Foreigner Volume 8, Chapter 173

Volume 8 Chapter 173, Steady Advance ~ 26

　After all, a Dwarven town differs from that of humans in many ways.

　First of all, the overall size of everything is fundamentally small. And yet, buildings and furniture are robust, probably because the race as a whole is wide in proportion to its height and heavy in proportion to its weight. Even the roads that crisscross the town are just barely big enough to accommodate a carriage. The doors of inns were large, but the doors of ordinary houses were half that size. Even if it's not Satoru, it is designated in such a way that even Dwarves have to stoop down to enter.

　According to Leia's explanation, this was done on purpose. The Dwarven race itself is said to be almost all strong warriors, regardless of gender. In the past, however, each family or clan lived separately and narrowed the entrances to their houses to protect themselves from attacks by monsters and beasts. It is the same principle as the nests of beasts and insects.

　The narrow streets of the town are said to be a remnant of this practice. In the Age of Myth, there was a war in which the Dwarves skillfully used narrow roads to hold back a large army of monsters that invaded the land of the Dwarves, while at the same time destroying several earthen pillars that formed cliffs and burying the monsters alive. It is clear that the steep rocky peaks that stand in the middle of towns can be used as weapons when the need arises.

　I see, With admiration, Satoru stepped into the blacksmith's town. The air quality was very bad due to the smoke coming out of the chimneys. Satoru unintentionally put a cloth over his mouth as if it were a mask. Minerva and Liz, who had been living in the cool air, must have found it quite hard. Satoru, too, found it hard, but knowing how bad the air is in modern Japan, he could just barely tolerate it.

　The workshop with a large, rude sign saying "Kurokuma (Black Bear)" was, as Satoru was told, located just inside the blacksmith's town. Satoru looked around for someone or a door ― a door was quickly found. But the door was low. It was only as high as the entrance to an ordinary Dwarven house. There might be a larger entrance if he went around the workshop, but here Satoru was in a position to negotiate. He could not carelessly enter an unnecessary place and sow the seeds of trouble.

「I can't go inside with the Giant Killer (this guy) like this. No choice then.」

　Satoru stabbed the Giant Killer on his back into the ground. He put a lot of effort into stabbing it into the hard bedrock, so it won't come out with a lot of force.

　The door was not locked, and Satoru bent down and went through the door.

「Ohhh!」

　The workshop inside was quite spacious. It was about the size of a small gymnasium, with room for four basketball courts. Satoru entered the mezzanine floor, which is surrounded by a stone passageway. From here, he could see the entire workshop, including the Dwarves working around the large furnace. The sound of hammering is so loud ― it's easy to understand, it's a factory.

　He looks around and sees one Dwarf with a difficult look on his face, shouting instructions below. Satoru walks over to him, taking Solor with him.

「Excuse me.」

　No response. Satoru wonders if he can't hear him because the noise of the hammering is quite loud, mixed with the sound of the ore being sifted out.

「Excuse me! Is the master of the workshop here!!?」

「What the hell, human! I can hear you even if you don't make such a loud voice!」

　Satoru's voice sounded louder than expected. Cowering his shoulders and holding his ears, the dwarf gave Satoru a disturbed look. He was wearing a cloth wrapped around his head as a helmet, and his thick arms showed some burn marks. "Boss," a voice called from below, "Ouh," and the dwarf waved his hand and looked down, then gave a thumbs-up. Apparently, this dwarf is the master of the workshop.

「Are you the black bear?」

「That's right. This Black Bear is the best blacksmith in Deligrande, or rather in Arsweta.」

　Black Bear with white teeth showing on his blackened face. It may be rude to say, but he looks like a good-natured type. Satoru is also a field worker, so this type of person is easier to get along with.

　Satoru wondered if he should have brought a souvenir, but he went straight to the point.

「I have a favor to ask you.」

「Say it.」

　There was no restraint in the way he looked at Satoru. He may be a large man among dwarves, but he is still probably shorter than Leia. His thick, log-like arms and the intensity of his glowing eyes are the best proof that he is a strong man.

