Chương 46

Merchant Ellen Ellen braced herself against the rock as she stared down the mountain. When she and the others had first moved there, Onroc Anroll had not even been visible from most places up the mountain. This had been one of the exceptions that had been angled correctly to see the ruined buildings, and it was still one of the best places to see the progress they'd made. To some, that progress might not look like much. To Ellen, it was the most impressive accomplishment she'd ever seen.

The snow covered much of the cleared space, but it was still obvious that it had been cleared. Trails free of the snow wound from the smithy to the longhouse, and over to the small ruin they'd been using to store firewood. Another trail led to the edge of the forest, heading for the village… but she agreed with Pauley that they should clear the road and meet up with the main road instead of relying on the trail.

Ellen pulled up the Settlement Interface and let it spread from the corner of her vision to fully encompass it. She'd discovered this new feature by accident, and now she really wondered how much she could use it. The overlaid version highlighted the various structures—even the mostly-hidden lime kiln further down, which showed up as a glowing shape amongst the trees in the distance. She could even see usable foundations, which registered as Unallocated Foundation with a percentage indicating its solidity.

Most were in good condition, but a few had significant damage, usually from plant roots. Ellen didn't like that it still called it a Longhouse, but the fact that she could easily pull up a list of items to change to shift it to an Inn was pretty interesting. It wouldn't even be difficult… though that would leave the rest without a place to sleep. More likely she'd want to turn it into a Common Hall, but the Settlement Interface insisted that it needed more lighting and a more distinct kitchen.

Those seemed like minor changes to her, and she wasn't sure what to make of it. She played around with assigning ghostly buildings to the various foundations, even if it indicated supplies were unable to create them. A bakery here, a butcher there, a house beside it. She never confirmed when the System asked her to, but she was tempted. Would the other Ellens receive a notification of what was wanted? Would the villagers receive it? She still couldn't control the village, or even look at it very clearly.

The Trust percentage had gone up slightly, but was still well below the halfway point, with no indication of when it would be 'enough' to view it… or even if that would ever be allowed. The iron mine was showing up now, but was still marked as 'Unsafe' despite Carpenter and Mason's recent efforts. It was at least an upgrade from the earlier 'Dangerous' designation, and she was glad they were being very careful about shoring up the mine's ancient supports.

Those two were more cautious than ever after Builder's death. A third accidental death would be a curse, not bad luck.

"Someone is deep in thought," a voice said from behind her. One of the Ellens.

"You should be careful. An entire pack of wolves could sneak up on you like that."

"Hello, Hunter." Ellen chuckled, huddling up in her cloak more tightly.

"You're the only one who would be wandering out here. Are there really wolves out? I haven't seen one." Hunter walked up beside her, rubbing her hands together. She looked flushed, and was still tugging her cloak into place. Ellen caught a glimpse of two rabbits dangling from her belt—a successful hunt. Though Ellen didn't see any sign of a weapon or injuries on the rabbits, which was confusing until she remembered her father using snares. Hunter must have done the same.

She should probably pay more attention to what Hunter is doing.

"There are wolves nearby, but they seem skittish about humans," Hunter answered. She rubbed her sides for warmth and grumbled.

"I've seen a few of them at a distance, and plenty of tracks, but they don't go anywhere near the village. We shouldn't have a problem with them unless it's a lean winter. At least, that's what my predecessor thought. I don't have the same knack for reading animal intent as she did, yet." Ellen just nodded. She understood that sort of thing. She remembered her predecessor doing things with a spear, feeling comfortable with it… but now when she held one it felt awkward.

She was pretty sure the basic skill was still there, and she knew a few moves with it… but the muscle memory was completely gone. She'd barely used one since choosing her Merchant path, and it was as if she were still a young girl awkwardly practicing moves she'd barely tried, now. If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

"Have you thought about the future?" Hunter Ellen broke in with a question that had far more weight than expected. Ellen had to think for a few breaths before she could properly answer. Not because she hadn't… just because she needed to think about how to word it.

"We can't really go home," she finally said.

"I think Village Ellen might, one day. But the rest of us? What will we do? Maybe the village will take us in but that sounds wrong. That's why I'm trying to encourage us to actually build this place up. And I um… miss you, because you were the one who always seemed to have an answer." Hunter smiled.

"You know I'm still me, right? I haven't gotten more reckless just because I died in a spectacular fashion. Though I think I understand Apprentice and Healer more, now."

"Good, because I don't," Ellen laughed.

"Can you explain them?" Hunter gave her a light pat on the shoulder.

