Chapter 176: The Remarkable Ajef

Chapter 176: The Remarkable Ajef

Only those who have lost something truly understand the value of what they possess.

Ella took a bite of the grilled mushrooms, the rich aroma of the mushrooms and the savory-spicy sauce filling her mouth. The overwhelming satisfaction after enduring hunger made every pore in her body relax.

It had been so long since she’d experienced the feeling of eating until she was full!

This sensation was utterly wonderful!

Thank you, Mr. Ajef, for the food.

However, compared to the pleasure of eating, the greatest happiness was no longer having to worry about the flames of war descending upon them.

Mr. Ajef was right—the Ironbeard Tribe shouldn’t have to pay for the mistakes of Dwarven King Kaut!

She instinctively glanced at her younger brother, who was her only family.

Her brother was also devouring the grilled mushrooms, but his attention wasn’t on the food at all. His eyes were fixed on the Virtual Screen in front of him.

He was browsing through the magical knowledge in the Internet Library.

Ever since that day they had attacked Ajef, her brother Ebo had completely changed.

He had grown increasingly silent.

But Ella no longer had to worry about whether he would do anything foolish again.

Because her brother had thrown himself entirely into the practice of Magic.

Every day, he made a little progress—from condensing Soul Power, to cultivating mana, and even carving his first magic rune. Each step forward was exhilarating.

Ella had never imagined that her brother would have such talent for Magic!

In their tribe, there were dwarven mages, but their time and energy were limited. They were extremely strict about taking disciples. Without vast wealth or noble bloodline, neither she nor her brother had any chance of being accepted by those esteemed mages.

Books on Magic were certainly not something they could casually read.

Yet she never expected that her brother, who had seemed destined to never touch Magic in this lifetime, would actually learn mysterious spells on the internet!

It was nothing short of astonishing!

And it made her deeply grateful to the Internet God.

In truth, it wasn’t just Magic.

The dazzling brilliance of the internet had completely captivated her!

The vibrant colors displayed on that thin Virtual Screen were something the dull and dreary underground world could never compare to.

Every night, she would spend hours browsing the internet before forcing herself to sleep.

Sometimes, she even had to play a piece of lullaby divine music to calm the excitement the internet had stirred in her.

She couldn’t understand—why would the Dwarven King ban something so perfect, something that rivaled divine artifacts?

This only strengthened her conviction that the Ironbeard Tribe had been deceived by Dwarven King Kaut!

Dwarven King Kaut feared that the internet would overthrow his rule, so he lied to his subjects, declaring the internet a heresy. He even went so far as to start a war, all to make the dwarves hate the Internet God!

Thankfully, they had a wise chieftain who saw through Dwarven King Kaut’s schemes.

Otherwise, they might have lived and died in ignorance, becoming nothing more than weapons in the Dwarven King’s hands!

“Finished eating?”

“Yeah. You go to work. I’ll wash the dishes—it’ll be good practice for my water magic. The forum says integrating Magic into daily life is the best way to improve control.”

Without even looking up, Ebo seemed to read his sister’s mind, cleverly justifying his insistence on doing the chores.

“Alright, then I’m off!”

"What's for dinner tonight? I need to practice some fire magic."

"Don't bother cooking? Focus on your magic studies. I’ll bring back some bread later, and maybe some black grain wine too."

"Alright? But don’t buy too much black grain wine? I won’t drink it. The books say alcohol is a major taboo for mages—it affects the brain." Ebo tapped his head.

"Then you’ll miss out on one of life’s great pleasures," Ella said, mimicking their father’s tone.

Ebo paused, lifting his gaze from the Virtual Screen. Suddenly serious, he parroted the arguments he’d read on the internet about why mages shouldn’t drink: "Compared to the pleasure I’d lose, I gain far more happiness, don’t I?"

As he spoke, Ebo raised his right hand, conjuring a water sphere in his palm that took the shape of a mushroom, its surface flickering with flames.

Ella didn’t understand the significance of her brother’s flashy display.

Still, she couldn’t help but feel genuinely happy. "I’m off!"

"Mm!"

Ella waved and dashed out the door cheerfully.

Outside, a brand-new bicycle leaned against the wall.

