Chapter 12 Stonefist Arrives! Salt is the First Step to Conquering the Dwarves! ...
What is it like to transport a dwarf, who weighs as much as a small tank and is in a semi-comatose state, from a mine more than ten miles away back to Lin's Restaurant?
Lin Yue's current answer is: Thanks for the invitation. I'm in another world. I just finished moving the dwarves. I feel like my waist doesn't belong to me anymore. My soul has left my body and is floating in the sky.
This return journey can only be described as an epic, high-intensity training exercise.
They had no stretcher, so the two of them had to take turns carrying or supporting him. Although Gray was incredibly strong, he was exhausted from carrying such a heavyweight for so long, and he was drenched in sweat and staggering.
Lin Yue, needless to say, with his small frame, was already exhausted after barely being able to help the dwarf move a few steps. Most of the time, he played the role of cheerleader captain and mobile medic on the sidelines, responsible for feeding the dwarf some light salt water whenever possible.
Xiao Fen was quite excited, running around them the whole time, and occasionally trying to lick the dwarf's pale, bearded face, but Lin Yue sternly stopped her.
"Little darling, that's a wounded soldier! Not your chew toy."
Along the way, the dwarf would sometimes faint, and sometimes let out a low groan from the excruciating pain. Lin Yue had to keep a close eye on his condition, afraid that he might suddenly collapse from exhaustion.
As the dwarf drifted into a hazy, half-dreaming state, Lin Yue occasionally heard him utter some incoherent murmurs:
"...The mineral vein...has been depleted..."
"...It's cold...so cold..."
"...Without salt...nothing...can be done..."
"...The family...can never go back..."
"...Hungry...So hungry..."
These fragmented words, like broken pieces of a puzzle, filled Lin Yue with doubt. The mine was depleted? His family? Could he never go back?
It sounds like this dwarf uncle is carrying a heavy story, and his appearance in this cursed land is probably not a coincidence.
[System Notification: Detected fragments of unconscious ramblings from the target 'Unknown Dwarf'. Keywords: depleted mineral veins, cold, salt shortage, family, hunger. Preliminary speculation suggests their departure from their original habitat may be related to resource scarcity and a survival crisis. Further details will be provided later.]
"There's definitely more to this story," Lin Yue thought to himself. "It seems this uncle is also a dwarf with a tale to tell."
[System Notification: The target 'Unknown Dwarf''s vital signs are continuously declining, indicating blood loss, dehydration, malnutrition... (details omitted). It is recommended to return to camp as soon as possible for basic treatment; otherwise, you will be responsible for the consequences.]
"I know, I know! I'm trying my best!" Lin Yue was on the verge of tears. "System, can you stop just giving hints and give me some real help? Like a 'teleport' or 'summon a medic' or something?"
[System Response: Insufficient permissions. Please rely on your own wisdom and the strength of your companions to overcome the difficulties. Friendly reminder: Complaining will not reduce the dwarf's weight.]
Lin Yue: "..." Okay, you win.
By the time they finally dragged the dwarf back to the inn, the sun was almost setting. Lin Yue felt his legs trembling and collapsed at the entrance of the newly built shelter, not wanting to move a single finger.
Gray wasn't in much better shape either. He carefully placed the dwarf on the ground covered with hay, which was the most luxurious bed in the inn, and then leaned against the wall, panting heavily.
Only Xiao Fen remained energetic, curiously circling the new, motionless giant, sniffing it from time to time, or tentatively touching it with her little paws.
After resting for a while, Lin Yue mustered his strength and began to check on the dwarves.
The injury had not worsened, but it had not improved either. The dwarf remained in a semi-comatose state, breathing weakly, and his lips were severely cracked.
"Grey, help boil some water! Little Fen, don't cause trouble!" Lin Yue instructed, then began to treat the dwarf's wounds.
He first carefully washed the dirt and bloodstains off the dwarf's legs with warm water.
After being cleaned, the condition of the wound was more clearly exposed—the skin and flesh were turned inside out, bone fragments were faintly visible, and the surrounding tissue was swollen and purplish. Lin Yue felt a chill run down his spine.
