173. We've Arrived.

"My human couple, your elf!"

Francesca grew even more puzzled upon hearing this. She tilted her head, her petite and delicate face full of question marks.

How could someone, in just half an hour—half an hour after just waking up from a coma due to serious injuries—not only figure out a way to leave this place but also know where to continue searching for their targets?

Was it a dream? This was the only answer Francesca could come up with in her mind.

Or perhaps the attack from the rock trolls had damaged Allen's brain? This was the second thought that crossed Francesca's mind.

Looking at the confident Witcher, Francesca hesitated, her mouth opening and closing as she held back, her gaze constantly drifting toward his forehead. After a long while, she finally managed to ask, "So... is there anything you need me to do?"

Noticing the strange expression on " Daisy of the Valleys's" face, Allen knew she didn't believe him. But that didn't matter. He just needed Francesca to cooperate with him, and that was enough. The current dynamic between them made him feel very comfortable.

"Help me keep watch at the door; I need to make some preparations."

Francesca hesitated for a moment but didn't say anything. She obediently agreed and walked out of the room.

"Creak~"

The door closed.

Allen sat back on the bed—or rather, on the stone platform—and then mentally opened the Witcher's Journal.

[Experience Orbs: Experience Orb 40, Small Experience Orb 1847]

Having gone through that battle three days ago, Allen no longer dared to hold back his level just for the sake of monster hunting evaluations. If any of his signs like Quen, Aard, or the Wolf School two-handed sword had been at Level 4 during that sudden fight...

Even if it were the Cat School two-handed sword, which was the least effective against monsters, things would have turned out differently.

At the very least, he could have lasted five more minutes and wouldn't have been so close to being crushed to death by two rock trolls. Recalling the scene where the two mountain-sized rock trolls came crashing down with the wind, Allen still felt a lingering fear and couldn't help but shiver.

"Allen, Allen, what gave you the courage to try to conserve your strength in this dangerous world for the sake of some petty advantage?"

Looking at the experience orbs and small experience orbs, which combined were worth nearly fifty thousand points, he sighed lightly.

[Ding! Consumed Experience Orb 30, Small Experience Orb 24]

[Your skill: Quen Sign LV3 (11/2500) has been upgraded to Quen Sign LV6 (0/5000)]

Every sign the Witchers possess is extremely useful, but if Allen had to pick his most-used one, it would definitely be Quen.

After all, in the Witcher world, most monsters and intelligent creatures attack with physical force. Moreover, in the upcoming battles, the effect of Quen in absorbing physical damage would be incredibly useful, whether against rock trolls or Kaedwen knights. Therefore, it was definitely a wise decision to invest heavily in the Quen Sign.

"Whew!"

After a moment to alleviate the pain caused by the influx of knowledge and the mutations of his organs, Allen exhaled deeply.

Previously, he had some doubts because a single piece of evidence wasn't enough. But after upgrading the Quen Sign to Level 4 and above, he confirmed that the upgrade effects of the Quen Sign were similar to those in the game.

From Level 1 to Level 3, the Quen Sign had the "Exploding Shield" effect: When the Quen shield breaks, it knocks back enemies, deals damage, and has a chance to knock them down.

The higher the level, the stronger the mysterious properties, and the more powerful the shockwave when the shield breaks.

From Level 4 to Level 6, it gains the "Active Shield" effect: It creates a protective shield that absorbs attacks and requires magic power to maintain. The damage absorbed by the shield is automatically converted into a passive shield on the user.

However, unlike in the game:

In reality, instead of converting vitality into magic power, the shield converts absorbed damage into armor rather than restoring the user's health. Considering the new skill, Allen stood up and circulated his magic.

With his right thumb and forefinger, he traced a triangle in the air. Unlike before, he did not retract his hand but instead maintained a subtle communication with the magic he had released.

"Buzz~"

In an instant, a faint golden spherical shield appeared.

"Hmm... The LV6 Quen Sign, with its optimized shield structure, no longer consumes magic power to maintain the active shield..."

"While using the active shield, it's difficult to attack simultaneously because the mind must constantly communicate with the magic."

"But with this structure and thickness..."

Allen closed his eyes, sensing the magical structure of the active shield with his mind.

"Its defense is at least three times stronger than a regular Quen shield!"

"Very strong! The advantages and disadvantages are very clear."

Recalling the rocks, covered in magical energy, that the rock trolls had thrown at him three days ago, Allen thought that if he had had this skill then, even though the active shield might not have blocked the magical impact, the magic on the stones alone wouldn't have been enough to penetrate the active shield and harm him.

