Chapter 497 - 496: The Dwarf’s Commission

Chapter 497: Chapter 496: The Dwarf’s Commission

The Magic was very simple, and he learned it in roughly one afternoon.

Also, learning Magic that controlled Force Fields seemed to help with crafting equipment, which was one of the reasons Colin chose it.

Colin yawned.

He got up, went through his morning routine of washing up and eating breakfast, then shouldered his prepared backpack and walked out the door.

Ale, who lived across the hall, also pushed her door open and came out, fully geared up.

The young girl was wearing thick winter clothes again, reminding Colin of the first time he’d seen her in Snow Deer Valley.

Ale walked over to Colin’s side and said casually, "Today’s the day we go to the Undercity, right?"

"That’s right. Our wonderful vacation is over." Colin stretched. "Donkexes wants to hire us to escort them into the Undercity. He’s a Mage who can cast Tier Six Magic, and Langgrin and his group can’t be too bad either, so this mission..."

"Colin?" Ale suddenly stopped in her tracks.

"What is it?" Colin asked, finding her pause a bit strange.

"Let’s change the subject," Ale said. "I feel like the eggs this morning were a bit burnt."

"Really? I thought they were pretty good."

The two of them picked up Kase and Orelia while chatting idly, and the group headed for the Dwarven sewers.

Since their mission was to escort the Dwarves to the Undercity, Big Hoof Treasure would be useless for the time being. As Dorn had put it, "You’d better pray every path down there can fit a super-horse that’s over two meters tall. Otherwise, forget it!"

In the end, the group left Big Hoof Treasure in the apartment’s stables. Kase even slipped the groom a few Silver Coins to keep a special eye on the horse. It was the first time Colin had ever seen Kase be so generous about anything besides official business and food.

As they walked down the main road, Colin glanced at his companions.

Kase had replaced the Battle Axe at his waist with the one they’d gotten from the Orc Chief. Meanwhile, the Kite Shield on Orelia’s back was wrapped in cloth and bound with sturdy rope.

"Orelia, why’d you wrap up your Shield?" Colin asked as they walked.

"It’s a Magic Item I bought." Orelia lowered her head, her cheeks turning a little red.

When Colin heard that, he said hurriedly, "You bought a Magic Item? Quick, let’s have a look."

’It wasn’t that Colin was just being nosy or envious.’

Buying Magic Items in this world was actually a very sketchy business.

Besides Mercenaries and Adventurers looking to acquire Magic Items for personal use, there were also Mages hoping to learn crafting techniques, nobles seeking to expand their collections, and organizations like the Gray Hand. As a result, most useful Magic Items were effectively priceless; you could never find one for sale.

Sometimes, members of the Viper Association would deliberately leak news of a Magic Item to scout out which local families had money, then follow up with kidnapping, extortion, or murder.

Buying Low Tier Magic Items was one thing, but rashly purchasing a useful High Tier one was incredibly dangerous.

"Well, not really, I..." Orelia stopped, mumbling hesitantly as she silently unwound the rope on her Shield.

Orelia undid the rope and gently pulled the cloth off the Shield.

The Shield was shaped like her previous Kite Shield, but it had the face of a bearded, old man with closed eyes carved on it. The wrinkles and whiskers were sculpted with lifelike detail and were even painted, making it look as if a real, giant face had been embedded in the Shield.

[Shield of Vigilance / Non-Ordinary Level Magic Shield]

[Defense: 3]

[Mana Upkeep: Defense +1]

[Vigilant Gaze: While wielding this Shield, you can more quickly perceive impending attacks and are more astute in matters requiring a Perception Attribute check.]

Colin relaxed only after seeing the Shield’s effects.

"I bought it from a Cultivator for about 300 gold coins," Orelia said. "He was about to officially retire from adventuring to become a regional Priest."

"That’s pretty great," Colin said. "But why did you wrap the Shield in cloth?"

Orelia gently stroked the edge of the Shield.

She said, sounding aggrieved, "This Shield is just too ugly..."

"I guess..." Colin glanced at the Shield. "It is really ugly."

"Let’s not talk about that for now." Orelia started wrapping the Shield again. "Mr. Colin, can you help me get a signature from the Weston Clan?"

"A signature? Do you need to fill out an evaluation form?" The moment the words left his mouth, Colin realized. "Is the Holy City accepting you now?"

"Not exactly." Orelia clutched the strap of her backpack, her hooves clopping on the ground. CLOP, CLOP, CLOP. "After all, people in other places can’t tell, but the Cultivators in the Holy City can see at a glance that there might be a problem with my bloodline.

So my godfather suggested that if I want to open an orphanage, it would be best to set it up in Thousand Masts City. However, to become the director of an orphanage, I still need a higher divine rank, which requires many positive evaluations from my missions."

Ale asked, a little angrily, "Does that mean you were almost stripped of your divine rank a while back?"

"It wasn’t that dramatic, they just had to verify my last report," Orelia explained hastily. "Then, you know how we were traveling for a long time? I didn’t receive the letter, and only found out I needed to file another report when I recently returned."

"I suppose that’s a good thing," Colin said. "At least Thousand Masts City is certainly more tolerant than the Holy City, and we all live around here anyway."

The group chatted as they walked and soon arrived at the sewer entrance.

They arrived at Donkexes’s herb shop, but after finding no one there, the group proceeded to the hall where they had first met Langgrin and his crew.

The place was packed with a huge crowd of Dwarves.

The group of stout figures was chattering noisily. The deep voices unique to Dwarves echoed throughout the hall, making it feel like they had walked into a small stonemason’s workshop specializing in grinding rocks.

At first glance, the sight was "spectacular"—and it truly was. Other than the drinking party he’d attended here before, Colin had rarely seen so many Dwarves gathered in one place.

Looking closer, he saw that the Dwarves’ skin tones and heights varied. Some resembled the Golden Dwarves from the south, while others looked like the Shield Dwarves from the North.

’Beyond the spectacle of it all, Colin also had a bad feeling.’

"Hey, Colin lad!" Donkexes raised a hand, squeezed his way out from among the Dwarves, and walked up to Colin. "You lot are right on time."

Colin crossed his arms. "I’m guessing we have to escort all these Dwarves deep into the Undercity, right?"

"Heh, you’re spot on," Donkexes said with an awkward laugh.