The Clans Clash, Turning a Blind Eye to the Chaos – Part 05

Dodorono and Dodonno stood there, mouths agape, watching the scene unfold.

“Dodorono, Dodonno.”

“Y-Yes!”

“Wh-What is it?”

Snapping out of it, they straightened themselves.

“He’s the guy trying to become the next chief of the Red Rat clan, isn’t he?”

“…”

“And you’re really okay leaving things to someone like that? This clan, this country, is falling apart right now.”

“W-Well…”

“And you, hiding behind that pillar. Come out.”

Hikaru pointed toward a large stone column at the end of the hall. He had sensed someone there earlier with Mana Detection, but decided not to bother since they hadn’t made a move, even through the uncle’s arrival and the chaos that followed. But it was now obvious they were observing his every move.

Dodorono and Dodonno looked puzzled. They clearly didn’t believe anyone could be hiding there.

“You going to keep pretending you’re just a bystander? Fine, I’ll come to you.”

Just as Hikaru began to walk over, a Dwarf—a woman—slipped out from behind the column.

She wore a leather jumper and thick trousers, nothing out of the ordinary at first glance. But on closer inspection, the outfit was clearly designed for ease of movement. Even the soles of her shoes were lined with fur to muffle her steps.

Her most distinctive feature was her hair. Most female Dwarves wore their hair long, styled in various ways and adorned with cords. But this one had a short cut. Her fluffy hair barely reached below her ears, though its texture clearly marked her as a Dwarf.

Both her hair and eyes were a deep shade of indigo. Beneath her round eyes sat a small upturned nose.

Her age was hard to guess. To Hikaru, Gilma of Gittan Trading looked quite young, young enough that he wouldn’t hesitate to call her big sis if she weren’t actually childhood friends with Dodorono.

This woman was much shorter than Hikaru. She could easily be mistaken for a young girl.

“Cornu! What are you doing here?” Dodonno exclaimed. “Ah, I-I get it.”

“You know her?” Hikaru asked, keeping his guard up.

“Yeah, Cornu is from the Dark Dog clan.”

I see.

Hikaru had heard the Dark Dog clan acted as the intelligence branch of Ironforge. It was thanks to their efforts that Donovan could gather so much information even while bedridden.

The Dark Dog clan also worked closely with the Red Rat clan. That may have been because the Red Rat clan was the most powerful among the twelve Dwarf clans, though nothing about Dodorono and his people gave off that kind of authority.

“So? Why is someone from the Dark Dog clan just standing by, doing nothing while the Red Rat clan falls into chaos?” Hikaru asked. “Don’t tell me it’s because that uncle is technically part of the clan, so your hands are tied?”

Cornu stared at them in silence.

“Hikaru, the Dark Dog clan only answers to the head of the Red Rat clan. Even we don’t know how many of these women there are or what exactly they’re doing.”

“These women?”

“Yeah. The Dark Dog clan is made up entirely of women.”

“Huh.”

In this society, every male Dwarf was expected to love blacksmithing and booze to the point of obsession, so the idea of a male spy likely didn’t fit the mold.

“Donovan is still technically the head of the Red Rat clan. Even if that man is his younger brother, is it really okay to let someone behave so disrespectfully toward the clan head?”

“…”

Cornu still remained silent. Hikaru was starting to get irritated.

What was with that uncle’s behavior? What was Donovan doing, letting him act like that? And what was Cornu’s deal? Why pretend to be obedient while doing nothing when it really mattered?

And then there were the Dodorono and Dodonno brothers, still hanging their heads because of their own hobbies.

“Dodorono, I just remembered something I needed to do,” Hikaru said. “Could you watch my stuff for a bit? Do you mind waiting here in the mansion a little longer?”

“I don’t mind, but what business do you have?”

“I’m just going to visit the source of all this trouble.”

Hikaru believed that the problems plaguing this country, and the twisted structure it suffered under, all led back to a single place.

“Hikaru? Hey, where are you going?”

With a wave, Hikaru left the mansion. His destination: wherever Brigid was.

---

In the still-chaotic Dwarven city, some people were fleeing with their belongings, others were hammering nails into doors to reinforce their homes, and others still were holding intense discussions around wellheads.

Hikaru sprinted through it all, aware of how fast he was moving. He had activated Stealth, so no one noticed him. Or that should’ve been the case.

“Hey.” After turning two corners down a back alley, Hikaru suddenly came to a stop. “Why are you following me?”

