Just a Guy and a Gate to the Multiverse - Chapter 21 (Patreon)

Chapter 21 - Elves and Dwarves

For a final time, my hammer struck the glowing hot steel as my voice fell silent, and with it, the Magic. Then I quenched my work in the cool water. Hot steam rose with the bubbles.

“Well, you are able to swing a hammer now. Acceptable work…” The elven smith eyed my handiwork critically, her eyes searching for any imperfections. “…for a beginner. At least you got the basics down, albeit your singing is still horrible.”

“Oh, pardon me. We Humans are not born with melodious voices like you Elves,” I replied with a bit of sass.

Truthfully, hearing from her that my smithing work was acceptable was indeed a big compliment. Compared to her, I was a toddler swinging a hammer around. And I had already cheated by having the Fallout Perks, Blacksmith and Armorer at max level, giving me a decent understanding of smithing and metalwork.

By Human standards, I could be considered a master with these Perks alone. But of course, this was a world of Swords and Magic. Spells could be worked into anything. Elves, with their extremely long lifespans, were not only masters of Magic but also skilled in many arts, often dedicating themselves to something for decades, if not centuries, and sometimes even their entire lives.

Magic made it not only possible for them to live freely, covering their needs but they combined it with their work.

And one of the main reasons I came to Ellesméra, besides it being the place with the most skilled warriors and the largest collection of knowledge about Magic, was to learn how to work Spells into my own crafts.

That traditionally happens in the form of singing. It wasn’t necessary, since chanting worked too, even without sounding melodious. But my teacher got a kick out of watching me struggle to sing while smithing.

While I can’t use that kind of Magic outside of this world without a World Attunement, I can still create things here that I can take with me. That’s why I am more interested in crafting besides space Magic, than just regular combat Magic.

At the very least, I will walk out of this world with a set of enchanted Power Armor, improved to be more resistant, protective, and lighter and whatever else I can figure out. Basically, harder to destroy without making me slower from additional materials. Maybe even more.

Rhunön is the best of the best. She is actually the only Elf in this entire city who shows any sign of aging. Because she is probably the oldest Elf still around. From what I know, she is at least two and a half thousand years old, having been around since before the Dragon Rider Order was founded.

Most importantly, she is a blacksmith. The best there is in the entire world.

For example, she forged every Dragon Rider Sword in history. These are powerful weapons that never dull and are said to be indestructible. Unfortunately, I am not a Dragon Rider, and she also swore an Oath to never forge a blade again after her weapons were used during Galbatorix’s rebellion, causing so much pain to the world.

Of course, it was an Oath in the Ancient Language.

Oh, and she doesn't have any Materials for the Sword any longer either.

I would have loved to get my hands on one of those indestructible weapons. Such a Sword sounds very useful to have in the right situation. Even if the indestructible part is not necessarily true.

But another thing with Elves is that they are very careful about what they teach to non-Elves. Admittedly, it’s a good attitude to have. Just look at what happened with Galbatorix. And the Dragon Riders were already the closest group to the Elves, a lot of the Riders’ knowledge and training originating from their Elvish members.

At the same time, it made things very hard for me. I am here to learn more than just the basic Human stuff. I am not planning to become a tyrant in this world. Maybe one day down the line, I could be considered a tyrant in some worlds.

Yet that wouldn’t be because I am evil. I am a pragmatist. If I ever do something that can be considered evil, then it won’t be for evil’s sake. I would never go out of my way to harm someone just because I can.

Generally, I like it if everyone can have a good time, as long as it isn’t at my cost. I always prefer a win for everyone. But it’s not always possible for everyone to win, and in that case, I have to make sure that I do. I am just practical.

Unfortunately, that attitude meant I had to be very careful with my wording while asking to learn from her. But even after swearing I would never use the knowledge I gained here to harm the Elves or the free races of Alagaësia, she hadn’t been willing to teach me.

At least not until I figured out her weakness. Fortunately, it was a weakness all Elves seemed to share.

“Anyways, clean up the place. That’s enough of your lessons for today!” Rhunön replied dryly, not caring about my cheek. She acted more like a Dwarf than an actual Elf. “It’s time we get to my lessons.”

Exactly. Elves are suckers for knowledge. In their long lives, they need something to do, and pursuing different arts and knowledge was just one of their favorite things. Especially completely unknown knowledge they had never witnessed before.

