Chương 65: (B2.1)

1) Edmund Briar Spring brought with it the twittering of birds, the bloom of flowers, and… mud. Lots and lots of mud. As someone who had been adventuring for years, Edmund was used to this, and he knew his companions were as well. None of them complained, despite the filth that collected on their boots as they trudged the rest of the way into the village. They'd been passing small homes for a couple hours, each one showing signs of waking up to the warmer weather.

It was times like these he almost— almost —wished they had horses. The group as a whole had the money, even without Miriam's family connections, but taking care of them was such a time sink that they'd agreed to never bother with it. At least, not unless they wanted to travel further afield… but now that the dungeon was nearby, why bother?

"I wonder if we're early enough to get a bed at the inn?" Miriam mused as the main road opened up into a larger plaza. This village wasn't large, so the open area wasn't particularly remarkable. Edmund wasn't sure what would happen once the foot traffic increased… and he knew that increase would happen very soon.

"I don't know, but maybe one of the locals does," Edmund replied. He raised a hand to wave to one of said locals, who was cleaning off the shutters of the nearby building. The man who turned around squinted as if recognizing Edmund. The memory must not have been bad, because the villager smiled and waved back.

"Y'all looking for Ellen? I think she's down at the inn today if you want to talk." Edmund laughed.

"You read my mind! Thanks for letting us know. Things started to pick up here yet?" A laugh in return told Edmund the answer even before the villager spoke.

"Starting to, yes. Even had a bit of trouble over the winter, but Bea sorts them right out! That girl's going to be a terror when Lauren and Tobias retire, let me tell you!" He gestured down the road.

"You've beaten the real rush, but aren't the first here." Edmund thanked the man before the three adventurers continued toward the inn.

"Looks like they've expanded it a little… probably a good idea. Fast work to get it done by spring," he muttered. Vincent frowned, the silent man slowing as he looked over the freshly-enlarged building. Whatever thoughts passed through his head were not enough to give him pause in continuing forward, to where Edmund and Miriam were scraping off their boots before entering.

"Edmund! Miriam! Vincent! Welcome back!" Bea was already there, looking if anything more lively than before. About a half-dozen patrons were already in the common room, and only two of them looked to be local. Ellen was off to one side scratching on a slate, while a small party of adventurers that Edmund sometimes saw in passing were at another table. Bea set their drinks down and hurried over to greet the new arrivals. SANCTUARY You have entered a designated [SANCTUARY].

Unfriendly or unknown creatures are barred entry. You have gained resistance to fear and panic. Stamina Regeneration, Mana Regeneration, and healing are all increased. Edmund took a step back in surprise at the message that popped up, then quickly glanced back to Vincent. The big man's frown barely flickered onto his face before he shrugged, and he forced a smile onto it to greet Bea. Edmund turned back just in time to meet the smiling waitress.

"Don't worry about the message," she said with a wink.

"I added you to the list because I know you're all right. It'll be our little secret, right? Have a seat and I'll tell my sister to stop by. I assume you want to schedule a time in the dungeon?"

"Right," Edmund muttered, caught off-guard for once.

"And uh, three ales. Thanks." He'd told himself he would try to act normal, but the flirtatiousness didn't come this time. Knowing that something was strange with these girls made their attractiveness feel like a trap, not something he should focus on. He knew Miriam would prefer he never focus on it anyway, but he couldn't help himself with that… usually.

"The mana here in the village is elevated even more than the last time we were here," Miriam muttered as the trio sat down.

"It was a little high for such an otherwise simple place last time, but it's only been a few months and it's… not dangerous, yet, but most places with this much mana would have more attention." If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. Edmund shrugged.

"Maybe it's the dungeon? Doesn't that… no, wait." He frowned back at Miriam.

"I thought dungeons were supposed to lower the ambient mana? Did I get that backwards? You're the spellcaster." The mage shook her head.

"No, you're correct, according to all I know dungeons lower the mana in the area. So either this one isn't doing that, or something else is raising it." Nodding his head, Edmund rubbed at the stubble that had grown in during the trip to the village.

"Yeah… but we knew this place wasn't normal." He kept his voice low, especially when he looked to Vincent, who appeared deep in thought.

"What about the two here? Can you tell which of the five they are? I'm guessing one's the merchant, right?" Vincent's response was not just quiet, but was slow and deliberate.

"I don't want to use my Ability too much and exhaust myself, especially when those adventurers may notice I'm staring." He folded his hands together.

"I cannot tell. Both have reached Tier 2 and chosen a Class that I do not know. I think the one at the table is the merchant, but I am unsure. The one waiting tables…" The large man's frown deepened, and he kept his voice even softer than usual, so quiet that Edmund strained to hear him even though the inn was not very loud at the moment.