Moreover, in such a situation, the drawback of not being able to attack while using the active shield would have almost disappeared.

"As I suspected, if I had upgraded this skill before yesterday, I wouldn't have ended up in such a miserable state!"

After mentally berating himself again for his foolishness, Allen reopened the Witcher's Journal. Now there were only Experience Orb 10 and Small Experience Orb 1823 left.

He thought for a few seconds.

[Ding! Consumed Experience Orb 10, Small Experience Orb 1500]

[Your skill: Wolf School Two-Handed Sword LV3 (7/2500) has been upgraded to Wolf School Two-Handed Sword LV5 (0/2000)]

[Your skill: Cat School Two-Handed Sword LV3 (0/2500) has been upgraded to Cat School Two-Handed Sword LV5 (0/2000)]

[Ding! Your level has increased to 35, gaining 1 special skill point]

As he absorbed the influx of memories, Allen's body underwent continuous changes, becoming more coordinated, flexible, and better able to unleash his hidden strength.

"Whew~"

After the soreness in his body subsided, Allen exhaled a deep breath and began to ponder the enhancements these two skills had brought. The upgrade of the Wolf School Two-Handed Sword increased his control over his muscles and bones, improving his strength utilization by 30%. Additionally, he mastered a sword technique—Spinning Slash.

This technique involves rotating the body twice before delivering a faster and more powerful strike.

The core of this technique lies not in accumulating rotational momentum but in predicting the monster's attack pattern during the spin for a lethal strike. The Cat School Two-Handed Sword increased his flexibility and stability by 30%. It also introduced a sword technique—Wrist Thrust.

This move was the very sword technique that the Cat School Witcher Brett had nearly killed Allen with.

It sacrifices the force of a direct thrust to use a quick wrist movement to suddenly change the direction of the sword, aiming directly at the target's heart. If it weren't for the ten points of elemental affinity that blocked Brett's sword at that time, Allen might have died on the spot. So, he had a deep impression of this technique.

After completing the skill upgrades, only 323 small experience orbs remained in his inventory.

Allen thought for a few seconds.

[Ding! Consumed Small Experience Orb 100]

[Your skill: Igni Sign LV2 (0/500) has been upgraded to Igni Sign LV3 (0/2500)]

[Your skill: Aard Sign LV2 (0/500) has been upgraded to Aard Sign LV3 (0/2500)]

[Ding! Your level has increased to 40, gaining 1 Special Skill Point]

In just a moment, the memory transfer and physical changes were complete. After upgrading the Igni Sign, the temperature of the flames it releases became even higher. The Aard Sign's mental shockwave range expanded by three meters. With that, all skills were fully upgraded.

[Name: Allen]

[Level: 40]

[Health: 100%, Stamina 310/310, Mana 410/410]

[Attributes: Strength 32, Agility 31, Constitution 31, Perception 21, Mystery 41]

[Affinity: Water 7, Earth 3]

[Special Skills: Witcher LV3, Identify LV2, Tracking LV1]

[Special Skill Points: 4]

[Signs: Quen LV6, Igni LV3, Aard LV3, Yrden LV3, Axii LV3, Heliotrope Sign LV3]

[Skills: Cat School Two-Handed Sword LV5, Wolf School Two-Handed Sword LV5, Ice Spear Curse LV3, Tracking LV1]

[Knowledge: Alchemy LV4, Ritualism LV2]

[Ritual: Flesh Golem]

[Experience Orbs: Small Experience Orbs 223]

[Rating: Novice Witcher!]

"I'm down to just 223 Small Experience Orbs, completely broke now!"

Opening his character panel, Allen immediately noticed his drastically reduced wealth and couldn't help but sigh. Thankfully, after unlocking the Corps, hunting lower-level monsters with Hughes and the others won't drastically reduce his rewards, or he might not have had the heart to go through with it.

Looking up at the screen, he noticed the difference between special skills and regular ones—special skills, especially those directly related to combat, like Witcher, didn't require time to adapt. They could be upgraded anytime they were needed. So, he decided to hold on to the special skill points for now.

"Even after upgrading so many skills, my rating hasn't changed..." Seeing the bottom of the screen, Allen couldn't help but grumble, "What exactly is the standard for this rating?"

After reviewing his character panel, Allen looked back and was filled with a sense of accomplishment.

