Ch.150Dwarf (2)

The dwarves of this world… or a similar race. If read in the common language of the Western Continent, they’re actually called something like “little people,” but for convenience, those referred to as dwarves were genuinely the type that seemed familiar from somewhere.

Average height around 140cm. Rather than simply being short, their bodies give a strong impression of being thick and solid. Though small in stature, their weight and pure physical abilities overwhelm even those of orcs.

Particularly, dwarves have muscles capable of exerting strength that surpasses orcs, all packed tightly into their 140cm frames. Thanks to this, they stand at the pinnacle of lower races in every aspect except agility—which, as “shorties,” they have absolutely no way of improving.

Furthermore, the dwarf race has been influenced by mineral mysteries since their origin, with their essence prominently displaying the characteristic of “never changing” in all aspects.

Due to these mysterious influences, the dwarf’s body possesses overwhelming immunity and strong resistance to poisons. Additionally, influenced by their very souls, dwarf bodies have anti-magical properties that repel magical effects.

They easily live beyond 300 years, have eyes that can pierce through darkness, and possess innate abilities as “craftsmen” in specific fields as a bonus.

Even their minds are protected by steadfast mysteries, making dwarves famous for having the lowest proportion of apostates among all human races, but…

Perhaps as a price for these characteristics, this trait strongly influences their personality and mentality, causing the vast majority of dwarves to have stubbornness and conservatism deeply rooted in their minds.

Viewed positively, they are people who uphold firm beliefs and know how to maintain courtesy, but in reality, they’re closer to narrow-minded, stubborn old fogies.

Of course, considering that this stubborn personality applies to themselves as well without exception, their character is actually incomparably more noble than common human fogies.

However, nobility is not a virtue everyone can possess, and many dwarves in particular tend to have personalities bordering on miserliness.

Therefore, even after rescuing this dwarf, I looked at him with concern, wondering what this embodiment of eccentricity might do…

“Th-thank you! Thank you so much for saving me! I-I will repay this debt no matter what happens!”

“…If you insist, gladly.”

As it turned out, the first dwarf I met in this life somehow appeared different from those described in countless books.

In other words, this dwarf didn’t actually look very old.

If there’s one defining characteristic of dwarves, it’s undoubtedly their long, luxurious beards.

Beyond mere body hair, the value beards hold in dwarf society is truly indescribable, and for dwarves, a beard that has never been cut is literally a source of pride.

Their “oath on the beard” is an obligation passed down through clan units, and if a dwarf loses their beard through an accident or some incident, they fall to the lowest stratum of society.

And the dwarf before me hadn’t grown his beard very long, suggesting that he was younger than I had initially thought.

Although the dwarf race tends to look older due to their long beards, judging by both the length of his beard and his voice, he didn’t seem to be an adult by any measure.

Considering that dwarves typically become adults at 50 (their mental growth is slow too), he might be older than me, but given the current situation, there’s no harm in showing respect and consideration to a dwarf.

Whether one likes it or not, dwarves are like mirrors—they consider kindness a debt and try to repay it.

However, it seemed that continuing our conversation here wasn’t feasible.

-…CRACK!

The ship, already severely damaged by the river troll’s actions, finally couldn’t withstand the collision with the reef, and water began to leak in.

“How about we talk after getting out of here? Have you gathered your belongings?”

“Of course!”

“Good! Then climb on here!”

As he hoisted what looked like a bundle onto his back, perhaps having prepared for escape, I let him ride on my shield and immediately broke through the ship’s outer wall to escape.

And so, this dwarf who escaped from the ship watched with a strange gaze as the vessel, unable to withstand the damage, finally sank. Observing this, I could intuitively sense something.

In this complicated situation, if left alone, he would surely be consumed by negative thoughts. Rather than allowing that, it would be better to divert his attention elsewhere.

“Dwarf, as your benefactor, let me ask you one thing.”

“…Wh-what is it?”

“What happened that led to this situation?”

