I see them as soon as I come into the Great Entrance Hall. Three of them are standing there by the entrance, frowning at me, looking all proud and defiant. Two of them I know from before, an old man and the one who cursed me the most. I am guessing the third guy, looking all business in his shiny silvery armor and a big ax over his shoulder must be their reinforcement.

"You may want to grab onto something, and protect your face," I tell Nemyr who runs after me, trying to explain something.

But I am tired of listening to him and I think of calling the wind all the way from the Waterfall Cave. But not just any kind of wind. I lower the pressure inside the Great Hall to the point that Nemyr immediately senses something weird going on, as he shuts up and I see on his face he’s suddenly feeling all dizzy and disoriented.

"Yeah, you better sit down for this one," I tell him. "Better still, lay down and cover your face!"

The wind that comes with ice drops hits me in the back and carries me to a big boulder in the middle of the Hall.

The dwarfs cover their faces as the wind pushes them backward. I go in front of the boulder, using it as a shield, and call the wind to come as a Category Million Hurricane, carrying the roofs, cars, cows, and, particularly in this case, mean little dwarfs out with it.

I hear them yell in pain, their bodies flying out of the cave.

"I guess you like to fly out of my dungeon!" I scream at them as the wind dies down and I run to see them. "Next time, I'll charge for the ticket, you little maggots!!"

"Are you freaking kidding me?" I ask myself looking at them, picking themselves up and moving swiftly with their little feet toward the lines of wood.

Yes. The moron patrol is back. Didn’t take them that long after all. With reinforcements. I see them line up by the trees. I thought they would bring a whole army of them. But there are like... twelve of them. You could not even make a decent football team out of them! Are they freaking kidding me?

"We just wanted to talk to you, you miserable... monstrosity!" the Old Dwarf's words reach me as I shake my head at them.

"Yeah, you want to talk? Then leave your weapons behind. And only two of you, up here. That old man and... whoever else you want to bring. But no weapons, you hear me?"

I look at how confident and resilient they still seem to be. Undeterred. Makes me wonder. Do they know something I do not?

Is there a way they can hurt me that I do not know about?

I check my energy. Great. That wind cost me a whole LIC unit. And then it dawns on me. Right now, they are a nuisance. A nasty sore throat that can't kill you. But... if it goes on and on, and you get sick as your immune system weakens, then... you might really get sick. They can just camp outside, and prevent me from going out and gathering supplies. And my alternatives to getting energy will be drastically reduced. And if my energy goes to zero... then they can just come in here. Are they that smart? Is that their plan? Or they just do not know when to quit? I think bout it all as I watch them getting up.

"So, what do you want?" I ask.

"We want half of your loot. You can keep the rest."

I can’t believe this guy. He says it with a straight face. What?!

"It's not my loot you are after. That is my..." I was going to explain to him why I needed my core, how I would die if they plunder my instruments there.

What a dumbass. As if they need me to tell them how to kill me. Why don't I just move aside and roll them a red carpet while I'm at it?

"Is mine. And you say you want it? Well, why didn’t you tell me so in the first place? Why don’t you come in?" I tell them as I step aside, bow my head, and extend my hand, inviting them in. “Oh, Mister Master Dwarf, please come in! It’s the second room to the right.”

They look at me confused. “Are you freaking kidding me?” I ask and put my mean face on. “There are more ways I can kill you than there are bugs and fleas in those beards of yours. And you think you have a right to ask what is not yours? You greedy little bastards! Haven’t your mother ever taught you not to take what’s not yours??”

They look confused only for a second. Then the old dwarf frowns at me and points his fat little finger in my face. "Don’t bring my mother in. You don’t want to give? Well, then we will take it all. We ain't leaving without the loot."

I watch them go, and cannot help but think I was a bit rash on them. Maybe... No. They stink too bad. Worse than the wet wolves. But... No. They will not listen to me. All they want is a treasure.

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Maybe I could do something to just get rid of them now, so I could deal with them properly later. I could get the Constructor to build me something nice, something shiny. The freaken fools would buy it. I don't doubt it. Like a bag of marbles. Nice and shiny. I bet nobody has that kind of shit here, and they’d think it was a treasure worth billions.

Maybe…

But if I trick them and they figure it out, and… that would just make them my lifelong enemy. I am not big on tricking people. Even less at making lifelong enemies.

No, there has to be a better way to deal with them.

I hear them grunting as they go down. “To insult our beards like that?!? He’ll pay!”

“And to call on my mother? Of all the women? Insolent monster! We’ll teach him the manners!”

I sigh, fearing these folks' capacity to learn is extremely limited. But… how can I use them? Talking the tough-guy talk while holding all the aces is all fine. But shit, maybe, in the end, they have a royal flush or something. How can I know? Besides, I need to become productive and grow. And the war servers me not.

I turn around to look at the Nemyr.

"Yeah, I've got the first job for you," I tell him. I'm not so sure he will comply with his words. Most people do not. Why would I be hoping this man would be any different? I know, call me a sucker.

