She was waiting for him. Of course she was. As Thors and Knarr were walking up the final hill to the settlement and the palisade wall rose to meet them, a mighty voice greeted them.

“You really are a brave one, Thors the so-called adventurer! Brave indeed to show your face here again!”

Aina was standing on top of the palisade wall, waving a knife. For a moment, Thors really was glad that he had taken the enchanted breastplate for today. Her fiery hair was in long, intricate braids that rang alongside her face, which was...

Thors couldn’t tell. Her forehead was furrowed, but her expression was remarkedly neutral and hard to read. Was she going to throw the knife right away, or was she ready to listen to his pleadings? He had no idea.

Knarr was looking between the two with wonder, slowly realizing that the grand romance he had dreamed up didn’t quite match reality. Aina wasn’t alone either, stone-faced dwarf guards were manning the gate, and their expression hadn’t betrayed a single bit of their inner thoughts.

Sincerity is probably my best bet.

“Aina! I messed up last time, I really did! It was my mistake, and I handled it badly, but it was just too sudden at the time! However—I’ve come back.” He locked eyes with her. “I’ve come back to do it properly.”

A hint of doubt crept to her face. “Do what properly? I was sincere last time, and you ran off into the night. Why should I trust a dwarf like that?”

“I was a fool then, but things have changed! A lot can happen in a few weeks. I suppose I still had a bit of the adventurer in me then, but that has changed. My answer is the same, even if I had not quit adventuring yet back then. But now I’ve come to ask for your hand. Properly!”

Cool eyes regarded him, and the knife slowly came down. Aina nodded. “Fine. I guess there’s no harm in hearing you out.”

With that, she turned and stomped off from the palisade. Knarr and the guards at the gate were giving Thors impressed looks, and he was surprised himself too. Do I really have a chance here? Hesitantly, he began walking to the gate.

It opened, and Thors stepped through and stopped. Aina was standing there, judging him. She was dressed in proper work clothes and had a hammer on her belt—seemed she had come right from some work she had been doing. But there was finally some emotion in her gaze. If he wasn’t completely off base, she was examining Thors with just a hint of concern.

“Something really has happened, hasn’t it? There’s something different about you. It’s in your walk, your bearing.”

Thors sighed, heart suddenly heavy. “Tragedy does do that to a person. Let us go speak with your father, he should know what has happened too.”

—

Aina’s father was a middle-aged dwarf, a bit younger than Merrick had been. Leino Silvervale had a severe look to his face, which always made his presence feel intimidating. Him just sitting silently could emanate a silent pressure, which would force answers out of most people.

But after hearing Thor’s story, a heaviness set into his bones, and the dwarf sunk into his seat for a moment, eyes closed. “A common tragedy here in the frontier. A dwarf gathers an expedition but bites off more than they can chew. Disaster strikes. The survivors are left behind, gathering the scraps that can be salvaged.”

He opened his eyes and focused on Thors. “You, on the other hand, have managed well so far. Most expeditions break apart immediately, but you’ve got them sticking around. I saw the eyes on that boy you brought with you. Is that an adventurer’s trick? Convincing them they’re in a story. Merrick’s Grudge—it does have a good ring to it.”

“It’s no trick,” Thors replied, serious. “I declared a grudge, and I intend to fulfill it. That dungeon is more than it looks, more than anyone suspects. If we stick to it and strike rich, maybe even the spirits of the fallen will smile.”

The older dwarf hmphed. “I was complimenting you, boy. A good trick is a good trick. What do you make of this, Aina?” he asked, looking to his daughter.

Aina’s expression had become unreadable once again, increasingly so as Thor’s story went on. Her eyes betrayed nothing as she slowly looked at Thor’s and spoke. “Thors, you truly have my sympathies for your loss. Such a tragedy is always a terrible thing, but—”

A hint of suspicion came to your eye. “It doesn’t look good, you must admit. That you ran off before, but now that you need our clan’s resources, you come back to make amends. Can I really feel satisfied with that? Is this just a marriage of necessity?”

