The sun is high

"If a dwarf's mouth is like a closed iron door, then strong alcohol is the only key to open this iron door."

This is a proverb widely circulated in the plains.

Although this proverb seems quite exaggerated, it actually points out two indisputable facts.

First, dwarves are generally paranoid and extreme in character. It is always extremely troublesome to communicate with them, and it is even more difficult to get the information you want from them.

The second is that dwarves always have a very high pursuit of spirits.

In the eyes of many dwarves, alcohol is even less important than their belief in the sun and their pursuit of forging and smelting.

But in fact, the drinking capacity of the dwarves is not as amazing as the legend. They often go from one extreme to another under the influence of alcohol after drinking. No matter how gloomy they are before drinking, drinking After that, they will become passionate and unrestrained.

The goblins of the plains even made up a few jokes about it.

The irony of the so-called "One bottle will make you a brother, two bottles will reveal secrets, and three bottles will betray the country and surrender to the enemy" is ironic to the dwarves, and because of this widely circulated joke, the giant-eared goblins were also completely engraved on their blacklists by the dwarves. .

Shuge knew the special situation of the dwarves very well, so when he gave the gift, he specifically mentioned that the bottle of wine contained a magic potion that could relieve the symptoms of seasickness, which gave the dwarves in front of him a signal - himself It's not just about bribing them with wine, but after careful consideration, giving them a well-prepared gift based on their situation.

The dwarf Badosa raised his head silently, and his eyes stayed on Xiuge's face for two seconds.

Finally, he nodded slowly and took the delicate metal flask from Shuge's hand. After unscrewing the lid and smelling it, the dwarf's rigid face finally relaxed, and he touched himself With that huge nose, he conveniently pinned the wine bottle to his waist.

Immediately afterwards, Badosa raised his hand and shook it briefly with Shuge.

Although this kind of etiquette seems a bit sloppy, for the rigid dwarves, this is already a huge breakthrough.

After the two men finished shaking hands, the stocky Badosa asked in his own dull voice: "Um...Mr. Ernst, right?"

"You can just call me 'Xuge'."

Shuge smiled and said: "I am not the envoy of the Kingdom of Walter, nor can I represent the Ernst family... As you can see, I am just an ordinary member of the Dawn Society."

"Okay, Mr. Sugar."

Badosa crossed his hands, his beard swaying slightly in the sea breeze: "So, what are you looking for me for? Do you want to buy weapons? Or hire craftsmen?"

Having said this, Badosa glared hard: "As promised in advance, Mr. Shuge... The current situation is special. We will not allow large-scale loan of craftsmen, and we cannot negotiate the employment of soldiers and instructors. You Do you understand what I’m saying?”

This is the communication style of dwarves. They regard all negotiations and mediation that occur in public as a waste of time and hypocrisy. Therefore, at such times, they will try to turn those troublesome interactions into Transformed into the simplest and roughest bargaining.

All joking aside, even in meetings held by Merlinle and the organization, the speeches of the dwarves are always filled with a kind of simple and simple "beauty".

Moreover, dwarves especially like to end a sentence with a powerful question.

This situation is similar to those participants in online scolding wars that Xiuge had seen in another time and space.

He remembered that at a certain time in the past, people liked to curse and question at the same time and add a word full of strong contempt and questioning at the end of the sentence. Every time people saw that thing, they would directly Blood pressure rises.

Just one word: "Understand?"

Now, the speaking habits of the dwarves are very similar to this situation.

For a moment, Xiuge really wanted to lift the black sun scepter and hit the opponent's head hard, but his strong reason still allowed him to restrain this impulse.

He kept smiling: "Of course I know what Master Badosa said. Please rest assured that the Dawn Society does not plan to discuss these matters with you at the moment. Even if the Dawn Society needs to talk to you, it will not be discussed with you. I."

Badosa was a little surprised. He stretched out his hand and stroked his beard: "What? Don't you have a status in the Dawn Society?"

"status?"

Hearing this, Xiuge shook his head: "This term is generally not discussed within the Dawn Society. The reason why I won't talk to you about related matters is just because this aspect needs to be left to more professional craftsmen and soldiers. "

He looked at Badosa seriously: "You probably don't want to discuss the smelting of minerals and the design of machinery with a mage, right?"

At this time, a smile finally appeared on Badosa's bearded face. He gestured to the other dwarves behind him and walked forward: "Then come here to chat. I want to find someone." A place to sit!”

Soon, Shuge and Badosa arrived at the middle area of ​​the deck. At this time, the waiters on the ship had already fetched wooden tables and chairs and fixed them on the ground.

Xiuge and the two chose a table at random and sat down.

Badosa took out the wine bottle given to him by Shuge. He took a sip carefully, and then narrowed his eyes with satisfaction: "Oh, Borden craft beer is used as the base, mixed with a small amount of Hain's 'seaweed wine' ...What’s this sweet smell? Oh, it’s probably the smell of some magic potion, right? Did you add sugar to it?”

Shuge shrugged: "I don't know about that. After all, I didn't make this bottle of wine myself...and my friend likes desserts very much. Even the potions she makes are sweet."

"Well, that makes sense!"

Badosa laughed and slapped his thick palm on the table: "In our place, women also like sweet wine more. I can tell you, this type is the most suitable..."

As the leader of this group of dwarves, Badosa's every move perfectly fits the stereotype of the dwarves in Shuge's mind.

After just two sips of wine, he became a completely different person. Not only did his voice start to get louder, but the topics he talked about became extremely unrestrained.

