The Mining City Shirok

Along the way, we encountered and butchered some Boar Monsters, then stewed them with nearby herbs.

Since they attacked in a group, we smoked the excess and loaded it onto the carriage.

Not knowing what would be in demand in Shirok, we'd loaded the carriage with sweets and fruits that keep well.

Worst case, even if they don't sell, we'll manage.

After letting the mules drink at a river and washing the cooking utensils, we continued the rest of our journey.

The new carriage barely shakes, so even long trips aren't that tiring, which helps.

"It's coming into view."

Following the map, the mining city of Shirok finally came into view.

It was surrounded by stone walls, giving it a rugged impression.

There were no lookouts or gatekeepers, just a notice to always close the gate after opening it.

Apparently, entry and exit were free, and there was no need to pay taxes.

This was probably to accept laborers who came to work with nothing but the clothes on their backs.

They'd want every worker they could get for the mines.

Inside the gate, many tenement houses came into view.

People were doing laundry or cooking in front of their houses.

It was close to communal living. This seemed to be the way of life in this city.

"So, we've arrived at Shirok, but what do we do now?"

"I'd like to grab someone and get information, but… we're outsiders here. We stick out no matter what."

I could immediately tell we were being stared at.

Being a mining city, there were many men, so our mostly female group stuck out badly.

Our purpose was investigating the burning stone, not doing business.

Standing out unnecessarily would only cause trouble.

"Isn't that a tavern over there?"

Looking at the building Azu pointed to, I saw a large painting of a beer barrel displayed prominently.

How obvious.

"The tavern master might know something. Let's go check it out."

"Sure."

We stopped the carriage in front of the tavern and tied up the mules.

Opening the door and entering, we found the place bustling with customers despite it being midday.

Strange.

All the customers were well-built and wearing work clothes.

In other words, they were miners.

If they were drinking, they couldn't possibly work in the mines.

It was hard to believe this many people were off duty.

"Welcome."

The tavern master greeted us gruffly while polishing a glass with a cloth.

We weren't exactly welcomed.

He seemed to be probing what outsiders had come for.

"Could we get milk for everyone?"

"This is a tavern, you know…"

Despite saying that, he prepared it right away.

I took a sip.

It had a strong, distinctive taste. Goat's milk.

"Busy place. Is the mine closed today?"

"It's been like this for a while now. Keeps me busy. Are you here to do business or something?"

"Not exactly…"

Now, what should I do, I wondered.

I didn't know how the city viewed government officials.

If they were considered enemies, revealing my identity would make it difficult to get proper information.

Better to keep it hidden for now.

"Burning stone's been hard to get. I came hoping someone here might broker a deal."

"Another one. Sorry, but you'd best head home quick."

"Why? This is the Kingdom's top source."

"All the mines are sealed off right now. Can't broker anything when there's no inventory. Everyone's at their wit's end."

The mines were sealed off.

Meaning burning stone extraction had stopped.

All the mines in Shirok, which supported the bulk of production.

Looking more closely at the surrounding customers, there was something… gloomy about them.

They were drinking because they had nothing else to do, and no one was making a ruckus.

"If you came from elsewhere, did you bring anything with you?"

"We have boar meat and fruit. Also some sweets, though not a lot."

"Would you mind selling it to us? If so, I could tell you a few things."

"If that's all it takes."

I had Alexia and Finn bring the cargo from the carriage.

On the way, one customer tried to grope them, but he got kicked away.

I thought it might turn into a fight, but the man who got kicked just sulked and went back to drinking.

There was no spirit in him.

I had expected it to be full of rough types.

The tavern master bought everything.

It seemed supplies weren't lacking thanks to regular deliveries, but fruit was apparently precious.

The boar meat would also help prevent menu fatigue.

"So, how did this happen? Mining is this city's main industry, right?"

"That's right. We've been doing this all along. Everyone takes pride in their work."

He was implying that normally these weren't the kind of people who'd be wasting away drinking during the day.

"The mines haven't run dry. The mountains around here are said to be almost entirely burning stone deposits — extracting it all is far in the future."

"Was there some kind of accident?"

"No… We incurred the wrath of the Elf-sama."

"An Elf!?"

"Keep your voice down."

An elf.

Among demi-human races, an exceptionally rare species with very few numbers.

Said to possess beautiful features and incomparably longer lifespans than humans.

Skilled in magic and able to communicate with elementals.

I'd heard that even a single elf could rival a small army.

"One day, the Elf-sama came to this city and told us to stop all mining. Of course, we couldn't accept that. When we refused, she physically sealed off the mine entrances."

"What was her reason for sealing them?"

"She said we'd caused ecological disruption. But we've been mining in this city for decades now. It's a bit late for that."

So an elf had sealed the mines, leaving them with no options.

They couldn't fight back since they couldn't possibly win against an elf, so this was the situation.

The city's representative was apparently negotiating, but not making much progress.

I couldn't get any more information at the tavern.

To learn the details, I'd need to meet with the city's representative.

"Oh my, that won't do."

As we were about to leave the tavern, a man who tried to grope Elza was thrown with a smile.