Geralt and Dandelion.

Raising its head with its long whiskers above the water, the catfish gave a strong pull on the line, thus stirring up the stillness of the river.

"Stay tuned, Dandelion!"

Exclaimed the Witcher, digging his feet into the wet sand of the lake.

Wanting to support herself as he exerted his strength.

"Hold on tightly, with all your strength!"

"Dandelion, don't let the fish escape."

"I'm holding tight..."

Dandelion sighed.

"But it is a hideous creature! A leviathan, and not a simple fish!"

"By the deities Geralt."

"If we capture him we will have provisions for the whole week!"

Dandelion exclaimed excitedly, these past few days they had been through hardships.

Their attempts to find food had not been fruitful lately.

"Don't pull Dandelion so much!"

"Pull carefully, otherwise the thread will break!"

Geralt spoke hurriedly.

However, the catfish would not give up easily, it sank to the bottom of the lake.

And he started a quick swim with the current.

With the resistance exerted by the catfish, Geralt felt the line stretching with great force.

The line hissed, and Geralt and Dandelion's gloves smoked.

"Come on, Geralt, pull hard! Keep the line tight to prevent it from getting tangled in the stems of submerged plants!"

"If I do that, the line will snap."

"It won't! Just pull!"

They leaned over to get a better angle and then pulled with all their might.

The line cut the surface of the water, spreading small drops of water.

They felt the line loosen and quickly began the retrieval process, pulling the catfish from the river.

"It would be wonderful to smoke it."

Dandelion spoke as he was panting, trying to catch his breath.

"We'll take him to the village and have them smoke him. And we'll make a delicious broth with the head."

The two had already relaxed their muscles, thinking that they had already caught the catfish.

That he had most of his body out of the river.

However the catfish would not give up, shaking its tail and head, it dove back into the depths of the river.

Causing smoke to come out of Geralt and Dandelion's hands again.

"Pull Geralt, pull! Lead the bastard to shore!"

"No! Loosen the thread, Dandelion, for it is about to break!"

"Don't worry! She'll resist! We'll make soup out of his head."

Being pulled to the water's edge, the catfish struggled intensely, as if determined to show that it would not be captured so easily.

Their crazy thrashing scared all the other fish in the lake away.

Geralt was surprised, he had never encountered a catfish like that.

It was unbelievable that a fish had so much strength and resistance.

"We will sell this monster's hide..."

Dandelion continued fighting with all his strength and spoke.

"And we will sell your bones to some school to study this creature."

Pulling the thread with both hands, Dandelion was panting. He was red in the face from all the effort.

"And with the mustaches... with the mustaches we will do..."

It was not possible to decipher what the troubadour's intention was in relation to the catfish's whiskers.

Once the line broke abruptly and the two ended up losing their balance and falling into the wet sand.

"What a curse!"

Dandelion shouted, so loudly that the echo resonated through the trees.

"So much food, wasted, my long-awaited fish head broth... was lost."

"I hope you die, you catfish head!"

Dandelion cursed the fish that had already escaped into the depths of the river.

"I warned".

Geralt said, shaking the sand from his pants.

"I told you not to pull the line

so hard."

After cleaning himself up, Geralt looked at Dandelion as he spoke.

"You screwed up, mate. You're a fisherman as well as an asshole."

goat is a trumpet".

With a face that expressed his dissatisfaction. Dandelion showed his indignation at Geralt's speech.

"It's not just my fault, besides."

"The responsibility for capturing that monster that took the bait is all mine."

With a sarcastic face, Geralt replied to his friend.

"How interesting! You made no effort to help me draw up the lines."

"He just played his lute and screamed at the top of his lungs."

Shaking his head, the troubadour disagreed.

"Be aware that you are completely mistaken."

Dandelion said, smiling.

"When you were sleeping like a pig."

"I removed the worms you had used as bait from the hook."

"And I exchanged it for a lifeless crow that I found among the plants."

"I carried out this action with the aim of observing your reaction when removing the crow from the water the following morning."

"The catfish was fascinated by my bird. Its larvae wouldn't have found shit."

"Obviously my lavas would have caught something more useful."

Replied the Witcher, spitting into the river and wrapping the line around a small piece of wood.

"The thread broke due to your clumsy pulling. Instead of talking endlessly, wind up the other threads."

