Wizard: I am a goblin

Chapter 91 What does Dulin want?

The warm morning light fell on the corner of the workbench, like a curious cat, gradually probing towards the center of the table as time passed.

The brown-bearded dwarf was fiddling with a brass gear mechanism, his head bowed. Beside him, disassembled crossbow parts were scattered across a table, a cabinet, and the floor.

The dwarf, with a serious expression, was focused on adjusting the gears in his hands, unaware that daylight had already arrived.

Bang bang.

knocking.

The dwarf did not react.

Bang bang bang.

The knocking continues.

"Come in...just put dinner over there," the dwarf replied casually.

The sound of the door being pushed open.

The footsteps grew closer.

"Dinner so early?" Geb asked with interest from behind the dwarf. Dulin jumped in surprise, nearly dropping the device in his hand.

"Stone Ancestor! You scared me to death!"

The dwarf looked closely and saw the halfling with his hands behind his back, smiling at him.

Good morning, Dulin.

"Good morning... good morning, little brother Gebu. Is it already morning? Time flies..."

Dulin took the monocular lens off his face and rubbed his eyes—his face was oily, and his hair and beard were tangled up, as if he had just stayed up all night.

Geb walked past the dwarf and saw the burnt-out candle on his table and the scattered coffee bean residue.

Is this guy not asleep?

"Busy setting up your crossbow?" Geb asked.

"Ah...ah," Dulin replied in a hoarse voice, "cough...see, I've even forgotten the most basic manners. Let me make some tea...please sit down, please sit down."

A few minutes later, the dwarf cleared a small space on the workbench, boiled water in a small tin kettle, placed two wide-mouthed teacups, and added rye, dried mushrooms, salt, and a red powder.

When hot water is poured in, the ingredients swirl and blend in the cup, first floating to the top and then sinking to the bottom.

While waiting for the tea to brew, the two remained silent, with Gebu examining the crossbow parts on the dwarf's table.

Gebu wasn't a blacksmith, nor could he be considered a weapons expert—but even a layman could see that this crossbow had a very complex structure; the transmission mechanism alone, which pulled the string, consisted of several gear sets. The string was removed and placed aside—it looked like the ligament of some large creature, about the thickness of a little finger, both strong and flexible.

The string is so thick, it must be very difficult to pull it – which explains the complicated winding mechanism.

The crossbow's body was made entirely of brass, with intricate patterns embossed on its surface. Beneath the metal surface, one could vaguely discern symbols the size of a fingernail.

It looks like... arcane runes on the surface of a golem?

Ancient sages' words?

Geb followed the direction in which the runes were written, and the symbols flowed toward the tail of the crossbow—below which was a wrist-thick protrusion with deep threads on its surface.

What is this crossbow supposed to be screwed onto?

Just as Gebu was wondering what was going on, the dwarf coughed lightly.

"Well... it's just a hobby of mine. This crossbow still needs some tweaking," he said. "I shot it off target before, almost hurting Dove—of course, that was partly because my hand was shaking."

"Your crossbow is really beautiful," Gebu said indirectly. "What's engraved on it? It looks like some kind of symbol."

"Haha...it's nothing, just dwarven decorations." Dulin scratched his head and said with a forced smile.

"Also, this size is a bit too big; it doesn't look like it's for human use."

"Ah, it's for trolls."

"...Trolls?" Geb asked suspiciously. "Where did these trolls come from?"

"I have one at home."

"ha?"

"When my mother-in-law is constipated, she screams like a troll—the whole of Shijiao Mountain can hear her."

silence.

"Uh..." Geb looked at the dwarf awkwardly. "...Is she still alive? I can make her some laxatives."

The dwarf scratched his head and after a long pause answered:

"...This is a classic dwarf joke..."

silence.

silence.

Why is it so cold in the room... Gebu shivered.

"Have some tea, have some tea..." Dulin said quickly.

The dwarf changed the subject, picked up his teacup, and took a sip of the steaming liquid.

Gebu also picked up his teacup, blew on it twice, and brought it to his lips, thinking: This guy is deliberately changing the subject...

This crossbow is interesting—in this country, such magical items should be illegal.

Hmm... that's a good starting point.

Gebu took a sip of tea, then spat it out!

"Hot—Hot! It's so spicy!!!"

The tea was scalding hot and spicy, like lava. Gebu's tongue turned red instantly, and he jumped up from his chair, spinning around several times.

"There's water over there." The dwarf pointed in a direction to the halfling, watching as Geb ran over and chug down a glass of water, looking at his teacup with a puzzled expression. "It's not hot, just normal temperature?"

At the same time, Gebu's side was almost burning from the spiciness.

I've heard dwarves have a dull sense of taste—but surely not that dull! Is that chili powder in their tea?!

Gebu's ears were burning, and he drank and washed his face until he was covered in sweat.

The dwarf gave Geb some milk to rinse his mouth, and the halfling finally recovered—he almost died there.

"Sorry, sorry... It's been a long time since I've served halflings. I forgot you have a particularly sensitive sense of taste..."

Dulin spoke slowly, paused, and added a sentence.

"Speaking of which, you came to see me so early in the morning, it wasn't just to catch up, was it... Gebu, what brings you here?"

Gebu stuck out his tongue like a dog—the lingering spiciness hadn't subsided, and his entire mouth was swollen.

