I didn't expect to meet the dwarf guard all of a sudden in the wilds of all places. Quite a pleasant surprise.

I was worried that I'd be locked out of the city again, so this was perfect.

But it was a little too perfect. That dwarf, surely, he must have some ulterior motive, doesn't he? And maybe he tracked me all the way here and used a carriage to catch up? But I guess I don't have much choice if I want to get metal since I couldn't go mining with such a huge body. If only I could just turn smaller or something...

I did have the Limited Shapeshifting skill, but... honestly, the word "limited" made me suspect it was a really shoddy skill, so I didn't want to waste my precious skill point on it.

[Incidentally, it is a 0 star skill.]

Wow. Good call on my part.

Whatever. I guess I should ask the dwarf about the metals.

It would be a lot easier now that I gave Radio my 3rd contract. I felt a bit uncomfortable at first, since the system technically classifies that as making it a pet, but Radio was fine with it. It even seemed... somewhat enthusiastic about it?

I was not!

I told Radio what I wanted it to say. With Sheepy's help telling it the right words to say, of course.

This was unfortunate as it meant I had to get it onto the seat beside the dwarf. He tried to hold back a disgusted expression from the sheepy smell but failed.

"Do you know where we can find a lot of metal?" Radio asked.

"Why are you asking? And why did you get this majestic sheep beside me? I am not worthy of his presence!" Sheepy translated.

Classic.

"I could use it for some... repairs?"

"What?! You are damaged?" Sheepy looked alarmed.

I couldn't tell if he was translating or that was what he was trying to say; the dwarf somehow had the same expression. Probably both.

"No, uh... maintenance."

Radio decided to ad-lib before I thought of something to say.

Hey! Are you really damaged? Is that the actual reason why you dragged me here?

Sheepy complained.

No, it's for upgrades. I need upgrades for you to get stronger.

Sheepy looked at me with eyes of suspicion.

Well, if you say so.

The dwarf looked at me with suspicion too, though for different reasons. I guess "maintenance" that required metal was pretty much just repairs.

"How much do you need anyway? And what type of metal?"

What the heck was I supposed to answer? I would be fine with literally any type of metal!

"I'm fine with any type of metal!" Radio said.

What? You weren't supposed to say that, Radio! I was just thinking to myself!

Sorry!

Urgh.

"Really? I thought machines needed a lot of high-end metals for parts?"

Oh, so they did make machines. This one didn't sound very knowledgable about them though.

"Uh, any way to find cheap magical metal?"

"Well, if you get scrap, its cheap but... I'm not sure if it's suitable or if we can find anyone that can handle machinery. You'll probably need to hire a professional for that, not exactly cheap."

The dwarf scratched his beard thoughtfully as he spoke.

"It's fine, I can do the repairs on my own."

"Wait, you're saying you can make parts yourself with just scrap metals and also do maintenance?"

The dwarf suddenly leaned uncomfortably close to the radio, his eyes practically shining. He was twitching all over from excitement too. It made me and Radio very uncomfortable.

"No. It is private."

"Oh..."

I didn't need Sheepy to translate this one but it made an "Oh" sound anyway. The dwarf stared at it with a strange expression.

The dwarf decided to ignore the sheep, turned away and sighed.

The look of sheer disappointment on his face made me feel kind of bad. Was it really that much of a bummer to be unable to see me do the "repairs"? Well, I suppose he might be more disappointed if he saw what I was actually going to do though. Literally just eating the metal up. Or would he be more amazed that that was enough for "repairs"?

The dwarf didn't really seem in the mood to talk anymore. Was he really feeling that down or what he trying to make me feel bad?

I can talk to you if you want...

I ended up talking to Radio for the rest of the trip.

...

When we arrived, I was stunned.

An incredibly tall shiny black gate rimmed with gold built into the walls! Oh, the walls were black too. There were also tons of red decorative banners hung up with the logo of the city. Did they need that many?

On the walls sat decorative statues of dwarven knights holding huge swords and shields. And of course, they had huge angel wings. Because why not...

It was insanely grandiose. Why in the world did the dwarves need a six-metre tall gate anyway? Weren't they short?

In the end, there was a small gate built into the gates, which we ended up entering from after some questions from the guards. Was there really a point to the big gate then?

"By the way, why did you decide to bring me here anyway?"

I realised I should have asked that earlier.

"Oh, I was just thinking of helping you find your way back to your owner"

Well... that was going to be unlikely. Not that I had an owner anyway. I got a bit worried about what to answer.

"Well, it might be hard though. You're one of those machines made by ground dwarves, right?"

Huh? What?

Since he said it's hard, maybe we should say yes?

Ack, whatever.

"Yeah?"

"I knew it! There was no way anyone but the ground dwarves could make something as amazing as a machine like you!"

Uh... Okay?

Was that supposed to be praise for me? Maybe I should run away in case he starts taking me from city to city or even deep underground to look for my owner. Only after getting the scrap though. How much would that cost anyway?

"Can you take us- I mean me to the shop that sells scrap first?"

Radio spoke again without my permission, though I guess what it said was fine. Not sure shops quite sell scrap though.

Sorry, should I stop?

Nah, it's fine.

"Well... I was planning to..." his face drooped. "Yeah... I can."

I didn't know why he seemed so upset. He stared into the distance with despondent eyes.

Suddenly, his eyes lit up.

"Hey! It's you, Uellor, isn't it?"

Somewhere in the distance, a dwarf looked alarmed. He was bearded like most of the male dwarves around. Honestly, I might not have been able to tell him apart from many of the dwarves if he wasn't wearing some sort of green uniform.

The green uniformed dwarf said something in a panic and looked like he was about to run. Unfortunately Sheepy did not translate it.

"Don't lie, I can tell it's you at a glance! Man, how's it been after all those years?"

Uellor said something.

"We should go out for a drink! Like the old times!"

Suddenly he turned towards me.

"Uh, sorry. I just met an old friend! You don't mind waiting a while, do you?"

I wasn't sure his old friend was as pleased to meet him. Urgh. Come on, just brave up and refuse his invitation, Uellor!