Feeling the sun on his body, Geralt continued.

"The sun is already up, it's time to continue our journey. I will organize our belongings."

However before he could turn around and head towards his belongings, Dandelion called out to him.

"Geralt!"

"What?".

Responding sharply, Geralt turned around.

"There's something stuck on the other line…".

"It shouldn't be anything relevant."

"The object got tangled up in something."

Pulling with everything he had, the troubadour found himself unable to pull the line.

"Oh shit! It's stuck… I can't pull it out."

With great difficulty, Dandelion finally manages to remove the object from the river.

"Finally… Look what I pulled! Look Geralt!"

"It looks like something that belonged to the ships of King Desmond's time!"

"This time I'm sure I found a great treasure."

Geralt rolled his eyes at the troubadour's comments. As usual, Dandelion was exaggerating.

"Let me see the great treasure I've found."

"A tangle of rotting ropes, remains of nets and stems of aquatic plants are indeed impressive."

"That's about you Dandelion"

"But it lacked a lot to be something that belonged to a vessel of the legendary king."

"You'll see, Gerald!"

Spreading his discovery on the beach, the troubadour began to touch what he found with the toe of his boot.

The submerged plants seemed to move on their own due to the large number of leeches, amphipods and crabs found on them.

"Oh! Look what I discovered!"

Intrigued, the Witcher approached.

It was an ancient stone vessel with two handles, similar to a wine jar.

It was covered by aquatic vegetation, groups of mollusks, larvae of aquatic insects and a dense layer of smelly mud.

"I told you!"

Dandelion exclaimed with vanity once again.

"Geralt, do you have any idea what this is?"

Exclaimed the troubadour, confident of his discovery.

"Yes. An old container."

"Actually, you are mistaken once again."

He declared Dandelion, removing the moss, crustaceans and fragments of dry clay with a piece of twig.

"This, my dear friend, is simply a magical vase, without equal."

"A powerful spirit is enclosed within it, ready to grant three requests of mine."

The Witcher laughed uproariously.

"Feel free to laugh."

Dandelion said, finishing cleaning the container.

"Observe, my dear unbeliever."

Confidently showing the vase, Dandelion continued speaking.

"The seal that is covering the mouth of the vase, marked on it, there is an enchanted symbol."

"A symbol? Show me."

"It was just what was needed", said the troubadour, hiding the container behind his back.

"I was the one who found this jar and I will be the one who will have my wishes granted."

"Dandelion! Don't touch this seal! Pass the jar over here!"

Geralt exclaimed urgently, he knew the dangers that came with interacting with unknown magic.

"Let go of him! He's mine!"

"Dandelion, be careful! Don't touch the seal! Oh, damn it!"

From the jar, which had fallen into the sand during the dispute, bright red smoke emanated.

Geralt jumped to the side and ran towards the camp to grab his sword.

Meanwhile, Dandelion remained motionless, with his arms crossed over his chest.

The vapor gathered into an uneven sphere, hovering above the troubadour's head. The sphere took the shape of a human head, with large eyes and a mouth.

"Djinn!"

Excited by that situation, Dandelion ended up tapping the ground with his foot.

"I was the one who granted you your freedom, and from now on, I will be your master."

The floating head opened and closed, revealing something that looked like sagging, distorted lips in constant transformation.

"Run away! Run, Dandelion!".

Shouted the Witcher

But the troubadour continued, not taking Geralt's words into consideration.

"My wishes are clear."

"First of all, I would like lightning to strike Valdo Marx, the troubadour of Cidaris."

Dandelion walked from left to right, while signaling the number of his wishes with his fingers.

"Then in Cael lives Countess Virginia, who refuses to have a relationship with anyone."

"I wish she would give herself to me."

Excited by what he was asking, Dandelion turned around and faced the Djin.

And when he was about to speak his third request, he was interrupted.

There was no knowledge of what Dandelion's final wish would be.

Two terrifying arms appeared in the floating sphere, which wrapped themselves around the troubadour's neck.

Emitting a groan of anguish, Dandelion struggled desperately trying to free himself from the Djin's hands.

However, his fight was unsuccessful, he was unable to fight the creature.

Seeing that situation, Geralt quickly advanced towards his target.

