Chapter 901: Discussion' Under the Cheers (Part 2) - Dwarf

While Jier was discussing the post-negotiation matters amidst the cheering, the atmosphere on the Dwarf side was not so pleasant.

"I do not agree!!!"

A Dwarf with a rough voice loudly voiced his opinion, simply because the old Dwarf had stated some of the decisions made during the negotiations after they concluded.

The rest was fine; although some did not want to give up the fixed assets accumulated over the years at the Zhenbao Mine, nor the lifestyle they had maintained for nearly a hundred years. But these people were a minority after all; most Dwarfs were still willing to leave this place, find a way to return to the Dwarf nation, go back to their homeland, and see their families.

Therefore, when the old Dwarf first began to speak about abandoning the property in Torito Cunzi and leaving to go home, most Dwarfs voiced their agreement, and the few who disagreed found it difficult to speak out in opposition.

However, when the old Dwarf spoke of letting the Dwarfs lay down the weapons in their hands alongside the Humans opposite them, the majority of the Dwarfs disagreed. The Dwarfs who had been bottling up anger inside and did not want to leave just like that immediately represented the other Dwarfs and issued a firm sound of refusal.

"Why do you disagree?"

The old Dwarf frowned tightly, pushed aside the other Dwarfs blocking his way, and came before this Dwarf who had voiced the refusal to question him.

This Dwarf stiffened his neck and shouted loudly: "We are already few in number; as long as we have weapons in our hands, we can still put up a fight against those opposite. But once we lay down our weapons, we will truly become lambs waiting to be slaughtered. Why should I be a lamb waiting to be slaughtered? You could have completely fought for better terms during the negotiations!"

The old Dwarf snorted through his nose and pointed his finger at the large empty pit not far to the side: "Everyone saw it just now, right? That Human Knight was the first to throw his own Sword into the bottom of the large pit. What is this? It is sincerity, and a concession! If the Humans can do this, then why can't we Dwarfs?"

After speaking, he turned around and picked up his own weapon that he had dropped before the negotiations, and in front of all the Dwarfs, he also made a throw, accurately tossing it into the bottom of the large pit.

A muffled thud came, and the old Dwarf turned to look at the other Dwarfs: "I have set the example first; those who want to return home, follow."

Some were restless, but seeing that no one else around them was moving much, they extinguished their fire. The old Dwarf sighed and explained to everyone once more: "Lads, this is actually our last chance. Think about it carefully; our previous life looked stable and comfortable, but in reality, it was like walking across a deep Valley on a steel cable. One moment of carelessness, and you would fall into the deep Valley and be smashed to pieces."

"And just yesterday, that Human Knight was like a great wind blowing across the deep Valley, finally blowing us, who were crossing the deep Valley, down. Whether you understand it or not, whether you realized it or not, when we failed to defeat that Human Knight yesterday, these decades of our days had already completely ended."

"Completely ended."

He repeated the final words again, his voice filled with desolation. It was obvious that the old Dwarf 'Iron Fist' did not want to leave that stable and comfortable life behind either. But he was different from the other Dwarfs; he had completely realized that they could not go back.

For them, these Dwarfs, there was only the road of returning to their homeland left to take at this moment.

Some Dwarfs who had always supported and trusted the old Dwarf were persuaded; they seemed to realize that the days of shrinking into this small Valley were no longer sustainable, so they walked out of the ranks with their heads hanging low and threw their Crystal Shields and various weapons onto the ground in front of the old Dwarf.

Clatter, clatter, bang, bang—many fine weapons that the Dwarfs had forged for themselves and used were just casually discarded on the ground like this.

Every Dwarf was quite unhappy; even if they realized that this was what should be done at this moment, the Dwarfs still felt quite humiliated, as if they had completely suffered defeat and surrendered, especially since they still had the strength to fight.

"This is simply surrender. Negotiations? Bah, this is surrender."

Dissatisfied Dwarfs complained in low voices, especially when compared to the Human Villagers cheering and celebrating across the open space; it felt even more like a surrender.

"I won't surrender, I won't discard my weapon! 'Iron Fist'! Did you sell us out? Did you get some benefit for yourself?" A Dwarf could not hold back, quickly stood out, and loudly complained and rebuked.

The old Dwarf spat to the side and pointed his finger at this Dwarf, cursing loudly: "This is not surrender! In a moment, the Humans over there will also throw all the weapons in their hands into the large pit, so that both sides can eliminate conflict because there are no weapons. Afterward, both sides will send a small number of people to guard the large pit, not letting the weapons inside be taken away, until the day we leave this place."

