Hole

Chapter 160

Two silhouettes appeared on a path toward the mountain forest in northern Cintra. The shorter one was wearing black leather armor, and he had two swords strapped behind his back. The other one was taller. He had a long face, and he was gaunt. The taller man said, "Two months ago, Hadava and I went to gather some herbs in the cave, and we found the baby griffin there. It was a newborn, and its feathers were still wet. Its claws and beak were soft, and it wasn't even the size of our fists, though it was cawing at us.

"We didn't know it was a griffin, so we thought it was the spawn of a vulture and an eagle. We were going to take it home and raise it until it was big enough to perform, then we would make money off it." Galar sighed, and fear crept up on his face. "But the moment we took the griffin, something attacked us. It looked like a human, but its back was horribly hunched. Its skin was grey, and it smelled like a dead body, and it walked on all fours like a beast. It only had four fingers on each claw, and its nails were like black hooks.

"I couldn't even react to its attack. It came out of the shadows and pounced at Hadava. Took half of his face in one go, and the monster pinned Hadava down, tearing him apart. I was terrified. I couldn't even think straight, so I took the little one with me and…" He started to stammer, and he looked guilty.

"And you ran?" Roy asked.

"I left my friend to die and ran." Galar stared down, his face ashen. "I am a coward. A deserter."

Roy sighed, but he didn't blame Galar for running away. "Running away is normal, expected." Roy knew how terrifying a ghoul could be. It could induce nightmares for children and make cowards faint. "Most people would either stand dumbly or run away when they come face to face with a ghoul. Not many would fight it. Most would desert even their families when they come across a ghoul, let alone their friend. It's a survival instinct."

"No! This is my fault." Galar still blamed himself. "If I didn't run, if I had just hit that monster, maybe Hadava would have come out alive."

"Ghouls possess greater speed and strength than humans. Their claws and fangs are sharp enough to tear through human flesh and bones. If you hadn't run, you'd have ended up dead like your friend. But well, it would have been an honorable death." Roy looked ahead, and they were now on a slope filled with shrubs. "Too late for regrets now. Tell me about the request. You wish to kill the ghoul and avenge your friend, correct?"

"Yes. I want that bastard dead!" Galar gritted his teeth, and regret filled his eyes. "And I want to collect Galar's remains. He was a warrior. A mercenary who fought countless battles, but he took an arrow to the knee, and he had to retire early. He moved to Cintra from Novigrad and started working with me. I never thought he'd die from an ambush from a ghoul."

A retired mercenary killed by a monster in the wilds. Roy thought, That's probably the fate of most witchers, too.

"I am a despicable deserter, and I let him down. The least I can do is give him a proper burial. In Cintra, that's a sea burial." Galar looked Roy in the eye genuinely. "If you can avenge my friend, then you shall get that griffin as payment. If it is not enough, I can—"

"The reward is adequate. You don't have to put in any more money." Roy didn't want to push his luck. A baby griffin was priceless for him. "But you have to be prepared. If the ghoul is hungry enough, it won't be picky about its food. Bones are also on its menu. Your friend might have been devoured, bones and all."

Galar suddenly stopped, and he blanched. A long while later, he sighed. "One piece of bone is good enough for me. I want to bury him and repent."

"I understand." Being careful had become Roy's habit, so he asked solemnly, "Last question. Are you sure there's only one ghoul in the cave? Are the griffin's parents there? I can handle a lone ghoul, but if there's anything else in there, we'll both be finished."

"I remember it as if it happened yesterday. I don't think I can ever forget what I saw. I am sure the ghoul was the only thing that attacked us. It hid in the shadows and struck us out of nowhere." Galar had mixed feelings about the matter. He felt glad for coming out with his life, but he regretted his actions too. "I couldn't have escaped if there was another ghoul or an adult griffin in there, nor could I have taken the little one with me."

Roy nodded. Griffins were protective of their own children. They would never have left their child alone. The baby's parents must be dead. "A lone ghoul. It's a standard challenge." Roy looked up at the sky, and he felt assured.

Ghouls would gain more strength during twilight hours and the night, but the sun was shining brightly, and the ghoul would be weakened. On top of that, Roy had one Full Recovery in store. I can take this.

Half an hour later, they came to a clearing in the forest, and a dark cavern stood a hundred feet away from them.

