The Clans Clash, Turning a Blind Eye to the Chaos – Part 02

“Uh, w-was I not supposed to respond that way?!”

Dodorono was clearly flustered, but as far as Hikaru was concerned, it was nothing short of satisfying to see Dodorono flatly reject Brigid’s offer.

Brigid, Talis, the Fire Drakon. They were all beings of immense power, unknown to Hikaru. And he had no interest in being dragged around by their whims.

Still, Dodorono had grown up in a Dwarven nation where Brigid was worshipped like a god, even if he had long since left it behind. Having just spoken to Brigid directly—and gone against his wishes—he was now thoroughly shaken.

“I’ll have to go back to my father and explain everything,” he said, eyes welling with tears.

When Hikaru and Dodorono returned from the hall where they met Brigid to the cavern containing the Progenitor’s Forge, the smiths of the Green Rabbit clan were still tied up, and outside, the private troops were locked in a tense standoff.

Hmm.

They were far enough from the master smith that Hikaru’s Stealth wasn’t working too well. Noticing Hikaru and Dodorono, the master smith glanced their way. But he didn’t call out to the guards. Instead, he gave Hikaru a small nod and turned his gaze toward a specific spot.

That?

Following the cue, Hikaru looked where the master had indicated. On one of the workbenches lay a bundle. The master nodded repeatedly. It looked like he was trying to entrust something to Hikaru.

“Dodorono, about that bundle over there. Is that what I think it is?”

“What? What do you think it is?”

Dodorono carefully peeled back the cloth, and his face turned ghostly pale.

“I-It is.”

“Told you.”

Hikaru’s hunch was right. It was the Progenitor’s Gauntlets. The very one that was causing the commotion outside, sitting here casually.

“What now?” Hikaru asked.

“Wh-What do you mean, what now? You’re not seriously thinking of stealing this, are you?”

“I am.”

“Th-That’s insane!”

“Shh.” Hikaru clamped a hand over Dodorono’s mouth.

Group Cloaking wasn’t perfect, and it wasn’t at its highest level. If they raised their voices, they’d definitely be heard.

“S-Sorry,” Dodorono said. “But if we take this out of here, there will be trouble. We might never be able to stop the clans from going to war.”

“Too late for that, don’t you think? The Green Rabbit clan’s been hiding this thing the whole time, and now the Black Goat clan knows. It won’t be long before the other clans catch on, too. At that point, the only thing that matters is who can actually make good use of it.”

“You think that’s me? Wait, no. You’re thinking of the Red Rat clan.”

“Exactly. Better to take it somewhere safe than leave it here in the middle of a powder keg. Maybe offer it for shared use.”

“Hmm… but I’m not exactly the type to pull that off.”

“Come on, you already rejected Brigid’s offer. If the other Dwarves hear about that, they’ll flip out.”

“Th-That was different,” Dodorono groaned. “I just thought… someone who truly loves smithing should wield that power, not someone like me.”

“You care more about cloth than iron.”

“I care about iron, too. You can’t make scissors or needles without it.”

That’s exactly it, Hikaru thought. Even when standing before the very god he’d been raised to revere, Dodorono still prioritized clothes.

“You’ve made up your mind, haven’t you? Let’s just take it.”

“Ugh. I-I suppose it’d be better to hand it over to my brother or my father than leave it here.”

Trying to shift the blame to his brother or father after stealing something this big was, in its own way, kind of funny.

Hikaru reached for the gauntlets and shoved it into Dodorono’s arms. Dodorono nearly toppled backward, then scrambled to clutch it protectively.

“All right, let’s go.”

Hikaru and Dodorono slipped out of the forge once more. It wasn’t until about an hour later that anyone noticed the Progenitor’s Gauntlets were missing.

First, a guard realized they were gone and questioned the Green Rabbit smiths, “Where’d you put it?”

“We’ve been tied up here, you dimwit,” they snapped back. “How the hell would we know?”

When the report reached the commander outside, panic spread through the Black Goat, Orange Ox, and Yellow Tiger clans. It wasn’t long before even the opposing Green Rabbit and Indigo Snake clans learned of it.

The Black Goat and the others sent soldiers into the forge to search, and the Green Rabbit and Indigo Snake clans seized the opportunity to charge in, aiming to rescue the imprisoned smiths. The master smiths responded immediately, rising up and dashing for the exit. The private soldiers who had entered to conduct the search were thrown into confusion, unsure of what to do.

