Our incredible group of brave, debt-ridden teenagers —in true Latin American fashion—trudged through the snow, since they couldn't even afford a single wagon.
Except for Aoi, of course.
She was traveling warm and cozy, sipping hot chocolate inside her personal wagon, wrapped in luxurious magic blankets.
"That heartless woman…" Akira muttered as the cold gnawed at his bones.
"That's what you get for chasing wives… achoo! …instead of using your powers… achoo!" Minu protested, her nose bright red.
"Who'd want to be married to that sour woman anyway?" Akira grumbled, shaking the snow out of his hair.
"Well, at least we're not being attacked by wild wolves," Cecilia said with a serene smile.
Akira glanced at her. The vampire seemed to be enjoying the cold.
"How come you're not freezing?"
"Vampires are resistant to cold, hunger… and fan service," she replied solemnly.
"Interesting…" Akira nodded. "I wonder what dwarves are like in this world."
"They're probably old, grumpy, buff men," he said confidently, "while the women are tiny, weak, and delicate."
Minu stared at him with sheer disappointment.
"First you like crazy women, and now you're into lolis. Who understands humans…" she sighed, shrugging.
"Shhh," Akira hissed, turning pale. "Don't let Aoi hear you."
From the wagon window, the curtain shifted for just one second. Two murderous eyes gleamed from the shadows—the tsundere girl, ready to unleash divine wrath.
"That's the 'you'll be working double this week' look," Akira whispered, trembling. "All because of you, pesky fairy."
Luckily, the power of plot armor —that mysterious force preventing this novel from becoming a labor lawsuit— saved the irritated little fairy from being fired on the spot.
And so, after a cheap transition accompanied by elevator music, they finally arrived at the dwarven city.
Akira inhaled deeply and let himself collapse onto the snow, completely exhausted.
"Yes… we made it at last… I can't wait to see those dwarven lolis…" he said, staring at the sky with sparkling eyes and absolutely no shame.
Minu looked at him with disgust.
"Perverted hero. Now I get why God likes you."
Aoi descended elegantly from her carriage… and landed directly on Akira's stomach.
"Gfhu!"
"Thank you for cushioning my landing," she said, clearly annoyed. "Darling."
Akira sat up with difficulty, brushing the snow out of his hair.
"My mom would've loved me marrying someone like you… you totally give off evil accountant vibes."
Aoi smiled sweetly over her shoulder as she approached the village entrance.
"I'll take that as a compliment, dear."
There, they were welcomed by two dwarves… and to Akira's surprise, they looked like magazine models or K-pop idols in miniature form.
"Welcome to Snowy Town, capital of fashion and mining," one of them said in a perfectly tuned voice.
Akira blinked, stunned.
"Wow, great sense of style… I didn't know dwarves could be so neat."
The dwarves exchanged looks, visibly offended.
"You're not from around here, are you? It shows in that neglected skin care, that decaying villager outfit… and that horribly outdated hairstyle," one of them replied with a venomous smile.
Aoi stepped forward with a long, patient exhale.
"Ignore him. His mother dropped him as a baby, and now he thinks he's the king of Faraluz."
"Faraluz? Ugh. I remember the old king… zero style," the other dwarf said, rolling his eyes.
"Now I understand why they chose this incompetent as king…" Aoi muttered.
"I am the regent of Greenhill, and these brainless ones are with me," Aoi added with a professional smile. "We're only here to trade."
"Go ahead, enter," said the guard. But before letting Akira pass, he handed him several coupons with an expression dripping with condescension.
"Please, human, take these. They're for the local hair salon. Put on a proper outfit and fix yourself up a bit. You look awful like that. You'll ruin our aesthetic."
Akira took the coupons, offended, while the dwarves walked away in synchronized steps.
"Great… I haven't even said anything and I'm already being discriminated against for being poor."
Once inside the city, our fetish-collecting hero discovered that the image he had of dwarves had been shattered into a thousand pieces.
All the men were slim and delicate, dressed elegantly, as if they had never lifted a single stone in their lives.
On the other hand… far from being intimidated by the female dwarves, Akira felt a new fetish awakening within him that day.
The dwarven women were muscular and rough.
some hammered away at the forges,
others ran market stalls,
some arm-wrestled in taverns,
and several were beating each other in the street over business disputes.
But in Akira's eyes, this wasn't violence… It was a parade of muscular women with well-defined abs, dripping determination with every swing of their hammers.
"I've arrived in the gymrat paradise…" Akira murmured, hypnotized.
Minu nodded in her magic-encyclopedia tone.
"Dwarves are a race of strong women. It's said the goddess Uzaki blessed the females with strength because only strong women can birth healthy children…"
"And the men?" Akira asked, watching a group of dwarven men posing like idols. "Why do I feel like I'm about to walk into a K-pop concert at any moment?"
"Well… dwarven men aren't very useful," Minu replied without filter. "That's why they have good fashion sense. Most of them are tailors, designers, hairdressers, cooks… the goddess blessed them with good taste."
Cecilia stopped in front of a shop window displaying a beautiful pastel-pink maid dress.
Akira approached casually.
"Would you like to buy one of those?"
"I'm not complaining about the one I have…" she said, sniffing her old dress. "But it smells old… and that pastel pink one looks lovely."
Akira lowered his gaze, saddened.
"I'm sorry… I don't have the money to buy you one like that right now…"
But then he remembered the dwarf's coupon.
"But! We do have this!" he held it up like a sacred treasure. "Why don't you ask if you can trade it in?"
"I-I couldn't, master…"
"Don't worry, I'll dress more decently with clothes from some castle ghost," Akira said, fully resigned.
Cecilia took the coupon, thrilled.
"Thank you, master! I'll make it up to you!" And she ran into the shop.
"Hmph! You spoil her way too much!" Aoi huffed, offended.
Akira smiled.
"If you want a gift, you just have to ask."
"A pauper like you can't even take me out to dinner…" she said, turning away with a dramatic flick.
Akira opened his mouth to reply, but he didn't get the chance.
Something—or rather someone—slammed into him so hard that he flew into a pile of crates.
A virtual screen appeared above his head.
K.O.!
"My back! Everything hurts! Someone get a doctor!" Akira groaned, convulsing dramatically atop the crates.
In front of him, a young dwarven girl with dusky skin and pink hair held out her hand.
She wore a delicate pastel-pink dress that contrasted sharply with her arms—far more muscular than the average bodybuilder's.
"I-I'm so sorry… please forgive me! I wasn't looking where I was going," the girl said, blushing.
Akira stared at her for a single eternal second.
"A… a muscular angel…? I think I've reached heaven…" he whispered before fainting.
The SPN issued a critical danger alert, but Akira was already unconscious after that overwhelming encounter.
✦ Comment from the God Uzaki ✦
No important actors of this story were harmed during this chapter.
And if you were thinking about Akira…
He's not important, so he doesn't count.