Chương 41

Village Ellen Ellen had to admit that her various sister-selves had really put the work in to make the old place comfortable. She hadn't realized it would be so cozy. The place was large and didn't have any real walls yet, and the smaller fireplace in the kitchen was closed off for some reason, but it was definitely warmer than expected. Most of the exposed floor was stone, with only the middle area hosting the blankets and furs that the other Ellens used for sleeping.

She'd slept here plenty of times herself, but not since the completion of the home. Healer was the designated cook, but she'd gone out with Apprentice and Anroll to bury Hunter's body. Ellen had taken over that duty to add a few vegetables to the stock while they were out, and was serving small bowls to each of the ones who had been outside. Hunter Ellen had hung up the boar her previous self had killed, so she was also shivering. Everyone huddled around the fire as the soup was served.

The cold draft from the door opening twice in quick succession had made the corners of the large room chilly, but the judicious use of blankets fought that off during the start of dinner.

"I'm really glad you made it here, Uncle." Merchant broke the silence with that, seated nearest the fire and not even bothering with a blanket.

"After what happened, we weren't sure what to do. Hopefully you have some ideas now that you've gotten the full story." Anroll was definitely smart. He opened his mouth, then shut it quickly, no doubt realizing Merchant had already figured out he had the whole story because she'd surmised that Ellen had told him on the hike up from the village. This was correct. She had. Ellen took a seat next to Smith Ellen, who was on the right of Anroll. Hunter Ellen sat on the left.

Mason and Carpenter were getting comfortable across from her, while Apprentice and Healer both sat to Ellen's other side. Normally, Ellen never had trouble telling other Ellens apart, but those two were hard to distinguish sometimes. They acted completely different in their roles, but sitting in the circle as they were had them both huddle up to one another for warmth under the same blanket. Their soup bowls were even lifted in sync, sipping the exact same length of time before lowering the bowl from their lips.

Anroll hesitated to say anything, staring at the duo for a moment first. Then he shook his head and let out a heavy sigh.

"Less than I'd like," he grumbled. Anroll rubbed at his mustache and took a long look around the room at each Ellen in turn.

"I remembered something Pops said right before he died, though. Something about how he'd found a way to make sure you'd live to see your dream come true. There's a lot of stuff your grandfather never told me, though. I have no idea how he'd manage that, you were… what… seven when he died?" Ellen opened her mouth to correct it as she thought back, but Merchant beat her to it.

"Eight."

"Right," Anroll muttered, embarrassed. He scratched his chin and sighed again.

"The problem is, if he did anything it was on his last job… and we don't know much about his last job. At least, most people don't. He told me and your father a little though. He just said he was doing something for a power 'beyond the gods' and vanished for a few years, like he always did. When he came back, that's when he started saying that."

"The System!" Apprentice and Healer exclaimed in unison. Ellen looked over at the two, then back to Anroll, who was… nodding.

"I always wondered, but couldn't think of how he'd possibly negotiated with the System itself. Or what he'd done to get something from it." He rubbed at his chin thoughtfully.

"Now I guess it's more likely that's exactly what it was, or something that had great influence over the System. No idea on the other questions, though. And I'm very, very sure this wasn't the intended effect." Ellen hesitated for a moment, then she raised her voice.

"I… kind of like it." Most of the heads in the room turned, but only Anroll looked surprised. Apprentice and Healer just sipped their soup and didn't even look at Ellen, as if they'd fully expected that. The other Ellens didn't show shock at it, but she could read their faces. They were more surprised she'd said it out loud than that she had the opinion.

"I feel safe this way," Ellen continued, looking toward the fire.

"I'm happy. But I think if I didn't have all of you I might feel more restless. I'd wonder what I'm missing by not learning magic, or exploring the dungeon, or whatever. With all the rest of you I know that some version of me is still doing what I'm not, and doing what makes that part of me happy."

"That's what we think," Apprentice agreed. Or maybe it was Healer.

"We figured that out a while ago," Healer added. Or maybe it was Apprentice. Anroll sighed and waved his hand in the air.

"You don't understand. Your grandfather knew the problems this would bring, so it definitely wasn't what he intended. He must have made an error in whatever he did. I suspect he meant to bring you back, not bring you back and copy. And who knows if he put any limits on it? It's dangerous to do something like this repeatedly even if you aren't making extra uh… Ellens." This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon. He looked around the room, rubbing his chin.

"Sorry, this is still hard for me to get. I've seen a lot of strange things in my time, but I've never had to adjust to having eight nieces suddenly. I have no idea what I'm going to tell your father, but I can probably keep him from panicking if I tell him you own some land now and have settled in and are trying to get it set up." Ellen raised her hand.

"I can write a letter if you want. I do like the Treetop, so I wouldn't be lying if I told them I was helping at an inn and had grown to like it there, and wasn't adventuring now."

"They won't expect word back yet until after winter, so we have a little time," Anroll reassured.