"She is the most dangerous person in this room. Be very careful." Miriam met Edmund's look with a raised eyebrow, but they did not dare question Vincent's words. If he felt they needed to know more about what he had learned, he would tell them. No amount of cajoling would get anything more from him. A moment later, three mugs of the local ale—a bitter liquid with a faintly herbal aftertaste—slid onto the table. Bea smiled at all three and rapped her knuckles on the table.

"My sister says she can fit you in tomorrow morning before the other group," the vivacious redhead said.

"Lately it's been resetting about every three hours, so that should be plenty of time for the other group if you get there early. Dawn should be fine. That gives you several hours to go through it, get back out, and let it reset before noon. Talk to her for the details." Miriam smiled sweetly to the girl.

"Thank you, we will do just that." With a smile right back, Bea lifted a finger and waggled it.

"And stop forcing a smile! I remember you used to scowl all the time! It's fine, you're under my protection. I'm only the most dangerous in the room because you're in my Sanctuary, you know." Her smile lit up even more.

"But that does mean you really shouldn't whisper conversations, you know. Even if you think you're being quiet, you never know who could happen to overhear!" Edmund tensed, the mug halfway to his lips already. He hadn't taken a drink yet, and now he suddenly wondered if he should. His eyes flicked quickly over to the young woman that had so cheerfully revealed she had heard everything. We really are idiots, he grumbled to himself.

The hushed whisper shouldn't have been heard from across the room, but that strange effect was not one he'd seen before. For all he knew, she could hear everything that happened in the inn.

"Now," Bea continued.

"I can't help but notice that you only have three people, so I suppose you might need a fourth? Since you seem to already know I have more than one sister, make sure you request with Trisha which sort of fourth you want. She'll get you set up with the best one. I only ask that you please keep that a secret. Our parents would be terribly upset if they learned how many of us there really were." Slowly, Edmund lowered his mug to the table, but Bea wasn't finished chatting.

"Now Vincent, wasn't it? You stop staring around like that," she admonished as if giving out today's meal and the price of a bed.

"We had someone doing that over the winter, and they turned out to be from the Theocracy! You're lucky my sisters have vouched for you, or I'd be getting a little worried. The villagers may not think the same way, though! You should be careful, everyone's on edge with the dungeon." At last, Bea clapped her hands together and put her smile back on.

"It really is nice to see you three again. Just behave and enjoy yourselves! You have a bit of a special status in getting into the dungeon, don't throw it away now!" She whirled about and wandered over to the other adventurers to check on them, without lingering on what she'd said to the trio. Edmund looked at his two companions with a frown of mild discomfort.

"Well. I think we can safely say we were outmaneuvered there. So much for keeping quiet about knowing there were others." Miriam's scowl had returned, but it was more thoughtful than usual, her finger tracing her lip.

"I wonder if they'd let us talk to them about the situation? From the sound of it, their parents don't know how many of them there are. Doesn't that strike you as odd?" Edmund nodded, before looking over toward Vincent.

"What do you think, Vince?" The healer didn't look up from where he sat staring into his mug, thinking in that slow and methodical way he did. He swirled the ale, took a sip, then set the mug down with a firm thump to the table.

"I think," he said slowly, "that they do not wish us harm, and we should avoid prying until we know more. We do not know much about the situation, who else knows, or why they want to keep it a secret. We do know that they control the access to the dungeon, and are willing to help us with that. Sometimes it is best to simply accept good fortune, and not dig too deeply unless a reason is found." Edmund sighed, "I'm not sure how you ever became an adventurer with such an attitude, but in this case I think I agree.

This is way above what we usually handle. I'm so close to the next Tier, I think we should push through until we all get to Tier 3 and then figure out what we want to do." Miriam drummed her fingers on the side of her mug, then looked up.

"We shouldn't discuss anything private here anyway. I'm not sure if she was being nice or amateur in warning us that she can hear us, but I do agree we can't do much now. We should have expected they'd be prepared for trouble, though. I wonder just how long this place will be safe from the politics of the kingdom." Looking around at the expanded but still quaint inn, Edmund frowned to himself.

"You have a point. These people are nice enough, but if they've already found someone from the Theocracy sniffing around, I doubt they're helpless."

"Yes," the mage replied, taking a drink of her ale. Then she sighed heavily.

"But this is the finding of a generation. People are behaving for now, but it won't be long before the temptation is too much." She closed her eyes.

"I just wonder how much of the mess we'll end up seeing."