I do not know to which God this priest belongs. But from what I had just heard, it is obviously not a priest of Hephaestus.

"I could feel the Divine energy! It must be so, which of you had the Divine guidance? You must tell me all about it!"

I don't know why exactly, but somehow, I don't like that guy. Maybe it's because until recently I was an atheist. However, he is far too demanding for me. And moreover, he also gives me the impression that he considers himself to be extremely important.

"You are obviously not a follower of Hephaestus. So, what does all this have to do with you? Please step aside, we have work to do."

Yup, he thinks he's very important. I believe he just burst a vein. And I think he's having trouble not yelling at the top of his lungs.

"Don't you know what that means? Every prophecy must be written down and sent to the great temple. So, you must cooperate with me."

No way, I don't like you. There is no priest for my God here, and I have no intention of sharing the contents of this prophecy with any human. But probably I should rephrase that.

"However, I do not see what this has to do with you. Bring a priest of Hephaestus to me, and I will gladly discuss everything with him. However, since there is no such priest in town, this will have to wait. Until then, I have something else to do. Have a good day."

Yeah, I probably just made it worse. However, I really lack the patience to deal with this kind of person. And as soon as I leave town, I'll have peace of mind from him, though. So, it should be no big deal...

"Don't you know who you're talking to? I am the high priest here! Don't you move!"

I just shake my head and point the others to follow me. Certainly not. This short conversation has already exceeded my annual quota of complacent priests. And I think I'd get more trouble for answering him than just ignoring him.

Under the startled eyes of everyone in the temple, our small group leaves the building. And it is only after we have gained some distance that Paula addresses her concerns.

"Was that really wise of you? The high priest is an influential man. This could cause you a lot of problems in the future."

I already know that! But he has so upset me with his smug attitude...

"It was unfortunate that he noticed all that. However, I think it would be unwise to tell anyone else about what I saw. Especially until I know the exact cause of the Great Decline. All I know now is that the humans did not stand by us."

I'm not sure why. But the lack of human support has left a deep impression on me. Humans in positions of power have always been easy to corrupt. I wouldn't be surprised if they were involved. Or if at least something was promised to them in exchange for just watching in silence.

"Which reminds me, I don't even know your names yet. How should I address you?"

"I am the blacksmith Ismar, and this is my wife, Erna. She is an armourer, Your Highness.

Just the kind of professions I would expect from Dwarves. Especially since there are so few of us left. Will probably be the most respected and sought-after craftsmen.

"Armor is certainly something I could use in the near future. However, I must await my meeting with the merchant before I know how much money I can spend on it."

We'll walk for a while before we get to a craftsmen's alley. The house is more modest than I expected. It's one of the smaller buildings in town, with only two floors. And on the ground floor, there's only one big room for everything.

Whether it's the kitchen, the dining table, which probably also serves as a workbench, or the blacksmith's shop. All in one. Although I must admit, I have no idea whether this is considered normal or not.

Let's sit at the table. And by "we" I mean Ismar and me. They didn't have more chairs in the house. No matter what, in my future city, homes will be better equipped. One craftsman, or rather two craftsmen, should be able to afford more than that.

"So please tell me what you know about the Great Decline. "

"I'm afraid I can't tell you much about that, Your Highness. Hardly anyone has been able to leave our homeland. Most of the survivors were travelling at the time. "And no one managed to escape the big cities."

That's odd. Even if the enemy advanced quickly, there should have been people escaping. Couldn't they? Could the humans have been more active, blocking the borders? Or was it something else entirely?

The emperor... Victoria's father said that she must escape. And even though no one is supposed to have escaped from the capital. Isgard, Siegward and I are here. And the other dwarves created have names, too.

This can't be a coincidence. Somehow the dungeon core and the absence of the refugees must be connected. But how great must have been the threat to resort to such a means?

"And the survivors did not attempt to find a new home?"

The black-haired dwarf just shakes his head.

"No, no one of sufficient rank or fortune has survived. Besides, the survivors were all scattered. My father often told me about that time. We wandered a lot. Never in one place for long. Most of them just work as day labourers. Just to survive, without hope."

Great, now I'm in a gloomy mood. And I'm not sure if I'm imagining it. But I think those two are looking at me with hopeful eyes. Should I declare that all this is going to change from now on?

"I understand. That reminds me, where exactly was our home? I'm afraid I don't even know such basic things about our history."

In fact, he was a bit surprised by the question. But I think the question alone gave him some hope.

"We are now in our former home. The humans have claimed parts of it for themselves. Although most of it is now known as the Wildlands."

"I understand there is nothing I can do about the occupied territories at the moment. However, I can reclaim some of the Wildlands. Which I intended to do anyway."

"We will, of course, do everything we can to assist you in your efforts. But how do you intend to gather enough of the survivors? Our people are scattered. Apart from us, no other dwarf lives in this town."

I'm just going to make a sweeping gesture. That's the least of our problems. I don't know the exact plans. But I can imagine they're pretty much like what I had in mind anyway.

"Don't worry about that. I've already rounded up a group of dwarves in the Wildlands. I'm actually just here to acquire tools and resources. So, you want to join us?"

Both of them were now quite excited. For them, this is probably the best thing since sliced bread. Wait a minute, is sliced bread even a thing? Whatever.

"We will gladly follow your lead, Your Highness. However, we have some accepted assignments to complete before we can leave town."

"That is not to be a problem. Your help will be much appreciated. We must later consider how to gather more of our brothers and sisters. But first, we need to establish a solid foothold. Otherwise, we could run into problems. I don't want to tell the other nations about this for now.

That being said, I have another request. We lack equipment. We have some weapons, but we have no armour. Can you help us out on short notice?"

The dwarves look thoughtful for a while. And it was Erna, the armourer, who spoke.

"Short term is not so easy. The best armour is custom-made and takes time. And all the cheaper ready-made pieces we have won't fit any of you. Humans are usually much larger than us. But we could have two gambesons ready by tomorrow. It is a simple linen cloth armour, yet it can withstand a sword stroke. But beware of arrows and stabbing weapons."

"This is already much better than what we have now."

So Isgard and I had our measurements taken before saying goodbye to the couple. It's already a little after noon, so we're heading back to the inn to take our already paid lunch.

Again, it included pork, which had changed my view of the diet in the Middle Ages. However, I believe that the pigs were more likely to be fed with kitchen waste and the idea of a fattening farm is far from being a reality.

Next, our way leads us back towards the marketplace. Which is not surprising. After all, we want to meet with a merchant. But our destination is not a market stall, but one of the houses.

It looks much more expensive and luxurious than the home of the two dwarves. But it is by far not the most expensive house in the neighbourhood.