"You talk nicely!" the disagreeing Dwarf shouted loudly: "What kind of weapons do those Humans have? They are all farm tools that struggle to even fork a rabbit, while what weapons do we have? Good stuff that can hack them to death with one sword—can these be the same?"

The old Dwarf was so angry that the wound on his forehead throbbed with pain. Why hadn't he realized before that these people under him would be so stubborn? Sighing, he felt that perhaps it was because they had succeeded too many times in this small place before, and the sudden failure of these past two days still hadn't allowed some Dwarfs to change their mindset.

Clearly, life had always been good; why did they suddenly have to leave this place in the appearance of failure?

Many Dwarfs could not figure this matter out, which is why they were so stubborn and so resistant to handing over their weapons.

The old Dwarf was just about to explain it to them in detail, but from the west side of the village, from the direction outside the village, a clamor that only comes from a large number of people gradually drifted over.

There was the neighing of large livestock, the creaking sound of carriages carrying heavy loads as they moved forward, and the exclamations and voices of people speaking in Human Common Language.

These noisy, chaotic sounds had been appearing for a while, but because Jier's Refugee Team had been outside the village and had not yet approached, it was not easy to distinguish them unless one had good hearing. But when the Refugee Team reached the outskirts of the village and began to walk along the dirt road inside the village toward the center, this sound quickly grew louder, making it clear for everyone to hear and notice.

The old Dwarf sighed helplessly. He looked at the slightly panicked and bewildered Dwarfs before him and explained: "This is the other reason why I had to agree to the negotiation terms. That Human Knight did not come alone this time. Outside the Huitou Forest, there is a Human group that he claims numbers eight or nine hundred."

Upon hearing the number, the Dwarfs were all so surprised they didn't know what to do. Most of the Dwarfs finally understood the gap in the balance of power between the Humans and the Dwarfs, so they no longer hesitated at this moment and hurriedly threw their weapons and shields onto the ground in front of the old Dwarf.

That small handful of Dwarfs who did not want to hand over their weapons were still persisting at this moment, arguing with their mouths: "At worst, we can retreat into the Zhenbao Mine! Relying on the defensive fortifications in the mine and the stored food, we can hold out for years without any problems!"

The old Dwarf did not want to say more to them, so he ignored them and only explained and discussed the necessary preparations for leaving with the Dwarf subordinates who had already handed over their weapons and shields.

Xiao Tusi was a bit confused, especially when he saw the massive group emerging from the Huitou Forest getting closer and closer to Torito Cunzi.

He had sent a warning to the Knight Jier who was negotiating, and the other party had indeed received it, and surprisingly jumped into mid-air higher than the position he was currently staying at. Presumably, he had seen the unknown group rapidly approaching outside the village, right?

But why, even after seeing it, did Knight Jier have no reaction after landing?

Why throw the weapons into the large pit? And at such a critical moment?

Had he actually returned to the Villagers' side? Were the negotiations over?

Why were the Villagers cheering again? Hey, hey, hey, compared to the group of hundreds of people with unknown intentions outside the village, the confrontation with the Dwarfs in the village was no longer important, right?

Knight Jier, what on earth are you doing?

When the incoming unknown group began to enter the village from the west side, Xiao Tusi could no longer stay on the roof, because he was certain that quite a few of the guys in the incoming group who were carrying bows and holding Crossbows had seen him, and while advancing, they had raised their weapons and were pre-aiming at him.

After all, that was what he was doing too.

Xiao Tusi hurriedly slid down along the Villagers' roof, nimbly flipped through a window from the edge of the roof, and climbed into a Villager's house.

"Quick, everyone hide! A group of people I don't recognize has come from outside! A large group!" Shouting, Xiao Tusi warned this household of Villagers, quickly ran from the third floor of the Farmer's house to the first floor, called up a few young men from the village who had come with him, and relying on the cover of each family's Fence, carefully avoided the route the incoming group was taking to enter the village and ran quickly toward Knight Jier.

In fact, Datus and Zhongtusi were naturally also on the roof of the Human Villagers' house, and they had likewise seen that incoming unknown group.

Because it was not coming directly toward the direction they were in, they remained where they were and did not evacuate. It was just that the two of them had consciously stopped treating the Dwarfs, whose cause was lost, as enemies, and instead became vigilant against the newly arrived foreign group.

The two took the long Arrows from their quivers and stuck them one by one into the Wheat Straw roof around them. The Large Bow in their hands was also nocked with a Large Arrow, though they did not draw it now; instead, they stood up straight, ready for battle at any moment.

