Chapter 113: A Clash of Powers
Ciri noticed that all the witchers were sitting dispersedly but were vaguely focused on an old witcher with white hair and beard. It was difficult for Ciri to evaluate the appearance of the old witcher. This strong contrast between a dull appearance but a high-spirited temperament was something Ciri had only seen in Mousesack.
At this moment, the old witcher stood up and walked towards the people who had just arrived in Kaer Morhen. He opened his arms and hugged Geralt hard, and then smiled at Ciri.
He had a scar exactly like Geralt's, running through his left eye, but his smile seemed friendly to Ciri.
"Hello, my name is Vesemir. Are you Ciri, Geralt's unexpected child?"
"I didn't expect him to actually bring you back. There must be a lot of stories in the process."
"Geralt, why are you still standing there? Don't you see that the child and the lady are exhausted? Do you still want me to serve you soup like a father takes care of his children?"
Geralt, who had always been expressionless outside, curled his lips in an exaggerated way.
Before leaving to prepare the tableware, he pointed to two of the witchers present and gave Ciri a brief introduction.
"He's Lambert, a bastard."
Lambert responded unceremoniously: "I'm also happy to see you back alive again, White Wolf. I'm even more happy to see you finally decided to be a father and had two daughters in one go."
Geralt ignored him completely and introduced another witcher. "This is Eskel, you might like him in the future."
Eskel didn't say anything, he simply nodded towards them.
Ciri looked at the fourth witcher at the table, the only witcher with no scars on his face.
Geralt didn't seem to recognize him, and the temperament of this witcher was incompatible with the other witchers present.
His medium-length hair was tied in a bun behind his head, well combed, and he was dressed very neatly. Although not as elegant as the city folk, he was much more orderly than the other witchers in the room, reminding Ciri of her former palace guards.
Ciri also noticed that he was the only one who actually sat in the chair and used the table to eat.
Noticing Ciri's gaze, the witcher stood up and bowed slightly.
"I didn't expect to be able to witness this kind of thing as a guest in Kaer Morhen for the first time. It's such an honor." He smiled and said: "Hello ladies, I am Coën from Poviss."
The witcher medallion hanging around his neck was also different from the others, but Ciri recognized it. It was a griffin.
...
Tissaia de Vries member of the Chapter of the Gift and the Art and a sorceress who is now on top of the world, next to her was Philippa Eilhart.
In addition to these two ladies, there were three sorcerers present in the room.
They were in a secret location in the Northern Kingdoms, where the top leaders of the mages gathered to hold meetings.
Vilgefortz is the initiator of this meeting. Since leading the mages to win the Battle of Sodden Hill, he has gained great prestige among the mages of the Northern Kingdoms. Everyone was willing to hear his opinion about the war against Nilfgaard.
"First of all, thank you very much for coming." Vilgefortz said modestly. "I also regret that although all ten members of the Brotherhood of Sorcerers were invited, we have only received half of them here."
"We have lost a lot of friends during this time." Vilgefortz said sadly.
"Hen Gedymdeith has a physical problem and Francesca has other things to deal with." A man said. "Do not speak as if everyone had sacrificed their lives at Sodden Hill. Surely, they would not be happy with your words."
"Okay, okay." Vilgefortz reluctantly accepted the correction. "Thank you for the reminder, Artaud."
"Let's get straight to the point, Vilgefortz." The last mage in the room said: "I used the portal three times from Temeria to get here. I didn't do it just to listen to those endless chatter."
The sorcerer who spoke this time is called Fercart.
"Okay, okay." Vilgefortz said. "We have many topics to discuss today, and I am sure that you are all prepared. But before that, allow me to show you my hospitality. After all, we have all come a long way and now there are conflicts everywhere."
Vilgefortz smiled gently, turned his head and asked in a low voice: "Lydia, could you help me? I want to use the best ingredients and Cidaris vintage red wine to entertain my guests."
