"He's completely funded the entire thing hasn't he?" Igna says, sipping from her mug calmly.
Valka blinks, and that seems to be enough to get the Runelord to realize just how on the mark she was.
"Yes, and more actually," she eventually replies, "How did you...?"
"Know? Not like it's a secret. You've been here long enough to have at least heard of the name folk have for him."
"The Gift Giver aye," she admits, "I suppose so, but I never expected…"
"The level of commitment? The resources brought to bear? The almost single-minded focus he appears to give?" Igna supplies helpfully.
"Yes," she confirmed, "That."
The Runelord only hums and takes a long swig from her mug. Valka watches her put it down and wipe the foam off the top of her lip before she speaks again.
"You've only ever experienced Klausson when he was quite literally tearing his way through Dum. Isn't that far fetched to think he'd be just as ...intense, in other pursuits?" Igna asks.
"Hmmph, there are similarities and there's this. He's given me timetables, contract orders, a sworn oath to give every Dwarf in my hold a piece of Runic equipment and the oaths of several Guildmasters and Thanes to devote a non too inconsiderable amount of time vetting the skill and shoring up any deficiencies among the hold's artisans. Nevermind the oath he managed to get King Otrek to swear. It's...too much, but I can't refuse! It's all I need and more! To waste it would put us back decades, maybe more, if we tried to collect all of this on our own. If I hadn't seen him quite literally save my people I'd think he's drowning us in debts purposefully."
"Well, you're right about the drowning part. Welcome to the reality of working with the man who literally gave away enough Rune inscribed Gromril weapons to outfit every Dwarf, elderly and children included, in his Hold, and then did it a second time without batting an eye when the Incursion hit. The Dwarf who cut down the timetable on Kraka Drakk's Underway by at least a third on his own and built, alongside a whole host of other things, a Gronti to help with the rest. If I hadn't realized early on that Klausson seems to treat politics like he would the work of a thirty-year-old engineer I'd be far more worried about the effort he's putting into not only the Hold, but Clan Metalheart as well."
"He's aiding you as well?"
"Aye, I've gotten letters from dozens of Runesmiths who have the time to take on an apprentice willing to at least see those among the Clan with The Gift, before I even sent out a missive. It's not hard to put two and two together when a good three-quarters of those letters came from Kraka Drakk. A Hold whose Runesmith community can be summed up as, 'trying to be Klausson and failing.' "
"All this effort seems...wasted on us. Not that I'll complain but surely there are other things that could use the effort?"
Igna shrugs.
"Maybe to you, I and many other Dawi, but Klausson has decided differently. Ancestors, his retainers spend more of their time out helping others than they do guarding him. So it could very well just be he simply wants to. Who's to say? The Elder's an enigma wrapped in a mystery and one I've long since stopped trying to seriously decipher his intent."
