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For over five centuries, he’d been reigning as the supreme leader of the Rock Tribe, the dwarves. Since the death of the most excellent blacksmith, Demir the Great, Vulcanus had never once relinquished his position as chief.

“Of course, he’s the strongest, after all.”

“Indeed, the strongest must lead the council in times of war.”

“Hail the great Vulcanus!”

“Without Vulcanus, our tribe would have been wiped out long ago!”

The war consumed the dwarves’ master craftsmanship. As the Rock Tribe bled and the elves’ arrows tore into their flesh, they craved strength.

And at the pinnacle of that strength stood Vulcanus.

“Rock Tribe, no longer shall we forge weapons!”

This was the speech he gave shortly after becoming chief.

“Cast aside your tools and take up arms! Why are you hammering away at anvils? If you have nothing else to hammer, capture an elf and pound them instead! If you must forge a weapon, use the bones of elves!”

Originally, elves and dwarves lived alongside each other like siblings, coexisting in a symbiotic relationship.

Elves lacked metalcrafts. All they could do was weave plants and wood; they could not handle metals like iron. Therefore, they needed weapons forged by dwarves to enhance their combat prowess.

“Don’t you find it unjust? Why should we be slaves to the elves? What’s the point of forging weapons if they just get taken away from us? What’s important is power! The ability to defend yourself! Without that, you have no right to dream or sing of hope!”

In truth, there was a reason they had once worked together. A dragon ruled the forest and rocky terrain—the giant, magic dragon Drughan. It was a creature so fearsome that it made all races tremble in fear.

To counter that monstrous dragon, the two races had united their forces. Elves provided military strength while the Dwarves forged their weapons. Together, they created a formidable synergy.

“We already killed the dragon. Demir and Eldrin’s collaboration buried it deep in the abyss!”

The legendary blacksmith Demir the Great and the legendary high elf Eldrin the Moonlight. Until 500 years ago, these two were the absolute figures representing the Forest and Rock Tribes. They had united the power of their tribes, buried the dragon, and perished in the process.

“But now, what are we making weapons for? Look at those treacherous elves. They are a race of traitors that stabbed us in the back with the bows we forged for them! As soon as our common enemy disappeared, they turned their swords on us!”

Vulcanus’s orders were simple: exterminate the elves! Only then were any forging activities to take place!

It was a command that some could not understand.

“Why aren’t we playing to our strengths?”

“Right! The elves primarily use bows, so we just need to stop making those, right?”

“Yeah, if we stop making bows, we don’t have to worry about them being taken!”

Some dwarves had reasonable doubts. However, Vulcanus was extremely stubborn.

“Silence. Do you know how short-handed we are at the battlefront? And what about the blacksmiths taken as prisoners? Can you guarantee you wouldn’t forge weapons if your family’s lives were on the line?”

Though his reasoning was somewhat weak, his will remained unyielding.

“It doesn’t matter. If you don’t want to follow my orders, challenge me to a battle. If you win, I’ll step down as chief!”

He was a true tyrant.

Thus, for 500 years, Vulcanus’s dictatorship persisted.

And now, in this upper council chamber, the dictator himself descended. Step by step, the heavy footsteps of the short but mighty figure resonated with an overwhelming force. It was similar to the feeling I had when I first encountered the old man—the very presence of this being felt suffocating.

“Salutations to the chief.”

“Salutations to the chief.”

All the dwarves seated at the table stood and paid their respects.

Dagnar and I hesitated for a moment but then also stood.

“Hmm.” The old man watching beside me clicked his tongue. “Truly, the world is vast and interesting. If I had been able to wander other worlds in my lifetime, it would have been quite enjoyable.”

He smacked his lips as if he wanted to take on the challenge.

Of course, the living and the dead could never directly face each other.

“You must be…” The chief, Vulcanus, turned his gaze toward me at that moment.

His burly muscles rippled.

“Are you the suspicious outsider who recently gifted weapons to our tribe?”

Suspicious? That word rubbed me the wrong way, but it wasn’t incorrect.

“Yes, that is correct.” I nodded.

But something felt off.

Vulcanus was smiling, but his eyes were not. His gaze was filled with apparent hostility.

But why?

My favorability with the dwarves was at 75. I had given them aid, not harm.

“And tell me, did you obtain permission to use our mine?” Vulcanus asked in a cold voice.

“…”

The council chamber fell into silence, and the atmosphere became suffocating, as if we were deep underwater.

Even Dagnar, who had been looking at the chief with admiration, was now frozen stiff.

“Um.” I tilted my head in question.

Whether or not the chief was strong, I needed clarification why he was acting this way.

“Excuse me, but may I ask you something?”

“You may ask.”

“Have I done something wrong to harm the Rock Tribe?”

“Of course you have,” Vulcanus answered immediately. “Closing the mine so that no weapons could be forged has been my policy for 500 years.”

Ah, so that was it?

The thing that Dagnar couldn’t understand and the culmination of 500 years of stubbornness. Vulcanus was displeased simply because I had started forging weapons.

