Chương 32

Village Ellen Ellen's home was near enough the city that while autumn was a busy time, it wasn't quite as busy as it was out here in the frontier. The village was frantic in storing various root vegetables and a few imported fruits from the Merriweather market in each household. Minor repairs of the houses kept the craftsmen busy… not to mention the ongoing additions to the inn. She hadn't realized how a small community like this really worked until now.

Merchant Ellen—or 'Trisha' as she was known here—had offered to help pay for the expansion, but she'd had to spend less than expected. In a small community like this, a bigger inn directly benefited everyone… and the entire village pitched in to erect the new wing. The foundation had been dug out and laid almost immediately, with a sort of haste that worried Ellen at first.

One of the villagers had explained to her that they had to get the foundation's mortar mostly-cured before framing the addition, but she'd only grasped the essentials there. It was interesting, but she had no real plans on using the knowledge. She saw Mason Ellen and Carpenter Ellen occasionally, asking their questions to the people doing the work in their not-subtle way of fishing for relevant knowledge.

She couldn't yet tell them apart on sight, guessing only from their interest in whatever task was being done at the time. She wasn't sure how the villagers couldn't tell the difference between those two and Merchant Ellen, though. They were so wildly different it was obvious. Merchant Ellen liked to wear one lock of her hair forward over the shoulder instead of back, and had a slightly wider smile. Not to mention a slightly shorter stride.

It was plain as the nose on her face that she was nothing like either of the girls that sprang from Builder Ellen. They really shouldn't press their luck by showing up looking so different from Merchant Ellen. Ellen was certain that eventually the villagers would notice the overwhelming differences and start to ask uncomfortable questions. She'd have to talk to them more about that, but it felt awkward approaching the Ellens who came from her 'sister' that way.

At least they were more approachable than Hunter Ellen. That one had grown cold and serious, not to mention looking even more different. She never came into the village any more, but didn't seem to want to. That worried her. How had she grown so distant? She broke herself off from her thoughts as she slid a plate over to one of the guests, the bodyguard of a merchant passing through. This guest was a woman, which was unusual for a guard profession, but if the Guild vouched for her, few would object.

Merchants were a very number-focused people.

"Here you are," Ellen offered with a smile.

"It's supposed to be cold tonight, will you need an extra blanket?" The woman looked up with a frown, her dark eyes glancing over Ellen, then off to the side.

"No, I have my own." She stabbed at the roasted potato with her knife.

"Is that your sister over there? What's she doing?" Ellen glanced over to the table nearby, where Merchant Ellen was deep in discussion with three of the townsfolk. Pauley was there, so it must have been something serious. She tilted her head to listen, then shrugged.

"That is my sister, it sounds like they're talking about the borders of the village and where they end," Ellen answered honestly.

"Where it's safe to hunt and fish and so on. I just try to keep this place running, it's not something I know anything about." Which wasn't quite true. Merchant Ellen kept her abreast of what was going on with all of that, but she wasn't involved in the decision-making. The woman listened and chewed, then swallowed as Ellen wrapped up her brief explanation. One look at Merchant Ellen, then back to Ellen herself, and she frowned thoughtfully.

"I've been through here before, and it is much more lively now. Are you new here? I've heard some strange stories…" It wasn't the first time this sort of thing had happened. Ellen saw enough patrons passing through lately that she'd gotten very good at reading this carefully casual interest, and she knew where the conversation was headed. Most of the traffic consisted of merchants carrying their wares back and forth between the farmlands of the Theocracy and the nearby Merriweather.

The village was fully stocked with beans and grains thanks to this, but the questions had been more common of late.

"Spring," Ellen replied easily.

"You aren't the first to try to ask about it. The answer is spring. It's too difficult to organize anything during the winter, and with winter preparations going on it wouldn't be a good idea to try something new, so the owner has decided spring would be the best time to allow exploration. It will give everything time to grow as well." The guard didn't say anything, at first. She stared at Ellen, then sighed and nodded her head.

"I guess this is why you're all working on the village. It's going to get a lot of people passing through, you know. I think you should add more than just a wing to the inn." If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. Ellen just swept up the empty tankard to go refill it.

"I'm not sure why everyone tells me that, I don't make those sorts of decisions. Talk to the man over there, or even my sister. At least she has some say in it." Another curious guard. A few adventurers had passed through as well, but it seemed the dungeon was still a rumor rather than an actual confirmed presence. Her answers, along with those of the townsfolk, had virtually guaranteed that it would be well-known by the end of winter. One more decision that Merchant Ellen and Pauley had agreed upon.

