Chương 51

Village Ellen The storm had left the town very quiet, and that included the inn. Usually, there was something to do… even if it was minor maintenance or preparation for the next guests incoming. Ellen had always found ways to keep busy, no matter what. That didn't mean she had no down time. Today, she had the day mostly to herself, and she was enjoying the warmth of the crackling fire.

Tobias and Lauren had braved the snow-covered road to handle an errand—unusual, since most people came to them, but not unheard of—and left Ellen in charge of the inn.

"What am I doing here?" The question hit the empty room loudly, as if she'd disturbed the sacred silence. Even as she asked herself the question, she already knew the answer. While she had publicly sworn off anything to do with the more adventurous Ellens up the mountain, that didn't mean she could go back to her parents. Especially not with how she'd ended up.

ATTRIBUTES Strength: 8 Agility: 8 Endurance: 9 Willpower: 9 Affinity: 8 Perception: 9 SKILL ENHANCERS Cooking 1 STAMINA: 90/90 MANA: 87/87 CLASS: Townsaver 11 EXPERIENCE: 317, 415/320, 000 PERKS Presentable Appraise Character Steady Mind ABILITIES Level 11. It was so strange to see herself at that high Level. She'd come here at Level 6, and with normal growth rates she should have only been Level 7 or 8 by now… with 8 kind of pushing it.

Experience awards from the System varied somewhat, with higher Level actions getting more experience so long as the action was reasonably difficult for the user. Killing a goblin would still be difficult for her. A Fighter might get a few hundred for one—including first time bonuses—but if she managed it she'd probably get several thousand. A higher level Fighter Class might not get more than a few points, making them a nuisance rather than a real source of advancement.

Yet she continued to get decent awards for every action. First time bonuses continued to accumulate, though they were much harder to come by now than in the early days. She hadn't talked to the other Ellens about it, but she knew they knew it as well. Their advancement had been staggering. It wasn't in the realm of prodigies yet, that was true. Her grandfather had achieved Level 11 by the time he was fifteen, and his first Tier 3 Class before he'd turned twenty.

Even with her accelerated learning, Ellen didn't see how that would be possible for her. Most people didn't get to Level 21 until their early thirties… and sometimes past forty. Level gains slowed to a crawl after 13 or 14 even if someone was pushing hard. She hadn't even been pushing hard. She was just… doing her job as best she could. A loud thumping at the door jolted Ellen out of her inner thoughts.

She rushed over without thinking, though even as she arrived she wondered who would be knocking in this weather, instead of just coming inside. She flung the door open, expecting some kind of rude guest. Instead, it was Camilla, one of the local girls. A tad younger than Ellen herself, the blonde did many odd jobs around the village, but was largely working on learning how to replace the local tailor. She was not someone that Ellen saw often, but she was one of the small number that had been told the secret.

That was not why the girl was here. The petite blonde struggled underneath a half-conscious, shivering man. He had sunken cheeks and his beard and mustache were covered in frost, and his cloak was soaked through. To Ellen's inexpert eyes, he looked half-dead… and something about him made her flinch. Her Appraise Character Perk. It had taken her a moment to realize where the strange feeling had come from. It wasn't telling her he was hostile or unfriendly… just dangerous.

She got that feeling from a few adventurers that passed through, but had never felt it quite this badly. He was probably high Level, maybe even a dangerous Class… but she didn't get the feeling that the shivering, half-conscious man had any violent designs. Of course, Appraise Character was far from perfect, but it was better than nothing. Given his frozen state, she doubted he had any plans to harm her or the village.

"Get him inside," she gasped, ushering the shivering Camilla and the man into the common room. She slammed the door shut before taking the man's other side, wrinkling her nose as she drew in close. Only… he didn't actually smell that bad. This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. Considering his appearance, that was odd. NOTICE Your Steady Mind Perk has activated. FIRST TIME AWARD: Resisted a mental effect.

For performing this activity for the first time, you have gained 1200 Experience. Ellen blinked, and realized abruptly that the man actually did smell like a wet dog. She gagged quietly, causing Camilla to look at her strangely as they eased the man down by the fire. Her Appraise Character was still telling her that he meant no harm, at least… but now the reason for the alarm in the Perk's signals was a little more obvious.

He had some kind of passive effect on him, which pushed her estimate of his Level up pretty high.

"I hope he'll be all right…" Camilla mumbled in concern. Ellen frowned… the man could be dangerous, and she wasn't sure what kind of mental effect it might be. But they also couldn't just let him die…

"Get his cloak off, and anything else that's wet," Ellen ordered, moving to do just that. Fortunately, the man wasn't soaked head to toe or anything. He was suffering from the cold outside, and as she tugged the wet cloth off she saw he was emaciated and in poor health… but she saw no signs of frostbite. Then again, she was hardly well-trained in that sort of thing. She knew what she'd been told when she was younger, and she had a feeling her Class was giving her a few hints, but she couldn't be certain.

