240. The Wild Hunt's Idea.
"Allen, what do you think?"
Vesemir tilted his head and asked seriously.
The humble attitude of the Witcher master, asking for the opinion of a fourteen or fifteen-year-old kid, made the dwarf Johan Kramer and Ernesto feel a bit strange. Although they knew this fourteen or fifteen-year-old was also a Witcher master, the scene still gave off a strong sense of contrast.
Especially the black-bearded dwarf.
As Vesemir's close friend, who had once adventured together on the Northern Continent, he knew Vesemir's stubborn nature all too well. It was hard to imagine him listening to a kid, especially since this kid was his own apprentice.
At least the dwarf blacksmiths, for the sake of their own authority, would never allow their apprentices to voice a different opinion in front of outsiders. Facing everyone's gaze, Allen organized his thoughts and said: "Master Vesemir is right. Right now, we know nothing about the Wild Hunt. Rushing to chase them would surely lead to nothing."
"But there are people in this world who do understand the Wild Hunt..."
"You mean the Viper School?" Ernesto suddenly had a flash of insight.
Allen nodded and said: "To be precise, it's Grandmaster Ivar Evil-Eye of the Viper School."
"You're suggesting inviting Grandmaster Ivar Evil-Eye to deal with the Wild Hunt?" Vesemir found the idea a bit unreliable. "The grandmaster hasn't left Nilfgaard in nearly a century. Are you sure he'll come?"
In the group of Wolf School masters, Vesemir wasn't responsible for interacting with other schools. But he had heard some rumors about the Viper School.
Though this school was indeed founded by Ivar Evil-Eye with the purpose of eliminating the Wild Hunt, in recent years, there had been quite a few rumors from Nilfgaard that the Viper School had fallen to the point of taking assassination contracts, similar to the scum of the Cat School. So Vesemir doubted whether the Viper School or Ivar Evil-Eye still held to their original purpose.
"If he learns that we've truly seen the Wild Hunt, Grandmaster Ivar will definitely come..."
Allen also understood Vesemir's concerns. However, in his previous life, the Viper School's assassination of kings was a major event that ran through the second game's main plotline. Because of his interest, Allen had specifically gathered information on the Viper School.
Vesemir only knew that Grandmaster Ivar's evil eye could see the Wild Hunt, but he didn't know that it wasn't just a matter of being able to see—it was a matter of being unable 'not' to see.
According to the official setting, Ivar Evil-Eye's eyes were uncontrollably seeing constant visions of the spectral riders of the Wild Hunt pillaging, slaughtering, and conquering. Those spectral riders were his obsession.
Vesemir might not even know this one fact—
Ivar's obsession with the Wild Hunt was what led to his conflict with Arnaghad, the founder of the Bear School. Ivar betrayed Arnaghad. He even almost killed him.
With such an intense history with the Wild Hunt, how could Ivar not come once he learned of their exact whereabouts?
However, Allen couldn't exactly voice these thoughts, and the reasons he could provide weren't enough to convince Vesemir. So, he changed his approach: "Even if Grandmaster Ivar doesn't come, he'll surely send a few Viper School Witchers to share their research on the Wild Hunt."
"Besides, relying on Grandmaster Ivar to deal with the Wild Hunt on his own isn't realistic."
"I'm more hoping he can teach us how to fight the Wild Hunt..."
"By a dwarf's beard! You want to take on the Wild Hunt?" the black-bearded dwarf shouted in surprise.
Seeing the massive ice spikes at the city gate, and hearing from the scholars at Kaer Trolde that this kind of spell was merely cast casually by the Wild Hunt, he had never heard of any sorcerer who could do such a thing.
Where did this foolish kid get the courage to think about fighting such legendary creatures?
"It's not about wanting to fight them, but needing to..." Allen shook his head. "The Wild Hunt has already appeared. Rather than relying on luck and hoping we don't run into these creatures, it's better to find a way to deal with them."
Upon hearing this, Vesemir looked at the young Witcher's expression, his eyebrows twitching as if he had suddenly realized something.
But he didn't speak.
Mary hesitated to say something but stopped herself.
The dwarf and Ernesto exchanged glances, suddenly filled with respect.
"I didn't expect you to be so young, yet so resolute," the dwarf praised.
"I also didn't expect you'd be willing to go this far for that mother and daughter," Ernesto added, "I always thought Witchers had no emotions..."
