Gray Dwarves

Two days later.

Xilong received new authorization: as long as he followed the rules and orders, he could bring his companions into the mineral veins so they could watch over one another and prevent accidents.

So, after breakfast at the gathering grounds, he set off toward the mines with Moqi and In Tas.

After crossing the barrier meant to warn off hatchlings, they had not even reached the cave entrance when they spotted a Gray Dwarf sitting there, as if he had been waiting for a long time.

The feeders frowned upon hatchlings coming into contact with retainers, so since breaking out of his shell, this was Xilong's first time observing a Gray Dwarf up close.

Though he was called a dwarf, the fellow stood around one and a half meters tall, broad and sturdy, with iron-gray skin.

Perhaps because of his long years of labor, red iron dust from the mine had mixed with sweat and left streaks of crimson gullies across the dwarf's body, like the face of a whale.

He held a cast-iron oil lamp. When he saw Xilong approaching, he hurriedly slid down from the rock, raised his head, and gave a respectful bow.

"Good day, young dragon lord."

The Gray Dwarf's voice was hoarse, like two rocks grinding together. "You may call me Taota. The lord ordered someone to guide the young dragons, so I volunteered myself."

Xilong nodded. Moqi looked around from side to side, while In Tas stood behind them. Neither said anything.

Taota seemingly did not expect the hatchlings to make conversation with him. As he spoke, he skillfully took out some resin and lit the oil lamp.

The orange-yellow flame leaped fiercely once, sending up a puff of black smoke.

"This way, young dragon lords. The paths in the mine are tangled and confusing, so please stay close to my light."

Taota spoke somewhat long-windedly.

"There is no need to worry about us," Xilong said. "Even in darkness, dragons can see clearly."

"Right, right."

Taota nodded repeatedly. Seeing that the largest Chrome Dragon was the leader, he did not dare waste time and immediately led them inward.

His scales gleamed faintly beneath the oil lamp as Xilong stepped into the mine entrance. Before they had gone far, he stopped. His orange-yellow slit pupils blinked as he stared intently at the base of the rock wall.

Wicker baskets lay scattered on the ground. Behind them were casually piled mounds of red earth. Against the immense, ferocious backdrop of the mine, those little heaps looked as small as a rabbit warren.

Xilong tilted his head and asked, "What is this?"

Noticing Xilong's gaze, the Gray Dwarf fell silent for a moment and scratched his beard.

"A graveyard, my lord."

Taota replied, "Every inch of land in Ochre Valley belongs to the lord, and we are not allowed to use it. When someone dies mining, they are buried in abandoned tunnels. Some spend their whole lives working in the mine and, when they die, want to stay outside, so we move them here and bury them."

His tone remained fairly light. "There are quite a few graveyards in the abandoned tunnels. I heard you are going down to the deeper levels, so there is no need to look at these eyesores."

"There are so many graveyards?" In Tas asked in confusion. "Do you die at the drop of a hat?"

"Mm... no one wants to die."

Taota pondered for a while before saying, "But the mines are full of dangers. We do not have any great abilities. To mine, we rely on Fireblast Mining—piling dry firewood against the rock wall and burning it until the vein glows red-hot, then splashing it with cold water to blast the stone apart."

"When it blows, your ears fill with roaring and you can dig bloody crust from your nostrils. Some slow-witted fools run too late and die on the spot. And that steam cannot be touched either. If it smothers you even once—tsk, you would be better off dying cleanly on the spot."

His feet did not slow as he spoke, guiding the young dragons into the tunnels and steadily downward.

The air grew thick and cloying, filled with the stink of scorching, rust, and rancid animal fat.

"Then there are those who breathe poisonous gas, get dragged away by aberrations, lose their way, or fail to return from surveying. If there is a cave-in, the dead become too many to count. Those who can be carried out are buried in abandoned tunnels. Those who cannot be carried out can only be left inside."

The farther they went, the thinner the daylight from outside became. Eventually, it vanished altogether, leaving only the bean-sized orange-yellow glow of Taota's oil lamp swaying ahead and illuminating the muddy ground two steps before them.

"Are there really aberrations?" Moqi craned his neck around. He seemed to have come for an adventure and was curious only about this. "What kinds of aberrations are there?"

"There really are aberrations, my lord," Taota answered seriously. "Mountain after mountain connects here, tunnel after tunnel, all leading straight underground, so you might run into anything. Crystalized Beasts, Rockworms, a few skeletons crawling out of graves—those are fairly common. Gray Dwarves can handle those ourselves. But if we encounter a major disaster, we have to hurry and notify the lord."

"No wonder Ladon and Ember Scar wanted to come too." Xilong nodded slightly.

"The lord already inspected the place this month, then came again yesterday. He confirmed there was no major disaster, so by rights everyone should be at ease. But..."

