That her smile widened at the mention of Darkspawn did strike him as disturbing, or even as strange. The taciturn knight may not have been able to describe the feeling that stirred in him in battle against the creatures, but it was the closest to contentedness he had felt for years beyond memory, and was the closest he would ever come to it. If he heard another was in the business of fighting Darkspawn, it would warm his own heart to find one so like-minded. It was for no empty reason that he so revered the Grey Wardens, or even the dwarves, in their eternal struggle.
He blinked in surprise at her question, though realized that perhaps he shouldn't wonder at her ability to guess. He was a killer of Darkspawn. He was in Gwaren. Assuming he was in Gwaren to kill Darkspawn was not so great a leap of logic. Nonetheless, he was flattered by her gratitude. She, of all people, would understand why it was so important, compared to parading for nobles or patrolling highways. Nothing was more important.
"I am," he answered solemnly. "Rather, to look into it. We are certain there are Darkspawn in the forest, but we hope to find them before they can cause any harm." To elf or human. It didn't matter whether or not it was his own people he defended--it mattered that the Darkspawn were slain. Ordhan glanced downwards, towards the counter-top, before turning his eyes back towards her. "It is nothing to be alarmed about, at least." He did not want rumors of a Darkspawn attack to spread from an idle, misplaced comment on his part. Such things could cause panic, especially among those who had suffered in the last Blight and knew what terror Darkspawn could bring.
The knight could not tell if she were serious or not about bringing her mother with those setting out--to smile or laugh may be taken as mockery, so it was always safer to assume it was directly meant. "I am sure she would be a valuable ally," he answered with a slight softening of his serious expression. "But I do not believe our commander would be open to it." He allowed a smile, then, able to be interpreted as humor if it was only a jest, or as apology if not so.
The suggestion led to a thought that might be relevant, and venturing out on the precarious bridge of volunteering information not asked for, he began, "There is a merchant in Denerim, a dwarf, who fought in the Blight. He often mentions that he wishes he could fight the creatures again."
Ordhan's face grew even more serious than usual, if that were possible, when she questioned him further about the Dragon's Peak fight. The knight fell silent, carefully draining his next words of every trace of bitterness they might contain. "I went there alone. A village had reported Darkspawn sightings, but it had been too long since the Blight, and they did not want to commit more men." There. It had been said, and carefully; with luck the young dwarf would not sense how truly angry he had been over the matter, how he had been allowed to leave as a mere concession to one who would not be worth the trouble to force to stay.
"I met a mercenary in the village, Cormac, who went with me to scout for the Darkspawn. We found many in the hills outside the village. I...suppose it was cold," he went on, pausing. Yes, it was cold. That was quickly forgotten once the Darkspawn-song was heard--the chill it brought to the heart made all else be forgotten. "There were three of us, because Cormac had his Mabari hound."
It was a terrible fight, one that made him shudder to remember, one that drew him and his ally to the very doorway of a gruesome death before leaving them to drag themselves back to safety. Though two years had passed since that night, it was difficult to keep himself from drifting back to drown in the horror of it, instead of staying in the warm comfort of the tavern, with a wide-eyed, smiling dwarf talking to him.