"

Allen's eyes widened in surprise, his heart raced with fear, and his body trembled. As Iva voiced it, Allen's world came crashing down. He struggled to compose himself as he heard what Iva said, which had been haunting him since he knew he had killed Fenton. His mind raced as he tried to defend himself, but his voice faltered as he asked in a quivering tone,

"S-since when did you find out?"

Allen didn't know to say anything more than that. He had been living in fear when he knew about Fenton. But he had buried the fear after he asked Peter that he no longer grieved for his son.

"Peter knew... He told me about you asking him about the killer.

Even so, I expected it from the start. Peter probably expected it too, which is why he told you about Fenton. Because Peter wanted to believe you."

"I-Iva... Do you hate me?" from Allen's trembling voice, there was a slight sob.

"No Allen... I don't hate you... I believe that the current Allen is a different Allen from the past. I've heard the story from Fenton's friend, and I'm sure you were just desperate at that time...."

In Iva's hug, Allen began to cry. Susan and Rodion, who realized it walked over from there, leaving them alone.

"I'm sorry... I took away your precious son. The child you worked so hard to raise... I killed him."

Iva continued to stroke Allen's hair gently, giving him an overwhelming warmth.

"Allen, every human being has faults. What you need to do now is to change into a human who will never repeat those mistakes again.

Fenton's death did make me sad, but that incident has passed; if I grieve now, I will only suffer. I must move forward for Fenton and for my family too.

There may be many people out there who don't forgive your actions. But Allen..."

Iva removed her hands from Allen's shoulders, then smiled at Allen's tearful face.

"Even if many people won't forgive you... We will forgive you.

So from now on, be a useful person to others; that way, you can make up for the mistakes you've made in the past."

Peter and Pascoe approached them,

"Ah, I see... You really told him about it."

"Peter?" Allen said.

"Whatever mistakes you've made are all in the past. Don't cry. I told you, didn't I? If I knew my son's killer's condition, I hoped he would live a good life.

From now on, you will probably meet one of one the relatives of the people you killed. There will be many difficult things that you will go through in the future. I hope you can handle their hatred with a cool head."

"Okay..."

"What are you talking about? Murderers?" asked Pascoe.

"You're a kid, Pascoe. One day you'll understand," replied Peter.

"I'm a big boy! I can use a sword!"

"Hahaha when you grow up, you should be as strong as Allen."

"I'm sure I'll be even stronger when I'm as big as Allen!"

Iva held Allen's cheek and played with it.

"Duuh... Allen you don't have to think about it too deeply... We don't hate you... How could we hate our Savior?

If you feel yourself falling, just remember Allen.

To us, you are our savior; to Pascoe, you are a hero!"

"Ah! Mom! I was the one who wanted to say it!"

"That's it! Stop crying!"

Then they heard the sound of a baby crying behind them.

"Oh dear, we shouldn't have left the kids!"

After Allen had finished crying, he raised his hand to his face and rubbed his eyes. Then he looked up and uttered those familiar words, "Thank you... One more time, then... See you soon..."

Peter, Iva, and Pascoe knew the time had come, so they began to wave their hands. As he turned around, Allen took one last look at his friends before making his way down the road and out of sight.

And then, just before he disappeared from view, Peter yelled out to him, "Alleeen! Don't forget to come back in a week! You'll see your potatoes growing, right?"

Allen's head suddenly turned back in their direction, and he broke into a smile. Waving his hand, he confirmed, "Don't worry! I'll definitely come!" As he disappeared from view.