Chapter 385 384. The Unchanging Dwarf

Hey yo! Hey yo! Pickaxe flash!

Hey yo! Hey yo! Chisel the rock wall!

The ground is dark, the fire is bright,

Dig out gold and exchange it for wine!

Not afraid of landslides or puddles,

Dwarves are always strong!

If you were trapped at the bottom of a mine—

The aroma of ale brings you home!

…

The air in the Giant's Mouth Tavern is filled with the rich aroma of ale and the burnt aroma of barbecue.

The dwarves' rough laughter and curses, the heavy clinking of wooden wine glasses when they toasted, the off-key mining songs, and the shouting of waiters carrying trays as they shuttled between the crowded tables and chairs.

This is the evening time that every dwarf is most familiar with.

In the innermost corner of the tavern, at a table against the stone wall, the dwarf Thorin Deepfurnace, who had accidentally fallen into the Puji dungeon and was finally brought back to the mountains, was having a last farewell drink with his friends.

Next to him is Grum, who is also a dwarf. After experiencing the life-and-death tests of Scarecrow Abyss and Puji Dungeon, the two of them went from a simple employment relationship to a life-and-death friendship, and are now always inseparable.

And the person sitting opposite them was a white-haired fox man, a rare sight in the mountains.

Dwarves are not as closed-minded as elves; they welcome allied races.

However, although the dwarves opened their doors, there were very few foreigners who were truly willing to settle in the mountains.

After all, there is no profit.

Valuable mineral veins are controlled by a few clans. Without the mining talent of the dwarves, it is extremely difficult to make a living here.

As for adventurers, the most they can do is take odd jobs like clearing monsters from the mines.

The Molten Dungeon in the mountains has long been completely controlled by the dwarves and has become a pure resource production base, with no need for outside interference.

Therefore, foreigners are relatively rare in the mountains, not to mention the fox people, who are already rare in number.

Thorin wiped his beard, which was covered with wine foam, and said with a smile, "Kiro, don't you want a glass of Dokkar? This is the most valuable treasure in the mountains!"

The fox-man Jiro shifted uncomfortably. Although he wasn't big, these heavy wooden chairs designed for dwarves still made him uncomfortable. "No, a wizard can't let his brain turn into a pool of mud."

"Nonsense," Grumm interrupted from the side. "Which of those mystics here isn't a drunkard? I think you just can't hold your liquor!"

Kiro just smiled and didn't argue.

Thorin sighed, his tone becoming somewhat sentimental. "Kiro, do we really have to leave? You can stay longer. I won't charge you for room and board. After all, you saved my life!"

This tavern is one of the properties of the Deepfurnace clan, to which Thorin belongs.

As the youngest son of the patriarch, although he does not have a high status in the family, he still has the authority to waive the bill for his friends.

Jiro shook his head slightly. "The mountain road where you fell was well-traveled. I simply discovered you before others. At most, I saved your suffering, but I can't say I saved your life. Besides, three months of free food and drink, and all the gems you gave me, is more than enough. Now, it's time for me to pursue new luck."

"I've been wanting to ask you," Glum leaned closer curiously, "What exactly do you mean by 'luck'?"

"It was luck that saved the injured Thorin. Now that luck has moved elsewhere, I have to catch up with it."

"Huh? Can you chase something like luck?" Glenn looked incredulous.

Thorin swirled the remaining wine in his glass and said enviously, "That's great! I want to travel the world like you, instead of wasting my time in these monotonous mountains!"

"You've been living too comfortably," Glum laughed. "Go hungry for a few more meals and you'll realize how much of a blessing it is to have a stable life!"

"Maybe, but I just crave adventure!"

The three of them talked for a long time until Glenn and Thorin were drunk and unconscious and were carried into the guest room by the waiter.

When I woke up at noon the next day, I learned that Kiro had left early in the morning.

"Kiro is really not an ordinary guy!" Glenn exclaimed.

"He is indeed very powerful, but what aspect are you referring to now?"

"Haven't you noticed that he's been able to get up on time every day in the past few months?"

Tolin shook his head blankly, and after recalling it, it seemed to be true.

This is indeed a great thing for a dwarf who loves drinking.

Suddenly he noticed something on his waist and took out two scrolls: "This is..."

Thorin had completely forgotten what happened after last night, but fortunately Glenn still remembered it.

"They are two scrolls of shrinking magic. Kiro said they can bring us good luck."

The two looked at each other. Although they didn't understand what was going on, Tolin still carefully put away the parting gift from his friend.

…

A week after Kiro left, Thorin's family finally couldn't stand his idleness any longer and arranged for him to be responsible for the transportation of materials in the Molten Dungeon.

Unlike other dungeons, the Molten Dungeon located beneath the Golden Flame Castle is mainly populated by various elemental spirits.

The dwarves, through some method, successfully "tamed" the elemental spirits.

Today, these elemental spirits have become stable producers of elemental materials.

Whenever the elemental spirit's body grows to a certain stage, it will be harvested, and its spirit will return to the environment to condense a new body.

The only trouble in the entire underground city is some insignificant burrowing insects, which at most steal some scraps.

Because of this, Thorin always complained that life in the mountains was monotonous and lacked passion. Even in the dungeons, there was no trace of adventure.

Looking at the packaged materials, Thorin whispered behind him, "Glumm, why don't we find another chance to escape?"

Glenn glanced at him and said, "Do you want to see me on the wanted list?"

Thorin thought about it and realized that his family might really do such a thing, so he could only sigh and let it go.

Just as Tolin was watching dejectedly as another batch of packaging materials were transported away, a cry for help suddenly came from a distance!

I saw a dwarf miner tumbling and crawling as he fled, with a nearly five-meter-tall stone giant chasing after him. The giant fist made of rock smashed down on the fleeing dwarf!

"Be careful!" Thorin roared, and almost instinctively grabbed the battle axe leaning against the wall and rushed over.

Grumm did not slow down at all and almost simultaneously put his sturdy shield in front of the stone giant.

The rock and steel collided violently, and Grum was knocked back half a step, but he successfully blocked the attack.

Thorin took the opportunity to strike the stone giant's knee with an axe, and the elemental spirit fell to the ground amid flying gravel.

However, before they could catch their breath, the entire dungeon seemed to suddenly wake up!

"The Fire Spirit is out of control!"

"Stop those rocks!"

The sounds of battle rang out from all directions, and the originally docile elemental spirits attacked the dwarves around them.

Thorin smashed the stone elemental beneath him with an axe: "What the hell is going on?"

Grum stood beside him: "Looks like the 'adventure' you were looking for is here."

"Don't be ridiculous, I wasn't expecting this!"

More and more runaway elemental spirits appeared in the field of vision.

"Run!" suggested Glenn.

At this moment, Tolin miraculously remembered his responsibilities: "I have to go sound the alarm first!"

"Are you serious at this time?"

Seeing that Thorin had already dived into a stone corridor, Glenn had no choice but to grit his teeth and follow him.

(End of this chapter)