Chapter 16
Chapter 16
About a week after starting work in the mine, Maria was troubled. Solskjaer had told her to sleep in Gunther's quarters, so she had been sleeping under his bed every night, but somehow she woke up next to Gunther in the morning... He must have been holding her and putting her on the bed.
'This is awkward.'
She felt like she was getting special treatment. Honestly, she hadn't felt anything for Gunther until now. But after deciding not to die, she became aware of his presence. Before, she had been so caught up in her own misfortune that she was numb to everything.
"Maria, does the Great King treat you well at night?"
Ero asked cautiously, her face flushed. Come to think of it, when she came to the worksite in the morning, the workers would whisper about her, and sometimes give her satisfied looks. They wouldn't believe her if she said they just slept, and nothing happened. No, she couldn't even say that. Maria nodded awkwardly. Letting her sleep in a soft bed counted as treating her well, after all.
"Eee! I don't know, I don't know!"
Ero twisted her body and hit Maria's shoulder. She was writhing in embarrassment, a true woman.
"I have a feeling you like the Great King too?"
Ero asked Maria subtly.
'Me? Like Gunther, that man?'
It was an awkward question. It was convenient not being able to speak at times like this. She could just smile vaguely and be done with it. Had she even had time to decide whether she liked or disliked that man? When she came to her senses, she was here, and had become the property of Gunther Paisley, the Red Dragon of the North. It was urgent to take care of her own self, which she hadn't fully recovered yet.
"This is a secret..."
Ero suddenly twisted her hair with her fingers and started talking.
"?"
"I have one too."
'Have what?'
Maria stared blankly at Ero, then laughed in dismay. When Ero asked if she liked the Great King, she should have realized. She wanted to talk about herself. But she had a feeling she knew what Ero's secret was without having to hear it.
"A man I like."
'It's Lieutenant Solskjaer, isn't it.'
Maria pretended to know nothing. Ero then whispered in Maria's ear, telling her that she had a crush on Gunther's lieutenant, Solskjaer.
"It's my first time. Me having a crush on someone."
Looking at the vibrant Ero, Maria couldn't help but smile. Right, liking someone was a very exciting and happy thing. It had been so long for her that she didn't even remember.
"He seems like a good man."
At Ero's words, Maria nodded vigorously in agreement. Unlike Gunther, who was strong and sometimes scary, Solskjaer was a deep and kind man. It wasn't just because of his actions and words towards her. Occasionally, when working, Solskjaer would go around the worksite and take care of the workers.
"But if someone like me confessed, he'd hate it, right?"
Ero's voice was rather subdued. 'Someone like me?' Maria felt so sorry when she heard Ero referring to herself like that. But there was nothing she could do for her.
'Ero, you're a good woman.'
She vowed to tell her that someday... It was then. Nora shouted at the female workers.
"Everyone gather around!"
The workers who had finished their break gathered around Nora.
"We got a message from the Second Mine, they need female workers. Someone slender and a bit tall."
"Why? We don't usually go into the mine."
"Don't worry. They're not going to make you mine gold."
"Then what?"
"They found a red Magic Stone on the cave ceiling, but there's a gap that's hard for big men to squeeze into."
"We just have to mine the Magic Stone?"
"Yeah, they said they'll give you extra pay too."
The workers' faces lit up at the mention of extra pay, but soon their gazes turned to Maria and Ero as if they had made a promise.
'Why aren't they volunteering?'
They were people who would do anything for money, so it seemed like they were reluctant to do it for money. Besides, Maria and Ero were perfect for the job, being tall and slender women.
"Maria, can you do it? I saw you swinging that stick last time, you seem flexible?"
Nora asked in a slightly worried tone. In fact, she had heard something from Solskjaer, so she was hesitating whether to make Maria do it even at this moment. But she had to draw a clear line. No matter how much Maria was the Great King's woman, she was just a worker in the mine now. Maria nodded.
"Sister! Just in case, I'll go with you!"
Ero shouted, raising her hand. The workers covered their mouths and laughed. Ero was the first person to call Nora "sister," even though they had called her "pig mom" before. It was also proof that they had gotten closer after a big conflict.
"Um, are there any other volunteers?"
Nora looked at the workers again before making a final decision.
"No, it might be a real Magic Stone, and if we touch it carelessly..."
