Ch.33Minaret Belghand

The rain that had been falling since morning gradually subsided, and brilliant sunlight began to shine through the gray clouds once again.

With shovels and pickaxes in hand, we had worked diligently for the past three hours and finally managed to rescue the survivor buried under mud and rubble.

The survivor found inside the arch-shaped metal frame and wire mesh of a torn tent was a small girl, about 130cm tall, with silver hair tied up on one side and striking amber eyes.

“—or so I thought.”

“Hehe, it can’t be helped if it’s your first time seeing a female dwarf. Don’t worry too much about it, big brother?”

“I said I was sorry…”

Minarette Belghand. Female dwarf. 25 years old.

Living in the dwarven mining city of ‘Blackforge Mine’ south of Zemest, she had been mining ore in the rocky mountains yesterday afternoon when it got too late, so she camped out. While oversleeping, a landslide occurred due to the rain, and she ended up buried.

As it turns out, I was the only one who mistook her for a child; Jessica and Seti immediately recognized her as a dwarf from her mining worker attire and pointed ears.

If they had told me sooner, I wouldn’t have embarrassed myself by picking up a woman five years my senior and making a fuss about “Big brother will definitely find your parents!”

“By the way, if you live in a dwarf mining village, why did you come all the way out here to mine ore?”

“Even a dwarven mine doesn’t have every mineral buried in it. Come to think of it, you three seem to be adventurers. If you’re confident in your skills, would you like to make a big profit with me?”

“A big profit, huh. I’m interested, but… what do you think, Jessica?”

“It depends on what it involves. We need to reach Zemest by the day after tomorrow at the latest, so we don’t have time for anything too lengthy.”

“That’s fine. It won’t be too late even if we depart after stopping by Zemest.”

“What kind of job is it?”

“Hoo-hoo! After hearing about it, you’ll be grateful for your luck in meeting me here!”

With those words, Minarette opened her bag that had been recovered from the rescue site. Inside were about a dozen fist-sized reddish-black ores.

“This ore is called pyroxite. It’s normally used as high-heat fuel, but I know how to make powerful bombs that can inflict continuous fire damage using this pyroxite.”

“Hmm, and?”

“What I’m about to tell you is top-secret information not even known to the Zemest Adventurers’ Guild… A week ago, traces of a certain monster were discovered near these rocky mountains. It’s a giant monster with a huge body, matching strength, and ridiculous regenerative abilities.”

“……”

I can guess. The identity of the monster, what Minarette is about to say, and even how this story will end.

“The monster’s name is Mountain Troll. The magic stone embedded in its heart alone is worth hundreds of gold. However, it’s a dangerous creature that can’t be defeated without powerful fire-based attacks. Mediocre fire magic or fire-imbued pistols can’t even stand against its overwhelming offensive power.”

“And that’s where Minarette’s…”

“Call me Mina. It’s cuter that way.”

“…Mina’s bombs could easily defeat that monster. Is that what you’re trying to say?”

“Exactly! If it hits properly, one shot is all it takes! To be safe, just 2-3 bombs are more than enough to take down a Mountain Troll. I was originally planning to sell them for 100 gold each, but since you three saved my life, I’ll sell them to you for half price—50 gold. What do you think? What do you think???”

According to Jessica, a Mountain Troll’s magic stone is worth at least 500 gold, so even if we bought the bombs at 100 gold each, it would still be profitable if we could defeat it with just 2-3 bombs.

Moreover, offering to sell them at half price meant her claim that we’d be grateful for meeting her wasn’t just empty words. That is, if the Mountain Troll hadn’t already been defeated by us.

Mina, who had been making a coin shape with her thumb and index finger while wearing a triumphant smile, gradually stiffened as she noticed our three indescribably awkward expressions. Jessica, watching Mina’s face, reached into the backpack on Ancestor’s back and pulled out that item, holding it up in front of Mina’s eyes.

That very item that would bring despair to Mina—the Mountain Troll’s magic stone.

“……No way…”

“I’m sorry to disappoint you, but… that’s how it is.”

“NOOOO~!!”

The large magic stone in Jessica’s hand was gleaming brilliantly as if mocking the pyroxite ore in Mina’s bag, and the dull reddish color of the pyroxite, lacking any luster, seemed to reflect Mina’s feelings.

