Chapter 61
Chapter 61
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 61
Chapter Title: If You Don't Like It, Become the Lord Yourself
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'Whoa! The mana is boiling over!'
Hot steam rose everywhere in the dwarf city, as if there were furnaces in every corner.
And surprisingly, it was sucked straight up into the ceiling, as though there was some high-performance ventilation system.
Among them, the tallest one was a massive chimney.
Mana fluctuations could be felt emanating from it.
'Easy now, everyone.'
The dwarves all had beards like my grandfather back in the Cheonghak-dong of Jirisan Mountain, and they watched me tensely.
'Female dwarves don't have beards.'
Despite the intimidating atmosphere, I wandered the dwarf city without a hint of fear.
'They can't grow vegetables here, let alone farm anything else. That's why they need wheat....'
The dwarf village was on the scale of a proper city.
It was obvious they couldn't sustain a year's worth of grain just from hunting.
Of course, that wouldn't hold if they could eat orc meat like pork belly.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
'Nice sound.'
My leisurely footsteps matched the rhythmic clang of hammers.
"Halt!"
The dwarf warrior leading the way stopped in front of a two-story building at the innermost part of the city.
"Chief, a human from outside has come to see you."
The dwarf warrior spoke respectfully toward the closed door.
"A human?"
A voice I recognized from before—Cassias—came from inside.
Creak.
The door opened.
Cassias appeared, his white beard reaching down to his short legs.
"Greetings, Chief. Kaier, lord of Neruman, comes to pay his respects."
I bowed deeply at a perfect ninety degrees, like greeting a neighborhood elder.
"...Lord?"
"Haha, yes. I've just taken over ruling Neruman. So I thought I'd at least come pay my respects...."
"Drive him out!"
'This guy.'
The chief ordered me gone without hearing another word.
Clank.
As if they'd been waiting, dwarf warriors raised axes that could split a thug in one swing and surrounded me.
"I heard rumors that the magic furnace, the lifeblood of the dwarves, has broken down...."
I mentioned the magic furnace casually.
"H-How do you know that?"
The startled chief asked.
"I'm a mage."
I smiled and drew up my mana.
Whiiirrr.
The mana trapped in my circles activated, dominating the surroundings.
"Gasp!"
The dwarf warriors who could sense mana jumped at the intense vibrations.
"Urgh...."
The chief groaned.
He eyed me with the gaze of someone seasoned by years.
"Fix the magic furnace. Do that, and I'll acknowledge you as a friend. But if you fail...."
His cold eyes said the rest without words.
No need to spell it out—they'd bury me deep or tie me up tight and feed me to the orcs as a snack.
'Alright, let's give it a shot. A magic furnace—what's the big deal?'
The boldness of someone who'd been trained by the greatest mage among humans.
"Lead the way."
I showed relaxed composure.
A world where you gain nothing by just thinking and cowering in fear.
I was a courageous one.
And heaven must reward such a man with blessings.
Well... if not, whatever.
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'Wow!'
The chief, the dwarf warriors, and about a hundred more dwarves who seemed to have heard the news followed behind.
We arrived at the magic furnace—right where I'd seen that huge chimney on the way in.
Roooar.
The furnace glowed not just red-hot, but bluish.
It was made of earthen-toned metal.
Around it stretched a magic circle about five meters in diameter.
'But this craftsmanship looks familiar.'
Magic circles had standard formulas, with variations based on ability.
Especially magic circuits—their performance varied wildly depending on the mage's skill.
This magic furnace's circle was one I knew well.
I'd seen it a few times on Earth.
"Can you fix it?"
Unlike his initial icy demeanor, Chief Cassias asked cautiously as I examined the circle.
"It's Master Idal's work...."
"Gah! H-How did you know?!"
The chief nearly fell over at the mention of Gandalf's true name, Idal.
"I studied under one of his disciples."
I couldn't say outright I was his direct disciple.
Even if it was true, no one knew what the Golden-Eyed Death God Idal had been up to.
Sure, it might be accurate, but if he was blood enemies with dwarves, any collaboration with their prickly kind would be like sending them on a moon trip.
"Whoa! To think! We've been searching for him since Idal vanished, and now we meet his disciple's disciple here! Kaier, was it? You show up right when we need you—thank you!"
'Huh? He got along with dwarves?'
An unexpected twist.
The chief called the Golden-Eyed Death God "Master" Idal—not bastard, scum, or devil's spawn.
Dwarves lived without lies, so it was genuine.
"Haha, glad to meet you. Even now, other mages have tinkered with it wrong over the years, and the mana is starting to go haywire. One wrong move, and it could've blown up big-time within a month."
"Th-That bad?!"
"No way.... That dangerous?"
The chief's shock triggered murmurs from the other dwarves, their faces pale with fear.
Even a dim bulb would know an underground explosion meant this was their tomb.
'Big bodies, but scaredy-cats.'
Of course, that was my little secret.
'Heh, big explosion my ass—it's got a stabilizer circuit, so no boom.'
I hadn't made it myself, but I grasped it just from looking.
Other mages had messed with the flow, sure—but nothing life-threatening.
