Guardian of the World Tree - Chapter 13 English

 Chapter 13 - The Work of a Pro

I introduced Dennis-oyakata to Feroll and Johan-san. Both were startled to see a dwarf suddenly appear.

As we did with Alfred-sensei, we need to ask Johan-san to prepare a room for Dennis-oyakata.

“Johan-san, do you still have any vacant rooms? Could you lend one to Dennis-oyakata?”

“Nah, kid, I’ll take care of finding a place to live. Just lend me some land.”

“Well, there’s plenty of open land around, so feel free to build your house wherever you like. Isn’t that right, Johan-san?”

Technically, I’m the lord of this land, so all the unused land belongs to me. If someone wants to clear new fields, they need my permission to avoid disputes. So far, it seems Johan has been managing that.

“Of course. But are you sure about this? Why not stay here at least until your house is built?”

“Hahaha, I can build my own house in no time.”

“Is that so? Well, at the very least, please take your meals here.”

“Sorry to trouble you. I’ll take you up on that offer.”

So the matter was settled. Still, I didn’t expect him to say he’d build his own house. As expected of a dwarf. I wonder what kind of house he’ll build? Maybe I’ll go and watch.

“Kid, I’ll need to use wood to build my house. Can I cut down some trees from the surrounding mountains?”

“Sure. There aren’t any people around here who make a living from forestry, so go ahead. By the way, Dennis-oyakata, I heard that dwarves live underground. Is that true?”

“Yeah, it’s true. Underground, it’s neither too hot nor too cold. Plus, it doesn’t burn. Oh, and kid, cut out the formal talk, will ya? It makes my skin crawl.”

“Got it. I’ll do that.”

Seeing how uncomfortable Dennis-oyakata seemed, I decided to drop the formal speech as he requested. Personally, I feel like I should be more respectful to someone like him, but if that’s what he wants, so be it. Still, he’s going to keep calling me “kid,” huh? Well, I guess it’s not wrong.

“Well, first things first, I’ll head out to gather some timber.”

“Dennis-oyakata, can I come with you?”

“Of course you can. That means Alfred’s coming too, right? That’s perfect. Gathering materials is easier with two than with one.”

Dennis-oyakata turned to look at Alfred-sensei. He made a face like, “Oh well,” but didn’t object.

It seems that elves and dwarves don’t actually hate each other. They just live in different ways. Well, I agree that not bathing wouldn’t suit me either.

As I was thinking about that, something seemed to catch Alfred-sensei’s attention. He pointed at the bag hanging from Dennis-oyakata’s waist.

“Dennis, don’t you have the timber you need in that magic bag?”

“Where I come from, timber is a precious resource. Even though the World Tree called me, I couldn’t just take it with me so easily.”

“I see. Well, there’s plenty of good wood around here. I imagine your hands must be itching to get started.”

“You got that right. I’ve been dying to work with it.”

Dennis-oyakata smiled brightly. Dwarves really do love crafting. It feels like protecting me is just an afterthought for him, but that’s not true, right?

With a cheerful Dennis-oyakata, we headed to the area I had planned to clear by cutting down trees.

By cutting the trees here, it should make it easier to draw water from the nearby river. There’s still a lot to do, like digging canals, but once that’s done, watering the fields every morning will be much easier. With the extra time, I’ll be able to focus on other tasks. The possibilities are endless.

“Dennis-oyakata, feel free to use any of the trees in this area.”

“Got it, kid. You’re pretty generous!”

Am I? It’s just cutting down trees that grew naturally, so I don’t think it’s that big of a deal. While I was thinking that, Dennis-oyakata pulled a massive axe out of his bag. It’s huge, almost as tall as me. He lifted it effortlessly with one hand. What strength!

“Alfred, make sure the tree doesn’t fall towards the kid. Help with magic.”

“Understood. Ridil-kun, this will be a new lesson in spirit magic. It’s a wind spell called ‘Breeze,’ which generates a gust of wind.”

“I’m ready!”

Yes! I’m finally going to learn my second spirit magic spell! Dennis-oyakata, who had been watching Alfred-sensei and me, blinked in surprise.

“Are you seriously teaching such a basic spell? In that case, I could teach you some earth magic. I’m pretty good with that.”

“Oh, I’d love that!”

“Leave it to me.”

Dennis-oyakata thumped his chest confidently. Dwarves, living underground as they do, seem to be good at earth magic. I’m excited to see what kind of spells he’ll teach me.

While I was buzzing with excitement, Dennis-oyakata selected a tree to fell.

“Alright, Alfred, I’m counting on you.”

“Leave it to me. Ridil-kun, watch closely. Picture a strong gust of wind blowing for just a moment. The longer the wind blows, the more magic it consumes.”

“Understood.”

Dennis-oyakata and Alfred-sensei exchanged nods. Dennis-oyakata, holding the axe horizontally with both hands, took a deep breath.

Wait, is he going to cut down the tree in one blow, instead of chopping at it repeatedly like a lumberjack?

“Soiya!”

“Breeze!”

With a thwack, the axe struck the tree, and at the same time, a powerful wind whooshed past. The wind shook the branches of the surrounding trees and guided the falling tree in the desired direction.

Wow. Their timing was perfect. It’s as if they’ve done this together many times before. This is what it means to be a pro.