Mercenary Wars

Chapter 129 Gray Dwarf Culture

"That fellow was generous, but he actually let a slave taste Lulabel and Flame Wine!" The gray dwarf's tone was full of displeasure. "Giving sparkling wine to a slave, by the way, what a desecration!"

"Why did he do that?" Hilgon couldn't help but ask.

"It seems to be because of the slave's request, ha, that's hilarious!" The gray dwarf said, drinking his wine and bursting into exaggerated laughter.

Hilgon: "Brian is a redbeard?"

“No, how could that be? The mayor wouldn’t let Redbeard be the overseer. In fact, Brian’s beard is whiter than mine, but that’s the most incomprehensible thing!” The gray dwarf shook his white beard, which was stained with the rich aroma of wine. “If he were one of those crazy Redbeards, it wouldn’t be so strange.”

He continued, "In short, young man, generosity must have its limits; it should never be bestowed upon slaves or shark-lizard beasts. Of course, your generosity is perfectly justified for an elder like me, because I will teach you valuable life lessons!"

“That’s right!” Hilgon smiled and delivered a string of flattering remarks in a practiced tone.

The gray dwarf was quite pleased and took the opportunity to praise himself as well.

While showering him with praise, he also drank the constantly refilled glasses of strong liquor from Hilgon, gradually becoming incoherent and hiccuping repeatedly.

"Hiccup!" The gray dwarf hiccuped again, swaying unsteadily. "What was I supposed to do again? Oh, take stock of the slaves!"

Hilgon: "You finished counting long ago."

"I... have I finished counting?" The gray dwarf looked at Hilgon, a little confused.

Just then, a hand suddenly reached out from behind him and gently placed on his head, a flash of light passing by.

"I think..." the gray dwarf said before falling into a deep sleep.

Daniel quickly created an illusion to cover it up.

Meanwhile, looking at the gray dwarf who had fallen into a deep sleep due to the "sleep spell," the mercenaries couldn't help but ask, "Nicon, are you planning to use mind control on him?"

Nikon nodded, then placed his fingers on the gray dwarf's forehead and closed his eyes.

His fingertips began to emit a faint glow, which flickered rhythmically, like the rhythm of breathing.

After a while, he opened his eyes again.

"So, what did you find?" Gao Jiano asked.

“I’ve made some progress,” Nikon said. “Combined with what I learned from my last thought probe, I have a general idea of ​​the most extreme Redbeard Grey Dwarfs and Whitebeard Grey Dwarfs.”

How extreme is it?

Nikon: "Most white-bearded grey dwarves discriminate against red-bearded grey dwarves. The most extreme ones do not even consider the red-bearded grey dwarves to be their fellow countrymen, but rather slaves or prospective slaves like other races."

He paused for a moment, then continued, "Redbeard doesn't know much about it yet, because this guy is Whitebeard. He's only heard that Redbeard claimed he would use violence to completely abolish slavery."

Hilgon: "That sounds like good news."

Nikon nodded: "Indeed, the conflict between Redbeard and Whitebeard seems more worthwhile to exploit than this nearly depleted iron mine."

Hilgon suddenly remembered something: "By the way, in his memories, did you find any mention of a white-bearded man named 'Brian'?"

“A strange white-bearded man,” Nikon said. “Although his beard is pure white, his personality and beliefs are somewhat like Redbeard’s.” “It is indeed strange,” Hilgon said with a look of reminiscence. “I have met a gray dwarf like that before. Despite having a white beard, he always showed sympathy for slaves and was willing to share his experiences and even his treasured wines with them.”

"What's so strange about that?" some mercenaries said dismissively. "There are bad people among the disciples of Jesus, and good people among the Mosaicians."

“No.” Hilgon shook his head. “It’s not the same. For the Grey Dwarves, the color of their beards largely reflects their faith. A pure white beard almost certainly indicates that they are a staunch follower of the Durragh, and the Durragh’s doctrine includes enslavement.”

He seemed very concerned about this issue.

But most people obviously wouldn't care about a white-bearded gray dwarf who might have a conscience.

"What should we do with this guy?" someone asked, pointing at the unconscious gray dwarf.

Nikon: "That's easy. I can cast a third-circle spell on him called 'Memory Diminishing.' Drunk people already have blurred memories, and with the added effect of this spell, he definitely won't be aware of anything unusual."

After saying that, he began to skillfully cast the spell.

"Nicon, I heard... that you prosecutors also have a spell called 'Memory Restoration,' is that true?" someone asked curiously.

“It’s true,” Nikon said. “Memory restoration is roughly equivalent to a reverse spell that fades memories. It can bring forgotten memories back to life, but this spell comes at a price.”

"What price?"

Nikolai: "In mild cases, the clarity of memories will randomly change. Some memories will reappear and become vivid, while other memories will be randomly faded or even completely forgotten. In severe cases, a person may go insane."

“Therefore, ‘memory restoration’ is a form of punishment,” he added. “I have never used it.”

After a discussion, the group devised a specific plan for the next step—to capture the drunken gray dwarf.

Just like they did, they found a drunken grey dwarf or got one drunk themselves, then used a three-pronged approach of sleep spell, mind detection, and memory dimming until they uncovered information that was important enough.

They immediately sprang into action, following the memories they had gleaned from the gray dwarves' minds, and made their way towards the town of Dibusara.

Dibusala town.

This place was originally a town built by the drow elves, but as time has passed, Dibsal now has no drow elf characteristics except for its name.

This is now a town of pure gray dwarves, where the rock-built houses are as low and sturdy as their builders.

The clanging and banging of forging hammers could be heard everywhere.

For all dwarven races, forging is not only a skill, but also a culture and refinement, and even a form of entertainment.

Therefore, in the eyes of the dwarves, ores are more like a kind of spiritual nourishment than a raw material for production.

This is especially true for the grey dwarves.

After all, they usually made slaves mine, so it was difficult for them to appreciate the value of ordinary ores. It was as if those ores that could be melted into steel and forged into weapons were a gift from nature that grew from the slaves' hands.

Besides forging, another major aspect of the dwarves' culture is drinking, so they produce just as many high-quality wines as they produce high-quality weapons.

The mercenaries cautiously made their way to the northern part of Dibusara town, where a dwarf tavern was located a short distance away.

(End of this chapter)