88. Darkness is watching you.
After finishing the twelve boxes from the Drowner King, Allen didn't rush to open the boxes from the Cyclops. The information in the purple box's animation was a bit overwhelming. Allen had a feeling that this purple-quality ritual might not be as important as the animation itself. Closing his eyes to recall what he had just seen, countless questions arose in his mind.
Firstly,
Where is the ruined city?
Is it in the Drowner King's world, the Witcher's world, or neither?
Why did it become a ruin?
Secondly, There were only old people, women, and children around the ritual. Even the one performing the ritual was an old man.
Where did the adult males go?
Lastly, Although the ritual information hadn't been revealed yet, it was clear from the images that the "Flesh Giant" ritual had a strong offensive nature.
So, who were those people's enemies?
Were they monsters like the Drowner King?
Many questions emerged, but none could be answered. It felt incredibly frustrating. This animation was clearly different from the previous ones, even the gold box animation. In just a few seconds, not only was the visual style distinct, but the emotions and storytelling were also very strong. It felt as if it had truly happened.
"Is the Witcher's Codex trying to reveal some information to me?"
Allen murmured, focusing on the ancient pages in his mind. For a while, nothing changed. He sighed regretfully, but felt a slight sense of relief.
"The information is still too little, mere fragments are hard to understand."
Deciding to put it aside for now, Allen turned to the items page in the Witcher's Codex and clicked on "Ritual: Flesh Giant."
[Name: Flesh Giant]
[Type: Magical Ritual]
[Requirement: Ritual Studies LV2 (Not Met)]
[Elements: Unlock after meeting requirements]
[Function: Sacrifice flesh, gain great power]
[Note: To whom are you sacrificing?]
"Huh?"
"Why do I have to study something again?"
Allen sighed like a high schooler assigned homework before a holiday.Ritual Studies sounded like it was on par with Alchemy in terms of magical knowledge. It probably required a lot of experience points. But that wasn't the main issue.
Allen currently had plenty of experience points, and the sorceress was also in Kaer Morhen. The main issue was that getting Ritual Studies to level 2, along with the level 4 Alchemy needed for the Drowner's heart essence, would push his character level close to 25.
"If I learn all that, the rewards for hunting low-level monsters like drowners will decrease again."
Considering this, Allen was a bit reluctant to learn. But the ritual's effects in the animation seemed very suitable for him.
Although he didn't know how powerful the "great power" on his stats would be, the form of the flesh giant, twice the height of a human, at least allowed him to engage in close combat with large monsters like the Cyclops. This form was very suitable for accumulating kill progress with the [Witcher] skill. It was practically tailor-made for him.
Additionally, facing human enemies, a large form had overwhelming advantages. The downfall of the Wolf School might be imminent, and Allen's opponents would not just be monsters.
"I'll wait and see."
After much deliberation, Allen decided to hold off and first open the Cyclops' boxes. Closing his eyes, he prayed once more for the spirits of the fallen apprentices. Although he didn't get a gold box last time, the information he gained, combined with the ritual's compatibility, was certainly worth more than a gold box.
Allen even wondered why, given the intensity of the scenes, it was only of purple quality.
"Maybe the cost is high, or it requires time to prepare?"
Guessing, Allen clicked on the Cyclops' box.
[Ding! Cyclops' Box 12 Opening]
The cold mechanical voice sounded, and six white lights appeared.
[Large Chunk of Rotten Flesh 1]
[Large Chunk of Rotten Flesh 1]
---------
Replacing the rotten flesh with large chunks just to fill the boxes of large monsters?
Allen was shaking with anger. These rotten flesh chunks, no matter how big, could only be used to feed Big Stone, Broken Stone, and Little Stone. What was the use?
But the boxes wouldn't change their contents due to his anger, nor would they increase the drop rate of high-quality items. In no time, another five white lights flashed.
Allen cursed under his breath, focusing all his attention on the last box. Breathing heavily, heart pounding, eyes wide open and bloodshot. Just before the box opened, he had a flash of inspiration, a feeling that the last one would definitely be gold.
Sure enough. As the box opened, dazzling gold light flashed, exceptionally bright and dazzling.
"Ah~"
"So satisfying!"
Allen hummed in pleasure, letting gravity pull him back onto the bed. As the golden light faded, familiar darkness descended. This time, he held his breath, staring intently into the darkness, afraid of missing any important information.
Two seconds passed, still silent darkness.
"What's going on?"
"Gold-quality animations include sound elements, how can there be no sound at all?"
Another ten seconds passed.
If Allen hadn't known that the Witcher's Codex didn't have a black screen issue, and that opening a box wouldn't cause problems, he might have thought to exit the ancient book and reopen it.
"What could be so dark?"
"The Cyclops is an earth elemental monster, not a dark elemental one, and the Witcher's world doesn't seem to have dark..."
Allen couldn't help but mutter softly. The silent darkness was terrifying, even if it was just an animation, it made him feel very unsafe. At this moment, a faint breeze suddenly brushed past Allen's earlobe, interrupting his meaningless monologue.
He shivered instinctively, turning his head to look.
Two large blue cat eyes, hanging in the air, quietly watched him in the dark. It felt like they had been watching for a long time. The dim blue light sank into the round pupils. Clearly blue, yet reflecting unknown light, Allen felt like he was looking into the darkness itself.
Seeing him turn his head, the cat eyes blinked. The blue light flowed down like tears, forming a dark blue potion lying on a piece of parchment.
[Ding! Acquired: Large Chunk of Rotten Flesh 11, "Cat Eye" Potion Recipe]
"If I hadn't noticed those cat eyes, would I have been trapped in the animation forever?"
Allen couldn't help but wonder.
"Whoo~"
Exhaling to dispel the shock, he opened the item page to check the "Cat Eye" potion recipe information.
[Name: Cat Eye]
[Type: Potion Recipe]
[Alchemy Requirement: LV2]
[Recipe: Dwarven Spirit 1, Berbercane Fruit 4, Water Essence 2]
[Function: Allows vision in complete darkness, increases critical hit rate]
[Note: The darkness is watching you!]
"The darkness is watching you!" Allen instinctively read aloud. The blue cat eyes flashed in his mind, making him shiver.
Shaking his head to clear the image, Allen focused on the potion's function.
"Night vision is understandable."
"But this world isn't a game with numerical stats, how is an increased critical hit rate reflected in reality?" Allen scratched his head, puzzled.
"Forget it, I'll make one in the alchemy lab this afternoon and see for myself."
Thinking this, he glanced out the window, then stood up and headed outside.
"It's already late morning, time to go to the castle hall for a meal."
"I wonder when the Witcher Master's title will be awarded to me?"
.....
📢20 advanced chapters on p@treaon📢
For advance chapters: p@treon.com/Uchiha_Itachi007 (replace @ with a)
89. You're Quite Good!
90. The Fall of the Wolf School.
91. Stuck in a Deadlock.
92. Wolves, Griffins, Cats.
93. Cat-Eye Potion.