"But who tampered with the circle like this? Looks like they were trying to boost performance.... Tsk tsk. Whoever it was, it's like dousing yourself in oil and diving into a fireball."
I had to drive it home.
Make it clear any other mage touching it could die.
"Th-That was...."
Chief Cassias flushed red, unable to speak.
Probably involved somehow.
"To upgrade it properly, we'll need rank-2 magic stones. The ones swapped in don't look stock, and tweaking the whole circle will take days. That okay?"
"You can fix it! Whoa! As expected of Idal's disciple's disciple. Other human mages just scowled and left!"
"Why am I so thirsty.... Being underground makes my throat dry. A cool beer right now would hit the spot."
"What are you waiting for? Get the beer! No—gather all dwarves! We have a precious friend today—time for a festival!"
The word "festival" dropped before he even finished.
"F-Festival!"
"The chief declared a festival!"
"To the square, everyone! Festival! FESTIVAL!!!!!!!"
'They love festivals that much?'
It was chaos.
Dwarves went wild like kids hearing over the speakers mid-summer class that tomorrow's a day off.
"Festival!" echoed through the vast underground, and dwarves poured in from everywhere.
And so it began.
The dwarf village's unforeseen bash.
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*Hic.... *Cough*."
Whiiiish.
'Ugh!'
Ever heard of drunk flying?
'Spinning, whee. Round and round.'
The insane festival in the dwarves' underground metropolis.
What they called a festival was really a terror contest: who could chug beer fastest and drop dead first.
Snacks were simple: well-seasoned jerky and massive mugs.
The mugs were ice-cold, like fresh from a glacier, and dwarves hauled out beer kegs that must've been 100,000cc each.
Boom boom boom!
It started.
To pounding drums, down a 1,000cc mug in one go.
One-shot mandatory.
Beer streamed down white beards, but they didn't stop.
They were savage drinkers who wouldn't drop the mug even if they keeled over mid-sip.
Like they'd feuded with booze in a past life, dwarves emptied mug after mug.
The one human thing they'd learned: beer culture.
And I learned something too.
The dwarf chief wasn't picked by age, but drinking capacity.
*Hic....*
To survive, I fled the village.
My brain screamed I'd die if I drank more, so I cast Fly, soared over the pit trap, burst through the stone door, and escaped to the surface.
Along the way, I made promises.
I'd return in days to fix the circle, and all bartering would be with me alone—with the chief and every dwarf.
"Heh...."
I shot into the sky, plummeted, recast Fly, and grinned.
'Jackpot.'
Priceless haul from the dwarf village.
Guided by the stars, I flew to Orak Castle where Bebeto waited.
'Now it begins. The beautiful dream of human Kang Hyuk!'
Deep night sky, moonless.
Flying solo on Fly after a drunken buzz, I vowed.
I'd fly nonstop until my dream came true.
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"Make way! We're the Korbein Merchant Company—we have access to every fief and castle in the empire!"
"Not a single one gets in! If you don't obey!"
Clang!
Denfos city's gate.
Ten-plus knights blocked the front, hundreds of archers aimed from the walls.
Inside the gate, a thousand battle-ready soldiers glared fiercely.
The Korbein caravan halted before it.
Over Denfos, four wyverns brandished Blast Spears, barring the mercenary wyverns.
"I'm vice-tower master of Gauss Magic Tower. Step aside!"
When Teske failed to break through, 6th-circle mage Harkline stepped up, declaring his status.
Clang!
A knight's sword blocked Harkline's path to the open gate.
"Y-You bastards!"
Twig-thin Harkline trembled like a leaf.
Never treated like this since becoming a mage.
"You wanna die?!"
Even imperial nobles got informal from him—now some knight punk asked if he wanted death.
"Urgh...."
Harkline shook with near-bursting rage.
But position wasn't great.
He could handle the knight, but hundreds of arrows? Even a 6th-circle dreaded that.
He'd stuck his neck out and got humiliated.
"Let us see the lord. Kaier, I mean!"
Desperate, Teske blurted "lord" and "Kaier-sama."
They'd force-marched to buy new goods in Denfos.
Ditched wet wheat en route, rushed here—only to get shut out cold.
"Wait a moment! We've sent word to the lord—reply soon!"
Knights blocked the gate, swords drawn.
They sensed mana, knew these were high-circle mages and knight-level mercs.
But they didn't yield or fear.
The sky-high lord's command: no caravan inside.
Plus, Neruman knights from lately had leveled up fast.
Training in the lord's magic circles boosted their mana.
Loyalty scaled with it.
"Clear the way. The lord arrives!"
Then, the Kaier the caravan awaited appeared.
"Yes, sir!"
Knights and soldiers saluted sharply in unison.
Their eyes blazed with loyalty that'd toss life aside easy.
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'Bet they're sweating now.'
I'd known Korbein was coming.
When they were two days out, I detoured, sent Zamer's Rubis caravan straight to the dwarf village with him leading.
'By now, soldiers have gathered all the wheat.'
Straight to Orak on drunken Fly, I organized troops.
