We didn't see any demons until we reached the dwarven kingdom.
　Perhaps because the demons flying in the air were too far away, or perhaps because there was some kind of trick, there was no sign of an attack, and they arrived at the cave and proceeded on.
''I don't see any demons.''
Not only did they take down all of them, but it must have been those queen ants.
　He nodded at Lionel's words and entered the dark cave passage with a light.

'I suppose I could ask you to wait for a moment?'
　Dolan stopped us just as we were about to pass through the entrance to the Dwarven Kingdom.
'Are you not feeling well?'
...No, I'm just shaking. I still can't get over the fact that I got Paula involved that day.
Grandfather....
　Dolan patted Paula's head and took a deep breath and slapped her face.
'I've kept you waiting. Let's go.
　When we got to the dwarven kingdom, we - or rather the dwarves who had found Doran and Paula - started to make a scene.
'Great popularity,'
It's a small country, after all.
　Doran smiled shyly.

　We went straight to the King's dwelling where King Rockwell was.
There wasn't even a receptionist the last time we were here, do they usually have one?
No such formality. King Rockwell claims that all dwarves are his brothers.

I was about to say..." I was about to speak when Dolan, as if he understood what I meant, spoke up.

The sword I struck is going to be the responsibility of the Dwarf kingdom. He was determined to avoid that, so he fulfilled his responsibility by enslaving me, and I'm sure he compensated for that as well.

You mean the king couldn't do it with impunity?
No, that's because he's your man.
What?
"King Rockwell's father the previous king was my brother.
　Deciding to become a blacksmith, I left home before I came of age.
　I wandered around, training with my mentor, alongside my grandfather.
Then, some time later, I learned of my father's death and that my brother was to be the next king.
So does that mean Dolan and Paula are royalty?
'It could have been like that,'
　Dolan laughed and nodded as he said this.

　As he walked down the aisle, he heard shouting.
　The shouting was coming from the audience room.
'Is that the voice of King Rockwell?'
The other one is....
　Doran opened the door to the audience chamber.

'I ordered no one to come in......... 'Uncle Doran?!'
And Paula Taller.
　King Rockwell and Aresley stared at Dolan and Paula as if they had never been shouting at each other.

'They both bought them from the slavers and served me well enough that I freed them from slavery. Now I have hired them to be my head of magic tool development. Now, King Rockwell. Apologize or not apologize, I'll leave it up to you. If Doran has something to say too, tell him.

I don't know what an S-grade healer is, but he's on a roll.
　A figure formed from Aresley's shadow and held his mouth as he targeted us and cursed at us.
'You're more annoying than ever. You're interrupting Uncle Rockwell and your grandfather's conversation.
　It was Paula's golem that held Aresley down.

'Don't look after me, Paula. Uncle Doran, it's been a while.
"My failure, King Rockwell, has caused me a great deal of pain and inconvenience that I shouldn't have. I'm sorry, my lord.
　It was Doran who apologized.

'I owe you an apology, Uncle, for choosing that job. Don't apologize to me, Uncle, because I chose that job. And although he asked me to sell Paula with him at that time, I still can't forgive myself for that.

You sold it and it's been with me ever since.
''Well I thought you were a ruthless man when you sold Paula, but otherwise you wouldn't be king of the dwarves.
　If you have any feelings of repentance, throw that away.
　Rockwell, the Lord has done what a king should do.
　If you still have a personal sense of apology, then I accept your apology and forgive you for everything.
''Uncle I'm so sorry for imposing everything on you.
　King Rockwell was crying.
　Aresley couldn't believe it.
　The fact that someone who had been behaving so selflessly, crying must have been living with stress for a long time.
　He must have gradually become more and more so because he wanted to show people that he was confident as a king.
　Where would I be in Yenis if the pressure was so heavy and there was no one to help me?
　He wouldn't have been able to leave Yenis in a year, and it might have taken him a while to rebuild the Healer's Guild.

　When I think about it, I feel sorry for King Rockwell.
　I couldn't control my subordinates and my son, and I was annoyed by them, but maybe if Doran and Mr. Grand had been there, the Dwarven Kingdom would have developed in a more different way... I was thinking about that.

''Woo woo woo.''
　Aresley jittered his body and tried to escape from the golem Paula had created. But he was unable to escape.