Camilla stared at the man, and Ellen had to look up at her and scowl. She should send the younger girl away, but that might be even worse if something happened. Really, Ellen had no idea how to handle a situation like this. She needed to keep Camilla away from the man as much as possible.

"There's some soup in the kitchen for dinner," she told the blonde.

"Go and fetch me some, but just the broth. We need to warm him up." That snapped Camilla out of it, and she hurried to comply—almost stumbling—while Ellen inspected the man. Despite his gaunt appearance, he appeared otherwise healthy. She found no injuries or lesions on him, though she didn't strip him fully. His clothing was dry enough that it wasn't necessary. She noted he had three belt pouches and a hunting knife, but she saw no signs of other equipment.

His clothing was ragged but warm, yet definitely not enough to be traveling with in winter. With no gear otherwise, he was as good as dead.

"What's it like?" Camilla's question made Ellen jerk upright, and she looked up to see the younger woman was back with a bowl of broth. Ellen reached up to grasp it, leaning over with one hand propping up the man's head to see if he could swallow the broth. His skin already had some color to it. Was that normal? This recovery?

"What is what like?" Ellen asked, even though she was sure she knew the answer. Camilla gestured.

"You know. Having um… other yous?" Ellen was mildly surprised at how quickly the villagers had accepted the news. The number who knew was still small, but none of them had panicked despite the strangeness. Maybe they just didn't know the limits of what should be possible. Ellen didn't know, but she was glad for their acceptance.

"None of them live in town, so I try to just think of them as sisters," she answered.

"I'm trying to just live a normal life so… at least one of us can. The others will be the ones to figure out why it happens, and I'm okay with that. I don't need any more heroics in my life." He could swallow, and as he drained the bowl, Ellen sighed. It really was a pity. He did seem… ruggedly handsome, in a primal manner. She'd never been the sort to go for the rebels and bad boys, but she could see the appeal with this one. NOTICE Your Steady Mind Perk has activated.

Ellen shook the intrusive thoughts from her head as she realized they weren't really hers. This was a problem. She needed to keep him away from Camilla, because if she was feeling this way despite the man's ragged look—not to mention he was probably twice her age—she doubted Camilla could shrug it off. She was a little surprised a mere Tier 2 Perk could be so effective. Steady Mind (Townsaver) Prerequisite: Willpower 9+, Townsaver Class Effect: Negates mental influence caused by magical effects, direct or indirect.

This provides no protection against mental attacks, only attempts to adjust the user's thoughts and feelings. This does not protect against mundane influences such as drugs or pheromones, unless they originate from a magical source. Gaining resistance she could understand, but negation was a powerful word here. She'd have expected that Perk to have steeper requirements, like a Tier 3 or even Tier 4 Class.

She didn't even understand some of what it was talking about, but even without fully grasping the description she'd known this was an incredibly potent Perk.

"Camilla, take this back," she requested quietly, holding out the empty bowl. Camilla grabbed it and hurried to her feet, startled from her own stare at the stranger. Ellen didn't know what was going on, but that mental effect still worried her. Should she even tend to him? Her inner thoughts came to an abrupt halt when the man's eyes snapped open. She didn't have time to think. One moment she was cradling his head, the next moment he'd grabbed her by one arm and the side and shoved her to the ground.

His eyes and head darted about uncomprehending, his assault a wild and panicked reaction. His strength was enough that her arm was hurting just from the grasp, and Ellen cried out as her head cracked against the floor loudly, causing her vision to burst into stars. In desperation, Ellen jabbed her unrestrained hand up, trying to shove her assailant away. She couldn't see, but she felt skin, and bristly rough hair. Beard? She pushed. Pain exploded in her hand. She heard Camilla scream.

The weight on Ellen's body suddenly let up, and though her vision was still blurred and doubled, she could make out the stranger standing over her. She couldn't read his features, but she heard his breathing, his panting loud in her ears as he tried to calm himself. Through the ringing in her ears, she heard his voice.

"I'm sorry." Blinking away tears, Ellen heard his footsteps—fast and running—recede toward the front door, with a cold blast of winter air washing over him. She wasn't sure what happened, but later she managed to piece together that he'd fled. Without his cloak, this time. Notifications flashed through her vision, including a Level Up. Before she could even think about it, another one, much higher priority, flashed before her eyes. Persona Death Detected Clearing memory cluster.

Transferring Experience: 320, 000 XP banked. Activating Failsafe. NOTICE Your Steady Mind Perk has activated. She closed her eyes. Her vision was blurry and indistinct, but as always the System messages were clear and crisp, even with her eyes closed.

"Nnnh… Camilla are you… okay?" What had just happened? Whose persona had died? NOTICE Failsafe activated prematurely. Mana surge may have unexpected side effects. Activating emergency sink. She never heard Camilla's answer, as Ellen sank into the bliss of unconsciousness.