"General! We've taken back all the nezumi tunnels! The entire brass fortress has also been re-armed, and the gnolls who have been harassing all directions of the fortress have begun to retreat without tunnels. We win! ”

A heavily armed dwarven gunner put down the telescope dotted with nezumi skulls, and excitedly turned back to the fortress defense general Bannock Earth Force standing behind him:

"You see, from our vantage point, we can see our iron-hearted warriors hoisting their banners from the last tunnel, and the Clan's banner moving back, and that damn brutal gnoll chieftain is like its ancestors a hundred years ago, crumbling in front of our great Impenetrable Fortress!

Even with their evil allies like the nezumi, the pathetic barbarians won't be able to gnaw down on our mighty fortress! ”

"Well said, soldier! This is exactly the good news that our Majesty would like to hear. ”

General Bannock was also excited.

He removed his red-tasseled helmet and relied on his powerful vision to see the battlefield ahead, where the gnolls were retreating as far as the eye could see, and their evil allies who had smeared through the ground were pursued by fearless iron-hearted warriors and dwarven soldiers who had been highly demoralized by triple their salaries.

"Send our elite Ironcore warriors to defend those tunnels at once! I'm going to tell our Majesty the good news and, by the way, discuss what to do next. ”

The dwarven general withdrew his gaze, gave orders to several of his heralds, and turned to the gunners beside him who were looking at him with some kind of fiery gaze, and of course he knew what these guys were expecting, so General Bannock waved his hand and shouted:

"In the name of this victory, there will soon be plenty of gold as a reward! Every soldier will be rewarded for his merits, and in the name of His Majesty, all the taverns and casinos throughout the city will be rewarded with victory celebrations, and perhaps discounts.

Oh yes, and the holidays!

You have been here for so long, and now that victory is in our hands, I will make a proposal to your Majesty to give you enough vacation to squander the great wealth you have acquired.

A brilliant victory means a lot of money, brothers! Rejoice! ”

"Long live the generous Majesty!"

General Bannock's series of promises lifted the spirits of the dwarves in the surrounding positions, and the broken gong shouted loudly, making the place incredibly noisy.

There were also some gunners in the crowd with strange expressions on their faces.

After all, now that the fortress has been held, the gnolls have retreated, and the brass fortress has been won, there will probably not be a good day to get three times the daily salary, repel the attack, and reward.

But they were content.

After all, everyone survived, and no matter how much lovely gold they earned, they had to spend their lives.

"I know you're excited, soldiers, but please stand one last shift for our Majesty."

General Bannock nodded in satisfaction as he looked at the morale he had boosted with a few words, and the lavishly dressed general gave the surrounding warriors the order to defend, and then rode his Loosimon to the throne hall to report the victory.

Before leaving, he took one last glimpse of the fortress's heights.

The subspace fog that enveloped the entire Gorgon Pass was still entrenched as usual, but it was much darker in both concentration and color than before, and it was about to dissipate, which meant that the siege of the Gorgon Pass and the Brass Fortress was coming to an end.

Well, good things, all good things!

The most difficult moment has passed, which means that good things are coming!

Thinking so, General Bannock hurried to the throne room as quickly as possible, where his king, Hadran Earthhammer, the supreme lord of the brass dwarves, was sitting on his throne, looking at the ledger in his hand with a sad face, as if something was bothering him, and he didn't realize that his most trusted general was walking into the hall.

"Your Majesty, good news!"

Bannock shouted:

"The last nezumi tunnel has been recaptured by our valiant soldiers, and the gnolls have retreated, and they are retreating! Our great city continues the ancient traditions, we did not bow to the invaders, we were victorious! ”

"Huh?"

Lord Hadland, who had not left the throne room for almost a month, was also overjoyed when he heard this, and he patted his knees and exclaimed:

"Yes, yes! My last few coffers were managed to save uh, ahem, I mean, this victory came just in time! My General, I've just received word that the Atlantarian Storm Ripper Warlocks will shatter the subspace fog once and for all tomorrow morning, meaning we don't have to be cut off from the outside world anymore.

It's a double blessing! ”

"Yes, Your Majesty, we will get in touch with the port of Chardo again, and then the whole continent will know about the great deeds accomplished by the Brass Dwarves, we have not relied on anyone, we have not even relied on the gods who have abandoned us, we have repelled the Black Plague with our own hands, and the Brass Dwarves will once again be the heroes of the entire continent!"

General Bannock strode forward and said to his Majesty in a voice of praise and flattery:

"You will also be the savior of the entire continent, and it is you who have led your people to stand up and complete the cause of protection despite being abandoned when other leaders are struggling to sleep because of the threat of the gnolls.

My Majesty, you will be a symbol of all the dwarves, and you can even put an end to the division of the three dwarves once and for all

But before that, my Majesty, there is one matter that you must settle at once, according to your agreement with the soldiers, that after this victory you will be rewarded with a great sum of riches for their bravery, and as a memorial to the dead.

