Chương 27

Hunter Ellen The cool, crisp air of early autumn tickled Ellen's cheeks as she settled into place. The crook of the branch and trunk was more comfortable than she'd anticipated, but she was still thankful for the layers of soft pelts she'd prepared and decorated herself with. The extra warmth was nice, but the extra padding around the increasingly ragged clothing was welcome while perched in the tree.. Patching the old clothes with her pelts didn't bother her, but she knew it would matter soon.

With more Ellens than before, and with the limited amount that Merchant Ellen had bought, the six of them would run out of clothing before winter. She wasn't sure the rest of them realized that, yet. Without someone to patch and alter clothing, just buying more clothes wouldn't last long. Even with the money, getting exact sizes for six people was going to be tricky, unless they hired a personal tailor. And that, of course, would ruin the secrecy of the fact that there were a half dozen of them instead of just two.

Another Ellen might have sighed at this. Ellen just nocked an arrow into her bow and rested it loosely on her lap, remaining as still as possible. If she was going to have a successful hunt, she couldn't make unnecessary noise by sighing or whining to herself. The other versions of her seemed to do that a lot, she'd been noticing. Builder Ellen was the only one of the lot that was taking the situation seriously. No, that wasn't fair. She knew herself well enough to know the others were trying their best.

Merchant Ellen had been working hard, and Village Ellen was going her own thing. She'd found happiness just where she was… Ellen couldn't be angry about that. Sure, Village Ellen had given up on the whole adventuring dream, but Ellen had as well. She was a hunter now, and with all the other selves needing her help, she had to be the caretaker. She didn't see anything on the forest floor below, so Ellen took a moment to finally check her Status.

ATTRIBUTES Strength: 8 Agility: 8 Endurance: 8 Willpower: 8 Affinity: 8 Perception: 9 SKILL ENHANCERS Archery 1 STAMINA: 80/80 MANA: 80/80 CLASS: Hunter 8 EXPERIENCE: 31, 743/32, 000 PERKS Awareness ABILITIES So close to Level 9. None of the other Ellens had even bothered to ask her how close she was… or even if she'd hit Level 8. The numerous tasks she had to do had been piling up her experience even though she'd long ago run out of banked experience.

Hunting, measuring, clearing the brush, exploring the area, cleaning out the ruins, skinning animal, preparing pelts, cooking, stitching blankets and coverings… She wondered if the other Ellens truly knew how much of the work she was doing here. They all seemed happy to specialize in whatever caught their fancy right after waking. Part of that disturbed her. But was she any different? She had ceded the role of Adventurer to her 'sister' Ellen, and not once had she regretted that.

All the new things she'd done, all the hard work with the hunting and pelts… it was satisfying in a way a little bronze card couldn't convey. She could go into the dungeon if she wanted to… She didn't want to. Motion caught Ellen's eye, and she slowly turned her head. The leaves might camouflage her, but most animals were sensitive to motion. All the work she'd done to hide her scent and tuck herself into the forest canopy would go to waste if she moved suddenly. Her eyes searched for the source…

Another sudden motion cleared up what had moved. It was a black cat, the feline emerging from the shadows to pounce on its prey. Whatever doomed rodent it had found didn't even get a chance to squeak before it was in the cat's jaws, a rough shake snapping its neck. Ellen let herself release a held breath as the cat stalked back toward Onroc, her prey dangling limply in her mouth. She recognized this one—she knew all the feral cats that made their home in the ruins.

She'd named her 'Maggie' but this one was still a little standoffish, and had never approached close enough to be touched. She'd been heavily pregnant earlier, but no sign of such now… which meant she was probably in dire need of that mouse or vole to secure milk for the litter. Guess we both need to provide for the little ones, don't we, Maggie? This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. It was a silly thought, but Ellen couldn't help it.

Sometimes she felt as if she was providing the food for an entire family of children, rather than adult women. Young ones, but adult. Well, I am the eldest, she mused to herself playfully. Builder and Village Ellen were both third generation as well, but they didn't act like it because their appearance had been so recent. Ellen herself was the only one of the group that she was sure was close to Level 9, and had been doing what she was doing for weeks now.

If she died and replicated, would she continue with one of them doing the same thing like Village Ellen had done? Just pick up where she left off while the other went on to be something else? Or would she do a complete breakaway like Healer and Apprentice had done? Neither had gone in the direction of the old, impulsive Adventurer Ellen… though Apprentice Ellen had the same disarming casualness about doing everything.

She'd always thought magic would be a hard discipline to pursue, but Apprentice Ellen had jumped right on it and started practicing right away. Ellen resisted the urge to shake her head at that. She was getting lost in thought instead of hunting. That wasn't normal. The whole point of doing this had been to see if she could catch something bigger this time. She'd spotted a beaver a few days ago, but the aquatic rodents were unlikely to come this far up the slope.

