252. The Destroyer of the World.
"You said you heard a voice calling you last night?"
Ianna, holding a book, glanced at Vera and frowned slightly. "Did you hear clearly what kind of voice it was?"
Allen pursed his lips and thought for a few seconds. Aside from constantly calling his name, he had no impression of the tone of the voice, unlike the holy and maternal voice he'd heard when he was unconscious in the mine.
"I don't remember..." He shook his head.
Ianna lowered her head in thought.
After a long while, she turned her head to look at the statue of Melitele, then spoke seriously to Allen.
"For the next few days, don't leave the sanctuary. I'll ask Lysa to bring you your meals."
"Is it serious?" Vera asked worriedly.
"I'm not sure yet..." Ianna shook her head. "It might not be a bad thing."
Seeing the worried expression on the sorceress's face, Ianna thought for a moment and then reached out to hold Allen's right hand.
A warm, gentle flow of heat surged through his body.
"The curse's energy is dissipating normally, and as I said yesterday, it was weakened by more than half after that outburst."
Ianna nodded slightly and smiled kindly at Allen.
"So don't worry, child. Maybe, just as you thought, it really is the Lady calling you..."
Maybe?
Allen caught onto the word.
Was it the goddess calling him? Shouldn't the High Priestess of Melitele be more certain?
Wouldn't it be easier just to pray and ask for an answer?
So, Allen organized his thoughts and asked tentatively: "Mother Ianna, aren't you the High Priestess of the goddess Melitele?"
"Isn't there a way to... um... communicate with the goddess?"
Ianna glanced at Vera, then smiled gently. "There might have been in the past."
"Legend has it that before humans came to this world, the gods could take human form and walk among us..."
"But now, both the good gods and the evil gods interfere less and less with the mortal world."
"Some say this is a sign of the coming apocalypse..."
After a pause, Ianna recited: "The Wolf's Blizzard approaches, the time of the sword and axe. The Time of the White Frost and White Light, the Time of Madness and Disdain, Tedd Deireadh, the Final Age."
"I know..." Allen glanced instinctively at the sorceress. "This is the prophecy of the elven sage Ithlinne..."
"Of course you know," Ianna looked meaningfully at both Allen and Vera, "because that prophecy comes right before the Prophecy of the Child of Miracles."
Allen felt uncomfortable under Ianna's gaze. However, Ianna didn't continue on about the Prophecy of the Child of Miracles.
Under Vera's watchful eye, she shifted the topic back to the original conversation.
"Among all the good gods, Lady Melitele is one of those who interferes the least in the mortal world."
"For a hundred years, not only have evil gods like the Lion-headed Spider, Omens, and Lilith incited their followers to wreak havoc upon the world..."
"But even good gods like Kreve and Freya have issued divine mandates, influencing wars..."
"Only the Lady..." Ianna's tone suddenly became especially reverent.
Allen could discern with his eyes and ears. This wasn't fanaticism, but admiration and deep respect.
"Only the Lady..." she repeated softly.
"For centuries, the only divine command She has issued was to weaken the presence of divine magic in the world."
"She instructed the priests to use herbs and medical techniques as much as possible when healing the wounded and to spread this knowledge..."
"Just like a mother, after teaching her child how to survive in the world, gradually lets go so that they can live independently..."
"Weakening divine magic is weakening the presence of gods in the world."
"She has never demanded the people's faith, yet She has earned their reverence..."
"But because of this..." Ianna smiled helplessly, "it has also become very difficult for Her priests to communicate with Her. Even I haven't heard the Lady's voice for decades..."
Allen, upon hearing this, couldn't help but feel a deep sense of respect.
Thinking back now.
Indeed, he had never seen the priestesses of the goddess preach. It was as if being doctors, teachers, herbalists, and midwives was their true profession.
"The Lady certainly deserves respect!" Vera, leaning against the wall, also affirmed.
"But it's not just the gods' interference in the world that's been weakening," the sorceress looked at Allen, "the tides of chaos magic have also been weakening."
"Once, sorcerers could easily conjure massive waves or summon flames capable of burning down a city..."
"But now..." Vera shook her head. "Many sorceresses graduate from Aretuza with only a simple water manipulation spell, good enough to moisturize their skin..."
"Sorcerers are not as powerful as they used to be!"