And they observed the entire situation in the village from their high vantage point.

The two then saw Xiao Tusi, who had originally been guarding the dirt road on the west side of the open space, withdraw early from the place he was guarding. This made the two breathe a sigh of relief, fearing that their little brother was too stubborn and didn't know how to avoid the place of greatest danger.

More and more of the Refugee Team entered the west side of Torito Cunzi. Everyone in the group was surprised that such a place, deep in the mountains, actually had such a peaceful, wealthy, and stable little village. Especially since every household in the village had its own independent, beautiful courtyard, its own wooden house, and there were even three-story houses that could accommodate a family and their livestock!

This made the young Refugees quite envious, and they pointed and gestured at every new thing around them that they hadn't seen before, talking as they walked.

And the Villagers in the surrounding houses who had not joined Jier's resistance team were even more frightened at this moment than they had been yesterday. Although the foreign Knight and the Dwarfs in the village had fought earth-shatteringly yesterday, one side of the battle had only been one person after all, and many people who hadn't seen the battle with their own eyes didn't have an intuitive sense of the strength of both sides.

But these strange outsiders who had suddenly broken into the Valley and into Torito Cunzi were different; their numbers were simply too large, and the Villagers, peeking out from door cracks and window gaps, could clearly see that every single person in this group was carrying weapons—it was truly too frightening.

The cheering of the Human Villagers on the east side of the open space gradually stopped, so the footsteps, clamor, and carriage sounds coming from the west side of the village became clear for everyone to hear.

Some people were initially puzzled as to why there was still a group of people they were resisting on the west side of the village, but soon, without making them wait long, the village elders announced that those people were not strange, hostile arrivals, but rather Knight Jier's subordinates.

Not professional Soldiers, but some displaced people that Knight Jier had gathered along the way.

The elders weighed their words, blurring the fact that the situation in the outside world, which Jier had mentioned, was bad, and simply referred to those Refugees as displaced people, as if they had all migrated from the Empire in their early years.

This could slightly increase some intimacy, making the subsequent meeting and communication less strange and stiff.

As for the Dwarves, when the Armed Civilians in the front row of the Refugee Team appeared in their line of sight, the last of the stubborn Dwarf Warriors who had been unwilling to hand over their weapons changed their previous attitude and quickly threw their gear down in front of the old Dwarf.

The old Dwarf looked at these stubborn fellows with embarrassed expressions, said nothing more, and took the initiative to invite them to join in discussing the preparations for the journey home.

Of course, the Dwarves were not stupid; they did not immediately throw their weapons into the large pit in the center of the village clearing, but instead threw them all on the ground, preparing in case the Humans went back on their word.

Among the Armed Civilians in the front row of the Refugee Team, Bata'er Jiaoshi, riding a horse, was the most eye-catching to the locals of Torito Cunzi; after all, everyone else was on foot, and only he was riding a horse, wearing a pale red Robe that was much more ornate than those of the others, with glowing decorations on the robe, and holding a Metal Long Staff with a glowing tip that emitted a dim yellow light.

At a glance, he was clearly no ordinary person.

"The carriages and the people are to stop. As for the armed personnel, except for the front row squad, all other units are to guard the flanks and the path we came from. The team is temporarily under the command of Xueya Site." The Priest riding on the horse leaped out from the crowd, waving his Metal Long Staff to direct everyone. Afterward, he led the Armed Squad responsible for the front-line combat, carefully crossing the ruins of the Dwarf Residence on the outskirts of the clearing, and approached Jier, whom he had already spotted and confirmed, along a route near the south side of the clearing.

The Armed People's First Squad usually took charge of the very front of the team, so their weapons and equipment were the best part of what had been seized from the Bandits. Although they were far from comparable to the Dwarves present, the entire squad of twenty-five people was at least equipped with Soft Leather Armor, and the weapons in their hands were all qualified weapons with sufficient weight and good maintenance.

The Squad Leader of the Armed Squad was even wearing a set of Hard Leather Armor obtained from a Bandit leader, plus a Shield and Long Sword, looking very formidable; he was a qualified Human Warrior.

Jier had naturally noticed them long ago, so seeing Bata'er Jiaoshi take the initiative to bring people over, he waved at them and shouted: "Why did you come? Didn't I tell everyone to wait for me to return at Shichui Cunzi?"

Bata'er Jiaoshi gave a wry smile, kicked his horse's belly twice to shake off the Armed Squad behind him, and carefully avoided the scattered house ruins on the ground, soon arriving in front of Jier.

