Dark Knight Kroki

　The Palace of Kutar lies beneath the highest mountain of Elyos in the world.
　It is said to have originally been the underground palace of Nargol, the god of destruction, but is now under the control of the gods of Elyos.
　Three levels of this palace contain prisons, where those who defy the gods of Elyos are locked up.
　Some of them aren't good enough to be put to death, while others are difficult to kill.
　Many of the latter are gods who were under the control of the god of destruction, Nargol, etc.
　And the most vicious of these gods is sometimes the Wesen Ferion.
　Ferion, also known as the Bloody Mad God, has no reasoning and seems to know nothing but to destroy.
　It is said that his power is so great that many lives will be lost if he is freed.
　For this reason, the gods of Elyos sealed Ferion with a powerful magical commandment called Grapnil.
　However, there is a time when this Grapnir also loosens the commandment only once every seven years.
　At that time, it is said that Ferion's roar can be heard all the way to the ground.
　Myself and Kuna have come down from the upper Verund to the huge gate that is the entrance to such a Kutar palace.
　The reason why we don't enter is because the inside of the palace is filled with the air of darkness, and it is a place where a weak person would die just by entering.
　I feel that I would be able to enter the palace with the darkest attribute, but I am cautious and do not enter it.
　In front of the gate is the dwarven settlement that manages this prison.
　The dwarves who live here are the guards, and they use the golem that they made to manage the inside of the prison.
　The golems are not only for work, but also for defense. They keep an eye on the people inside to make sure they don't come out to the ground.
　In addition, a lot of golems are placed at the gate of the prison in order to prevent people from attacking the prison.
　There are stone golems, iron golems, and even orichalcong golems that have the ability to regenerate themselves.
　And in addition to the golems, there are also a large number of Talos, a metallic life form with flaming blood.
　The warband of Talos is the strongest of all the dwarves' forces.
　The fact that they are deployed in large numbers shows that the defense of this prison is of great importance.
　In addition, they have built a wall in front of the gate to defend against attackers from the outside.
　From the outside, it looks more like a fortress than a settlement.
　And a small feast is currently being held in the dwarven settlement.
　The reason for this is to welcome them.
　In the center of the settlement, the dwarves are drinking in a circle.
　In front of me, a faun boy is dancing and playing his flute.
　The lilting sound of his flute brings joy to those who listen to it, and those who hear it start to dance.
　The fauns are a tribe of people who live in the forest, and they have deer feet and deer horns growing out of their heads.
　Their appearance is graceful, and unlike goblins and orcs, they are not hostile to humans and elves.
　In the first place, the gods of Elyos do not seek to destroy all Nargol's consorts, and some races recognize their existence, like faeries, mermaids and others.
　Fawn is one such race, and he seems to frequent the dwarves as he plays his flute in front of them.
　The dwarves are singing to the sound of his flute.
　They look very happy.
　Maybe they were just trying to make themselves feel welcome and wanted to have a drink.

What do you think?　Kuroki?　Does it look good on you?

　A coona with a cat-ear accessory spoiled me.
　It was viciously cute.
　I restrain myself from wanting to perk it up very much.
　I have to endure the eyes of the dwarves as well.
　So I limit myself to just petting its head.

'Yes, you're very pretty, Kuna.

　Kuna looks happy when I stroke her head.
　Many of the wives of the dwarves who live here are cat people, which is why Kuna wears cat ears.
　As a result of this, it was popular for non-cat wives to wear cat ears as well, and as a result, Kuna got cat ears as well.
　The cat people were originally the people of Gypsiel, the servants of Sekmetra, queen of the lions, and Nelphiti, princess of the cats.
　And the dwarven god Heybos is considered to be Sekmetra's husband, and Nelfithi is the daughter of both.
　Perhaps it is because of the gods they believe in, but the cat people have no qualms about marrying a dwarf with a bad appearance.
　The cat people help the dwarves who are struggling to find a mate.
　Along with Fawn, the cat-man dancers also dance.
　The Gypsir dance is similar to belly dancing and is one of the oldest dances in this world.
　I'd like to take a closer look, but I'm not going to because of the coonas.

'Sir Knight. Have you had a drink?

　One dwarf comes over here with a bottle of wine.
　His name is Arberon.
　He is a dwarf entrusted by the god Heybos with organizing the dwarves of the earth.
　He is also known as the Great Dwarf or the Dwarf Lord for that reason.
　He is the chief of the dwarves in this Kutar prison and the leader of the dwarves in the land of Kauf to the northwest.

'Yes, Lord Arberon. Thank you for hosting this banquet.

