Chương 66: (B2.2)

2) Village Ellen Ellen didn't hear everything that went on in her inn, but the Briar Thorns didn't need to know that. She could hear them well enough if she was on the same floor and there wasn't a huge crowd, so for now she could pretend she could listen in whenever. She wondered to herself if she should have tipped her hand so early and revealed she could hear them, but since they already knew there were multiple Ellens and hadn't made a fuss, it made sense to bring them into the secret sooner rather than later.

She hoped.

"We probably have two to three days before more people start showing up," the older man was saying. Although "older" was a little hard to justify, since he couldn't have been past forty. In comparison to the three youths that were barely older than Ellen, he was old though.

"I'm a little tired, I don't know if I can hop right into the dungeon tomorrow morning," one of the young men said. The sandy-haired youth was a little gangly, surprising Ellen. Even the mages she'd met, like Miriam, always seemed to have a certain level of fitness. Just how new were these kids? Ellen thought to herself. Aloud, she gave a warm smile to them.

"You don't need to worry. My sister is still handling the details, but I'm sure she's put you into the afternoon slot. Have a nice breakfast, maybe get some training in, and then head into the dungeon." The older man frowned at her, but Ellen knew what he was about to say and wagged her finger at him.

"Don't argue. I tried to be an adventurer once, I do know what I'm talking about. My sister kept on with it, but I didn't. You push them too hard, they'll stumble. Go too easy on them, they won't be prepared." Ellen was just making the advice up as she went along, of course. She felt bad for the exhausted kid, that's all. The older man's scowl told her he wasn't buying it, so she kept her smile on and did a small pivot.

"But you should learn from this!" She turned to the scrawny guy who had complained.

"You need to build up your Endurance, it sounds like. Adventuring involves a lot of walking, you know. And bad weather! Don't neglect that!" She gathered the empty plates and hurried back toward the kitchen, humming to herself. She couldn't pay attention to everything at once, even if she could hear everything being said, but she wasn't too worried about the Briar Thorns. She overheard the discussion resume at the table with the new adventurers and their mentor very clearly.

"See? You're so green even the tavern wench is lecturing ya!" The older man slapped his hand on the table.

"Derek, listen to what she says. You're going to need to build up your Endurance. And let that be another lesson, boys. Never take even the simplest villager for granted. You never know what someone's past might be!"

"I mean, she literally looks just like the other one who handles the appointments," another mumbled.

"It wasn't that hard to figure out she wasn't just a serving girl."

"Quiet." Ellen suppressed a giggle. She really should have picked up Gambler's Face or something… maybe next time. It wasn't offered every Perk selection for her, but maybe an Acting Skill Enhancer would help? She knew she would get two Perk picks before the next Skill Enhancer, so Gambler's Face was more likely. Level 14 was a long way away though, and she wasn't in a hurry for another huge event to give her a massive amount of experience. Anything that would do that she was unlikely to survive.

She'd only beaten the werewolf through a combination of luck and surprise. Next time, she might die… and unlike her sister-selves, Ellen was none too sure what would happen if she duplicated as a lycanthrope. Ellen shook her head. When had she started to think of the duplication as the norm?

"Are you all right there, Ellen?" She jerked her head up to see Tobias, the owner of the Treetop Inn, staring at her in concern. The older man glanced down at her hands where she clutched one of the plates so tightly, her knuckles were turning white. With an effort of will, Ellen set the dirty plate down with the rest and took a long, calming breath.

"I'm fine, Tobias. Thank you," she answered.

"I was just thinking of… how things turned out. I'm really sorry we ended up bringing our complicated life to your village. It's just going to get messier now, too." The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. The older man chuckled and gave her a light clap on the shoulder.

"Okay. You don't need to worry about that. You might think of us as a sleepy little village, but you know none of us here ever thought life was boring, right?" Ellen knit her brow in confusion.

"I… don't know what you mean. Look at how things are so… chaotic." Tobias sighed and ran a hand through his thinning hair.

"You're acting like you're the cause of the dungeon. Maybe you are, but what if you aren't? We'd have never known about it, until a dungeon break. What then?" He gestured to the common room.

"Or that man who attacked you and Camilla. Did you think he was here because of you? If you hadn't been here, what would have happened? What about Lars, the boy your uh… Hunter saved from the boar?"

"Hm…" Ellen replied in a quiet tone.

"Those… I mean, maybe it would have been okay…?" The innkeeper just grinned back at her.

