Chương 69: (B2.5)

5) Edmund Briar When Edmund had offered to let Ellen join the group way back when she was only Level 6, he had been honest about trying to help her get her Level up. As much as Miriam tended to scold him for it, his reason for asking her wasn't entirely because she was cute. He knew she was a bit young for him, so it hadn't been a serious consideration. Something about the way she had walked into the guild had made him think that she had potential, and they really had needed a fourth member of the party.

He had not expected her to get so competitive by the end of winter. She wasn't on the level of him or the others yet, and had quite a way to go before she would be. Yet she knew the dungeon so well that the gap in their skills was much less apparent than it might have been otherwise. She moved with stealth and efficiency that wasn't just potential, but actual demonstrated talent. It was also completely different from when they had brought her along last time.

He could see some of the similarities in how she moved, but there were so many differences as well. Not only was Ellen more confident, but she was also using a completely different style of fighting and exploration. It matched what she had said about her Class, but hearing her say it and seeing it in action were two different things. Edmund was pretty sure that the group as they were could at least explore a little of the second floor, but he also knew better than to try to argue with Ellen.

She didn't want to do it, and her sister or clone or whatever they were probably wouldn't appreciate it if he tried to pressure her. There was always tomorrow.

"We don't mind working with you," Ellen said suddenly as they exited the dungeon.

"You really should find a fourth member anyway. There's no single one of us that will want to split off and work exclusively with you. You helped us out though, so if you ever need a backup or to know something about the dungeon, just ask."

"Have you learned a lot about the dungeon?" Miriam asked curiously. An unlucky swipe from the floor boss had nicked her arm, and she was still nursing it at her side even after Vincent had healed it. It would be sore for a few hours, but fine by tomorrow. Ellen shrugged.

"More than most. One of us is even a Scholar -derivative that specialized in dungeons. We know more about this dungeon than most. You helped us out, we remember. Well, most of us." Edmund noticed she'd shifted to a plural speech again. She kept doing that, and it was a little weird, but she didn't seem to notice. The whole clones thing was more Miriam's field than his. The fact that each of them chose a different specialization was pretty odd to him.

If he had another Edmund, he'd just be two Swordsman -Class adventurers. Probably.

"Huh, where are your friends?" Edmund blinked as they stepped out to see the half-finished building near the entrance, but nobody working on it. He'd been looking forward to seeing the group of redheads at work, just for the novelty. Ellen—or Scout, Edmund reminded himself—shrugged lightly.

"The other group will be here soon. Merchant is probably going to Merriweather soon, as well. So there should only be one Ellen… Village Ellen. The rest of us should stay hidden while adventurers are exploring the dungeon. At least until we reveal there are many of us, but we don't know when that will be." Miriam scowled, but she stepped forward to clear her throat to get Scout's attention.

"You should know that a lot of people know that a redheaded girl named Ellen owns the dungeon," she warned.

"That could attract the wrong kind of attention. Some people will doubtless try to manipulate you… or I guess Merchant into gaining leverage, maybe even blackmail or something."

"We know," Scout sighed, waving a hand.

"Even before winter set in, a few arrived. Village Ellen tells us about suspicious people all the time. We didn't think keeping it a secret was a good idea… the dungeon is growing fast, it could have a dungeon break. Even the four of us Adventurer Ellens can't contain it forever." Miriam hesitated, then she frowned again.

"It is… also possible to learn that you're actually a Greylan, you know. It isn't easy, but some might already know. If this is some kind of experiment by your family, people will start to ask questions. Do you all have a safe place to stay?" The new information made Scout grimace.

"Yes, Merchant warned us that someone might learn our real name if they had the connections. We have our own place… why do you think we have a Mason Ellen? We have ways to keep from being surprised, but we will be careful. Our uncle should be stopping by soon, we can ask some advice from him." She paused briefly and smiled.

"Would you like to meet him? We can introduce you. He knows about our numbers." The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. Miriam's frown deepened, and Vincent cleared his throat.

"It would be an honor," the large healer murmured.

"But we don't need to." Edmund cut in.

"If we're still around when he shows up, sure, but we aren't going to wait around. Famous guy probably doesn't have much time for us, anyway. Thanks for the offer, though." Scout nodded, then tilted her head.

"We should go. Village Ellen is coming with the other group of adventurers, and this Ellen shouldn't be seen either. We hope this group is careful, we doubt they can get through all six floors."

"Wait, six-" Edmund started to call out, but Scout was already vanishing into the forest. He dare not yell after her, not when she was trying to keep her existence a secret. If what she said was true and others were on the way, it would be stupid to draw attention to her.