Before Allen could respond, the black-bearded dwarf glanced at Ernesto and scoffed: "Only Witchers from the Cat School lose their emotions because of the mutations! Even a tavern-running dwarf like me knows that. And you call yourself a scholar from Oxenfurt?"
Ernesto didn't get angry; he chuckled and explained: "My field of study isn't Witchers, but the connections between ancient myths and the occult..."
Vesemir, who was getting confused by the conversation, quickly interrupted: "So, who's going to inform the Viper School about the Wild Hunt's appearance?"
As soon as he said this, everyone turned to look at Ernesto.
"Alright, alright, I'll head to Nilfgaard and deliver the message to the Viper School," Ernesto sighed, shaking his head.
"Hahaha, of course it's you, you were planning to go there anyway!" The dwarf laughed heartily.
After having an explanation for the mother and daughter upstairs, everyone's mood seemed to relax, except for Mary, who still looked a bit troubled.
"But I'll have to wait until this journey of mine is over before I head to Nilfgaard," Ernesto added with a smile. "It was a prearranged trip, after all."
"Naturally," Vesemir nodded.
At this point, the dwarf brought over a large barrel of beer from behind the bar. He poured a cup for everyone at the table, including Allen and Mary, and curiously asked: "By the way, where exactly is this journey of yours taking you?"
"Thanks," Ernesto said, taking the beer and taking a sip. "To Ban Ard in Kaedwen..."
"I need some materials for a project, and only Ban Ard Academy's headmaster, Hen Gedymdeith, has them. They're not available for loan."
"So I have to go there, study them, and come back..."
Before he could finish, Ernesto noticed that everyone at the table was looking at him with strange expressions. He instinctively touched his face and asked, "What's wrong?"
"By a dwarf's beard!" The black-bearded dwarf looked at him as if he were a dead man. "Good thing I asked. Don't you know that Kaedwen's king died in Ban Ard?"
"Huh?" Ernesto, now bewildered, put down his beer.
"Fat King Henselt died at the Conjunction of the Spheres in Ban Ard," the dwarf added sympathetically. "Vesemir and Allen were both there when he died—they saw it with their own eyes."
"And Allen was probably made a Master Witcher for killing two large monsters at Ban Ard, right?"
His precise knowledge made him smugly stroke his thick beard, first glancing at Vesemir, then at Allen.
Allen smiled in response but said nothing.
"Wait a minute..." Ernesto's brain was now a complete mess.
How did the King of Kaedwen die so suddenly, and at his destination no less?
And the Conjunction of the Spheres...
Hadn't that disappeared hundreds of years ago?
What was this dwarf talking about?
Vesemir saw the blank and innocent look in his eyes and kindly recounted the ordinary version of the king's death to him. Unexpectedly, after hearing the story, Ernesto's eyes lit up, and he slammed the table in excitement: "That makes it even more necessary to go!"
"The Conjunction of the Spheres... That's a phenomenon that hasn't occurred in a century!"
"By a dwarf's beard! Are you mad?" Ernesto's fervor made Blackbeard quickly take a large gulp of beer to calm his nerves. "The king died in those damned sorcerers' lands..."
"One can tell it's definitely a dangerous place, yet you still want to go?"
Ernesto took a sip of beer and shook his head: "What does a foreign scholar like me have to fear?"
"No matter how intense Kaedwen's internal political struggles are, they won't involve me..."
"But..."
Ernesto paused in excitement: "The Conjunction of the Spheres hasn't appeared in centuries, and now the sorcerers seem to have found a way to bring it back."
"A little danger is nothing."
Allen glanced at Ernesto, who had a look of "to understand the way of the universe and be content even to die," and then looked at Vesemir. He interrupted the scholar's fantasy: "I also advise you not to go to Ban Ard..."
"Why not?" Ernesto and the dwarf looked over curiously.
"Because of war..." Vesemir sighed and continued, "Aedirn is preparing to invade Kaedwen."
"We just came from Vengerberg, and the city is already under martial law because of the impending war..."
"A few days ago, the city's guards were rounding up vagrants and mercenaries with weapons, so if you go now, the danger won't just be political..."
The table fell silent.
The cold wind blowing through the half-broken door now seemed to carry the bloody and metallic scent of war.