He slowed the horse down, then jumped off and gave Jier a hard punch with his fist.

Bang! Jier was wearing Metal Armor and did not even sway. As for Bata'er Jiaoshi, a light flashed over his fist, and he was also completely unharmed.

The Priest complained: "Wait for you to return? You know that the way you left, in the eyes of the others in the team, it was practically like abandoning them. If I hadn't been there at the time, the whole team would have fallen apart and split up."

"I told them you were leaving for two days, but nobody believed it at all. Some people wanted to chase after the direction you left in right then and there. I said two legs can't outrun four legs, but they wanted to chase after you anyway." The Priest shook his head, complaining incessantly: "You've really caused me trouble; they actually thought that I had a disagreement with you on the route and ended up squeezing you out?"

Jier laughed out loud: "That's not the case at all. It was just that I suddenly received guidance, so I came over to take a look. And look, in this place, there are still so many Human Refugees here."

Upon hearing Jier's words, Bata'er Jiaoshi pointed to the Agricultural God Statue at his waist, but Jier shook his head and obscurely pointed to the Wooden Carving on his own neck.

The Priest knew about this item of Jier's; it seemed to represent some primitive deity, but Jier the Knight had not told him much about that deity, and the Priest himself would not take the initiative to ask about the prayers of a pagan god.

Therefore, at this moment, their obscure discussion about this matter came to an end. Just then, the twenty-some people from the Armed People's First Squad who had followed quickly also caught up. As soon as they approached, they shouted loudly at Jier: "Lord Jier, we thought you had just left like that!"

"That's right, Lord Jier definitely wouldn't abandon us."

"My Lord, the First Squad is fully assembled. Where is the enemy? We are ready for battle!"

The Squad Leader of the First Squad, wearing Hard Leather Armor, shouted loudly. He couldn't help but shout; at this time, there were collapsed Dwarf Residences everywhere around the clearing, and the two hundred or so Villagers behind Jier were also mostly holding Sickles and Pitchforks. Although the vast majority of them had happy expressions on their faces, it didn't look like the fighting was over.

Jier walked over with large strides, patted everyone in the squad, and said loudly to them: "Haha, although your arrival was beyond my expectations, you still arrived a little late! Haha, really just a tiny bit late."

The members of the Armed Squad were a bit confused, not knowing what exactly they had missed.

Jier explained: "Look opposite; those people wearing thick Metal Armor are Dwarves. Since the founding of the Saint Hors Kingdom, they have been hiding here, ruling this valley of no small size, and have even forcibly detained Human Refugees who stumbled in here."

The Armed Squad was furious upon hearing this. Although those Dwarves looked like they were not to be trifled with, Jier the Knight was right beside them, so they were not afraid at all. Bata'er Jiaoshi, however, frowned after hearing this and sighed in disbelief. After all, the Kingdom had been founded for more than ninety years, and the Empire's immigrants who had migrated and settled down had already multiplied for several generations. He had not expected that in this remote little place, there would actually be such a thing.

One must know that the Changmai Cunzi where Bata'er Jiaoshi previously lived was actually in the southern hilly region only a few days away from here, and he had to travel back and forth to the nearest Shichui Cunzi several times every year. He had not expected that behind the so-called Huitou Forest, there would actually be such an incredible situation.

The Priest had originally had a worried look on his face, but when he turned to look at the two hundred or so local Villagers gathered nearby, he found that these people were dressed decently, were in good health, and even had smiles on their faces, so he set his mind at ease again.

It seemed that although this place was absurdly managed and ruled by the alien Dwarves, the people were living quite well, at least materially. But then he saw these Villagers holding various crude weapons, standing beside Jier the Knight, and the traces of destruction all around the clearing, which made him realize that Jier the Knight must have done something again.

"Is the battle over?" the Priest asked Jier seriously.

Jier shrugged: "The battle ended just a short while before you arrived."

The Priest pointed to the large area of collapsed stone buildings around the clearing and the particularly conspicuous large pit in the clearing, and asked with some curiosity: "Was the battle that intense? You led these Villagers and fought the Dwarves opposite like this?"

Jier laughed heartily: "Fought yesterday, it was all fought yesterday. Of course, it was basically fought by me and a few powerful fellows on the Dwarf side. The battle was intense, but it couldn't be called cruel. You wouldn't believe it if I told you, but from the start of the battle yesterday until now, not a single person has died on either side."

Bata'er Jiaoshi breathed a sigh of relief: "It seems the battle was quite restrained?"

Jier patted his chest proudly: "Actually, it was me who was more restrained."