Chapter 40 : Dwarf Mountains (2)
Dwarves dislike elves.
Whenever they try to mine for minerals, elves always seem to appear out of nowhere and lecture them about not destroying nature.
“Would you like it if someone hit you with a pickaxe? Have you ever thought about how much pain nature, which cannot speak, must be in?”
Of course, dwarves had never thought about that, nor did they care.
Dwarves don’t assign any special meaning to nature. Nature is just nature.
“Stop making a fuss. Don’t bother me while I’m working. Get lost.”
“What? Get lost? Are you picking a fight with me, you little dwarf runt?”
“What? Dwarf runt? Oh, you’re asking for it. I’ll cut off those pointy ears of yours.”
“Bring it on!”
And thus, the war between dwarves and elves began.
The war continued until the demon invasion, at which point the two races were forced to call a truce. However, that didn’t mean they became friends.
Elves still hated dwarves for destroying nature, and dwarves hated elves for their fussiness and emotional outbursts.
But not all dwarves hated elves.
Right now, the dwarf standing in front of Ariel, Bagran, was different.
Bagran liked elves very much.
Elves were beautiful, right? So, a little nagging was fine. Because they were beautiful.
That was roughly how Bagran thought about it.
‘D-Damn it. I made a mistake. I didn’t know it was an elf….’
Bagran regretted it inside because just moments ago, he had bumped into Ariel and cursed at her.
He had stopped mid-sentence at “Hey! Where are you looking when you’re walking, you stupid girl…,” but it was too late.
Elves already disliked dwarves, and now that she had heard such rude words, Bagran was sure Ariel would hate him.
She might curse him or even spit in his face. Bagran was ready to accept whatever came.
After all, he had said something rude, so he was prepared to take it. Of course, to Bagran, even an elf’s spit would be holy water.
If it had been any other dwarf, they would have yelled and berated Ariel.
This was the Dwarf Mountains, after all. There were dwarves everywhere and no elves.
Everyone hated elves, so they would surely side with Bagran.
They would all curse the elf, and then she would storm off with a flushed face, either crying or shouting, “I should have never come to the Dwarf Mountains!”
Bagran didn’t want that to happen. So, he stayed on the ground, looking up at Ariel, bracing himself for whatever she would say.
But Ariel didn’t curse him. She didn’t even look at him with disgust or spit in his face.
Instead, she extended her hand to him, her expression showing concern.
Bagran looked at Ariel’s outstretched hand with bewilderment.
It was a small, white hand.
Though still a bit short due to her young age, it was slender and beautiful.
It stood in stark contrast to Bagran’s large, rough, pot-like dwarf hands.
Bagran took Ariel’s hand.
She helped him up and even kindly picked up the items that had fallen to the ground.
“Th-thank you….”
Bagran shyly expressed his gratitude, and Ariel smiled softly.
Then, she gently patted Bagran’s head, as one might do to comfort a child.
“…?”
Bagran was once again taken aback.
Although he was about the same height as Ariel due to their racial differences, Bagran was a fully grown adult. His beard was thick, after all.
On the other hand, Ariel had a youthful appearance and a small frame. She was probably still growing.
And yet, here she was, treating Bagran like a child, patting him on the head.
‘Well, it’s not necessarily a bad thing….’
Bagran enjoyed the feeling of Ariel’s hand. It was warm and soft. If she did this while he slept, he thought, he would probably sleep very sweetly.
The only issue was the looks he was getting from others.
Passing dwarves shot glances at Ariel, the elf, and at Bagran, who was having his head patted, with looks of pity or disdain.
Bagran invited Ariel and her companions to his home.
When Bagran asked Ariel, “If it’s alright, would you like to visit my home?” she nodded readily.
His house wasn’t far. After a few minutes of walking, they arrived.
“Just, just give me a moment. I need to tidy up a bit,” Bagran said, standing at the front door.
Since he lived alone and rarely invited guests, his house was a mess.
He couldn’t let an elf see his house in such a state.
At the very least, he needed to clean up his undergarments and especially the risqué magazines scattered around his bed.
After rushing inside, Bagran emerged about ten minutes later, panting.