In less than six months since arriving in this world, his strength had improved by leaps and bounds.

"But it's still not enough... far from enough."

"I need to be stronger, much stronger, not just in personal strength, but in my Corps, my school, my allies..."

"Otherwise..."

Allen sighed deeply. Then, retracting his Witcher journal with a thought, he got up and headed for the door.

"Creak~"

The simple wooden door creaked as it opened.

"Allen, are you ready..."

The soft female voice abruptly halted mid-sentence.

What's going on…? Francesca stared at the Witcher, who seemed no different from a few minutes ago, but felt a chill down her spine, as if being watched by a ferocious beast.

"What's wrong?" Allen asked.

The moment the Witcher spoke, that ominous sense of being targeted by a predator vanished as if it had been a mere illusion.

"N-nothing," Francesca instinctively touched the ends of her golden hair, glanced inside the room, and curiously asked, "What were you preparing just now?"

"I was preparing some measures to leave this White Orchard and find our target." Allen responded vaguely, heading outside. "Let's go. We need to find the exit!"

The exit?

And that strange sense of threat...

Could he have been telling the truth?

Did he really find a way out and locate their target?

Francesca looked at Allen in surprise, unconsciously following him to the herbal shop's entrance.

"Aren't you… wait… aren't you the little brother of that girl who was badly injured? Are you already healed?"

Allen turned toward the voice. A middle-aged man in gray linen clothes stood behind the counter, organizing herbs. Allen's eyebrows twitched involuntarily. He recognized this person—it was the shop owner from whom he had bought wraith oil ingredients a few days ago. But clearly, the herbal shop owner didn't recognize Allen. To him, Allen was Francesca's severely injured younger brother.

"Of course, he doesn't recognize me..."

Allen sighed inwardly.

Under the illusion of the mirage, there was no herbal shop here at all—just scattered stones of various sizes on the ground.

Where the herbal shop owner stood, a half-human-tall stalagmite overlapped with his right leg, with a layer of gray stone skin showing. It was like a small glitch in this world. This gave Allen an inexplicable sense of familiarity.

"Grandma Asha's medical skills are superb," Francesca quickly chimed in, then glanced at Allen, "My... my brother is already able to walk."

"What? Grandma Asha is that skilled? Your brother was..." The herbal shop owner scratched his head, confused, and gave Allen a puzzled look. However, perhaps because Allen was standing right in front of him, he didn't dwell on it for long.

"You're quite fortunate. If you had been elsewhere, you wouldn't have encountered such a skilled herbalist, or such a kind and generous lord willing to provide shelter for travelers in distress."

The herbal shop owner, a creation of illusion, moved naturally, with every action and response so perfectly normal that it was hard to notice anything strange. But something was indeed strange!

Allen glanced at Francesca's pointed ears and her inhumanly exquisite features, then back at the herbal shop owner.

Allen and Francesca were the biggest anomalies here.

If the herbal shop owner and Grandma Asha were normal people, how could they not notice Francesca and Allen's non-human appearance? How could they believe that a cat-eyed Witcher and an elf were siblings?

Considering this, Francesca's thinking must have also been influenced by the illusion.

Or perhaps she was just too naïve?

Otherwise, how could she come up with such an excuse?

"Let's go. We have work to do." Allen patted Francesca on the shoulder. The " Daisy of the Valleys " hesitated. She suddenly realized that Allen hadn't spoken a single word to the herbal shop owner.

"You two still have things to do, then go ahead… But your brother should still get some rest, after just recovering from his injuries…"

"I know, Uncle Will."

With the herbal shop owner's nagging advice, the two of them left.

"A-Allen, why didn't you say anything to Uncle Will? At least… at least you should have thanked him… after all, it was Uncle Will and Grandma Asha who provided the medicine for your injuries these past few days…"

Uncle Will, Grandma Asha...

Hearing those words from an elven princess's mouth always felt a bit odd.

But Allen didn't delve into it.

He just nodded, led her around the herbal shop, and after circling twice, they stopped by a wide river on the southern side of the Orchard of Delights. Francesca, noticing that the Witcher had suddenly halted, curiously asked, "What's wrong, Allen?"

"We've arrived."

....…

📢20 advanced chapters on p@treaon📢

For advance chapters: p@treon.com/Uchiha_Itachi007 (replace @ with a)

174. Hunting Mission.

175. The Blood of the Rock Troll.

176. The Scent of the Witcher.

177. Another Francesca in the World.

178. Unspeakable Family Affairs.