The Dwarf Who Loved Explosions
The trolls that emerged after the smoke cleared were a pitiful sight.
One had lost the entire upper half of its head, and another the entire side.
"What now... some kind of explosive magic?"
The company’s only mage, Sicoop, had been sent to exterminate the gremlins.
Was there really a mage staying in this village?! If they aimed for the trolls’ heads, did they attack from high ground?
Ho-yeong swept his gaze quickly over the surrounding rooftops.
He searched house by house, but there was no sign of a mage anywhere, not even the hem of a robe. It was strange.
"What are you staring around for?"
A thick Gallia dialect rose from somewhere low to the ground.
Ho-yeong found the owner of the voice and was startled.
"A dwarf...?"
Wild, unbraided, unbound hair. Beard and eyebrows blotched with heavy burn marks.
He wore shoes made of monster hide, and the sack on his back was stuffed with things that looked like stones.
- Trrr...
All the while, the trolls were still staggering and trying to regenerate their heads.
I’d forgotten about those bastards. I need to cut their throats fast.
Ho-yeong drew his sword and started forward, but—
"Hey, tall one. Don’t you go rushing in."
The dwarf stepped in front of him and reached into the sack on his back.
What the hell is that? A blasting mana stone? No, that doesn’t seem right.
It was something black, like a pebble. Overall it was round, but one face was flat.
"Give it a good hammerin' first."
The dwarf pulled a hammer from his belt and slammed the flat underside of the unknown stone with all his strength.
Sizzle. The stone began to glow red from the bottom up.
"Gotta drive it in all the way."
Just before the stone turned fully red, the dwarf hurled it between the trolls’ heads.
BOOOOM!
"Whoa."
The trolls’ upper bodies had vanished entirely.
The destructive power and the way he throws it are exactly like a grenade.
Ho-yeong admired the astonishing force.
"Damn—no, I mean, incredible. That’s even stronger than our mage’s explosive magic."
The dwarf shoved the hammer back into his belt and turned around.
"You mean it?"
The corners of his mouth twitched upward. It was not only because his shaggy, sooty beard was tickling his nose.
"Let me see... your name was... Bulreongbulreongtin?"
"Berneval Luntin!"
For a moment longer, Berneval barked at Ho-yeong for misreading his name.
<Berneval Luntin> ★★★★
[ Stats | Rank | Base Value ~ Max Value ]
Martial Power B+ : 57 ~ 60 (Specialty: Hammer)
Intelligence B+ : 65 ~ 69 (As a dwarf, he is deeply versed in mining, construction, and engineering...)
Mana X : 0 ~ 0
Charm D : 10 ~ 12 (He looks prickly on the outside, and he’s prickly on the inside too.)
Command D : 12 ~ 13 (He is poor at leading people.)
Willpower A : 84 ~ 89 (Quirk: he does not want to serve under anyone else.)
Edification D : 5 ~ 30 (He has taken a favorable view of the Guardian who admired his explosives. Just a little.)
*Background*
Dwarves use explosives for mining.
Berneval Luntin joins mining for the sake of explosions.
This dwarf has devoted his life to explosions and travels the continent in search of rock and ore.
Rejected for his foul temper and bizarre interests, Berneval Luntin is welcomed only when he throws bombs at monsters. As for whether the monsters welcome the bombs, nothing is known.
After reading his stats, Ho-yeong’s eyes widened.
"Berneval Luntin. I’ve been looking everywhere for someone like you."
"What? How d'you know my name? And what do you mean, looking for me?"
Berneval’s hostility showed for a moment, but then he became visibly flustered. This tall human suddenly drew a sword and rushed at him, did he not?
"Wh-what?! Are you an assassin hired by the mine I blew up?"
But that did not quite fit. Why was the human’s gaze directed not at him, but far above him?
"Lord Luntin! Don’t move. Stay still!"
In one stride, Ho-yeong stepped on Berneval’s shoulder and leapt.
- Trooo!
He drove a knee into the jaw of the troll that had appeared behind him.
"Hah!"
With his landing, his sword pierced the troll’s throat.
- Trr... trrrr...
Even with its throat run through, the troll kept twitching all its limbs.
"You’re ridiculously stubborn."
Rather than pull his sword free, Ho-yeong shoved it deeper and deeper, then picked up the stone axe the monster had dropped.
This is how that spear troll fought earlier. As long as the weapon stays lodged in the body, regeneration gets interrupted.
The troll only stopped convulsing after he brought the axe down on its skull several times. Its stone weapon and its skull were both shattered.
"Phew."
Ho-yeong wiped away the flecks of bone and flesh splattered across his face.
Then a broad hand reached out and took his filthy hand in its grip.
"My, your hand will get dirty."
"Dirty?"
That hand was strong enough to haul up a man twice the size of its owner.
"The dirty one is me. My heart was dirtier when I doubted the person trying to save my life, even for a moment."
And it was hot.
* * *
The troll extermination operation ended without a single fatality. The third platoon led by Lilian also sent word of the gremlins’ complete annihilation.
With all the achievements they had earned, EP had risen sharply as well. But...
