A bath afterward.
Scooping up basins of water and pouring them from head to toe to rinse away the soap suds, she exhaled. "Whew... you really live up to your reputation! I believe what you told me last year now. Witchers really can fight five at once!"
Beside her, Victor was drying his hair with a towel. "Cough, cough, cough, so what exactly was that about? Without a reason, I really can't imagine you suddenly choosing this time and this place to..."
Walking barefoot to Victor's side, Toruviel's nails brushed softly over his cheek. "There are... two reasons. First, of course, I wanted to test whether my dear 'master witcher' was bragging or whether his combat strength really was that impressive. As for the second reason..." She paused slightly, then gently leaned her cheek against his chest. "I would have no chance if I missed this one. Once this battle is over, I'm going back home! That's right, I'm going back to Dol Blathanna!"
She said it very earnestly and naturally, but the boy was left speechless.
"By the way, miss, are you planting that death flag so straight because you're planning to die in Vizima?" Victor thought woodenly as he helped dry her hair with the towel.
She glanced up at him. "What? Why are you standing there with that stupid look on your face? Focus! Am I not allowed to be tired? I've wandered through the North for years after leaving home, met many people, and seen many things. This time in Vizima, I killed plenty of people and almost got killed several times too.
"I heard the second half of your argument with Yaevinn earlier. I think what he said makes sense, but what you said is also true. I don't know who is right or wrong, but Francesca Findabair or Ida Emean aep Sivney must know the answer. So I want to return to Dol Blathanna and ask them where the future of the elves truly lies."
Although I don't know where the future of the elves lies, I do know that if you keep planting death flags one after another like this, the odds of you making it home are rising the wrong way!
Pushing the boy away, Toruviel turned around and began putting on her clothes. "Barring any accidents, I probably won't come back outside again. Even if I have to die one day, I hope I die in my homeland. You're a witcher now, you can live for a very long time. I hope you won't forget me too quickly! Promise me, will you come visit me in Dol Blathanna someday?"
Hearing that, Victor unconsciously rolled his eyes. The elven woman was now practically a walking bundle of death flags, with every possible banner pinned across her back. "I'll definitely go if I get the chance, to that place said to be the most beautiful in the world."
After tying up her hair, she put the necklace strung with golden birch beads around her neck. "Believe me, it really is beautiful. You won't regret coming."
When he saw her out, Victor took out a diamond-shaped amulet and placed it in Toruviel's hand. "Enough people have died today. I want you to live, to live well. A few years from now, let's have a drink together in Dol Blathanna!"
Her eyes brightened. She hugged him, kissed him once, then vanished gracefully into the night.
...
Name: Victor's Heavenly King Old Formula: Super-Armor Crystal Diamond High-Fiber Vitality Broth, Quick-Made
Type: Recovery
Quality: Fine
Traits: Ironclad Effect, Expert Completion, Recovery Power Increase++
Effect: Nourishes and strengthens the body, restores stamina, and takes effect three minutes after drinking. Regulates bodily functions and promotes metabolism. It also clears heat, removes toxins, purges waste, and one vial guarantees everything moves freely.
Note: To avoid dying of embarrassment, please take it beside the nearest toilet.
Side effect: Upgraded high-fiber effect, explosive diarrhea
...
By the time he returned to the temporary hospital, it was already night. Shani was keeping Angoulême company while she ate and chatted, soothing her wounded heart. Seeing Victor enter the room, the doctor smiled as brightly as sunlight, while the girl snorted and turned her head away, refusing to look at him.
Seeing the witcher's baffled expression, Shani cheerfully explained, "Don't mind her. Lady Angoulême just announced that although she's very happy you're back, because your potion was far too disgusting, she doesn't want to see you today or talk to you!"
"The disgusting part clearly wasn't the potion!" the boy retorted coldly, arms crossed.
The moment the words left his mouth, Angoulême's face visibly swelled bright red as she gnashed her teeth. What a rare sight. She actually had moments when she got embarrassed? Or had that "explosive" part been too sensational?
Holding back laughter with all her might, Shani slapped the table. "You shut your mouth, or get outside. Don't stand here being an eyesore!"
Victor raised both hands in surrender, showing that the joke ended there, then said seriously, "You worked hard, Angoulême. You did very well on the mission! As expected of the Phantom Troupe's indispensable deputy leader, chief fighter, and the subordinate I'm proudest of!"
