However, speaking of which, the Dwarves are truly honest. I only introduced myself, didn't say anything else, and he already exposed himself. Since that's the case... "Hmm? Could it be that this Dwarf uncle has met my father? And done something bad?" Ellie stared at the Dwarf uncle with a very suspicious gaze. She remembered that this guy had run away without waiting for Ainz's father to deal with the Frost Dragon, right?
So he probably doesn't know what kind of fate awaits those who oppose Nazarick, right? But she remembered that the iron ingots Ainz's father gave away at the time weren't anything rare, so it was fine if he took them, right?
"No... I... I..." The uncle nervously kept shrinking back, directly hiding behind Ligurit, the Old Hag. Although she didn't know how these two met, seeing this uncle who stole the iron ingots here already explained the problem.
There was no point in her rushing to the Dwarf Kingdom anymore. Ainz's father and his party must have left and returned. In that case, she just needed to figure out a way to capture this guy and bring him back to Nazarick, and it would be over.
After all, in Ellie's opinion, this guy stealing Nazarick's property could indeed be considered a capital offense. But! The reason this guy stole the iron ingots was to find a way to forge them, which was enough to show that he was also a very excellent craftsman. He didn't hesitate to abandon his position in the Dwarf Kingdom and run away; she remembered this uncle was even a high-ranking official.
"It's very suspicious, isn't it? Otherwise, Uncle, you wouldn't be so nervous, would you? If you didn't do anything bad..." Ellie continued to press him, but at this moment, Ligurit stepped forward, seemingly wanting to stand up for this Dwarf uncle.
"However, Princess, why are you in such a desolate wilderness? And bringing such a terrifying fellow? And your companions are also very intriguing," Ligurit said, glancing at Bell, who was still wearing the Slane Theocracy Apprentice Priestess outfit.
Indeed, Ellie's group was also quite strange: a Princess of the Magic Kingdom, accompanied by an Apprentice Priestess from the Slane Theocracy and a Dragon Maid from the Dragon Kingdom, with her mount even being a white dragon.
"Me? I've just returned from a visit to the Slane Theocracy, and then I heard my father went to the Dwarf Kingdom. I didn't know where the Dwarf Kingdom was, and the Slane Theocracy didn't know either, so I came to the allied Dragon Kingdom to inquire. This kind older sister, who knows the way, just kindly brought me along. As for this guy! No matter what, I'm still a Princess, right? It's perfectly normal to bring a guard when going out, right?" Ellie turned her head to look at Sticky Rice Cake and said.
"A guard, huh..." The Old Hag narrowed her eyes. Ellie also knew that calling Sticky Rice Cake a guard was indeed inappropriate, as going out for diplomacy riding such a large creature was clearly meant to intimidate people, wasn't it?
However, compared to others, she was much better. Ainz's father had given an order after the Shalltear incident that Guardians must be accompanied by two high-level magical beasts when going out. She only brought a mercenary casually picked from the Library, which was already giving a lot of face.
"So, I am currently on my way to the Dragon Kingdom's mining city. However, Ligurit, a Steel Rank Adventurer of the Kingdom, why are you here? And why are you with this suspicious Dwarf uncle?" Now it was Ellie's turn to counterattack. If Ligurit hadn't suddenly used her presence concealment to hide her figure, Ellie wouldn't have bothered with the "passerby" she sensed on the road!
"I am on a journey, and this Dwarf friend is just a companion I met along the way," Ligurit replied.
"Is that so? Then you don't mind if I question your Dwarf companion, do you? His actions after knowing my identity are indeed very suspicious, giving me the feeling that he was caught after stealing someone else's things and running away," Ellie continued to stare at the Dwarf uncle and said.
Upon hearing Ellie's words, the Dwarf uncle's face grew even uglier. After all, Ellie had hit the nail on the head, and he instantly felt guilty. Knowing the script truly allowed one to do as they pleased.
"I! I..." The Dwarf uncle seemed to want to argue, but Ligurit, who was beside him, spoke first.
"Since Princess Elizabeth has already said so, there's no need for you to hide it anymore, is there?" Ligurit said. It seemed the Dwarf uncle had told Ligurit about the iron ingots.
