Foreigner's Mistake

Book 8: Chapter 172: Steady Advance ~ 25

Dwarves, Elves, Aquatic, Beasts, and Demons. Of these five non-human races, the Dwarves are the most coexistent with the humans.

The reason for this is food.

Dwarves are heavy drinkers. They eat a lot and drink as much as they can.

Dwarves, on the other hand, do not farm. Most alcoholic beverages are made from grain, as is their staple food. They also drink fruit wine, but this is not the taste of the dwarves, who depend on trade with the human race for their staple food and sustenance. On the other hand, the human race had access to high-quality crafts and minerals.

The exchange of food for minerals and other products was the basis of their lives, so when the number of humans was drastically reduced by the Seven Days Disaster, the Dwarves also faced a food crisis and their power was greatly reduced. They were not originally interested in dominating the continent, and they were quick to assist in the recovery of the human race, as they felt that they could not survive if the human race continued in its current state of decline.

However, they do not get along well with the Elves, who helped in the recovery of the human race.

This is because of the difference in thinking between the Elves, who consider trees as friends, and the Dwarves, who consider trees only as fuel.

Just as there were Dark Elves who belonged to the side of the demons in the war between humans and demons, there are Dwarves who belonged to the demons among the Dwarves. They are called Dwergs(), but these are not beings that can be seen on the surface of society. They dig holes deep in the earth and live only in them.

The roads in Arsweta are even less well maintained than before. The roads were not wide enough for carriages to pass through, and there were rocks lying on the road, so there was no room to enjoy a leisurely carriage ride. There are not that many people coming and going, just one brigade a koku walking.

The reason for this is that the Dwarves' trade is conducted almost exclusively through the country. The country was established to protect Dwarven craftsmen who had been cheated by human merchants. Nowadays, it is possible to negotiate directly with craftsmen, but indirect negotiation is not permitted, and the basic rule is to negotiate directly with the craftsmen at their workshops. Rico also explained that a system has been created whereby if they don't like the negotiations, they can appeal to the government, and it is difficult for anyone to go directly to the negotiating table.

Dwarves are said to be a race that values power and trust. They have no concept of deceiving people in the first place, and they say there are no two sides to the same coin. Satoru is the same way. Rico laughs when she hears this.

On the way, they were attacked by monsters and beasts several times, but they were able to wipe them out without any problems. Finally, they saw a sign for a town. If the map was correct, it should be a town called Deligrande.

Haaa, ......, it's a very smoky town

Satoru muttered to himself at the entrance to the town.

The town of Deligrande spread out below him. The sight of the town amidst the complex and bizarre sheer cliffs is extremely unusual. It is almost noon and the weather is not bad, but the air in the town is somehow gloomy.

He knows the cause. Black smoke was billowing out of the many chimneys standing all over the town, and that was the cause. In Satoru's eyes, the smoke is rising to a level that makes him worry about pollution, and it is belching out smoke as if the entire canyon is on fire.

I guess it's like an old-fashioned blacksmith town.

The carriage is carefully descending a considerable downhill slope. There was a small watchtower at the entrance to the town and some soldiers filling it, but there seemed to be no charge to enter the town.

The steep cliffs around the town seemed to have been reinforced. As a semi-subterranean city where a slight landslide could destroy the town, it is important to take care of the rock walls.

So the town is cut out of bedrock. Uhaah ......

Rico, who was acting as the coachman, muttered to herself as she looked around in dismay. Satoru can see windows stuck here and there on the cliff. As Rico said, the Dwarves here seem to live in the rocks. Satoru guesses that this is a characteristic of Dwarves. Unlike humans, who build their buildings on top, dwarves, who are more familiar with the soil, have probably expanded their habitat below.

The air is ba~d

Cough ...... Indeed, honestly, it's hard for me, too.

Even in the carriage, the bad air is clearly visible. Minerva and Liz seemed to be in particular pain, as both of them had lived in places where the air was cool and fresh.

The inside of the building is better. Let's find a place to stay for now.

It's my first time in a Dwarf town too. ...... I don't know what to expect

The number of Dwarves passing through the town is not large. The town of Deligrande, which is said to be the second largest town in Arsweta, has a population or more accurately, a Dwarven mouth(? ) of 2000 to 3,000 people.

The Dwarves were also glancing at the horse-drawn carriages, which are rare in this region. But Satoru had noticed. The dwarves were looking at Liz rather than at the carriage.

Liz is a half-elf. The Elves hate the Dwarves for destroying the forest, and the Dwarves look down on the Elves for not using the trees for fuel. This attitude seems to be effective even when dealing with half-elves.

Liz.

Yes

Liz, who had been spreading out the leather she had used as bedding during the trip, turned around.

Can I ask you to stay with Minerva?

Eh......

Apparently, the Dwarves don't look at half-elves in a good way. I'm afraid there's a danger of getting into trouble down there.

Liz sighed loudly at Satoru's point of view. Liz, herself is not conscious of discriminating against Dwarves. Although she was raised among the Elves, she was discriminated against because of her half-elf background, so she has never been able to discriminate against any race.

However, even so, Liz noticed the strange looks that the Dwarves were giving her. If there is no sense of discrimination on Liz's part, but there is on theirs, that's a recipe for trouble.

It can't be helped.

Satoru gave one instruction to Liz, who was so disappointed that she could not help him. Liz is now taking care of the bedding leather. It was quite a job for all of them. Liz nodded happily. She was happy to be able to do something useful, even if it was a small thing.

Rico, you go shopping. Isolde, go with her.

Ha!

Rico shrugs her shoulders a bit, and Isolde nods in return in the most serious manner. Rico, who is accustomed to being in the world, is unlikely to get into trouble, but this is a society of Dwarves, not the usual human society. It is also in the hope that Rico will deter Isolde, who seems to cause trouble every now and then, by attaching her to Rico.

There are two magical slaves remaining.

(Hmmm, what about Leia?)

I am in the shadows.

What about Solor?

If it is allowed, I would like to join Master.

Satoru nodded. Satoru himself is planning to negotiate whether or not he will be allowed to build the airship. Normally, he would have asked Rico or Liz to do it, but in a society of craftsmen, men are usually in the upper echelon. A young woman is likely to be underestimated.

In any case, Satoru was planning to take Solor out with him. She was the only one who knew about the airship in detail.

Danna-sama...What should Minerva do?

The only beautiful woman who had not been directly approached raised her voice in dissatisfaction. Satoru doesn't want to take her into town, she complained when they entered the town and said the air was bad.

Help Liz. After that, you just relax. The air in this town is gonna be a problem for your baby

Okay~

You're overprotective.

(Shut it.)

Satoru lightly brushed off the exasperated voice coming from within the shadows. He indeed feels overprotective, but the pollution caused by soot and dust is something that is well recognized in his original world. In this world, awareness of pollution is too low.

The same is true for the disease that was said to be prevalent in Liese's country. If you think about it, Liese's country is downstream from Arsweta. Satoru now realizes that if the wastewater from metal smelting and other processes had been discharged directly into the river, the downstream countries would have used the river water without knowing it, and as a result, they might have contracted the disease.

But he can't go back to Liese now. Satoru sat up from his somewhat small bed, hoping that Dahl's wife would be cured by the water with the magic power blessing that Satoru had given Dahl, with whom he had somewhat formed a friendship at the Haivan checkpoint.