After expressing her sentiment, Vera looked at Allen with a meaningful gaze.
"Due to the weakening of chaos magic, the number of monsters has also decreased, and it will continue to decline..."
"But some sorcerers believe that it's precisely because the number of monsters has decreased that chaos magic is weakening..."
The witcher's eyebrows twitched at this, pondering.
"Absurd!" Ianna scoffed.
"Indeed, it's absurd," Vera nodded. "But this line of thought has been quite popular in Ban Ard in recent years, especially among those male mage apprentices who didn't graduate due to their mischievous behavior..."
"I only found out about this a few days ago when I visited Aretuza, and Tissaia mentioned it to me..."
Allen's expression suddenly became serious. If this was being called a trend of thought, it was likely spreading beyond just the mage apprentices. So, to some wizards, did witchers hunting monsters seem like they were standing in their way?
Alright then...
At least they had found another reason why all the witcher schools were being targeted in this era. That was something, at least...
Allen smiled bitterly in his heart.
"Alright," Ianna glanced outside the window, "it's getting late, let's not talk about this anymore."
"In any case, as long as you stay here, nothing will happen to you."
As she spoke, she placed the thick book she had been holding down.
It was an old parchment book.
It seemed so ancient that it had been eroded by time.
The gray, rough cover bore no title.
Seeing Allen's gaze fix on the parchment book, Ianna smiled kindly.
"I mentioned yesterday that you'd be very busy these next few days."
"And this is?" the witcher asked, puzzled.
"Ritual studies," Ianna opened the book to the first page. "Vera told me you're interested in this field, so she asked me to teach you."
Allen glanced at the sorceress standing beside him.
Vera introduced her: "Ianna is not only the High Priestess of the Temple of Melitele but also the strongest ritualist on the Northern Continent..."
"Every year, even Nilfgaardian nobles come to ask her to break curses..."
Hearing the sorceress's praise, Ianna didn't modestly decline but instead smiled happily. However, at that moment, Allen felt a bit numb. The only reason he wanted to study ritualism in Kaer Morhen was to unlock the "Ritual: Flesh Golem"—he wasn't all that interested in ritual studies themselves.
Vera didn't notice the expression on Allen's face and continued: "I've only scratched the surface when it comes to ritual studies, leaning more towards summoning and spatial magic. Many specific rituals aren't suitable for you to learn."
"But the rituals Ianna knows are different: removing curses, blocking external threats, weakening monsters, healing injuries…"
"These are all things that you Witchers can make use of."
"And…" Vera looked deeply into Allen's eyes and warned him, "Rituals are different from potions…"
"Accidentally discovering a potion formula is mostly due to exceptional talent…"
"But mysteriously learning a ritual could very likely lead to something ominous, like a whisper from some evil god beyond the stars…"
Allen, who was being stared at by the sorceress, guiltily averted his gaze. Although the "Ritual: Flesh Golem" came from the Witcher's Codex and was incredibly powerful, both its appearance and effect were far from normal.
Moreover…
Removing curses, blocking external threats, weakening monsters, healing injuries…
To be honest, Allen was tempted by this, changing his initial thoughts.
After all, while ritual skills can be upgraded with experience, they don't provide specific rituals. They only make performing rituals smoother. And even if these types of rituals weren't useful for him personally, he could teach them to other Witchers of the Wolf School, enhancing their strength and reducing their mortality rate.
The only question was…
"After I learn these rituals, can I teach them to other Witchers?"
Allen looked at Ianna.
"Of course, my child," Ianna beamed, "To be more precise, we'd be thrilled…"
"The creators of these rituals would be overjoyed to see them learned and used by humanity's heroes!"
"However…" Ianna gazed meaningfully into the Witcher's bright blue eyes, "With only seven days, how many rituals can you take back?"
Hearing this, Allen and Vera exchanged glances, then shared a smile.
-------------------------
"Two pieces of chalk: one to draw the outer circle symbolizing the spread of corruption, the other to draw the inner triangle to stabilize the core."
"Pour the strong liquor between the circle and the triangle, and place two mistletoe leaves at the eastern ends of the triangle, with belisha leaves at the western point."
"Burn Nostrik vines on the eastern side, blowing the smoke westward."
"Oczyniezanizczeń…"
The difficult words were pronounced with a special accent.
