Daylight arose over the mountain forest I called home. It had started to become quite cold out in the mornings. Falling orange colored leaves blew in the wind and trees were become bare. My mom had fashioned my dad's old coat into two small ones — one for Emma and one for myself. Emma now appeared to be nine years old while I looked like my actual age of about three. Where did my seniority go? I asked myself. Anyone seeing us now would think I was much younger than her, but I was older. I heard an almost celebratory shout from one of our scouts.

My father left our tent hurriedly without grabbing his weapons. It was then I saw are visitors in the distance. Zotherg had sent me an image of the caravan coming our way. It was Dwarves, and he had highly advised we destroy them with prejudice, but I had told him to calm down. The Dwarves had been invited here by my father. We needed winter goods, tools, and rations to survive the cold seasons. Elves were vegetarian, and plants dry up, die, or hibernate during the winter. Emma much to my jealousy could eat meat, but the rest of us weren't so lucky. We would need grains and jarred goods that wouldn't spoil like jams or jellies. We needed weapons to fight the monsters as well, but we had managed so far with what we had.

My dad greeted an old dwarf whose white beard went nearly down to his ankles. He had dark green eyes, and a bulbous nose that I assumed is a trait often seen on goblins. I asked myself how he managed not to trip himself every day. The old dwarf's name was Grillo Nrax, and from using [soul analyze], I knew he was level four hundred and had various crafting skills including blacksmithing. He also had a Trait called "Good Natured" that commended him for being a good person. It also helped him learn trade skills 25% faster. I was fairly certain it was a trait bestowed by a god or goddess. They always seem to be involved in everything.

Although Elves and Dwarves historically hate each other, not all dwarves were happy at the fall of the Elves. It hurt many channels of trade, and some goods only elves could produce were eventually completely lost. Dwarves particularly hated losing Elven enchantments that unlike other kinds were self-sustaining and self-recharging. Any rune or circle based enchantment skillfully crafted can be recharged, but that requires a caster to focus mana in or to use up a mana crystal.

Also even if someone was your enemy doesn't mean if someone else you hated enslaved them it would make you happy. Dwarves had been afraid after what happened to the elves and cut off trade with most main human cities. They also heavily invested in their rune based machine weapons to instill fear in any who would even think to come after them next. To a certain extent when the Elves fell the Dwarves were like " Hey! Don't bully them that's our job!". Matters were however much worse than just that since elves are a beautiful race many were taken to use as sex slaves. Alchemist believed that in the elven body was the secret to immortality and performed experiments like dissolving Elves in acid. The Elves that remained free were starving and freezing in the cold.

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The Dwarves that had Elven friends or debts of gratitude went beyond expectations to help. Grillo had diverted his caravan to meet us before the beginning of winter. Something that would have been dangerous and financially costly! I could hear my dad and Grillo talking, and it wasn't going well. From the sound of the conversation, the dwarf was losing too much money each year and soon would be broke. He was asking if my dad had anything he could trade to help supplement the cost but being the hippies we were there was nothing. This was going to be the last trip the Dwarf would ever make and not because he didn't want to but because he wouldn't have the means.

I walked up to my dad and the dwarf and pulled on my dad's pant leg to get his attention. At first, he ignored me and continued talking. Grillo noticed me and smiled, even gave me an "Oh hello and who are you little fella?"

My dad cut in and said, "Juran go play with Emma daddies busy!"

I gave him the "DAD, DAD, DAAAD!" with increasing volume until he lost his patience and yelled "WHAT?"

As he and Grillo looked down, they saw me holding a gold nugget the size of an average house cats head. Zotherg had told me before about all the rare and valuable materials he had. The old and kind elemental was willing to part with whatever I needed. Once he released his hold over it, all I needed to do was weave an earth magic spell and call out to the material itself. The gold then arose out of the ground and floated into my hand. Good thing too because My tiny arms could not hold something as dense as a gold nugget this size. The process was expensive in Mp though. It had cost me about four thousand Mp in two seconds to grab a chunk of gold just beneath the surface. It's also a technique that only works if there's an earth elemental to tell me its there. There might not always be one wherever I need in the future.

"WH-WHERE? HOW?" my father breathlessly mumbled.

I activated [Soul Speak] targeting both of them "Gentlemen! I believe we have much to discuss."

I revealed my true existence knowing I needed the resources and services only a Dwarf could provide and this one I could tell was trustworthy. Also, I couldn't let my people go hungry now could I?