"Six floors?" Vincent had heard it as well, and even the quiet man was frowning now, rubbing his chin.

"The dungeon is only six months old, yes?"

"According to everything we know, yes," Miriam agreed.

"What's more curious is how she knows that. Have they managed to get to the bottom? She seems far too weak for that, and I doubt they have any hidden clone with more power. Maybe someone more powerful is behind the cloning. But…" Edmund groaned.

"This whole thing with multiple Greylan girls just seems like some kind of nightmare that we should run far away from. If I hadn't literally just gained a Level from the dungeon, I'd say we cut and run." Of course, Edmund had been very close to his next Level already, but the point was made. Miriam's frown was deep as she thought through it, but she didn't offer an opinion of her own.

"The girl is earnest," Vincent said.

"She is not… threatening anyone. I have trouble understanding her." Miriam nodded, letting out a deep breath.

"I don't know what is going on. What would even be the purpose of making so many clones of someone? Who could have that power? Are they just trying to find unusual Classes somehow?" Edmund rubbed at his chin, but before he could say anything, he heard a cheerful call of greeting from further down the mountain. The path they used up to the dungeon wasn't well formed, but it was visible to anyone with any sort of experience in the forest.

It wasn't hard to glance downward and see Village Ellen hiking up with the four adventurers that had been in the inn with them yesterday. He felt Vincent stiffen beside him, then relax slightly. The odd reaction made Edmund wary enough that his greeting back was light and casual.

"Bea… nice to see you outside of the inn, if a little strange," Edmund called, nodding his head. The redhead smiled and shrugged.

"I needed to show this group the way, and my sister is preparing to head to Merriweather. So I'll be handling your scheduling. We'll probably just swap with the Thorns in the morning and keep going like that until someone else shows up."

"Works for me," Edmund muttered. He nodded to the older adventurer leading the trio of new kids.

"You four be careful in there. A lot of poison to worry about." The older man in the lead grunted, nodding his thanks, then turned to their guide.

"You trust us to just drop off your cut?" Village Ellen just smiled.

"Oh, I think you know better than to try to cheat the dungeon owner. You seem like a sharp fellow." She winked, then waved again to Edmund and his friends.

"I'm going to get back to the inn. Don't push yourself too far!" Her cheerfulness left the old adventurer shaking his head.

"Trusting girl… but I'd bet there's something she ain't telling us. Never take that for granted, boys." Edmund chuckled. He had a feeling that was good advice, when dealing with these girls. Greylan's Legacy Another group entered, soon after it had regenerated its stock. The awareness of the young dungeon core turned its attention to the new explorers, briefly searching for any signs of which of the Greylans were with them this time. It had never had them divide up into groups and come more than once a day before.

It felt a mild tickle of surprise as it realized that each of the four newcomers were unknown. The Greylans were always the ones who came in, even if they sometimes brought others with them. This group looked weak, except for one. Unlikely to get far past the first floor. No reason for its personal attention then. The dungeon core turned away and returned to shifting about the sixth floor. None of the Greylans had even come close to the sixth floor, so it was ideal for experimentation and developing traps.

The first two floors were just there for something to slow down explorers. It did not want to be caught by surprise by another of those powerful adventurers that the Greylans had brought with them that time. An older relation… its vague memories of a human life told it that it was a father or uncle or something. It didn't care. A tiny drain informed the core that another mana crystal had formed, to be dropped into its stash. It ignored this as well.

The steadily-growing pile was there for a later project, and though the wonderful source of mana it had uncovered was useful for continuing production, it was nothing compared to killing a Greylan. The first two floors were boring. It knew this. That was fine. The next two were different but had been incomplete when the monstrous quasi-Greylan that had appeared had stormed through them. Now they were more ready, and all it needed was to put the mana crystals into position.

The intricate lacing it had created to carry the energy would do the rest, turning the fifth floor into a much more potent trap for any who came down that far. It wouldn't be instant death for most. Aside from the Greylans, who gave it a huge surge of power upon death, it was actually better for any inside to continue living. In the long term, that would provide it with more energy. Though it wondered, briefly, if it should even bother.

Even that monster of an adventurer going through every floor had only given a fraction of the experience and power that a single Greylan death had given the core. Did it really need to keep the others alive? It pondered the adventurers, watching them struggle with its giant stoat monster. As usual, it let the first floor run on automatic, the stupidity of the monsters usually leading to their defeat. Did it really need to care about non-Greylans though? The dangerous question was dismissed.

Why risk changing what worked?