We continued our journey to Mount Marverland. This time, we had a new member joining us—Indradewi, an elf who, at the very least, would be useful in combat situations in the future.
This journey took a bit longer, about five days. Though it was long and exhausting, I was really happy throughout the trip because I got to see unique places like the Bright Leaf Forest, the Tea River, and even passed a village with a fruit orchard that bore fruit every day. But they said the fruits could only be picked once a week. According to their belief, even tools had to enjoy the fruit from those trees. There are so many things in this world that continue to amaze me.
On the ninth day of our journey, we finally caught sight of Mount Marverland. We rushed, knowing that if the snow started to fall, the flowers would die, and we'd have to wait another year. I got up early in the morning and headed to the mountain. Mount Marverland was enormous—it could take an entire day to reach the top. I wasn't sure if we could make it before the flowers died.
"Mr. John, do you think we can get there before the flowers die?" I asked.
"I'm not sure, Snekers, but according to my calculations, the snow season starts in two days. If we hurry, we might be able to get the flowers in time."
Hearing that, we hurried up the mountain. When we reached the base, I saw a mining tunnel.
"Sir, maybe we can go through there—it could be a shortcut to the top," I suggested.
"Hmm, I'm worried it might be a mountain troll's den. If there really are trolls, that would be a serious problem," he replied.
"We'd better hurry and go in. If we run into trolls, we'll deal with it then," Dewi said, urging us forward.
Mr. John hesitated, unsure whether to enter the cave. But thinking about how little time we had left, he agreed. We quickly entered the tunnel. It was pitch dark inside, and we walked slowly. Dewi led the way since she had night vision. We stayed close to each other to avoid getting separated.
"Wait a minute, I sense the aura of a very warm living being," Dewi said, signaling us to stop.
"Warm? That's strange, troll auras are usually cold. Could it be a goblin—or worse, an orc?" Mr. John said, confused.
We drew our weapons, ready for a possible fight.
"It's coming closer—get in position," Dewi instructed.
Just as we prepared to strike, a dwarf emerged, holding a lantern.
"Whoa, easy there, don't attack me," said the dwarf, trying to calm us down.
We sheathed our swords, still confused.
"What's a dwarf doing here?" asked Mr. John.
"I should be the one asking—why did you enter our mining area?"
"Ah… mining area?" I asked.
"Yes. Why are you in the territory of the dwarf kingdom?"
"Dwarf kingdom? I didn't know," I replied.
"Come, I'll show you." The dwarf motioned for us to follow him.
We got into a lift. I was surprised by how advanced the dwarves were. It looked like their technology surpassed the other races. I was amazed when I saw their entire kingdom inside the mountain. They had developed so much. We were taken to the throne room.
There, we were surrounded by dwarves who looked at us with suspicion. The leader of the dwarves stood before us.
"My king, we have unexpected guests. I found them in the mining zone," said the dwarf.
I was shocked to hear that we were being treated as intruders.
"What is your reason for entering my territory?" the king asked.
"Forgive me, Your Majesty. I am a soldier from the southern kingdom, sent here to find a flower with nine different petals. I didn't know that Mount Marverland was part of a dwarf kingdom."
Upon hearing that, the dwarves began whispering among themselves, seemingly discussing something important.
"Why didn't you bring a letter of permission from your kingdom?" the king asked.
"Forgive me, Your Majesty. I didn't bring one because I didn't even know Marverland was a dwarf kingdom."
"That's understandable. Ever since the war of 'Seeking Enlightenment,' we northern dwarves have hidden ourselves from the outside world and renamed our kingdom to the Kingdom of Marverland."
"Very well, Your Majesty. When I return to my kingdom, I will inform the rest of Askara Cakra. But before that, may we please take the flower with nine petals from the top of Mount Marverland?"
"You may. But under one condition—you must take part in our tradition, which is to duel with our warrior by breaking iron stones."
Upon hearing that, Mr. John, Dewi, and I looked at each other, signaling we were ready to participate.
"I'm a woman—I'm not joining this," Dewi raised her hand.
"What now, sir?" I asked.
"What do you mean 'what'? You go! I'm too old for this kind of thing," Mr. John replied.
"But you're a trained soldier—shouldn't you be better at fighting?" I argued.
"That's in sword fights—not smashing rocks."
"Your Majesty, this is my comrade Snekers. He will participate in the challenge," Mr. John suddenly shouted to the king.
"Very well. You, the one who found them, take him to the mining area. The rest of them, escort them to the flower they seek."
"Wait—wait a minute!" I shouted, but I was already being dragged away by the dwarves without a chance to protest.
I was taken underground using a lift. The deeper we went, the darker it became. I was scared and worried about what they might do to me.
When we arrived, the dwarves welcomed me like I was entertainment. I was handed a pickaxe. A strong dwarf stood across from me. The other dwarves shouted, "Begin!"
A dwarf explained the rules: whoever collected and crushed the most iron stones into ore would be the winner. The dwarf king watched from above.
"Young man, here's the deal. If you win, you and your friends may take the flower. If you lose, you'll work in this mine for 20 years."
Hearing that made me panic. "Damn it, Mr. John. Because of him, I'm stuck in this mess."
"On the count of three, the match begins. One… two… three…"
When it began, the dwarf and I rushed in with carts, heading deeper into the mine. I tried my best not to lose. I dug and crushed stones to extract the iron ore. It wasn't just hard—it had to be fast. After 15 minutes, I had a full cart and returned to the entrance. I dumped all my stones into my area. But I was shocked to see the dwarf already had more than half again as much as me.
"Dang, in just 15 minutes he got that much more? How am I supposed to win?" I muttered to myself.
I felt like giving up. My body was exhausted, and I couldn't keep up with him. As we both continued digging, I felt the ground tremble.
"Is this going to collapse?" I asked the dwarf.
"This is normal—just focus on catching up if you don't want to lose! Hahaha!" he laughed and went deeper into the mine.
I began to worry about him, but I stayed focused on mining. Then the tremors got stronger. I quickly ran inside, worried for him.
I shouted, "Sir! Sir!!"
"Help! Help!"
Hearing that, I rushed toward the voice. It was dark, but I could faintly see the dwarf trapped under a large support beam. I tried to lift it, but it was too heavy.
I used the dwarf's pickaxe to wedge it and lift it just a bit. As it lifted, the dwarf crawled out. His leg was bleeding. The tremors hadn't stopped—the cave was about to collapse. I quickly carried him and ran out of the mine.