Bren cut him off. “We do just fine. It’s not like there’s bills to pay, like city dwellers and their taxes. Honey owns the land outright.”
“There is the small matter of wages and supplies!”
“For which wedo just fine.Look,” he said. “You’ve come here with all these ideas of what you think we want—and need. Did it not occur to you that we were all happy before you arrived? And yes, while most still are happy—and perhaps one happier than I have seen her in a long while—you threaten to undo that. You are…changing our lives, scholar.”
He hated himself for it, but while the magnitude of what Bren said settled in, Ainsworth could not help but focus on one point in particular. Was he suggesting that Honey was…happier with Ainsworth present?
He did not let himself dwell on the thought but instead folded his arms to match Bren’s stance. “Well…change isn’t always a bad thing, you know. I dragged my feet coming here, but— But I am glad that my life was uprooted for this project. For the pleasure of meeting you all and becoming acquainted with this place and Honey.”
Bren stared at him for a long while, and Ainsworth wondered ifhe had gone too far. Instead, the dwarf gave a coy smile and slapped Ainsworth on the lower back so hard it sent him stumbling forward. “Well then, I suppose that’s something good to have come out this, whatever awaits us next.”
Before Ainsworth could ask what he meant, Bren shook his head and laughed as he walked back toward the Misnich Inn.
Chapter 19
When the sixth adventuring partyin a week turned their back on Mount Vengeance, Ainsworth was truly at the end of his tether. “I did tell you this would happen, all those weeks ago…” Honey muttered by the door as she waved the jovial party goodbye.
Ainsworth rubbed his temples, hoping to ward off an incipient headache. “You did indeed. But I truly thought it would be a numbers game.”
While the Transportation Circle was not yet in operation—there was still no word regarding Ainsworth’s application—more adventurers had gotten wind of the Misnich Inn and Mount Vengeance thanks to Ainsworth’s marketing campaign. The bravest, heartiest adventurers had finally arrived!
And they all, as usual, turned away from the mountain the next day, no matter how much Ainsworth begged and pleaded with them to follow through on their quest.
That afternoon, the staff and Ainsworth had a rare lunch table to themselves in front of the hearth. The whole staff converged, even Alvea after she had finished up in the kitchen, to catch up on the events of the previous days. It had been a while since they all had time to eat together; for the first time in weeks, there were no other guests or budding adventurers at the inn. “Better eat quickly beforenew ones arrive,” grumbled Bren as he shoveled bread and cheese into his mouth.
“It is nice to finally take a breather,” Ruraidh said, his posture seeming to seep relief. Ainsworth winced. He had probably caused more work for Ruraidh, Alvea, and Quiddle than the rest combined. At least he had created a little less work for Ashe; the adventurers who visited tended to assist with any beastly incidents, and several had even tried to recruit her to their group.
“On our next supply run, we can really splash out on the goods, though.” Honey winked at Ruraidh. “Scented candles, new bedspreads…”
“Oh!” Spin exclaimed. “A new watering can?”
Honey laughed. “Of course! As many as you need.”
“I’d like some new trousers,” Ashe mused after a sip of ale.
“You’re quiet, Gladsly.” Alvea nudged his arm with her elbow, almost causing him to spill his tea. “Contemplating your next book chapter?”
“Ah, no, actually,” he said. “I’m thinking about this place. And what causes people to turn away from the mountain.”
Ashe frowned. “You’re not accusing us of anything again, are you?”
“No! Never!” Ainsworth exclaimed. “But I think…I thinksomethingis up. Whether it’s the land itself, or perhaps…the dragon?” He had been reflecting on the matter all morning, and it could no longer be called coincidence thatevery single adventurerhad turned away from the mountain, no matter what they all insisted.
A heavy silence followed his words. Bren cleared his throat. “Aye? And what makes you think that?”
“It just…well, it cannot be a coincidence!” Ainsworth said. “Traveling so far, coming so tantalizingly close to glory and to achieving your goals, and then just…giving up?” He rose to his feet and walked over to the table where he had been working previously.
“Your point?” Honey asked.
“My point is thatsomethinghas happened. Perhaps a previous adventurer set up a warding spell, or maybe the dragon has done so. To keep people away.”
“If there was such a spell, wouldn’t we be affected, too? And sent away? You recall that we set out to the mountain often, Ainsworth,” said Honey.
“Well, yes. That’s why this puzzles me so greatly!” Ainsworth sighed, flipping through one of the old guest books. He was sick of remaining stagnant when it came to the adventurers. He had to do something. “I believe I can at least determine if some sort of magic is at work in the vicinity.”
“Really?” asked Quiddle.
Ainsworth nodded. “You see, as part of my education, I was trained to recognize signs of sorcery. Oh, sometimes it’s obvious things anyone can see—wards, runes in strange places, gemstones where there shouldn’t be. But other times it is more…subtle. The slight change in soil acidity, the wavering of the light, the crackle of the air. I have already searched almost every inch of this inn—except for your rooms of course!—to determine if any such spell has been placed within this building, but my findings suggest that none has. And thus, I have taught myself a detect-magical-interference spell!” Ainsworth was unable to hide the pride in his voice. This was thanks to a small Skarrow spell book he had brought with him, to help with the spells he could manage and to perhaps learn a few more. There were other helpful spells in there, too, like how to warm water and how to identify which items held magical properties. His dreadful affinity for magic meant that such spells were more bother than they were worth, but after studying the detect-magical-interference spell for a week, he could just about do it—and it would very much be worth it for his research.
