Somehow
Louise Verft.
The 2nd Princess of the Kingdom of Verft had been living in prolonged self-reflection ever since the incident in Ormus.
It had already been several months. Her daily routine was simple.
She shut herself in the detached palace to study etiquette and academics, or she went out into the garden to swing her axe.
But today was different. She had a small additional task beyond her usual schedule: visiting the royal workshop.
Fwee—
She whistled happily and stroked the blue battle-axe that fit so perfectly in her hand.
The weapon she had ordered from the royal workshop had just been completed.
Its sharp edge, its cold air, its beauty and solidity—everything pleased her.
"It's a pity it wasn't made by Logar, though…"
She didn't think Logar was the greatest artisan.
He was indeed among the top handful, but Verft was the kingdom of the dwarves, and many excellent craftsmen lived there.
However, the reason she wanted a weapon specifically from Logar was because he was both a Hero and an Artisan—an unusual combination.
Unlike other Heroes, who could not directly wield the power granted by the Dimensions, Logar possessed a unique trait:
He could imbue his equipment with that power.
A weapon that allowed even a non-Hero to indirectly wield the Hero's strength—
That was why Logar was special. And that was why she wanted a weapon from him.
But Logar had disappeared, and now that desire had become meaningless.
She arrived at the detached palace's garden, where she always trained with her axe.
She swung it lightly, and the sound of the air splitting rang out. The weight and balance felt even better than she expected.
"With this, there isn't a single skull I can't split…"
At that moment—
Pak—
The stone wall on one side of the garden trembled. A piece of what seemed like solid rock burst upward. What looked like rock was actually dirt—and that dirt collapsed onto Louise.
"..."
"..."
Through the hole that had formed in the wall, a face pushed out, and their eyes met.
…A secret tunnel?
No, that wasn't the problem.
An intruder?
This was the garden of the royal family's detached palace, and no one could enter without Louise's permission.
Much less through a "secret tunnel" she didn't know existed.
Louise didn't overthink it.
There was a secret tunnel in her own palace garden, and someone had climbed through it.
It couldn't be an official guest. It couldn't be someone clean.
So she acted exactly as she always did.
Meaning, she swung first and asked questions later.
Kwa-jik—
Her axe slammed into the rock wall. Unfortunately, the intruder had already slipped out of the tunnel.
Fast.
She twisted her body immediately, kicking off the ground and tightening her grip on the axe.
Swaaak—
A few strands of the intruder's hair scattered through the air.
A beautiful shade of red.
Kwaduk—
The axe was caught. Aura and flame intertwined violently.
The tendons in Louise's arms bulged as she gripped her weapon. Their eyes met. His eyes were an even deeper red than his hair.
"Who are you?"
Louise growled.
Berze couldn't answer immediately.
In the distance stood the grand palace. Nearby, aside from Louise, he sensed no other presence.
Damn that dwarf bastard—he should have told me where the tunnel leads!
Judging from Louise Verft's situation, this was the detached palace. The garden where she was being disciplined.
Of all places, the tunnel exit had to open into the yard of an axe-swinging lunatic princess.
If Logar wasn't intentionally trying to screw him over, this level of coincidence would be impossible.
What do I do?
Had he known, he should have entered as a demon instead. Even if noticed, it could simply be blamed on the Demon King.
But Louise Verft had seen Pale's face—and that meant Berze's safe human identity was now compromised.
Unless he killed her, he could no longer use the Pale identity.
The dwarves would never show mercy or tolerance to an intruding non-dwarf caught inside the detached palace.
There were only two options:
Run away and abandon the Pale identity—
Or eliminate the witness…
"I asked who you are."
Her killing intent snapped Berze out of his thoughts.
"Do you really think I'll answer so obediently?"
"What nonsense. I'm just showing you mercy. After months of reflection, I've gotten better at controlling my temper."
"Mercy?"
"Mercy means dying cleanly without getting chopped into pieces."
"You've learned to control your temper in a strange way."
"For me, it's enormous progress. Normally your head would already be stuck to my axe."
"I don't understand where that confidence comes from."
"What confidence? It's obvious."
A strong recoil pushed them both apart. Louise raised her axe. Muscles all over her body swelled like hardened cords.
"I only trust my axe!"
─────!
Her axe and his fist collided.
Savage aura and roaring flame devoured each other. Slicing through the gap, the sharp edge of the axe carried its master's power and pierced his skin.
Berze's brows tightened at the sharp sting.
Louise snorted at the sight of blood on her blade.
"If you block it, that hand won't be yours anymore."
"…This isn't an ordinary weapon."
"Amazing praise for a weapon made by Verft's greatest artisan."
"Greatest artisan? As far as I know, the greatest artisan escaped the Kingdom of Verft. Because of someone, if I recall."
Her brow tightened.
"What do you mean?"
"What do I mean?"
"You'd better choose your next words carefully."
"And if I don't?"
"Then you won't have the chance to beg for mercy. I'll split your skull before that."
Louise growled. Berze poured oil onto the flames.
"I met a dwarf. He called himself the greatest artisan of Verft. I think his name was Logar Friedri."
"Logar—where is that bastard!"
Louise stomped the ground.
Kwaang—
A moment later, the ground exploded under the force.
Her axe carved the air in a long deadly arc.
Kwaang—
Berze stepped back. The shock running through his arm made him chuckle.
She's gotten stronger in just a few months.