I calculated on the way here that the treasury in our hands is not enough to pay so much military salary, but the soldiers need material rewards, and your majesty, this is indispensable. ”

"I know, I know."

Hearing this, Lord Hadran's expression changed to a sad face, and even a hint of embarrassment, and he sighed and said:

"Money boosts the morale of the warriors, but the price of buying victory is too high, the royal coffers are depleted, and my general, I have nothing to hide from you, the fact is that your king has been impoverished by this defense for more than a month.

Counting this victory, the Earth Hammer family will go bankrupt tonight.

The mining companies were willing to support our war effort, but the coffers they gave out were also depleted. ”

"No, Your Majesty, you still have plenty of wealth in your hands."

General Bannock smiled, took out a piece of raw ore covered with crystal clusters from his bosom, and stuffed it into the hands of Lord Hadland, saying:

"Isn't it just for today that we've kept that burning money? No shrewd dwarf will refuse to accept your payment of a gold mine, and the proliferation of gold coins has led to high prices throughout the city, and my servant told me this morning that the price of a large loaf of white bread has risen to five silver coins."

"Five silver coins? Gaia's on top! ”

The High Lord was shocked when he heard this, and he got up and said:

"We can't go on like this, if the people don't have enough to eat, they will make trouble, and we must get the value of the coins back on track as soon as possible."

"So we need to pay with gold to give the currency enough time to stabilize, your royal accountants are already figuring it out, you should trust them."

General Bannock said in a seductive manner:

"But the gold ore in our hands is not enough to reward every soldier, and with all due respect, your majesty, you have kept that temple for Gaia for more than a month, and you have not used that wealth in the most difficult moments, and you have tried to express your piety in this way.

But Gaia didn't respond to us!

Now that we've won, we don't need the grace of the gods.

Perhaps the wealth that has been sacrificed for hundreds of years should be put to better use. ”

Hearing this suggestion, the High Lord fell silent for a moment, and after a moment he said:

"I'll have to think again."

"Your Majesty! Do you still need to think about the reality of the brave soldiers who have turned their backs on our gods on the one hand, and the loyal warriors who have sacrificed their blood for your city and your people on the other? ”

Bannock said angrily:

"As you can see, I was the most devout priest of Gaia, but I am awakened now!

I have seen the death and loyalty of the soldiers in the terrible war, and I have seen the courage and unity of our people to defend the city spontaneously, and the cold god has proved to be completely unworthy of our worship!

We brass dwarves can do whatever we want with our own hands, and your soldiers have fulfilled their promises, and now it is time for you to prove your oath to your soldiers, Your Majesty, we have lost Gaia, and we cannot lose the loyalty of our soldiers anymore! ”

The High Lord remained silent.

He sat back on his golden throne and reached for an old emblem and rubbed it in his hand.

It is a reverent relict carved by Gaia when he first received Gaia's guidance when he awoke from the Dark Mountains more than a thousand years ago, which is a clear proof of the first contact between man and God, and it is also a contract of faith between the brass dwarf and the mother earth goddess.

For more than a thousand years, the dwarves and Mother Earth have been born together, like an old friend.

"Gaia, please respond to me."

Lord Hadran prayed in his heart, like every call in the past month or so, but all he received was an empty silence.

"Well, that's it."

The Supreme Lord sighed a little disheartened, and under the gaze of General Bannock, he threw the Holy Emblem that he never left on the table at hand, closed his eyes, waved his hand very tiredly, and said:

"Go yourself, Bannock, my most trusted general, commander and savior of the Brass Fortress, go, open the Gaia vault, give the king's reward to the brave warriors, and declare to them that their king respects and fulfills my war contract with them."

"My Majesty!"

Seeing that the High Lord had finally made up his mind, General Bannock was overjoyed, and he fell to his knees and replied reverently:

"Your decision today will be written down in history, and from now on, we brass dwarves will be truly freed from that heavy bondage, so rest and let me do the rest."

With that, the general put on his red-tasseled helmet and strode out of the throne room, and a few minutes later, he led a group of soldiers into the Gaia vault, where the lord's guards had dispersed.

Bannock looked at the door of the vault carved with the statue of Gaia in front of him, he sneered, and with a wave of his hand, a ruthless iron-hearted warrior stepped forward and swung his war hammer, slamming open the heavy door in three or two clicks, and in the next moment, the golden luster illuminated everyone's eyes.

For hundreds of years, the brass dwarves had made offerings and prayers to the gods before their eyes, and what a magnificent fortune it was, enough to bend the knees of a noble hermit, enough to bend the knees of a brave hero, and no one could maintain his sanity in the face of the mountains of gold and silver, and even General Bannock's breath was a little heavier.

He stepped forward, scooped up a handful of gold coins with his armoured hand and placed it in front of his eyes, and let the yellow, orange and orange treasure fall from his fingers and smash it on the mountain of gold with a light and pleasant sound.

