Chapter 73: The Ancient Golems

Since both kingdoms kept their roads and mountain paths in good condition, Idmon's group arrived at the Dwarf Kingdom quickly.

And because soldiers were frequently patrolling, there was no longer a threat of goblin or wild monster ambushes when traveling.

Also, the adventurers from the recently established Adventurers Guild have kept the monster population low.

Idmon and his advisors were granted access to the Dwarven Palace as soon as they announced their presence.

Before, when Idmon had met the dwarves, their palace back then was nothing more than an old fort. It looked repaired and made to look like a palace.

Now that the old capital of the dwarves was retaken when they won the Seventh Goblin War, the Dwarven King Wargh has moved his residence to the original Dwarven Palace.

The Dwarven Palace was made with the finest metals and gems that could be found in the region. Its enormous size makes others think that it would not have been possible for dwarves to have made it. Dwarven craftsmanship really is amazing.

Dwarven Royal Guards: "Please enter. You can hold on to your weapons since the King trusts you, but you can leave your weapons in the guard post if you wish."

Idmon: "(t) Thank you. We will be in your care."

Idmon and the others reached the meeting hall quickly. King Wargh was there, along with his advisors and generals.

Wargh: "Ah, Lord Idmon. I have heard of your victory over the humans. I am impressed with your capability as a commander and a warrior. Dolf's report was very detailed, and he mentioned your fight against the Paladin Lord with awe."

Idmon: "Thank you for your compliment. However, we don't have time to relax yet."

Wargh: "What is it? Are the remnants of the Paladin army still causing chaos in your kingdom?"

Idmon: "(t) No, we already swept up the stragglers. My cause for worry is the message from the wizard. She said that the main army of humans is coming into force."

Wargh: "Is she trustworthy? Why would we believe something that a passing wizard spews out of her mouth?"

Idmon: "(t) She clearly possessed great magic in how she rescued the Paladin Lord. So I believe she must be one of the highest-ranking wizards in the Human Kingdom. I wouldn't be surprised if she was the head of their magic army."

Wargh: "Damn it. Idmon, just as I had anticipated that we could celebrate and break open the beer barrels, rest assured that we still have your back in the upcoming battle. Our entire army will commit to helping you repel the upcoming invasion."

Idmon: "(t) I have seen the strength of your warriors and the destructive potential of your war machines. However, it is not enough."

Wargh: "Are they that strong? You were able to beat a portion of their army, right? Then we can crush these humans with our warhammers."

Idmon: "It is not that simple. They still have multiple Paladin lords that are in the realm of heroes. Even an army of one thousand would not have a chance against them."

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Wargh: "And you say they have more than one human with that kind of power?"

Idmon: "Yes, and I'm not sure if they are more powerful than the Paladin Lord we have faced here. In fact, I have a feeling that he might be the weakest of the Paladin Lords. The way he used his ascended form was unpolished and inefficient."

Idmon finally sat down since they were still standing while talking earlier.

Idmon: "If he had enough time to master that form, I wouldn't be surprised if his power was ranked at the 8th or 9th tier."

Wargh: "That strong!? That's almost as powerful as the kings of old. Dragon Kings, Elven Kings, and Dwarven Warrior Kings."

Idmon: "We would be naive if we thought that they didn't have Paladin lords with that power. That's the reason I came to you. I heard from Dolf about ancient golems. I want to know more."

Suddenly, the group of King Wargs burst into laughter.

Granpa, the reanimated Dwarf Heroes (Dread Heroes) leader, was the only one who wasn't laughing. He was just there, standing silently.

Dwarven Advisor: "That is just a myth! Hahaha!"

Dwarven General: "A children's story, nothing more."

King Wargh: "You should spend your time wisely and try to find allies in other places. Those ancient golems that you speak of do not exist. Even if they did, no one knows where they are."

Idmon: "(t) I see. Thank you for your time. I will take some time to consider my next move. So, I will be staying in the city for a while."

King Wargh: "Of course! Just send a message to me if you need anything else. We will stand with you in the coming war, so you don't need to worry too much. Hahaha!"

Even after hearing what I said, the Dwarven King still underestimates humans.

He would only believe me once he saw it in person.

How can we win against this coming invasion? Is there no hope?

King Wargh and his advisors had already left the meeting hall.

Idmon: "(t) Come, Lina and Bon. Let us go to the nearby inn to rest and think about our next move."

Idmon's group was about to leave the palace when Granpa stopped them. Apparently, he was still in the room.

Granpa: "Don't mind the young dwarves. They do not know anything about our ancient past."

Idmon: "(t) What do you know about it?"

Granpa: "I know more than any dwarf that is alive right now."

I was skeptical about him when he said that, but when I remembered that he was the oldest of the Dwarven Heroes, it was not so unbelievable at all.

Granpa: "You see this palace? It's huge, right? No dwarven machinery could ever construct something as majestic as this. Not even the best of our craftsmen could do it."

Idmon: "(t) So you are saying it was built by-"

Granpa: "Golems. While the dwarven craftsmen were instructing them, they had completed the majority of the work.

Idmon: "(t) How do you know this? I've had my head researcher check all the books and scrolls in regards to the Dwarven Palace, but there is no record about it or how it was made."

Granpa: "Hahaha! You, young ones, don't know anything about it. Even in my time, not a lot of us knew the truth about it."

Granpa took out a small journal from his pouch and read something out loud.

Granpa: "Year *. The date of the record was lost. It says here..."

"The golems given to us by powerful beings have been a great help. It even constructed a palace for us! They taught us craftsmanship and smithing. They said, We have great potential in such skills!"

He closed the journal after that.

Granpa: "I copied this directly from the dwarven . Nobody knew who or what the powerful beings were, but they were helpful to my ancestors."

Idmon: "(t) Where is this book? Is it still possible to retrieve it?"

Granpa: "It was lost a long, long time ago. When I was still a young boy, a black dragon attacked the Library of the Oldbeards and destroyed all of our scholarly records. The

I could feel the sadness in Granpa's voice. It must have been the most tragic event of his childhood.

Granpa: "I was fortunate to have read a small portion of the

Granpa went silent for a moment. He must've been reminiscing. After a couple of seconds, he spoke again.

Granpa: "Even if you know the story now, I can see you're still unsure. To prove it, I will lead you to the place where they hid the golems."

Idmon: "(t) What!? You even know where they are?"

Granpa: "Yes, but beware. I do not know if they still serve the dwarves as their masters or if their old owners have already taken them back. Nobody has been there for thousands of years."

Idmon: "(t) I got it. We will be prepared. However, what kind of payment do you expect for this? We can't possibly have them for free."

Granpa: "That's right. What I want is the truth about the Golems, and my payment is for you guys to help me find that in the old ruins. Maybe even the records of our ancestors would be found there."

Idmon: "(t) I see. We will help you with this mission. And we would also like to borrow the power of your Golems in the coming war."

Granpa: "That depends if they are still ours."