Ernesto and the dwarf exchanged glances. The next second, the professor of occult studies from Oxenfurt finally understood, and his face instantly turned as white as a sheet.
Being conscripted into the army during a war was a death sentence!
He shuddered as he took another sip of beer, muttering: "That's right, even those monsters were flying eastward."
"I forgot, there's a legend that wherever the Wild Hunt appears, war follows..."
The dwarf sighed, gently patted his shoulder, and lifted his tankard, refilling Ernesto's cup: "At least now you know, don't you? Good luck, human lad!"
Ernesto nodded, took a large swig of beer, and looked gratefully at Allen and Vesemir. Standing up, he solemnly said: "Master Vesemir, Master Allen, I owe you both a favor..."
The two witchers waved their hands and said nothing.
"You really do owe them a big favor..." the dwarf said in his gruff voice, giving Ernesto a hearty slap on the back. "So hurry to Nilfgaard and bring back the Grandmaster of the Viper School."
Ernesto nodded vigorously and said, "I'll look for a caravan heading to Nilfgaard tomorrow..."
"Wait..."
Ernesto suddenly looked at Vesemir and Allen, and asked with a pleading tone: "Can I tell the caravan about the war?"
"They've taken good care of me on this journey..."
Vesemir and Allen nodded, "Of course, that's no problem."
After receiving their approval, Ernesto apologized and hurried out. Watching the professor from Oxenfurt leave in a rush, the dwarf sighed softly: "War... war... Humans always love war..."
"It's as if they won't stop until every drop of blood is spilled."
The dwarf's rugged face, for once, showed a rare expression of melancholy, as if something came to mind. He took a big gulp of his drink and then sighed: "The last war started because the prince of Temeria had an affair with a countess..."
"Vesemir, what excuse have humans found this time to kill each other?"
Vesemir was silent for a few seconds.
Thinking of Terek Quinn, the Deputy Commander of the Aedirn Knights, and the hateful look in his eyes when they left Vengerberg, Vesemir took a drink and sighed: "It seems to be for revenge."
"Revenge..." the dwarf repeated softly, smacking his lips, "That's a good excuse!"
---------------
Because of the news of the war, even Blackbeard's prized beer seemed to lose its flavor. So, Vesemir, Allen, and Mary, taking advantage of the fact that they were already filthy, helped the dwarf clean up the tavern.
During this time, the unconscious woman also woke up. She came downstairs, looking dazed, her face as pale as a corpse. It wasn't until she heard Allen's thoughts that she seemed to regain some life, repeatedly thanking him.
With her husband dead, the woman had some savings but no source of income, and she didn't want to leave Novigrad.
The dwarf hired her as the tavern's assistant cook to do odd jobs.
They also learned her name—Flora Dooley.
In Elder Speech, it meant "little lily."
It seemed the woman came from a decent background. But since she seemed unwilling to talk about her past, they didn't press her.
After helping the dwarf clean the tavern and while they were having dinner, Ernesto returned. He brought back some news that delighted the witchers. The caravan, due to the impending war between Aedirn and Kaedwen, had decided to return. They would depart tomorrow morning, and their next destination was Beyer Most in Temeria.
That was only a two- to three-hour journey from Ellander.
Knowing the witchers wanted to go to Ellander, Ernesto had already secured them spots on the ship and even paid for their passage. They wouldn't have to search for a ship tomorrow.
-----------------
After dinner, the two witchers and Mary were walking back to their rooms. Mary's room was on the far side, so she returned first. Vesemir followed Allen into his room.
"Click~"
The door closed.
After glancing around the room's furnishings, Vesemir suddenly asked in a low voice: "Allen..."
"Do you have some other thoughts about the Wild Hunt?"
He prided himself on knowing Allen fairly well. And when it came to the Wild Hunt, which had little to do with the witchers or the Wolf School, Allen seemed too involved. The young witcher looked out the window. The sky was filled with stars. But beneath that seemingly peaceful and serene night sky...
War was brewing.
Evil riders on skeletal horses spread disaster...
Allen sighed and said: "Master Vesemir, it's not that I have thoughts about the Wild Hunt."
"It's that the Wild Hunt... has thoughts about me!"
....…
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241. Family and Heroes?
242. Departure.
243. Don't Do That, Yennefer and Clay Are Still Here!
244. The Sword of Heroes, Balmur.
245. The Girl I Once Met.