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 49

Episode 49

Led by Darphen, we climbed a gently sloping stone staircase.

And at the top—an overwhelming sight took our breath away.

What lay before us was a structure far more majestic and magnificent than any building we had seen so far.

The walls were adorned with intricate carvings of magical creatures like Dragons and Phoenixes. On either side of the entrance stood stone statues with blue gemstones embedded in their eyes.

It was no longer something one could call a private residence—it was a true temple.

“We’re here. This is the place,”

Darphen said as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

“This is… yours, Darphen-dono?”

I asked. I was unable to hide my surprise. He stroked his impressive beard with a finger and replied casually:

“Aye, I built it when I was young. Though now, looking at it again, it’s a shoddy piece of work.”

I couldn’t understand what part of it could possibly be considered “shoddy.”

Calling this temple-like structure “poorly made” left me stunned—not by Darphen himself, but by the sheer craftsmanship of the dwarves as a race. Their architectural skill was terrifyingly high.

Inside, aside from everything being made of stone, it was surprisingly similar in layout to a normal home.

Darphen took out three clear, glass-like cups from a shelf and filled them with water. The water was likely drawn from a nearby barrel.

He sat at a stone table placed in the center and gestured for us to join him.

As he sat, I followed suit—but the chairs were designed for dwarven builds. They had low seats and awkwardly placed backrests. It made them a bit uncomfortable.

Ulrika, on the other hand, seemed to notice that before even trying to sit. Instead, she sat on her own staff. She floated lightly in the air.

Darphen took a sip of water, let out a relaxed sigh, and began speaking.

“Well then, let’s start with an old tale.”

“Yes, please,”

I prompted him. And he began speaking with a distant gaze.

“About 400 years ago, during our grandfathers’ time. Our kind lived alongside humans in a country called Virein.”

“Together with humans?”

Ulrika asked, surprised.

“Aye. In fact, I’ve heard that we dwarves and the humans built that country together.”

But here, Darphen paused and lowered his gaze.

“However… a serious problem eventually arose.”

“Ah… I’ve heard there were issues with the royal family at the time…”

I said. Darphen then raised his head. He nodded bitterly.

“Indeed. The issue… was our own excessive obsession.”

That was unexpected. I furrowed my brows. What did he mean by that?

Darphen continued.

“As you can see, we dwarves tend to make everything overly ornate and intricate. When we were entrusted with building structures in the royal capital, that trait backfired. The buildings we constructed outshone even the king’s castle. Naturally, the royal family was displeased—‘How can the king maintain his dignity like this?’ they said. That conflict led to a rift between us.”

“That’s terrible! The kings were just vain and prideful!”

Ulrika exclaimed angrily.

I see… Making everything lavish and beautiful, huh.

From a king’s perspective, I suppose it’s understandable to want their residence to stand out above all others to project their power and authority.

Dwarven craftsmanship clashed with royal pride.

I… could kind of see both sides.

Darphen continued in a heavy tone:

“So our grandfathers left Virein. They were disillusioned by the humans. And to never interact with them again, they descended deep underground. That’s what I was told.”

“Then, Darphen-dono, does that mean… you don’t want to associate with humans either?”

I asked, and Darphen firmly shook his head.

“No, for our generation, it’s the opposite.”

“The opposite?”

“Aye. Our generation… our fathers and grandfathers rigidly followed that resolve. They never allowed us to leave the underground. We were only permitted to build traditional structures. But we longed to go aboveground, to build newer, different kinds of buildings.”

I see.

The pain of betrayal passed from generation to generation. And in the end, it bound even the freedom of the children and grandchildren.

What a tragic irony.

“And finally, when that hard-headed older generation passed on, we thought our time had come! But then—came that poison-spewing Dragon!”

Suddenly raising his voice, Darphen slammed the table with a loud *bang* and stood up forcefully.

“Just as we stood at the brink of hope, it was *you two*—Ulrika-dono and Yutaka-dono—who came and easily defeated that Dragon!”

With emotion swelling in his voice, he gripped both of our hands tightly.

“Truly, I can’t thank you enough…!”

Tears even welled in his eyes.

“I-I had no idea it was that serious…”

Ulrika was overwhelmed by his intensity. She seemed a little taken aback.

With tears still brimming, Darphen declared in a powerful voice:

“If you ever need anything, just say the word! We’ll *definitely* be there to help you!”

The moment I heard those words, a light went off in my head.

Could it be? No—there’s no “could” about it.

One of the biggest challenges in restoring the Vixel Domain—the construction issue—might now be solvable.