Is it wrong to try to meet someone in a dungeon?

"""Um……"""

"I object!!"

Loki, Aina, and Finn fell into thought, while Riveria, her opinions completely ignored, began to shout. Seeing even her own servants ignoring her, she blushed, while her two sisters, who were now completely close to her, giggled and cheered.

"Grace Landrock... I inquired around in the village and got a pretty good understanding of his character."

Finn’s gaze shifted to the two sisters sitting on Riveria’s lap.

"Grace, you're amazing!" "Yes—!"

"He was a troublemaker when he was little. We warned him about the dangers, but he single-handedly dealt with monsters wreaking havoc in the mountains several times, and even won a martial arts tournament held in a nearby country!"

"But now he's the village's number one workaholic! He's gathered that bunch of hooligans together and they're constantly running around mining coal for the village's sake. Even those guys from Karuna in the post town can't compare to him; he's the village's pride!"

Amid the sisters' laughter, the innkeeper and his wife, who were also their blood relatives, brought in drinks and food and joined the conversation. Seeing the couple laughing so heartily, Aina gave a wry smile.

"She has great arm strength, is loyal, and reasonable..."

"He's loyal, takes care of his underlings... and has a bit of an old man vibe."

Finn and Loki ruminated on and summarized the information they had heard about Grace so far.

"—Phew. Found it, Finn. A clue to taking down that stubborn dwarf."

"Hey? What is it?"

Finn asked Loki, who soon smiled smugly.

Ignoring Aina, who was observing the two with the thought, "No matter what, they really have a good relationship," the goddess suddenly stood up.

"There's only one way to persuade that stubborn dwarf! Not three visits, but a truly 'threefold courtesan' approach!"

(Note: The phrase "三娘之礼" here is a pun. In Japanese, "三顾の礼" means "to visit someone three times," where "三顾" is pronounced "sanko." Similarly, "三娘" in the original text of "三娘之礼" is also pronounced "sanko." Additionally, in Classical Chinese, "娘" can also mean a young woman (often referring to a girl), which will be explained in more detail in the following text.)

Later, the dwarf conquest mission, passed down orally through generations of the Loki Familia, began.

Sword Oratoria BD Bonus BD6: The Dwarfs' Journey Part 2

The online translation is from the Kingdom of Light

Translation: Zhu Jiu

"Seriously, what's going on? Those dwarfs and goddesses!"

In one of the taverns in the dwarven underground settlement of 'Lensa', Grace and his group of young dwarven miners were drinking heavily and making a drunken ruckus.

"I've seen quite a few [Familia] before, but I've never encountered one this annoying before!"

"They actually dare to try and win over Brother Grace? They're utterly ignorant and arrogant!"

Their complaints were directed at Finn and his Loki Familia. Despite having refused without hesitation, they still came several times to try and persuade Grace.

Just as Grace himself was ignoring the commotion of his underlings and silently drinking his wine—

"Hoohoo...you're calling us, aren't you?"

"Huh!?"

The sudden appearance of the red-haired goddess startled the dwarves, causing them to lean back in fright.

"What are you doing here?!"

"There's only one reason to come to the tavern! To drink!"

"This guy, shameless...!?"

As if declaring that he, as a guest, had no right to be criticized, Loki immediately started drinking.

The dwarves' veins bulged as they faced the goddess who sat down at the table so openly.

"Hey, how about a drinking contest?"

"Stop talking nonsense! Even a goddess wouldn't forgive that!"

"Ah~, really? You're scared, aren't you? Afraid of being drunk out of the way? Well, then there's nothing I can do~"

"What did you say?!"

The easily provoked, simple-minded dwarves excitedly shouted, "Just what I wanted!" "Let's fight!" Grace stared at the smug Loki, a suspicious look on his face as he thought, "Something's fishy." The dwarves, including himself, were heavy drinkers and were absolutely certain of their victory.

Then, a few hours after the drinking contest began.

All the dwarves except for Grace were wiped out.

"Oh, is that all? All you lackeys are good at is talking, huh?"

"...So it wasn't a goddess after all, but a massive python?"

(Note: The names "megami" and "uwabami" are puns. "Uwabami" also means "abundant" or "massive" in Japanese.)

Loki smiled, standing beside the dwarves who lay on the ground groaning "Ugh," "Ugh..." Even the innkeeper who brought out the wine was trembling with fear.

Grace, bringing the glass to her lips, stared at the woman in front of her. Her eyes were slightly glazed with intoxication, yet somehow composed.

"But you're quite impressive. You actually managed to compete with me."

"Hmph, I'm not so fragile that I can't help but yell."

As the two continued drinking, their faces naturally turned red.

But once intoxication sets in, judgment naturally declines. Grace, who had been completely outmaneuvered until now, began to have normal conversations with Loki.