"Waaah! Mom...!"
"Honey, get a hold of yourself!"
The village was in ruins, and casualties were mounting.
"Oh, heavens. What kind of disaster is this?"
The screams of those who had lost their families and homes rang out in anguish. Ho-yeong wore a grim expression.
"So it begins again."
Smoking, Rubia said it as if it were nothing. She merely frowned a little.
"Begins again? What does?"
She did not answer Ho-yeong. Instead, she pointed at a cluster of people.
"Priest, please save our daughter!"
"My husband too, please...!"
They were the ones rushing toward the priest’s robe.
"...Gather the bodies in one place. Make sure you collect everything, even severed limbs and scraps of flesh. Only then can they be brought back in something like a proper state."
At Rubia’s words, grief twisted into rage.
"What is this. A priest can just leave the dead lying around? We said resurrect them, resurrect them!"
"How irresponsible!"
Ho-yeong sighed and stepped in front of them.
"Everyone, please calm yourselves. Resurrection is a divine power that consumes a great deal of holy power. This priest alone does not have the strength to bring everyone back."
"B-but..."
The crowd quieted somewhat at his words.
"I understand how you feel when you lose someone precious. I have felt it too."
Both Joren and Ho-yeong had lost their parents.
His voice came out thick with feeling.
"Please wait just a little longer. I have already sent a courier, and by noon at the latest the holy knights will arrive. Then everyone can be resurrected. We will even be able to share dinner together."
Those who were both clergy and knights, holy knights. If they gathered and prayed together, they could unleash great holy power and perform large-scale resurrection. Of course, someone who had already been resurrected once, like Joren Tamer, could not be brought back again.
"Please pray for those who will be resurrected."
With his fist pressed to his chest, Ho-yeong stood with the dawn brightening behind him.
"Until then, we will protect you. I swear it on the honor of the Byeonbangbaek."
The cloak bathed in the rising sunlight shed its purple and fluttered in red light.
"What a pathetic lot of humans. They rescue people trapped in a dungeon and then demand the scroll, if you ask me. They can’t even be grateful to the people who fought all night risking their lives for them, and yet they throw a tantrum. Honestly, you should all be ashamed."
Baunal, picking out broken stones from his backpack and tossing them aside, delivered a criticism as heavy as rock.
...
The gathered people bowed their heads. They could not bear to look at the blinding light, or perhaps they wanted to hide their shame.
Soon, they shouted in trembling voices.
"Thank you, Count! We will obey your words and trust you!"
"Everyone from Tamer Territory, and the post station guard unit... thank you!"
Ability level increased! Passive skill Influence has risen from level 6 to level 7.
* * *
Ho-yeong’s military tent.
"So you're Joren Tamer, huh."
Berneval Luntin had dragged over a water barrel and was sitting on it instead of a chair.
"How dare you speak the name of the Byeonbangbaek so casually! That’s rude!"
"And what're you supposed to be?"
"I am Peach, the maid of Lord Joren Tamer, the proud Upper Knight of the Kain Kingdom and the continent’s first Byeonbangbaek."
Berneval clicked his tongue.
"A maid, not a servant?"
"I-I said maid!"
Unlike household servants who handled odd jobs, attendants and maids served nobles at close range.
"So when the master gets famous, the underlings get famous too? I had no idea human manners were that damn crazy~"
"W-what are you saying? You’re being far too rude!"
"Why are you the one jumping in when your master’s sitting there doing nothing?"
Ho-yeong’s head and ears were both hurting by then, so he raised a hand to stop Peach.
"Peach. You must not treat a guest like that. Go fetch some beer and cigarettes. Bring smoked Mandragorani meat and bulgogi for the side dishes, too."
"Ah, I don't smoke."
Ho-yeong blinked at Berneval’s words. A dwarf refusing cigarettes?
"If you get soaked in cigarette smoke, you become numb to the smell of gunpowder."
The dwarf uncle spoke as if he had read Ho-yeong’s mind.
"And if you could bring black beer, the maid girl with the pettish name would be much appreciated."
"Peach. You heard him, right? Please."
"...If it is my lord’s command, I will obey it."
Only after Peach left did Berneval stretch out his legs at last. Of course, since they were short, he did not commit the rudeness of kicking the table.
"I apologize on behalf of my subordinate. Please feel free to call me Joren."
At the young human noble’s words, Berneval’s narrow eyes widened a little.
"You’re green as spring grass. Most humans who leap up the ladder get so yellow you’d think they’d been struck by lightning and burned black by it. You know that human saying they keep spouting? What was it... rank makes the man? Toss that nonsense in the gutter. A man sits in the rank, that’s all there is to it. If someone changes just because he puts on a fancy hat, then that only means he was never much of a man to begin with. If the hat itself changes him, then the man was nothing but a small vessel. Now, if the hat were some sort of Death Knight helm, I might understand."
He must have had plenty of experiences to draw on, because Berneval was in full rant now.
"Well said. But... have you considered my proposal?"
Ho-yeong had already offered him a recruitment proposal earlier.
"Hmm. I’ve thought about it too, but... I don’t think so."