***

Roy and Galar looked at the entrance from afar. A while later, Galar started feeling scared, for he recalled what happened that day, but he shook his head to dispel the fear. "What should I do next, Mr. Roy?"

"Your job is to hide outside. If you can climb that poplar tree, then all the better. Can you climb a tree?" After what happened with Huckle last time, Roy didn't want any amateurs to complicate his job.

Galar's face was red, and he wanted to say something, but Roy waved him down. "Have patience. You will have the chance to destroy the ghoul's body."

Roy bent down and tiptoed to the cave. He turned his witcher senses on, and he saw a row of colorful silk in the air. Most of them came from the wild beasts he was familiar with, but a few strands were unfamiliar. Their color and scent were the same, and Roy heaved a sigh of relief. Alright. Now I know I only have one ghoul to deal with, and it just came back from a hunt.

He checked his alchemy supplies in his inventory, and he took out a dose of necrophage oil to smear it on Aerondight, then he took out ten bolts made of special materials. Roy gulped down Swallow and Thunderbolt, and black veins popped up on his face. He made a sign before him, and a yellow light covered him a moment later. After he made his preparations, Roy snuck into the cave, sticking to the wall.

Roy wasn't in a hurry to find the ghoul. He looked around him to see what he could work with. There were stalactites on the top of the cavern, and underneath it were piles of rocks, spiderwebs, moss, and some mushrooms. The space was big, but it was still limited for a fight with a ghoul. He had to use every advantage he had.

Roy memorized the structure of the cave and simulated the battle in his mind. Two minutes later, he came to a stop at a corner and hid behind a stone structure. There was a clearing not far away, and the dim light from above shone on a humanoid creature walking on all fours. Its skin was greyish-white, just like a corpse, and it smelled like rotten flesh. Roy could see bulging muscles on its limbs and back, and its legs were bent to the back at the joints, just like how a dog's legs would. The creature had a black maw that stretched to its ears, and its yellow teeth looked like maggots that squirmed in a pile of excrements. Its eyes were black, as if it were possessed by a demon.

'Ghoul

Age: One year old

HP: 130

Strength: 12

Dexterity: 10

Constitution: 13

Perception: 6

Will: 5

Charisma: 2

Spirit: 5

Skills:

Plagued Claw (Level 3): Ghouls are filled with venom, germs, and viruses. Wounded targets will get feverish, weakened, and their wounds will start to fester.

Devour (Level 3): Ghouls can heal light wounds and regenerate health through devouring flesh.

Madness (Passive): Ghouls can store a part of the power of the flesh they consume. When their health falls below twenty percent in battle, they can activate this power and regenerate their health. +1 to Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution. They will become more violent and resistant to pain. Lasts one minute.

***

Roy held his trembling pendant and heaved a sigh of relief. His target's stats weren't overwhelmingly high, and it was extremely slow, so Roy could kite it. Not to mention I have the element of surprise. Roy made a sign quietly and pressed it against the ground, then the purple light of Yrden shone in the air. He summoned his crossbow and took cover. Roy took a deep breath and aimed his weapon at the ghoul's head. Guided Arrows!

He fired three blue bolts, and they hit their target squarely in the head. The ghoul screeched in pain, its voice unpleasant, as if sharp nails were clawing on a blackboard. The ghoul tensed up and set its sights on the ambusher who was hiding behind the rock, and it came charging at Roy, ignoring the arrows that were buried in its head.

Roy calmly pulled the trigger and fired three more bolts before he sent the crossbow back to his inventory space, then he summoned Aerondight. After suffering six bolts, the ghoul only had half its HP left when it came to the rock.

The stench of its body assailed Roy, and it tried to stab Roy's artery with its claws. Its rotten drool almost fell on Roy's face, but the ghoul would never reach its prey, for its movements slowed thanks to Yrden.

Roy crouched and evaded the ghoul's attack. He came to its back and got up, then he turned around and slashed the monster. The crimson blade cut a gash on the nape of the ghoul's neck, revealing the bones within. The pain snapped the ghoul out of its trance, and it turned around, but a green triangle caught its mind again, and it was caught in another trance.

Roy took a deep breath and pressed his hand against the ground, using its momentum to leap up high into the air. Just like a cat who was hunting its prey, Roy jumped over the ghoul and made a powerful downward slash. However, it didn't cut through the ghoul. The blade managed to wound its neck, but the ghoul's bones were too hard for Roy to cut through.

