Chương 9: 8-Keeping Tabs

Jenna helped Doran bury the last of the bodies found in the inn. She could have done it herself, but Doran insisted on helping. He explained that he was the jarl and that he was supposed to honor the dead. She liked Doran. He resembled a middle-aged Billy, calm, resilient, and pragmatic. She was not surprised that the families had elected him as leader. She learned a lot about Vorian culture from chatting with him. Have the Vikings colonize the USA and drop them in the 1950s; voila, you have Voria.

They were a polytheistic society, surprisingly conservative in some respects, with an almost fatalistic view of life. They were also a patriarchy, built around families as social units, with strong notes of feudalism. Jenna was particularly interested in how the Compendium had changed things. Voria was technologically far less advanced than Earth, and that had considerably slowed activation. The higher the tech, the more efficient the system vector and the faster the apocalypse.

The Compendium had arrived via a radio show that played the role the Immortal Heroes MMO had played on Earth. Jenna was fascinated by the idea that the show was based on a story in which listeners became empowered by magic through following it. Discovery had tried something very similar with the Pantea Saga, using webnovels instead of a radio show. In less than three years, Avatars and Dungeonspawn were battling it out among the ruined cities of the once-proud Voria.

As they were heading back to the cluster of houses where the families had taken residence, she saw a group of strangers heading towards the inn. There were four of them. The leader was a large, jovial man, wearing chain mail and furs, with a large axe strapped to his back. He had a booming, infectious laughter. A middle-aged woman wielding a staff and wearing a robe covered in hand-sewn runes rode at his side.

Behind them rode a youngish, lithe man, accompanied by an extremely thin man in his sixties, with the look of an accountant, who was scribbling furiously in a notebook.

"Ho, villagers!" The large man saluted both Doran and Jenna upon noticing their presence.

"Ready your inn and your bellies. The Reclaimers have come to your town, basking in victory, looking for food, drink, and girls to kiss. You are all welcome to our celebration party!" Doran spoke to them respectfully: "Your highness, we just arrived today, and the inn is not working. You are all welcome to our homes for dinner. It is the least we could do for the liberators of the land." Jenna realized Doran had heard of these Reclaimers and seemed to have a high opinion of them.

She used the Compendium to peek into their status screens. Interesting. Erela had its own system, but it was a copy of Earth's one with minor variations. The stats and classes had different names, and their Avatars got a Stat perk instead of a class one, but all the rest seemed fairly similar. Their leader, Raelgar, had a class called Dispenser of Justice and seemed like a tank-type. The woman, Bila, was a Runescriber, and the young man was a rogue-type Blade Whisperer called Orun.

They looked like the tank/healer/dps holy trinity of all MMOs. Jenna did not know their exact levels, but they had to be pretty high to account for the impressive success they had achieved. Doran had mentioned something about Avatars regaining the capacity to level up. She needed to speak with this Raelgar over dinner. The last member was not an adventurer but a functionary working for the local government. His name was Mr.

Bilkings, and he kept tabs on all services rendered by their adventurers and all their expenses. The information he gathered would determine how much they would be paid upon returning home. He was a rank seven Accountant, but his formal title was the Bursar of the Shire. They all went together to Doran's home, Rascal talking non-stop. They had completed a successful tour in which they tamed and destroyed several dungeons, reclaiming a large swath of land, and they expected to be paid generously for it.

The kids swarmed around Raelgar, asking him all sorts of questions. He loved the attention. He did not stop talking for a single second before, during, or after dinner. His companions were quieter, letting him bask in the sun. Jenna got detailed descriptions of all the dungeons they had cleared. Billy could have probably done a better job, turning them into symbiotic ones, but she thought best to keep this to herself. Bob's powers allowed them to have an enormous feast without depleting their supplies.

The Reclaimers ate with gusto; Raelgar himself ate for three men. When the dinner was finally over, the Dispenser of Justice made a dramatic gesture and summoned Mr Bilkings to his side.

"And now, the fun part of the evening: finding out how much the Shire owes us for our acts of heroism," he announced theatrically.

"Mr. Bilkings, the floor is yours."