Propelling his body, he delivered a precise blow across the creature's body with his silver sword from one side to the other.

But his attack seemed ineffective, the creature didn't seem to be affected by his blow.

The Djin released spirals of steam from his mouth and expanded, becoming even more hideous.

His horrible mouth opened and closed repeatedly, while the frightening arms shook Dandelion and pressed him to the ground.

Realizing that his silver had no effect on the creature.

Geralt performed the Sign of Aard gesture with his hands and directed all the energy he could muster into the creature.

The energy transformed into a brilliant beam of light that accurately hit the target.

A sudden noise almost ruptured Geralt's eardrums, and the vacuum resulting from the implosion made the leaves on the trees tremble.

Letting out a frightening roar, the Djin seemed furious with the situation.

However, Geralt's objective was achieved, the creature released the Dandelion.

Geralt hurried to lift Dandelion's inert body, which lost consciousness due to the Djin's strong grip.

While carrying Dandelion through the woods, Geralt spotted a circular item lying in the sand, he approached it and checked what it was.

It was a golden metal medallion, with a damaged cross and a design of a nine-pointed star carved into the top.

'I don't recognize this magical symbol, I'll have to find someone more literate than me'.

He didn't have time to worry about that at that moment, he took the medallion and tried to escape carrying Dandelion.

The Djin seemed to have another plan for the two, which is why he pursued them relentlessly.

At this moment, the floating head had become as big as a small house.

Its wide mouth resembled the door of a small cabin.

Stretching its arms, the creature advanced towards the two.

Geralt, completely lost on what to do, firmly held the seal in his hand and stretched his arm towards the Djin.

He recited an exorcism formula he had learned from a priestess, in a small temple.

Until this moment, he never used this technique, as he did not trust superstitious beliefs.

But moments of despair require desperate solutions. Geralt used any means he could get his hands on to survive.

Facing the creature, Geralt spoke his exorcism with conviction. The result exceeded the predictions she had expected.

The medallion sizzled and heated up immediately, causing a burn on his hand, creating a mark similar to the one on the bronze medallion.

Floating in the sky, the Djin hovered above the river for an instant and then emitted a rumbling sound.

Soon after, it dissipated into a column of fog, creating a gigantic cloud.

A shrill scream echoed through the cloud, which then quickly moved over the river waters, leaving a choppy trail on its surface.

In a matter of moments, the cloud disappeared over the horizon.

Only the current continued to echo some sharp sounds, which gradually diminished.

Bending down to check the health of his friend who was lying on the sand, Geralt showed concern in his tone of voice.

"Dandelion, are you okay?"

Receiving no response, he agitated the troubadour.

"Damn it, Dandelion, answer me! What are you feeling?"

The troubadour shook his head energetically, swung his arms and opened his mouth to emit a scream.

Geralt frowned and squinted his eyes.

Dandelion had a remarkable voice and was able to reach surprising tones.

However, what escaped his lips was just a barely perceptible whisper.

"Dandelion! How does it feel?"

"Tell me, what are you feeling!"

"Ahhh... what... damn...".

Speaking slowly, Dandelion tried to communicate with Geralt, but his efforts had little result.

"Is there any discomfort you are feeling? Dandelion, don't hesitate to communicate!"

"Ooooh... wow..."

"Save your energy. If you're feeling good, just nod your head.

Dandelion tried his best and turned his head.

He then turned in the opposite direction, curled up as if in the fetal position and vomited a large amount of blood.

Coughing and choking on his own blood.

"I always hoped for the day that you would become silent, but I never expected it to happen this way."

Supporting his comrade on his back.

He carried him to his small camp, packing everything he could and leaving as quickly as possible.

He placed Dandelion on the horse's saddle and the two headed towards the nearest town.

Geralt traveled with Dandelion until nightfall.

Arriving in the city of Rinde at dawn, he wanted to enter, but was stopped by the guards.

"Stop right there! Who are you?"

"And what are you trying to do?"

He shouted to the guard, pointing the light of his lamp in the direction of the two so he could check who the visitor was.

"What happened to him?"

asked another guard after approaching them.

Rushed due to Dandelion's critical circumstance, Geralt wanted to hurry to find a healer.

"Allow us in, kind gentleman."

"As you can see, my friend is not in the best condition."