While most Elves showed interest in advanced science, making copies of my books an easy trade good for me, Rhunön was especially taken in by engineering and all kinds of machinery.

I actually wasn’t the one who sought out Rhunön first. Sure, I had planned to talk to her sooner or later, once I got the Elves’ trust. But she came to me first. She had pretty much shown great interest in my moving house and quickly fell in love with it, not to mention my Power Armor.

Honestly, I had felt like she was contemplating whether she should rob me the first time she visited me.

I may have opened up a new pursuit in her life. Honestly, I am expecting this entire universe to turn into a Space Elves setting in a few decades. It will actually be worth another visit, just to see the outcome of my influence.

Anyways, an equal exchange of knowledge once again brought me closer to my goals.

“Fine, fine.” I couldn’t help myself and chuckled. “Remind me where we stopped last time?”

“After finishing with the concept of steam engines, we went through combustion engines. You showed me different sketches for compression-ignition and spark-ignition engines and explained the differences between a two-stroke and a four-stroke design.” Rhunön easily recalled. Elves were very fast learners too, having an easy time recalling new information. “Today, you planned to handle a more environmentally friendly type of engine.”

“Ah, right. The electric motor. I believe you still remember the concept behind electricity?”

“I do.”

“Then what is one of the biggest challenges with electricity?”

“Storing it.”

“Exactly. The same problem applies here. A combustion engine uses liquid fuel that can be easily stored inside a tank on a vehicle. But that just isn’t possible for fully electric vehicles, which are much cleaner since they don’t use combustion.”

“A problem you said could possibly be solved with Magic.”

“I did indeed. There could be some Spells worked into the exhaust of a combustion motor that filter out the particles harmful to nature. Something like that is very challenging to accomplish with non-magical means. Not impossible, but expensive. But let’s focus on the electric engine for now. You can always do your research later. I’ve brought the designs with me.”

I am so thankful for Fallout Perks. They taught me all that stuff without me having to spend countless hours studying so many different areas of knowledge. Cheating is the way of the Multiversal traveler.

Unfortunately, you couldn’t always cheat. There were times when you had to sit down and study, like with Magic in this world.

———

“Vor Hrothgarz korda! What is that? That doesn’t look like your elven folk’s work!” a rough voice called out.

I couldn’t help but grin to myself before activating the door mechanism, letting the entrance to my moving home slide open and revealing the sight waiting for me outside.

It was the Queen with a host of other Elves standing outside, but what caught my attention the most was one person. A person not taller than four feet, looking stout and powerful with a long beard.

Now we are fully in a Fantasy Setting!

“That would be my home, Orik of Dûrgrimst Ingeitum.” A real Dwarf from the clan of smiths. “It is an honor to meet you.”

“A Human? What is a Human doing— Apologies, of course it is nice to meet you. Although, while you seem to know me, I don’t know your name. I haven’t seen you at the feast yesterday either,” the Dwarf Orik replied.

“Because I wasn’t there. I am a guest here, just like you. My name is Matt, no clan. Just a humble wanderer.” I introduced myself, my eyes wandering over the group of Elves before stopping on a woman who bore quite the resemblance to Queen Islanzadí. “And it is good to meet you too, Arya. It’s a pleasure to see you in good health.”

I greeted them while performing the traditional Elf greeting.

“It’s good to meet you too, Matt the wanderer,” Arya replied with politeness, obviously having no idea who I even was.

A Human in Ellesméra was a rare sight, with the war against Galbatorix ongoing. After all, most Humans belonged to his Broddring Empire.

But Queen Islanzadí chose to step in. “He is a mysterious figure who appeared outside of Ellesméra slightly over a month ago. He knows of many things, many secrets that nobody should know. Like your survival, daughter, and the birth of a new Dragon Rider. Apparently, he also knew about an emissary of King Hrothgar accompanying you and chose not to mention it. It was him who informed me about your incoming arrival. So far, he seems to be trustworthy, and he has sworn Oaths in the Ancient Language that he isn’t here to cause harm and would help.”

“What other things do you know of?” It was the Dwarf Orik who spoke up.

“Many.” I grinned. “As a gift upon meeting you, you may ask me a single question, whatever you want, and I will truthfully answer it.”