The ghoul let out a guttural roar, and an eerie red light appeared on its skin. Its health was quickly regenerating, and it leaped up, slashing its claws at Roy.

Roy came back down to the ground and quickly evaded the ghoul's attack. At the same time, he cast Fear again. Countless crimson tentacles appeared in the ghoul's line of sight, and they wrapped themselves around it, making it almost impossible for the ghoul to even take a step.

A gust of wind blew through the cave as Roy summoned his silver sword again. He tensed his muscles up and slashed away at the same spot for the third time. A crimson light shone within the cave, then a gigantic head flew high up into the air before it fell with a thud.

The head rolled over to Roy, and blood spurted from the headless body of the ghoul before it too fell to the ground.

'Ghoul killed. EXP +100. Level 5 Witcher (2850/2500)'

Roy heaved a sigh and flicked his wrist to clean Aerondight of the ghoul's blood, and he eased up a little. The battle didn't last for ten seconds. Roy's target was clear, and he aimed for the ghoul's vitals, preventing it from healing. His plan worked well, and thanks to the element of surprise, he won the battle. But still, the battle went too smoothly. He was used to the brutal fights with Auckes.

Roy smiled self-deprecatingly, and he went to cut the ghoul up. To his pleasant surprise, he found a red mutagen, and he was one step closer to being an intermediate witcher. 'Magical creatures killed: 3/10.'

After handling the ghoul's corpse, Roy scoured the cave, and he found a few herbs, such as stramonium, reachcluster, and button-heart. There were also a lot of animal bones around the cave. Deers, stray dogs, roe deers, and even a couple of unlucky humans.

Roy also found two skeletons as large as buffaloes, and they were lying side by side. Judging from the beak, claws, and tails, he realized the skeletons must have belonged to the baby griffin's parents.

Roy noticed that one of the skeletons had a lot of broken bones on it, and he deduced that the griffins must have died because they fell from a great height and didn't manage to get treated in time. The other griffin's skull was crushed. Roy used his witcher senses and found a patch of dried blood with some feathers on the wall. The cracks fit, so it was obvious that the other griffin killed itself for love.

Roy thought it was a shame. "Not even death can do them part. Griffins do love deeply, but is it really a good idea to leave your own kid behind?" Suicide did prove your love, but your kid's really unlucky. If it weren't for Galar and his friend, she might have died. The ghoul was obviously attracted by the griffins' rotting body. If Galar hadn't come in time, the baby griffin would have died soon after as well.

***

"Hadava, my brother. I should not have left you. I am a coward! A deserter!" Galar knelt before a human skeleton that was covered in blue armor. Behind him lay a mangled, headless corpse of a ghoul. "I know you might not forgive me, but I swear I shall give you a sea burial, just like you said."

Galar banged his head against the ground, and his forehead swelled up, but it didn't stop him from crying. Galar sobbed. He spent some time processing his guilt, and finally, he got his closure. "Mr. Roy, I shall give you your reward once we return to town."

"I am not in a hurry. You can still keep up this exhibition in Cintra." As Roy's Will was too low to forcibly tame the griffin, and it was inconvenient to take the beast around, Roy wanted someone to take care of it."

"Are you serious, Mr. Roy?" Galar didn't understand why Roy was doing this.

"You'll keep all the profit, but you have to feed the little one. Do not let it go hungry," Roy said. "I will check up on it regularly. Once I am prepared, I shall take the little one with me. Do you have any problem with this arrangement?"

"Very well, then. I shall do as you say, sir," Galar agreed. "After all, opening an exhibition was the quickest way to make money. I shall take good care of it, sir. Worry not."

"Don't try to pull anything funny, or you will end up worse than this ghoul here. And remember to reinforce the cage. Don't let it hurt anyone. I'll come to the marketplace tomorrow." For now, I'm looting all the herbs in this cave.

***

When Galar came back with his friend's remains, he still had a look of disbelief on his face. It had been a long day. First, he asked the witcher to kill the ghoul, then he found his friend's remains, and he could keep the baby griffin for a while too. It was like a dream.

However, the eventful day was not over yet. When he came back to his tent, the girl who doubted him earlier in the day came up to him and grinned. Her eyes were sparkling with curiosity, and she asked, "You are Galar, right? Can you tell me about your adventure you went on with the witcher this morning?"