"What is it?" he says, a doubt suddenly in his voice.

"I want you to take care of those Dwarfs for me," I say as I watch them down there, building something out of wood, I'm not so sure what.

He sighs, then slowly in a very hushed tone asks. "Does it have to be all of them?"

"Yes. I want them all."

He is quiet there for a moment, enough that I decide to look at him. He looks at the ground and then says in a very sober voice. "Is that what I’ve done? Traded one life for twelve…?”

“Oh, no, no, no," I say vehemently denying his insinuation, shaking my hand. "I do not want them killed. Oh, no, not killed. That would be too easy.”

He looks at me all baffled. “What do you want then?”

I'm nodding my head, noticing how he is feeling a bit better about my intentions. “I want them captured. Brought inside the Dungeon. Put them in the cells down there.”

"Why?"

"Let them sit in there a while. Then I'll see. Maybe when their heads cool off a bit, they would be more rational to deal with, know what I mean?"

His mood instantly brightens. I like that. I would not like him to be a cold-blooded murderer. A murderer, yes. But a cold-blooded one? That's scary.

"What are you thinking?" I ask him as I see him feeling a huge relief.

Then his face darkens again and he asks me, “So, you give me your word you will not kill them?”

“I’ll do my best. Certainly don’t plan to do it. But with those folks, I can’t really guarantee you anything. I was not planning to kill your boy either, you know.”

He lets that sit inside his head for a moment, and then sniffs, exhales a long breath, and says, “You’re right. Killing them would be easier. I mean, don't get me wrong. I even like some of them little fellas."

"You're right," I say. "After GOT, how can you not? Besides, they've done me no lasting harm. And whatever happened, I can forgive and forget. But, they seem to be so stubborn. So stubborn to be stupid."

"Yes. I met donkeys who are less stubborn. And way more reasonable."

"I know."

"They are hard folks. Don't know how to back down."

"Tell me about it. If I knew how to neutralize them, I would not be asking for your help. But then, maybe…” I say with some ideas popping inside my head. “If I let them all in, and take all the oxygen out..? That might work. But I'm not sure. And what if I kill them and can't bring them back?"

"Yeah, we would not want that," he says, suddenly frowning and thinking hard.

“Maybe not taking the oxygen out... maybe there is something we can give them to make them asleep.”

“Oh, yes! The Cheating Wife’s Flower!” he jumps, happy he found an answer.

But I do not have a clue what the hell he is talking about. “The Cheating Wife’s Flower?”

“Yes."

"And what the hell is that?"

"Something to knock your lights out. Keeps you out for hours. But then, you wake up and you don’t even have a headache. You feel like you slept like a baby."

"You know, this says a lot about your society. You people don't have antibiotics here, but you've got something called the Cheating Wife's Flower?"

He ignores my rhetorical question as his wheels are turning. "I know Old Gerwin used to have it. A sprinkle of that in their beer and they would be flat on their bellies.”

“Would not know what hit them.”

“Would not know if you hit them, would not know if you blew a trumpet in their hairy ears."

"You don't say."

"Yes."

“They’d be so out, we could just bring them in.” I could see a plan already developing. “Of course, you would need to spike their drink without them noticing anything.”

“Oh, I’ve got a solution for that. But it would take me the rest of the day to do it all. By tonight, it could be done.”

“I’ll hold them off for that long. And will do my best to take care of your boy here.”

The man looks at me and his boy, lying there, almost not able to open his eyes. “It will be done. I will do my part. You just keep my boy alive.”

“Yes. But I need to level up fast. Only then I can heal him properly.”

“And what do you need for that?”

“A lot and lot of stuff.”

“What stuff?”

“That’s a good part. Any kind of stuff. The more it’s processed or complex, the better it is. At least so I think."

"Processed? And complex?"

"Yes. Like hops is good. But ale is better. Flour is good, bread is better, stale bread with yeast and green shit growing out of it is the best. Understand?”

He nods his head but looks at me suspiciously. “So a rotten apple is better than a good one?”

“Exactly! Especially if it has a worm inside. Then it’s a double-good.”

“Okay. I’ll help. I think I can deliver.”

“You better. I am sure we need to fill the Dungeon with a whole bunch of different stuff. Then it will process it, I’ll get the energy I need, sell it, and level up! It’s easy. But I need the stuff.”

“Yeah. And then you can save my boy for good?”

“I already told you. This is the first time I’m trying to do something like it. But… I think it should work.”

Yeah, I can’t promise him something I’m not sure how it will come out. Just can’t. I disappointed too many people too many times in the past. I just don’t need any more of that kind of pressure. “I think. But I’m not sure.”

He looks worried, but that’s the best I can do, and I hope it will be enough.

To level up in a single day?

Awesome!!

Pure ecstasy shoots through my whole body and I jump up and raise my hands as if I have won already.

Yeah!!

I’m already feeling my wife’s and kids' embrace, telling me how much they missed me while I promise that I will never leave them again.

Yes!! It will happen. I know it will. It has to.