Welton's Furnace is famous for its craftsmanship. After declaring independence from the elves of the Highlands, they used their inherent talents to create armor, equipment, and weapons that surpassed anything made by their predecessors. Welton is the dwarf that established the new kingdom many centuries ago with the help of Wisperium and the Church of Pernatia. They rapidly built the kingdom and created the forge that gives them the namesake of Welton's Furnace. It is home to hundreds of working stations for the most skilled blacksmiths in the kingdom, with access to the hottest flames on the continent to smelt any material. Welton's Furnace is responsible for revolutionizing and creating sewer systems, smelters, railroads, and so much more. Although they aren't the most powerful kingdom, they are widely considered the most important for progressing the continent from barbaric tools and into the industrial era.

~ Elves vs Dwarves; the Origins of the Rivalry by Gasol Mentzer

The party was complete insanity. Chester had been an animal when he was younger, sneaking off into frat parties and bars at the tender age of sixteen. The fact that his facial hair came in as an adolescent had helped. But nothing prepared him for the sheer scale of the festival that Welton's Furnace threw.

Truckloads of ale were being consumed at a rapid pace as complete chaos overtook the barracks. It appeared as though solving the adamantium mine occupation was an extremely large deal. Chester capitalized on the moment and endeared himself to the crowd. The life of the party, he pulled story after story out of his ass and caught the majority in his spell. Unbeknownst to them, Chester was merely reciting stories he watched and read on Earth. He realized he had a penchant for storytelling even without the use of his powers, which Chester wanted to keep private.

"So this sorcerer, he tried to pick a fight with the green ogre? And then what happened?"

"He called himself a god before getting picked up by the leg and splattered onto the ground." He made repeated motions similar to slamming a whip on the floor. "Like this! After that, the ogre called him a 'puny god'."

Raucous laughter rang out of the building he told the story in. He was centered in the middle of the tavern for everyone to see. People leaned over to watch his stories and dwarves were banging their hands onto the table. It was safe to say Chester had become a fan favorite. Even the normally introverted vampires covered their smiles and snickered, quietly entertained by the man regaling them with the tales of the Avengers.

"Skinny bastard, that's too cocky for his own good, you sure the sorcerer in the story isn't you?" Someone shouted from the crowd. Chester waved the crowd away and looked for the heckler, spotting an older dwarf with luscious blond hair. A wave of giggles spread through the people and Chester ran through his repertoire for a comeback.

"Of course not! I get it though. When I was talking about Rocket the Raccoon, did you think it was you? I mean, you guys are so similar! Three feet tall with hair all over. Practically brothers."

An even louder racket of laughter occurred after the illusionist's clapback. The man grumbled and rolled his eyes, mumbling about how original a short joke for a dwarf was.

"My bad. That joke was low-hanging fruit. Although that's probably all you could reach anyway." Chester's grin widened upon hearing the crowd whoop and holler at the last remark, indulging in the attention.

Damien watched from afar. The atmosphere was jovial and he quietly sipped from a mug of blood. He was able to restock thanks to Wisperium's forces consisting of vampires. Many of it was donated from the dwarves and due to their excessively high alcohol levels in their system, the blood gave the younger noble a warm, pleasant buzz.

"You've really changed Damien. Mind telling me about everything that's happened since we last met?"

Natalia was sitting at the table beside him. She hadn't bothered changing out her outfit, wearing the padded leather that hugged her curves and magnified just how beautiful she was. The female vampire was also drinking from a mug full of blood, having gone through several as they watched the illusionist make a fool of himself on stage.

The vampire regaled her of everything that occurred to him since his departure from Wisperium. From his fated meeting with the criminal illusionist, the incident in Elway, and the robot uprising in Stillwater. It was extremely simplified. Damien had no interest in embellishing, content to stick to the core of the story, and getting his point across. It didn't take long for him to finish updating her on his current situation. She listened in quietly, taking occasional sips from her mug and occasionally giggling whether it was from Damien's story or Chester's antics.

