Chapter 84

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The Bone Dragon lowered its massive head and stared quietly at Lucy.

It was asking her to climb on.

Lucy carefully climbed onto the Bone Dragon’s head and sat down.

“Let’s go.”

Grrr…

The Bone Dragon let out a low growl and flapped its wings.

Its enormous body lifted off the ground and quickly soared into the sky.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

With each flap of the Bone Dragon’s wings, the toxic mist scattered in all directions, and Lucy’s hair fluttered in the wind.

‘Amazing…!’

A smile spread across Lucy’s face.

When she had been captured by Kairos and flown through the sky, it had been terrifying, but riding the Bone Dragon felt safe.

The Bone Dragon quickly broke through the toxic mist and flew up to the top of the gorge.

Below, Thor and Priscilla were staring in shock.

Sophie, too, was wide-eyed as she looked at Lucy.

Thud.

The Bone Dragon landed on the ground and lowered its head again so Lucy could climb down.

Lucy stepped onto the ground.

[Good job. See you next time.]

Grrr…

After sending the Bone Dragon back, Thor, Priscilla, and Sophie approached.

“What in the world…”

Thor’s mouth hung open.

There were so many questions he wanted to ask, but the words wouldn’t come out.

How could she be unharmed by the toxic mist? What was that giant skeletal dragon just now? And…

“Lucy, where are your clothes?”

Sophie asked.

Thor’s face instantly turned red.

That was actually what he most wanted to ask.

Right now, Lucy looked as if she had painted her body black.

Her silhouette was unmistakable.

He didn’t know where to look.

“They melted in the toxic mist.”

Lucy replied nonchalantly.

Then she handed Dracania blade to Thor.

“This is it, right? The sword you mentioned.”

“Yeah…”

Thor avoided looking at Lucy as he took the blade of Dracania.

“I… I really didn’t think you’d get it back… Thank you…”

“And I also picked this up.”

Lucy showed them the purple crystal.

Thor and Priscilla’s eyes widened.

“Gasp…!”

“Good heavens, that’s Venorium…?!”

“Venorium?”

Lucy tilted her head.

Thor explained with an excited expression.

“Venorium is an extremely rare ore that contains powerful toxicity!”

“Really?”

Lucy felt glad she had brought it back.

Thor continued his explanation.

“Venorium is originally black, but the stronger the toxicity it accumulates, the more it glows purple. The more it glows purple, the higher its grade, and this one….”

The Venorium in Lucy’s hand was a pure purple.

Meaning it was the highest grade.

In terms of value, it was comparable to Thor’s Draconium.

You could buy an entire castle with it.

“To think the highest grade of Venorium was found in the Karak Gorge…”

Of course, it was entirely possible.

The toxic mist in the Karak Gorge was incredibly potent.

Lucy asked, “Can you make weapons with this?”

“Of course.”

Thor nodded as if it were obvious.

“Weapons made from Venorium are highly effective. Something like an arrow could kill an ogre in one shot. But refining it is tricky, so only a highly skilled blacksmith can handle Venorium.”

“Can you handle it?”

“I… I can’t. I’m not at that level yet…”

Then Priscilla stepped forward.

“I can handle it.”

Lucy looked at Priscilla.

“Really?”

“Yes.”

“Then can you refine my dagger?”

“Sure. Want me to do it?”

Lucy nodded.

Priscilla smiled brightly.

“Alright. I’ll do it.”

Refining special ores like Venorium usually costs a lot.

The process is complicated and demanding.

But Lucy had saved Priscilla and retrieved Thor’s sword.

Charging Lucy for this would be unthinkable.

Besides,

‘She’s so cute…!’

Priscilla stared intently at Lucy.

In Priscilla’s eyes, Lucy looked as lovely as a fairy.

It was a different kind of flutter than what she had felt for Thor.

Priscilla had discovered a new preference.

Thor remade the hilt for Dracania.

Making the hilt was simple, so it only took an hour.

“Shall we head to the Mining Festival now?”

The Mining Festival was held in the central square of the village, where the blacksmiths gathered.

The place was already bustling with excitement.

It felt similar to a human city’s festival.

Stalls were set up everywhere, selling roasted meat, dwarf specialty beer, and various other foods.

There were also many stalls selling accessories and weapons.

Various events were being held in one corner.

Traditional dance competitions, bare-handed smashing contests, and more.

