Working on the rock face, Ivar discovers that one of his coworkers is a half-elf (it's something about the way that he holds his cup when they get a water break). He holds in his rage for later. Meanwhile Baba learns a little more about how the various secretions from the pretties are used, and that the mine supervisor is the one who set all this up and actually understands it. He's a local man, named Lucius, and lives in a house of his own in the complex rather than in the bunkhouses with the workers. Apparently most of the workers are local west valley people, but he's from the east valley, though apparently OK in the crazy slime lady's book anyway.
After dinner, Ivar is able to let loose his anger. He cleverly starts a brawl by provoking a crazy coworker (everyone around seems to be somewhat violent, but this one is actually nuts and bites). The brawl kicks off immediately, and Ivar picks up a table and smacks the half-elf to the ground with it. Unfortunately, that doesn't kill him, so he has to jump on it a few times. This impresses even the violent west valley folks, and the brawl breaks up afterwards.
That night the mine is disturbed by wolves who chase a young woman into camp. Ivar and some reluctant others run the wolves off, and the young woman ends up in Lucius's house. The next morning Ivar is assigned to "the drying building" where the sandy remnants of the ore process are first dried with giant fans and then melted and refined into actual mithril. The air inside the building is full of dust, and the other workers in there are more nuts than usual - one is the biter. At dinner the other workers are taking bets on how long it will take Ivar to become a crazy biter.
Meanwhile, the diplomats have lunch with the Duchess, who makes passes at Gaius and talks some about the local situation. She makes clear that they have to negotiate with her husband, but that the Duchy needs enough money to provide for its own defense against its neighbors. They also learn a little about her father, who "reclaimed his rightful lands" with his bandit army. Sasha, who isn't invited to these things, spends a while cultivating the kitchen staff and learns some about the household. The Duke rules the Duchy, and the Duchess rules the Duke.
The next day of diplomacy is taken up with various recreations - Lucia joins the Duke on his pheasant hunt, along with an elven "attache" who is pretty, young, and playing stupid. But the Duke seems to prefer his woman smart, so this misfires, and in any case is out for a beloved pheasant hunt and is focussed on that. Lucia asks smart questions about the hunting and provides intelligent conversation and comes out well ahead on Duke points. Meanwhile Gaius entertains the Duchess in a much more personal manner, and Sasha spends some more time scouting, discovering that a man with a tray seems to follow the ambassador around. Cross-checking with the kitchen reveals that this is one of the elven group, not a local.
Ivar is able to dumb his way at least to the door of Lucius's house that night and talk to the young woman briefly to find out if she is all right. She thanks him for running off the wolves, and claims to be looking for her brother who was supposed to be coming to the mine but apparently never arrived. Ivar decides she's probably a half-elf, but doesn't do anything crazed. Instead he asks to go out after the wolves to deal with them, and the foreman is happy to let him, probably hoping that the wolves will eat him.