After bidding His Majesty farewell and leaving the audience hall, Victor held a large bag of gold coins in his hand. King Foltest had given him a full three thousand orens as a reward for saving Princess Adda.
With money in hand, his heart naturally felt light. The witcher calculated that once he got back to the inn, he would exchange this enormous sum into crowns. Added to the thousand crowns rewarded by Radovid V, that would give him a clean four thousand crowns to use.
After subtracting the cost of replenishing gunpowder and alchemical materials, there would definitely still be plenty left over. Although most of it still came from side jobs, making money as a witcher was surely something he alone had accomplished in the last few hundred years.
Considering that they had been staying beside Natalis Square these past few days, and the surrounding conveniences were indeed excellent, now that his base in the Temple Quarter had burned down, should he buy a new house in the Trade Quarter?
With Captain Vincent Meis's reputation to lean on, and even Mayor Velerad's influence to borrow if necessary, buying a four-story townhouse with a courtyard inside the inner rings should not be a problem.
Letting his imagination run wild, just as he was considering whether the bathtub should be cedar or cypress, someone approached from behind. The footsteps were not especially familiar, but they definitely belonged to someone he knew.
Turning around, what entered his eyes was bright red hair and a sapphire ornament across her brow.
"Triss? It's actually you! Long time no see. I'm truly happy to run into you here. Tonight, no one can match your beauty!"
The sorceress's lips curved. "Thank you, Vic. Although we both know that isn't true, I'm still very grateful for the compliment. I like it. Come chat with me."
With that, she smiled and led Victor toward the courtyard.
For Triss, it had indeed been a long time since they last met. Their previous meeting had been more than twenty days ago, back at Alzur's Tower. During the entire Vizima uprising that followed, although their ranges of activity had overlapped several times, coincidence always kept them from meeting.
Once the chaos ended, the royal adviser's work piled up like a mountain, leaving even less opportunity for idle conversation. Only now, during the celebration banquet, had she finally found a chance to speak with this rising star among witchers.
As for Victor, although he had no idea why the sorceress had come looking for him, when he sat down again on a familiar seat and looked around the familiar courtyard, he remembered the last time he had spoken with Triss here, when Keira had suddenly appeared and the two women had started hurling abuse at each other like fishwives. A knowing smile spread across his face.
Triss glanced at him and said irritably, "Although I can't tell exactly what you're laughing about, you're definitely thinking of something very rude!"
The witcher patted his thigh. "Hey, beautiful lady, whether I'm thinking something rude or not is one thing, but casually reading minds is definitely very impolite!"
Even after being called out, Triss showed no embarrassment whatsoever. "Geralt once said it only counts as rude if you actually manage to read something. If you don't, it doesn't count!"
Faced with this shamelessly sweet logic, Victor simply pulled a face in response, and then both of them laughed.
After a while, she said, "Actually, I didn't come looking for you for anything major. I just wanted to say thank you. Regarding the crisis warning and lifting the curse, thanks to you, this whole mess didn't leave Keira and me in too awkward a position."
"Heh! Please don't say that. The crisis warning was part of a mutual assistance agreement with Keira, and lifting the curse was the king's commission. I was paid for both." Victor shook the bag of coins in his hand, making a crisp clinking sound.
Amused by his money-grubbing attitude, the sorceress reached out and conjured another bag of gold coins, offering it to the youth. "Whether you were paid or not is one matter. Either way, you helped a great deal. In every sense."
The witcher did not stand on ceremony. He took the bag of gold coins and stuffed it into his coat. "I'll keep this money safe for you first. When you're broke, I'll give it back!"
Triss burst into laughter and reached out to pinch Victor's cheek. "Oh, you wicked boy. I'll look forward to that. Very much."
The two chatted idly for a while longer, then the sorceress, who still had many things to do, left the courtyard first.
…
Watching Triss's back as she departed, Victor sat on the bench and thought of Keira.
After considering for a moment, he took the voice-transmission box from his herbal satchel. The youth stared at it with a solemn expression. He was being this serious because his memory of using it last time was far too painful.
A few evenings ago, on the road back to the city, Keira had called him through the box, and then Victor had been bathed in a torrent of otherworldly Zaunite verbal art. The sorceress had exhausted every curse she had heard and learned over her long life, all to pour endless fury onto the witcher's head.