Taota suddenly became mysterious, looking as though he wanted to speak but hesitated.

"But what?" Moqi immediately pressed. He found Taota rather interesting. The dwarf had a talent for storytelling; no wonder he had been chosen as a guide. Being a miner was a waste of it.

"But lately, things have not been very peaceful. In the deepest excavation zone, we keep hearing strange noises coming from even farther below."

Taota lowered his voice and raised the cast-iron oil lamp in his arms, driving away the darkness overhead.

The slanted wooden support pillars still bore strips of unpeeled bark. Pulled and stretched by the light and shadow, they resembled rows of enormous ribs slowly swallowing them into the belly of the mountain.

"To describe the sound... it is like many things striking the rock layers. Every so often, there is a clattering uproar, as though some monster is about to break out of a hole. It has frightened everyone badly."

Taota warily glanced behind them, then edged closer to Xilong. Xilong was the largest, and his calm presence gave a strong sense of security.

"Whenever strange things like this happened before, we reported them to the lord. Once a dragon arrived, it was usually settled within a quarter of an hour. But this time, the lord insisted it was safe and there was no major disaster. Hey, is that not strange?"

"But since the lord has spoken, slaves like us can only grit our teeth and keep working. Though the sound makes our hearts tremble, after a whole month of labor, nothing has happened."

Taota muttered a few words, then changed his tone. "Speaking of which, our current lord is truly heaven and earth compared with the previous one. He is unbelievably good. Everyone respects him, and everyone works with all their strength."

"Hm?"

This time, even Xilong grew curious, his pace slowing slightly. "Was Ochre Valley's lord not one of the feeders before?"

"Our current lord did not arrive much earlier than you young dragon lords. Two years ago, the dragon we served was another one. Ahem... that lord's name was Vिक्स Karajiege."

The moment Taota mentioned the name, even his expression changed slightly, and he instinctively shrank his neck.

Karajiege.

Xilong knew that surname. Aside from the brothers Ladon and Ember Scar, the other two Iron Dragons in the valley were both from the Karajiege family.

"Ah, young dragon lords, please do not blame me for talking too much. Not just us slaves—I think that even the young dragons in the valley would have suffered if they had lived under that lord."

Taota gathered his courage and spoke, trying to get the young dragons onto his side first.

"What do you mean?" Moqi leaned closer curiously.

Taota was silent for a long while, seemingly considering where to begin. At last, he gestured toward the outside and said, "My lords, did you see those Gray Dwarves working outside?"

"They were common enough," Xilong said.

"The ones now are the ones who caught good times."

Taota's voice shifted slightly. "When Lord Karajiege was here, we Gray Dwarves did not live as we do now. Back then, we were called... mine slaves."

"Lord Karajiege's tasks could never be finished. This month, you did one job; next month, you had to do two. They increased month after month, year after year, with no end in sight. And if you could not finish?"

He asked and answered himself, his tone numb.

"If you could not finish, you were punished. First they deducted rations, and the entire family, young and old, went hungry. If hunger still did not make you obedient, you were hung up and beaten. If you were beaten to death, they threw you into an abandoned mine tunnel. Lord Karajiege had a saying that we still dare not forget."

Taota paused, then dryly recited the words that seemed carved into his bones.

"What is the difference between mine slaves and mules? Those who do not work are simply wasting food. It is fine if some die. Ochre Valley cannot support so many people."

Taota's chest heaved as he drew a deep breath.

"How strange." In Tas thought for a while. "If it was truly like that, could you not simply run away? Who would know?"

"Run?"

Taota bared his teeth. His smile looked worse than crying. "Run where, my lord? We are dragons' property. Who knows whether another lord would be good or bad? If we fell into the hands of Gnolls or Scalebound, living would be more painful than dying."

"Once, Lord Karajiege caught two people trying to flee the valley."

He spoke quietly. "Those two families—from the elderly above to nursing infants below—were all dragged outside and made to face the entire clan..."

Taota did not continue. He only shook his head, a fear that had yet to fade rising on his face.

The mine tunnel fell silent for a while, broken only by the crackling flame of the oil lamp.

"Uh... that was it?" Moqi looked confused. "It does not seem like much of a problem. Why are you making it sound so sad and depressing?"

Taota suddenly shuddered.

"To retainers, that is already terrifying."

Xilong glanced at Moqi, then looked toward Taota. "What happened afterward? Why did Ochre Valley change lords?"

"That is not something slaves like us could know. We only saw two larger dragons arrive. Lord Karajiege summoned his mate as well, and the four dragons gathered together as if they were arguing. It frightened every Gray Dwarf so badly that none dared move."

Taota muttered, "In the end, Lord Karajiege seemed rather angry. He shattered the rocks on the mountain and flew away, never to return. After some time passed, Lord Burning Heart descended from above and announced that he was taking over Ochre Valley."