''.........King Rockwell, I've heard most of it. If you change your successor I'll grant you that too if you wait a few years and Aresley doesn't change. Half the blame will be on me.
　Dolan looked at a disappointed Aresley and told him so.

''You still think so? Golem control is also something that dwarves are good at. If we can't break it down I'm worried because there's no guarantee that the demons will attack us again at any time.
''Hmm. If Aresley hasn't grown up after five years firmly, it might be a good idea to select the Dwarf King as the next successor.
Maybe I have no choice.
　King Rockwell spoke with care to Doran and looked at Aresley as he spoke.
'If you can't seem to unravel that, perhaps I am the queen?
　Paula, with her head tilted back, came into the conversation between King Rockwell and Doran.
Aresley is soured and passed out.

''Hah! Shameful. I'm pathetic, too, huh? It seems that Greio's men took them out of the treasure room, and many of them are missing. I'll leave it to Uncle Dolan to decide what to take out.
'Dolan, if it's not worth it, if it's what we're looking for, that's fine, and if it's not, we don't need it.
　Leaving the unconscious Aresley behind, we moved to the treasury.
　The Dwarven Kingdom's treasure room was located right behind the door behind the throne.

''It's not locked?''
'It's not usually open because it requires magical recognition. I had to set up Glaios and Aleios in case I died.
　Well, maybe it was just the right thing to do.
　When King Rockwell touched the door, a light splashed on the door like a dragon gate, drawing a pattern.
　The light splashed on the door like a dragon's gate, and the pattern flashed until the door opened.

'Who made this gate?'
...the hero of the race, Leinster. He is the man believed to have brought the Dwarven kingdom to its knees.

　
　I was eager to hear what Lord Leinster had done, so I decided to ask.
　It was more than three hundred years ago anyway.
'Did Lord Leinster do something to the Dwarven Kingdom?'
"...First of all, the place where Rockford is located was originally a mine. The mine was turned into nothing by a spell unleashed by Lord Leinster in order to defeat a vicious demon. Apparently the dwarves of that time were terrified that they would be killed if they disobeyed.

　.........If the place where the town of Fake was located was where Lord Leinster had gouged out the mountain, it's not hard to see why the dwarves would be frightened.

''........I understand that Lord Leinster is a terrific person, but that's not enough to diminish it, is it?''
Then apparently Lord Leinster came to the dwarven kingdom and offered him a technical partnership to create something new, and told him that he wanted the dwarven kingdom to take on a trade that the dwarves weren't very good at, and that he wanted the dwarven kingdom to extend his skills.
I see. I've always specialized in manufacturing, but I don't think I'm the right person for customer service.
Then, apparently, it was vibrant until Leinster created Rockford, which attracted many researchers and developers, and the dwarves were no exception.
"...and you think it's diminished because of the exodus of engineers?
"...unfortunately, the literary record says that the only people left in the country were the closed dwarves. That's what dwarves are like when they're closed. Now choose.

'Dolan, whatever you want. Choose for yourself.
　Doran nodded and walked into the treasury.
　Then he immediately froze and turned his attention to this... or more accurately, to King Rockwell.
'Why, why is this here!
If I failed, it was because I felt there was still potential for it.
　King Rockwell replied to Doran's angry voice, as if to say it was no problem.
　Dolan pulled out a sword from his treasure room.
　It was a sword that could fit into a large swing, even with a one-handed sword.

''Luciel-sama, may I take this one from the treasure room.......?
"...From what you've told me, is that the sword you struck when you became a slave?
Yes.
'Well if you can promise me that you won't let it... and the past drag you down, then that's what I'll take from the treasury. Can I take that, King Rockwell?
I'm doing your uncle a favor. I have no reason to refuse.
Thank you.

　I gave my permission, and King Rockwell readily gave me permission to do so.
　Mr. Grand said that King Rockwell regretted that he had enslaved Dolan and Paula before and that King Rockwell regretted it.
　That's probably why he kept the failed sword carefully in his treasury.

　Wanting to change this atmosphere a bit, I decided to go to see the former slaves, including Estia.
I'm not sure if it's a good idea, but I think it's a good idea.
'If they're former slaves, what about the ones doing the work and the ones locked up for their sins?
　What do you think you're doing, committing a sin in ten days?

What are the sins we've committed?
Trying to hurt people with magic and stealing things from them.

