A Hospital in Another World?
Chapter 366: You Have a Burrowing Worm, I Have a Technology Tree

"Boom!"

"Boom!"

"Boom!"

The walls of the mine trembled, and dust and pebbles rolled down. The dwarves mining in other tunnels stopped their pickaxes and listened intently to the noises deep within the mine, all looking alarmed.

"What are they doing?"

"I don’t know... Did they encounter a monster?"

"This mine hasn’t seen a monster for over ten years, right?"

"Should we go check it out?"

"...Let’s go? Although the king forbade interference, looking should be alright?"

"If there really is danger, it’s our duty to defend the mine, right?"

The dwarves discussed messily, picking up their pickaxes and shovels, and surged towards the tunnel where Roserga was located. Upon reaching the entrance of the tunnel...

There was no battle.

No danger.

No blood, no thunder, no roars, not even the sweat-drenched mining...

Five dwarves, one human, and one barbarian were leisurely gathered at the entrance, chatting away. Those boasting did so, those smoking smoked, and one even casually crossed their legs. Except for Roserga, who kept an eye on the depths of the tunnel, ready to rush in at any moment, the others

The most infuriating part was that the human was chatting with the only dwarf girl!

A girl!

A rare sight of a girl in the mine!

She was discussing animatedly with the human, writing and drawing non-stop. Her eyes sparkled with excitement, and her bright red twin tails seemed almost to take flight!

"...Are we done?"

"Seems like it," Garrett listened intently. "It seems like no more rocks are falling. We can go in and haul out the ore now—Gavin, I’ll borrow your fiancée a bit longer!"

"Would my objection matter?"

"Not at all!" Genna laughed heartily. She immediately bent over the table again. "Garrett, continue! That steam hammer..."

Four dwarves and one barbarian delved deeper into the mine. Before long, they were hauling back large baskets of ore, dumping them on the ground with a crash.

Beside the table, three piles of dark gray ore had accumulated, each half a person tall.

"Phew, using explosives for mining is so convenient. In a short while, we’ve done what usually takes us three days..." Prince Roserga wiped the sweat from his forehead:

"It’s just too expensive! For mining adamantine and mithril, it’s fine, but for common ore, it’s just not feasible—Garrett, you really spared no expense!"

"Hehe, no worries!"

Garrett smiled. This is all my own doing. When I set off, Mage Norwood helped me pack my luggage, stuffing in a huge bag of it, so feel free to use it!

"Do we have enough ore? If not, I’ll go blast some more!"

"That... would be great!"

Garrett put on a mask and cast a Bubble Spell on himself, then headed into the tunnel. Bernard rushed ahead of him, chiseling holes in the front wall of the tunnel before retreating. Facing the wall, Garrett adjusted his breathing:

"Burning Hand!"

"Frost Beam!"

"Burning Hand!"

"Frost Beam!"

Crackle and snap, the walls were crisscrossed with large and small fissures. Prince Roserga took the lead, digging out a not too big nor too small cavity. After Garrett stuffed it with explosives and clapped his hands, he leisurely walked back...

Passing a bend, he peered half his head out from the wall, aiming at the distant explosives:

"Searing Ray!"

Boom!!!

With the aid of explosives, the efficiency of mining soared. Roserga’s team managed to extract in one day what seven dwarves from other teams would take ten days to accomplish through hard work. And this day included a lot of waiting, waiting for the teetering rocks to fall...

In short, when other teams were still in the mines, huffing and puffing with their pickaxes, Garrett’s team had already sorted and hauled the broken ore, leisurely embarking on their way back.

Under the watchful eyes of everyone, each person dragged a full cart behind them. Except for Garrett. When Bernard attempted to dump the ore into his own cart to haul it away together, Garrett silently opened his spatial bag...

"What? They’ve already finished mining? So fast?!"

Archbishop Jeroni frowned. The dwarves were stubborn and tough, like stones in a latrine pit. The Radiant Church had infiltrated a tribe over several generations—the Blackrock tribe, which often explored mines outside and seldom gathered.

From slowly approaching, influencing, making friends, to making the candidates believe in the Radiant Lord, the efforts, youth, and even lives the missionaries expended could only be described as blood and tears.

This election battle was a case of the prepared against the unprepared, with the Church diverting significant resources—including a rare Burrowing Demon Worm. Just subduing it cost the lives of no less than ten knights, and training a priest below level five capable of controlling and commanding the worm with psychic power cost at least five lives.

All of these efforts were to ensure that the candidate from the Blackrock tribe could win by normal means. This way, they could convincingly rule over the Dwarf Kingdom for centuries to come, gradually swaying the entire kingdom towards the Church.

But now, it seemed that the candidate from the Firehammer tribe, which is the king’s tribe, was making efforts to level the playing field?

"Yes, not only quickly, but the volume of ore mined is also substantial." In front of the Archbishop, Bishop Klind, who came to report, discreetly wiped away his sweat:

"I saw it with my own eyes when they entered the city, several large carts. The dwarves nearby were saying that so much ore could forge two full sets of armor!"

Having a large amount of ore means there’s leeway for refinement, allowing for the production of the best quality products. Before setting off, Archbishop Jeroni had also studied casting in the Church and knew this was not a good sign. He tapped the table:

"Tell Kai and the others to speed up! Pry off the armor shell from the worm first and start smelting right away! Occupy the best furnace, don’t let the Firehammer tribe take it!"

"Yes!"

Prince Roserga, of course, couldn’t preemptively occupy the furnace. The ore had to be hauled back, broken down, sorted, and ground. Only after all these preliminary steps could the best ore powder be taken to the furnace for smelting.

Unlike here with the Blackrock tribe, where the Burrowing Demon Worm’s ingestion of ore and the metal shell it formed could be directly thrown into the furnace.

Roserga and his team planned to sort the ore on-site. There was a mountain stream nearby, with flowing water and a waterwheel-connected hammer. With the prince’s connections, borrowing the water hammer to smash the ore wasn’t a problem at all.

However, Garrett insisted on returning to the great furnace. Not only him, but even Gavin’s fiancée, the dwarf woman Genna, also clearly stood by Garrett’s side:

"Using the steam hammer to smash the ore is much more convenient! I can make it! Leave it to me!"

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