While the King of the Dwarves was thinking about what he would do to the culprit once he caught him, the dwarves at the metal storage were trying to wake those who had fainted. After some time, most of the unconscious ones woke up. When the captain of the guards and the minister regained consciousness, they looked at one another and learned from the people around them that something serious had happened.
As for the minister, he kept his calm and did not lose his composure. He began questioning the people around him, and when he heard the news of the theft of the metals, he was shocked by what he heard, and the signs of shock appeared on his face, but he quickly regained his focus. He ordered the people to search the area and find out which of the guards were unconscious and whether any of them were missing. He also ordered that one of the dwarf priests be summoned so they could know who had opened the storage and activated the magic attached to it.
While the minister was giving orders and controlling the situation intelligently, one of the royal guards came to him, bowed slightly, and said:
"My lord minister, His Majesty the King summons you to his palace immediately."
As soon as the minister heard that, he understood that the king was very angry and wanted his presence at once. The minister calmed himself and thought carefully about what he would say to the king, and after a short while he regained his composure and said to the royal knight: "Let us go then; we should not make the king wait like this."
When the knight saw the minister's composure and calm even after what had happened, and knowing the king's anger, he was impressed by him and realized that he would get out of this problem easily. Therefore, he treated him with the utmost respect, because he knew that someone with such a strong mentality would take a position of great importance in the royal court in the future.
While the minister was heading to the king's palace, the king had already learned that the jinn were the ones who had performed the magic on the doors through one of the priests in the royal hall. The king was looking at the High Priest and saying:
"Are you sure, High Priest, that the jinn are the ones who did this?"
The High Priest replied with complete confidence:
"I am certain, my king. I am the one who performed the magic attached to the storage myself, and I am certain that the jinn are the ones who did it. I sensed it immediately when that thief opened the storage gate, and I warned the guards to check the matter."
As soon as the king heard the High Priest's confirmation, he rose from his throne and ordered the captain of the royal guard in a terrifying voice:
"Gather all the knights, bring the artifacts from the royal treasury, and prepare to respond to what the jinn have done."
Once the king gave his orders, the captain of the royal guard could not refuse or advise him in any way, even though he knew that the king was currently in a state of anger and might do things he would regret later.
As he was about to go carry out the orders, one of the guards who were guarding the hall from outside said:
"My king, the minister whom you ordered to appear before you has arrived."
As soon as the king heard that, he ordered that he be admitted immediately.
The young minister entered the royal hall calmly, where there were many royal guards, the High Priest, and the captain of the royal guard. As soon as he saw them and saw the expression on the face of the captain of the royal guard, he knew that the king had ordered him to do something dangerous while he was in a state of anger.
When the king saw the minister enter the hall with such calmness, without showing on his face any signs of fear or guilt, he was surprised and said angrily:
"Is this what you promised me, minister? Is this how the trust I entrusted to you is handled?"
The minister looked at the king, knelt on one knee, and said in a calm voice:
"It has been done, my lord, and we have learned who actually committed the theft. It was one of the jinn."
As soon as the king heard that, he became even angrier and said:
"And at what cost? All the discovered metal has been stolen, minister."
The king said this while striking the throne chair violently with his hands. As soon as he finished his words, the minister replied with clear confidence, saying:
"Then, my lord, this alone is strong evidence with which we can take our revenge on the jinn. All we have to do is deliver this news to the dragons and tell them that the jinn seek to create chaos in the continent of Mira through their reckless actions, and explain to them how they stole the new metal from which we were going to make weapons and powerful artifacts with which we would defend the Fallen Isles. Once the dragons hear of this, they will not remain silent about it, my king."
When the king heard the minister's words, his anger subsided a little, and silence filled the hall for a few moments before he said:
"But… will the jinn admit their mistake?"
The minister smiled confidently and said:
"My lord, it is not important that the jinn admit it, nor even that they are the ones who actually stole the metal. What matters is that one of the jinn is the one who opened the storage door, and that alone is strong evidence that condemns them. Even if they were not the ones who stole the metal, we will demand that they return what was stolen or compensate it with something of equal value. At that point, they will comply with our demand, because the dragons will stand on our side, for we are the ones in the right."
Then the minister continued in a steady voice:
"When we do that, my lord, we will have a strong reputation in the continent of Mira, and we will surpass the jinn without losing a single soldier."
As soon as the king heard these words, his anger disappeared completely, and the terrifying expression vanished from his face. He looked at the minister with a new look that held no doubt, but rather interest and admiration. He had thought that the minister's mistake would make him afraid to face him, perhaps even unable to look him in the eye out of embarrassment, but he was surprised by his strong composure, sharp thinking, and plan that only the cunning could conceive.
The king said in a strange voice:
"Did you expect this to happen, minister?"
Everyone in the hall was surprised by the king's question. As soon as they heard it, they looked toward the minister and saw him smile slightly and say in a confident voice:
"As I expected, my king. Yes, I expected that since you left me responsible for the new metal, but I did not expect that the jinn would be the first to fall into the trap."
Then he added:
"I asked the High Priest to perform the magic on the storage door himself, so that we would not make a mistake in identifying who covets our resources and treasures."
As soon as the minister said that, everyone in the hall was stunned by his intelligence and wisdom, and by his view of events from a completely different angle. The king looked at the minister, joy appearing on his face, and then said loudly with laughter mixed in:
"Hahahaha! You still surprise me, minister, with your intelligence and plans every time."
Then the king returned to seriousness and said:
"But will not allowing the theft of the metals make our image weak before the continent of Mira? And what if we do not find the metal again?"
The minister looked at the king and said calmly and confidently:
"Do not worry about our image before the continent, my lord. When the dragons help us, everyone will know that the dwarves cannot be underestimated. As for the missing metal, we will find our way to it. If the jinn were not the ones who stole it, and any race of the continent of Mira has made a weapon or an artifact from it, we will discover that sooner or later. Then we will demand that they return the metal and all the artifacts and magical weapons made from it."
The minister continued:
"And they will not be able to refuse, because what we will do to the jinn, and the treasures we will take from them through the dragons, will spread throughout the entire continent. Then everyone who stole the metal will fear that we might raise the matter to the dragons, and they will return what they stole willingly."
When the King of the Dwarves heard this, he was amazed by the minister's thinking, which left no question unanswered. He thought about his words and realized their correctness; the thieves would inevitably use the metal to make weapons or artifacts, and then it would be easy to track them down and recover what was stolen.
The king smiled as he thought about this, then looked at the minister and said in a voice full of satisfaction:
"You have not disappointed me, minister."