"Hmph! I took it!" The uncle glared at Ligurit with great dissatisfaction, then admitted it straightforwardly, crossed his arms unhappily, and turned his back, looking like a dead pig unafraid of boiling water.
"What did you take, Uncle?" Although she understood in her heart, according to the current plot, she, a Princess who had just rushed over from the Slane Theocracy, shouldn't know the details of the matter.
"The iron ingots that your skeleton-faced father gave to the Dwarf Kingdom. He originally entrusted us to forge a suit of armor, and then... then..." The Dwarf uncle's face immediately turned red, and he didn't continue speaking.
"Then what happened?" Talking to this Dwarf was really tiring... couldn't he just finish saying it all at once? Although I know you still hold onto your so-called craftsman's pride, if you had honestly admitted that you couldn't do it and asked Ainz's father for forging methods at the time, Ainz's father might have actually cried for you... So, stealing that iron ingot directly was actually better for Ainz's father at that time.
"I took the iron ingots your father gave me!" The Dwarf uncle finally admitted. Although he admitted it, Ellie didn't plan to do anything to him; instead, she wanted to bring this guy back to Nazarick.
"Took it? I don't think a Dwarf craftsman would steal forging materials entrusted to them, would they? Uncle, do you have some other reason?" Ellie continued to pretend ignorance while using this point to her advantage.
"Hmph! I wouldn't steal a client's materials for no reason! It's... it's because! The iron ingots your skeleton-faced father gave me are simply impossible for me to forge with my current skill level! So I... I..." The Dwarf uncle continued, his face flushed.
"I understand... So you took that iron ingot and ran out to find a forging method? I see... No wonder you were nervous when you saw me. I understand," Ellie nodded and said.
"Do what you want with me! I did indeed take the forging materials your father entrusted to the Dwarf Kingdom!" The Dwarf uncle said defiantly.
He was so cowardly just now? Now he's full of confidence again? Are all Dwarves' tempers so bad? If she didn't think this guy might still be useful to Nazarick, she would definitely have directly eliminated this Dwarf. She had already pretended not to hear his disrespect towards Ainz's father just now, which was already giving him enough face. Is he trying to put on airs with her now?
"Then I'll ask this Dwarf uncle a question first: if you find a way to forge it, can you complete my father's request according to the original agreement?" Ellie asked calmly. In truth, she was a bit annoyed internally, but she was just being patient.
"Of! Of course! I ran away to find a way to forge this iron ingot! In my country! There are no craftsmen better than me! That's why I stole the iron ingot and ran away!" The Dwarf uncle replied.
"Then there's no problem, is there? My father probably didn't set a deadline for the forging, did he? So, as long as you can complete the request later, it'll be fine. I thought it was something big; is it just this small matter?" Ellie spread her hands, indicating that she first needed to build some favorability, and then set a trap for him, Ellie thought.
"Eh? You! You won't hold me accountable?" Instead, the Dwarf uncle was very surprised by Ellie's reaction.
"Why would I? Didn't you say you'd complete the request properly, Uncle? That's enough, isn't it? If you have any difficulties, just tell me. After all, it's my father's request, right? But if you plan to bail... then don't blame me for being impolite." At the end, Ellie gave the Dwarf uncle a very fierce look. This was the true expression of Ellie's current feelings.
"Princess Elizabeth is surprisingly reasonable..." Ligurit, who was beside her, said, looking at Ellie with a half-smile.
"Ligurit, you make it sound as if I'm such an unreasonable person," Ellie also responded with a "smile." Although she was very displeased, now was not the time to conflict with Ligurit. She still wanted to know more information about that Player.
"No wonder Lakyus would befriend you and let you join Blue Rose. It seems the outside world indeed misunderstands your Magic Kingdom... At least, in my opinion, Princess Elizabeth, you shouldn't be some heinous person," Ligurit surprisingly revealed a very cheerful smile and said.
"It seems... my father and I have a very bad reputation in the outside world. It's quite troublesome," Ellie replied, feigning a helpless expression. To be honest, she had hidden herself quite well, hadn't she? After the founding of the nation, she had hardly ever officially shown her face in the Magic Kingdom, so it shouldn't have anything to do with her, right?
