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Shukou Nono. She is the eldest daughter of the fallen Shukou family. The family once stood among the top ruling households of the Surface District as one of the Armed Families.

If their downfall had occurred a hundred years ago, perhaps they could have given up and adjusted to being poor. However, the downfall occurred only 30 years ago when a dungeon emerged in the Surface District managed by the Shukou family. 

They failed to prevent a monster stampede, leading to devastating damage. Following that, all their investments and business ventures failed one after another, turning them into a poor family.

Since both her parents and grandparents had lived through the family’s glorious times, it made matters worse. These were people who believed that money was something that never ran out, no matter how much was spent. For them, it was nothing but humiliation.

As a result, her grandparents and parents constantly pressured her, saying “Restore the family’s glory!” They would impose such demands on her with an air of intimidation whenever they spoke.

To make matters worse, her grandparents and parents were kind in every other aspect. Their love made it hard for her to rebel. If they had only pushed their own will, insisting everything was for the family’s sake without considering her wishes, Nono could have despised them and easily refused. But they spoke those words with genuine concern for her well-being.

Those words were sharper than any knife and eroded her spirit more than any poison. For the eldest son, who lacked mana and had less talent than the stepson of his father’s second wife, enduring such words became unbearable. He ran away from home five years ago.

That man now goes by the name of Lanpeach Kouza. His real name is Shukou Arata, her older stepbrother.

◇◇

Sigh “I just don’t know…”

“Oh? What’s with the sigh? Didn’t you earn a lot yesterday?”

“Yui, huh. Yeah, I did earn a good amount yesterday. I finally got something other than a gadokurie bento.”

Nono’s friend playfully called out to her, so she replied with a wry smile.

She was reflecting on yesterday’s events at the botanical garden, sitting in her classroom. She had been slightly worried about her stepbrother, who hadn’t come by to ask for money recently. However, when she finally saw him after all this time, he had changed drastically.

“Nono, you aren’t exactly poor enough to struggle with food, but you are still having it hard, huh?” (Yui)

“Well, we still have to maintain that unnecessarily large mansion… Ten million Ele is like a drop in the ocean. It’s so little that I can’t even tell if it made a difference.” (Nono)

She raised both hands in the air, moving them as if swimming, before resting her head on the desk again. Besides the mansion’s upkeep, her parents insisted on attending various social events to maintain their image, burning through endless amounts of money. Her father was as strong as a Star 4 explorer, so he earns more than Nono, but a single dress could wipe out all the earnings. On top of that, the family still poured money into failing businesses that only generated more losses, trapping them in perpetual poverty.

A rich person in the Surface District wasn’t someone who earned mere millions of Ele; they needed to bring in at least billions. And yet, her family continued to act as though they were part of the wealthy elite…

“Hey, don’t you think the guy who saved us yesterday looked like your stepbrother? He seemed really different, though.” (Yui)

“Childhood friends can tell, huh? Yeah, that was my older stepbrother. Looks like he stopped trying to bulk up his muscles.” (Nono)

Back when her stepbrother was still striving to become the next family head, he used to engage in constant muscle training to compensate for his lack of mana. He grew into a muscled hulk, which Nono found a bit too much, though she couldn’t bring herself to say anything considering his determination.

As someone who had far more mana than her stepbrother, she knew any comment from her would sound like a snide remark.

Her kind stepbrother had eventually given up on the insurmountable wall of mana, dropped out of the magic academy, and ran away from home. Later, rumors reached her that he had formed a gang of half-baked outcasts in the slums. When he came around to ask for money, she had confronted him about it, but her gentle stepbrother had only responded with a sneer by then.

“So, what did you think of him? He honestly seemed like a lazy bum just messing around at the botanical garden.” (Nono)

“Oh, so you were watching? Now that I think about it, you have been sneaking off early these past few days.” (Yui)

Yui gave a meaningful smirk, making Nono blush slightly. She raised her hand as if to throw an eraser at her friend. Although her stepbrother had been kind before running away from home, she hadn’t seen him for a long time, and it was only natural to be worried about family.

It seemed that he had become the boss of a bunch of half-baked explorers lower than Star 1 though. She sighed at the thought, but that skillful performance when he saved her…

“Still, wasn’t Arata-san incredibly strong? I couldn’t sense any flow of mana from him, yet he completely overpowered that idiot.” (Yui)

“Right? My stepbrother was never that strong. But in that moment, he displayed martial prowess beyond anything I could discern.” (Nono)

When her stepbrother stopped the dagger, he had used only his index finger. Yet it wasn’t that he had blocked it head-on. It appeared that way, but he actually tilted his finger slightly to strike the flat of the blade.

To parry an attack accelerated with wind magic and enhanced by a spirit armor’s physical prowess, with such precise timing… Even her father couldn’t have done it. Yet her stepbrother pulled it off with ease, without even making a big deal of it.

“Hmm… Maybe he underwent some intense training?” (Yui)

“No amount of training in just a few years could yield such martial skills. What I saw was something that would take a century of training to master, and it still wouldn’t be certain whether you could get those skills.” (Nono)

Nono shook her head with a troubled expression, and her friend stroked her chin, pondering for a moment.

“Then wouldn’t it be faster to just ask him yourself? The garden job is still going on, right?” (Yui)

“I guess there’s no other choice… Do you think he’ll give me an honest answer?” (Nono)

It was the fastest approach, but…her older stepbrother had seemed so suspiciously startled yesterday. Also, even though  they met again after such a long time, it felt like he didn’t even recognize her. She had initially thought he was pretending not to know her, but…

“Well, it seems like that’s the best option. I’ll try talking to him.” (Nono)

She sighed and pulled out her textbook, reminding herself to focus on her lessons. Given how much her family was paying in tuition, she couldn’t afford to slack off after all.

