Chapter 26: Stinginess And Greed

"Dang...dang...dang...dang...dang!"

The urgent and panicked sound of the bell suddenly rang out, instantly breaking the tranquility of Gluia Town. The originally bustling crowds on the various streets stopped in their tracks when they heard the sudden sound of the bell, their heads looking around like rattlesnakes with puzzled looks on their faces.

But their puzzlement didn't last long. With the ringing of the bell, on the streets of Gluia Town, a dozen teams of dwarf warriors were like a raging torrent, running towards the outside of the town with hurried steps. The dwarf warriors were filled with anxiety, their eyes flashing with nervousness. As they ran, they shouted at the top of their lungs.

"Get out of the way, get out, all of you!"

Some of the dwarf soldiers did not hesitate to stretch out their thick arms and roughly pushed away the people in front of them as the crowd dodged. The people who were pushed out of the way stumbled, and although their faces showed an angry expression, they dared not say anything.

Baskets were knocked over, chicken coops were knocked over, and the place where the dwarf warriors ran through was a mess...

"What are you fools up to?"

Birkin, the owner who ran a small blacksmith's shop, huffed and poked a tiny head out of his precious store when he heard the bell. Birkin was short but sturdy, wearing a stained leather apron and holding a hammer in his hand.

"Sabot, please do tell me what the hell is going on here?"

Birkin looked at the passing town defense force and called out to his distant relative Sabot, who worked as an errand boy in it, to ask what all was going on.

It was around two o'clock in the afternoon, which was supposed to be one of the busiest times in Gluia Town. However, the chaos of the moment brought it all to a screeching halt.

Birkin looked at his carefully crafted weaponry, dissatisfaction written all over his face. Originally, he had wanted to take advantage of this hard-won grand bazaar to sell a few more pieces of weaponry, but now that the streets were so chaotic, it was clear that his plan had fizzled out.

"Birkin?!"

A sweaty-faced dwarf briefly broke away from the town defense force's queue and walked towards Birkin. He was none other than Sabot, Birkin's distant relative who is on duty in the town defense force.

Although Sabot was very unfavorable to Birkin, at this moment, the affection of blood is thicker than water still prevailed, and he chose to tell this cousin the truth secretly.

Sabot took off his helmet and looked around, a wary look in his eyes, and when he realized that a number of people were staring at him with strange eyes, he frowned slightly and forced his voice down.

"Quickly hide back in your own store, don't come out!"

Sabot's voice was low, but it carried an undeniable determination.

"An enemy attack?"

Birkin shook his head in disbelief.

"Are those stupid Goblins again? They also dare to attack the town?"

"I didn't realize that you guys are even afraid of Goblins now, really ..."

Birkin's tone was filled with disdain as he spoke while gently shaking his head.

Although Gluia Town was only a medium-sized town, it was a town dominated by dwarves.

The dwarves' love for stones could not only be seen in gems and gold coins, the walls and the tip of the sword were likewise something they were good at. The walls of Gluia Town were tall and sturdy, the battlements on the walls were neatly arranged, and there were stone throwers, dark fortresses, and other defensive buildings.

Since the neighborhood where Gluia Town was located had never seen any swarms of monsters that were too strong, many of the dwarves like Birkin who had been living in Gluia Town for generations simply didn't understand the real situation in the outside world. In their heads, which only knew the good old days, the incoming monsters would only be Lizardmen, Goblins, and other low-level monsters. All of these were not a threat to Gluia Town. They were so used to living a comfortable life that they never thought of any real danger coming their way.

"You can be such a fool!"

Sabot helplessly covered his face with a look of hatred, then he pushed Birkin back into the blacksmith's shop with force. During the push, Sabot's arms tensed up, and said with incomparable seriousness.

"Did you not hear that the bell we rang was five?"

"The bell ringing five times in a row means that there are at least 3,000, remember it's at least 3,000 numbers of monsters forming an army to invade our home!"

Sabot's voice trembled slightly, his eyes locked on Birkin.

"Only an enemy that reaches this standard or above is qualified to have our town lord ring five times in a row against the giant bell, got it?"

His tone grew more and more urgent as if he was trying to make Birkin understand the seriousness of the matter.