With that thought in mind, when I posed such a question, the dwarf seemed to ponder for a moment before heaving a deep sigh…

“…It’s a long story.”

And he began to calmly share his circumstances with me, his benefactor, recounting what might or might not be his tragic tale.

※ ※ ※

However, regardless of this grand beginning, I was already taken aback from the first words uttered by the dwarf before me.

“I am Magni Brunz, a dwarf. I’m 45 years old, still just a youngster.”

“…Brunz?”

The reason was that his surname, Brunz, was the same as that of the dwarf who had been elected as the ‘Rune Lord,’ the leader of the current generation of dwarves.

The dwarf cities in the northern mountain ranges of the Western Continent, carved and modified from entire peaks, are essentially small nations with autonomous authority. The so-called ‘Dwarf Kingdom’ is actually closer to a federation of hundreds of underground cities.

This stems from the ‘tradition’ of how the dwarf race survived the fall of the ancient empire by hiding in underground dwarf cities and living for hundreds of years in complete isolation from the outside world.

While most dwarf cities are located in the northern mountain ranges of the Western Continent, that doesn’t mean there are no dwarf cities inland. Moreover, when they connected through underground cave systems, each city had long since become its own new ‘tradition.’

Following older traditions, they changed their signboards to read “Under the Dwarf Kingdom,” but having lived separately for hundreds of years, public opinion wasn’t favorable toward unification.

Therefore, the method dwarves chose was the ‘elective monarchy’ system used by humans. Representatives from each city elect the ‘Rune Lord,’ who can be considered the monarch of the dwarves, through voting every ten years.

…Of course, it’s a position with almost no real power and only honor, sometimes treated like a group project leader, but would the monarch of these traditionalist dwarves really be treated as such a sacrificial lamb?

In reality, the Rune Lord of the Western Continent does gain control over various traditional assets and the operation rights of rune weapons, artifacts of ancient dwarves.

As a result, the Rune Lord is not merely a figurehead but holds authority as a proper monarch, and it wouldn’t be far-fetched to consider them a person with real power, at least in matters of diplomacy and military…

‘This dwarf… is a Brunz?’

As I couldn’t hide my momentary confusion upon hearing that name, Brunz seemed to notice that I recognized his surname and exhaled softly before speaking.

“Since you’ve noticed, I’ll tell you. I am Magni Brunz, son of the Rune Lord, the monarch of the dwarves.”

“Then why would someone like you…”

“…It’s a long story.”

As I stared at him, finally understanding why he looked rather soft for a dwarf—a race of workers and craftsmen—Magni Brunz looked straight at me and began his explanation.

“I was different from other dwarves. Different in many ways…”

Magni Brunz was what one might call an oddball, possessing a distinctly different personality among the extremely traditionalist and stubborn dwarves.

Specifically, he held the belief that not changing eventually leads to falling behind the times.

The conservatism of dwarves exists in a kind of spiritual realm, to the extent that even after creating rune-magic-powered quasi-diesel engines beyond steam engines, they still haven’t fully entered an industrial revolution.

Even though they have the technology to create modern bolt-action rifles or early machine guns based on their hidden knowledge, the particularly stubborn dwarves still insist on using crossbows, all in the name of tradition.

And among such dwarves, Magni Brunz’s ideology was, simply put, more than enough to be considered subversive—material worthy of being ostracized despite being the son of the Rune Lord.

Because of this, Magni Brunz dreamed of escaping this reality and venturing into the outside world. He finally seized an opportunity to run away, then boarded a ship in a nearby imperial city only to be attacked…

“…I should contact my father and return.”

Perhaps he had some realization after seeing people die because of him. With a resolute expression, he muttered this before speaking up.

“So, I was wondering if I could impose on your land for a while?”

With an awkward smile, Magni Brunz offered to contribute his strength as a dwarf and made this request to me with politeness.

“…Our domain welcomes guests.”

Of course, the value of a dwarf as a workforce was too attractive to refuse.