When Victor finished praising her, Angoulême still looked to the side and ignored him, but the corners of her eyes clearly narrowed, and her lips rose. Her behavior proved that single-celled organisms would rule the world in the end, because their happiness was so simple.
"So everything is settled?" Shani asked, picking up a cup of milk and handing it over.
The boy took it and drank a large mouthful. "Yeah, but there's something else next. Before coming here, I promised Mayor Velerad I'd help him solve a commission that absolutely needs a witcher. My guess is it's probably a monster, a monster, and another monster."
Just then, there was a knock at the door. When they opened it, it was still the male assistant Speyer. "Sorry to disturb you, Doctor Shani. Do you have time now? More wounded have been brought in!"
When Victor had come back, he had already noticed new city guards keeping watch. Once it was confirmed that the Scoia'tael had moved far away, the wounded had begun being delivered one after another. It was easy to foresee that the hospital would have another busy night.
Shani nodded and left her seat. As she passed, she patted Victor's arm. "I have to go work. You must be careful! When all this is over, we'll have a drink together!"
Without waiting for the boy to reply, Shani hurried downstairs, and only the chief and deputy leaders of the Phantom Troupe were left in the room.
Victor smiled teasingly and knocked on the doorframe. "I'm leaving too! Be a good gatekeeper and keep guarding Shani. Any problems?"
Angoulême still tilted her head away and did not look at him, clearly firm in her resolve. She merely tapped the table with her right hand, then made an okay sign.
...
"That square should have been named after the soldiers who died under my command, not after me."
John Natalis
Marshal of the Temerian Army and Commander-in-Chief of the Northern Coalition in the Second Nilfgaardian War, commander at the Battle of Brenna
...
Hurrying through the night and returning to Natalis Square, the witcher did not go straight to the temporary command post to find Mayor Velerad. Instead, he headed to a lavish three-story building. The owner of the house was Keira Metz, the petite sorceress from Carreras.
Although Foltest had generously granted royal suites in the palace gardens to his close subordinates and trusted royal advisors, that did not prevent Keira from owning a private space in the city.
Climbing over the wall and entering the house, he found the interior covered with a thin layer of dust. In the center stood a huge oak dining table, with silver cutlery and plates arranged upon it, along with crystal-clear wineglasses. The air was filled with the smell of rotting food. Victor had no interest in knowing what had originally been on the plates.
A bright glass chandelier hung above, so he raised his hand, and the Igni Sign burst forth, lighting the swaying candles and making the dark room suddenly blaze with light.
One wall held a mural carefully painted by an artist. It showed more than a dozen pairs of men and women frolicking outdoors in summer. Why did he know it was summer? Because none of them feared the cold, and they were wearing very little clothing.
The other wall was occupied by a huge fireplace. Before the fireplace stood a large wooden bathtub, along with a matching dressing table, a teleportation anchor point, and the standard communication equipment of a high-ranking mage, a megascope.
Victor carefully inspected every item, hoping to find some trace of Keira's disappearance. But he could only hold on to less than half a hope. After all, when they had parted that day, Keira had been going to find Foltest, so it was more likely she had teleported directly into her own suite inside the palace.
A long while later, the witcher admitted he had found nothing. But he did gain something extra, finally understanding the pleasure Vesemir or Lambert felt every time they performed the act of having everything figured out in front of him.
He raised his voice slightly. "Respected Mr. Thaler, there's no need to hide yourself. Could you tell me what you're doing here?"
In a dark corner where the glass chandelier's light could not reach, Thaler waved his subordinates away and walked up to Victor alone.
"Fuck! Those really are some unique eyes. I have to apologize to you again. I damn well shouldn't have waited until seeing it with my own eyes to finally believe you, to believe you were going to become a witcher." The bald man wearing a monocle spoke in a rough voice.
Victor crossed his arms in front of his chest and leaned against the wall. "Your apology is like underwear that hasn't been changed in a dozen days. I won't believe a single word of it. Help me out here. It's still the same few lines from me. I don't like you! I don't care what you think! And I'm in a hurry! Mayor Velerad is eagerly awaiting a witcher's services, so if you have something to say, say it quickly!"
"A dozen days ago, we agreed to help each other. Princess Adda's curse has relapsed, and she's turned into a monster. Velerad is at his wits' end over it." Thaler's bald head shone oily and bright beneath the glass chandelier. "Anything else you want to know? Or is there anything you can tell me?"