“Your reckless actions are upsetting this policy, so how could I not summon you?”

“…”

“It took 400 years of effort. Only a century ago did we finally erase blacksmithing from our history, and now you are reigniting the dwarves’ creative desires. I am outraged.”

“…”

While his words were absurd, he wasn’t wrong. I was merely a guest in this place; the actual owner was Vulcanus. From his perspective, I was a troublemaker disrupting his established peace.

“I apologize.” I bowed my head.

No matter the situation, the point of this quest was to resolve the conflict between the two tribes. I couldn’t afford to create more conflict before resolving the existing one.

“I meant no harm. I only sought to make use of resources that were going to waste, and I only crafted weapons because the dwarves requested them. If I had known the full details, I would not have done so.”

Of course, beyond everything else, the being before me was far too powerful. The truth was that the word of the strong was the law.

“Haha,” the old man chuckled softly beside me. “My disciple, I thought you were reckless, but it seems you know when to bow your head to someone.”

It’s not bowing down; it’s avoiding conflict. It’s not fear that makes you avoid filth, after all.

“That’s true. But that’s quite the scary filth if you ask me.”

That’s true.

“But what will you do? That guy seems dead set on punishing you.” The old man shook his head as he continued. “Be careful. Unlike the encounter with Sun Spear, we’re not in your mental space. This is the real world, which means you could die here. And if you die, the Art of All Techniques will end with you. Do you understand?”

It was disheartening that he seemed more concerned about his techniques than my well-being.

That won’t happen.

“Why not?”

Look at their eyes.

I gazed at the other participants in the meeting. Although they were tight-lipped, I could clearly sense their emotions.

“Hmph, they’re dissatisfied.”

Yes, exactly.

It was evident just by looking at their eyes. The council members and all the Rock Tribe members like Dagnar were not pleased with Vulcanus’s dictatorship. They were only enduring it because of his overwhelming strength.

No matter how much of a tyrant Vulcanus is, he can’t kill me recklessly. There’s no need to light the fire next to a powder keg. Even the most powerful dictators always live in fear of rebellion.

Vulcanus was strong. Not just strong—he was so strong that even if all the dwarves and elves united, they wouldn’t be able to defeat him. That meant he could wipe out every dwarf right now if he wanted to.

But the reason he wouldn’t was clear.

Because they are of the same race.

No matter how strong he was, if he exterminated all those who opposed him, there would be no one left to rule over.

Besides, it was stated that the dwarves were a race that valued gratitude. Vulcanus might have seen me as a threat, but the other dwarves did not.

For Vulcanus, there was no need to complicate things further.

“Hm.” Vulcanus stared at me. “Sorry to say this, but it seems you cannot become a benefactor of our tribe. As much as I’d like to tear you to pieces right now, I will let it slide since you meant no harm. However.”

He was obstinate. He didn’t bother consulting the opinions of the other council members.

“Leave the city of Titan immediately.”

It was a clear order of expulsion. That was why Vulcanus had summoned me.

It was then that Dagnar spoke up. “Th-This is ridiculous! Joo Donghoon is clearly a benefactor of us, the dwarves! It’s not that we even broke the chief’s orders; this foreigner kindly forged our weapons! And now you’re throwing him out?”

“Ridiculous, you say?” Vulcanus’ gaze shifted.

Dagnar gulped audibly.

A tremendous pressure began to bear down on him.

“Do you find me laughable because I spoke politely and with respect?”

“Guh!”

“If you find this ridiculous, the solution is simple.”

—Bang!

Vulcanus slammed his hand down on the table with great force. It was his signature move whenever he made a decision.

“You can leave with him.”

Yikes.

Just like that, Dagnar was expelled as well.

Under the night sky, Dagnar and I trudged along the border between the rock lands and the forested region, now exiled with no particular destination.

“Seriously, what a ridiculous chief, that fellow. The great Vulcanus, my foot. What good is brute strength alone? No wonder he couldn’t end this war yet! Tsk.”

“It is quite absurd.”

To be denied by one’s kind just for speaking up. I might have been an outsider, but Dagnar had been a loyal tribe member. I felt bad for him.

And honestly…

I was disappointed, too. The quest was one thing, but… I couldn’t help but think about all the resources left in the mine that I wouldn’t get to use.

I needed to level up Boney 6’s skills by building more proficiency.

“By the way,” I interrupted Dagnar’s grumbling.

“What is it?”

“What do we do now? Do we have anywhere to go?”

This world was divided into two main regions: the elven and dwarven territories. It seemed like there were other places where different races lived, but…

“How should I know? Except for when I was fighting, I never left the Rock region,” Dagnar replied.

“…I see.”

“Hah, damn that chief. Let’s see how far he gets with stubbornne—”

His endless cursing against the chief was about to start again when I raised my hand.

“Wait.”

I sensed a confident presence with my senses.

There’s a being—of at least considerable skill.

The direction was from the forest.

If elves appeared, it could be dangerous since my favorability level with them was only 25.

“Damn it, prepare for battle!”

I quickly summoned my skeletons.