"This...this needs to be stitched up, right?" Lin Yue was stumped. He had never studied surgery! The system shop did have a [Basic Surgical Suture Kit], but it cost 1000 points! He only had a little over a hundred points, he was dirt poor!
[System notification: A severe open fracture has been detected. Perfect treatment is not possible under current conditions. Recommendations: 1. Use herbal remedies for basic anti-inflammatory treatment; 2. Attempt bone repositioning (extremely low success rate, may cause secondary injury); 3. Fabricate a splint for immobilization; 4. Strengthen nutrition and mineral supplementation, relying on the target's own healing abilities.]
"Well, it seems we have no choice but to try anything." Lin Yue sighed.
He found the anti-inflammatory herb he had discovered earlier, crushed it, and carefully applied it around the dwarf's wound, avoiding the fracture site.
Then, he directed Gray to help him find a sturdier and wider plank, and using his limited knowledge of modern medicine, he made a more professional splint to carefully fix the dwarf's broken leg.
During this process, the dwarf woke up several times in pain, each time letting out a series of indistinct roars and curses. Well, the system's friendly translation: it contained a warm greeting to his ancestors for eighteen generations and a strong condemnation of Lin Yue and Gray's clumsiness.
"Bear with it, uncle, it'll be over soon! For the tribe... uh, for your leg."
Lin Yue calmed the dwarf down while continuing to work on him. Gray was responsible for holding down the restless dwarf to prevent him from moving around and aggravating his injuries.
After all that, the two of them were exhausted again.
The wound has finally been initially treated; the next step is to replenish nutrients and fluids.
Lin Yue dissolved a little salt in warm water and then tried feeding it to the dwarf.
Perhaps because he had tasted the sweetness (of the salt?) before, the dwarf obediently opened his mouth and drank it without resistance.
After drinking the lightly salted water, the dwarf seemed to feel a little better. Soon after, he slowly opened his eyes, cautiously surveying his surroundings and the two men who had "kidnapped" him.
When his gaze fell on Lin Yue, it carried obvious doubt and... a hint of barely perceptible hostility. When he saw Gray beside him, his brows furrowed even more.
When he saw Xiao Fen looking around curiously, he let out a low roar, which startled Xiao Fen so much that she quickly hid behind Lin Yue.
"Hey! Calm down, uncle!" Lin Yue quickly stepped in front of him. "We're here to save you, not to be your enemy. And don't yell at my Xiao Fen."
The dwarf, panting heavily, tried to sit up, but even the slightest movement aggravated his injured leg, causing him to grimace in pain. He could only glare resentfully at Lin Yue and Gray.
"...Who...are you?...What do you want?" the dwarf asked hoarsely, his tone full of vigilance.
“We live here. We heard you calling for help when we were passing by the mine, so we rescued you,” Lin Yue explained in a calm tone. “My name is Lin Yue, this is Gray, and this is Xiao Fen.” He introduced them one by one.
The dwarf squinted, scrutinizing them. "...Grey...a human?...that...wolf cub?" His gaze lingered on Little Finn for a moment, seemingly surprised.
“I’m human, Gray… well, sort of. Little Finn is an orc cub,” Lin Yue replied. “And you? What’s your name?”
The dwarf paused for a moment, seemingly reluctant to reveal his name. But when you're under someone's roof, you have to bow your head, especially since he was currently an injured man unable to move.
“…Stone Fist.” He finally uttered those two words in a muffled voice.
[System Notification: Successfully acquired basic information for new member 'Stonefist' (Dwarf). Added to the [Guest Management] list. Current Status: Severely Injured, Near Death, Extremely Weak; Emotions: Alertness +50%, Anger +20%, Pain +30%.]
"Stone Fist?" Lin Yue nodded. "Good name, it sounds very tough... It's kind of cute in contrast to your current limp state."
Shi Quan clearly didn't understand what "gap moe" meant. He just glared fiercely at Lin Yue: "...Let me go! Once my leg is healed...I will repay you!", although his tone sounded more like a threat.
