A Core Ship From The Start-Chapter 905 - 637 Gnomes_2

Dwarves are well known to everyone, expert at mining and crafting, stubborn as stone; those are the stereotypes outsiders have of them, although they aren’t far from the truth.

Gnomes, on the other hand, are a bit different; they are naturally optimistic and enjoy carving gems, but there is also another important point: Gnomes were among the first races on this planet to start conducting scientific experiments and industrialization.

In theory, once a civilized race masters industrialization, they should advance by leaps and bounds. However, the reality of the Gnomes’ strength is quite delicate. It is lower than that of the Dwarves but is still enough to protect themselves from being destroyed by other cities in the Dark Region. Yet, that is as far as they go. Logically, if Gnomes truly possessed powerful mechanical manufacturing abilities, sweeping across the entire Dark Region wouldn’t pose a problem.

But they can’t do it.

The reason is simple: Gnome industrialization has never been smooth.

For example, the Gnomes once created cranes to move large stones—considering their small and frail stature, this was a necessary innovation.

Therefore, in theory, such a useful device should quickly become widespread among Gnomes, but that’s not what happened. Unlike the paranoid self-preservation seen in the Mechanic Religion, the biggest problem with Gnomish inventions is that they cannot be replicated.

If one Gnome creates some machinery, another Gnome, even if using the same materials, the same structure, the same technique, will still end up failing in the end.

This is a strange phenomenon because this isn’t supposed to happen with industrialization standards.

This is also one of the reasons why, up to this point, the level of technology on the Faelun Continent and even on this planet is not very high.

If one were to say Manaria and the Holy City are merely behind due to insufficient time and haven’t reached the necessary level of development, then Faelun feels more like it’s being deliberately held back.

In fact, among players, it’s already been rumored that the reason why Faelun cannot successfully undergo an industrial revolution is because of the gods. They clearly saw the threat industrial revolution posed to deities, as the world’s deities rely on the power of faith. Once a civilization succeeds in industrialization, their dependency on deities would decrease, so these gods jointly cast some sort of curse or barrier on this world, resulting in any attempts at an industrial revolution fizzling out. Just like with the Gnomes, a piece of machinery cannot be perfectly replicated and, even with the knowledge of its principles and the attempt to manufacture it, it would only result in failure or accidental destruction.

Over time, the creatures of this world have grown accustomed to this state of affairs; in their common sense—these "gadgets" always experience all kinds of issues, as certain as apples falling from trees to the ground.

Well, Duanmu Huai didn’t have any interest in this; he was somewhat disappointed to find out they were Gnomes, as it at least meant he couldn’t carry out an exhilarating massacre in this city.

"Hey, little fella."

Duanmu Huai stretched out his hand and grabbed a Guard, who struggled in his iron grip like a chubby hamster.

"I’m not interested in your city, so I just have one question, any good places around here?"

"You, what are you talking about?? What good places?"

"Drow, Gray Dwarves, Heart Stealers, Goblins will do in a pinch, too; those damned, wretched races that should be forever burning in flames. I’m sure you know the situation around here," Duanmu Huai stared at the Soldier before him, asking in a low voice, while the other Gnomes had already raised their weapons, looking at Duanmu Huai with uncertainty. However, Duanmu Huai didn’t care about the Gnomes’ reaction at all. Ogis was simply sitting on his shoulder admiring the gate in front of them, and Gavi stood behind Duanmu Huai, her Short Swords spinning in her hands—she did not hide her contempt for the Gnomes.

At least, in Gavi’s view, these Gnomes were far inferior to the Black Iron Giants they had just battled with Duanmu Huai. ƒrēewebnoѵёl.cσm

Hearing Duanmu Huai’s query, the Guard trembled even more violently. The Drow were archenemies of the Gnomes, the Heart Stealers were dreadfully fearsome, the Gray Dwarves a bit more manageable, but Gnomes also preferred to steer clear of them. The Guard looked at Duanmu Huai as if he were mad—just as someone from the surface would regard a human claiming they were off to slay a dragon; both a ludicrous and terrifying notion.

"Answer my question, Gnome, my mood is not exactly pleasant right now."

The recent battle with the Black Legion had left Duanmu Huai in a rather foul mood, with a fear aura already spilling out around him, and the dwarves were shivering just the same, even considering to drop their weapons and flee.

"Your behavior is quite rude, visitor."

Just then, a voice rang out, and Duanmu Huai looked up to see a sliver of space as the giant stone door opened, followed by a dwarf stepping out.

"I’m just here to ask for directions."

Duanmu Huai put down the dwarf guard he had been holding.

"Give me an answer, and I will leave immediately, but I hope you won’t deceive me. Although I mean no harm to dwarves, the Tribunal will not tolerate deception."

"Aren’t you afraid I’ll lead you into the Red Dragon’s cave, and let its flames burn you to ashes?"

"If you could truly show me a path to the Red Dragon’s nest, I would be most grateful."

Duanmu Huai was actually speaking the truth; slaying dragons was a feat no player would turn down. If the dwarf really tricked him into the dragon’s nest, he would be thankful, to say the least.

"Strange person."

The dwarf captain eyed Duanmu Huai with confusion; he had seen many adventurers come from the outside, but none as peculiar a combination as them, and... very dangerous.

"I can give you a map, but only of the area surrounding this city. You should understand that we wouldn’t dare to venture into those dangerous places."

"I understand. Having just a rough direction will suffice, and we can handle the rest ourselves."

At worst, they could capture a tongue and force the information out of them, something at which the Judge excelled.

"Very well, you are... not the first group I’ve seen venture deep into the Dark Region, but I must still warn you, the Dark Region is much more dangerous than you imagine."

"Thank you for your advice."

Duanmu Huai took the map the dwarf captain handed over, nodded, then turned and left, with Gavi casting a glance at them before following behind Duanmu Huai.

Watching the trio’s figures disappear into the shadows of the tunnel, all the dwarves finally let out a sigh of relief.

"By the stone above, I thought I was going to die," said the dwarf soldier whom Duanmu Huai had held, now unable to even stand, drenched in a cold sweat.

"Alright, get up. Guarding the city gate is your responsibility!"

The dwarf captain glanced one last time at the silhouettes that had vanished into the tunnel, retracted his gaze, and angrily scolded his subordinates.

He had a premonition that he would see them again in the future.