Lydia van Bredevoort, Vilgefortz's assistant and personal secretary, emerged like a ghost from behind the curtains, a smile in her eyes as she observed the mages present.
They all knew this assistant and returned her greetings.
Lydia made a gesture and two maids hurried to act, preparing the table with assorted tableware.
Finally, Lydia gracefully conjured a flame with her thumb and forefinger and lit the candle on the candlestick. Tissaia saw traces of oil paint remaining on her hands. She kept this in mind and prepared to wait until after dinner before asking the young sorceress to see her latest work. She knew that Lydia was a talented painter.
The dinner was carried out in silence. The burly Artaud was unceremonious and, before the host could say anything, he shamelessly took the bottle of red wine, at the same time as he took the food.
Tissaia ate slowly, and most of her energy was focused on arranging dishes, cutlery, and napkins symmetrically. In her opinion, the placement of those things was still not neat enough, which detracted from her sense of order and aesthetics.
Philippa drinks very restrainedly, and Vilgefortz eats and drinks even more restrainedly. As for Lydia, she didn't even touch the food or wine.
The flames of the candles swayed in the wind, while the rain beat rhythmically on the window panes.
"The weather has been getting worse and worse recently." Philippa suddenly said. "With winds and heavy rain without warning. If it weren't for that, the defeat of Cintra with the support of Skellige would not have taken us by surprise."
Vilgefortz nodded and said regretfully: "If we look at it that way, that storm was really a turning point for the Northern Kingdoms. So much so that the current situation is so unfavorable to us."
"Okay, Vilgefortz." Finally Artaud said, seeming to have satisfied his hunger and beginning to speak, while his fork searched meticulously for the meat on his plate. "What do you think of the behavior of the kings? We want to know your point of view. Tissaia and I are interested in this. We want all members to be united on this matter."
Vilgefortz nodded and said: "Since I am the organizer, I should start the conversation first. I guess you've all heard about the upcoming public negotiations that the northern kingdoms are planning, right?"
All the mages naturally know this.
Philippa said jokingly: "The kings have decided to start talks and will not let us participate or help. They would rather spend months on the road than use our portal."
Vilgefortz nodded and said: "Yes, this is not good news. The kings began to think independently. They began to make plans on their own without the advice of their advisors."
"In a short period of time, they have gone from tacticians to strategists."
"I remember at the Battle of Sodden Hill, they were just focused on the battle, not even worrying about making sure their troops didn't scatter or head in the wrong direction."
He said regretfully: "No king has ever asked for our permission and will never ask again. The kings don't trust us anymore."
Fercart frowned and said: "Obviously we were the first to see the threat of Nilfgaard, and we also sent a large number of mages to fight against Nilfgaard. Thirteen of us died!"
"If it weren't for us, Nilfgaard would have already invaded the Northern Kingdoms."
"We have no choice, Fercart." Philippa said coldly. "Precisely because we played such an important role, the kings were scared."
"And now that we have lost so many members, the kings are recovering the rights that belong to us."
"Very good." Vilgefortz nodded. "Thank you Philippa for your summary. This is exactly the issue I wanted to point out. So today we have to come up with a way to reverse this situation. Let me be direct..."
He looked around, taking in the reactions of the mages, and said slowly: "The Brotherhood is worried about how to deal with the kings' plans? This is unnecessary. Just ignore their plans."
"I'm sorry, what did you say?" Artaud's left hand holding the wine glass and his right hand holding the bottle stopped in mid-air. "Did I hear you correctly? You want us to do nothing? Just let it go..."
"That's right." Vilgefortz interrupted. "No king has asked for our permission and will never ask for it again. I repeat, we should pretend to know nothing. It's the only reasonable way to proceed."
"Are you saying that..." Artaud began, frowning. "Are we going to align ourselves with them and keep up with them?"
"Yes, Artaud." Vilgefortz responded with a sharp look. "You have to keep up with them, otherwise you will be eliminated. Because of the difference in status, you can't go and tell them what to do."
"You must remember that. If you think there is another way to solve this, you are wrong."
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