Chapter 150: New Home?

Chapter 150

New Home?

The party from the night before had carried on until almost dawn. They had eaten and drunk to their hearts’ content, to the point that many could hardly get up for work the next morning. But it was worth it, given that such a release only came once every 20-30 years. As a result, many households didn’t wake up early to fetch water or go up the mountain to set traps. Only a few managed to get up, and even then, they moved at a slow pace.

The sun was almost halfway up the sky when many villagers finally grabbed their hoes and spades and returned to work in their gardens and fields. Those without land to farm went up the mountain to hunt animals, while others went to gather vegetables, fish, or firewood. The bustle that was supposed to start in the morning instead started much later, with the sun almost directly overhead.

It was an unusual sight, but understandable...

Ellie was sitting in the yard with a cup of hot tea, its delicate aroma wafting around her. She had woken up early to tend to the plots in her secret dimension and spent a bit of time practicing her skills. Thinking that she should have some rest, so she came sitting on the veranda.

"Ellie, you’re up early," several people raised their hands to greet the young girl from afar. Ellie’s house was surrounded by a fence, preventing them from getting close. Ellie responded with a smile, but not much conversation took place.

As time passed, more and more people walked by. Initially, they greeted her casually and went on their way, not paying much attention. However, after the first glance, many couldn’t resist coming back for a second look.

It turned out that the old, dilapidated house had transformed overnight into a luxurious home, like something you’d find in the city!

Originally, Ellie’s house was a simple, single-story structure with wooden planks laid directly on the ground, much like other houses in the village. The walls were patched up with small pieces of wood, the windows were broken, and the door couldn’t close properly. Now, it was a sturdy wooden house, but not just that...it was also slightly elevated above the ground.

Ellie’s house now resembled a small 2-story inn. Building such a house by oneself was a difficult task. It could only be done by hiring skilled craftsmen from the city. High-quality wood was needed to ensure its strength and stability. Therefore, in their village, no one would spend money on making their home as grand as that of a noble or a merchant. The common belief was that...a house was just a place to sleep; having more money and land was far more important.

But now, in the village, there was Ellie’s house, looking just like a house in the city! Previously, they had only seen it as an abandoned house that was slightly better-than-decrepit shack.

Many people thought they were seeing things the first time. When they greeted Ellie, they saw her sitting on the second-floor porch, so high up that they had to crane their necks to look. This made them come back to take a second look, rubbing their eyes and washing their faces to clear their vision, until they finally realized that Ellie’s house had indeed changed.

It wasn’t just the house that had changed. The fence that they used to cross casually had become a wooden fence with posts so thick that it took 2 or 3 people to hug them. The posts were very tall, and if not for the small gaps between them, no one would be able to see inside. This construction mimicked the city dwellers’ style. While the city people liked building closed-off houses that no one could look into, Ellie’s fence was a mix of city and village styles.

This new fence around Ellie’s property made them feel like they had to walk a bit further. Previously, they had cut through the middle of Ellie’s yard, using paths created by animals. Since the house was often damaged by animals, they simply followed the gaps the animals made. But today, with a sturdy fence in place, they could only walk around it to get to the forest.

"What happened to that house? It wasn’t like this yesterday!"

"That’s right. I thought I was seeing things, but it’s really Ellie’s house."

"It’s impossible. That abandoned house suddenly gets fully repaired? No! It looks like a completely new house. And look at the house. I’ve sold stuff at the market and those finely crafted woods aren’t cheap."

"If it wasn’t for Ellie being there, I wouldn’t believe this was someone from our village."

"Brrr!! This is scary. I think we should inform the village chief about this strange occurrence."

The huntsmen who were about to enter the forest stopped to talk at its edge. They didn’t dare go into the forest after seeing this sight. Each of them thought it was unbelievable and too frightening.

"Hmm? What are you all stopping to look at?" A deep voice sounded from behind them as they talked.

Turning to look, they saw a middle-aged man, not particularly large in stature, but his hunting haul was impressive. He had a wild boar slung over his back and smaller animals like wild chickens and rabbits hanging from his belt.

"Oh, Jay-ar...you’ve had a good hunt today."

"You’re rich now. Lana will probably faint from happiness. You can sell the boar in the city and share the meat with the kids."

"A boar this big will fetch a lot of coins for sure."

"That’s amazing. Who would’ve thought you’d catch this much? Just yesterday, we thought you were on the brink of collapse. Haha." Everyone laughed and teased Jay-ar, but after the last person spoke, their eyes widened in realization.

"W-Wait a minute. Is this...is this the real Jay-ar?" Hearing this, Jay-ar laughed.

He understood what everyone was surprised about. Just like the last person said, yesterday...he felt like he was on the verge of death. But today, he woke up with immense strength, feeling like a young man again, capable of hunting a whole boar or a fast-running deer.

Because of that, he went hunting early in the morning. Who would have thought that within half a day, he would actually catch a big boar!! All of this...Jay-ar felt he had only one person to thank to...

"Haha, why ask such a thing? I am Jay-ar, who else would I be?" Even though Jay-ar said this, everyone still looked uneasy. They knew for sure that the man in front of them was indeed Jay-ar, the one who had almost died. But what they wanted to know wasn’t whether this was the real Jay-ar. What they wanted to know was...how did Jay-ar become like this!?

Even if Jay-ar’s family spent all their savings to get a doctor, it would still be impossible for Jay-ar to regain such strength. They could tell just by looking at his still somewhat frail arms, yet he could carry an entire wild boar!