"Not entirely. Let's not talk about this. I won't disturb you, Princess, from continuing your journey," Ligurit said. Does that mean she's saying goodbye? How could she let her go? Her goal hadn't been achieved yet.
"Ligurit, where are you going? If you don't mind, let me give you a ride?" Of course, Ellie couldn't let her go so easily. Now there was no reason to join the fun in the Dwarf Kingdom. Since she ran into her here, she definitely had to keep an eye on her!
Originally, after Ellie learned from the Elf King that there were still Players alive, her main goal was set on the Evaluation Country. Now that such a good opportunity was in front of her, encountering Ligurit, the Old Hag, who was on very good terms with the Platinum Dragon Lord, a council member of the Evaluation Country, she naturally couldn't easily let this opportunity slip by.
"Heh heh! There's no need to trouble you, Princess," Ligurit naturally refused.
"Ligurit, outside, please don't call me 'Princess' all the time. Outside, I'm just an Adventurer, Ellie, on the same team as you. As a junior, it's rare to have the opportunity to meet a legendary hero, so..." Ellie continued to build Ligurit's favorability. Sometimes, to achieve one's goals, lowering one's stance is necessary.
Just like Ainz's father's meeting with the Blood Emperor in the Arena, he positioned himself as a friend meeting the Blood Emperor privately, which ended up scaring the Blood Emperor terribly. So, although she didn't know much about Ligurit, the Old Hag, lowering her stance should still be effective.
"Unfortunately, I retired long ago. I am no longer an Adventurer. I am just a traveler with no status now," Ligurit replied humbly.
"Ligurit, you are too humble. I've heard many stories about the Thirteen Heroes back in the day. It's a pity I was born in the wrong era and missed the Demon God Turmoil at that time. Although it might sound a bit rude to say this now, I would really like to fight those Demon Gods who brought great disaster to this world back then. Now that I don't have that opportunity, I can only learn about it from you, Ligurit," Ellie said.
Ellie said this with some consideration. Although there wasn't much description of Ligurit in the original work, given the two rather interesting events she mentioned in the original work, it seemed that way.
Ligurit should also belong to the martial artist type, because Ellie clearly remembered that Evil-Crushing Lolita also joined Blue Rose after being beaten up by Ligurit. And when she retired and wanted to hand Blue Rose over to Lakyus, she also directly used her fists to speak, giving Lakyus a good beating.
So! Ellie also planned to portray herself as a martial artist type similar to Ligurit, although she herself already had such a tendency.
"Those Demon Gods shouldn't be as powerful as the Demon Gods you encountered in YGGDRASIL, Princess, so there's nothing to talk about," Ligurit continued to evade.
"Hmm? The Demon Gods of Ygg...drasil? What's that? I've never seen any Demon Gods..." Ellie replied, very confused. Oh ho! This Old Hag actually tried to set a trap for her at this moment. If it were Ainz's father, he would probably have fallen for this little trick.
Too bad! According to her setting, she was a native-born "local." And she had used such small tricks many times, so she wouldn't fall for it. At the same time, this also confirmed that the Platinum Dragon Lord and Ligurit were already suspecting whether Shalltear and the Magic Kingdom were connected.
From the conversation in the interlude of the original work, the Platinum Dragon Lord had already determined that Shalltear was a Transmigrator, so did that also implicate the Magic Kingdom that appeared with her? This deduction was indeed correct, especially after the battle on the Katz Plains. The Platinum Dragon Lord probably already believed that everyone from the Magic Kingdom was a Transmigrator, right?! Ellie thought to herself.
"Hmm? Ellie, you don't know about YGGDRASIL?" Ligurit continued to probe Ellie, but from her attitude of no longer calling her Princess, it seemed her direction was correct.
"Ligurit, what is this Ygg-something-drasil you're talking about? Is it a powerful Demon God? Or some kind of demonic realm? I've never heard of it! Ligurit, have you been there? Can you tell me about it!" Ellie pretended to be very excited, leaned closer, and asked eagerly.
Hmph! When it comes to acting, I'm still superior, aren't I? I won't fall for your trick, Old Hag. However, I should plan carefully again, after all, this guy knows about the existence of Players, and she already believes that the Magic Kingdom is made up of Transmigrated Players. I must be very careful!
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