He spoke the Witcher, while showing Dandelion, who was hunched over the saddle.

"We are urgently needed, as you can see."

The guard observed the troubadour's colorless face and blood-stained chin.

"I'm watching it. It looks like he's seriously injured."

"We have been traveling since early morning. Allow us to pass."

"Unfortunately we cannot allow you to pass."

Another guard responded.

"Entry into the city is only authorized in the early hours of the morning until sunset."

"During the night, entry and exit are under no circumstances permitted. These are the rules."

With complete disinterest, the guard continued talking.

"No one will be allowed to move forward unless they obtain permission from the municipal ruler or hold a title of nobility."

Dandelion let out a nervous sigh, curling up even more, resting his forehead on the horse's mane, shaking and trying in vain to vomit once more.

A fresh trickle of blood ran down the mount's neck. Out of the troubadour's mouth.

"You can see how bad he is."

"It's urgent I have to go in so I can find someone capable of helping you."

Geralt declared, trying to maintain his serenity.

"Kindly understand our circumstance and allow us to proceed."

"There is no point in persisting on this matter."

The guard said, leaning on his spear.

"Rules are rules. If I allow you gentlemen to pass."

"I will be punished and expelled from the organization, and the consequences will be very heavy."

With a questioning look on his face, the sentry continued.

"If I lose this job, how will I be able to provide food for my children?"

One of the guards was convinced of obeying the rules, but the other was sensitive to Dandelion's situation.

"Sorry, sir, I can't agree to your entry. But I'll take you somewhere quieter."

"Please remove your friend from the horse and accompany me to the guard room."

"We will tend to his wounds and, if it is meant to be, he will survive."

"He won't have to wait long, we're already close to dawn."

"The issue is that just a bandage is not enough."

"He needs a healer, a sorceress or an herbalist."

The Witcher replied through clenched teeth.

"That doesn't matter, anyway, you wouldn't be successful in waking up a person with those qualifications in the middle of the night," said the other watchman.

"The most we can do for you, gentlemen, is what we proposed, take your companion to the guard room."

"That way, you won't have to face the cold at night."

"The temperature of the room is high and there is space available to accommodate an injured person."

Even though he was hesitant, Geralt knew there was nothing he could do, he carefully removed Dandelion and followed the guard into the room.

The environment inside the room was extremely hot and stuffy, but it was comfortable.

Flames danced excitedly in the bonfire, while crickets chirped in the background.

Three individuals were seated around a sturdy, square-shaped table filled with jugs and cooking utensils.

"We're sorry for bothering you. I hope you don't mind, this boy is hurt so I assumed..."

The guard spoke cautiously, even though the individuals in front of him were elves, they were nobles, therefore they had much more power than him.

One of the individuals intervened, standing up and directing a thin and emotional expression towards him.

"Put him on this platform."

Through their clothes, it was possible to perceive a combination between human and elven style, indicating that both individuals were elves who adapted and integrated into human society.

The oldest man in the group, seemed to be the most experienced of the three, was a human-looking person, given his gray clothes and hair.

With his hair trimmed appropriately for wearing a helmet, he appeared to be a member of a brotherhood of knights.

"My name is Chireadan."

He appeared before everyone the tallest elf, who had a striking physiognomy.

As was common among members of the Old People, it was difficult to determine his age, but his appearance was that of a young man in his twenties.

"I present to you my kinsman Errdil, and this distinguished knight is known as Vratimir."

"A gentleman..."

Geralt whispered, even if he was a minor noble, a knight was not someone a mutant could offend.

However, a detailed analysis of the emblem sewn onto the warrior's clothing dispelled his concerns.

Not only was Vratimir a child born out of wedlock, but he was also the result of the union of different races, human and non-human.

Thus, although he was authorized to carry a coat of arms.

He was not recognized as a full noble and certainly did not have the benefit of entering the city after dark.

Noticing Geralt's searching gaze on them, Chireadan commented.

"Unfortunately we also have to wait for dawn."

"The law doesn't accept exceptions, at least not for someone like us."

Said the elf, while looking at Geralt.

"So join the party, distinguished knight."

"My name is Geralt of Rivia, and I'm not a knight, I'm a Witcher."

Said Geralt as he sat with the group at the table.

"What happened to him?".