"You must be remembering wrong. I never promised anything. I only said I'd consider it." The witcher pointed at his Rinnegan. "But I did just finish the mutations and return, and I do have a belly full of questions I'd like to ask someone. Speaking of which, with unrest breaking out in Vizima, may I know where the king of Temeria is?"
"King Foltest and Radovid V went out hunting. They've already received the news and are on their way back."
"Excellent. So the city guards have been reduced by at least half. What about the two royal advisors? I know Keira is missing, which is why I came to take a look. Do you know where Triss went?"
"I damn well want to know where Triss is too. Reports say she and a witcher appeared near Murky Waters, but hell knows what they ran over there for. Besides, with all this chaos and fighting, nobody can be sure.
"As for Keira's disappearance, I don't have a fucking clue. All I could do was send a few men to watch the house, until tonight, when the room suddenly lit up! I'm saying, with those damned witcher senses of yours, you can't find her either?"
Victor shook his head. "She didn't disappear from here. If I could enter her palace suite, there might be clues, but you definitely can't make that happen. So it looks like I should go save the princess now!"
Thaler spat out a thick gob of phlegm and said irritably, "Go on, then. Originally, we found out that the person behind those sons of bitches in Salamandra should have been Adda! Many of the orders oppressing nonhuman races were forged and issued by her.
"But now she's turned into a monster, and Salamandra is still active, still releasing those pieces of shit, the Lickers, at night. So now I'm not so sure."
"Thank you for the information. In return, I happened to have completely crushed a Scoia'tael leader not long ago."
"Good! Sounds like some fucking good news, at least. My thanks."
...
After saying goodbye to the foul-mouthed Thaler and walking into the temporary command post, Victor replayed their conversation in his mind.
Based on what he had learned, it seemed someone was pushing the entire unrest from behind the scenes. And if this was indeed a conspiracy, then the Scoia'tael... could be set aside. They looked like they were merely being used.
Salamandra was, of course, the public black hand of the mastermind. If the person behind them was Princess Adda, then selling weapons and issuing orders that oppressed nonhuman races could be understood as her wanting to stir up this unrest and profit from it.
The problem was, what would she want a witcher's formula for? Creating a few mutated monsters was meaningless for a princess. And right on the eve of the unrest, her curse relapsed and turned her into a monster, which was simply the height of absurdity.
Moreover, Salamandra had not stopped operating. They were still continuously releasing Headhunter Lickers. No wonder Thaler had temporarily abandoned that line of thought.
So did such a mastermind exist or not? With insufficient information, he could not judge.
After entering the command room, Victor stood in the corner and had someone announce him. He did not wait long before Mayor Velerad came over to the witcher with another person, also an acquaintance, Lily Knight Roderick de Wett. He looked deeply worried, perhaps because he was concerned about his princess.
Velerad stuck out his belly. "Wonderful, Victor, you're finally here. Listen, this commission I'm giving you is extremely important."
But just as he began speaking, Captain Vincent hurried over to his side and whispered a few words. Velerad's expression changed drastically, and he directly waved for guards to come. "Mr. Victor, please enter the palace with us. King Foltest may very well summon you!"
Faced with this sudden change, the boy did not feel particularly surprised. Thaler had said the king already knew about the matter, so as a qualified ruler, it was normal for him to immediately rush back once the capital had an incident.
And as the person in charge of staying behind, Velerad's reason for bringing Victor along was even easier to understand. He had to present some kind of solution to the king.
...
Some time later, Victor stayed in the palace's spacious audience waiting hall, surrounded by countless restless nobles and officials, yet he remained calm and unhurried.
After all, the people he needed to worry about, Shani and Angoulême, were both fine. The remaining problems were Salamandra and helping others as much as he could.
As for Salamandra, given the role they had played in this riot, once the unrest was quelled and the truth exposed, they would definitely be crushed by the kingdom's power. The only problem was that Victor did not want to let Azar Javed escape. If the formula for the mutagenic potions spread far and wide, it might leave endless disaster behind.
As for what he should say to Foltest, or what the king would ask, the boy was prepared to adapt to the situation.
After waiting for quite some time, a chamberlain finally walked into the room and proclaimed loudly, "His Majesty Foltest, King of Temeria, Pontar, and Mahakam, Prince of Sodden, Suzerain of Ellander, Supreme Protector of Brugge, Angren, and Riverdell, summons the witcher Victor Corion!
"This gentleman, please come with me!"
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