I’m in the Arms of the Cursed Grand Duke - Chapter 81

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 81

Zephyrus observed Herald carefully.

Except for Clemente, he had never examined anyone so thoroughly.

A dwarf?

Of course he resembled one.

But it didn’t make sense.

“Dwarves…? Weren’t they already extinct?”

It wasn’t just the dwarves.

Elves and beastmen had all gone extinct too.

They had all disappeared over 300 years ago, leaving only humans behind.

Some researchers had predicted that humans would soon go extinct as well, but all such theories were buried.

Because even after they disappeared, humans continued on the path of prosperity.

“Anyone can see he looks like a dwarf. He looks exactly like the dwarf illustrations in the book ‘The Age of Fairies.'”

“That’s…”

Zephyrus could see it too. But Emile, who was supposedly his grandson, clearly wasn’t a dwarf.

“Emile isn’t a dwarf though.”

“A dwarf and a human mixed together. Right?”

Clemente’s words were trying to fit the pieces together.

They had to.

If it were true that dwarves, supposedly extinct, had been hiding and living in this glass workshop.

Then just how troublesome a secret were they concealing?

However, Zephyrus’s hopes were quickly shattered.

“Heh heh! Good insight. No, is it intuition?”

That was as good as confirming he was indeed a dwarf.

“I knew it! I was right!”

Clemente cheered with joy.

“Why… if you were alive, why didn’t you come out? And what’s this contract with Pruina about?”

“Heh heh… Curious? Can I trust you?”

“Didn’t you call us here to tell us?”

Zephyrus continued speaking while unbuttoning his tightly fastened coat.

“I’ll decide whether to believe it or not, so don’t waste time and just tell us.”

“Well then, I’ll tell you the conclusion first.”

Herald put a cigarette to his mouth, then removed it and spoke calmly.

“The contract was to find places imbued with fairy power during my lifetime.”

“Fairy power? Such things still remain?”

“They remain.”

Herald’s hazy gaze briefly swept over Clemente before falling away.

“Let’s say that’s true. What do you give to Pruina?”

“We provide goods of value that human abilities cannot imitate.”

“…Glass crafts? It doesn’t seem like you make them yourself. Is there meaning in that?”

“They’re my blood descendants. There couldn’t be craftsmen with better skills than that.”

Right. There weren’t.

That’s why Pruina’s glass crafts were considered the finest decorations among connoisseurs.

“Doesn’t most of that money go to the workshop? There’s nothing good for the domain. Is there nothing else?”

“There’s honor.”

“Honor doesn’t help the current Pruina.”

“It was enough in the past. The domain becoming poor isn’t the glass workshop’s fault.”

Zephyrus was still too young to overcome 500 years of experience.

When he briefly closed his mouth, Herald let out a triumphant sigh.

“Whew. Since you haven’t heard anything from your father, it’s difficult to explain everything one by one.”

“You should have written it down earlier.”

“If I had, your father would have told you. This story can’t be spoken of even once outside the workshop.”

“Couldn’t you just read it here and leave?”

“Can’t you see these hands trembling without the strength to even hold a cigarette?”

“Your mouth moves just fine though.”

Neither Herald nor Zephyrus would yield an inch.

‘If he wants to go home quickly, why is he acting like this?’

Clemente shook her head watching the two men’s pointless fight.

“Now, now. I’m curious too, so tell us quickly. Grandfather, why did you make such a contract with Pruina and why are you searching for land imbued with fairy power? That’s what’s important.”

The gentle warmth emanating from her body became a breeze that heated the room.

“What we’ve talked about so far won’t be enough. I don’t know much, so I’ll ask about this and that. Grandfather, you’re a party to the contract, right?”

Gulp.

Herald swallowed dry saliva.

If he made a mistake, the gentle warmth seemed like it could become hot enough to drench him in sweat at any moment.

“Alright. Calm down. Yes, where should I start explaining… Would it be good if I tell you why I made the contract first?”

Of course, cold sweat was already streaming down profusely.

**

Let’s see.

How much time had passed.