There stood Cornu.

Hikaru found it strange. Even though he was using Stealth, Cornu still managed to follow him. Of course, Stealth wasn’t perfect. It was less effective if someone already had a lock on his presence. But if he broke their line of sight, it should work just fine. Hikaru had specifically turned those corners with that in mind.

Cornu stared blankly, saying nothing.

Was Stealth just ineffective against someone with good tracking skills? No, Hikaru had once fought Kutsuwa, a member of the Quinbrand Empire’s intelligence division, and Stealth worked on him. He’d even lost sight of Hikaru during combat.

So maybe Cornu had an unusually high tracking ability, like a keen sense of smell, perhaps? Or maybe she possessed some sort of magic item.

Though her fluffy short hair covered it, Hikaru’s Mana Detection picked up a response from her ears.

“I see. You’re picking up sounds.”

For the first time, Cornu’s eyes widened. Her eyes were already small, so it was barely noticeable, but Hikaru didn’t miss it.

“There’s no point in tailing me. I’ll be leaving this country soon anyway.”

“…”

“I’m not an enemy of the Red Rat clan. I may end up taking Dodorono with me, but Donovan already gave his permission for that.”

“…”

No matter what he said, she didn’t reply. Apparently, she believed it was up to her whether there was a point in tailing him or not.

“I see. Well then, I’m leaving you behind.”

Hikaru reactivated Stealth and broke into a run, using shadows and corners to his advantage. This time, he sprinted at full speed.

At first, Cornu managed to keep up, but Hikaru quickly began to pull ahead. That made sense. She had to pause at every corner to listen for his footsteps before chasing after him. Stealth was working.

Once he had put over a hundred meters between them, Hikaru headed straight for the hollow where Brigid awaited.

The conflict between the Dwarf clans in the plaza had ended for the time being, and the injured were receiving treatment. Still, the Black Goat, Orange Ox, and Yellow Tiger clans continued their intense stand-off with the Green Rabbit and Indigo Snake clans.

The ground shook beneath them. A collective scream rose from the Dwarves as the massive anvil at the mountaintop began to slide.

And still, none of them fled. They remained in the plaza, despite it being right in the path of the falling anvil.

What are they thinking? Is this some petty pride contest?

Hikaru slipped past their watchful eyes and entered the cavern where the Progenitor’s Forge was located. The smiths had already been rescued by the Green Rabbit clan, so no one remained inside. That made the standoff in the plaza all the more pointless.

Ignoring the now-extinguished Progenitor’s Forge, Hikaru started deeper into the chamber.

“You can’t go any further.”

Hikaru stopped in his tracks, shocked. He had neglected his Mana Detection. When he turned around, he saw a girl standing about thirty meters away.

Cornu was panting, clearly having searched hard for him.

“What do you mean, I can’t go?”

Was that really the first thing she chose to say after staying quiet the whole time?

“Because Lord Brigid is in there.”

“I know.”

“Don’t go in.”

Her voice sounded youthful, like a teenager’s. A look at her Soul Board would’ve revealed her actual age, but she stayed thirty meters away.

“I don’t take orders.” Hikaru turned.

“There are humans at the Bright Rooster clan’s estate.”

Cornu’s words stopped him once more.

“Humans?”

“The Golden Boar clan visited the Bright Rooster estate with an armed escort. Among them were several humans, dressed like adventurers.”

Her tone was flat and mechanical, but that made her words clearer and easier to understand.

“Having caught wind of the Golden Boar clan’s movements, the Blue Dragon clan has surrounded the Bright Rooster estate with their private forces. Those human adventurers must be your companions. Go rescue them.”

Hikaru didn’t know why, but Selyse and the others had chosen to side with the Golden Boar clan. He wondered if it was Waffa’s influence, but he had no further clues to go on.

Regardless, he already had his answer.

“I’m not going.”

“Why not? You may not know this, but the Blue Dragon clan is the strongest of the twelve. Human adventurers wouldn’t stand a chance.”

“You may not know this, but if Selyse is there, I don’t need to worry about a thing.”

Taken at face value, it sounded like Hikaru had confidence in Selyse’s abilities, but in reality, it was more of a blind trust. He figured that if Selyse was involved, she’d use any means necessary to make it through.

“…”

“That all? Then I’m going.”

Cornu said nothing more, so Hikaru turned his back on her and walked away.