"How tall are they?" Eryn asked out of the blue.
As Kael made his way down to the narrow road that led to the small houses, he answered, "Dwarves are three to four feet in height, but they were built far sturdier and more muscular than most humans. That's because their primary livelihood is mining minerals and forging weapons."
In the mortal realm, harmony did not come from sameness, but from difference. It was the contrast between races, not their similarities, that woven the realm into a thriving tapestry of coexistence.
Where one race lacked, another excelled; and so, over centuries of tentative treaties and reluctant friendships, a system of mutual reliance took root—neither perfect nor without its frictions, but undeniably functional.
The dwarves were part of this relationship. They were stout and stubborn, but they were the masters of the underground. Their cities were carved into the bones of the mountains, glowing with crystal veins and metal forges. No other race could match their skills in smithing.
Weapons forged by a dwarf could last a lifetime, or maybe five, and armor from their hands turned aside blades and arrows alike. They mined deep and traded high; humans and elves sought them out for weapons, armor, and enchanted trinkets laced with rare ores and glowing stones.
"In turn, humans traded what this sunless realm could not offer. Sun-grown crops that nourished, fine textiles woven from soft pasture-born threads, and rare medicinal herbs essential for healing. Things that dwarves, for all their strength and stone, could never grow underground," Kael finished explaining.
His brow furrowed as he passed the first row of houses, each about as tall as Eryn, roughly six feet high. The dwellings were stacked like steps, forming a kind of ascending staircase. Even from below, he could see the narrow, sloped paths between them, all eerily empty.
"It was a fair trade," Eryn commented.
"It was indeed," Kael said, still wondering where the dwarves were. Normally, when humans trespassed into their kingdom, they'd be greeted with brute force and hidden traps. But as Kael glanced around, no one seemed to care. When he looked further up, he spotted a dwarf peeking from one of the windows.
Knowing that they were in the wrong, Kael immediately bowed and was about to speak when this dwarf's gaze shifted past him, and his expression twisted into horror.
Kael turned quickly, but it was only Eryn who was there. The young man's head was turned away from him, looking at the other side.
"Did you see something?" Kael asked urgently..
Eryn looked at him. "I saw a shadow," he said, "but it disappeared."
Kael stared at him for a second, then he followed the direction Eryn had been looking. When he saw nothing, he turned back to the open window where the dwarf had been, but it was now shut.
Could I have been mistaken? I swear the dwarf was looking right behind me… Kael pondered deeply.
"Should I follow it?" Eryn asked.
Kael let out a heavy sigh. He didn't want to leave Eryn's side, unsure if the young man would truly be safe on his own, but seeing his calm, unbothered expression, Kael figured it was the quickest and most efficient way forward.
He gave a small nod, then looked Eryn straight in the eye, worry evident on his face. "I will pay you for your services, not for your life. So, if you think that this person is dangerous, run away. I'm going to find the dwarven leader as soon as possible. Until then, stay safe."
Kael was utterly serious, so when he saw the corner of Eryn's lips curved into a faint smile, he frowned. It felt like this young man was mocking his concern, even though he was certain Eryn was not. He opened his mouth, ready to scold him for being too calm and carefree in an unfamiliar realm, but then, he thought better of it. That would be overstepping.
Still wearing that satisfied smirk, Eryn said, "Before I go, can I ask something?"
"Go ahead," Kael answered. He silently hoped it wasn't something along the lines of: If I die, can you put my corpse in a golden casket and bury me in rich soil? He was only a wandering priest after all. He thought this purely out of irritation at that smirk, but he was truly worried.
"This relic you're looking for…is it a mineral? Or a weapon?" Eryn asked.
Kael was taken aback. Stumped for a moment, he wondered why the young mercenary had suddenly brought that up.
"...it was a rare mineral, forged into a weapon," Kael answered after a minute.
"I see," Eryn nodded. He turned and said over his shoulder, "It must be something important to you, so I promise I won't let anyone take it."
With that, he walked off, following the path where the shadow he claimed to have seen had disappeared.
After Eryn left, Kael continued on his way, heading toward the grand palace-like structure he had glimpsed earlier from the tunnel's mouth. But as he descended deeper into the dwarven city, he quickly realized it wasn't as close as it had appeared.
The stacks of homes layered like a beehive obscured his view, and the road ahead splintered into several winding paths, each curving around buildings or dipping into alleys with dead ends.
Back when he first came here, the dwarven population wasn't this dense, so the city hadn't been this vast. Now, the dwarven kingdom was far more intricate than he remembered. What had looked like a straight walk from above was, in truth, a labyrinth of stone alleys and stairways.
Kael paused at another fork. Because the houses were all taller than him, he couldn't make out where the central road was, or which way would lead him to the leader's house. He tried not to show it, but the unease was starting to creep in.
"I'd better knock on one of these doors, or I'll just waste any time," Kael muttered under his breath. He gripped the scroll tightly beneath his robes as he approached a house with a lit window.
Kael knocked on the sturdy wooden door, but no one answered. He sighed dejectedly. He expected this, but he wasn't giving up. He moved on to the next house with a lit window and knocked again, but only the faint rustle of movement behind thick walls answered him.
He kept trying. At last, one door creaked open with a heavy groan. Kael sighed in relief and smiled warmly.
A male dwarf stepped out, burly and stone-faced, holding an axe with both hands. His thick brows were furrowed, and his eyes shone with suspicion. Behind him, a dwarven woman, presumably his wife, clutched two small boys close to her skirts; her eyes were wide and fearful when she looked at Kael.
"What do you want, human?" the father dwarf barked, raising his axe halfway in warning.
Now, the dwarven kingdom had its own language, but centuries of trade with humans had led them to adopt the human tongue as well.
Kael raised his hands quickly in peace. "I mean no harm," he said in a calm voice, but urgent. "I am a priest of Solvantar, sent by the temple on official orders. I carry an important scroll meant for the dwarven leader. I only seek an audience, nothing more."
The dwarf's eyes narrowed. His grip didn't loosen.
Kael swallowed hard. "My priest medallion is inside my robes. I'm going to take it out slowly," he carefully informed the dwarf. When the dwarf gave no response, Kael slowly reached into his robes and pulled out the medallion.
The dwarf stared at it with narrowed eyes. After a long pause, he growled, "Stay right there."
Kael obeyed and stood still, sighing in relief that he wasn't axed or shooed away.
The door shut with a heavy thud, and behind it, Kael heard muffled voices rising in hushed conversation.
When the door opened again, the dwarf stepped out with the same angry expression, but Kael knew it wasn't directed at him this time. Perhaps he was simply upset that a stranger had disturbed his family's rest.
"Hamel…" A woman's voice called out from inside the house.
Indeed, this male dwarf's name is Hamel.
Hamel turned to look at his wife. The wife continued, "Be safe."
Hamel nodded. His hand gripped the hilt of his sword at his waist, and he spoke a few words in the dwarven tongue. Kael didn't need to understand the language to know he was reassuring his wife.
With his axe slung across his back and both a gleaming dagger and sword sheathed at his hips, Hamel turned to face Kael. He wore reinforced gauntlets and a patchwork of leather and metal chest armor that made him look ready for battle.
Seeing this, Kael sighed and rubbed his temples. I just wanted to know which road leads to the leader's house!