After his mother passed away, Gerig found it a little more difficult to carry on alone. Yet like his mother when faced with difficult times, he refused to let the intolerance of the town defeat him. Gerig continued to plant his crops, and hunt for game to make a very valuable contribution to his ungrateful keepers. Yet deep down, Gerig knew that someday his work would be appreciated. It wasn't until a bright summer day that Gerig would eventually get his wish.
Late one afternoon, Gerig was in the forest checking his traps when he came upon a net that had been sprung. Hoping that it was a deer or a boar, Gerig raced up to the net only to discover that a child that had accidentally sprung the trap instead. The little guy struggled to free himself but it was no use, Gerig's nets were rather strong to the point where large animals couldn't break loose. As Gerig approached the net, he began to notice that this was not a child trapped in his net. Unaware of what he was dealing with, Gerig unsheathed his dagger and slowly approached the net. Just before Gerig grabbed the net to get a closer look, the little man within it freaked out. He tried to frail and fight his way out of the net but after a few minutes, he started to settle down. Gerig could hear the little guy let out a huge sigh as he realized that his efforts were futile and he wasn't going anywhere.
"Are you finished yet?" Gerig asked.
"Not nearly enough." the little man huffed back in frustration. "I can't believe that I got myself caught up in this mess of rope and twine."
Gerig finally got a good look at the little man, only to become more confused. The little man couldn't have been anymore than three feet tall, yet he had a full beard and seemed to be married as he had a decent yet dull looking ring on his left hand. He had never seen anything like it, and was kind of at a loss for words.
"What on earth are you?" Gerig asked.
The little man in the net couldn't believe what he was hearing and he let out a little laugh that could have been mistaken for a squealing pig,
"What am I?" he repeated, as he could hardly believe it. "I'm a dwarf!"
"A dwarf?" Gerig repeated. He couldn't believe what he was hearing but he had no choice to believe his own eyes. "What in Gosland are you doing out here?"
"I was trying to travel to another village," the dwarf answered "To trade something off to a few of the merchants."
"You have villages?" Gerig asked.
"Yes, we do." the dwarf replied, "Where do you think we live, in caves?"
"I don't know where dwarfs live." Gerig confessed, "You're the first one I've ever met."
"Oh, that's just lovely." The little man said as he took a seat on the ground. He looked back at the tall man that was still staring at him. "Well, are you going to let me out?"
"I guess so." Gerig said as he used his dagger to cut down the trap. As he did so, the dwarf fell to the group softly but still had trouble getting back to his feet, "Is there something wrong?"
"Yes, lad." The dwarf said as he started to inspect his left leg, "I think my ankle is broken."
"I'm sorry about that." Gerig said, assuming his net might be to blame for the dwarf's injuries.
"No need for apologies," the little guy said, "It was broken before I got here. I fell into a river and hit it against a rather large rock. My lack of concentration because of all that pain might be the reason why I never saw your net."
"Perhaps it was just well hidden." Gerig gloated.
"I guess," the dwarf conceded, "But what I need right now is somewhere to hide before I become the main attraction of some kingdom's freak show." The dwarf said as he tried to walk, but could barely put any weight down on the broken leg. He tried to hobble a few feet, but it was no use a he feel down and grit his teeth in pain.
"Let me help you," Gerig said as he lifted the dwarf up into his arms, "You can stay at my place. It's the least I can do."
"Thanks, lad." the dwarf said gratefully, "What's your name?"
"I'm Gerig. And you?"
"I'm Merrec."