"Trouble always seems to follow the Rose clan. Whether it's you, Braham, or Gideon. Maybe it's a fate that befalls the strong."

"I wouldn't say it's completely on me. I'd say that curly-haired menace is the root cause of all of these incidents. He's the sort that looks for trouble."

The boy watched as Chester challenged the heckling dwarf to an arm-wrestling match, betting ten gold on himself and doing his best to act as cocky as possible. Incensed, the drunken dwarf took it as a challenge and rolled up his sleeves. The shorter male's arms were stocky, defined by his years as a laborer. Chester rolled his up, showing a lean and muscular arm that fell short in comparison. Everybody in the crowd was placing bets and laughing at the illusionist's antics.

"This guy's mad. He thinks he can beat dwarves in strength? What's that skinny prick gonna-"

A thundering smash occurred as Chester put all his strength into a singular second of action. The dwarf's rotator cuff seemed to tear as the man's beefy forearm crashed into the wooden table. The whole crowd went silent in shock as the blonde cried out in pain and asked for a healer, cradling his arm in shock. The illusionist put up his fist in a triumphant manner, making the crowd go wild as one of Pernatia's paladins healed the injured dwarf.

"Any other takers? I promise I'll be gentle."

The illusionist blinked the tiredness out of his eyes. He instinctively reached for his phone before remembering that it no longer existed, instead making contact with a soft and squishy item on the bed he was on. Seeing his surroundings, he quickly realized he wasn't in the instant cube. The room was much more ornate and decorative, with sunlight peering n through the curtains and illuminating the room where his clothes were all astray. He slowly turned his face to see the sleeping figure of Alda Bloodsong, and his hand firmly squeezing her rear end through the silken sheets.

Chester blinked once. He then shrugged and wrapped his arms around the smaller woman and brought her closer, deciding to sleep in for a bit longer. The man caught a whiff of her scent, likening it to metal and cigarettes. He supposed it was due to her career as a soldier, but he got a hint of lavender soap as well and pulled her in a bit tighter.

"...You smell like sweat and body odor." She commented. Her eyes were half-lidded as she roused from her slumber. Alda's ginger hair was a tangled mess.

"Well, after all we did last night? Besides. It's the lifestyle of an adventurer. No time for showers."

"Ugh. You do realize there are spells for that, no?"

She pushed off of him and slowly began to get dressed. Chester admired her figure, taking the time to appreciate her well-defined body with scars all over. He winced and realized that his body also had some new scratch marks and bruises. He supposed she wasn't joking when she said that she was a very tough woman.

"Another round?"

"Thanks, but no. General Drake warned us to tighten patrols so I'll be heading to the Vault and make sure the guards aren't slacking."

Chester's interest was piqued and he asked for more information. He figured that she was a high-ranking official judged by her connection with Natalia Drake and her luxurious room, but didn't know that she was the leading force of the dwarven military. As she put on her clothes and armor, the illusionist got himself dressed as well.

"My main duty is guarding the Vault. It's our duty. Wisperium and the Church's presence is entirely dedicated to protecting the vault. Whether it be monsters, demons, or other kingdoms, we won't let anything through."

They walked past the doors, showing that her quarters were part of a much larger palace. The two went up a flight of stairs and passed by servants, nobles, and soldiers alike. Alda explained how as the head of the dwarven forces, she had her quarters close to the Vault and the Royal Family's rooms so she could respond to threats and emergencies as fast as possible. Many, if not all gave the woman her proper acknowledgment. Chester received some compliments as well, getting the occasional catcall from the dwarves that he recognized from the party last night.

"You were a riot yesterday! Can't believe you tried to outdrink Captain Alda!"

"What's inside there anyway? Some ancient evil that'll destroy the world when it escapes?" He turned his attention back to the female dwarf beside him.

"No, nothing like that. The ores were touched by the leftover magic from the Great Draconic Invasion five centuries ago. We collected them all and stored them there. Although the last time we used any of it was years ago."