She refilled the mug and slid it back into place without comment, mentally updating the tab. The merchant the guard had arrived with had already agreed to a three drink limit, so she wasn't concerned about it yet. With a long, heavy sigh, Ellen slumped back against the counter. Everyone had been attended to, and she could take a few moments to enjoy the peace and quiet. She didn't dislike the job—she loved it—but lately the patrons had been getting on her nerves and she knew it. She needed to focus.

"Are you and your sister getting along all right?" The question made her jerk upright, startled, before resting herself back again. Tobias had somehow snuck up with her during her thoughts, and she took a moment to get her words straight as she considered his question.

"We're fine," she finally answered.

"She's just been busy. We're still very close, and I'm not worried about it. We're just finally realizing we have different things we want in life, that's all." The innkeeper nodded, leaning over on the counter as he looked at Merchant Ellen speaking emphatically to the others.

"It took you a long time, huh? You look so alike, but you seem a lot more gentle than her. Did she drag you along on this adventure?" Ellen tilted her head at the middle-aged man.

"No, we've both wanted to be adventurers since we were small." And the same person.

"It was hard, though. We have the same Attributes, and we aren't really good at anything. Our uncle said that was good, because it meant we weren't limited in what we could choose, but I think it made it hard to discourage us. Even though I think we just aren't destined for greatness. We're just average girls. Eights in every Attribute when we hit Level 5."

"Hmm…" Tobias scratched at his cheek.

"That's not a bad thing. If you'd had a different set, wouldn't you have wanted to do what it was set up for? My Affinity is only four, I never had a chance to do anything magical. You can just choose what you want to do. Are you sure you want to just work in an inn? I know my wife thinks that's the best idea, but it's your life, young lady." She had to giggle, thinking about that.

"I don't mind, really. I feel comfortable like this. Kind of at peace. Maybe I won't stay here forever, but I'm not going anywhere if you don't want me to. And if you do… I guess I can work at whatever my sister is doing about housing adventurers. Maybe I can get a job as a clerk at the Guild in Merriweather if she doesn't need me here." The older man shook his head.

"If that's what you want. Your sister seems to want to do everything. I saw her asking some pointed questions about framing the addition, and she's really leaning into the hunting grounds negotiation. Are you sure she's a Fighter?" Ellen smiled at him, even as she inwardly flinched.

"You know, sometimes I get a little confused myself. She doesn't do that much, does she?" Tobias scratched his cheek again.

"Truthfully, we're all wondering about her. She's hauling materials up the mountain all the time, but we haven't had anyone to work construction pass through here. She's not hiring from the Theocracy is she? We don't really care about that around here, but I know a little of how the nobility thinks in the city. They might see that as treason or… something." Stupid Ellen, Ellen thought to herself.

"She likes her secrets, but I'm sure she won't do that. Our family still lives pretty close to the capital, we wouldn't want to put them in danger. I'll talk to her about it though. She really does want to have a good relationship with the town, it's not just because of me." The innkeeper laughed.

"Yeah, we appreciate she's trying. It caused a bit of a stir when we all found out we had a new lord, but Pauley talked us down. With that dungeon here, we'd have gotten attention sooner or later. I just hope she knows what she's doing with it."

"Never," Ellen chuckled.

"I'm sure she's making it up as she goes along, but whatever Class she gets at 11 will be interesting." There was a clatter from nearby as one of the guests dropped a plate. Ellen winced, then sighed to Tobias. He waved her off with a chuckle as she turned to take care of the spill. To think that it will just get busier from here. Ellen gathered up the wooden plate, sighed, and gave the guest a frown. The bearded man just gave a sheepish smile and a mumbled apology, while his companions tried not to laugh too much.

She mentally marked them in her head to expect some kind of tip from this group. If they're going to make a mess, they'd best make it worth her time. Lauren was right there behind her, and took the plate with a warm smile.

"I'll take care of this. Why don't you handle the man outside? He's rang the bell twice now. Impatient fellow." So much to do. Ellen smiled anyway, hurrying out to find the traveler outside patting down his horse, a magnificent chestnut brown stallion. The weathered man, who looked to be a very experienced forties, gave her a light nod and tipped the wide-brimmed hat at her.

"Good afternoon," she huffed, shaking out her dress and realizing how much quieter it was out here.

"Will you be staying the night, or should I water your horse and keep everything close by?" This sort of thing was normal for her, now. Ellen hadn't seen quite so well-structured an equine yet, the animal much more fine and well-bred than most of the horses that came through here, but she'd gotten used to guiding them to the simple stables nearby. The man looked her over again.

"I'll be staying the night. Aren't you Ellen Tember? The owner of these lands? Why are you quartering the horses?" Sigh. Someone must have leaked Merchant Ellen's description. How could she have thought she could do this without word spreading? Putting on her warmest smile, Ellen offered her hand to the horse for a sniffling investigation.

"I'm sorry, you must mean my sister. If you have important business, please speak inside." It was going to be a long autumn.