Mercenary Wars

Chapter 130 The Name of Prometheus

The responsibility of observation was primarily undertaken by Hilgon.

He possesses darkvision and eagle-eye, and the combination of the two is similar to the effect of advanced darkvision, allowing him to observe in the dark.

That "evening" was the time when the gray dwarves rested.

A grey dwarf staggered out of the tavern and came into Hilgon's view.

He had a red beard.

In fact, this was already the 10th or so red-bearded gray dwarf the mercenaries had their eyes on.

This is normal, because the northern part of Dibusala is the main residence of the Redbeard Grey Dwarves, and it looks somewhat deserted because they do not like keeping slaves.

In contrast, the residents of the southern part of the town were almost all white-bearded gray dwarves, and every household had slaves. In addition, the white-bearded gray dwarves were more numerous, making the town far more lively than the north, and there were even more guards at night.

Therefore, the mercenaries dared not spy on the south.

The north and south of Dibusala town are like two completely different worlds. One side is quiet but its faith is fiery red, while the other side is bustling but its worship is gray and white.

The drunken red-bearded grey dwarf staggered along alone, in a secluded spot, far from the other grey dwarves and town guards, which soon led the group of humans who were secretly watching to make a decision.

"It's him!"

Wearing the face of a gray dwarf, Hilgon walked straight toward the other person and then, with a series of persuasive words, gradually led him to a more secluded location.

Nikon then made his move, unleashing a triple attack of sleep spell, mind detection, and memory fading. He had already used this technique on several gray dwarves in the past few days.

After reading the memories, he thought for a moment and said, "I think we can try to make contact with Redbeard, or at least with a part of Redbeard."

"for example?"

“For example, a red-bearded gray dwarf named Brown,” Nikon said slowly. “Based on the memories of several gray dwarves, I am convinced that Brown is a very radical abolitionist. He hates slavery and white beards. If he could, he would even be willing to give his life for the abolition of slavery, and he would not mind turning against his ‘false white compatriots’.”

"I feel like he's going a bit too extreme..."

“For Brown, this was a sublime faith—derived from his first verse, ‘Paprometheus,’” Nikon said. “I completely understand him. I think he was willing to give his life for the abolition of slavery, just as I would give my life for the truth.”

No one knew what to say.

They were all shallow believers and could not understand this kind of fanatical faith.

Gaucano thought for a moment: "Are you sure Brown is willing to do anything for the abolition of slavery—even join forces with other races and heretics to fight against Whitebeard?"

Nikon nodded seriously: "In all the memories I have, Brown has been confirmed as the most radical, the most determined, and the most outspoken abolitionist, and his residence is close to the edge of town, which makes it convenient for us to make contact."

Gaucano: "In that case, let's make contact with him."

They quietly brought the unconscious Redbeard back to town and dumped him on a street corner, making him look like an ordinary drunkard. Then, guided by Nicon, the group headed in the direction of Brown's house.

The next day, "early morning," the mercenaries hid behind a mushroom grove, keeping a watchful eye on Brown's house from a distance.

When Brown pushed open the door, the glow of the mushroom-shaped light made all the mercenaries see his face clearly and remember him vividly. Brown's beard was extremely exaggerated, not only fiery red in color but also enormous in size, even larger than his head, making it look as if his chin was burning with flames.

“In the world of the Grey Dwarves, Redbeard is easily discriminated against,” Nikon said. “But Brown doesn’t care. On the contrary, he takes great pride in his fiery beard, openly calling it ‘the gift of Prometheus’ and ‘an extension of the soul fire.’”

"Great, how do we contact him?"

“Leave it to me,” Gaugano said, then took out a notepad. “Hilgon, write this in Dwarven language: In the name of Prometheus, deliver the enslaved from the Underdark.”

Hilgon wrote the words, and then Gaucano generated several swift breezes that held up the note.

The note floated towards Brown.

A swift breeze swept across Brown's beard, like flames rising, and as the breeze met the flames, the note slowly unfolded before him.

Upon noticing the words on the note, Brown was first taken aback, then became somewhat excited, and looked around.

Gaucano continued to manipulate the swift breeze, causing the note to drift back slowly.

Brown chased after them without hesitation, eventually arriving at the mushroom forest where the mercenaries were, guided by the note.

Upon seeing the dozen or so human mercenaries, his brow furrowed first, then relaxed, and he uttered a word in Dwarven language.

"You've come to save your fellow countrymen?" Hilgon translated his words into human language.

Gaucano and his group's real goal was simply to escape the Underdark, but as long as there was no conflict, there was nothing wrong with using a respectable pretext: "Yes, we hope to liberate the slaves here, especially the human slaves. We've heard that you are Prometheus's most loyal warrior, so we've come to you hoping to get your help."

The title "Warrior of Prometheus" seemed to please Brown, a hint of pride flashing across his brow.

“That’s right, I am a believer in fire and freedom, not a slave to Durag,” Brown said without hesitation. “Tell me your plans, and I’m willing to help you as long as they’re feasible—even if there’s only a one-third chance of success.”

Gao Jiano gave a brief account of the events.

After listening for a while, Brown said, "Your plan is good, but if you want to be more secure, it's best to do one more thing."

"what?"

“Let those cowards stand up bravely!” Brown said something that puzzled everyone.

"What coward?" The mercenaries exchanged bewildered glances. "Hilgon, are you sure you didn't mistranslate?"

"My translation is absolutely perfect."

Just as the mercenaries were filled with doubt, Brown said, "You may know that there are half as many whitebeards as redbeards in Dibusara, but that's just an illusion."

"The truth is, the number of red-bearded people is probably about the same as the number of white-bearded people, but many red-bearded people are afraid of being discriminated against, so they deliberately dye their beards white—shameful white!" He said with some indignation.

“I don’t know who they are.” Brown paused, then continued, “But since you have the blessing of thought detection, you can surely find all the cowards and make them rise from Durag’s shadow for the burning flame and the noble freedom!”

(End of this chapter)