"Wh-why, how did you..."

"We can talk about this later. I need to take this boar meat to Ellie first."

"You’re giving the whole boar to Ellie?" The huntsmen were astonished when they heard Jay-ar say he was giving the entire wild boar to the young girl.

How many coins was a whole wild boar worth? They could buy a lot of food by selling this meat. Or, if kept for the family, a single boar could provide meals for months. So why would Jay-ar’s poor household want to give this meat to Ellie?

"Think it over carefully. Giving the whole boar to Ellie, Lana might scold you. Even if Ellie could become an important figure in the village in the future, it doesn’t mean she will definitely succeed."

"Exactly. You didn’t come to listen to Ellie’s story last night, so you might not know. But Ellie...besides making low-level potions and farming, she might not be able to do much else. I heard that the entire institute only has 2 botanic magicians. Everyone else gave up and returned to their families, realizing that no matter how much they learned, it wouldn’t be of any use."

"Sell the meat and buy food for Lana instead. Otherwise, you won’t make it through the winter. You might be strong today, but who knows when your illness will return. Better to be prepared."

Everyone warned Jay-ar out of concern. Hearing this, his brows furrowed. He understood many of their points, but some of the comments displeased him.

"Heh, heh, if I didn’t give this boar to Ellie, that’s when Lana should scold me...No matter what, this meat must be given to Ellie because if it weren’t for her, I might have died last night."

"Also...who says that Ellie’s studies might be useless? Who says she can only make potions and farm? If that were all I could do, I’d also be satisfied. But this is just her first year of learning, and she’s already accomplished so much. If this doesn’t make her extraordinary, then what does?"

"I don’t know what was discussed last night because I wasn’t part of the conversation, and I believe Ellie wasn’t either. Heh, heh. It’s ridiculous. I couldn’t believe that after she wasn’t present, people would speak negatively about her."

"By the way, aren’t you curious about Ellie’s disappearance during that discussion...?" Jay-ar spoke clearly and firmly, his demeanor serious and tinged with displeasure. His stance surprised everyone slightly; they had never seen this side of him.

Even when he was kicked out of his old home with his children, Jay-ar didn’t stand up for himself or his family. He simply accepted his fate. Who would have thought that today he would stand up and defend a young girl so vehemently?

"What are you trying to say? What do you mean by Ellie’s disappearance? Does it have something to do with her new house?" The huntsmen didn’t understand and didn’t connect Jay-ar’s improved health with Ellie’s care. All they saw was the large, impressive house that belonged to Ellie.

Jay-ar shook his head, denying any connection to the newly transformed house that resembled the home of a wealthy person. But no matter what happened with Ellie, he was ready to believe it, having already experienced miracle firsthand.

"I don’t know anything about the new house either. When I woke up this morning, it was already like this. And from now on, please walk carefully. This fence is built inside Ellie’s property line. Ellie is planning to buy traps to place around the house as another barrier to keep animals away. The property boundary can be seen from the old fence line. If you’re not careful, you could die." He pointed out the surrounding, and it could be seen that Ellie had left nearly a 2-meter gap between the fences, where the traps would be placed in the future.

He had heard Ellie’s request from his wife and was determined to take care of the house properly. It wasn’t just about wild animals, but from now on...he wouldn’t allow anyone to disturb Ellie’s home again.

"Does she really need to go this far...?"

"Hmm? Is what Jay-ar said even possible? Planning to buy traps to place around the house? That would cost dozens of silver coins, wouldn’t it?"

"Exactly. How could Ellie have that much money? All of that just to keep animals from bothering her house?"

Everyone spoke in disbelief. It was strange, even though they saw with their own eyes that Ellie’s current house, if sold, would be worth more than 100 gold coins, but that was their ingrained common sense.

It wasn’t surprising that they saw it as not worth spending a fortune on something that wasn’t food...

"Heh, heh, why does everyone think that Ellie couldn’t come up with that kind of money?" Jay-ar smirked slightly, seizing the opportunity to speak about Ellie’s extraordinary abilities.

"As you’ve all heard, Ellie’s powers are limited to making potions and farming. But it just so happens that those low-level potions she can concoct sell for several silver coins each. So...just a few silver coins for traps? She can earn that with just one batch of potions."

"Let’s just say...what you heard at the party last night isn’t entirely wrong, but it seems like the person telling the story deliberately skipped over the real value of the potions. They mentioned they were low-level potions but didn’t say that these are actually “miraculous potions” that even hunters are willing to pay for."

"Fortunately, Ellie was kind enough to help me. That’s why the injuries that should have killed me within a few days healed completely. Today, I tried chasing down a wild boar without setting any traps, and my leg muscles feel as strong as they did when I was 20. It’s great to be strong again. From now on, I’ll reclaim my title as the “Silver Coin Hunter”!!"

Jay-ar spoke confidently, his eyes flashing with a hint of resentment. He used to be very skilled, an expert huntsman. If it weren’t for that unfortunate encounter with a wild bear that nearly killed him, he would have been one of the wealthiest people in the village.

Misfortune, however, also had some good sides. His injuries showed him the true nature of many people. Even his own parents and siblings, who he thought he could rely on, found excuses to kick him out of the house once he was injured. If it weren’t for his brother, Ellie’s father, buying him potion, he would have died. He never imagined he’d have to seek help from his brother’s daughter...

But he had sworn to himself that now that he was strong again...he would stop being a fool!