My name is Talhand.
To outsiders, I might just be an oddball who likes to drink, is taciturn, can use wind and water magic, but is not good at forging.
They know about my present, but very few know about my past.
Few people know that before I became who I am today, I once had dreams to pursue, and I once dedicated everything to someone.
I am the thirty-seventh of the fifty-one brothers of the Mine Race.
Among our Mine Race, the word "brother" is not entirely understood the same way as by other tribes.
In our tribe, many children are usually raised together, but these children are not necessarily all from the same woman.
For us, blood ties are not the only measure of closeness.
Within a tribe, children born in the same generation are considered as a single unit.
We grow together, learn together, and receive guidance from our elders together.
When I was a child, I always had dozens of friends around me.
They were there for me when I first picked up a forging hammer, for me when I first learned folk magic, and for me when I cried because of failure for the first time.
We are not simply peers.
We are brothers in the truest sense.
Even if some people leave the tribe in the future, embark on different paths in life, or even never see each other again for decades, the bond between brothers will never disappear in our hearts.
Until death comes, we will still acknowledge each other's identities.
This tradition was intended to prevent estrangement among Mine Race due to differences in family background.
Whether born into an ordinary family or a lineage of the clan chief, the children all have the same place in their lives during their formative years.
Because in the eyes of the Mine Race, a person's value should not be determined by their origin.
It should be determined by his abilities, his contributions, and the responsibilities he is willing to take.
At the same time, this system of shared growth also makes it easier for the tribe to select people who are truly suitable to take on responsibilities in the future.
Who becomes the chieftain, who is responsible for assisting the chieftain, and who shoulders the mission for the future of the tribe will gradually become clear during the long process of growth.
Of course, all of this only applies to the Mine Race.
These rules no longer apply once one leaves the tribe.
The outside world won't give you special treatment just because you come from somewhere.
There, you can only rely on yourself.
And that's the kind of environment I grew up in.
When I was a child, I was just an ordinary kid from Mine Race.
I like soil.
I like ironware.
I enjoy watching the blazing flames lick the ore, and I also enjoy listening to the dull, powerful sound of a hammer falling.
I once dreamed of becoming an excellent blacksmith.
I once dreamed of becoming a master architect and creating amazing works with my own hands.
If I were to say what makes me different from other men from the Dwarf Tribe...
That means I prefer men to women.
However, that's not what's truly important in my life.
The person who truly changed my destiny was my younger brother.
The thirty-eighth in the family Gottwald.
Children of the Mine Race must learn forging from the time they can remember.
Identify minerals.
Control the heat.
Wielding a hammer.
These are responsibilities we are born with.
In addition, we will learn basic folk magic tricks.
For the Mine Race, earth magic is not only a form of power, but also a legacy of honor left to us by our ancestors.
The legendary first Mining God was someone who brought earth magic to its ultimate level.
He can use magic to create ores, change the earth, and even forge weapons that can last for thousands of years.
However, among our generation of children, there is one person whose talent far surpasses that of everyone else.
That was Gottwald.
His talent goes beyond mere excellence.
That's an amazing talent.
While children of the same age are still learning how to hold a forging hammer, he is already able to create works that amaze adult craftsmen.
While some people who study earth magic cannot even move soil, he can easily manipulate rocks.
The elders in the tribe couldn't help but marvel at his talent.
He was like the potential Mining God who died in the Laplace War, descended upon this world once more.
From that day on, Gottwald was regarded as a candidate for the next Mining God.
He received the best resources.
Receive the highest level of training.
Even the young girls in the tribe were required to respect this future tribal chief.
And my life began to change from that moment on.
Because it was the first time I realized...
Some differences between people are truly impossible to bridge.
I once spent months revising a single piece of work.
I would tap it hundreds of times over because of the smallest flaw.
But Gottwald was different.
His casually completed work was even more perfect than the results of my months of painstaking research.
But strangely enough, I didn't resent him because of it.
I am not jealous.
I never thought of replacing him.
Because Gottwald is my younger brother.
She is also the most important person to me.
even...
He was my first love.
I am genuinely happy for his talent.
I never aspired to be one of those standing at the forefront.
All I want is to be able to stand by his side.
Become his assistant.
Become someone who can make up for his shortcomings.
Become his most trusted partner.
Therefore, I chose a path different from that of the Mine Race.
I started studying magic.
Especially the water magic and wind magic that the Mine Race doesn't value.
Because I discovered that forging isn't just about earth and fire.
Although the first Mining God was a master of earth magic, he also left behind a saying.
Forging requires more than just fire and earth.
Flames need wind to burn more vigorously.
Weapons need water to be truly tempered.
Wind and water are both indispensable forces in forging.
However, the elders in the clan did not approve of my idea.
They believed that Mine Race should focus on earth magic.
They believe that studying water and wind is a departure from the path of our ancestors.
I've heard a lot of ridicule.
I've heard a lot of criticism.
They say I'm just a woman who only knows how to show off her magic.
They said I was too weak.
They said I had gone down the wrong path.
Of course I'll feel bad.
But I didn't give up.
Because I believe that one day, I will be able to become the person Gottwald needs.
Until that day.
The test of succession to the title of Mining God has begun.
To inherit the name of the Mining God, candidates must complete the trials.
Forge five swords.
This is not a task that one person can easily accomplish.
Therefore, each candidate will choose the person they trust most to help them complete the test.
That day, I signed up without hesitation.
Because I have waited for this day for far too long.
I thought...
Gottwald will definitely choose me.
However, the result was completely different.
He chose the most skilled craftsman in the tribe.
An experienced hunter was chosen.
They even chose that old-fashioned old man who had once criticized my thinking as wrong.
They didn't choose me.
At that moment, I felt lost for the first time.
I do not understand.
I've put in so much effort.
I study magic, and I learn about wind and water.
Isn't all of this just to become his ally?
Therefore, I lodged a protest.
Gottwald looked at me and remained silent for a long time.
Finally, he suggested that I and the old man each forge a sword.
Let ability determine who is more suitable to help him.
I accepted.
But when I actually held the forging hammer...
I then realized that I had made an irreversible mistake.
I have been studying magic for many years.
I'm always thinking about how to help others.
But they forgot the most important thing.
I am a Mine Race.
The most fundamental pride of the Mine Race is forging.
I can't even forge a decent sword.
I failed.
A complete and utter defeat.
I tried to explain.
"Wait, my strength lies in support, not in forging swords alone."
But Gottwald just looked at me.
Then I asked a question.
"How can someone who can't even forge a sword properly truly understand my thoughts and assist me?"
That sentence was like a hammer.
It shattered the belief I had always held onto.
I lost.
It wasn't because we lost to that old man.
Rather, I lost to the fact I was unwilling to admit.
Gottwald finally asked coldly:
Do you have anything to say?
I was speechless.
"I have nothing more to say."
Under everyone's watchful eyes, I left the field in a disheveled state.
I did not attend the inauguration ceremony of the Mining God.
He didn't say goodbye to anyone.
I simply left the tribe that raised me.
From then on, I became an adventurer.
I started traveling alone.
Fighting alone.
I almost never team up with anyone again.
Because the person I once trusted most personally denied my worth.
From that day on, I never dared to easily entrust my trust to others again.
I used to think that as long as I worked hard, I would definitely be able to stand by that person's side.
I only understood later.
Some distances cannot be crossed simply by hard work.
Some wounds, even after many years, still cannot heal...