"Let you go? Uncle, look at you now," Lin Yue pointed to his leg, which was in a deluxe splint. "You can barely walk, let alone move. If we throw you out now, you'll be eaten by wild animals for snacks within half a day. We saved you, so we have to take responsibility for you, right?"
Shi Quan was speechless. He knew Lin Yue was telling the truth. But he was naturally suspicious, especially towards other tribes.
"What...are you all after?" Shi Quan asked suspiciously.
"What's the point?" Lin Yue laughed. "Just your... uh, your superb mining and forging skills?" he said half-jokingly.
Stone Fist's face instantly darkened: "...Don't even think about it! The skills of the dwarves...are never to be passed on to outsiders!"
"Don't get excited, don't get excited!" Lin Yue quickly waved his hand. "We were just kidding! We saved you purely out of humanitarianism... well, mainly because you were still breathing, and we couldn't bear to let you die."
He paused, then adopted a serious expression: "Uncle Stone Fist, you see, we're all in the same boat now. You're seriously injured and need to recuperate. We're also short-handed... well, mainly we need someone knowledgeable to help us figure out how to get better tools."
He pointed to the stone knife that Gray was sharpening next to him, which was being made according to the blueprints. "Look at the things we're using now, they're so inefficient. We've found iron ore, but we don't know how to smelt it into iron and forge it into usable tools."
Stonefist glanced at the stone knife in Gray's hand, a hint of disdain flashing in his eyes, but he didn't say anything.
Lin Yue continued to coax him gently: "I know you dwarves are best at this. Of course, we're not forcing you to teach us any core techniques, just a little guidance, like how to build a better furnace? How to control the heat? Or tell us where to find better ore? Once your injuries heal, if you want to leave, we won't stop you. How about it?"
Shi Quan remained silent, seemingly weighing his options.
Lin Yue then brought out the bluebird wild vegetable stew that he had cooked earlier.
The rich aroma of food wafted through the air, carrying an enticing salty fragrance.
Shi Quan's stomach rumbled loudly, much to his dismay. He hadn't had a decent hot meal in ages.
Lin Yue handed the large leaf bowl to Shi Quan: "Eat something first, the wounded need to replenish their energy."
Shi Quan hesitated for a moment, but finally took the bowl. He first carefully tasted a sip of the soup, and then his eyes suddenly lit up!
The taste... was so delicious, especially the perfect amount of saltiness, which instantly revived his long-parched taste buds.
Without further hesitation, he began to wolf down his food. His eating manners surpassed even those of Gray before.
What did you put in here?
Seeing how much Shi Quan craved food, Lin Yue knew that he had found another breakthrough.
“Uncle Stonefist, this salt is refined by ourselves,” Lin Yue said at the opportune moment. “You dwarves…don’t you need salt quite a bit?”
Shi Quan paused, looked up, and stared at Lin Yue in surprise: "...You...can get salt?"
“Yes.” Lin Yue nodded. “Although the amount is not much, it’s enough to maintain your daily needs. As long as you stay here and recover, there will be plenty of saline solution and salty stew every day!” He began to use his “food temptation” technique.
Shi Quan looked at Lin Yue, then at the fragrant stew in his hand, his eyes flickering.
The instinct for survival, the craving for salt, and the uncertainty about the future were locked in a fierce battle within him.
Finally, he gave a heavy snort, which was taken as tacit agreement with Lin Yue's suggestion.
"...I'll talk about it when my leg is better," he said in a muffled voice, then continued to bury himself in the bowl of stew.
Lin Yue and Gray exchanged a glance and both breathed a sigh of relief.
They've finally managed to keep this heavyweight new member in check for now.
Although this stone fist uncle seemed to have a bad temper and was very wary, at least he stayed.
The members of Lin's Restaurant have officially upgraded from two people and one dog to a trio and one dog.
Looking at Stone Fist, who was diligently cooking, Gray, who was still warily observing the dwarf, and Little Fen, who was circling around their feet trying to get some meat soup, Lin Yue suddenly felt that this temporary home in another world seemed to be getting more and more lively, and more and more... something to look forward to.
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