"Thank you, Lord Dispenser," he said, bowing multiple times, making him look like a toy bobbing its head.

"First of all, let's account for revenues; the esteemed reclaimers have destroyed three dungeons and tamed five. The destroyed dungeons were ranked 4, 4, and 7, earning them half a million marks per rank. The tamed ones were ranked 2, 2, 3, and 5, valued at one million marks per rank," he said while checking his ledger.

"Ho, Orun, I told you we should have tamed that rank seven one; we would be 3. 5 million marks richer," boomed Raelgar good-naturedly.

"You know it could not be done, Raelgar," Bila said quietly.

"Besides, what do you want more money for? You will not have to work again in your life."

"On the matter of destroyed Essentials, you have slain 221 rank 1, 185 rank 2..." Mr. Bilkings was rudely interrupted by Raelgar.

"Enough with the numbers, man, just tell us how much we have won," boomed Raelgar.

"... for a total of 19, 482, 356, before expenses," he tried to go on, but the three reclaimers were jumping and hugging each other." I would love to go to Bjarnholm Hotel for our honeymoon, Orun, but we can't pay for it. Let's go to Plum Acres, it is so much more affordable, my fiancee said," shouted Orun.

"We are going to Bjarnholm, and I am going to buy the bloody hotel and give it to her as a present! What do you think of the idea, Bila?" he said, turning to the runescribe. The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

"Is it romantic enough?"

"I don't know, Orun," said the older woman.

"Has she ever mentioned anything about wanting to run a hotel?"

"On the matter of expenses, Mr. Raelgar has blasphemed fourteen times, so I have to fine him 500 marks for each, making a total of…" Mr. Bilkings tried to go on.

"Let's make it fifteen, a nice round number, by the sagging ass of fair Therelda of the Dawn," Raelgar roared in laughter, clapping his hand down on the table. Everyone laughed as the Dispenser climbed onto the table and started dancing on it." I am Therelda of the Dawn, goddess of virgins and purity," he said in a falsetto voice." Oh, mighty Raelgar, please, do not talk to anyone about our thing…"

Bilkings tried heroically to finish his numbers, even though everyone ignored him, "and then, of course, you totally flattened the village of Freilda when destroying that rank seven dungeon, so you owe the shire for fifty-one houses, one windmill, two bell towers, sixteen barley fields…""

Oh, mighty Raelgar, what I have missed before meeting you, I should have been the goddess of harlots," Raelgar went, still dancing on the table, until finally Bilkings' words caught up with his brain.

"WHAT?" he suddenly said in his true voice.

"Are you going to charge us for that?"

"But of course, Mr. Raelgar," the bursar said, looking embarrassed.

"Didn't you read the fine print?"

"Just tell us the net sum, man," Orun demanded, looking suddenly very worried.

"Ah, yes, here it is," said Bilkings, as he found the figures he was looking for.

"You owe the Shire 19, 452, 620 marks."

"Bolden's balls on fire," shouted Raelgar.

"That makes it now 19, 453, 120 marks," Bilkings announced helpfully.

"They say Plum Acres is beautiful this time of year," Orun muttered as he sat down.

"Oh, my god, this is a disaster," Bila said.

"We can't return home like this. My house is counting on me for this; we had two years of bad crops." Raelgar sat down, looking very sober for once. He paused for a few seconds. Then he finally asked his question, dreading the answer.

"How much for the slaying of a Tribulation?"

"Twenty million marks, that would certainly put you back in the green," answered Mr. Bilkings. Raelgar sighed and looked at the ground, his head between his hands. As if they had been given a signal, everyone but the Reclaimers stood up and silently left the room.

"Are we going to give these guys a hand?" Billy asked when the three of them were alone.

"I don't know, Billy. I am not sure it is a good idea," Jenna answered.

"We have a task. Until we get the Icosahedron back, everything else is secondary. If we entangle ourselves in their affairs and we lose Dawn as a result, a lot of innocents are going to suffer because of it."

"I am with Jenna on this one, Billy," Bob added.

"These guys are pros. They are not defending their town or anything; they are making a profit."