This is a story from when Herald was still a baby dwarf.

When he was only 30 years old.

At that time, Herald’s Mother left these last words.

“The fate of the dwarves rests on you.”

Young Herald didn’t know what that meant.

Now that he’s left alone, he knows all too well.

“Our extinction was already a predetermined fate. In an age when fairy power was disappearing, dwarves who lived receiving the power of Earth Fairies couldn’t survive.”

“Earth Fairies?”

“Yes. Isn’t there a legend of fire fairies here too? Fairies weren’t legends. They really existed.”

“Wow. Then have you ever seen fairies directly?”

Clemente asked.

“I haven’t. Even though I’ve never seen them directly, all dwarves could feel the power of Earth Fairies. Eyes that could see the cracks in the earth and the grain of ore. Stamina that could withstand the heat of furnaces. Everything was power that came from Earth Fairies.”

“Ooh. So what? What connection is there between the fate of your race and the contract with Pruina? And why did fairy power disappear?”

Herald chuckled.

“I feel like a grandfather telling old stories to his young grandchild.”

“You are a grandfather. Quickly tell us more.”

To Clemente, the matter of the contract with Pruina no longer seemed important. Looking at those sparkling eyes, it seemed like he could answer everything he knew.

‘But if it’s not about the contract, talking about it now would only cause confusion.’

Herald cleared his throat and returned to the original story.

“I don’t know why fairy power disappeared. If I knew, I would have tried to stop it. What we could do at the time was prepare to endure as long as possible.”

This Northern Region where Pruina was established was also good for dwarves to stay.

Especially underground.

It was thanks to this that Herald could endure even though Earth Fairies had disappeared.

Because it was underground, the Earth Fairies’ power faded very slowly, but the power of other fairies also helped.

Other fairies meaning fire, water, and wind.

Including Earth Fairies, unlike the old days when the power of all four fairies was imbued throughout the world, now there were hardly any cases where that power remained.

Except for the Northern Region.

He could only vaguely guess that it might be because this was the last place where all the fairies had gathered.

“That’s why I asked them to find land imbued with fairy power in the Northern Region. Being buried underground is passive. Even as time passes, there’s nothing I can do.”

“Do you think land imbued with fairy power still remains even now?”

“The fact that I’m alive is proof of that.”

It meant that Herald would have died long ago if he didn’t have the remaining fairy power.

“Tsk tsk, it would have been good if we had found it early on.”

As time passed, there were more people who didn’t know what fairy power was.

They didn’t consider it important either.

He could see that they just habitually informed the next generation about the existence of the contract and put it away like a custom.

“At that time, dwarves were rare. We thought that if it became known that they had settled in one place, Pruina Domain might collapse.”

Because humans never know when they might slip up.

They made a contract to never speak about the glassworks basement and the dwarves outside.

“As time went on, I thought we had made the wrong contract. Well, what could we do? That was the best we could do at the time.”

Zephyrus, who had been listening quietly, asked.

“I understand. Then why are there restrictions on the glass crafts given as payment for staying here?”

Even selling just one craft item would bring money.

However, not all of that money went to the domain. Rather, after deducting various distribution costs, there wasn’t much left.

“That was also for Pruina Domain at first, but…”

Herald scratched his head with the end of his pipe.

“It’s dwarf-made, isn’t it? It shows even without telling anyone. It was like that in the old days. So we handed it over as if we had excavated relics. The money… we have to make a living too, don’t we? We just charged the commission a bit heavily.”

That too was just how the situation changed over time.

“When we made the contract, it was a good contract for both sides! And is that the problem? Pruina also failed to keep the contract! I won’t be able to find land blessed with fairy power until the day I leave this world!”

Herald, who had become unnecessarily embarrassed, shouted angrily. And immediately started coughing.

The elderly dwarf. The last dwarf who had received his death sentence finally coughed up blood.

Red flowers bloomed on the white bed.

“Grandfather!”

Just as Clemente was startled and about to approach, Zephyrus grabbed her hand.

Clemente soon understood the reason why.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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