One woman was mumbling, looking reluctant. The workers gave Maria and Ero a look that said the decision had already been made.
* * *
Maria and Ero arrived at the Second Mine. But the weather was bad. The sky was full of dark clouds and it was drizzling, it looked like it was going to pour any minute. The two were led deep into the cave by the miners.
"Originally, Sorcerers mine Magic Stones in the Third Mine, we didn't expect it to appear here."
The miner was very excited.
"Are you sure it's a Magic Stone?"
Did a regular miner have the ability to recognize a Magic Stone that Sorcerers could mine at a glance?
"It looks like it..."
The miner mumbled and took Maria and Ero to the point of the problem. He said that if they squeezed into the narrow gap in the stone wall and looked straight up at the ceiling, they would see the red Magic Stone.
"I tried to dig it out with a long tool, but it didn't work for some reason."
Maria went into the gap and looked up at the ceiling. Soon, she saw a red stone about the size of an egg shining brightly.
"?"
Maria quickly pulled Ero's arm and pointed to the ceiling with her hand.
"Oh my! The stone is shining. It looks like a Magic Stone!"
Ero was also quite surprised to see it in person. Even if it wasn't a Magic Stone, it was definitely not an ordinary stone. Then they had to dig it out somehow. The two looked at each other and strengthened their resolve. They weren't going to make a lot of money by mining that Magic Stone, but somehow it was fun. Maria grabbed the iron bar and stretched out her arm as far as she could. But it was just out of reach. After several attempts, she finally succeeded in digging out the wall next to it.
Maria and Ero took turns mining the Magic Stone. Before they knew it, an hour had passed, and all the male miners had gone out of the cave. They had to mine the Magic Stone to continue the next work.
'I'll do it.'
Maria saw that Ero's body was covered in sweat and gestured that she would do it this time.
Ero had already dug out almost all of the wall around the Magic Stone, so all she had to do was dig it out with a bar.
"Okay. You do it."
Just then, the sound of rain roared outside. It seemed like there was thunder and lightning too. Maria's heart grew anxious. She had to mine the Magic Stone quickly and get out of the cave.
'I'll dig it out in one go.'
Maria took a deep breath and aimed the bar at the red Magic Stone. Then she mined the Magic Stone with all her might. With a crackling sound, the Magic Stone fell off easily, and Ero caught it in time.
"We mined the Magic Stone, Maria!"
Maria nodded and smiled brightly. It had taken two hours and her body was covered in sweat, but she felt a great sense of accomplishment for finally doing it. But the joy didn't last long.
With a rumbling sound, stones and dirt began to pour down from the cave ceiling.
"Let's go, Maria!"
Was it really a Magic Stone? Was the sky angry because they broke a taboo? It seemed like Sorcerers had to mine Magic Stones for this reason. Maria grabbed Ero's hand and ran towards the cave entrance. But the situation worsened and the roaring sound of the cave collapsing grew louder and louder.
"It looks like a landslide."
Ero's face was pale as she shouted. The heavy rain was a problem, but she was worried that it was because they mined the Magic Stone. Finally, they saw the cave entrance. If they could just get through there, they could get out, so they didn't have to worry too much. Then the cave shook again and a huge amount of dirt poured into the entrance.
"Ah!"
The landslide was so severe that a wave of dirt rushed into the entrance. The two had to run back into the cave. Maria quickly realized that she and Ero were trapped in the cave. To make matters worse, the landslide was still in progress, and if the cave collapsed and they were buried under dirt and rubble, they would die instantly.
* * *
Gunther heard the news and rushed to the mine like crazy. Landslides could occur on days with heavy rain, so they usually didn't proceed with work, but he didn't know why Maria was trapped there. Of course, Solskjaer had explained the situation to him, but he only remembered one thing.
'Maria was buried in the cave.'
Gunther's heart was beating fast. People who haven't been trapped in a cave don't realize the fear and danger. Even he, a strong man, had struggled with extreme fear when he was trapped in a cave. But Maria was having that experience. This wasn't what he wanted. Gunther gritted his teeth.
He finally arrived at the Second Mine. He had a hunch, but the situation was worse than he expected. The miners were trying to break through the entrance, but her breath would run out before they could pull Maria out of the rubble.
"Damn it!"
Gunther cursed.