Inside the carriage, Dwargo and Rikkle sat on one side whilst Craig and Maeli sat across from them. In the middle of the room sat a square, wooden table, covered in food and drinks. The scent of wine and different foods permeated through the air.
Craig didn't show any manners or grace as he gulped and drooled whilst staring at the feast filled tabletop.
Maeli sighed and shook her head after glancing at him from the corners of her eyes. The more she got to know him the worse her opinion of his character became. Of course, the scale tipped with every new thing she learned about him.
Rikkle grabbed one of gourds of wine and tossed it over to Craig. "Feel free friend, don't be shy. Drink, eat and be merry, that's the best way to live." He exclaimed before emptying out his gourd in several gulps. He then tossed the empty bottle onto a heap of empty bottles in a corner.
'how much wine have they drank on the way here? And... how much wine do they have?' Craig thought as he looked at the pile of empty bottles. Then he uncorked the one in his hand and tilted it into his face.
Rikkle stared at Craig for moment before a bright smile split his beard in two. "Hahaha, that's how you do it. He cleaned it out in one go!" He said as he poked his brother with his elbow.
Dwargo also laughed and nodded vigorously. They both immediately took a liking to Craig, without even knowing his name or seeing his appearance.
Whilst the men were joyous, the women would frown. Indeed, Maeli wasn't as carefree as Craig was being. In fact, she thought it was stupid of him to accept anything from them without any conversation whatsoever. 'No wonder the orcs captured you.' She thought as she looked to the side. Then she looked at Dwargo and crushed the merry atmosphere. "Unlike my companion here I don't trust so easily. Tell me, why did you assume that my companion was a human?" She got straight to the point.
Rikkle still had a bright smile on his face as if he didn't care about Maeli's attitude.
Dwargo was the one who composed himself and replied. "I didn't assume he was a human, I know that he is one. If you're wondering how I do, it's rather simple. Your concealment spell was too weak to hide it from me." He boasted confidently.
"Too weak?" Maeli replied in surprise.
Dwargo laughed. "Haha, I can see your world experience is quite limited. Concealment spells weaken over time. There's a difference in strength from when they're just cast and when intervals of time have passed. Yours had already been active for quite some time already." He explained with a short pause. "Still, Even if it had just been casted it wouldn't have much of an effect on me, or any trained dwarf for that matter."
"What's your meaning?" Maeli asked in an undercast tone of voice.
Dwargo shook his head. "Don't take it the wrong way lass. We dwarves are blacksmiths and enchanters. We deal with magic on a daily basis in our craft and train our eyes to the limit. Concealment spells are part of the process when enchanting to keep our work from being copied. Your level of concealment is child's play for me."
Maeli understood the crux of the Dwargo's words, so after some pondering, she changed the topic. "Seeing as our people are allies and you should know about our rules, why would you ignore this then?"
Dwargo chuckled and shook his head. "You aren't the only elf-human couple I've met in my life. I didn't bother with them so why should I bother with you lot?"
"There's other's besides us?" Maeli was shocked and lost her composure. "Um - I mean, we aren't a couple but there's actually couples out there?"
"Hahaha." Dwargo laughed and picked up a bottle of wine. "Just like your business ain't mine, their business ain't yours. Let's drink and enjoy the ride."
"Well, I guess there's no point hiding myself anymore." Craig said as he took off his hood.
"What are you--" Maeli wanted to complain but it was already too late. At this point it truly had no meaning other than hiding his appearance.
"Hmmm, quite a handsome fella. I can certainly see why she'd break the law." Rikkle said jokingly.
Maeli sighed and shook her head but remained silent. This time around she didn't say anything since she thought it would be pointless anyway. She did however, look at Craig's face with a thoughtful gaze. Who knew what was going through her mind.
Craig picked up a bunch of grapes and plucked them one after another without any mercy. In the blink of an eye it was gone. Then he picked up an apple and took a bite, speaking with his mouth filled. "Delicious. I could get used to a life like this." He exclaimed blissfully.
Rikkle also grabbed a few handfuls of fruit and held it up to his chest in one hand. With the other, he randomly selected and devoured them.
After staring at the table for a bit and seeing how satisfied the others looked, Maeli couldn't help but pick up an apple. Then, she removed her hood, and the green mask on her face and took a small bite. Her actions were very normal, but Craig, Dwargo and Rikkle couldn't help but stare at her as if they were mesmerised.
Well, Craig was actually surprised that she let loose and ate a fruit after her attitude earlier.
Dwargo and Rikkle on the other hand were enchanted by her beauty. Their mouths were wide open along with their eyes.
Dwargo looked at Craig and made a thumbs up with his head nodding vigorously. "Laws were definitely made to be broken. I would also go against the world for such a beauty to be mine."
"Mhmm Mhmm." Rikkle hummed and nodded his head as well.
