The dwarf dangling in midair sighed.
“Hey, you brat! Can’t I even go to the convenience store if I want to?”
“Dwarf. According to the agreement, any outing beyond the unit was supposed to be reported in advance and approved.”
At the battalion commander’s knife-sharp words, the dwarf immediately shouted.
“I! On my own two feet! Am going out! So why! What! What, what!”
At the shameless dwarf’s reply, the battalion commander grabbed him by the scruff of the neck and spun him around.
“Uwaaaaah!”
“You can’t. You dwarf.”
“Kyaaak! Damned human!”
Having returned to the unit before anyone knew it, the battalion commander glared fixedly at the guardhouse chief.
The guardhouse chief hurriedly ran out and planted his head on the ground.
“You. Pass this on starting with the next duty shift. If anyone takes another bribe from this dwarf and lets him through, they’re done for.”
“Yes, sir!”
“On your feet.”
The guardhouse chief sprang upright.
The dwarf looked at the guardhouse chief with pitying eyes.
“Pathetic fellow. To think you’d submit to someone like this.”
“I ought to—sigh.”
The battalion commander flung him away.
The dwarf thrown into the air landed nimbly.
“Hmph! And I protected this beer, mind you!”
Then, with a whoosh, he vanished in an instant.
The battalion commander let out a deep sigh, his hand trembling.
“That bastard, I swear…”
Sinhyeok quietly slipped away from beside the battalion commander, who was brimming with stress.
“Auuuuugh! If that bastard weren’t a different race, I’d have rolled him through the dirt ages ago!”
At the battalion commander’s resentment, the officers and NCOs within the compound grew tense and careful.
Sinhyeok quietly avoided him as well.
‘I need to stay away at times like this.’
He was trying to make a quiet escape when the battalion commander caught him.
“Sinhyeok. Where should I send you?”
The battalion commander, seeing that he had passed the test for now, asked in a roundabout way.
“Ah, um.”
As Sinhyeok pondered which company he should be assigned to, he saw the dwarf running off with the beer.
The dwarf turned back and gave him a rotten smile.
“Hmph!”
At that groundless confidence and rotten smile, a laugh escaped Sinhyeok.
“Battalion Commander, does that man know a fair bit about alchemy and the like? I think he’s the one who made my dedicated firearm before.”
The battalion commander followed Sinhyeok’s gaze and looked at the dwarf.
“He does. He’s the man who made that ridiculous firearm tailored to your constitution.”
Looking at the dwarf, Sinhyeok was certain.
“I’ll go to the Logistics Department. Instead, please assign me Gate missions as well.”
“Hmm.”
The battalion commander considered the doubled-up assignment.
“Then you’ll have two posts. That’s tricky. While everyone else focuses on one thing, you’re saying you’ll try doing double?”
Sinhyeok showed the battalion commander his confidence.
“I’ll pull it off. I’ll stand out in the Logistics Department and in Gate raids too.”
“Hmmm.”
After thinking for a moment, the battalion commander finally nodded.
“It won’t be easy. For now, I’ll permit it.”
At the battalion commander’s permission, Sinhyeok smiled faintly.
“Then I’ll be counting on you from now on, Sergeant Bu Sinhyeok.”
Sinhyeok saluted the battalion commander.
“Sergeant Bu Sinhyeok! I’ll do my best. Loyalty.”
The battalion commander glanced at Sinhyeok and left.
“That’s enough.”
Watching him leave, Sinhyeok felt relieved.
‘Nothing’s easy, is it?’
“Ugh! Let’s go. I’m damn tired.”
As he headed to the officers’ quarters, he saw a familiar man.
“Why is that man over there?”
At the entrance to the quarters, the dwarf was squatting, waiting for someone.
When he saw Sinhyeok, he sprang to his feet.
“Hahaha! Hurry up and come!”
The dwarf laughed and followed Sinhyeok.
“What is it?”
“Ahem. On a day like this, you drink together. Why so many words? Tsk!”
‘A geezer.’
There was the familiar scent of an old-fashioned geezer.
He naturally barged all the way into Sinhyeok’s lodging.
“Hyung?”
At the appearance of that familiar man from the dining hall, Ichan looked troubled.
“I don’t know either.”
“Ehehe! Now, everyone take one! Cheers!”
The dwarf immediately cracked open a can and excitedly poured beer down his throat.
“Krrrgh! Good! This is it! Beer~ bee-bee-beer!”
The beer-crazed dwarf was dancing.
‘A total nuisance.’
Sinhyeok was dumbfounded.
So he tried to leave him be and quietly head to his room, but the dwarf caught him.
“Ehey~ The star of the day has to play with us! Come here!”
Ichan read the room and darted away.
Clutching a beer can, the dwarf charged at Sinhyeok.
“Ahem! You must play with this Aurumstone!”
A beer came flying with a whoosh.
“Eh?!”
Startled, Sinhyeok hurriedly caught the beer can.
The dwarf Aurumstone laughed and shouted.
“Cheers!”
