Weed panted as he tried catching his breath. Clearly this was going to be a difficult riddle to solve now with dwarf bandits at his heels. As he looked up, he realized he was back where he had started from; in front of the dwarf cafeteria where Theodore had treated all the finalists to lunch. Weed’s stomach growled in hunger as he recollected the wonderfully scrumptious meals he had. Surviving on mountains of rye bread was a tough proposition and a tasteless experience. With his stomach urging him to check the cafeteria, Weed pushed opened the door and went in. An expensive meal, once in awhile would never hurt anyone.
As Weed stepped in, he could hear many dwarves happily chatting away, some singing songs some dancing. The cafeteria was nothing like how Weed remembered it to be; big and empty. As he reached tables, a sudden hush gripped the cafeteria. All the dwarves proceeded to stare at him in a hostile manner and began quickly whispering to each other. Weed was no longer surprised with the hostile stares or the whispering. Being treated like an animal let loose from the zoo by the dwarves was now a completely normal feeling for Weed.
Ignoring the stares, Weed quietly made his way to the counter to order some food. ‘At least, I am not being thrown out of here.’
Weed stared at the menu and ordered the familiar dishes he recalled from his last visit; chili cave crab. The attendant stared at Weed, cave crabs? The most expensive meal on the menu?
“I think I did not hear you right. Did you say chili cave crabs?” The attendant at the counter asked. Weed wore basic armor and looking at his shabby appearance it did not seem he had the money to pay for the crabs.
“Yes.” Replied Weed, not knowing that the NPC was doubting Weed’s ability to pay the money.
“Its 25 gold coins.” The NPC quoted, just to check Weed had the money.
Weed opened his pouch and handed the asked price to the NPC. “Is that enough?”
With money in hand the NPC’s behavior drastically changed. “Yes Sir!” He chirped as he shouted out to his colleagues to prepare one chili cave crab. Cave crabs were considered as the city’s delicacy and usually cost a fortune for their rarity. They were only found inside mountains where water flowed. They were considered the rarest or rare dishes that one could barely afford.
The staffs were already acquainted with the finalists when they visited the last time with Theodore. They didn’t raise any concern with regards to Weed being an elf. In fact, they were polite. Not all dwarves brought out their dislike for elves into the open, for the staff Weed was a guest to their city and more importantly a finalist that Theodore Balkan had selected. Only those truly passionate about blacksmithing would be brought here. Though elf from the outside dwarf from the inside, the staff thought to themselves. Lastly, Weed just ordered a dish which was equivalent to a month of their sales. For them, Weed was the most important customer in the cafeteria.
The meal was quickly prepared and served on a tray. The chili cave crab, true to its name was over half a foot in size in hues of red coloring it.
Weed quickly took his tray and began looking for a place to sit. Dwarves would cover empty seats with their hands; refusing to let Weed sit beside them. As Weed made his way through the mess hall towards the lonely table, he felt a tug on his cape.
“Just a copper, pretty lass.” Said a drunk old dwarf, breaking the awkward silence. Weed smiled and quickly handed a silver coin. The dwarf eyes nearly popped when he saw that he got a hundred times more than he asked for! He smiled sheepishly and ordered more ale.
Weed pass the money on the presumption, it would trigger some clues directing him to his next destination. Sadly, the dwarf passed out before his ale arrived. Weed sat down next to the drunk passed out dwarf and began to eat in the lonely corner of the cafeteria. He didn’t mind being alone, one of the many things he was used to. Weed quickly picked up his fork and knife as he stared at the succulent gravy-licous crab. The fragrant aroma of the sauce and crab mix quickly filled the mess and the dwarves could only enviously stare at Weed as he took bites of the crab. The delicious meal cost Weed 25 gold coins but it was worth every ounce of the gold. Each bite melted in his mouth leaving behind a craving of more. Weed deviously smiled away as he saw the dwarves staring at him. This was just what he wanted; a punishment to them for disliking elves. ‘Behold the riches of the elves! Weed thought to himself. He even went to the extent of making sounds of enjoying his meal, occasionally saying “Yummmm” or “Mmmmmm”.
The dwarves could only stare not out of hostility anymore but out of envy. In time, they decided to ignore the rich elf. Satisfied with the result, Weed resumed eating his meal normally. Each bite was a delight. ‘If I ever form a party, I’ll hire the best chef first.’
At the end of the lonely meal, Weed received a pop:
TRRINGG!
Having tasted the most exquisite food of all of Northern Mountain city, has satisfied your hunger.
You have enjoyed your meal and are rested.
Maximum HP increased by 100 for 24hrs.
Maximum WIS increased by 50 for 6hrs.
Weed stared at the message in shock. Meals adding stat buffs was originally a Royal Road idea, it was not what grabbed Weed’s attention. The words ‘enjoyed’ and ‘rested’ in the message did.
“No ways!” Weed said under his breath. It was so obvious all this time. Nothing Theodore did was without reason. Even the meal they had together and enjoyed was a clue.