Is that what you want?
'Yeah, if I hadn't disenslaved him, he'd be dead. That's why I saved you, but I didn't save your life because I wanted you to commit a sin. I'm sorry, but will you allow me to see him from the one who committed the crime?
Okay. Now follow me.
　As I closed the door to the treasure room, King Rockwell began to move.
　I took the sword from Dolan's treasure room and put it away in my magic bag and followed King Rockwell.

　I'm sure you'll find Aresleigh still sleeping in the audience chamber, so King Rockwell took her and left the audience chamber.
　As soon as he walked down the corridor, the dwarven attendants appeared, so King Rockwell left Aresley in charge and opened the door next to the slave room. There was a staircase to the basement.
'Here. It stinks a little, but bear with me.
May I purify it?
I don't like to smell, so I'd ask for it if it would make the smell go away.
Yes, sir.
　I walked down the stairs, cleansing myself.

　Lionel walked behind King Rockwell, who walked in front of me, and formed up with Ketty and Kefin on either side of me.
　I didn't know when we formed up, but I convinced myself that excellence was my squire, and as I continued the cleansing process, the prison came into view.

I spoke to Doran.
'This prison looks a lot like the one we built in Yenis.
We are in this together. The prison is very strong. The prison that Paula created produces magical tools, and it is also sealed with magic to reduce or diminish physical ability. But this will be the original.
Really?
I was relieved to see that I was completely back to my old Doran, as I interrupted Paula's petty boast.

　While we were having this conversation, we arrived at the prison where the guilty ones were.
When I looked at their faces, I saw that Esther was not there.
　The ones who were there were those who were originally criminal slaves.
''Do you have a high recidivism rate?''
　I muttered to myself as I listened to each person's story, just to be sure, but it was only after I made an oath not to twist the facts to speak, so if I was thrust into it, I would not tell a lie, but I would remain silent.
They would be slaves to the dwarven kingdom.

''I'm sorry for letting you spend so much time with them. They will leave everything to King Rockwell. Next, let me see my former slaves who have not committed any crimes.
The criminals will be enslaved, okay?
Yes. I saved your life, but after ten days, you're committing a crime right away, which means that I'm completely inadequate to the task at hand.
　If I could show them a new path, the future might have changed if I could show them a new way, but I wondered if there would ever come a time when I would be able to judge people...I was thinking about that.


I opened the door of the former slaves' resting place and there were eight former slaves.
''Former slaves, all of a sudden, please decide whether you will continue to work in the Dwarven Kingdom or accompany us to the Holy City. After we go to the Holy City, we won't protect you, but we will give you 20 silver coins as the cost of the previous defeat and relief money. However, there will be no further support. I do not know what your work in the dwarven kingdom will be, but the contents of these ten days will be your work.
Take me with you.
One of them raised his hand, and it went on and on and on, until six of the eight were on their way to the Holy City.
''Then for the remaining two, you can rest assured that King Rockwell will be responsible for feeding them and so on.
I told him that as I looked at King Rockwell, who smiled and nodded his head in agreement.

Then Estia, the healers and the former slaves and the former slaves showed up.
Apparently they could tell that I had come with Dolan, and they were lightly out of breath, but for some reason, they were all smiling.
Then I reiterated the conditions I mentioned earlier.

'Including Estia, the four healers need to hear how they became slaves, so they will be forced to take them to headquarters once they are there. Now what do you guys do?
Surprisingly, five former slaves, half of whom wanted to work as is in the Dwarven Kingdom, raised their hands.

''King Rockwell, I'm an ex-slave, but I'm looking forward to working with you.
Duly noted. We'll treat you the same as we did the dwarves.

Then Dolan spoke to King Rockwell.
'O King Rockwell,' he said. The dwarven kingdom has not communed with the outside world for a long time. If you wish to commune with the outside world, it would be better for you to go to Yenis or to St. Cyril's Peace, to which Master Luciel belongs.
"Uncle Doran my lord Luciel, can you ask me to be your mouthpiece then?
Only if you swear not to be irreverent.
This is tough.
We finished all our pledges in peace.

'Next time I come, I'll bring you some good booze, so please entertain me properly.
If it's a fire sale, I'll be happy to oblige.
I shook hands firmly with King Rockwell, and although I was thus flabbergasted, I promised to visit the dwarven kingdom again and leave for the Holy City with my former slaves.