Chapter 616: Revisiting Old Grounds, the Drunken Dwarf

The fourth day after the Midsummer Festival.

Early in the morning, Xia Duo, having spent the entire night in his workshop, arrived at Savile Town reeking of alcohol.

The once-familiar South District had long since changed; the Lao Nier Inn now sported a different sign. Clearly, even without Xia Duo's deliberate suppression, the inn, having lost Lao Nier, had ultimately failed to sustain itself.

However, Xia Duo did not regret killing Lao Nier. If the man had merely wanted to enslave him, Xia Duo, having just transmigrated from Earth not long before, would not have resorted to murder.

But hiring a necromancer to ambush him was a different matter entirely; the fact that the pajamas he had brought from Earth appeared in the necromancer's Dimensional Bag was proof enough.

At that time, he was extremely insecure; how could he tolerate such an enemy continuing to live? The very day he saw those pajamas, Xia Duo returned to Savile Town overnight and killed Lao Nier.

Now, standing in front of the Lao Nier Inn once again, Xia Duo felt a great deal of emotion.

Not far from the Lao Nier Inn was Buloutuo's smithy. Xia Duo had run over here quite often when he had first transmigrated; after all, a real fantasy creature was a rare sight.

However, after seeing enough, it was nothing special, especially after Xia Duo had seen an Elf in person and watched the Elf prepare meat; he realized these fantasy creatures were actually just another shape of "person."

Of course, a more accurate term would be: sentient being.

……

After a few steps, Xia Duo arrived at Buloutuo's smithy. Outside, a sign featuring a giant hammer and a long beard swayed feebly. Inside the smithy, that familiar Dwarf was lying on a recliner, leisurely sipping his liquor.

Seeing Xia Duo enter, Buloutuo raised his head slightly, but immediately lowered it again. Xia Duo was not annoyed and took the initiative to greet him: "Uncle Buloutuo, long time no see, you're still as spirited as ever!"

"Yo, isn't this Mage Xia Duo? What brings you to my little place?" The Dwarf's signature rock-like voice rang out, clearly carrying a hint of dissatisfaction.

But as soon as Xia Duo heard this, he knew things were likely settled. During the days before entering the Tower of Time, due to intense insecurity, he had poured almost all his energy into gauging others and maintaining a friendly, harmless persona.

After all, this concerned his own life; no amount of effort was too much.

As for the Dwarf Buloutuo, Xia Duo considered himself fairly knowledgeable: stubborn and unsympathetic, but if one could scratch his itch, the Dwarf was also quite easy to get along with.

For instance, frequently complimenting the other's braided beard was more effective than praising his forging skills.

Of course, the most important thing was sincerity.

But the Xia Duo of that time was extremely insecure, almost wishing to rip his heart out to prove he was harmless, hoping others wouldn't harm him; in his treatment of others, one could say he was sincere to the extreme.

Even when facing the most down-and-out Adventurer, he had never given them a bad look.

As for the Dwarf, it went without saying; from the perspective of the current Xia Duo, it could almost be called heart-baring and sycophantic.

And the moment Buloutuo agreed to help Xia Duo hammer a few Daggers, it meant Buloutuo accepted Xia Duo as a human friend.

The lifespan of a Dwarf differs greatly from that of a human, and their concept of time is also very different. If human friends don't keep in touch for a few years, the relationship might grow distant, but for a Dwarf—

Xia Duo saw it; there was no distance. Perhaps there was a bit of a temper, but friends, after all, having a bit of a temper is normal.

"Uncle Buloutuo, I just happened to get a bottle of good wine and thought of you!"

As he spoke, Xia Duo took out the strong liquor he had spent an entire night distilling. There was only one bottle, and it wasn't quite full, but the moment he took it out, Buloutuo's head lifted involuntarily.

Xia Duo placed the bottle on the anvil to the side. Buloutuo scrambled up from the recliner and grabbed the bottle, stuffing it into his arms. This movement didn't look like a sturdy, barrel-shaped Dwarf at all, but rather like an agile and nimble Gnome.

Perhaps Dwarves and Gnomes are relatives, who knows.

"I knew it, I knew it!" Buloutuo hugged the bottle, sniffing continuously. "I smelled it before you even came in. Is this ale? How can it have such a strong scent?"

Xia Duo had spent the whole night in the workshop and his body was stained with the smell of alcohol, but since he was coming to see Buloutuo, he hadn't cleaned it off. In reality, he didn't like the smell of alcohol himself.

"Why don't you have a drink and find out!" Xia Duo said with a smile.

"You're really giving it to me?" Buloutuo was somewhat incredulous. He actually knew very well that Xia Duo must have brought the wine because he needed something, but to drink before even asking what the matter was—Buloutuo was still a bit hesitant.

But in the end, his craving for alcohol was unbearable. Buloutuo muttered something, pulled out the cork, and gulped it down.

And so, Xia Duo witnessed another scene since his transmigration that was enough to make his jaw drop. After Buloutuo drank a few mouthfuls, his brown face turned red at a speed visible to the naked eye, and then he stood in place, swayed in a circle, and looked like he was about to collapse.

This is a Dwarf who loves to drink?!

Fortunately, having seen the scene of the Elf buying meat earlier, a drunken Dwarf was not unacceptable. Xia Duo hurriedly reached out to support Buloutuo. The moment he made contact, he truly felt the Dwarf's "tonnage."

It was at least equal to two humans, and "tonnage" to some extent also meant strength.

Xia Duo was thoughtful.

After helping Buloutuo onto the recliner to lie down, Buloutuo didn't forget to pour wine into his mouth. It wasn't until the bottle was empty that he smacked his lips and tried to get up, but every time he got halfway up, he would fall back down.

Xia Duo watched from the side, wanting to laugh. He shook his head and was just about to leave and come back in the afternoon when, unexpectedly, Buloutuo spoke. Although his voice was slurred, his logic was still fairly clear:

"Xia Duo, I'm not drunk, not drunk. What do you need me for? Hurry, hurry up and say it. As long as I can do it, I'll definitely do it well for you. This wine, this wine is just too flavorful!"

"I wanted to ask for your help forging a few weapons. It's not urgent, you should sleep for a while first!"

Although the threat of a dragon might come at any time, in the current situation, what else could Xia Duo say!

Unexpectedly, the more Xia Duo said this, the more Buloutuo struggled to get up. "No, no way. Do you look down on a Dwarf's tolerance? I said I can do it, so I definitely can. Help, help me up!"

Since he had even brought up whether he was being looked down upon, Xia Duo had no choice but to comply. However, he was still quite skeptical of Buloutuo's words.

In this state, if he could still forge weapons, then why couldn't he stand up on his own!

……

After getting up, Buloutuo pushed Xia Duo away. Although his feet were still swaying, he was indeed standing. "Hammer, where is my hammer? Oh, I remember now!"

When Xia Duo heard Buloutuo start to mumble in the Dwarven Language and wander around, he knew this guy was probably truly drunk. However, he also really wanted to see how long Buloutuo could hold out.

So he stood to the side and waited quietly.