Thors winced. Put like that, it did look pretty bad, didn’t it? He sighed, suddenly deathly tired. “Sadly, it is an inevitability of my position now. I’m a leader now—I must consider things like that when thinking of marriage. It’s frustrating. But I promise you!”

He looked her in the eye. “I promise you. If I could marry you, I believe I would be happy. I would never do a marriage just for politics’ sake. Aina, I do really want to marry you.”

A few cracks were starting to show in her defences—just a hint of red climbing to her cheeks, but Aina remained resolute. Her gaze was sharp as a blade. “Then why did you run off back then? It was a misunderstanding back then, sure, but your reaction... You really seemed to hate the idea.”

“I would never hate the idea! I think I was just—scared in a way. I had a bit of the adventurer still in me. Marriage... it would mean an end to some things. Maybe I still dreamed of going back to foreign lands. But now...”

The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

He looked Leino in the eye, and the older dwarf nodded. He understood a bit of what Thors meant. “Now I’m a leader. I have to lead my settlement, and so my life truly is in its next phase.” His eyes went back to Aina. “Now it’s finally time for me to be serious about this sort of thing. Aina, I think you would be a great wife, a great pillar of support.”

She stared. And stared. The hint of blush spread. Finally, she muttered an answer. “I suppose that’s fine. Agh, you are too slippery Thors! But it won’t be that easy this time! It won’t be that easy!”

A wicked smile suddenly spread on Leino’s face, the older dwarf coming alive in his seat. “So, you wished for a deal of sorts? Resources. Let’s talk.”

Thors gulped, looking between the two. Had they planned this? Seems it's time for negotiations. He nodded. “I can talk.”

The older dwarf nodded, then leaned forward on his chair. “You’ve talked up this dungeon of yours quite a bit, but from what I gather, you haven’t actually seen any hint of profit in it yet, have you?”

Should I reveal the ring? Probably not... “We haven’t found treasure yet, but we also haven’t had time to send in an expedition yet.”

“But how soon will you be finding something? Making deals based on speculation is not something I do. I’ve dealt with adventurers before, I know how you can talk up a rotting crypt as a mighty hoard. You came here before you had anything in hand to show.”

Thors had to grimace—it was true. But it could take weeks before digging up the tunnel was done, and then he needed time for a proper delve. Winter preparations needed to start now—not later. “I don’t have time. But I promise, there is treasure down in that dungeon.”

“A treasure that you have not seen one bit of, but you assure us exists,” Aina added dryly, face back to a cool calm.

She’s playing on his side? Leino was rubbing his hands, eyes gleaming. “You do sincerely believe there is treasure down there, don’t you? That’s why you’re so worried someone will challenge your charter if you pack up for winter. If you’re so sure of it, what say you to a bet?”

“A bet?” Thors looked up, intrigued. “What do you have in mind?”

The older dwarf ran his eyes over Thors, judging. “You are a dwarf of some value, you know. Someone with proper adventuring experience is very useful to have in hand. We opened a new silver mine two weeks ago, but have been dealing with some persistent cave spider infestations. Someone like you could be very useful in there.”

He wants me to work for him. Thors’ eyes flashed. “I won’t give my claim away to work in your mines.”

“Now now, that’s where the bet comes in,” Leino said placatingly. “See, you have experience as an adventurer, but do you really have what it takes to be a true leader yet? A year or two working under me could do you good, and then you could return to your dungeon, a group of men you’ve worked with personally at your command.”

But as part of your clan, not my own, Thors added silently. It would do if he was just an ordinary dwarf pursuing a grudge, but he had quests to fill. Quests that needed him to be a true ruler. “So what’s the bet?”

“My new silver mine is still a new operation, but I believe it is on the way to making good profits. Let’s say... one month. Your dungeon, and my new silver mine. Which one can make more profit?” He looked to his daughter. “What say you, Aina, that we hold your wedding in a month, and see who can bring the greater gifts? If he doesn’t manage it, he can come work under us.”