She'd have to work on her trapping if she wanted that delicacy. Another flicker of motion caught her eye. Ellen froze, bracing her boots on the thick branch that held her in place. Hopefully this wouldn't be another squirrel. A nice, juicy, fat hare would be good, but what she really wanted… Ellen saw him a moment later. Graceful. Powerful. Mature. Well-muscled and mouth-wateringly gorgeous.

She had to bite her lip to make sure she was really seeing what she thought she saw, her face flooding with warmth and her heart starting to race. She'd never expected to see such a handsome specimen wander so close to the ruins, and it made her toes curl in the worn yet sturdy boots. She counted ten points on the adult buck that stepped cautiously forward. Ellen hadn't seen any does today, so the presence of a buck looking around was a little odd. If it were a little later in the season, she'd understand…

but right now it was just a stroke of luck. The large deer moved slowly and carefully, stepping closer to her hiding place. The deer here weren't as skittish about humans as the ones back where Ellen grew up, but they weren't very brave animals by nature. Even if this one had never seen a human, he'd probably bolt if something strange moved in his vision. Ellen watched as the tall buck swung his head from one side to the next, several more steps carrying him closer to her tree.

He stopped perhaps fifteen yards away, pausing when his own hoof snapped a branch underneath. She had to hold back a sigh just watching the rippling flanks move under the fine pelt, admiring the poetry of a force of nature in motion. She knew the other Ellens hadn't managed to get the appreciation for this, but for her, this was a sublime pleasure. Merely watching the beast move was enough to give her a pleasant day, even if she never had a chance to take it down. Not that doing such would be easy, at all.

Without Tracking, even following a wounded buck would be difficult. If it were bleeding enough to leave a trail she could easily follow, it wouldn't make it far enough to matter anyway. If it weren't, the buck would carry off one of her precious arrows. At that size, a short bow like hers would need a clean strike somewhere vital to take him down. She wouldn't get a second shot. You never win the chance you don't take, she thought to herself wryly.

She saw her opportunity when the handsome buck lowered his head and started rattling the smaller tree he stood next to. His antlers rubbing briskly over the bark, the deer worked hard on shedding the last of his velvet for the upcoming rut, his head jerking up and down in a rapid motion. Thus distracted, he didn't see Ellen slowly raise her bow, leg tucked around the branch to brace herself. She'd practiced shooting from a branch lately, and was pretty sure she had only one shot.

Trying to reload quickly would be too risky. But this? This she could do. The string drew back as she tried to keep her aim steady. That motion was keeping the buck occupied, but it also meant she couldn't get a clear shot on the neck. She'd have to take a chance and hope, rather than aim properly. Her fingers and arm started to burn as she held the draw, lining up with a slow, even exhale. It was a squirrel that gave her the chance she'd been waiting for.

Just as Ellen was about to release, a squirrel darted up another tree trunk near the buck. Instantly, the buck's head jerked up with a snort, the white tufted tail flagging upward. He turned to look, freezing as he tried to figure out if it was a threat or safe. His head faced the skittering squirrel instead of Ellen. Presenting the back of the neck right to her sights. She loosed the arrow. The buck jerked, took two steps forward, and fell to the ground with a heavy thud.

Finally taking a breath, Ellen ignored the rustling and cries of nearby birds fleeing the scene of the kill. Her right arm was still aching, but she hooked the left onto the trunk and swung down, dropping nimbly to the ground just as the notifications popped in. EXPERIENCE AWARDED: Hunted a deer. For taking down a [MATURE BUCK] for food, you have gained 20 Experience. FIRST TIME AWARD: Killed an adult buck. For performing this activity for the first time, you have gained 100 Experience.

FIRST TIME AWARD: Clean Kill of a large animal - Dead in under 5 seconds. For performing this activity for the first time, you have gained 100 Experience. EXPERIENCE AWARDED: Pelt preserved. For making a kill in such a way that the pelt is fully preserved, you have gained 40 Experience. LEVEL UP! You have reached Level 9. Ellen raised an eyebrow. A larger pelt gave much more experience per kill than she usually got, and those bonuses weren't expected. She'd thought another day or two before she hit the ninth Level.

Taking a quick look at her options, she easily chose Tracking as her second Perk. That was the only reward she got for this Level, was one Perk, but it was enough. The only new one had been Foraging, and with the garden that had been put together that wasn't as important as the ability to track her prey and find new ones. Ellen unstrung her bow and tucked it aside with a sigh.

"Now… how to get three hundred pounds of venison back to Onroc. I guess I'll need the others after all." She brought the carved whistle to her lips and blew out four shrill notes—two long, two short—to request non-urgent help. She could put together a drag litter to help while the others were on their way. In the meantime… Ellen hummed a happy tune to herself as she drew out her knife and set to field dressing her kill.