Suddenly, a bottle of Necrophage oil placed in the ritual array flashed with pure white light, turning from dark red to the golden-yellow hue of raw dog fat.
The belisha leaves at the western triangle point instantly turned black.
But upon closer inspection, it became clear that the blackness was actually a deep red, mixed with the green of the belisha leaves.
"Another success?" Ianna looked in surprise at the Necrophage oil, now reverted to dog tallow, then stared in shock at Allen as he cleaned up the ritual remnants.
What surprised her even more was this:
Even when she first learned rituals, it took her a whole day to master the purification ritual.
She still vividly remembered that when she first set up the purification ritual, she made two mistakes before succeeding. Even so, the previous high priest had praised her for her exceptional talent. But this purification ritual was the third ritual she'd taught this morning.
"Vera, are you sure you didn't teach Allen these three rituals before?"
Ianna glanced suspiciously at the sorceress.
The sorceress, hearing the doubt, wasn't offended. Instead, she beamed with pride and playfully boasted: "If thinking that makes you feel better, then let's say I taught him in advance…"
Ianna glanced at the smug Vera and then, lost in thought, stared at the Witcher's back. She opened her mouth, wanting to retort, but didn't know what to say for a moment. Vera had mentioned that Allen was a quick learner when she asked her to teach him ritual studies.
But this? This was more than quick!
A genius might learn something in a day, but he had learned three rituals in just one morning…
Ianna felt like her teaching was more like helping him remember something…
Feeling the burning gaze on his back, Allen quietly cleaned up the materials. He knew his actions were a bit unusual. But he only had seven days, and how much he could bring back depended on how much he could learn…
And with only Ianna and Vera here—people he could trust—he might as well go all out and drain the high priest of her knowledge.
With a thought, Allen, still facing away from the two, opened the Witcher's Codex.
[Name: Purification Ritual]
[Type: Magical Ritual]
[Requirement: Ritual Studies LV1]
[Materials: Chalk x2, Strong Liquor x1, Mistletoe x2, Nostrik Vine x1, Belisha Leaf x1]
[Function: Purifies toxins or diseases in a single target.
For alcohol and hallucinogens, the difficulty is Ritual Studies LV1;
For poisons and weapon oils, the difficulty is Ritual Studies LV2;
For severe diseases, the difficulty is Ritual Studies LV7.]
[Note: Using a ritual meant for living creatures to restore sword oil? You really are a little genius!]
The purification ritual was an extremely useful one.
Its function might not mean much to a Witcher with high poison resistance, but for ordinary Witchers, it could open up another source of income. However, for Allen, the more important aspect was the feature he had accidentally discovered today—the ability to restore sword oil.
Or rather, the ability to restore potions with simple raw materials.
The liquid base usually occupies the largest volume and mass in a potion's formula. With this ritual, the burden on a Witcher's saddlebag could be greatly reduced.
[Name: Magical Message]
[Type: Magical Ritual]
[Requirement: Ritual Studies LV1]
[Materials: Glass x1, Fifth Essence x1, Mercury Solution x1 (Optional Material: Perfect Gem x1)]
[Function: Records a message up to five minutes long onto a gemstone or glass engraved with a magical sigil. If a perfect gem is used, the speaker's apparition will appear as lifelike as the original person.]
[Note: A hologram from another world?]
This was the first ritual Ianna had taught, and it was the simplest one she knew with the least side effects.
You ask what the side effects are?
It's definitely expensive.
Glass isn't too bad; while costly in this era, broken glass isn't worth much.
Magical Message doesn't require high-quality glass, either. But the Fifth Essence and mercury solution are a different story. One portion of the Fifth Essence costs 200 Orens, and a mercury solution costs 400 Orens.
If you use a perfect gem instead of glass, the cost shoots up by at least 3,000 Orens. Of course, both the glass and the gemstone are carriers in this ritual, meaning they can be reused. But each ritual still costs at least 700 Orens, which is absurdly extravagant.
And Magical Message wasn't even the most expensive ritual they had learned today…
..........
📢20 advanced chapters on p@treaon📢
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253. What Wolf Doesn't Eat the Lamb at Its Doorstep?
254. The Echo of Falka.
255. Where's the Ghoul?
256. He Is Already Dead!
257. I, Allen, Declare You the Strongest!