Fortunately, Badosa did not forget what he was doing because of that little bit of alcohol. After a few random words, the topic of the conversation finally returned to its original place.

Badosa reluctantly hung the flask back on his waist, and then he said seriously to Shuge: "Mr. Shuge, let me tell you the truth... I don't like human beings, and I don't like those 'pointy ears' and ' Big ears', but you're an exception."

Badosa took a clean napkin from a waiter, and after carefully wiping off the two drops of wine stained on his beard, he said: "I have heard about you before, um... a A nobleman on the plateau abandoned his stable situation and risked his life for the refugees in a city. This is something that only a hero can do."

He stared at Shuge: "I didn't believe these things at all at first, until I met the refugees in Bulte. Every one of them knows you and remembers your name. Hum, it's really amazing."

Suddenly receiving a series of praises and affirmations from a dwarf with a strange temper, even Xiuge could not help but blush a little.

However, before Shuge could speak, Badosa continued: "Ah... I know what you noble-born guys like to say. Every time this time comes, you will start to shirk that you are not doing anything noble. Things like this are not good enough now, hey, am I right?"

"Pretty accurate."

"Not bad? Is there anything I said wrong?"

Faced with Badosa's doubts, Shuge raised two fingers: "First, so many people were able to survive from Salem City, and it's not just me, but those who died without leaving any names. And the survivors themselves have paid a huge price in this process."

Shuge and Badosa looked at each other, and there seemed to be a deep shadow surging in their eyes: "I will not deny my efforts, but it is definitely not something I did alone. Accepting it completely is denying it. Their sacrifice.”

The dwarf across the table felt an obvious sense of oppression. He couldn't help swallowing and instinctively wanted to retreat, but the back of the chair prevented Badosa from moving.

Then, Shuge raised a second finger: "Secondly, I did not do well enough. This is not an excuse, but a real situation... I have already foreseen the tragedy that Salem City may suffer. , but in the process of the disaster advancing, my role was extremely limited. I know very well that in the past period of time, like most people, I was just a cold spectator."

The sea breeze kept blowing, but following Xiuge's words, it seemed as if an invisible wall was rising nearby, blocking out all surrounding forces.

In this terrible sense of oppression, Badosa took a deep breath. He forced himself out of it and nodded quickly to Shuge: "Okay, okay, I know, Mr. Shuge, I know." Got it!"

Xiuge put down his palm, and his gentle smile appeared again. He pressed the black sun scepter and said to Badosa: "Let's talk about these topics here... If you are really interested, we will continue You can find a night to drink and chat, and I’ll treat you.”

Listening to these words, Badosa was not happy at all.

He only felt that he was now trapped in a terrifying transparent cage. Although people kept walking nearby, he could not get any help from these people. Those smiling waiters, familiar passengers, and people holding weapons Sailors patrolling the deck...

Although asking for help was a matter of seconds, Badosa could not feel any sense of security at all.

But the next second, the flashing shadows in Shuge's pupils returned to calm, and the terrible sense of oppression quickly faded away like a tide. Badosa breathed a sigh of relief, and then he immediately adjusted his sitting posture. , so that you can look more upright.

Although the dwarves have terrible personalities, that doesn't mean they are stupid.

The terrifying feeling that just swept over him in an instant made Badosa truly realize that the "young noble" in front of him was not the same concept at all as the "little people" he had come into contact with in the past. The instinct of survival told Badosa , you'd better maintain enough respect when treating this messenger of the Dawn Society, otherwise the shining silver cane may really fall on your neck or forehead.

At the same time, Xiuge's heart also stirred up some waves.

He originally just wanted to use his dark abyss magic power to exert some pressure and influence on the dwarf in front of him, but the moment he mobilized this dark abyss power, he actually directly captured some similar power in this dwarf. Remaining traces.

However, there seems to be no problem with Badosa himself. His behavior is extremely normal. There is not even any trace of magic left in his body, and his every move is in line with common sense...

Shuge slowly rubbed his fingers on the cane, thinking endlessly in his heart: "Judging from the current situation, it is not very likely that the Black Sun Society will directly win over and erode these dwarves. These guys have too weird tempers and weak beliefs. They are very firm. As believers in the 'sun', their resistance to the so-called black sun is bound to be extremely strong..."

"However, the perception just now should not be wrong, and this means that these dwarves have recently come into contact with some 'wrong' people or things in the past two days?"

After coming to this inference, Xiuge lowered his tone and said: "Master Badosa, it may be presumptuous to say this, but I want to know whether you interviewed certain people before and after you boarded the ship? "

"Hey, Mr. Sugar...what do you mean?"

Although Badosa is now quite afraid of Shuge, he still showed his proper attitude when faced with this kind of problem: "This kind of problem involves both sides, both sides! This is a matter of principle!"

Shuge did not give in because of this. He leaned forward slightly and asked a question that made Badosa tremble: "I know this is a matter of principle, but what if this issue is related to your own safety?"

"What... what's safe?"

Badosa was stunned for a second, but before he could react, the sense of oppression that had subsided before returned unexpectedly. Before Badosa could even open his mouth to shout, his eyes directly touched the surging pressure in Shuge's pupils. The darkness, a powerful force capable of interfering with thoughts, turned into an invisible whirlpool, as if dragging his will into the boundless abyss.

At this moment, Badosa suddenly felt an itching sensation on his back.

It was as if a piece of his skin had gained life under the influence of Shuge's strange magic. He felt as if his piece of skin had detached from his body and was squirming on his back bit by bit.

However, the young man in front of him smiled: "So it's well hidden here."