　After saying this, Averon offers the cup and pours the liquor from the bottle.
　It is not a barley wine (ale) but a fruit wine that is being poured.
　Apparently it was brewed in the land of the elves in Alsidia.
　For some reason, the dwarves, a people of skill, are not good at making foodstuffs. Therefore, they import most of their food from outside.
　Most of them are from the elven country of Arceidia, perhaps because of its proximity.
　I'd like to go see the Elven Country as I'm a bit curious about it, but as someone from Nargol, it will be a bit difficult for me to do so.
　I drink the alcohol that was poured for me.
　I don't usually drink it. But it is difficult to refuse the drink of friendship.
　For example, the centaurs, like the centaurs, sometimes consider anyone who refuses to drink the horse milk wine they recommend as an enemy.
　So I try to drink only at the beginning.
　There is no definite age limit for drinking in this world.
　That may be why the age to start drinking is much earlier than in Japan. There are some cases where people have no choice but to drink because of lack of access to drinking water, but even so, it is probably earlier overall.
　Lately, I've been trying to drink when I have no choice.
　However, drinking alcohol will definitely lower your combat power, so you shouldn't drink as much as possible.
　There seems to be a magic to disable alcohol, but I can't use that magic because I'm not used to drinking on a regular basis.
　Next time, I'll try to abstain from drinking as much as possible.

'It's a bit sweet and easy to drink.

　Arberon chuckles at that.

It's certainly easy to drink, but it's a bit inadequate for us dwarves. I would have preferred something spicier, but the drinks the elves make are often like this one. There is something wrong with the forest, so the humans can't get their drink in. The spicy liquor was drunk all the other day. My apologies to Lord Dark Knight.
'No, you needn't worry about it. I'd be happy to just throw a party for you.

　I wholeheartedly agree. I'm sorry, but I don't know what alcohol tastes like to me.
　The elves prefer sweet liquor and the dwarves prefer spicy liquor.
　Spicy liquor is imported from the land of the humans, but with Dahak and his friends attacking the forest, it seems that importing it has become difficult. For this reason, they import liquor from the nearby elven lands, but it doesn't seem to be to the liking of the dwarves.
　This is not important to me, but it seems to be a problem for the dwarves who love to drink.

"By the way, Master Arberon. How are the elves doing, by the way?　I understand that the ground portion of the forest is defended by the girls?

　The strong enemies such as Dahak and others will be returned by Alfos and the angels.
　But the soldiers they are bringing with them should be dealt with by the elves, the custodians of the forest.
　What is going on?

I do not understand. The elves will not tell us what to do.

　Arberon lets out a sigh.
　I've heard that elves and dwarves are both servants of the gods of Elyos, but they don't get along well with each other.
　They interact, but they don't seem to be exchanging the necessary information at all.

''Lord Arberon. This time, that snake prince is also present. In the meantime, wouldn't it be better for the elves to find out how the war situation is going?　Of course, depending on their situation, they may not be able to tell you: ......

　As he says this, Arberon thinks about it.

'I'm certainly curious. But will you tell me honestly?　Hmmm, we'll do it this way then.　Our emissary will soon be going to Alseidia to get food. We'll have them check on you then.

　Averon says, nodding his head yes.
　Well, it's probably the only way. But it doesn't look like we're going to get much information.
　I want to follow those emissaries myself, but if I am among the dwarves, I will stand out. You can't act like that as long as you're here to hide your identity.
　However, I am a little concerned about the movements of Dahak and his friends. Is there any way we can check on the elves?
　As I was thinking about this, the cooner next to me tugged at his sleeve.

'What's wrong?　Kuna?
Hey, Kroki. If you'd like, Kuna will check on the elven country.　Coona would know right away what the elves are up to.
'What?　But it would be noticeable if one of the messengers had a kuna. ......

　Kuna is a beautiful girl. She'll stand out.
　And someone might know Kuna's face.
　And even if they change their appearance by magic, the elves are skilled at detecting such magic.
　Kuna's magic is strong, but they are not familiar with transformational magic.
　There is a possibility that they could be detected.

You'll be able to see right through it. You're not going to find any cat girls among the messengers?　Isn't there a girl who hides her hair and is only a cat person on the outside?　If you're there, cover your hair and disguise yourself so they won't know you're there. Then get close and release the butterflies.

　When Kuna says this, glowing butterflies appear around him.
　It's a visionary butterfly used by Kuna.
　It cannot fly an infinite distance, but it can penetrate across dimensions if it is close enough.
　Its detection ability is high, and it brings a lot of information to those who use it.
　You will certainly be able to know more than you will be able to go.

'Yes, my lord. Mistress, they are better connoisseurs of foodstuffs than we dwarves are, so I always have them follow me.

　Coona nodded at Averon's words.

'Then it's settled. As long as you hide behind it and keep a low profile, you should be fine. So, Kroki. Kuna's going to go for a bit.
Thank you, Kuna. But you're sure?
'If it helps Kroki, it would be Kuna's pleasure. And if you're dealing with an elf, you shouldn't be in any danger. Not much.

　With that, Cuna gets on her knees, her head resting on her own chest.
　It is true that Kuna is stronger than the elf. Even if they find out and Alfos comes out, he won't hurt Kuna. There would be little danger to Coona.

'Yes, she'll probably be fine. Still, be careful. Kuna.
Yeah, you got it, Kroki.

　Kuna laughed when he said that.