Ok, so one last plea for giving the money to Zhufbar.
I feel like having Zhurbar send a small army + a full team of elite miners and get nothing of the loot while the council gets every valuable for sending a single priest is the kind of injustice grudges are built on. Giving a fair pay for a service rendered is central to the dwarven mindset and there is no doubt that the dwarves did much much more than Ionel (who was one of the least crucial member of the team).
Now, the dwarves almost certainly will rationalize that either Karaz Akor owes a debt to Mathilde that they are repaying, that crossing grudges is payment in itself or that it's their duty to help Mathilde defeat an enemy of the dwarves. And all of that is true, of course.
But what is also true is that Mathilde (and K8P) are the real benefactors, not Karaz Ankor in general or Zhufbar in particular. We are basicly using Zhufbar for our own gain (and K8P's library) with incidental positive effect for Stirland and to a much lesser degree Zhufbar.
Paying Zhufbar just makes sense, it's not about them already having money. All dwarf holds are wealthy, they still ask for payment for services rendered and are very unhappy if left unpaid. Just look at how mad Belegar was for Thorgrimm "stealing" magic that he had no idea existed a minute beforehand and had no use for from "his" waystones. Sure, the council might need the money more, but it's a very undwarven way to pay your employees.
Since Mathilde has been declared a dwarf, she has as much of a duty to Karaz Ankor than any other dwarves so it doesn't make sense that she benefits materially from the expecition while other dwarves get nada.
And ultimately, it's much easier (and cheaper) to buy a gift for Ionel in our purchases round like with we did for Baba Brazinga than to do so for the Ironbreakers and the miners who helped us.
