Turtledove
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Galvanauskas
Fictional Character
"None So Blind"
Fantasy
Type of Appearance: Direct
Nationality: Blond
Occupation: Baggage-carrier, Explorer

Galvanauskas, a blond pigmy native of the tropical continent, was the head of a team of baggage-carriers employed by Baron Toivo's expedition from the Empire of Mussalmi. His defining feature was a scar on his face. The Mussalmians were amused by his claim that two nearby volcanoes were the nostrils of a dragon, or pranys in his language. Whenever an earthquake tremor shook the land, Galvanauskas insisted that the dragon was thrashing in its sleep, and would one day awake. Although he thought him a bit simple because of this, the Mussalmian mage Kyosti asked Galvanauskas' advice in setting up a unicorn trap, and his advice turned out to be sound. Kyosti tipped Galvanauskas a coin for this help, and the blond replied "so generous" - a remark which Kyosti was unsure whether it was intended as irony.

Later on, the Mussalmians killed an enormous bipedal venomous lizard, which they determined was the "dragon" on whose existence the blonds were so insistent. Kyosti showed Galvanauskas the dead specimen, and insisted that this was the fearsome pranys, that it was now dead, and that even a large number of these creatures thrashing could not produce an earthquake.

Galvanauskas found this thesis unconvincing, and told Kyosti "So you say" in a very unimpressed tone. When Kyosti was infuriated by this, his teammate Sunila told him "there's none so blind as the man who refuses to see." Kyosti was irritated that the blonds clung to their superstition even in the face of scientific proof. As the Mussalmians departed the tropical continent soon after, Galvanauskas' attitude was still on the mind of Kyosti, who never suspected just how right the blond had been.

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