A Treacherous Courtier Manages the Empire Well

33 – Dwarf-style Assembly

Rimnacal Plain.

In the cold and frigid northern part of the northern plain, there was a massive volcano. And there were beings who were obsessed with melting iron from the volcano and crafting various items.

They were Dwarves.

Their ironworking skills were truly outstanding, so the Aylam Empire often imported most of the iron it needed from the Dwarves. They were a cheerful race who enjoyed drinking beer, singing, and dancing. However, they were stubborn and had a sense of pride as artisans that no one could rival.

“hahahahaha!! Look who it is!! General Caria, right? And there are fellow soldiers I haven’t seen in a long time!!”

“It’s been a while indeed. Karaheim Longbeard. You still have the smell of iron on your body. This is Lord Landoor and my sister, Princess Celene.”

“Welcome! Of course! Of course! I will continue to forge iron until the day I die! Come on, come on! It’s a feast today!”

They remembered the Iron Blood Legion members who brought peace to the Rimnacal Plain by drying out the seeds of the monsters that had invaded the northern regions on a massive scale. Caria, Celene, and I were able to enter the Dwarf village and received a tremendous welcome.

In front of us, there were tables filled with meat and beer, and traditional Dwarf songs and dances were performed.

Princess Celene only took a small portion due to her body management and diet, and I found it difficult to eat the Dwarves’ beer because of its high alcohol content.

While the two of us were struggling with our meal…

“You still eat well! You still eat well!!!”

“I can’t help it. Can I?”

Caria exuded a force like that of a hardworking laborer as she continuously emptied several bottles of the strong beer and neatly finished the meat dishes that came as side dishes. The Dwarves were overjoyed to see Caria like that.

For some reason, Caria seemed more manly than me, who was a woman.

“Nhah… I, I lost again.”

Dwarf Chieftain Karaheim Longbeard, despite receiving cheers from numerous Dwarves, managed to empty an incredibly large bottle up to the 13th glass, but he couldn’t empty the 14th and eventually fell down. The Dwarves shouted and cheered, calling out Caria’s name.

Caria smiled brightly and responded to their cheers, while Celene and I could only watch her performance from the back, feeling awestruck.

“This is not a stage for us.”

“Yes, Princess Celene. It seems so.”

The rough northern plain.

The star here was Caria.

The day after the wild beer party.

Caria and Chief Karaham appeared in the tent looking fresh, with no signs of hangover.

“Heh heh. You looked quite a mess yesterday. But next time, try winning before talking.”

“To win, you’ll need a disguise at least on the level of a blast furnace.”

“Heh heh! As expected, you’re quite audacious! Caria General, that’s why I like you! Uhahahaha!”

After exchanging playful banter with Caria, Karaham Longbeard looked at me and Selene.

“Yes. The Princess of Ailam Empire and the Substitute. What brings you here?”

In response, I let out a light cough.

Dwarf.

In the original novel, they were not a major presence.

Naturally, even the avid readers of the novel had little information about them. But what else could we do? We had to confront them. That’s what my exclusive patent, the persuasive push, was for.

“Chief Karaham. Yesterday, as I entered the village, I saw a massive blast furnace. It was impressive. It was a scene that revealed the level of the dwarves’ steel production.”

“hahahaha! Of course! What you saw yesterday was a culmination of our dwarves’ smelting technology. It’s a method of creating a large amount of molten iron by piling up coke and sintered ore and blowing a massive amount of air from below! There is still no more efficient method of steel production than this!”

Indeed, they were an impressive bunch. But still.

Compared to modern steel mills, it was only natural that their scale was smaller.

They were still using manpower for blowing air, and the size of the blast furnace was relatively smaller than the modern one I remembered.

“We are interested in your know-how and experience. In fact, we are currently considering building a large-scale steel mill.”

“A large-scale steel mill?”

“Yes. The Mausoleum led by Princess Selene has recently developed high-purity magic stones. With that, we can operate and roll large-scale machines. Based on that technology, we plan to build a large-scale steel mill.”

After saying that much, I turned the conversation over to Princess Selene. She began her explanation.

“We’ll be able to operate and use much more efficient and powerful large-scale machinery than relying on manpower. You mentioned a method of producing iron by putting coke and sintered ore, right? If we use the machines we developed, we will be able to produce iron much more efficiently and in larger quantities.”

“Ah… Is that so?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

And Princess Selene went on to explain how they would streamline the steel production process using machines powered by high-purity magic stones.

I also chimed in with my support for her words.

“There are already people who have started looking for suitable sites to build the steel mill. And if the chosen site doesn’t satisfy you, we are willing to change it. We will also provide you all with appropriate salaries and offer a fair price for the produced steel!”

“Hmm…”

“The costs of relocating many dwarves to the steel mill will also be covered by me! I am willing to build housing and a village for the entire clan! We will provide beautiful houses made with magic stone furnaces and the latest architectural styles.”

“I see.”

But something was off.

While I was persuading Karaham Longbeard with my patented sales pitch, he showed a rather uninterested response with a twisted attitude.

Selene and I were baffled.

The high-purity techniques of the massive machinery and dwarf blacksmiths in operation.

I was trying to convince him to combine them and create a tremendous synergy, but Chief Karaham’s reaction was unexpectedly unenthusiastic.

“Again!… Again!”

“They’re called Landor and Princess Selene, right? Well… I suppose I understand that you can create a much more efficient smelting method with large-scale machinery. I think I need to have a discussion with my tribal leaders before making a decision. It’s an ideal proposition, but leaving our hometown suddenly is a bit concerning, isn’t it?”

“Uhm, yes?”

Anyone could see that this was a NO.

It’s strange.

Why isn’t my persuasion working?

Selene had a puzzled expression, as if her scientific explanation was inadequate, and I couldn’t understand why there was such a reaction even though I offered sufficient benefits.

“Well, it was nice meeting you all. Go back and rest. I need to have a conversation with my tribal leaders to hear their opinions and make a decision.”

And so, the conversation ended in a dull and lukewarm manner.

After all the discussions were over, Karria, Selene, and I returned to our lodgings and ransacked our brains.

“What’s missing? Did I not explain properly how powerful the machinery I made with high-purity techniques is? Should I have used more provocative language in my explanation?”

“I don’t think that’s it. Should I have offered more money? It seems like they weren’t satisfied with the wage I proposed. I should have persuaded them with better conditions… It’s my mistake.”

The two of us went back and forth in the room, making moaning sounds. However, no matter how much we racked our brains, a solution didn’t come up.

And then, Karria suddenly burst into laughter as she watched us.

“hahahaha! It looks like I’m seeing my sister in such a flustered state for the first time! You two really don’t know how to handle dwarves, huh?”

“We don’t. Neither of us has spent much time with dwarves like you.”

In response to Selene’s self-deprecating words, Karria chuckles and stands up from her seat.

“Just bring the dwarves to my forging workshop. That’s all you need to do, right, Landor?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“Then leave it to me. Dwarves won’t be persuaded by talking about money or efficiency. We need to stimulate their pride and romance.”

“???”

“Just attend the tribal leaders’ meeting tonight. I’ll show you how I do it.”

Karia’s unexpected declaration.

But as two of us who have already failed, we had no choice but to entrust it to her.

And that evening.

The three of us attended the tribal leaders’ meeting… or rather, another beer party that was known as such.