"The more important thing to worry about is this dungeon. Dungeons aren't formed at random, they have a specific function in the world. It isn't a coincidence that you found one after a few incidents, I'm sure. If I hadn't heard Pops say he'd done something to keep you safe, I'd have figured the whole duplication thing was a result of the dungeon somehow, but this makes more sense." Hunter frowned.

"You're saying the dungeon happened because of us?"

"Sort of." Anroll gestured with a finger in the air.

"I don't know all the details, but I wouldn't be surprised if this messed with the mana in the area. Dungeons are sort of a… natural way that the world uses to fix major problems with the mana flow in an area. Maybe even the System itself. Would you girls mind if I went down into the dungeon and scouted it out? You said it had been growing, right?" Ellen nodded… along with all the other Ellens. This was one of those moments when they were all in sync, and Anroll visibly flinched at the eerie result it gave.

Ellen wondered how strange it looked for him… they did all look similar, even with their major differences. She'd gotten used to it.

"Do you know how deep it is? Ell- um, Hunter Ellen told me that you've only done the first floor. This Bloodline Rival thing sounds dangerous, and I think it's linked to the fact that it was created for you."

"It will probably apply to you, if the name means anything," Merchant pointed out.

"So be careful. I know you're a Gold Tier, but if things are that strange…" She sighed, then frowned to herself.

"Last I checked it was three, maybe four floors if I went by area of influence. I haven't been able to see it since Hunter died. I think that functionality was tied to her Landkeeper Class. I never thought about how this interface would change depending on who had what Class." Ellen bit her lip as she realized what the three of them walking Uncle Anroll up to the ruins had forgotten about. There'd been so much to cover, it had completely slipped her mind. She flinched at Merchant's scowl her way.

"When I took the Founder Class, it gave us access to something called a Settlement Interface." Merchant gestured at the invisible window in front of her.

"I'd never heard of it before, but it lets us—especially me—see the condition of the buildings and the land around Onroc Anroll and to sometimes even see one another. Doesn't label us though, so it's not always useful." Anroll's lip twitched as Merchant name-dropped the name of the town. Ellen wasn't sure if he was annoyed or amused at the way he'd been incorporated into the name, but he didn't say anything about it.

"This is why I want to stay here, now." Merchant gestured around the primitive room.

"I think we can really do something with it, something that's going to be a big deal here. Besides… unless we want to split up, we need someplace all of us can call home, don't we?"

"I like that we made this here, ourselves," Carpenter chimed in.

"I mean, the stonework was here, but I have a feeling my sister will be able to make new buildings soon." Mason frowned.

"That's a lot more work than you think, but we do have some spare foundations to work with. We'll see." Anroll watched the exchange thoughtfully, but Apprentice and Healer huffed as one voice.

"We'll pose as twins if we have to."

"And we'd rather we all stayed together."

"Even Village Ellen."

"Who hates us." Ellen jerked slightly as if stung, turning her head to deny this. The two were grinning at her when she met their eyes, and she felt her cheeks heat up.

"Girls, don't tease Village Ellen," Merchant sighed.

"I can understand her wanting to stay somewhere comfortable. Even if that attic is going to get pretty cold in winter. If you ever want someplace warm, this place is getting pretty cozy at night."

"I'm not sure where Uncle Anroll can stay, tonight." Smith Ellen finally spoke up after staying quiet for so long.

"I guess… he can stay on the other side of the fire, right? It's really late to be going down the mountain back to the village. I know you're a high level, uncle, but…" Anroll patted his pack.

"I have a tent and bedroll, it's not so cold I can't sleep outside and leave you girls to your uh…" He looked at the bundle of furs.

"Bed." It wasn't strange for people to share warmth in a bed, but he was clearly having trouble adapting to the growing number of Ellens.

"One day we'll add more rooms and a second floor," Carpenter sighed.

"If I hit Level 12 it should be easier. I'm pretty sure I'll get some abilities to help. I'm kind of excited, I have no idea what a Woodwright can do."

"I've only heard of two of your Tier 2 Classes," Anroll noted.

"And those two— Hearthmaker and Lifebinder —are rare enough that I don't know much about them. Lifebinder is supposed to be a very good adventuring Class though. I normally wouldn't offer, but I can take two or three of you down into the dungeon when I check it if you want. I may just send you back after clearing the first level. Sound fair?"

"We'd love that!" Apprentice said. Ellen was pretty sure it was Apprentice. Healer, she thought, was also nodding along.

"I'll think about it," Hunter murmured.

"I want to make sure I devote most of my banked experience toward hunting-related things. I actually need to choose my Tier 1 Class, too. I'm thinking about putting my Attribute in Willpower and picking up Mana Manipulation early though. I could lean more druidic before getting Landkeeper and it would help with the magic parts." Anroll set his bowl down and hefted his pack.

"Be careful of… what am I saying? You girls won't be spreading yourselves too thin. Is your food situation good, or do you need supplies?"

"Plenty of food, but I think we may need more salt," Hunter replied.

"I'll carve up the boar tomorrow."

"All right." The Gold Tier adventurer took a deep breath.

"Tomorrow then. Dungeon run. Show me what you've learned, girls." Ellen bit her lip worriedly as her uncle stepped out into the cold.