By the time Adrian and a laughing, invigorated Damien descended from the shattered mountain peak and returned to the Lord's hall, Adrian was struck by a remarkable sight.
The gaping hole in the Lord's hall — the very wall he had thrown Damien through minutes earlier — was already filled with activity.
Scaffolding was being erected. Teams of dwarves, moving seamlessly, were clearing debris while others were already measuring and cutting new blocks of granite. The sounds of hammers and chisels filled the air.
What impressed Adrian most was the dwarves' demeanor. None of them seemed panicked or even surprised by the state of their Lord's hall.
They worked with joy, their faces set in concentration, as if a brawl that shattered the very walls of their leader's keep was a regular, expected occurrence.
They glanced up as their Lord descended, offered a curt nod of respect, and immediately returned to their work, their pace somehow quickening.