What was wrong with all the princesses in this dimension?
His thoughts ended quickly. Unlike before, Louise's axe did not stop after one strike. Aura and flames clashed endlessly, each blow splitting the air with force.
If this drags on, I'll be at a disadvantage.
Thankfully, the detached palace was some distance from other areas, but after all, this was still the royal palace. It was only a matter of time before dwarves heard the commotion.
But he couldn't overpower her easily either. Not only was he weakened this far from the tower, but Louise had grown frighteningly stronger in just a few months.
'Avoid a direct confrontation.'
Berze decided to shake Louise's composure.
"I know where he is, of course. But I can't tell you. Instead, I'll deliver the message he asked me to give you."
"He told you to give me a message?"
"Yes. He said he never wants to make a weapon for a crazy woman like you, so don't come looking for him. Said he's sick of even seeing your face."
"…Crazy woman?"
Louise's face turned bright red. If the one standing in front of her had been Logar, she would've split him a hundred times already.
But maybe she was too angry—because the opposite happened. Her mind calmed just enough for her to notice something about the intruder's face.
"You… I feel like I've seen you somewhere…"
If one were to change the flame-like hair and ruby-like eyes into black—
"The one Logar said was in Tarta…? No, impossible. Hair color is one thing, but you can't change your pupils—"
"No, you're seeing correctly."
Berze drew the flames back into his heart. Then he revealed a faint trace of magi.
The moment his red hair and eyes turned black, Louise's pupils widened.
"You—!"
"Want to know something? Logar was never in Tarta. He never went in the first place."
"You son of a—!"
"But it's true that I know Logar. I know where he is. Shall I show you the way?"
Berze's hand slipped into Louise's blind spot as her emotions shook her balance.
She tried to resist, but she was too late.
Rough flames tore apart all of her aura. In the opening laid bare, a magic orb emitting freezing cold unleashed its light.
Crackle crackle crackle—
There was no longer a princess there.
Only an ice statue named Louise Verft.
"…Unexpected, but I need to move quickly."
Berze stuffed Louise into subspace, then burned away all lingering frost and vanished.
"The princess has disappeared!"
The dwarf knights who rushed over at the commotion found only the remains of a battle already ended.
Dwarves possessed exceptional craftsmanship.
They loved creating things, and many of them immersed themselves deeply in blacksmithing and magi-engineering.
The kingdom encouraged technological development, and countless workshops were the result.
Whenever a craftsman seemed promising enough to open a workshop, hordes of dwarves gathered to learn from him, and the workshops became hubs of advancing the kingdom's tech.
But even workshops had rankings.
Every dwarf wanted to join a more prestigious workshop, and the hottest place of all was the Royal Workshop.
Run directly by the royal family, it accepted only the finest talents handpicked from across the kingdom.
Just entering it was a source of pride—an honor that everyone desired.
At last.
Kogen, a craftsman, entered the royal capital with a full heart.
After 58 years of working as a blacksmith in a border city and finally making it to the capital, his accumulated reputation had earned him an invitation from the royal family.
This was an honor that would be remembered by his clan.
"Welcome, Master Kogen. Here is the identity plaque signifying your position as a member of the Royal Workshop."
"Ohh, this is…"
The golden plaque engraved with the royal crest was breathtaking.
"I'll guide you to the workshop. The workshop master is waiting."
"Yes."
The workshop wasn't far.
"Hm? Where did the gate guards go?"
The knight frowned at the sight of the empty entrance.
"Ah, don't tell me even the workshop knights were dispatched… My apologies for showing you something unpleasant."
"N-no, it's fine. But did something happen?"
"Nothing serious. It will be resolved soon. For now, please enter—"
The knight opened the door.
"Why is it so cold…?"
Kogen tilted his head at the chill seeping through the gap.
Cold air? In a workshop where the furnaces always burned?
Plop—
"Huh?"
The knight guiding him suddenly collapsed without a sound.
A powerful force pulled both Kogen and the knight inside, and the door slammed shut on its own.
"Huh…?"
The hammering sounds of the workshop had stopped.
Most of the furnace flames were out.
Their heat had been devoured by freezing air, making the workshop feel like a giant freezer.
And most importantly—
"…Good heavens."
Dozens of royal artisans—who should have been sweating over their work—were now frozen solid, decorating the workshop like sculptures.
"You're the last one."
Above the statues, a red-haired man looked down at him.
"If you'd come a little later, I would've left. Good timing, I suppose."
"Who are y—"
Kogen never finished his sentence. A sphere flew in an arc and struck him in the heart. His world turned white, and consciousness faded.
***
Tap, tap—
Berze dusted off his hands after shoving exactly 49 frozen statues into subspace.
Fortunately, the kingdom still hadn't shown a major reaction.
They were probably entirely focused on the disappearance of Louise.
Then I should use a different secret tunnel. Hopefully it's not blocked.
Berze tossed a touch of mana into the remaining embers of the workshop's furnace to erase all traces of frost. The spreading flames would soon engulf the entire workshop.
"Oh."
Just as he started looking for a new secret tunnel, Berze let out a small sound.
"…Should I let Louise and Logar meet?"
For some reason, he couldn't picture Logar surviving that encounter in one piece.
Well… somehow, it'll work out.
If anything, the fault lay with Logar, who had told him about a secret tunnel that happened to end inside the detached palace where Louise was being disciplined.
Berze pressed forward again.
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