Chapter 174: Ghosts of the Past

A panting horse stopped in front of the gate of the Von Everec Estate, having galloped almost without stopping from Novigrad.

Riding on the horse was a thin man, covered in a hooded cloak. The wind occasionally lifted the hood, revealing a hairless face, without eyebrows, eyelashes or a beard.

The man looked at the vast expanse of the state and couldn't help but exclaim: "How big it is...! Local residents say that explorers who enter never come out again. What could be inside... wraiths?"

The man took off his cloak, revealing a fine leather armor. Although it is not a high-end customized product, it can be seen that it is the highest quality among the finished products of the blacksmith shop, and the price is definitely not cheap.

He carried a longsword with a lion's head hilt on his back, and a dagger with a viper's head hilt on his belt.

A pair of dazzling red eyes cast their eyes into the darkness of the manor, full of curiosity.

This man was the Cat School's witcher, Kiyan.

Due to the time constraints, Lann was unable to provide him with proper armor, or even decent equipment.

Lann had assigned a specific mission to Kiyan, who remembered Lann's repeated warnings. 'Do not enter the manor, do not enter the manor, do not enter the manor.'

With a sigh, he abandoned the idea of ​​exploring further and pulled on the reins to head towards the von Everec family crypt.

In front of him stood an abandoned building, covered with bushes, vines and tall trees.

The witcher walked along the dark path until he reached the entrance to a basement.

He had circled the place for almost two hundred meters before finding the true entrance to the von Everec family crypt.

He raised his head and drank a bottle of [Cat] potion. The whites of Kiyan's eyes began to tinge with red light. His eyes glowed red in the darkness.

He descended into the underground crypt, full of forks, each leading to small tombs. The atmosphere was oppressive and gloomy, in stark contrast to the light and vegetation outside.

"Hmm?" Kiyan suddenly made a surprised sound.

He checked the tombs one by one, looking for his target, but suddenly found an unexpected reward.

In front of him was a nomadic-style scimitar that looked a bit old. But it was well maintained, and it was obviously a burial object of the owner of this tomb.

It was a Scimitar Sword from Ofir.

Kiyan didn't know the weapon's origin, but upon testing it, he felt that it handled better than his Cintra knight's sword. Without a second thought, he decided to keep it.

"It's a pity that it's not a silver sword. But that's right, who would collect silver swords in a normal family..."

Before he finished speaking to himself, his red eyes narrowed, sensing something. Even the red light they emanated became more intense.

He stared into space, thoughtful. Then he took out a flask of oil from his bag and began to oil his new scimitar and his silver dagger, with a cold expression.

[Buzz!]

At this moment, the cat head medallion hanging around his neck began to vibrate slightly.

The witcher smiled a bloodthirsty smile, revealing two sharp fangs. Then, with a slam on the ground with his left hand, a small purple magic circle surrounded him.

At the same time, two spots of green will-o'-the-wisp ignited in the air. Two wraiths wrapped in tattered cloaks appeared, screaming as they raised iron bars and attacked.

As if he had anticipated it, Kiyan nimbly dodged the wraiths' attack. Turning, he saw the monsters enveloped in a purple light.

"Are you trying to ambush me?" Kiyan laughed coldly. "I'm the one ambushing you!"

With a quick movement, he took out two Moon Dust Bombs from his bag and threw them onto the ground, adding a silver glow to the magic circle.

The wraiths were no longer able to turn intangible, their damaged bodies left completely exposed.

Without giving them time to react, Kiyan launched himself between the two wraiths, leaving a trail of red light in the darkness with the speed of his movement.

[Whirl]

In the dark underground crypt, only the slashing sounds could be heard, the wraiths trembling with their raised bars. The steel sword, covered in specter oil, left smoking scars on the wraiths.

The steel sword may not be as damaging as a silver one, but Kiyan made up for it with a huge amount of attacks!

Kiyan spun relentlessly, dozens of times, until, with his sword dance, he reduced the wraiths to dust.

As the battle ended, Kiyan took a deep breath, looking at the spot where the wraiths had once been and feeling the six Moon Dust bombs he had left.

"It's a very high-end product, much better than what I used before. It's worthy of the Griffin School, right?"

He then reflected on the battle: "I can sense the wraiths better, even before the medallion. The whirl is more fluid than before, and many forgotten techniques are clear in my mind… Could this be the power of the Elder Blood?"

"If that's so…" Kiyan took a deep breath. "…that's fantastic…"

Returning to his mission, without interference from any more wraiths, Kiyan continued searching the underground crypt.

Following the passage to an open basement, there were dozens of tombs on the circular walls. In these tombs, Kiyan finally found his target. "Vlodimir von Everec, here you are."

With a kick, he blew the lid off the coffin, revealing a withered skeleton. Anticipating the stench, he took a step back and pulled out part of the corpse.

He backed away to a brazier which he used as a burner. Using the Igni Sign, he lit Vlodimir's arm alight. Once it was reduced to ashes, he drew a hexagram with the ashes on the ground, lighting a candle at each of the six points.

Then he knelt down in a prayer position and began to murmur: "Life and death, fire and blood... Reborn from fire, return from ashes... O departed ones, come back to the world..."

Kiyan spread his arms, his eyes rolling back to reveal the whites of his eyes, and after repeating the chant five times, the flames of the six candles suddenly rose, turning green and reaching the height of a person. The ashes left in the brazier were lifted by an invisible wind, and a human figure vaguely appeared in the air.

A transparent figure appeared in front of Kiyan. Although a human would not be able to see it, but with Kiyan's talent as a medium, the figure was more dazzling than a torch.

Kiyan muttered to himself: "It worked the first time, I thought I would have to burn half my body."

"That's because I couldn't wait to get out!" Unexpectedly, the transparent figure began to chatter in response to Kaiyan's words. "You better explain why you opened my coffin and are carrying my great-grandfather's sword!"

With that deep voice echoing through the crypt, the figure grew more solid. It was a young man with a mohawk, dressed in a nomadic tunic with diagonal buttons, looking much like Olgierd but younger and less imposing.

"Are you Vlodimir?"

"You just opened my coffin, and you still ask who I am?"

Kiyan felt a slight itch in his hands. With some specter oil still on his sword, he thought about testing how many hits that phantom could take.

However, remembering Lann's instructions and what the ghost was about to face, Kiyan gave a wicked smile.

"I was asked by your brother Olgierd to come here. I asked him for a favor and in return he asked me to summon his dead brother, that is, you, and take you out for a day of fun."

Hearing his brother's name, Vlodimir's fierce expression immediately softened. "You were sent by my brother? How do you prove it?"

Kiyan remembered Lann's instructions again. "A few days ago, your brother punished a subordinate because his hair was too dirty and then set fire to a mansion like a bonfire."

Vlodimir burst out laughing. "Ha, it's something he can do!" He got excited. It was unclear whether he had always been a bit of a fool or whether his ghost status had made him lose some of his intelligence, but he believed Kiyan's words with surprising ease.

"How do you plan to make me enjoy this day in the world of the living? I can't wait any longer! Wine, wild horses, women... I'm sick of this dark, lifeless place!"

Kiyan shook his head. At Vlodimir's puzzled look, he said: "I thought you'd prefer swords and knives, feeling the blade of your sword cut through the enemy's body while you ignore their attacks, that feeling of unbridledness is even more intoxicating, isn't it?"

"I just happened to know that a grand stage is about to be built, and there will be a great, great party there..." As he spoke, Kiyan's eyes glowed a deeper red. The bloodthirsty cat's killing instincts were heightened.

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