"Oh?" He leaned closer, curious about the magic metals. Chester had heard about the Draconic Invasion in passing, knowing that a bunch of the monstrous lizards wreaked havoc across the continent before being stopped by some legendary warriors of times past. Apart from that, he didn't know the after-effects of said event. The only reason he remembered it was because of his time learning Aetherian in the humble village library. "Tell me more. What metals do you know of?"

"Even we're not privy to that information. The thing is that only a few of them have ever left the Vault's space. One of them is starsteel, which we only provide to Pernatia. Although the most famous one is Attainium. It's metal in liquid form. Elway and Idil's nobles purchased some over the decades, but almost all of them have been seized or lost to time. Many say it's cursed due to how often people with it are targeted."

The man's face remained still, but he made a mental note to not flaunt his Attainium as often anymore. It slowly crawled under his armor and away from the hilt strapped to his back where it was visible. Chester didn't know why nobody had questioned him yet on the origins of his source of Attainium.

It made him remember how he first got ahold of the mysterious metal. From an abandoned cart in the Arcadian Forest which looked like it had been ambushed during transport. He wondered why the attackers didn't run off with the metal.

'Maybe that damn bear that attacked me got a hold of them?'

Chester shook his head. He wanted to prod the shorter woman with more questions, but his attention was quickly grabbed by Damien further up, talking to an incredibly large dwarf. Although the statement was an oxymoron, it fit perfectly. The man had the proportions of a dwarf except he was almost six feet tall. His arms were the size of Chester's torso and covered in tough, leathery skin. The dwarf also had grey hair and extremely hairy brows. His beard was long, and the top of his head was cut short as though someone just sheared it off with an ax to keep it simple.

"Your father was talented beyond measure. Unfortunately, you don't exude the same potential he does. Sorry lad."

Damien looked like he wanted to argue but bit his tongue back. Chester and Alda approached, and the illusionist tilted his head. "Who's this guy?"

"Sorry, sir. This is my companion, Chester Everheart." The boy quickly apologized on behalf of the criminal. He gave him a reproachful look that warned him to watch his words. "This is sir Arber Fistpig. He's the best blacksmith in the history of Welton's Furnace. I was asking him about the idea of crafting equipment for me."

The larger dwarf crossed his arms over his chest. He wore dusty overalls filled with a variety of tools along with several pockets. To Chester, he looked like a car mechanic.

"Oh, what about me? Am I exuding some potential? I'd say I'm oozing of it."

The man laughed. A full belly laugh rang throughout the palace. Everyone froze before turning to see the source. Chester looked a bit miffed upon hearing such condescending laughter from the man. Arber wiped a tear from his eye.

"Ha- Who's this upstart? I see nothing from you. If you were a spice, you'd be flour! Oh my days, that was funny."

Chester's neck veins were bulging in anger as he let out a small smile. The vampire subtly stepped between them to prevent the illusionist from trying to wring the dwarf's stocky neck. Alda made a face as she held back a laugh, bowing to Arber as he turned to leave. The dwarf had some parting words for Damien.

"Lad, if you come back within the next decade I might change my mind. Even young Gideon didn't get one from me on his first meeting. But the one beside yo-PFFFT!" The massive dwarf cackled as he headed out of the palace. "I'll personally recommend one of my apprentices. They'll treat you right and get you suited up."

The illusionist stayed deathly still. Alda hurried off and muttered out a quiet farewell as she attended to her duties. The vampire noble looked at the curly-haired man with a mix of warning and concern.

"Whatever you do, you CAN'T attack the old man. The dwarves would lynch you. And he's ancient. He'd likely smash you into the ground himself."

"Oh don't worry Damien. I wasn't thinking about anything like that at all." The illusionist said brightly. His expression remained the same. "Want to grab some brunch?"

The vampire desperately prayed that for once, their stop at a kingdom or settlement didn't end in total disaster. But deep down in his heart, he knew that Chester would undoubtedly cause chaos out of sheer spite.