"You heard Bila, Bob. The money is not for her," Billy answered him.

"But I am with you two," he finally assented.

"The next time we lose Dawn could be the last one."

"About that," Jenna added, "I want to have a closer look at the inn. There is something in Dawn's behavior that does not sit right with me." That night, Jenna tried to marshal her thoughts as she listened to Billy's soft snorings at her side. Dawn had known they were coming the whole time. They had always assumed they were hunting her, but what if it was the other way round? Could she be leading them around? And that bloodbath in the inn.

Dawn was a supremely competent fighter, but she had not killed anyone when she took the Icosahedron from them. It did not look like the work of the same person. She heard Akiros roaring in the distance in her bed. Damn. Were they really going to leave these guys to hang out in the open? She tossed in her bed and finally decided to have a second look at the inn. She left Billy sleeping peacefully. Sometimes her lack of need for it seemed like a curse. She walked quietly to the entrance of the inn.

The whole village was asleep. She entered it, studying the interior from every angle. Then she sat down in the Lotus stance and activated Pattern Recognition. Glimpses of the memories she had stolen from Rose, mixed with her own sensorial impressions, fit together like puzzle pieces, becoming information. … the faces of the owners, looking at her from black and white photographs hanging on the wall… … the three "brothers" did not look at all like the parents. They did not look like kin at all, as a matter of fact…

… making Rose do all the work, not taking any interest in their own business… … the fact that the inn was in frontier land… THUMP! These were not the original owners. They were brigands. They had murdered and replaced the real innkeepers with the intent of waylaying more victims. … Dawn asked Palla if the chicken was any good, out of hearing range of the other brigands… … she killed her when she told him that it was worth staying the night for… THUMP!

Dawn was trying to determine if Palla was part of the gang or another victim. She gave her the chance to drive Dawn away. She sealed her fate when she did not. … Dawn warned Rose that they were coming and meant the girl no harm… … Dawn can travel between realities but has stuck to this one. Weird choice, if you are really trying to lose your pursuers… … she had led them to two destinations in which they had a choice to help others… THUMP! Dawn is not trying to shake them off. She is testing them.

Jenna suddenly gasped and stood up, shaking. She finally understood. Dawn had led them here to help the Reclaimers beat Akiros. A huge wave of relief washed over her. She had not been born to make sensible but cold-blooded decisions. She summoned her elven gear around her and went back to the farm. The Reclaimers would not fight alone today. She had to smile when she saw Bob and Billy, already geared up and waiting for her. They knew her too well.

This reminded her of that awkward situation in Belona, when they had all discreetly warned the Unfocused that they were about to be attacked. Doran was there as well, his face serious.

"Are our friends already up, Doran? Tell them we are going with them."

"They already went out, your ladyship. One hour after we went all to bed. Akiros was near, and they wanted to take advantage of the situation."

"How long was this ago?" Jenna asked, her heart sinking.

"Almost seven hours ago." It was more than enough time to reach Akiros and return. Jenna could dimly hear Akiros's roars of victory in the background. The Reclaimers would not be coming back. She entered Doran's homestead feeling as if her soul was in a vice. Mr. Bilkings was sitting, writing something in his ledger. He was surrounded by the colonists, who looked at him without daring to say anything. Bob and Billy could not meet her gaze.

"And that's it, I am afraid," Mr Blinkings said as he closed the book.

"A real pity, a very promising trio. No one has cleared so many dungeons in such little time."

"Who is going to tell their families?" Jenna asked weakly.

"I will have to do so myself, I am afraid," Mr Blinkings sighed.

"This is going to be a tough one. Not only have they lost their loved ones, but they have also inherited their debts. They will lose all their belongings and be sold into thralldom. Unto the third generation, I am afraid, considering the size of the debt." Jenna closed the ledger with such strength that the whole table shook.

"You will do nothing of the sort," she said, her voice shaking with rage. She felt tears falling down her face—she wished she could die of shame.

"We will kill your fucking tribulation. Now." She left the house, the Losers following her. In her mind, she could hear the Compendium laughing.