"Um... I think I should ask Ni, if you're... ptooey, could you write me a letter of recommendation? I want to join the Sang Team... Sang Team... ptooey!"

"You mean you want me to recommend you to join the caravan?"

"Uh! Uh!" Geb replied with a lisp.

Dulin avoided eye contact, pondered for a moment, and said with a wry smile, "This... I'm afraid I can't comply. It's not that I have any personal issues with you. I'm very grateful for your help on the way."

"But we've only known each other for a few days and haven't had any business dealings, so I can't comment on your credibility."

"Once a monk, twice a monk, right? — I'll help you, you help me. This time you help me out, give me a chance, and then we can slowly develop our relationship."

The dwarf didn't reply immediately, but took another sip of tea—after a few sips, his face regained some energy, and his hoarse voice returned to normal.

"My recommendation represents not only myself, but also the entire Ziglar clan. Therefore, it cannot be given hastily."

"Building trust among dwarves is an extremely long process... The people of the surface always misunderstand us as cold and unapproachable—it's not that we don't want to be friends with humans... or halflings, but by the time we truly acknowledge you, you're already old."

Upon hearing this, Gebu thought to himself: Regardless of the original intention, it sounds a bit like boasting...

But it was also expected.

"I understand, you'd have to work with me for decades before you can truly open up to me—is that what you mean?"

The dwarf nodded, a polite smile on his face.

"However, others in the caravan might be able to recommend you..."

Geb thought for a moment. The Salt and Iron Merchant Guild was a merchant guild of the Dwarf Kingdom, and all the prominent people there were dwarves—Dulin was a familiar face. If he refused, no one else had a chance.

"It's okay, I'll think of something else..." Gebu feigned disappointment, stood up, and muttered to himself, "I thought we had common interests and could become friends... It seems we're just not meant to be."

The halfling casually picked up a crossbow lens and toyed with it in his hand for a moment. The dwarf looked at his hand, paused, and said:

"Oh. I didn't know that young Gebu also has some knowledge of mechanical engineering?"

"Hmm... rather than mechanical engineering, I'd say I have a little bit of knowledge about golem programming..."

Geb suddenly turned to face the dwarf, narrowed his eyes, and revealed a sly smile.

-----------------

Upon hearing the halfling's second half of his sentence, the dwarf was stunned.

"A...golem? You've got it wrong. I know absolutely nothing about magic."

"Hey, still pretending with me?" Gebu thought to himself. "Looks like I need to give him another nudge."

"Really? Yes, we need to be careful. In the Kingdom of Kane, magical items are taboo... not to mention golems, those are war machines."

Gebu put down the gears, picked up a crossbow string, and used his fingers to make a shooting posture—aiming straight at the dwarf's face.

Dulin's body trembled, and the smile on his face froze—then slowly disappeared.

He stood up, clenched his fists, and his face was as stern as a rock.

"Gab... Dwarves are a polite race, but we won't stand idly by when a threat comes knocking—let's talk this out: are you blackmailing me, halfling?"

"They've finally arrived." Gebu chuckled inwardly. If he didn't speak clearly, he wouldn't be able to see the dwarf's true nature.

Great! I like things to be straightforward!

Geb neatly put the things in his hands back in their original places, grabbed his own stool, sat down, and then gestured for the dwarf to sit down as well.

Dulin looked at the halfling suspiciously, then sat back down in his original position after a moment.

Geb picked up the tin kettle, added some hot water to the dwarf's pot, and then said calmly:

"I am new to this place and have no relatives or friends here."

"What I need is not enemies, Dulin, but friends. True, trustworthy friends."

"I have no intention of prying into your secrets, nor will I utter a word to the church... Think about it, what if they ask: Why can I understand the words of the ancient sages—how am I supposed to explain it? It won't do me any good."

"I've read many books and have some knowledge of golem studies. I happened to see the words 'Machina: Anima Vas' on your drawings, and that's when I realized that you were also doing this kind of research."

Geb looked at the dwarf with a serious and sincere expression, and said, word by word:

"I think I can help you, Dulin. In return, I hope you can help me too—hey, isn't that how many lasting friendships begin?"

After hearing Gebu's words, the dwarf lowered his gaze to the crossbow parts on the table. After a moment of thought, he finally raised his eyes and met the upper-body man's gaze once more.

The hostility on his face had mostly dissipated, and it was clear that Dulin was still somewhat hesitant, but he had taken Geb's words to heart.

"Okay, I misunderstood you, Geb."

He slowly raised his teacup and took a sip.

"Most people can't understand what these symbols are, so I didn't bother to hide them... Since you've noticed them, it means you really understand them."

"You know, in this country, golem research is an absolute taboo—if you help me, it's tantamount to committing a crime yourself. I want you to know what you're doing... Are you sure you want to help me?"

"I'm sure," Geb said with absolute certainty.

"Alright." The dwarf nodded, then got up and cleaned the table, took out the blue drawing from the sealed box, and laid it on the workbench.

"Actually, my understanding of golems is very superficial. My design was based entirely on information provided by the client: this crossbow was commissioned by an old friend..."

Geb followed the dwarf's finger to the blueprint—on which was drawn a 1:20 scale steel golem, with a mechanical crossbow mounted on its forearm. Next to this large drawing were 1:5 scale three-view drawings of the crossbow, along with detailed diagrams of key details.

"My commission is to create a ranged weapon to be used with the Iron Golem..."