Chapter 9 Chapter 7 The Pretense of Loyalty

Bruno purposely excluded Thiberdorf Panter from meeting with the two dwarven representatives from Feuerbarburg.He knew they had come to deliver Regis' message; and he knew that Warcracker would rush into the mountains immediately to avenge his fellow Felbars. Nickwillig and Tred recount their adventures up to their encounter with a non-dwarf party—Dizzet, Catti-brie, Wulfgar, Regis—not a dwarf. "Successful escape," Bruno congratulated the two after they had finished speaking, "The Emerys Crown will be proud of you two." Qued and Nick Villiger were a little elated when they heard the dwarf king's praise.

"What do you think?" Bruno asked, asking Dagna Jr. for his opinion. The young dwarf mulled over the question, and then answered: "I would like to take a party of warriors, including the Ripper squad, and follow the road as far north as the Surbrin. If we find the raiders, we will crush them Come back again; if we don't find it, we'll go down the river south to meet you at Mithril Hall." Bruno gave the whole plan a slight nod, which was exactly what he had hoped for.Dagna Jr. was brilliant, but too conformist. "I want to stop these murderers, too," put in Qued.

His words caused Nick Villiger, who was obviously not in line with him, to express great anxiety. "Forgot your leg hurt?" Nick Villiger said. "Phew, Bruno's priests handle it well with their warm hands." Tred insisted, and to emphasize the effect, he stood up and began to hop around, and, save for a wince or two in pain, he seemed ready to hit the road up. Bruno watched the two for a while. "Well, I can't have both of you killed, that way your story can't be told to Emerys Warcrown. So, Tred, you can go hunting. And you, Nick Villiger , should go back to Mithril Hall with everyone."

"King Bruno, your words sound like you are going to lead the hunting team yourself." Little Dagna listened to Bruno's words. Bruenor knew well the thoughts of his squires, especially young Dagna, who had sworn to keep his king safe.He thought the best course for him, the King of Mithril Hall, was to go straight south with his great army, back under the protection of his kingdom.There, he can direct the future counterattack against the orc and giant bandits.That's what he expected the king to do.Even though it was just a thought, it still made Bruno uncomfortable. He sent Drizzt a pleading look, and the drow responded with a knowing nod.

"What do you think, Elf?" Bruenor asked. "It may be easier for me to investigate those beasts than Panter and his band of madmen," replied the elf, "even quicker than good little Dagnar who was there; superb skills." "Then you can follow me." Little Dagna proposed. There was a tremor in his voice that suggested he expected the direction the conversation was going, and he didn't quite appreciate the prospect. "I will." Drizzt agreed, "but my friends will also follow, they are my most trusted, fully understand and support my every action."

Then he nodded to Catti-brie, Wulfgar, and Regis all at once.After a while, he nodded directly to Bruno, and a big smile appeared on the dwarf king's face. "No, no, no," said little Dagna at once, "you cannot take my king into such a barbaric place." "I believe it was King Bruenor's own decision, my friend, not yours or mine," Drizzt replied. He walked up to the smiling king and asked, "Is this the last hunt?" "Who said it was the last time?" Bruno said grumpily. Several friends giggled.They laughed even louder when little Dagna stomped his boots on the ground and yelled, "Little Dagna, you!"

"Bah, but you can come too, you dull dwarf," Bruno said to his young commander. "And you." He looked again at Trade, who nodded gravely. "You've got to bring some fighters!" Little Dagna insisted. "Pante and his boys," said Bruno. "No!" cried little Dagna. "Then you just said..." "That was before I considered you going." Bruenor signaled the agitated dwarf to calm down with a push-down gesture. "Then Pant can't do it." He understood the worry of the young commander and said.Pant—according to Mithral Hall rumors—could take on a stone and half cripple himself and everyone around him before winning the melee.

"You choose your own crew, twenty of your most able men—" "Twenty-five," argued little Dagna. "Then let them get ready quickly." Bruno said to Dagna Jr. and everyone else, "I'm leaving today. We'll smash orcs and giants to a pulp. " Looking around at his friends, the dwarf saw that Wulfgar's smile was not as comfortable as Drizzt's, Catti-brie's, or even Regis's.Bruenor immediately nodded his understanding to his adopted son, suggesting that Wulfgar, who was now both father and husband, could withdraw from the hunt if he felt it necessary.