"Never mind, just watch out for your safety anyway, and don't run around."

Sabot sighed softly, easing his tone a little before turning around quickly.

"I'm going to gather!"

After saying that, Sabot put his helmet back on, picked up his short sword and shield, and ran towards the direction where the town walls were, his figure gradually disappearing at the end of the street.

On the other hand, Birkin, who had already returned to the store and locked the store door tightly, was grimacing. His hands were slightly trembling and his heart was thumping. This was the first time he had encountered such a situation, and in the past countless years, he had never thought that the home he lived in would actually be attacked. Birkin's mind kept floating back to Sabot's tense appearance, and the shrewd man then knew that this time Gluia Town was likely to be in great danger.

"It's over it's over ..."

Birkin muttered, his voice filled with fear.

"Even an idiot like Sabot said so, Gluia Town is probably doomed."

Birkin, who realized the seriousness of the matter, instantly panicked. He rushed to the back of the counter in a fiery rage, packing up the gold and silver treasures that he had accumulated over the years.

Birkin's eyes glittered with entanglement and greed, and while he nervously scanned the treasures, he pondered that vital question in his mind.

Perhaps the onlookers would think that he was thinking about food and fresh water, or how to successfully escape from the upcoming tide of demons.

No, everyone's understanding was wrong.

The real question that this shrewd, yet stupid to the core dwarf was thinking about turned out to be ...

"Should I pack those exquisite diamond jewelry first, or those delectable gold first, or those silver coins ..."

Birkin's brow was locked and his face was filled with a tangle of colors. He picked up a string of diamond jewelry one moment and held up a handful of gold the next, his heart full of reluctance. Those silver coins, on the other hand, emitted the same tantalizing light in his eyes. His mind was racing, making a difficult choice, completely forgetting the impending danger.

Just as Birkin was caught up in that foolish choice, his gaze suddenly glanced to a red-haired beastman on the side without realizing it. This red-haired beastman was standing quietly in the corner of the store, silently polishing his tools. His movements were calm and orderly as if the chaos around him had nothing to do with him.

However, this unperturbed look of the red-haired beastman instantly ignited the anger in Birkin's heart. He shouted in a nasty tone, his voice sharp and piercing, echoing through the store.

"You fool, what are you waiting for? Hurry up and pack up all these valuable things! Move fast, the monsters are about to enter the town, if you delay, we'll be in for it!"

The red-haired beastman frowned when he heard Birkin's angry roar. His thick red eyebrows twitched slightly, expressing his inner dissatisfaction. But soon, this trace of dissatisfaction was forcibly suppressed by him; he needed the job that Birkin was offering right now. The red-haired beastman silently obeyed Birkin's command, and with nimble hands and feet, he began to pack up the valuable items within the blacksmith's shop, placing them neatly into the packages.

The red-haired beastman was Robert, and after returning to Gluia Town, Robert didn't hesitate to find someone to heal the black-haired beastman's leg. After all, his leg was broken by Robert's own hands, and although it was forced by the situation, Robert still felt guilty. The cost of the treatment was relatively expensive, and counting the other kinds of expenses, Robert had wanted to lead the squad to take some more quests in the Adventurer's Guild to improve everyone's life.

However, they were hindered at every turn. Every time they managed to see a quest before they could apply for it, it would be snatched up by other squads first. After inquiring, they learned that Seth was deliberately making things difficult for them and that his main target was Robert, who had a hint of anger in his eyes, but Seth had so much power in Gluia Town that no one wanted to offend him.

Considering the fact that the team members need a stable financial income, and the current situation makes them unable to see the future, Robert gritted his teeth and had to disband his team. At the moment of parting, Robert even blamed himself and gave his savings to the team members as compensation.

After that, none of the adventuring team dared to recruit Robert, and no one in Gluia Town was willing to offend Seth for fear of getting burned. Robert had no choice but to give up the idea of joining an adventure team for the time being and looking for another job in Gluia Town. He traveled around and finally came to Birkin's blacksmith's shop to work as a laborer.

After all, Robert was a level 5 warrior with excellent physical strength. With his strong body, he could do the work of five or six people. Even Birkin, who had always been stingy, was satisfied with Robert and offered him a good salary.