face turned red. "Skharr DeathEater? Known as—"
The warrior raised a hand to interrupt her. "Merely Skharr will do. I would prefer to leave any other titles and monikers I might have in the past where they belong."
The youth narrowed his eyes. "You have more names? Unbelievable."
"Folk like to put their preferred titles on those they feel deserve it," he muttered.
"Do you call my son friend?" the woman interrupted before Brahgen could ask for more details.
Skharr nodded. "Aye. I've called him such in the presence of a goddess as well and I know better than to displease her by lying."
He could tell she wasn't entirely sure what to make of that statement, but she appeared to accept it, shrugged, and gestured for the guards to return to whatever duties they were required to do.
Once they were gone, a small tear trickled down her cheek as she wrapped the youth in another hug. "My son…you've become a man, and such a mighty one at that."
More members of the family began to show themselves and approached the group to greet Brahgen and congratulate him on his return. The barbarian inched back, reluctant to have to explain his presence to every one of them.
Even so, it was good to see that the young dwarf had received such a warm welcome to the home of his ancestors.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Brahgen had not been lying when he said the family had built a small city inside the city of Tuan—the name had only been told to him later but it came as no surprise.
Skharr had not missed the fact it was simply the dwarven word for city, which was an interesting commentary on how the dwarves viewed it. It was almost like the DeathEaters saw their clan as The Clan and having a name beyond that was rather superfluous.
He was escorted to a room that would be his for the duration of his stay, where he was told to prepare himself.
"A feast is being held," one of the dwarf guards noted. "Brahgen is being prepared as a guest of honor, and he said he would not attend without you there as well. It is not a common thing for a human to be present at our feasts."
He shrugged. "I've attended one before among the AnvilForged clans. I recall they are able to host a momentous occasion when it suits them."
The dwarf smirked. "Of course, AnvilForged are desperate for companionship and willing to let simply anyone join them. You will find our city's feasts to be something else entirely."
"You take considerable pride in being somehow better than your cousins in the north," he noted.
"That's because we are."
"In my experience, if you have to claim as much, you might be caught in a lie."
The guard narrowed his eyes. "Well, I suppose we shall have to see whether I tell the truth or not."
The barbarian winked. "We shall indeed."
The door was closed behind him and he paused for a moment to inspect the room.
It was nothing like the combination of wood and hay he had become used to at the Mermaid. In fact, the room was about the size of the common area of Verenvan's inn, with a hefty bed built into the stone and padded with down mattresses and blankets.
Either dwarves enjoyed having a great deal of space in their beds or this was a room reserved for when humans visited, as the bed was more than large enough to accommodate him.
There was a table, also made from stone although the chairs were made of wood. A jug of what smelled like watered wine and a couple of goblets, as well as a tray with fruits and snacks, were laid out for him.
All appeared to be freshly delivered as well. He wondered how long they had known that he was coming and how quickly they had been able to arrange the room.
Most notably, to his mind at least, was a large tub in the corner of the room. It was carved into the rock with seats inside and steaming water poured in to fill it. All that prevented the steam from collecting in the room was a small vent above it that appeared to suck it out.
In all probability, an entire intricate system had been laid through the entire building. He guessed there were likely similar systems to deliver water and remove steam from all the rooms in the building.
Skharr had no idea how they'd managed it, but they had clever minds for this kind of thing. Besides, he doubted