◇◇

Where did the damage from yesterday go? 

Ultimately, no monsters escaped from the botanical garden, and much of the stone briar blocking the path had been cleared. The Tateno family had now sent in a large team to conduct a thorough investigation.

“Wow, look at all these people!”

“They’ve beefed up security because of yesterday, it seems.”

The number of soldiers had significantly increased, and they appeared to be wearing more advanced spirit armor than yesterday’s guards. They also looked highly trained. Probably the elite forces of the Tateno family.

However, the cleaning staff seemed to consist of the same group of rough explorers, suggesting that her stepbrother was likely among them as well.

“Do you think he’s further in? Shall we go look, Nono?” (Yui)

“Yeah. Excuse me, can we go inside?” (Nono)

Nono nodded to Yui and approached the guards at the entrance. The soldiers glanced at them, and looked troubled as they rejected them.

“You’re students, right? Sorry, but the area is off-limits right now.”

“Um, my stepbrother is inside. I just need to talk to him. Could you call him out for me?” (Nono)

They were probably on high alert after yesterday’s incident. But Nono didn’t care about entering the garden, she just wanted to see her stepbrother.

“Oh, I see. That’s no problem, then. What’s his name?”

“Shukou Arata. I believe he’s here working as a temp.” (Nono)

“Shukou Arata, Shukou Arata…”

The guard, surprisingly accommodating, began flipping through some paperwork. After checking all the documents, he looked up with a puzzled expression.

“Sorry, miss. There’s no one by that name working here. Are you sure there’s no mistake?”

“That can’t be right! He saved me yesterday. He has to be here.” (Nono)

“Well, I’m not sure what to tell you… This is a bit of a problem.”

Things seemed to be taking a complicated turn. Nono frowned slightly.

“In that case, why don’t you let them in? It would be quicker to let them look for him themselves.” 

A hand patted Nono’s shoulder, and a girl in a white coat brushed past her. The face was familiar.

“Mana-san?!” (Nono)

“Heya, long time no see. Wasn’t the last time we met at the New Year’s party for the Armed Families?” (Mana)

Mana lightly waved her hand in greeting, and Nono responded, feeling somewhat deflated. She remembered the ridiculous amount of money spent on dresses, suits, and accessories for that event. All of it was easily over a few million Ele.

“Right. I had to survive on gadokurie ramen for a whole month in order to participate in that party. I just finished paying off the loan last month.” (Nono)

“Haha, sounds tough. Maybe it’s time to rethink your spending habits.” (Mana)

Mana chuckled as her white coat fluttered. She was Mana Tateno, a young genius in the field of magical studies, and had already graduated from not only the magic academy but university at the youngest age ever.

“I had no idea you had an older brother. Well, since we’re acquaintances, you can go in and look for him. I’ve got business inside too, so I’ll join you.” (Mana)

“Thank you! I’ll take you up on that offer.” (Nono)

There was no need for formality since they knew each other. Nono had known Mana since childhood. While their relationship was a bit too distant to be called friends, they were at least close enough to not require formalities.

If Nono had chosen the path of a scholar, she would have spoken more respectfully. But as it stood, she had no intention of pursuing that field, and besides, they were the same age.

“Aah~, I have to go! There’s a limited-time crepe special that’s only available in the evening, and today’s the last day!” (Yui)

“Aah~, got it. See you later, Yui.” (Nono)

“Yeah, see you tomorrow!” (Yui)

After watching her excitable friend rush off, Nono and Mana entered the botanical garden together.

“Wow, they’ve cleaned up a lot.” (Nono)

Yesterday, the dome was overrun with stone briar, but now it was spacious and open. Nono was surprised at how different it looked.

“Indeed. Look, you can see the path leading to the central tower. We should reach the control room soon.”

Mana pointed towards the distance, where a cylindrical structure stood, marked with the symbol of an elevator.

“Wow… Is something good waiting there?” (Nono)

“That’s an enjoyment for later. But first, have you found your brother?” (Mana)

“Let’s see… Ah, there he is…I think?” (Nono)

They walked for a bit, and one person stood out among the group in the distance. It was her stepbrother.

“I’m bored of it already. You guys take care of cleaning up the rest. I’ll just supervise over here.” 

“Got it, Boss.”

He was already slacking off, making Nono feel embarrassed as his younger sister. He looked like nothing more than a crook  bossing around his underlings.

Nono glanced at Mana, feeling awkward, expecting her to be disgusted. But to her surprise, Mana was showing a different kind of serious face from before.

“So that’s your brother, huh? Really?” (Mana)

“Yeah… Sorry he’s such a disgrace.” (Nono)

Nono felt a surge of shame, wishing her brother would do more work. However, Mana’s reaction was completely unexpected. She seemed positively delighted.

“I see. So that’s how it is. I’ve always thought that was a strange name… So, he managed a connection with the Underground District through your Armed Family ties, huh?” (Mana)

“Is something the matter?” (Nono)

“No, it’s nothing. Let’s go talk to him. You’ll of course introduce me, right?” (Mana)

“Eh? Eh? Is something the matter?” (Nono)

Mana started pushing Nono toward her stepbrother before she could process it, and they headed his way.

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