He asked Chireadan, pointing to Dandelion, who had been placed on a bed of hay.

"Els appears to be poisoned, but something is very strange."

"If it's poisoning, maybe I can help you, I have a great medicine."

Shaking his head in denial, Geralt succinctly described what had happened on the lakeshore.

The elves exchanged glances, with the information they received.

The gray-haired gentleman spat through his teeth and frowned.

"What a surprising situation!"

Declared Chireadan.

"A Djin emerged from a lake... Just like in a fantasy story."

"It's not like us tales."

Geralt commented, pointing to Dandelion groaning on the bed.

"I don't know of any legendary story that had a similar outcome to this."

Approaching Dandelion, Chireadan began to analyze his situation.

"Wounds that have remnants of magic," Chireadan muttered softly as he examined Dandelion.

'I'm worried that my medications won't be very effective, but at least they may help ease your discomfort.'

Turning to the table, Chireadan asked.

"Did you give him anything, Geralt?"

"Just a potion to ease suffering."

Receiving this answer, the elf returned to examining Dandelion, who was groaning in pain.

Sighing with resignation, Chireadan informed them.

"Unfortunately not much, what can I do."

"I can only give you some medicine to lessen the effects of the curse, and lessen your suffering a little."

"Come closer and help me feed your friend the medicine."

Holding Dandelion's head, Geralt brought the flask to his mouth.

Who voraciously took the combination of wine and medicine.

He choked, and made a squeaky sound and got saliva on the leather cushion.

After calming Dandelion, and leaving him lying on the bed, an elf who was observing the troubadour's face seemed to have remembered something.

"This guy is familiar to me."

Errdil said, as he looked at the troubadour.

"Dandelio is a troubadour, well known."

As if realization had dawned on him, Errdil spoke of where he knew Dandelion.

"Now I remember. I had the opportunity to hear him sing in the court of King Ethain, in Cidaris, one of the best troubadours I have ever heard."

Errdil, he wanted to talk more about that day at Cidaris' court, but Chireadan interrupted him, he looked at Geralt seriously and reported his friend's condition.

"Your friend's condition is not very optimistic, his neck and throat muscles are infected, and changes are already occurring in his vocal cords."

"It is necessary to immediately stop the effect of the enchantment. Otherwise... it may become irreversible."

"Does this mean he will never have the ability to speak again?"

Geralt asked, worried about his friend's future.

"Talk, yes, but don't sing melodies."

Geralt sat at the table in complete silence, resting his forehead on his clenched fists.

"He needs an enchanted potion or a healing spell, you will need to lead him to a distant city, Witcher."

"For what reason? Are there no sorceresses in Rinde?"

Geralt asked, raising his head.

"In the entire kingdom of Redania it is an arduous task to find sorcesses."

replied the knight.

"Do you agree, noble elves? Since King Heribert implemented a high tax on all magical practices thirty years ago."

"The majority of sorceresses are refusing to cooperate with the capital and cities that generally follow these rules to the letter."

Chireadan nodded and agreed with his companion.

"From what I've heard, Rinde city council members are recognized for their dedication to law enforcement."

Looking seriously at Geralt, Chireadan reported.

"But there is a sorceress in Rinde, but she is complicated."

"And since there is no reason to hide it, since everyone in Rinde knows that a sorceress is living in the city."

"I have to tell you about her."

"However, you will have to be careful. That person is quite selfish. Not only does he ignore the blockade established in Rinde, he also does not respect the advisors' directives."

Chireadan reported drinking his herbal tea.

"For what reason does the authority of the City Council allow this?"

Geralt asked.

"They can't afford to pick a fight with her, the sorceress lives in the mansion of a great merchant, who is also one of Novigrad's most important ambassadors."

"As long as she is under your protection, her actions will be tolerated by the City Council. Honestly, I must admit that she is your best chance."

"To be precise, it is the last opportunity for this individual writhing on the bed. However, it is up to you to convince her to help you."

Sighing with frustration, Geralt whispered quietly.

"I avoid getting involved in complicated situations like this as much as possible, but this time I can't avoid it."

Lifting his head he looked back at the elf.

"What's the name? This sorceress."

Geralt noticed a subtle color in Chireadan's cheeks as he responded.

"Yennefer of Vengerberg".