When I Was Reincarnated, All the Heroines Were Stolen by the Fake Hero ~ The Guy Who Dominated With Original Story Knowledge, and Me Who Dominated With Talent. It Seems the World After the Ending Is My One-Man Stage ~ - Episode 48

Episode 48

A short man with a magnificent beard appeared out of nowhere.

At the sound of his sharp voice, Ulrika clung even more tightly to my arm.

“Hyah! A-ancient person’s ghost!?”

Apparently, in her mind, the person before us didn’t register as a dwarf at all.

Perhaps, like with elves, the true nature of dwarves was also barely known.

I gently patted her trembling back to calm her and stepped forward to face the man.

“Sorry for the sudden visit. My name is Yutaka. I’m the human leader of a nearby region.”

I introduced myself in the calmest tone possible to show we meant no harm.

The presumably dwarf man looked momentarily surprised by my words. He then immediately rushed over in a flustered manner.

“A human…? No, more importantly—!”

His expression seemed more mixed with urgency and surprise than anger.

“How in the world did you lot get here? There should’ve been a ferocious Dragon spewing poison beyond that sealed path!”

So, he did know about the Toxic Dragon.

And that rock wall must’ve been meant to protect this place from it.

I glanced at Ulrika, then casually replied,

“Oh, that Dragon? She defeated it.”

At my words, the man’s eyes widened in disbelief.

“W-w-what!? You defeated that Dragon!?”

Then he moved right up to Ulrika, who was still clinging to my arm. And he grasped her small hands with both of his.

“Oooh… How can I ever thank you…! Thank you, thank you!”

He enthusiastically shook Ulrika’s hands up and down.

Though startled at first, Ulrika seemed to realize he wasn’t some ancient ghost.

“Eh? N-no… that kind of thing’s a piece of cake for me!”

She turned her face away with a pout. But a proud smile was forming on her lips.

It looked like she had dropped her guard.

Sensing the atmosphere had relaxed all at once, I decided to properly introduce myself again.

“Once again, I’m Yutaka. I serve as the human leader of a region a bit away from here, called the Vixel Domain. So… if you don’t mind me asking, are you a dwarf?”

The man stopped shaking hands. He nodded deeply while his grand beard swayed.

“Indeed. I am Darphen. Like yourself, I serve as the leader of this dwarf village.”

Hearing that, Ulrika raised her voice in surprise.

“Eh!? This is a dwarf!?”

I chuckled and asked,

“What exactly were you imagining?”

“Well, in the picture books I read as a kid, they had big mouths and huge fangs… I never imagined they’d be tiny humans…?”

Her words were rude. But I knew she meant no harm.

Darphen didn’t seem offended at all and let out a hearty laugh.

“Haha! True, maybe our faces are bigger than humans’. But we don’t have fangs.”

He opened his wide mouth with a grin. He was showing off his clean, even teeth.

I was genuinely relieved to see how friendly and easygoing the dwarf was—

Though defeating the long-standing problem known as the Toxic Dragon probably played a big part in that.

“But it’s no good keeping our saviors standing around like this. Please, come to my home—let us talk while I give you a proper thank-you!”

Still full of excitement, Darphen spread his arms wide.

In times like this, it’s best to just accept their kindness. Refusing would likely be rude.

“Thank you. Then we’ll gladly take you up on your offer.”

As I said that, Darphen nodded with satisfaction and began walking. He led the way for us.

＊ ＊ ＊

As we walked with Darphen, I turned my eyes to the surrounding architecture.

All of it was quite different from what humans build on the surface.

The homes seemed carved from rock—rugged, with intricate geometric patterns etched into the walls and pillars. They gave off a majestic atmosphere.

It felt like walking through a gallery of massive artworks.

“These are all amazing buildings.”

I spoke honestly, and Darphen turned back with a pleased expression.

“Oh-ho, it makes me glad to hear that. We dwarves treasure nothing more than having our work praised by others.”

At that moment, Ulrika—walking beside us—spoke up with curious excitement.

“Hey hey, I heard that some of the buildings in the royal capital were made by dwarves. Is that true?”

“Aye, that was back in our grandfathers’ time. If you’re interested, we can talk about it once we get to my home.”

I recalled a story Ulrika had told me before—

About how the dwarves who worked on the royal capital’s architecture had a falling out with the royal family.

Just what happened between them?

While pondering that historical mystery, I followed after Darphen.