Mina collapsed on the ground in a picture-perfect OTL pose of defeat, Seti patting her shoulder consolingly, Jessica putting the troll’s magic stone back into her bag with an apologetic expression, and me just scratching my head.

“Um… that’s unfortunate.”

“I’m just asking, but… if I were to ask you to keep quiet about defeating the troll until I finish selling my bombs…?”

“That’s not happening.”

Seti answered immediately, but I felt the same way. Using an already-defeated monster as a pretext to sell expensive bombs is clearly fraud, and those who would suffer would likely be adventurers like us.

I understand Mina’s feelings about losing a money-making opportunity right before her eyes, but I have no intention of turning a blind eye to a merchant trying to scam fellow adventurers.

“Ugh, can’t be helped… I’ll have to be satisfied with just obtaining high-quality pyroxite ore this time.”

“I’m glad you understand. We need to prepare our camp before sunset, so could you wait here?”

“Camp preparations? The ground around here is nothing but puddles.”

“That’s why we need to start quickly. We need to find flat ground without standing water, even if it’s a bit muddy, or we won’t even be able to set up tents. And because of the rain, it won’t be easy to find wood for fuel.”

“True, with only an hour or two before sunset, there’s no point in moving further today. Let’s get started then.”

Not only Mina who had been buried in the landslide, but all three of us who conducted the rescue operation in bad weather were soaked from the rain and covered in mud and stone dust.

Although we have spare clothes in our bags, we need to somehow light a fire and dry our wet bodies to maintain minimal hygiene and health for the night.

Just as I was about to get up to prepare for all this, Mina raised her right hand high.

“Hey, hey! Why don’t you let me handle the camp preparations?”

“Huh? The camp preparations?”

“My tent was destroyed in the landslide anyway, and while I recovered my bag with ore and tools, I couldn’t find my food. I’ll have to impose on your campsite tonight, so I’ll use the pyroxite I just mined and dwarven techniques to create the best camping environment. In return, let me sleep in your tent tonight and share your food and water until we reach Zemest. What do you think?”

When Seti and I turned our heads to look at Jessica in response to Mina’s proposal, Jessica thought for a moment and then nodded.

“I never intended to leave someone we just rescued here alone. However, our party sleeps together in one large tent, so Mina would be sleeping in the same tent with us. Is that okay?”

“Um… I don’t mind. But since I don’t have spare clothes, I’d like to borrow something to wear while sleeping.”

“Then I’ll lend you my cloak. It’s not thick, but it’s cozy and soft.”

“Great, then let me show you what I can do.”

Mina’s skill with the pickaxe and shovel she picked up from the corner was more than enough to earn the exclamation “truly a dwarf!”

After briefly surveying the surroundings, she walked to a suitable flat area, used her pickaxe to create thin water channels to direct puddles to the edges, then took out a pyroxite ore, split it in half, crushed one piece into small fragments, and lit it.

She scattered the burning yellow pyroxite powder evenly across the campsite with her shovel, turning over the soil to bury it with the mud. Within less than 5 minutes, steam began to escape from various spots in the ground, and flames flickered through the cracks.

After about 10 minutes, the ground around where the pyroxite powder was buried began to dry, and after approximately 25 minutes, there was enough dry land to set up camp without any issues.

“This should be enough for camping without problems, right? You can use the other half of the pyroxite instead of firewood to light a campfire.”

“Amazing! So pyroxite ore can be used like this.”

Jessica couldn’t hide her admiration for Mina’s skill in instantly transforming the soggy ground into something like a dry field, and Seti and I were also speechless at the remarkable sight.

“Pyroxite not only has strong heat but once it starts burning, it won’t go out even if buried in wet ground or submerged in water. Using this property, drying an area large enough for a few tents is a matter of moments.”

“I learned something useful. With this, we wouldn’t have to worry even on rainy days.”

“I hate to dampen your enthusiasm, but you absolutely must not try this yourself. The ability to control pyroxite’s heat delicately and evenly is backed by dwarven techniques and know-how. If other races carelessly attempt this without being able to read the flow of heat, it could cause explosions due to over-concentration or spread into a major fire through remaining roots in the soil.”

“Uh, um… I’ll keep that in mind.”

I had been thinking that we could solve our post-bad-weather camping problems in the future if we just prepared some pyroxite ore, but after receiving Mina’s stern warning, I had to abandon that idea.