Chen Jinyang idly tapped the hard wall with a pickaxe about the size of a child's toy. Faced with the nearly mad dwarf, he couldn't summon the slightest enthusiasm for work. The old dwarf had given no thought to Chen Jinyang's extraordinary strength when preparing the tools—or perhaps Singers had never expected him to dig up much ore at all. He'd brought him along as a "pet" to bolster his courage on the mining trip. The one-eyed dwarf didn't want anyone sharing in the glory and pleasure of digging up a huge pile of high-quality ore.
But Dwarf Singers was destined for disappointment today. The spot he'd found was clearly no proper ore deposit. By the time Chen Jinyang's fifth pitch-pine torch had burned out, the exhausted dwarf had managed to collect only a dozen or so pieces of low-grade iron ore.
Singers Macluff's gray-brown left eye was wide with fervor, its pupil webbed with fine red veins. He weakly chipped at the hard rock. Overwork had nearly drained the dwarf's strength, but he still refused to give up. His hoarse voice muttered incessantly, "I can still dig up one more! I'm about to find it! Praise the supreme Moradin! Old Singers can still dig up more ore! Praise mighty Dumathoin! For filling the earth with so many treasures!"
"That's enough, Old Singers! We're stopping here for today! We need to head back!" Watching the last torch's light fade, Chen Jinyang had to remind his companion, who was lost in a fit of madness.
Singers roared in protest. "No! I can still dig up more! You can't stop the great Singers from working!"
Chen Jinyang didn't back down. "We don't have enough torches left!"
The one-eyed dwarf stopped working, grabbed the iron flask beside him, and tipped it over his mouth, trying to wet his parched throat. But not a drop of ale came out. Singers had finished the only drink he'd brought two hours ago. Dejected, he tossed away the empty flask and rasped defensively, "We've still got half a can of lamp oil! That's enough to keep me working for several more hours!" In truth, unlike torches and other sources of light that illuminated all around them, the Bullseye Lantern wasn't suited to mining. People preferred to use it on the road to light the pitch-black path ahead. Its carefully polished interior directed the light toward a single opening, illuminating an area sixty feet ahead and twenty feet wide.
Chen Jinyang took a poor-quality waterskin from his magic pouch and handed it to the old dwarf. Singers, whose throat was practically on fire, snatched it and raised it above his head, gulping down the cool water. He even poured half of it over his head, mixing it with the dust on his body and coating his face and beard in black mud. "The lamp oil we have left is just enough to get us home! And you're starving! You need to rest!" Chen Jinyang continued trying to persuade the dwarf, who had recovered a little after cooling off with the water.
Singers stubbornly refused. "Absolutely not! I won't give up! Besides, you've got food, so that's enough! Give me another piece of bread!" Chen Jinyang wanted to slap the old bastard dead. On this long mining trip, Old Singers had brought nothing to eat or drink except a small flask of ale. His long stretch of doing nothing and the excitement of the previous night had made him forget all about making proper preparations. And now the old fool was asking him for food. I'm a hired apprentice, and you're the boss who pays my wages. What kind of world is this, where the apprentice has to feed the boss?
Chen Jinyang swallowed his anger and took out a hard piece of bread. "Listen, Old Singers! I'll give you bread, but we have to head back right now!" Singers's little eyes followed the bread greedily. He craftily tilted his head and tested the waters. "I'll go back, but only if you come here with me again next time!" Eager to get home, Chen Jinyang agreed without a second thought.
The dwarf, clutching the bread and chewing heartily, watched Chen Jinyang pack up the tools, then ventured another question. "How about you come with me to dig here twice more?"
Once or twice, what difference did it make? Chen Jinyang finished packing and said helplessly, "All right! I'll come with you!"
The excited dwarf quickly finished the bread, then grabbed the handles of the handcart, full of energy. Chen Jinyang walked ahead, pulling it by a rope as they followed the Bullseye Lantern's light back through the tunnel. As they went, Old Singers kept hollering, "Macluff returns with a full load! (In reality, even the stupidest ordinary miner in Mirabar would get far more in an hour than he'd managed today!) Tomorrow he'll find even more! William! Oh, you're a fine young man! I knew I was right about you! How about coming with me three more times?"
Chen Jinyang replied listlessly, "Whatever you say!"
"How about five times?"
"Do whatever you want!"
"How about ten times? A hundred times?"
"Old bastard! Why don't you just die! I'll strangle you right now!" Chen Jinyang finally snapped, and the two began scuffling like children. Their bickering faded into the darkness. At the spot where they'd been mining, a pair of ghostly green eyes appeared, staring in the direction they'd gone for a while. Then the sound of "thunk! thunk!" rang out again.
