Warriors will die if they charge.

Dwarves are reliable; this is a consensus among adventurers.

These resilient and tenacious long-lived creatures are born with an extraordinary ability to learn about steel, tools, and technology. They can shoulder the heavy burden of the battle line when they pick up an axe, be the best archers when they wield a powerful crossbow, and serve as logistical support for the team when they lay down their weapons.

There's a saying circulating in the community: "Newbie adventurers treat elves like treasures, thinking their noble and elegant temperament can solve problems on the road, strangle goblins with their long legs, and warm your tent."

But truly experienced players only hope to have a few dwarf mentors in their party. If you happen to be a mage and gain the dwarves' trust, then all the problems in the adventure will be solved.

The problem is that you can't gain the trust of a dwarf while also being a mage.

Bardin pursed his lips, ignoring the redhead who was trying to be friendly, and said to Marcus, "Keep drinking, I'll teach you how to play bridge later."

The burly orc, as imposing as a mountain, grinned as he walked over to Badin, plopped down, and placed two plates of pickled cucumbers on the table as snacks: "Dwarf Master, if you want to find some treasure in Riverside Town, I, Ohar Stonecrush, am definitely the best helper. No one is more reliable than me."

Marcus wanted to interject, "You're poaching people right in front of us, are you here to cause trouble?"

But then they saw Bardin slowly raise his right hand, his tattooed knuckles clenched, and he struck the dark green back of the orc Ohar's hand on the table with a hammer.

A thunderous punch, a heavy slam, sent Oha trembling, and the pickled cucumbers on the table scattered.

Bardin turned to stare at the enraged Ohar; though barely reaching the orc's chest, his imposing presence was like a mountain.

"Get lost, you orcish beasts! I've killed countless green-skinned bastards in the mountains; your filth and excrement will make my beard stink!"

The atmosphere became tense. Oha endured the pain, his hand pressed under the dwarf's fist, his gaze fixed on the red-haired woman, waiting for a signal from his leader.

With just a glance, he could smash a dwarf's head into his neck, turning it into a solid pile of stones.

But the red-haired woman waved to the orc, and with an apologetic gesture, raised her cup to her dwarf master again:

"I am Kelly, the captain of the stray dogs. Oha used to be digging in the sand at home and got brainwashed by gold. He thought everyone liked smelly orcs. I apologize with a drink."

She downed the wine in one gulp, turned the glass upside down, and left not a drop.

The dwarf slowly released his fist from Ohar's hand, and his expression softened slightly when he saw the orc leave the bench on his own: "Speak, Harry, what do you want with old Bardeen? Once you've said that, you can get lost."

It was common knowledge that dwarves had long axes and short tempers, and Kelly knew that continuing the small talk would only annoy Bardin.

She waved to the lean man standing behind her, took a yellowed piece of paper, and spread it out on the table.

The paper was covered with dense black lines drawn with charcoal, a clumsy technique that reminded Marcus of the marks left by boogers when he used scraps of paper to wipe his nose.

"This is a mining map we bought at a high price from a miner. It's located in the Card Hills outside the town. The vein was confirmed to have been exhausted sixty years ago, and now it's being used as a hideout by a group of goblins. They're very cunning. We've tried several times to go deep into the mine to find the rest..." Kelly stopped talking, flipped her sleeve, and picked up a silver coin between her fingers. It was clearly a silver mine.

"My dear, you've all been led astray by the goblins into a dead end. No one knows the mines better than the dwarves. I'd like to invite you and this... friend to go into the mine and find the last batch of raw materials the miners mentioned, and split the spoils 30/70."

Silver mining was once the pillar industry of Linhe Town. A medium-sized silver vein was hidden under the trees and mud. People were full of enthusiasm and dug holes around every possible place where silver might be found.

At its peak, if a sorcerer were to fly over Linhe Town, he would clearly see hundreds of exposed mines in the rainforest, refineries filled with deadly toxic fumes, and the corpses of acute mercury poisoning victims thrown into the Nikkalo River to feed the Queen of the Water Demons.

Baron Jadson Archier, as the lord, went to great lengths to personally preside over the selection ceremony for miners, drawing men over the age of twelve from the town to enter the mines. His governance methods were characterized by both compassion and forceful enforcement.

Most of the silver mined eventually flowed north to Silver Mountain City with Jadson, and this small town, which had briefly prospered due to the silver rush, was eventually forgotten in the corner of civilization.

Bardin took the map, frowned, and glanced at it. "Are the drainage pumps still working? How high is the water level in the mine?"

Kelly shook her head; that was why she was willing to offer 30% of the compensation.

Stray dogs can tear open the throats of goblins with their teeth and nourish themselves with their flesh and blood, but they cannot get around the hard rocks, groundwater, and rotten load-bearing pillars in the mining area no matter how hard they try.

"Even the longest-bearded dwarf would give you a thumbs up if you went into a mine filled with water," Bardin commented sarcastically, tossing the blueprints back onto the table.

"Give up, you little brat. Even if the last batch of silver you mentioned still exists, it must have sunk into the water. Who can retrieve a heavy silver smelting furnace from underwater?"

"Is there really no other way?" Kelly asked, unwilling to give up. "Perhaps when the weather clears up, the water level in the mine will drop."

"Fool," Bardin said. "The mine needs to be drained constantly. The deeper you dig, the faster the groundwater seeps into the rock. You think I was talking about rainfall?"

The dwarf waved his hand, indicating that there was nothing to discuss; silver often meant blood and trouble.

Kelly was somewhat disappointed. Most of the experienced miners in the town had passed away, and the miner who sold her the blueprints was an old man who was paralyzed in bed and it was impossible for him to go down into the mine with her.

If the dwarves say no, the chance of finding the last silver mine becomes extremely slim.

"Perhaps we can give it a try?"

Marcus suddenly interjected, grinning with his big white teeth, "Actually, I'm quite good at diving. If we can find a long enough rope and pulley system, we might be able to pull that furnace up."

[Quest: Blood Silver]

[Mission Description: Sixty years ago, the merchant Gikara, who contracted a mining area from Baron Jadson Archil, came to Riverside Town with the best equipment from Silver Mountain City. The advanced magic drills and furnaces gave the mining area new life. The shrewd merchant dug a huge cave underground to smelt silver on the spot, thus avoiding the king's law of taking one-tenth of the mineral resources.]

He dug deeper and deeper, his pockets overflowing with silver until the silver mine he had contracted was emptied. His magic drill then probed even deeper, touching an underground river. The icy waters submerged the equipment and the laborers beside the furnaces, turning several connected mining areas into a pool of water.

Jikala had already left and was enjoying the enormous wealth brought by silver in Silver Mountain City.

Kelly from the Stray Dogs team invites you to explore a mine flooded by an underground river with Bardin (primarily Bardin). The mine has long been overrun by goblins, and these highly adaptable green-skinned creatures are digging wildly with tools once used by the miners, seemingly unearthing something strange.

[Quest Reward: 1 Rare Card Scroll]

【Whether to accept? 】

Yes!

Marcus saw Bardin shrug indifferently and then give Kelly, who was sitting next to him, a bright smile:

"Silver? Nobody knows silver better than me. These little guys are covered in blood, but I love how beautiful they look when they shimmer in the sunlight."