"Don't worry too much about them. They aren't that different from us, not really. They've just… gotten used to the idea that there's no turning back, and that we don't know when this will end. They're doing what they want, and working together closely to help one another."

"Like we did when we were Ellen One and Ellen Two?" Shaking her head, Hunter gestured down toward the town.

"Not really. I don't think either of us can speak for Ellen One… maybe Carpenter or Mason can. As I remember it, though, they both tried to be everything. Village Ellen only happened because she lost a game of chance. So she settled in and discovered she liked it. That unsettled me at first, but I think it got easier when she realized the others were doing the dangerous things." Ellen nodded slowly.

"And when you split off as the original Hunter, it was because you had to. Just like I felt I had to when I gave up being Adventurer Ellen and let the other me do that…" Hunter patted her on the shoulder again.

"You're starting to get it. Smith and I aren't as different as we seem, either. She knows what she's doing, and if you pay attention, she has a lot of my habits. Carpenter and Mason, and most especially Healer and Apprentice… they aren't viewing this as being Ellen and needing to do a certain thing. They're viewing it as an opportunity to do more things. That's why they're staying close to one another, because they want the other version to share in what they do."

The explanation sunk in slowly, and Ellen wasn't sure that entirely explained things.

"Apprentice and Healer still act a little strange, I think…"

"Oh yes, obviously," Hunter laughed.

"I'm not sure exactly what's going through their heads, but I see a little of it. I'm not sure how much of it is just how they are, and how much is an act they put on for the rest of us. Haven't you ever wanted to be as carefree as Apprentice?"

"Mmm." Ellen frowned as she considered that. It'd be nice to not be so responsible again… and Apprentice didn't care. She just let Healer do all of the consideration for her actions. But if that were the case…

"So they could easily switch their personalities?" The idea made Ellen shiver. Hunter shrugged.

"Probably, at least mostly. We only act different because of the roles we've chosen to play. Village Ellen is the most different because she's been in her role the longest, and she's used to it. It's comfortable for her. Just like I feel more comfortable out in the forest alone. I got used to having time to think to myself, away from anyone else. But when Smith decided to become one of the crafting types, look at how quickly she adapted."

Ellen wasn't sure how much of that was due to the wildly compressed experience time that they'd been getting. She considered bringing that up, then shook her head. That was a long talk she wasn't sure she wanted in this cold.

"I think once we can get more money and resources, we should make some houses." Ellen puffed out a steaming breath.

"Actual houses. They don't have to be very big—we can still eat together in the hall once we've completed that. But houses for different lineages of Ellens might be better than piling all seven of us into the bed pile."

"It is cozy though," Hunter admitted.

"Yeah. It is that. I kind of miss my other half though…" Ellen lowered her eyes to the town again.

"I think that's why I can talk to you. It feels like you're supporting all the rest of us through the winter, just like I feel like I'm the one that has to guide how to build everything, and all the money worries. I don't dislike it but with Adventurer gone… maybe I'm missing what you were saying. The feeling of someone else doing what I can't." Hunter shivered, her lighter clothing allowing the cold to catch up to her. Then she asked the question Ellen had been dreading.

"If we want to really be a town, how many more Ellens would we need?" It wasn't a pleasant question. Ellen had thought about it, but the very idea that each one would be a possibly painful death was a fact she couldn't avoid. She hated that she'd thought of it anyway.

"At least eight more… more likely a dozen," she said quietly.

"Unless we allow others to settle… and they don't find our situation too strange. I'd really like to say that's it, but I've probably forgotten things, too. If we make enough from the dungeon, we can keep buying our clothes and shoes and other items… so we can survive with fewer. But…"

"Eventually some of us are going to want to leave and explore the world," Hunter finished.

"Yes, I know. If we can avoid dying, though, I think we could mostly be happy here. If we do end up with more… you and I need to explain things to them so we don't get strange diversions. I don't think that will be pleasant." Ellen glanced at her other self.

"Are you sure? Have we ever had a serious argument?"

"Not yet," Hunter allowed with a shrug.

"I've had to yell at some of the other Ellens, but they've never really talked back seriously. Maybe we'll all keep realizing that we're just the same person, but someone has to do the less fun things, right?" The question made Ellen frown, and she looked down at the tiny settlement they'd built. It wasn't much, but it was theirs, and she knew the others had as much pride in that as she did.

"Okay, what wouldn't be fun if we threw ourselves into it, Hunter?" Ellen shivered and started hiking down toward Onroc Anroll. Hunter followed at her side without questioning it.

"Really think about it. If you knew that you weren't missing out on something, what would you not try to do, and throw yourself into?"

"…"

"Exactly."