Nateaser: Reborn As My Love Interest

Dio - Chapter Thirty Seven

"I'm sorry about that." I felt like I had to apologize. "When he appointed me your captain, even though already the chief of staff for his entire army... That was the biggest honor I could imagine, and yet my first job was to forbid the champions to act on their own."

"So you return to the roots and have us adventure our way home?" Fang reiterated and didn't look angry anymore until he grabbed my shoulders again. "And the first thing you do is get lost in a foreign land a thousand miles away?"

"I told you, we're not lost." I struggled to break free. "We are headed towards the mountains to the west, and look at those. Mountains. It is all as planned, so stop breaking my bones."

"I'm glad we got one of the magical bags from the Inquisitorias, otherwise, we'd be starving again." He reluctantly let me go.

"Lambert made some delicious food, we should have taken more with us." Bastion longed, growing close to that human. I needed to thank him for saving our ogre after his second fall, even though my fist landed square in his face the first time we met.

"We are still a bit light on weapons." The beastman noted. "Next time you take some odd jobs in a tribe we encounter, at least ask for a spear in return. Or a change of clothes... Armor... Anything."

"Did you say armor, young traveler?" The voice came out of nowhere. Well, not exactly nowhere, but from the bushes right behind us. I expected an ambush but couldn't see anyone.

"And what if we did?" Fang assumed a battle stance and spun around.

"Would you mind showing your face?" I asked, trying to sound less threatening. "We had it rough so far and my comrades are jumpy."

"Oh, you'll have to excuse me..." I heard the voice again, and a bearded creature emerged from the bushes, dusting himself off. "I didn't mean to put the scare on ya'. The name's Gomel, a traveling smith."

He was rather robust but only a head taller than me, the most stereotypical dwarf I have seen, and I counted as an expert, originating from the western mountains myself. He didn't seem familiar though.

"What were you doing in those bushes?" Fang refused to lower his guard. I saw no weapons on him, and he traveled rather lightly for being in the middle of nowhere.

"Hiding, of course." He claimed, naturally. He didn't look particularly threatening but seasoned and old. Still, you never know... "Say, you haven't happened to run into the lizardfolk yourself, did ya?"

"Lizardfolk? This far north?" I asked, scratching my jaw. "Haven't heard of them ever venturing this far... If anything, they all migrated south to claim the Midgar Highlands along the equator."

"Well, they've been here yesterday and weren't the friendly type either." He hollered but didn't seem scared or anything. "My cart was attacked while I took a good 'ol piss, and they ate my horse too."

"How do you know they were lizardmen?" Fang asked, looking around. I did the same, but the geography still seemed unfamiliar.

"They still looted my tools when I got back." He shrugged. "My life is worth me more than to protect those old things though, and the horse was dead already, so I stayed hidden. Once they left, there was not much to salvage, and I headed home on foot. Still, glancing behind my back and hearing you argue, it seemed better to hide myself."

"So how come you revealed yourself now?" I asked curiously. "Don't you think the rest of the Lesser Races are just as dangerous as the lizards? Or you thought you could beat us three?"

"Beat you? No, I don't have what it takes. I'm no fighter anyway, just a traveling smith." He bowed, grinning. "And business is tough as is, without avoiding my only customers. No humans were left in this area to trade with, but I built good relations with the goblin, kobold, and orc tribes. Even have a home in a beastmen village."

"If so, how come the lizardmen attacked you?" I inquired.

"I take it you haven't met them before." The dwarf started. "They weren't particularly friendly even before the Collapse, but after that... Let's just say, they don't socialize. They raided some tribes, and I heard they won't speak the Cranta language either."

"Really? That's new..." I shook my head. In truth, my deputy reported something about our forward operating bases skirmishing with their kind, but that happened a thousand miles south, and we intruded on their territories in the Appenon Kingdom. They laid some claims on that place before us, but it wasn't anything new.

It sounded unbelievable that their territories expanded this far, but then I saw stranger things in the last weeks... In any case, Gomel's words seemed to be genuine, and he was unarmed, so I waved Fang to stand down. The dwarf bowed again, rubbing his hands.

"So did I hear that you need weapons and armor?" He asked.

"We could use some, I guess..." I nodded, still a little suspicious. "But you said you were looted, so what can you do about it?"

"Oh, I have two permanent shops set up, one of them within a day's walk, so don't you worry about that." He claimed, pointing to the north. "I have a house in the beastfolk village about fifty miles that way, but I also have one in the abandoned dwarf settlement ten miles west."

"We headed west, so that does sound convenient..." I pondered, glancing at Fang. The wolfmen already figured we were lost, but meeting this dwarf by chance was very lucky. If he led us to an old dwarf village built near the imperial road, our journey could continue with ease. Not to mention, if he armed us, we'd be much less vulnerable. The news about the lizardmen bothered me though.

"I wanted to visit one more village on my way home, but considering I no longer have my tools, I'm best off returning right now." He nodded as well. "Your escort will put my mind at ease if those reptiles decide to return... I take it you don't have money?"

"Just a few coins, I'm afraid." I shook my head. Money has become scarce since the Collapse, at least in the areas abandoned by humans. The New Order had its currency, but most of the tribes traded directly in goods. "But we prefer edibles, to be honest."

"Hahaha, no problem." The dwarf hollered. "I also like to eat."