“Phew, phew, it’s all set now. You can come in.”
Ariel entered the house first, followed by Lakia and Lu, and finally Ghost, making the living room feel quite full.
“Smells kind of weird in here.”
“It does, doesn’t it? They say dwarves don’t wash very often.”
“Such a lowly race.”
Lakia and Lu muttered under their breaths.
Bagran pretended not to hear them, while Ariel was busy looking around his home.
‘So, this is a dwarf’s house….’
Ariel walked over to where weapons were displayed on the wall.
Dwarves often displayed the weapons they made in their homes.
Humans would come to a dwarf’s house, look at the weapons on display, and decide whether to buy them.
In that sense, a dwarf’s home was like a private weapons shop.
“Want me to give you a tour?”
Bagran walked over to Ariel and took down the round shield she had been eyeing.
“This shield was made by my father. It’s incredibly strong, made of a mithril alloy. It’s so expensive that it hasn’t sold yet, but I can’t sell it for cheap either. Plus, it holds memories of my father, so it’s a valuable shield to me. Oh, am I boring you?”
Bagran hung the shield on his arm and looked at Ariel.
“Want to give it a hit? You’ll be amazed at how tough it is. My father said it could even withstand a dragon’s magic.”
Lakia’s eyes lit up with interest at that.
“Well, let’s see…”
She started to roll up her sleeves, but Lu quickly stopped her.
If Lakia used her magic here, the house would surely be blown to bits.
“Go ahead, you can hit it with your hand or even swing a hammer at it. It won’t leave a scratch.”
“….”
Ariel quietly looked back and forth between the shield and Bagran’s face.
If she hit the shield with all her strength, it wouldn’t just be the shield that broke—Bagran wouldn’t be left unscathed either.
But doing nothing would disappoint Bagran, who seemed to be eagerly waiting.
Since Ariel already had a favorable view of dwarves, she didn’t want to let down someone who had been so kind to her.
So, she decided to hit the shield.
Very gently.
Just enough so that the shield wouldn’t get scratched, as Bagran had said.
Tap.
Ariel lightly punched the shield. So lightly, it could barely even be called a hit.
“Haha, is that all? You can hit it harder. This shield is really strong. My father always said….”
Ariel hit the shield again.
A little harder this time.
But still gently enough that the shield wouldn’t be damaged.
Tap.
“Haha, that’s cute. You can hit it with more force. Are you worried about hurting your hand? If you are, there’s a hammer right over there….”
“I’m done.”
Ariel said, and disappointment flashed across Bagran’s face.
“Y-You’re done? Well, yeah, I guess it’s not that fun, huh? Sorry, I just wanted to show you how durable the shield was….”
Bagran’s shoulders slumped in defeat.
Seeing that, Ariel decided to give it one more try.
“This will be the last time.”
“Alright, hit it properly this time!” Bagran said excitedly.
Ariel clenched her fist and gave the shield a stronger punch than before, just enough to leave a small scratch.
Thunk.
“Oof.”
Bagran staggered backward under the impact.
Though Ariel had struck lightly, the shield felt quite heavy.
“Haha, yeah, that’s more like it! See how sturdy the shield is? Isn’t it amazing?”
Bagran asked, massaging his now-numb arm, and Ariel nodded.
“It’s strong.”
“Exactly! This is the craftsmanship of the dwarves….”
Just then.
Crack!
The shield hanging from Bagran’s arm cracked and crumbled to pieces.
“Huh?”
Bagran stared in disbelief at the shattered remains of the shield on the floor.
The mithril alloy shield his father had left him, worth as much as a small house, had been destroyed.
All from the punch of a young elf.
“W-What… Why did this happen? This shouldn’t be possible….”
Bagran glanced at Ariel.
She was wearing an incredibly somber expression.
She felt guilty, as though she had ruined something precious.
But to Bagran, it looked like she was disappointed.
“Well, actually, the shield is pretty old. You know, shields can wear out over time… moisture and all that….”
Bagran began making excuses.
At this moment, it didn’t matter to Bagran that the shield his father had left him, which could have bought him a house, was now destroyed.
What mattered more was cheering Ariel up.