“No!” Kraghtol realized that he, too, had raised his voice now and tried again. “No. We’re not here to take away anything. We were just looking for him because…”
He couldn’t very well tell her the real reason, that he looked for help in avoiding the wrath of the guilds.
“… we met some of his friends in Winterstone.”
It didn’t sound very convincing in his own ears, but Valir joined the conversation and drew the attention to himself.
“Instead of baseless accusations, how about you show us the courtesy of introducing yourself, too?” He demanded, sounding every bit like an insulted nobleman. “And for your information, we are not some pillagers you seem to confuse us with. My friend here is analchemist, andI—”
“Valir is a bard.” Kraghtol interrupted him quickly. “And I’m not really an alchemist yet, but a student.”
Valir looked at Kraghtol sourly for a moment, but before he could answer, the dwarf woman exploded again.
“Ha! So, you admit you are with the guilds and want to finish what you started!”
“What? I’m not —” Kraghtol let out his breath, trying very hard to keep a friendly face and a calm voice. She stillhada crossbow, although she was not pointing it at them anymore.
“I’m not with the guilds. It’s a long story. Now, could youpleasetell me what you’re talking about?”
A moment of silence passed before the dwarf sighed.
“Fine.I believe you. At least that you’re clueless.”
She unceremoniously stuffed her weapon into one of her many pockets and began to dismantle the sphere with nimble fingers.
“My name is Dagna. Dagna Emberforge. Voldrik is my uncle, and I’m the last inventor in Bronzebreak.”
Chapter 13
The Last Inventor
Kraghtol blinked. “People told us there are no inventors in Bronzebreak anymore. And that the profession is frowned upon.”
“Ha!” Dagna puffed. “I suppose that’s kind of true.Nowadays, there are no more inventors. At least no one out in the open. Nobody dares to oppose the sacredtraditions. We’re a fine bunch of hypocrites, really; behind closed doors, we’re making fun of the elves for praying to their moon or star god or whatever, and in reality, we’re no better. But our god is the stonescript of tradition, and the Guild of Crafts is its temple.”
“So, I take it you’re a non-open inventor then? Given your previous comment, the only one?” Valir asked dryly, and Dagna glared at him with fire in her eyes and planted her hands on her hips.
“Yes. Like my uncle, before he left the city. They are trying to erase him from history, like a stain or an abnormality. But they’re the ones who disturbed the status quo first. In the past, Bronzebreak wasfamous for its ingenious inventors. Do you know what this place used to be called? Thefoundry of inventors— that’s what!”
More and more questions popped up in Kraghtol’s mind, and he impatiently waited for Dagna to stop talking in order to ask them. When she finally did, he needed a moment to select the most pressing one.
“That sounds like something to be proud of. Why would anyone want to erase that?”
“Because,” she said in a mocking voice, “every meaningful invention has already been made. There is nothing left to research but foolery.”
“But that’s trollshit! Your smoke-sphere, for example, seems really useful,” Kraghtol protested, and Dagna nodded.
“Exactly. And thank you. I’m just glad it worked this time. The dwarves of Bronzebreak have gone from being the cleverest ones to the stupidest ones in just a few hundred years.”
“I suppose Voldrik shared your sentiments in that regard? Did he teach them to you?” Valir asked and smiled thinly as Dagna hesitated.
“In a way,” she answered.
“You’ve never met him, have you?” Valir asked. Kraghtol was genuinely surprised. The noble was really good at reading people!
“Not… in person,” Dagna admitted. “I wasn’t born when he left. But my ma told me all kinds of stories about him! She’s his sister.”
“Hold on. How old are you?” Kraghtol asked and looked her up and down as if he were seeing her for the first time.