“That sounds wonderful, Father,” Aina said in an exaggerated manner, throwing a coy look at Thors. “Surely I wouldn’t marry someone who can’t stand up to such a bet.”

Thors thought. A month is just enough time to dig up the tunnel, gather my allies, and do a delve or two. Will I find treasure so soon? He looked at his ring. This dungeon wasn’t a trifle, the time for being careful was over. If a ring like this could have its origins there, there had to be more. “If I win the bet?”

“I will send 20 dwarves with the skills you need to help with whatever you want.”

That would be almost as many as I have people in my camp now... Can I give him so much influence? He eyed the older dwarf warily. “Ten would be more than enough, as long as they have the appropriate expertise.”

Leino smiled, approval in his gaze. “Let’s make it 15.”

Thors nodded. “Agreed.”

Aina looked between the two, then finally let her iron facade fade, and collapsed to the table. “Ah, your last proposal was so much more romantic!”

—

The next day, as Thors and Knarr prepared to leave back home at the gates, Thors had one final meeting with Aina. The early morning sun finally gave the moment some of the poetry it deserved, even if Thors regretted how things had come so far.

“You know, I really am sorry this became so... political.”

Aina shook her head. “You don’t need to be, truth be told, even back then politics was involved.”

Thors stared. That instant acceptance of my proposal had some politics behind it? Suddenly feeling a tad insecure, he asked for clarification. “What do you mean?”

“Have you heard about what the southern dominion’s been planning?” She asked.

“You mean—the annexation? Some talk about integrating the frontier.”

Aina nodded. “We can’t predict how the king will answer them. It may even be already this year that we go under the Southern Dominion’s management. So, us frontier folk haven’t stayed still. My older brother got a wife from a mine to the west last year, and their youngest got a wife from a mine to the north... and so on. Do you get the picture?”

Thors was starting to understand. If a new region was integrated, the new rulers would want to forge bonds with the locals, easiest through marriage. If a high-ranking noble even implied a marriage...

The dwarf woman saw an understanding flash in Thors’ eyes. “This way, at least we get to decide who we marry. They’ll see we won’t roll ever that easy.”

“That is... very understandable.” Thors let out a breath, calming. “I truly am glad you got to choose this way.”

“Because I wouldn’t have picked you otherwise?”

“Something like that.”

They both chuckled for a moment.

Then suddenly, Thors looked her in the eye, serious. “You know, in the human lands to the south, they have a custom of giving an engagement ring when the promise is made.”

Slowly, he picked off a ring from his left hand, and handed it over to Aina. Its colour was dull copper, nothing anyone would buy for its beauty. But Aina accepted it gingerly. It had come from Thors’ finger—she understood what that meant.

“What does it do?”

“That, Aina, is a ring of fireballs,” Thors answered, smiling.

She jolted, almost dropping it, and stared at it with shock. “Is it safe?”

“Don’t worry, it’s designed for fancy court ladies in the south to use. Take it for a spin in the hills—you'll get the hang of it, or you wouldn’t be the woman I intend to marry. Can cast two a day.”

“This is... too much, isn’t it?” Aina whispered. “You’re going to go down in that dungeon, aren’t you? The value of a ring like this...”

“Shush, I won’t hear it,” Thors answered, waving away her objection. “It’s a dungeon we’ll be living over, and I intend to have you well-equipped. I have many other protections. Learn to use that, and you’ll be able to make do in a lot of different situations.”

He chuckled. “You know, I actually know a mage who could only cast fireball. Always said it was the only spell he needed, that it solved all the problems in life. I laughed at him at first, thinking him a fool.”

“What happened to him?” Aina asked, curious.

Thors sighed. “Made it to gold rank apparently. Really made me lose some faith in that review board...”

Aina laughed, and jumped forward to hug Thors. “Thank you thank you thank you. I’ll treasure it, I’ll will!”

Thors answered the hug, content. As expected, his final backup plan had worked wonderfully.

There wasn’t a woman alive who didn’t appreciate a good fireball.