Orik looked at me with a bit of disbelief, and then there was a mischievous and triumphant glint in his eyes.

“Fine, then tell me, oh mysterious wanderer. Do you know how to defeat Galbatorix?”

“Já,” I answered in the Ancient Language, shocking the Elves, while the Dwarf, who didn’t know the language, looked confused.

“What did he say?” he couldn’t help but ask, as he noticed the Elves’ reaction.

“He said yes,” Arya replied to him.

“Wait, you do? You can’t lie in that language, right? Then what is it? Answer the question!” Orik couldn’t help but shout with excitement, almost greedily.

“I already did.”

“What?” he couldn’t help but shout.

“Your question has already been answered.” I laughed, but then turned to Arya. “You still have a question. But a fair warning, if you want to ask the question, the answer may alter the outcome. It is not something that can be forced. If you know it, it may never happen.”

“How long did you spend with the Elves again? You already act like them…” Orik couldn’t help but grumble.

Of course I know how to beat Galbatorix. I read all the books, and that was just the outcome of random circumstances. At that point, Galbatorix had been almost unbeatable. But in the moment Eragon got close to him, Galbatorix felt safe since nobody could use Magic through the Ancient Language anymore without his permission. Eragon used a Spell without the Ancient Language while being empowered by almost 200 Eldunarí from the Vault of Souls.

That only worked because Eragon did it instinctively in the spur of the moment. Galbatorix didn’t know Magic could be used without the Ancient Language. And Eragon had enough Eldunarí with him to power the Spell.

Nobody can defend their mind against Galbatorix’s overwhelming mental power, thanks to the thousands of Eldunarí in his possession. If you are planning to do that, you won’t succeed.

Luckily, the Elves seemed to get my meaning and only nodded in acceptance.

For a moment, Arya thought about what she would ask.

Until she came to an answer, or rather, a question.

“How can we heal Eragon?”

Ah, yes. That makes sense. That is one of their biggest problems right now. Their new Dragon Rider had been crippled during the fight with the Shade Durza.

While he has no problem using Magic, there is a limit to how much he can physically fight. Should he overstrain himself, he will break out in pain. And unfortunately, the wounds caused by a Shade are cursed. Not even the Elves can heal them.

But I knew the answer to that.

“Don’t tell this to Eragon. Train him as you would have. And better not tell too many Elves, like the one you plan to have train him in the sword. It is a valuable lesson for Eragon, as he will come out wiser. As for the healing, wait for the peak of Agaetí Blödhren. The Magic of Dragons is a truly fascinating thing. He will change there into the Rider this world needs.”

Happiness spread among the Elves present.

Agaetí Blödhren is the so-called Blood-Oath Celebration. The Elves celebrate it every 100 years. It celebrates the pact between Dragons and Elves, ending the war that broke out after their first encounter. Which also gave birth to the Dragon Riders.

“Thank you,” Arya said gratefully.

“It’s no problem.” I literally didn’t do anything. It would have happened without my interference. But hey, it’s free gratitude from the Elves and, through Orik, also the Dwarves.

Now it would look really bad if it didn’t happen… During that celebration, the Eldunarí in the Vault of Souls managed to activate their instinctive Draconic Magic to not only heal Eragon but also turn him into a Human-Elf Hybrid who is just as powerful as any Elf.

That’s also the idea I had to strengthen my own body. Not the whole turning into a Human-Elf Hybrid thing, no thank you. I like my Human looks. In my opinion, I look quite handsome.

But that whole strengthening my body with the help of Magic powered by the Eldunarí? Galbatorix did something similar to Murtagh, a Human Dragon Rider who didn’t look like a Human-Elf Hybrid. So there has to be a way to empower one’s body permanently with Magic. Although it probably costs more power than a single Magician has available, or the method would be more widespread.

For now, that is theory crafting. I do not have any Eldunarí, nor is my knowledge deep enough to even attempt it, even if, thanks to time acceleration in the VR Space, I have already spent several months studying Magic under Oromis.

“Well, I believe you are here to get me. Shall we go to our Dragon Rider? I would love to meet him and Saphira.” The second Dragon I met.

I already met Glaedr, Oromis’s golden scaled Dragon, who lost his left foreleg during the war against Galbatorix, making him also a cripple.

[ End of the Chapter ]