「I need you to build me an airship.」

「I refuse!」

　The answer came back immediately. After taking a deep breath, Black Bear reaches into the water bag on his waist and drinks the contents. Satoru's not sure if it is really water or not.

　Puhah, He looks up at Satoru with a liquor-soaked breath and glances at him.

「What's so sad is that it takes so long to make such a thing. First of all, there are no sorcerers in this day and age who can use the 【Grant Goods】 to make it fly.」

　Well, that's a normal reaction―In the days of the Ancient Magical Kingdoms, when there were Towers of Magic and sorcery could be used at will, there was no problem using 【Grant Goods】, but in this day and age, there are no sorcerers who can use such things.

　That much was fine. However, Satoru's attitude changed when Black Bear continued to speak to him.

「Take your young woman and mess around with her. You're only using her for the show!」

　A metallic click sounded in Satoru's mind. It is true that he is in the position of having a beautiful woman, Solor, with him, and that he is in the position of being the one who is making the request, bowing down to the representative of the workshop and having it made for him, but Satoru is not so mature that he can remain silent when he is called a messing around. But this is a different story.

「I'm not messing around」

「Look at the weapon on your waist! That thing may be a magic sword, but it's just a thin sword.」

　What Satoru carries at his waist is a Levatein. It is a long sword of ordinary size. Dwarves value power very highly. He must have judged that it was not manly to use such a slender sword, magic sword or not.

　Satoru grinned at the shallow Black Bear's words.

「Oh, this one? It's my backup weapon. This is not my main weapon.」

「Aahh?」

　*glare*, Black Bear glared at Satoru.

「I couldn't get into this workshop with it on my back, so I stuck it in the entrance.」

　Satoru doesn't take a step back from the Black Bear's strong gaze, as if he wants to shoot him dead.

　For the first time, the Black Bear seemed interested in the large human man who met his gaze head-on and stared back at him, and snorted, "hmph".

「B-Boss!!」

「What it is!」

　He must be one of Black Bear's apprentices. A man, unusually young for a dwarf with an aged face, rushed toward the black bear with thumping footsteps and a panic look on his face. The young dwarf looked surprised when he saw Satoru, but he didn't care about that, as he gave the black bear a quick whisper.

　The black bear's expression suddenly changed. He looked at the young dwarf and Satoru alternately with incredulity.

　Apparently, the young man saw the Giant Killer thrust at the entrance of the workshop, and he was about to report it.

「......Can you show me your main weapon?」

「Sure.」

　Satoru returned with a shrug. The black bear led the way out of the workshop. Satoru, who followed behind him, failed to bend down and hit his head with a thud, which was a bit charming.

「Th-this is ......」

　Satoru strokes his head and looks at the black bear, who is astonished to see a large sword standing at the entrance of the workshop.

「No doubt, it is the 『Giant Killer』!」

　As Satoru had heard from Leia before, the Giant Killer that he usually uses as his main weapon was originally used in Dwarven festivals, a kind of ritual weapon, so to speak. It is a legendary great sword that was given to a certain human warrior who won a power contest with the dwarves a long time ago. Satoru does not know whether it originated in this country or another, but it seems that this black bear also knew of its existence.

「It is true that he has a physique suitable for using it, but ......Grrrr」

　A black bear groans as he compares Satoru to the Giant Killer thrust on the ground. He must be feeling a little embarrassed after having called Satoru messing around. Laughing with Hmph, Satoru says nastily.

「Try pulling it out. If you can pull it out, though」

　Satoru had thrust it in with a lot of force. He doesn't think it would be so easy to pull it out.

　The black bear glared at Satoru and tried to pull out the legendary sword with his thick arm, but was unable to do so. His face turned red and his blood pressure rose, but the sword still did not wince.

「Nuh!」

　Finally, his veins were about to break, and the young man hurriedly intervened.