“Ch-cheers?”
Swept up in the atmosphere, he somehow ended up opening the beer.
“Drink! Pour it down! Kyahahaha!”
The dwarf, already so excited it had gone straight to his head, was laughing and enjoying himself.
‘He’s a completely insane dwarf.’
Back when he had served in the past, he had not run into him often, so he had never known he was this kind of person.
“Is it all right for you to be having this much fun here?”
At Sinhyeok’s question, the dwarf smirked and plopped down on the sofa.
“Who’s going to say anything? We do all this so we can eat and play. You’ve got to enjoy it.”
Sinhyeok also sat opposite Aurumstone and sipped his beer.
“That’s true.”
The dwarf who had introduced himself as Aurumstone stared intently at Sinhyeok and asked.
“If you’re an Earthling, did you Awaken or whatever?”
“That’s right. You could say I’m an alchemist.”
“Kyah. Even so, you must be half-baked. The level of humans who can’t even make a proper Red Potion is obvious.”
Sinhyeok smiled and took out one of the remaining potions from his subspace. He pushed it over with his hand.
“If you’re worried about a hangover, mix it with that and drink it.”
Aurumstone looked at the Red Potion pushed toward him with eyes full of suspicion.
“Hm? By its color, it’s top grade, but where did you get it? For something like this, the seller names the price.”
He carefully dripped a few drops of the potion into his beer can and mixed it.
At the bright fragrance, his mouth watered on its own, and he immediately swallowed it down.
“I made that.”
Pwaaaaaat!
A fountain of Red Potion beer sprayed out.
“Cough, cough! Kehek! Damn it!”
Aurumstone, having choked spectacularly, coughed harshly and grew angry.
“Don’t tell such ridiculous lies! What nonsense!”
Sinhyeok, who had been forcibly hit by the beer fountain, wiped his face with his sleeve.
Into a canteen from his subspace, he placed Red Mana Herb and beer.
[A potion is being crafted.]
[Red Mana Herb and beer are combining.]
[A new form of potion is being crafted.]
[Due to the influence of your constitution, the potion transcends its limits.]
[Highest-grade Red Beer has been born.]
Shake, shake, shake.
Sinhyeok shook the canteen roughly and set it down in front of Aurumstone with a thud.
“Try it once. This is my first time using beer instead of water too.”
With eyes full of suspicion, Aurumstone lifted the canteen and took a single drop.
A fragrance even stronger than before.
In that instant, his eyes changed.
“Oooh! This is insane! You? Youuu!”
Shocked, he exclaimed in admiration several times, then took a refreshing gulp.
“Krrrgh! This carbonation! My vitality just—bam!”
The dwarf sprang to his feet and forcefully displayed the vigor coursing through his entire body.
“Uooooogh! This is really good for that! Wow! This is—wow! I can’t even put it into words! Woaaah!”
At the extremely explicit explanation, Sinhyeok quietly checked the description of the Highest-grade Red Beer.
[Checking the effects of Highest-grade Red Beer.]
[Highest-grade Red Beer][Rare]
======================================
A combination of Red Mana Herb and beer that provides strong fatigue recovery and has particularly beneficial effects for men. It is especially effective for that area.
※ Slight increase in virility
※ Some effects apply merely by possessing it
======================================
‘Wow. Especially effective for that area, huh.’
Perhaps that was why the dwarf in front of him seemed especially unable to control his strength.
He grabbed whatever he could and clenched down hard.
“Auuuu! If only I weren’t stuck in this room, I’d just—!”
The dwarf, who soon calmed down, glanced at the still-plentiful Highest-grade Red Beer.
“You… are you taking this with you?”
At that blatant gaze, Sinhyeok waved both hands and pushed it toward him.
“Please take it. I have no use for it.”
At Sinhyeok’s words telling him to take it, Aurumstone’s expression brightened.
He grinned and poured out the Highest-grade Red Beer in a trickle, setting it aside for himself.
“Ahem. Fine, seeing this, you’re not some third-rate nobody.”
Sinhyeok recalled his earlier behavior and chuckled.
“That’s right. Pfft.”
“Well, now.”
Aurumstone sat back down and checked the remaining beer.
“Tsk. Did I enjoy it too quickly? Hmph.”
Regretful that so little beer was left, he finished the rest.
“It only whets the appetite. So, for now, you’re an alchemist?”
“Something like that. Then are you a blacksmith?”
“Similar. Not just a blacksmith, but an exceedingly outstanding Meister from across all dimensions.”
At the statement elevating himself endlessly, Sinhyeok could not help laughing.
“Pfft.”
“Huh, look at this. You don’t recognize me. You brat, wherever you go, if you say Aurumstone, huh! Everyone bows down first. Huh!”
“Ah, yes~”
“Wow! It’s been a while since I’ve been completely ignored like this. It sobers me right up! I’m leaving!”
The dwarf trudged out of the living room.
“Come on! Why get like that just because I didn’t recognize you!”
“Hmph!”
“I’ll see you tomorrow, Meister!”