"Well, Gaia, I have broken into your treasury, I have plundered your riches, and I will give them to those who have turned their backs

Where are you? ”

The general said in his heart:

"Stop me, and if you let me down a whimper, I'll stop everything I'm planning to do at once, yes, as soon as you speak! This will still be your holy place, and all evil and intrigue will not be possible here, as long as you open your mouth."

There was only an empty silence in response.

It seems that Mother Earth has made a very thorough cut of the faith of the brass dwarves, and such a silent response also made General Bannock sneer in his heart, he kicked the mountain of gold beside him, causing the dazzling gems to fly around, and then turned back to the dozen royal accountants who followed behind him:

"Send the king's reward at once! Have the commander of each team come and receive the reward, and inform them that every soldier will be rewarded with a piece of Burning Gold Ore, and that their leave will begin tonight!

Don't worry about the city defense!

The Ironheart Warriors will take their place, allowing the weary soldiers to enjoy the moment of pleasure they deserve.

Ladies and gentlemen, you are tired too.

Don't forget to calculate your own reward, don't be intimidated, it's all a gift from the king, you deserve it, rejoice, dwarves. ”

——

In order to attack the Brass Fortress, the Rat Dwarves dug a considerable amount of tunnels underground, and the Brass Dwarves fought most of the underground tunnels for more than a month, and it was only today that they finally drove the Nezumi out of this underground area, but this does not mean that the danger is gone.

After all, as long as these tunnels are still in place, the gnolls and their minions outside the city can still use the tunnels to attack the city, so for any qualified commander, how to deal with the tunnels left behind by these nezumi has become a top priority for the safety of the fortress.

In the past, these tunnels would not have been a problem for the dwarven earth priests.

All it takes is to call on Gaia's power to fill in these tunnels and even turn them into part of the brass fortress's defenses, but now that the brass dwarves are no longer loved by the earth, it is difficult for them to dispose of these hidden objects in a short period of time.

"Don't worry, I've got a solution."

General Bannock, who was advancing in the tunnel at this time, said to several worried royal psionics behind him:

"I have a great plan to get rid of these problems once and for all, but it will require your help, all of whom are Your Majesty's most trusted psionic masters, and the best psionic users among the Brass Dwarves, please come with me.

I've gone there to prepare a ritual that will solve all problems, and I need your help to complete it. ”

The psionic masters did not doubt him, after all, it was only through the perseverance and command of General Bannock in the past month or so that the fortress had held out until now, and this general was the most central figure in this defensive battle, even surpassing the Supreme Lord who had been staying in the throne hall.

"Can you tell us about your plans? Checkmate. ”

A female dwarf psychicist asked, and Bannock laughed and said boldly:

"Actually, it's not complicated, it's still the same old, when the Mother Earth God was still concerned about us, the power of the earth was our weapon, and now the Mother Mother God has abandoned us, but it doesn't matter, we can still find a way to get power from other gods

Well, no, the power of the gods is always troublesome to use.

We also need to give faith, and this relationship is too stupid, so we have to do it in one step. ”

The general looked back at the psychics behind him, who had slowed down, and he grinned and said:

"You know that the gnolls started this plague to make their own gods, right? What an arrogant ambition, but what you don't know is that the gnolls are actually latecomers. All of them are borrowing from old ideas, they are not the first, they are not the closest to victory, so let me show you a great project that has been planned since hundreds of years ago.

O gods.

The great power born from the subspace, the wonderful individual constructed by the prayers and imaginations of countless people, first has thoughts and then great power, and when something is recognized by countless people and endowed with a common knowledge that transcends the entity, the foundation for the birth of the gods is solid, and only a sacrifice worthy of their priesthood is needed.

Ladies and gentlemen, brass dwarves are no longer loved by Mother Earth, but it doesn't matter, for we will soon have the power of the new gods to inspire courage, gold to breed strength, trade to give wisdom, and profligacy to bring pleasure.

And most importantly, burn gold!

Every piece of gold in the circulating continent will be the vehicle for him to show his power, and I call him the god of trading, the god of wealth, the god of commerce, and the god of pleasure

Hmm, why do you have such an expression?

Do you think I have brought you here to perform the sacrifice of the gods? ”

Bannock looked at the frightened psionists, and he laughed and said:

"No, no, no, my stupid compatriots, the sacrifice has already been completed!

And behold, our brass fortress!

A holy place that should have fallen early but was sheltered and triumphed by the power of money, the center of the continent's gold trading for the past hundreds of years, the mining companies that have worked tirelessly to grow their wealth, the shrewd and miserly people who love wealth and know how to use it.

Yes!

The sacrificial rite of the coming of our God has been completed!

Now it is only necessary to complete the last step and let Him, who is already shining in the subspace, truly descend into the physical world.

Ladies and gentlemen, what a privilege it is for you to witness the birth of a new god!

Come, smile, and hold this 'Plane Diamond'. ”

(End of chapter)