Maeli's cheeks turned slightly red as she couldn't help but smile from the compliment. It made her look twice as enchanting as before. She was truly a remarkable beauty. Even among a thousand beautiful women she'd still rank in the top ten.
"I support you all the way lad. Almost all Elves are beautiful but this one could make the sea turn sweet." Dwargo said as he looked at Craig.
Craig smiled and said, "Call me Craig," Then he shook his head. "don't get the wrong idea we're truly not a couple. But I do agree with you that she is quite a beauty."
For whatever reason, Maeli felt even more flustered hearing Craig's complement. She could feel his gaze but didn't dare to look at him. Instead she pulled her hood back over head and yelled softly. "Can't you all talk about something else!"
The three of them broke out laughing at Maeli's outburst. Eventually they calmed down and started talking about something else.
"You said you're delivering bows to the capital city?" Craig asked. From the very beginning he had been meaning to ask about this. He was curious about the relationship between the elves and dwarves.
"That I did." Dwargo replied. "As a human you aren't aware of the relationship between our peoples. Strictly speaking, it's a business relationship. We craft high quality weapons which they're willing to pay for. We dwarves are the best blacksmiths in the land after all. Humans, Orcs, Fairies, Elves, Saurians, yada yada; none of you can compete with us when it comes to smithing."
Rikkle interjected. "Speaking of such things, I have an old human friend, a blacksmith called Forge-eye. Do you know him? Can you tell me how he's doing?"
"Forge-eye? I know of him but I've never actually met him. He is one of the top blacksmiths in the capital right now. Last I heard he had actually forged a war class weapon for one of the generals of the army." Craig spilled the little he knew of the man.
"War class!?" Rikkle shouted in excitement. "That boy has become this good already?" He was truly amazed. Even he could only forge general class weapons right now. Not to mention the fact that because humans couldn't use magic, it was much harder for them to create high class weapons.
The weapons made by blacksmiths were categorised according to their quality and durability. The classes were: beginner, soldier, general, war and dragon. These classes not only indicated the quality of the weapon but also it's power. The stronger the materials and the enchantments, the higher the class of the weapon.
"He would need a truly powerful alchemist to provide potent potions to forge such a weapon. The humans certainly haven't been laying around idly over the years." Dwargo mused as he rubbed his beard.
Since humans could not use magic innately, then they would need external help to forge enchanted weapons. This was where alchemists came in. By collecting ingredients and making powerful potions, the human blacksmiths could also create powerful weapons.
"What class are the bows that you're delivering?" Craig asked.
"Soldier class and few general class." Dwargo replied. Then in a solemn voice he suddenly said. "Lately the atmosphere around the lands have been shifting and conflicts are on the rise. Specifically, the orcs have been a lot more active around the borders of the other kingdoms. They should be planning something big, but it's unclear what it might be. Regardless it will most likely lead to bloodshed."
"There's also some strange occurrences happening all around." Rikkle interjected. "People are being found dead and drained of all their magic and life-force. None of us know what to make of it but one thing is clear. The past few hundred years of stabilised peace is coming to an end."
Craig's expression also turned serious. He glanced at Maeli and lowered his head in thought. 'Drained of magic energy and life-force? Could it be the Transcendents?' He was getting a bad feeling of impending chaos as he thought about this.
"Is that why our people have requested these weapons?" Maeli asked. As princess A'ina's personal attendant she wasn't aware of the inner happenings of the elven military. If it wasn't for princess A'ina letting her train together with her, she wouldn't even know how to fight.
Dwargo nodded. "Your people are making preparations in case of any unexpected upheavals, or in the worst case scenario - war."
Maeli was already feeling pressured because of A'ina's condition. Now with all these things coming into play a deep sense of unease filled her heart. "Do you think the strange deaths have something to do with the Transcendents?" She asked, looking at Craig.
"Transcendents?" Rikkle exclaimed before Craig could reply.
"You know of them?" Craig asked expectantly. He was deeply curious about them and wanted to know more than what Greymont had mentioned.
"I'm not sure what you're getting at here but I've heard of something called a Transcendent before." Rikkle replied solemnly. His cheery atmosphere had completely disappeared. "I had actually thought about it when I heard about the strange deaths but I thought it was too far fetched."
"Then what do you know?" Craig asked.
Rikkle basically mentioned what Greymont had already told them before. Transcendents were evolved creatures that gained intelligence and magical prowess. They were capable of draining one's magical energy and life away. He also mentioned something new. "When they reach a high enough level, they can transform into a form of higher being to look similar to us. This all came from stories older than the era of dragons which makes it unreliable. Personally, I don't think that these strange deaths have anything to with something like that."
"Whatever the case, the sensation of impending doom is becoming stronger. It's in the air, like a flavour, you can almost taste it." Dwargo exclaimed as he reached for the last bottle of wine on the table.
Everyone remained silent as they all had their own thoughts about the matter running through their heads.
The carriage sped into the distance, leaving dust in it's wake as it drew closer and closer to its destination.