Wulfgar responded by tightening his cheeks, nodding back, and striding away. "You're not thinking what I'm thinking you're thinking!" Singers Macluve said. He was the toughest looking dwarf in all of Mirabar, extremely stocky, and his bad attitude toward life was clearly evident from his ruddy, weather-beaten face.He was missing an eye, and had no intention of filling that empty socket, but merely covering it with an eyepatch.Half of his beard is gone, replaced by a large scar on the right side of his face. "Well, I was thinking what I was thinking," Togg Hammer replied, "I don't know what you're thinking about me!"

"Well, I think you're trying to get out," Singers cuts in, drawing the attention of all the other dwarves in the crowded tavern on the top floor of the basement, "I don't know what the Marquis said to you, but I bet that's the same as What your grandpa wants to say to you is not far behind—if your grandpa was still alive, he would still be able to talk to you." Togg raised his hand violently to drive these words and other people's expressions out of his mind. At least he tried, but several dwarves came and dragged a chair over to sit down, and more than one asked him, "Are you really leaving Mirabar, Torgg?"

Togg ruffled his hair frantically. "Of course I don't, you fools!" he said, not sure. "We've been here since my father's father's father's father's father." Even with the yelling and frightening, Togg realized that his defense was oozing with doubt.That made him ask himself if he had really considered getting out of Mirabar.What is certain is that whenever he thought of Erastus, he became hysterical like a demon.One thought, however, was firmly planted in his head and heart: Is it time for him to overthrow the Mirabar Ram dynasty? He ran his hands through his thick hair again, and once again, finally gave a loud "pooh" to those around him. He stood up so quickly that the chair rolled over behind him.Stamping away, he grabbed a jug of beer as he passed the bar, and gave the amusing tavernkeeper a coin. Outside the tavern is a series of buildings on the ground floor, which is the closest floor to the ground in Miraparte City.Togg looked around, noticing the veins in the stone buildings and the stones that made them up.The stone was so familiar to him that he felt as if it were part of himself, already part of his blood. "Idiot Erastus," he murmured, "you are fools who don't consider King Bruenor and his boys friends at all." He walked away, unaware that his last words were heard by the ears of the partition—Singers, and the other dwarves leaning against the open window of the tavern. "That's what he thinks," said one of the dwarves. "I think he's leaving," said another. "Hey, you know nothing but the name of the horse urine you're drinking!" Singers yelled at them, "Do you know what you're drinking?" "I know!" cried another dwarf. "I'm not drinking the cat piss I've had enough of." That provoked a howl, and horrified shouts from many corners of the tavern. Singers-McLuve, however, just grinned at them and continued to look out the window, though his old partner and comrade-in-arms had stepped out of his field of vision. Aside from his own disbelief and Togg's denial, Singers was concerned with the implicit approval that Togg would leave Mirabar's public.The visit of King Bruenor and his clan from Mithral Hall brought into reality a previously imagined enemy, a reality in which Torg and many other dwarves had made Bruenor their friend.Mithral Hall may be a competitor, but it is by no means an enemy.Erastur and the other leaders - mostly humans - towards Bruenor, and those who go to hear Bruenor's adventures, or buy goods from Icewind Dale, the attitude of the Mirabar dwarves, to Torg And a fair portion of the dwarves, set a repulsive example. For the first time since this incident, Singers-McLuve seriously considered recent experiences, and the implications they contained. He didn't really like the direction that his thoughts led suddenly, but also over time. "Guilty is fun, don't you think so now?" Wulfgar asked as she returned to the caravan where Daly Cody and Colson were staying. "Guilty?" Wulfgar asked skeptically, "or rather the awareness of my responsibility?" "Guilty." Dai Li replied without hesitation. "In supporting and sustaining a family, I accept the responsibility to protect my family." "Then what do you think will happen to Coulson and me with two hundred friendly dwarves? You're not going to leave us in the middle of nowhere, Wulfgar. We'll be safe. Step into It is you who are in danger!" "In that case, I'd be abdicating my responsibility—" "Oh, don't mention that again!" Dai Li cut off the conversation, and then said in a loud voice that attracted several dwarves: "You have to do what you have to do. You have to live the life you want to live." "You followed me all the way here..." "It's the life I chose," Dai Li explained. "I don't want to lose you—not for a moment—but I know that if you go against your heart and stay with me and Colson all day, I will already lose you." You. Come to Mithril Hall, my love, if that is what is true in your heart; if not, then you are on your way with Bruenor and the others." "What if I die and leave you?" The question was not asked out of fear, for Wulfgar the fear of dying on the road simply did not exist.He is an adventurer, a warrior, and as long as he remains firm in his belief that he is following the correct path of life, there