Thor first headed to the center of the square.

There, dwarves with solemn expressions were seated.

The judges for the Mining Festival’s blacksmith competition.

On a large stone table, the works of several participants were already displayed.

Each piece was inspected by the judges, and the name of the work and its creator were attached.

Thor submitted his Dracania.

“Dracania. Thor. Submission complete.”

Thor’s Dracania was placed alongside the other works.

After submitting his piece, Thor began to explore the festival.

His siblings and Lucy’s group joined him.

Lucy was wearing a sky-blue sleeveless dress.

It was brought by Priscilla.

The fitted waist suited Lucy’s slender frame well.

It couldn’t have been Priscilla’s dress.

Priscilla was about the same height as Lucy, but her build was much larger, so her clothes wouldn’t fit Lucy.

She must have borrowed it from another young dwarf.

Either way, it suited Lucy perfectly.

‘She’s beautiful…!’

Thor fell for Lucy all over again.

He wanted to pull out a ring and propose to her right then and there.

He hadn’t done it properly earlier.

But something was bothering him.

His earlier conversation with Priscilla.

Priscilla had hinted that she had feelings for Thor, and Thor had said the same.

Lucy had overheard that conversation. Would she really accept his proposal?

‘Damn it, I messed up.’

It was true that Thor had feelings for Priscilla.

If he had known about Priscilla’s feelings just one day earlier, he would have proposed to her.

But the situation had changed.

Now, Thor had feelings for Lucy.

Even though Priscilla was pretty and had a well-toned body, that was by dwarf standards.

Compared to Lucy, Priscilla was like a rock.

Not just in appearance, but in ability, Lucy was far superior.

Just look at Lucy, summoning a giant skeletal dragon and riding it around.

Priscilla’s exceptional blacksmithing skills were nothing in comparison.

He definitely wanted to marry Lucy.

After marrying Lucy, they would take care of his siblings together and live happily ever after.

They’d have about five kids.

Thor approached Lucy and asked, “Want to dance with me?”

“No.”

A firm rejection.

Thor’s face fell.

Just earlier, Lucy had taken Thor’s hand first.

Thor had thought she was impressed by his thick beard.

But now, her attitude seemed different.

‘It’s because of that conversation with Priscilla….’

Of course, this was just Thor’s delusion.

Lucy had never been interested in Thor, and she hadn’t paid much attention to the conversation between Thor and Priscilla.

If someone asked her about the conversation now, she’d probably tilt her head and say, “Huh, what was it?”

“Hey, Lucy!”

Finn, who was sitting on Lucy’s head and watching the festival, spoke up.

“Try that! The bare-handed smashing contest!”

Lucy turned her gaze.

Where Finn was pointing, a group of dwarves had gathered.

In the center were large rocks lined up as targets, and a dwarf announcer was accepting participants.

Lucy walked over.

Thor asked from behind, “You’re joining the bare-handed smashing contest?”

“Yeah. It looks fun.”

Lucy smiled slightly as she spoke.

The bare-handed smashing contest was the second most anticipated event after the blacksmith competition.

Many dwarves trained hard to win this contest.

Unlike the blacksmith competition, winning didn’t bring much honor, but the prizes were quite good.

This year’s prize was the ‘Crown Shield’.

A shield made by a legendary dwarf blacksmith hundreds of years ago.

It was said to be lightweight yet capable of withstanding any impact, made from a mix of mithril and orichalcum.

The shield’s surface was engraved with a crown pattern, hence its name.

Thanks to the Crown Shield, this year’s bare-handed smashing contest was even more popular.

Everyone was aiming for the Crown Shield.

And now, Lucy was joining the contest.

Thor thought quietly.

The Crown Shield would probably go to Lucy.

Lucy’s abilities had already been proven.

She commanded dozens of skeletons, summoned demons and skeletal dragons, and burned people to death with a touch.

No dwarf in this village could defeat Lucy.

‘Tough luck for everyone else….’

Thor looked at the dwarves participating in the contest with pity in his eyes.

[Alright, hello, everyone!]

The announcer raised his voice.

[It’s here again! The bare-handed smashing contest you’ve all been waiting for!]

“Woo!!”

Cheers erupted from the crowd.

Translator Note

T/N (Translator’s note):
Till now, he hasn’t asked her the important questions: Her age.

Let’s castrate him.