Knowing they'd ditch wet wheat and head to Denfos, I checked routes and dispatched soldiers.
Food-short Neruman.
Couldn't let top-grade wheat feed orcs.
'Rubis guarded by 1,000 troops, Orak wyverns helping—they'll arrive safe.'
Korbein's reckless caravan had lured and killed plenty monsters.
Side benefits galore.
"L-Lord! Lord Kaier!"
Teske, who'd waited necksore, yelled hoarse.
"Oh, Vice-Captain Teske?"
I played dumb, greeting the knight-blocked Teske coolly.
'Today you meet your match.'
Not a beggar—I'd teach sky-high prices for hogging my territory's goods.
"There's a greedy merchant trying to rip off my land's produce with pennies."
Heaven stacked on heaven—they'd learn today.
"What are you doing? Let Vice-Captain Teske in."
"Understood!"
Rustle.
Knights parted for Teske.
"Not you."
"Wh-What?!"
Timing perfect, knights blocked the scrawny mage trying to slip in with Teske.
'Good job. Worth the training.'
Neruman knights unfazed even knowing he was a mage.
Harkline—face flushing purple—glared at me.
'Where do you get off with entitlement? Dream on!'
No chance in my domain.
If I didn't like it, even the emperor'd get shoved.
"Seems you have urgent business. To my office. Ready horses!"
"Y-Yes...."
Teske trailed, peeking at Harkline.
Oblivious fly in web, he mounted the prepped horse weakly.
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"Impressive. Controlling Neruman so perfectly in such short time.... I've seen countless fiefs, but none achieved this so fast!"
In Sky Company office, Teske groveled over tea.
Derbal had cleaned the city spotless, troops organized—system perfect.
Teske, who'd visited Neruman before, seemed genuinely awed.
"So, why seek me? What does the great Korbein Vice-Captain want?"
I asked boredly.
Leisure only the strong enjoy.
"Lord Kaier, a small favor."
"Favor? Me help a caravan? Tell me anyway."
I stroked my chin, exuding confidence.
"Word is, all food purchases are local-only, export banned. Could you lift that? We'd be grateful."
'Crazy? That's prime stuff.'
Not official lord yet, but with full authority from dumped empire via ex-commander Yaiks Count, I wielded lord rights freely.
One: restricted merchants' food exports.
Rubis and others' orders arriving—Neruman wouldn't starve soon—but I clamped exports.
Lords hold emperor-like power in fiefs.
Imperial decree? Sure. But Neruman and I were the discarded—we ignored Bazran imperial law.
Teske knew, begged cautiously to lift export ban.
He'd clocked the knights' and soldiers' hardline vibe.
"Tough ask. You know I bought that food with my own coin. Neruman can't farm, rainy season soon—caravans slow, need lots of food. Export ban lift...."
I gave plausible woes, pained face.
"200 wagonloads. Not top-grade, upper-mid fine. We'll compensate your personal spend properly. Lord, please grant this humble request."
Gone was first-meet swagger—now "humble one."
Not a brawl, so bowing head was merchant's play.
"I want to help, but it's not pocket change.... Prices here in Neruman higher than elsewhere...."
Thrill of reeling hooked fish.
Cruel? They provoked first, the gutless swine.
"1 gold per sack."
Teske feigned generosity at 1 gold/sack.
Big sum.
I'd bought including costs at 1 silver/sack.
10x markup, and he ditched merchant math—panic mode.
"Well... risk fees, daily storage, rat-catching cats, guard wages overdue...."
I bullshitted, staring out window.
"....."
Teske inhaled deep, silent, breathing ragged.
Grinding teeth inside, knowing my nonsense.
But tough luck.
Needy ones were Teske and Korbein—not me.
If pissed, they could lord it themselves.
"3... 3 gold each."
Shaky voice offered 3 gold.
30x profit instant.
Business like this? Continent's richest soon.
"3 gold? Hmm, not thrilled, but for Vice-Captain and Korbein, fine. One condition."
"C-Condition?"
Teske's face stiffened, deeming me thief.
"Cash or guild gold token upfront. Also, new transit tax and fief-use tax yesterday. For Korbein passage: all personnel transit fees, wyvern-eaten orc/monster comp, wagon-trampled fields, horse grass, fief spring water—total 15,520 gold. Pay with food gold."
"Th-That's...."
Wanted to call bullshit, but bit lip silent.
"Why hate taxes?"
Poked like annoyed?
"N-No. We'll pay now. Cash!"
Teske clenched teeth, swallowing rage.
'You made me the villain.'
First-meet scorn and threats.
That's why power matters.
To avoid filthy treatment.
"Haha, true merchant guild. Paying taxes for Neruman so generously—next time, 10% off special."
Fanned the flames, torment thorough.
My name alone? Seizure in sleep.
"Then, busy—must go."
Teske bolted, fearing worse if stayed.
"No, leaving already? At least eat."
Korean hospitality(?).
"N-No. Call next time. Farewell."
Deep bow, fled office empty.
"Heh.... Haven't stripped your undies yet. Wait a bit."
Just starting.
Teske and I knew.
Never meet again.
Ever.