"We feel that if we're going to create a [Family], it's meaningless if we don't reach the top. If we're going to do it, we have to do it the best! Our goal is to be the center of the world, the number one in the Labyrinth City!"

"If you're going to do something, you have to do it to the best of your ability, that's only natural. I'll do that too... But, Labyrinth City, huh?"

He seemed to agree at first, but then whispered something with a hint of envy in his voice.

Grace glanced into the distance, then quickly composed herself as if nothing had happened.

"So, you mean I'm necessary for that powerful [Family]? If that's the case, can you still drink?"

Although he was quite drunk and had already put on a show of bravado, Grace became interested.

Just as he inadvertently curled the corners of his mouth,

"Hmm... I'll head back now for today."

"What...? You've already given up?"

Loki's reply, however, showed a complete lack of interest.

"I'm quite comfortable with this drunkenness... And even if we win this time, it'll be completely meaningless if we can't convince you to join the [Family]."

"..."

"Besides, even when you're drunk, you don't seem to open up to us."

The goddess, who had risen before the silent Grace, stood there and smiled.

"Hoo hoo hoo. I'm just the first assassin."

"...?"

"Just you wait, you stubborn dwarf. I'll definitely win you over."

The goddess, swaying eerily from side to side while drunk, declared with a smug look on her face.

"We'll use the 'Third Sister's Courtesy' to win you over!"

The day after Loki barged into the tavern.

The coal mine is closed for the holidays. All the miners except Grace are too drunk to work.

While the interruption of assignments is frustrating, the opportunity to have some leisure time alone is indeed something we haven't had in a long time.

After nightfall, Grace left the settlement and moved to a cliff with a stunning view on the back hill.

"I never expected to be able to relax because of those guys..."

Under the dim moonlight, the forest was shrouded in silence.

He gazed at the vast night sky, immersing himself in moon-viewing and wine-drinking alone.

"They've refused so many times, they're really a bunch of incomprehensible people... The Loki Familia, huh?"

Grace looked up at the moon and muttered to herself, then noticed the approaching presence.

"Even dwarves have a sense of humor!"

The visitor was Riveria.

A high goblin emerged from the shadows of the trees and approached Grace, uttering unpleasant words.

"...Are you here to disturb my drinking, you arrogant high fairy?"

When Grace replied with such a cold expression, Riveria suddenly began to act suspiciously.

Grace frowned, a hint of suspicion in her eyes. Riveria blushed, then spoke.

"...I'm here to retract the insults I made to your village."

These words made Grace's eyes widen.

"Your settlement is a good place. It's much more welcoming than the high elf villages I've lived in."

"you……"

"Dwarves are not all savages... This is the first time I've felt that way since arriving here."

Riveria had previously made disparaging remarks about the dwarves and the settlement of Lenza in front of Grace. While those were impulsive remarks made in the heat of the moment, they also likely reflected her own thoughts.

She sensed something about her two sisters, who were fairies, and about the dwarf villagers who were happy to associate with her, and felt ashamed of herself.

Riveria did not come here to persuade the Familia—though she would never admit it herself—but to apologize to the insulted Grace.

Grace stared intently at the profile of the person who never met her gaze, only looking at the night view.

"...I've heard that high fairies are a group of creatures who never leave their villages."

"?"

Why did you leave your village?

This time it was Grace's turn to speak.

Grace's understanding of fairies was that they were a prejudiced, annoying, and overly formal race.

Why would a princess of that race be here? Grace looked at that profile with a question in her eyes as she came to her senses.

"To see a world I've never seen before."

Riveria answered Grace's question straightforwardly.

"I didn't deceive my own heart. That's why I broke with convention and left the village."

"...!"

"What I did may be irresponsible from the perspective of royalty. But a life forced by others, constantly deceiving oneself, and bound by lies... is no different from that of a caged bird."

The fairy's emerald eyes shone with a genuine brilliance, even surpassing the moonlight.

Grace felt inferior about this.

For the first time, he saw fairies as dazzling beings, and felt extremely ashamed of himself for it.

Then, I felt deeply resentful that I couldn't even control my temper.

"I have a dream. Now I'm finally starting to take steps towards that dream."

Shifting her gaze back to the scenery, Rivera, looking delighted, quietly summarized it thus.

Sure enough, it was because of her that the wine we drank under the moonlight became completely tasteless.

"dream……"

"?"

Do you think it's ever too late to pursue your dreams?

While keeping their eyes apart, Grace whispered these words.

Soon, her emerald-green hair swayed in the wind, and the voice of a beautiful fairy drifted into the night.

"There's no time to lose when it comes to pursuing your dreams."

The princess of the high fairies revealed a helpless expression, even one of disgust.