"Maybe. We don't know, do we? I'm getting to be an old man… let me worry about what might have been. You're here, and your strange condition. The dungeon's here. Now, all these people are here. That's life. You can't predict it, and you can't go back and change it. That's the way we take things out here, where we don't have the Guard to take care of things. We're the ones who put the reward out about that goblin, and it got you here." Ellen chuckled nervously.

"I guess that's true. I did think it kind of strange you all accepted what was going on so easily."

"I wouldn't call it easy," Tobias admitted.

"But I think we all know you girls have your heart in the right place. Hearts. Still confusing like that…" She laughed lightly, then gave him a smile.

"Thanks, Tobias. I wasn't really moping, but I do feel a lot better. I just have a lot on my mind! It's a big day tomorrow, you know? First dungeon runs by strangers." The man's face turned sour.

"Yeah, I have a feeling things are going to get messy. You've seen some of the people who pass through here get rowdy. What about entitled nobles or famous people? Uh… no offense." Ellen waved the apology away.

"It's fine, we weren't relying on our…" She held up a finger and tilted her head.

"Never mind. I thought I heard something but it wasn't important." Ellen let out a sigh. The older adventurer was really grilling the three new ones hard, but their information about the dungeon was… wrong. That much distortion could only mean someone was spreading false information. I just want to help with the inn, she mentally grumbled.

"I hope I helped," Tobias smiled.

"Don't ever feel like you've brought something down on this village. We've been through plenty, and we aren't going anywhere."

"Thanks, Tobias," Ellen said with a sincere smile.

"Now I'd better get more ale for these folks or they'll burn down the whole place!" She went back to work with more of a spring in her step. Ellen had never thought of herself as a "normal" girl, but doing these simple tasks over the last half a year had really given her a contentment that she'd never experienced before. She wondered if the other Ellens would ever embrace a simple lifestyle… or even if hers qualified.

Not every "tavern wench" could maintain their sanity through lycanthropy, so perhaps she shouldn't be calling what she had a normal life anyway. By the time she had brought over the new ales, Ellen had an idea of how to handle this problem she'd found.

"Here you go!" She slid the four mugs over, collected the three empties, and then paused, flashing a smile to the three boys her age. None of them were her type, but she knew her hair and general figure made her fetching enough to command attention when she wanted it.

"By the way, make sure you ask my sister about the floor layout," she suggested.

"I've heard a few strange stories about the dungeon layout, and they can't all be true! My sister's actually been in there, she can tell you what you need to survive." Just to make sure the idea set in, she turned the smile to the older fellow who seemed to be their mentor.

"I've seen a few bad injuries, I don't think I want to know what would happen on bad information. This whole thing started because my sister ran into two goblins when there was only supposed to be one! I'm pretty sure the first chamber isn't cockroaches though."

"Thank you, young lady, I'll make sure to check," the mentor chuckled. She heard him turning around and berating the other three for making assumptions again as she left. Ellen returned to the back, slid the mugs over to be cleaned, and then sighed heavily. Tobias was there, and he gave her another worried look… which turned to a smirk when the back door eased open to let the visitor she'd sensed slip in.

"Hey um… Bea," Jack mumbled.

"Is Hunter going to be around?" Closing her eyes, Ellen took a deep breath to calm herself before she answered.

"Not tonight, it's far too late. She's probably out hunting. I know she's going to be a guide tomorrow, but you'll have to get here early."

"Oh uh… thanks. I was just curious," the youth mumbled before hurrying out the back door once more. His face was already turning red, and the gangly teen hid it poorly before managing to fumble his way back outside.

"Young love," Tobias chuckled.

"How does he end up with a crush on her and not you?" Ellen shrugged.

"I'm pretty sure Jack had a thing for me before Hunter anyway. It's fine." She made a vague wave in the air with one hand.

"He's not my type, and I'm not looking for a boyfriend right now. I do kind of feel sorry for him, though." Tobias raised an eyebrow.

"Huh. You do? I admit I've been a little curious how you'd all handle your love life."

"None of us are interested right now," Ellen replied with a shrug.

"But Hunter is even less interested. I think he has a thing for her because he wants to be a good Hunter and… well, Hunter does have this aura of confidence. I think she's in love with solitude though. Somehow I'm the closest one to her... except maybe Smith I guess." The innkeeper gave her a brief and curious look, then shook his head.

"Well, I'm sure you'll put that to the test with all the young adventurers looking to jump into the dungeon. Hope you're ready for a busy week." Ellen made a face.

"Don't remind me. I'm going to have to handle the appointments while Merchant runs to Merriweather. That won't be fun." Tobias smiled and chuckled. Making another dismissive wave, Ellen turned around to head back and check on the Briar Thorns.

"Maybe we'll at least keep the other Ellens alive if we keep them busy."