After mounting it, Ella didn’t pedal away immediately. Instead, she opened the Music Sanctuary on the internet and played a song she’d bookmarked before bed the night before.

Only then did she push off lightly, speeding away.

The underground city was cramped, filled with winding alleys and even staircases.

But none of that hindered Ella. She knew the place too well, always finding the shortest routes.

Especially now that bicycles had become widespread, the Ironbeard Tribe had begun voluntarily improving the roads.

"Ding-a-ling!"

The mechanical bell and the soft music in her ears intertwined, making life suddenly feel so beautiful.

Ella only felt one regret.

A regret that her parents couldn’t see this.

Damn that Dwarven King Kaut!

As she passed the Ironbeard Factory, Ella instinctively stood up on her bicycle, peering inside.

The Ironbeard Factory had been built with Mr. Ajef’s aid to the Ironbeard Tribe.

She still remembered the uproar its opening caused—the streets had emptied as everyone flocked to see it!

Countless master smiths had scrambled for a chance to glimpse or even touch the machinery.

After all, the production line Dwarven King Kaut had stolen from Ajef was treated like a priceless treasure.

The Ironbeard Tribe had exerted Herculean effort just to secure the task of reverse-engineering a single machine tool.

But Ella had heard that despite their painstaking efforts to replicate one, the copy clearly fell short of the original. Many dwarves still couldn’t figure out where they’d gone wrong.

Now, Ajef had generously sold the tribe an entire production line—how could that not shake the Ironbeard Tribe to its core?

Rumor had it that on the factory’s second day, a master smith, relying on his status, had dismantled a machine tool without permission, sending the chieftain into a rage.

Since then, security at the Ironbeard Factory had grown even stricter.

So even now, Ella had no idea what the inside looked like.

Still, every time she passed by, even knowing she couldn’t see anything from the entrance, she couldn’t resist glancing.

"Whoosh!"

The bicycle raced past the Ironbeard Factory. In the distance, Ella could already see the towering spire of the Interconnected Bank.

As she passed by the entrance, she could see several children practicing with their bicycles in the open space.

Compared to the Ironbeard Factory's widespread popularity, the Interconnected Bank was rather coldly received in the dwarves' tribe.

It was well known that the dwarves' thirst and greed for wealth could rival even that of the Dragon Clan.

Among the dwarves, there was even a saying: "A dwarf must accumulate endless wealth, even if it is never used."

So, convincing the dwarves to deposit their glittering, precious gold—crafted with such skill—into the Interconnected Bank was nearly impossible.

However, Ella, who was passing by, found herself wondering whether she should deposit a small portion of the gold coins her parents had left her.

She had heard that money deposited in the Interconnected Bank could grow over time.

Her younger brother would surely pursue the path of magic in the future, and that would undoubtedly require vast sums of money. Her salary wasn’t high, and if her parents' savings were exhausted, what if it hindered her brother’s magical journey?

Lost in these thoughts, Ella finally arrived at her destination—the mushroom farm.

"Ella, quick, quick, come and see! The grass-head mushrooms have sprouted overnight! Good heavens, they’re all purple! The Magic Forest didn’t lie to us!"

Auntie Maggie, her late mother’s best friend, stood at the door, her face alight with excitement, eager to share the news with Ella.

Hearing this, Ella quickly parked her bicycle and rushed over.

Entering the mushroom chamber, she saw the fermented grain mixed soil densely covered with purple grass-head mushrooms.

"They really are all purple?" Ella was stunned.

Purple grass-head mushrooms had always been an extremely rare variety among grass-head mushrooms. Even though the dwarves were highly skilled in cultivating fungi, they could only sporadically obtain purple grass-head mushrooms from large batches.

Her father had even said that purple grass-head mushrooms were a gift from the Titan gods—only dwarves favored by the Titan could occasionally acquire them.

Who would have thought that such a gift could now be cultivated on such a large scale?

This was nothing short of a miracle!

"Wonderful, absolutely wonderful! From now on, we can have purple grass-head mushrooms with every meal!"

Auntie Maggie gazed at the room full of purple grass-head mushrooms, her face flushed with excitement.

Ella also smiled sincerely, thinking to herself—Mr. Ajef truly was an extraordinary human!