　Satoru smiled wryly as he tried to pull it out himself this time. It seemed that the sword was stuck deeper than he expected, and he struggled to pull it out, but when he pulled it out with all the strength he could muster at his waist, the large sword was pulled out with a loud thud. The sword was about 5 feet long (150cm) and 1 foot wide.

　The black bear bit his teeth as Satoru pulled it out.

「Th-That's not enough to tell. Let's directly compare our strengths.」

「Haah, oh, well, that's fine」

　The arm that was held out to him was definitely thicker than Satoru's. Maybe he just hates to be outdone. It may be that he simply hates to lose, but Satoru wonders if this is a common reaction of dwarves. It is disappointing that he judges Satoru to be messing around based on his appearance alone and refuses to admit that he is wrong.

　It might be an obstacle to further negotiations, but Satoru would not feel at ease if he did not smash this haughty nose.

　Following the black bear's instructions, the young dwarf rolled out a metal cylinder that looked like a short oil drum. He was going to use it as a platform for arm-wrestling.

　Frankly, it felt ridiculous, but he was on a boat. Satoru gripped the arm that was held out to him.

「Well then, begin!」

　The black bear exerted himself in time with the young dwarf's call.

「Mouriya!! Gunu, gununununununu!!」

　Satoru, however, was undeterred. The black bear's arm strength is considerable, as he must be proud of his strength. However, as expected, this level of strength was no match for Satoru. Minerva in her flying dragon form was much stronger than this dwarf.

「I'm sorry, but I don't need to get serious about this.」

　Satoru says this matter-of-factly, and the black bear turns red in the face and retorts,

「Well, well, let's see if you can beat me first!!」

　Now if you look at it simply as an arm-wrestling match, they are evenly positioned. However, it is obvious which one has more room to maneuver. Shaking his head, Satoru said, "Good grief".

「If you resist too hard, you'll break a bone, you hear? Take this」

　Satoru, who judged that going all at once would break his opponent's bones, dared to slowly exert his strength. The black bear desperately tried to resist, but there was no way he can resist Satoru's physical strength, which was gradually enchanced in.

「Gunuuuaahhh!!」

　Satoru, however, did not give a second thought to his resistance, and simply dropped the black bear's fist on the table with a thud. We've got a winner here.

　However, Satoru did not stop putting his strength into it. It was only when the drum cracked with a nasty sound that Satoru relaxed. The black bear, as well as the young dwarf who was watching the match, rolled their eyes. Solor, as usual, has her usual composed look on her face. Satoru could hear Leia's wry smile in his head.

「Would you still call me messing around?」

　The black bear growled at the sound of Satoru's voice with a hint of aggression in it. It must have been quite a blow for him to lose in the physical competition. However, the difference in strength is obvious. If it was simply pure arm strength, Satoru did not know if he could win, but this is a world where magic power is a given. There is no question of boosting his muscles with magic power. Even Satoru has no control over it, so there is nothing he can do about it, even if he is said to be a coward.

「I take back the "messing around" comment. It seems I misjudged the situation. I'm sorry.」

　Satoru was a little disappointed when the black bear bowed to him unexpectedly easily. It seemed that he dared to admit defeat. "However," he added.

「However if you want to convince us, dwarves, you need power and one more thing: alcohol!」

　Yeah, I get it. He's just an old guy who hates to lose―Satoru saw through that. He recalled that there were many similar types of fathers in his former world. In his job as a security guard, he had often seen a race of stubborn field workers ― just like them.

「Alcohol, huh. I'm not very good at it.」

　If it were true, there would be no need for him to be so honest, but just as Satoru was about to think that, Solor suddenly stood beside him.

「Do you mind if I take his place?」

「Haah!? A human woman would butt in! That's interesting!!」

　This is unfair.

　Solor does not accept toxins anyways. Satoru knows that alcohol does not affect her body. The black bear won't stand a chance in hell. But, in a fit of selling, Solor's candidacy was accepted by the black bear.

「Ah ......, well, that's fine.」

　Satoru scratched his head and accepted the half-optimistic drinking contest.

　Praying for the good fortune of the black bear, who was sure to lose.

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