Weed smacked his forehead, the answer had always been in front of him all this while. ‘Could have saved so much time…just go back where I came from, I just had to comeback here. Not roam and visit each and every pub. Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius -- and a lot of courage -- to move in the opposite direction. Einstein, I guess you half right and half wrong. I am an intelligent fool, who makes things bigger and complex but I didn’t have to go in the opposite direction just stay put.
The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
Weed patiently sat still as he tried to eavesdrop in on the conversation the dwarves were having. Somewhere here would be the next clue directing him to his next destination. Weed’s presence diminished as he focused hard to listen in. The dwarves were laughing and singing once again. Weed struggled to distinguish between the noise and chatter.
“And then Boris, was like…”
“My wife wants me to go…”
“What is the world coming to? An elf…”
“I swear to my clan, that I ate a crab as well..”
“FUFUFUFUFU, best joke ever…..”
“One cold sloshed, ice crushed beer!....”
“….The winds were moaning in the night, the fire was red, it flaming spread, the trees like torches blazed with light….”
“OYE! Don’t Sing that without me!...”
“…The mountain smoked beneath the moon. The dwarves, they heard the tramp of doom. They fled the hall to dying fall Beneath his feet, beneath the moon….”
All the dwarves started joining in.
“Far over the Misty Mountains grim, To dungeons deep and caverns dim,…”
Is this some sort of dwarf anthem? Weed wondered as he paid great attention to the lyrics.
“…There shadows lay be night or day, And dark things silent crept beneath…”
‘Is this a clue? Another dwarf poem riddle? Weed wondered with the color disappearing from his face. He was sick of riddles to his very inner cores.
“…The sword is sharp, the spear is long, The arrow swift, the Gate is strong. The heart is bold that looks on gold; The dwarves no more shall suffer wrong.”
Weed was considering giving up and leaving when he felt another tug on his cape. The drunk dwarf held his cape loosely and motioned to be silent. The song’s pace dulled and became deeper.
“….With foes ahead, behind us dread, Beneath the sky shall be our bed,…”
Weed opened his mouth to request the dwarf to let go when the dwarf shushed him and pointed with his finger secretly. Weed’s eyes trailed the direction of the finger pointing; behind the singing dwarves, he could see a group of dwarves who were not singing. If anything they appeared to be frowning and very sad. A female dwarf in the group, began crying at the last line of the poem.
Weed thanked his stars that he followed his intuition and paid the drunken dwarf some money.
One of the male dwarves placed his hands on the females and said something. Weed was barely able to he hear what he said but the female dwarf only began to cry more.
Mine collapsing? Weed wondered if he heard it right.
Weed grew more attentive and started to eavesdrop on their conversation. The singing had died out and it was easier to listen in.
TRRRINGG!
You have learned Eavesdrop!
Eavesdrop: Listen to others whisper. The more proficient you become, the better you can hear.
The higher the level the greater the chance that you will not be noticed. You may not allocate skill points to this skill.
Eavesdrop is now Beginner level 1!
Weed smiled as the dwarves conversations got clearer and easier to understand.
“This is no place for a woman to be in mourning. You’ve been just sitting here and crying for ten days now.” Spoke one of the three dwarves in the group. Weed tried to recollect whether she was here the last time Theodore treated them. However, all he could recollect was the great food.
“I am very sorry, Tullia. You know how these mines are. They are risky and never ending. It’s a job hazard.”
“He told me, that you were going to start in the forbidden mines.” The grieving widow said. “Wasn’t it enough that you were mining in open sites? Why did you have to go to the forbidden one? Tell me Tinquarrier.”
“…”
“It’s the old man and his tales, Tullia.” Said another dwarf.
“Which tales Tasha?” Tullia asked with tears in her eyes as she began sobbing uncontrollably.
“…”
“Not you too!” Tullia cried.
“It exists, Tullia.” Tasha said as he sided with the Tinaquarrier.
“You fools! There is no such thing as a diamant noir!” The female dwarf cried and cried, but no one other than Weed had her attention. Odd? Yes very much so, but it seemed to be a regular affair.
The male dwarves got up; there was nothing left to say any more. Weed had heard enough, he knew this was what he was looking for; diamante noir or the black diamond.
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Authors Note:
1. Will be edited soon.
2. A short chapter. ~_~ still a long way to go before I reach till the amazing chapters....
3. Thank you so much Nithink for volunteering to co-author.
4. Thank you V4lkyr13 for doing a zing check on it.
5. Just to clarify the dwarf poem / song is not my own, for those interested in the dwarf song. CLICK HERE It is taken from JRR Tolkien's Hobbit; a masterpiece and a must read. For the complete poem verses: CLICK HERE. I couldn't help but refer to the greatest author of all times in fantasy genre (I think he literally coined the term fantasy in the light of elves and dwarves).
6. Don't expect anything now till June end.
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Connect to Royal Road – Elementarem Vim next Chapter?YesNo
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