The chaos around the grand plaza only deepened.

---

Dodonno stood there with his mouth agape, while their bedridden father, Donovan, turned an even paler shade. On the bedside table lay a rugged pair of gauntlets.

“Y-You were supposed to have gone down the mountain. So how the hell did you come back with the Progenitor’s Gauntlets?!”

“I-I had no other choice. If we’d left things as they were, the clans would’ve clashed. Hikaru and I are planning to head back down again. Later!”

Dodorono raised a hand with a dramatic flourish and tried to leave, but his brother’s hand clamped down firmly on his shoulder.

“Little brother. You think I’d just let you walk outta here that easy?”

“I-It was Hikaru’s idea! He insisted I bring it.”

Dodorono tried to pin the blame on Hikaru, but the head of the Red Rat clan just exhaled slowly.

“What’s done is done. Like Dodorono said, there could be a fight over these gauntlets. Hiding it might be our best option.”

“Dad.”

“Dear heavens. As if sneaking out of the country wasn’t bold enough, you come back with the Progenitor’s Shield, and now the Progenitor’s Gauntlets too?”

Despite his exasperated tone, Donovan seemed oddly amused.

“Right, Dad. If the Progenitor’s Gauntlets are here, how about we take it and the Shield to the treasury? Try and talk Uncle into it,” Dodonno suggested.

Donovan’s face twisted bitterly. “That might not be possible.”

He knew his own brother had become uncontrollable. It was obvious he was trying to seize power amid all this chaos.

“But if the Progenitor’s Gauntlets and Shield are added to the treasury, that’d make four pieces, along with the Helm and the Breastplate. All that’d be left is the Progenitor’s Axe.”

“The weapon might not even exist at all.”

“Hm?”

“There’s never been any information on it.”

Donovan seemed to agree.

If the Progenitor’s Axe did exist within the country, someone would’ve leaked something by now. For Dwarves, weapons were that important.

“We don’t need an axe. We live only to forge. That’s enough for us.”

“And this is where living for the forge got you,” Hikaru cut in. “Brigid’s done with the Dwarves.”

“H-Hikaru!” Dodorono said.

“We should just tell them the truth. That we met Brigid. And he told us something.”

“Wait. Did you two go to see the Progenitor’s Forge?!” Dodonno exclaimed.

“The fire was out.”

“Say what?!”

Dodonno looked horrified, but Donovan stayed calm.

“So it’s true. The words the flame chooses, the master is chosen were written there, weren’t they?”

“How do you know that?”

The fire had only gone out that morning, and the Black Goat clan had supposedly kept the news under wraps. Donovan had been in bed this whole time.

“There’re ways to get information even from here. Some folks just insist on telling me.”

“You mean the Dark Dog clan? But Dad, aren’t they siding with Uncle now?”

“No way. The Dark Dogs stand with the Red Rat chief.”

Apparently, the Dark Dog clan functioned as the intelligence arm of Ironforge, specializing in gathering information. Hikaru was impressed that such Dwarves existed amid all the smiths and drunkards. Then again, he had sensed presences with Mana Detection in places where no one should’ve been. On rooftops, in barrels tucked away in alleys.

“It’s all well and good to act high and mighty as the Red Rat chief,” Dodonno said, “but what’re you telling the Dark Dogs?”

“If something happens to me, they are to leave the country.”

“What?”

“That’s completely irresponsible.”

Dodonno and Dodorono both looked astonished. Donovan turned away sullenly.

Hikaru sighed. “If the Dark Dogs are still feeding Donovan information today, they must be planning to stay. But what’ll they do if the anvil on the mountain falls?”

“…”

“You think it’s better if they die with the country?”

“It’s too late to change how we live. Even if Lord Brigid has forsaken us.”

There was no doubt this nation’s founding was tied back to Brigid’s Progenitor’s Forge. They had been bound to both Brigid and her forge, and now abandoned by both.

Hikaru had planned to tell them what Brigid said and what he was thinking. But it looked like Donovan already knew.

I thought there would be a struggle over who would inherit the new Flame. In fact, the Black Goat clan had already resorted to violence. But Donovan and the Dark Dog clan are different. They’d accepted this ruin.

One could call it honorable, or just plain resignation.