By the time the last half-ounce of lamp oil had burned away, Chen Jinyang had finally dragged the utterly exhausted dwarf back to the narrow sloping passage where they'd started. Once he'd settled the sleeping dwarf, he stepped out of the blacksmith's shop. The sky was already crowded with stars. Thinking back on how he'd spent an entire day doing nothing underground in a dark tunnel with an old child, Chen Jinyang shook his head with a wry smile.
He strolled through the chilly streets and entered his home through the half-open door. Phinia and Alos were still awake; both had been waiting for him to return. As for little Mishaer and the Elf girl Aelf, the two "little rivals" were sleeping curled up together on a soft Winter Wolf-fur bed. Even in her dreams, the little girl hadn't forgotten to wear her little "treasure," while the little Elf was unconsciously sucking on one of her own slender little fingers.
Chen Jinyang stopped Alos and Phinia from calling out in delight at his return. He waved them into another room, where Alos blurted out, "William! Someone from Mr. Elrago's family came! A mysterious Mage! She came here today! Oh my goodness, that was the first time I'd ever seen a real Mage!" A low-level Mage on an adventure would never casually reveal his identity, since that could easily invite needless danger and trouble. Most people couldn't recognize one unless they were seasoned veterans—unless, of course, the Mage was an arrogant, reckless fool. Meanwhile, powerful Mages with exceptional bearing rarely appeared in public. Ordinary people knew little about Mages, having heard only that they were mysterious and powerful. Some might also have heard they were learned and wise.
Chen Jinyang asked with some surprise, "Oh? Someone from the Harpell family came? They came here? What did the Mage say?"
The boy excitedly exclaimed, "She was a beautiful lady! A pretty Mage! Oh, she was so gorgeous! I nearly stopped breathing when I saw her! Big brother, do you know? Oh, beautiful Miss Bella!" Alos's skinny face flushed red as he rambled. Chen Jinyang watched the lovestruck little brat in silence. She's just a woman. What's there to get so excited about?! "Oh, right! She said she'd come back tomorrow! William, does that mean I'll be learning magic from Miss Bella from now on? Oh yeah!"
Chen Jinyang flicked the overexcited boy on the forehead. Scolding him as he rubbed the sore spot, he said, "What a hopeless case! Why are you getting so worked up over a mere female Mage? Go on, get back to bed! We'll talk about it tomorrow!" He hustled the boy off to sleep, then led the yawning Phinia back to the bedroom downstairs. The dream vanished without a trace. Alos glanced at the closed door and sulkily returned to his own bed.
Chen Jinyang woke at dawn feeling refreshed and continued his daily training. By the time he returned home from outside the city, several people were already waiting for him: the female magistrate Sunderland Starglim, the mercenary chief Gosa, and a short, blonde girl. Sunderland tilted her head and gave Chen Jinyang a mysterious smile. Gosa greeted him awkwardly. "Hello, Mr. William!" Chen Jinyang smiled back. "It's been a few days, Gosa! Have you all been doing well?"
Gosa answered repeatedly, looking a little flattered. "Fine! We're fine! Mr. William, this young lady is..." The mercenary chief pointed at the unfamiliar girl, ready to introduce her. But the girl cut him off. She stepped forward and arrogantly announced:
"I'm Bella—[REDACTED]—Harpell, daughter of [REDACTED], the leader of Longsaddle! Big guy, are you that idiot William? I don't see anything special about you, other than being tall." Anyone who spoke to Chen Jinyang found it awkward to look up at him. It was uncomfortable, after all, and anyone gazing up at him felt his imposing presence—especially with that fearless, almost contemptuous look in his eyes.
The girl's words made Gosa cough, while the female magistrate bowed her head and snickered. She winked at the girl. Both of Bella's eyes were green, though one gleamed brightly while the other was dull and gray. Yet the strange eyes did nothing to diminish her beauty; if anything, they gave her an unusual charm. The bright one flashed whenever she spoke.
Chen Jinyang looked down at the short, stocky girl with a strange expression. Bella grew uncomfortable under his gaze and demanded angrily, "What are you staring at? Do you think I'm funny? A magic mishap injured one of my eyes! Even my height was reduced by a foot (but my weight didn't change)! I'm still a good girl! Idiot William, stop staring!"
A crisp voice angrily retorted, "You're the idiot! You nasty cross-eyed runt! Shorty! Fatso!"
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