will be nothing unacceptable in his future experiences. Obviously, he will not willingly die without resistance on the journey! "I've been thinking about it, too," Delly admitted, "because I know you want to go. If you die on the way, remember that Colson will be proud of her daddy. Sometimes I think about By changing your heart, tricking you into staying with me, but that's not you. I see the truth in your face, the face that stretches a smile against the wind. Coulson and I can withstand fate , at the end of your journey, whatever ending is arranged for you, Wulfgar, son of Beornegar, so long as you follow your heart." As she spoke, she approached, knelt down before the seated Wulfgar, and put her arms on his shoulders. "Just give those orcs a punch for me, okay?" Wulfgar was smiling as he looked into her luminous eyes—they were even more luminous than when Daly had been a waitress at the Allen's Tavern in the run-down alley of Luskan.Something flooded the woman's mind about the road, about the fresh air, about the adventure, about the child, and Dai Li seemed to grow more beautiful, more alive, and stronger as the days passed. Wulfgar pulled her closer, hugging her tightly.His mind went back to the day when Robillard brought him to the center of Luskan, he gave him two options, one was to go south and stay safe with Daly and Colson; the other was to go north and join them Adventures of friends.Hearing Daly's words and the sincerity, love, and approval implied in her tone, Wulfgar had never been more satisfied with his choice to turn north, nor had he understood his needs so clearly. Never before has he poured so much love into the woman who became his wife as he does now. "I'll give you two punches each," Wulfgar finished, moving closer to kiss his wife. "No," Dai Li pushed him away teasingly, "you have to fly each one far enough." She didn't move when Wulfgar's lips touched hers again, and they were gentle at first but grew urgent in a long and aggressive kiss.The barbarian stood up, easily lifted Dai Li to his side, and carried her to the private area under the hood. Laughter surrounded Wulfgar and Daly. Thiberdorf Panter jumped all over the floor, making a series of noises that reflected his frustration and frustration, and he kicked every stone in his path, even the ones that were too big to kick.As before, if the tenacious dwarf felt pain, it didn't show much, except for an occasional grunt followed by a set of expletives, followed by an extra jump after a vengeful kick off another solid rock. Finally, after muttering angrily around Bruenor King for a long time, Panter stopped and rested his stubby hands on his hips. "You want to join a fight, a fight that belongs to me and my boys!" "We're going to pay back a small party of orcs and a few giants," Bruno corrected. "It's not a fight, and it's not even a battle if Panter and his boys are there." "That's what we're going to do." "Excellent!" Bruno exclaimed. Panter's eyes widened. "Ok?" "You two hundred and fifty!" Bruno scolded him. "Can't you see that this is the last time? As soon as we get back to Mithril Hall, I'll be king again. What a boring title!" "What do you say? You are the best king..." Bruenor silenced him with a wave of his arms and a look of exaggerated disgust. "Accept liar emissaries, negotiate with foolishly effervescent lords and even more effervescent, foolish ladies... Do you really think that in a hundred years I'll be able to pick up my Ax? Unless another drow army comes knocking on our door! So now I've got one chance, one last chance, and you're trying to steal my fun with your persecutor squad. I I thought of you as a friend." Pant stood straight and began to analyze the current situation with an unexpected thought. "I am your friend, King Bruno." Pante said gloomily, this is the most restrained expression he has ever shown since Bruno and anyone knew him, "I will bring my people back to Mithril Hall to wait for you 's return." He paused, giving Bruno a sly wink—well, it was sly, and it ended up being a spasm of exaggeration when it came out of Panter. "I also hope that you can come back as soon as possible," Pante continued with the understanding that Bruno expected, "it may be only a small force that attacked the Felba brothers, but you may find other and even one sprang up on your way back to Mithril Hall. Happy battle, Lord Bruenor. May you put a thousand more gaps in your axe before you see your shining halls!" With wild cheers and bragging, promises of death for orcs and giants, and the everlasting friendship of Mithral Hall and Fellbar Castle, Bruenor's squad and his kind friends, plus little Dagna, Tred, and twenty-five A strong dwarf broke away from the main force and turned north into the mountains.Dwarves are not a bloodthirsty race, but they also know how to celebrate a battle with orcs and giants-their most hated enemies. For these few friends, all refreshed and radiant with the adventurous journey together once more, the only pity is for those who were not selected on this fine morning. And for the Dark Elf, the story and the present come one after another, this is his old partner, with the same old and delicate companionship, with a deeper understanding of each other and their position in the universe, Stepping into the rugged land, united to explore.This is the day everyone is looking forward to! Unbeknownst to Drizzt, however, he too was leading the crowd into the saddest day of his life.