“Hmph! Don’t come! I won’t be happy to see you at all!”
Sinhyeok chuckled as he watched the back of the thoroughly sulking dwarf.
“Is he really?”
Sinhyeok quietly got up and knocked on Ichan’s door.
“Hyung, what? Ah! The smell of alcohol!”
Ichan pinched his nose and stretched out his leg to block him from approaching.
“Hey, you. Have you heard of Aurumstone? He’s a dwarf, and according to him, he’s really famous.”
“Ah? Oh! Ooh! No way! That dwarf is of the Aurumstone clan!?”
Ichan hurriedly got up, went to the window, and watched the dwarf leaving the quarters.
“No way! It’s my first time seeing one! They really exist.”
Ichan’s reaction was practically as if he had encountered a hero or a god.
“What? He’s really famous?”
Ichan turned around and explained to Sinhyeok, who had no idea.
“Famous, of course. They’re one of the very few dwarf tribes in the entire universe—no, practically the only one—that can create divine weapons.”
“Ahh.”
Ichan’s simple and accurate explanation made him understand.
‘So that’s why he made me that ridiculous legendary-grade firearm.’
Back when he was a soldier, in order to make up for his overwhelmingly lacking martial power, he had commissioned a firearm.
When he received it, the weapon he was given had insane specs, and he had put it to good use.
He had even used it when taking down Persona.
“Why is someone like that here?”
“Who knows? Their clan wanders the universe, after all. They say they take enormous pride in their tribe name, that is, their surname, more than their own names. That’s why they tend to use their surname more than their given name.”
“Hmm. Is that so.”
Sinhyeok leaned against the window and looked at the dwarf’s back as he headed toward the main building.
‘Just what kind of people have you stuffed into the Logistics Department workshop, Battalion Commander?’
* * *
“Ugh, this is too fast.”
Having returned to the battalion commander’s office, I Gangyeol plopped down on the sofa.
“It is fast. But you should have expected it when Sinhyeok entered the Dragon Soul Corridor.”
I Gangyeol leaned his head back and muttered.
“I was looking at ten years at least. Not this soon, damn it.”
“What can you do? The world doesn’t go the way we want.”
Just then, the door to the battalion commander’s office flew open.
Bang.
Without even looking, I Gangyeol spoke.
“That damned dwarf, I swear…”
“Hey, you ignorant human! What’s with that Dimwit Number Two, huh!? How does he not know me! These frustrating Earthlings! Auuu!”
Looking at the dwarf pouring out his indignation, I Gangyeol felt deeply satisfied.
“Pfft, isn’t that because your level is so pathetic?”
“Hah! Seriously! Hahaha! I’m Aurumstone! I made a giant god-soldier! I create divine weapons!”
I Gangyeol corrected him.
“Created.”
He corrected the word.
At that, Aurumstone huffed and puffed, clamping his mouth shut.
“Now you’re past your prime. What’s the point of having the skill and the secret arts when there’s no one who can actually use them?”
“Hmph! Do you think alchemists who’ve reached the realm of Alchemist are common?”
“That’s why. Like I said before, take good care of ‘him.’”
The dwarf plopped down on the sofa and looked at I Gangyeol.
“You said you’d introduce him much later. Your story’s changed.”
I Gangyeol smiled bitterly.
“A lot has gone wrong. This damned life—no, this thing called fate—doesn’t go as I please.”
“Hmph. Such complaints from a human who won’t even live a hundred years.”
The dwarf got up and left the battalion commander’s office.
“I won’t teach anyone half-baked. The others will be the same.”
“Hahaha.”
At the dwarf’s words, I Gangyeol laughed to his heart’s content.
“Half-baked? You saw him, so you should know. You’d better be careful instead. It’ll only take an instant for him to strip you down to your foundation.”
For some reason, the dwarf flinched at those words.
“Hmph! That won’t happen! I’m Aurumstone! Even the most trivial tricks of our tribe would take humans a lifetime to polish!”
After saying that, he left.
Kim Hyeonsuk, who had been beside him, chuckled as she watched.
“He’ll have a hard time later if he’s like that. The first sense of loss always hits back the hardest, you know.”
“Exactly. He’s very confident.”
“Right, I Gangyeol. The Association’s public opinion campaign is getting stronger and stronger.”
At those words, I Gangyeol’s head began to ache.
“Haa. Starting from Sinhyeok’s evaluation last time, right?”
“Yes. They’re making a racket about the Awakened Army’s lack of ability and lack of combat power. That oh-so-great Association President of theirs.”
I Gangyeol stood up and spoke with a murderous look in his eyes.
“It’s not like I can just kill that bastard.”
“Not. Right. Now. We have no justification, and it would only bring a fierce backlash. They’d pour accusations on us, saying the military is interfering with civilians.”
“Haa. Politics is seriously shitty.”
To the hopeless topic, she only gave a simple answer.
“What can we do? We have to wait. Until the direction of the wind changes.”
“For now, let’s wait. Until we get solid evidence.”