Victor could completely understand Keira's anger. That prideful little woman must have wanted to suppress the effects of Vic's Old Formula until she had tried every possible method, reached the limits of endurance, and finally, with grief and fury, accepted the volcanic eruption.
And the most painful part for the youth at the time had been this, he had to suppress the urge to pound the ground and laugh wildly. Otherwise, he was certain the sorceress would chase him to the ends of the earth to silence him forever.
In any case, that day she had cursed him for a full fifteen minutes before abruptly hanging up with a click. After that, there had been no further contact. This was also the main reason Victor was hesitating now. He did not know whether Keira's anger had faded.
From his earlier conversation with Triss, he had learned that the work of a royal adviser was usually very leisurely, but after a period of unrest, it became extremely busy. So Keira must have been quite occupied these past few days. Presumably, she had already forgotten a little?
Looking back on his previous experiences of provoking sorceresses, the witcher decided to contact her proactively. First, not contacting her might cause even more serious consequences. Second, strictly speaking, he had done nothing wrong last time. She had been the one to demand a potion that took effect immediately. He had merely satisfied her request.
Beep, beep, beep, beep, click!
She hung up.
It seemed she was still angry.
Looking up at the starry sky, Victor put the voice-transmission box back into his coat and decided to meet up with Shani and Angoulême, then return to the inn to rest first.
…
Their original home had burned down, so these past few days they were temporarily staying at the New Narakort Inn beside Natalis Square.
The three of them left the palace. Along the way, Angoulême bounced and skipped, unusually excited. Shani moved calmly and gracefully, her expression serene.
Walking at the very front, the girl rubbed the soles of her shoes against the ground in every possible way, amusing herself by stepping in a strange little dance.
"Heh heh! Knight Angoulême. Heh heh heh, Angoulême the knight!…"
Victor, facing that mysterious atmosphere, decisively chose to ignore her. "Shani, are you sure you're going back to Oxenfurt tomorrow?"
"Yes, I have no choice. After an incident like this, the medical team doesn't want to stay long. And since Catriona isn't as serious this year, we're leaving earlier." Shani naturally slowed her pace and walked side by side with Victor.
"You're leaving tomorrow morning?"
"Yes. We'll take a boat and travel by water first thing in the morning."
"Mm, traveling by water is good. Safe and fast."
"…"
Parting was imminent, and this was all he could say? Shani turned her eyes sideways and stared at Victor, staring until he felt a little baffled.
"Uh… is something wrong?"
"Nothing!" Her tone was cold.
The Trade Quarter at night was a city that never slept. Lights burned everywhere, and music and revelry filled the streets. Even after a man-made disaster, humanity had lifted itself up again in just a few short days.
Ending her self-amused state, Angoulême decided to share her joy with more people, so she slid over in front of Victor.
"Heh heh, Vic, I'm a knight now, you know. Honorary Knight of Temeria, Angoulême. Heh heh heh!"
The grand leader of the Phantom Troupe sighed deeply. "You've already said that several times, and I heard you very clearly. So what exactly are you, a lone knight with no fief, trying to express?"
The troupe member put on what she thought was a shy smile, though it was actually utterly shameless, and said seriously, "Although I don't have a fief, I do have someone I'm loyal to! I feel like my status is different now, so my allowance limit needs to be raised!"
"You want more money?"
"It must be raised!"
"Raise your head and get lost!" Victor kicked at her, and Angoulême dodged instantly. "You were knighted by someone else, and now you're asking me for money? Where in the world is there logic like that? If you want to keep working under me, your fate is still to be vice-leader and chief enforcer. Your salary won't increase by a single coin!"
After being scolded, the Golden Eagle instantly turned into a plucked crow, lowering her head in dejection.
Watching the two of them fool around, Shani, standing on the side, could not help covering her mouth and laughing.
She had received her commendation in the same group as Angoulême, so she knew the truth. At that time, King Foltest had actually given Angoulême two choices, the Royal Guard Knights or the Blue Stripes, but the girl had firmly refused both. That was why she had only received the title of honorary knight.
There was no need to remind Victor of such things. He was so shrewd that he definitely knew.
The reason he refused to raise her pay was purely because Angoulême had chosen the wrong excuse. If she had casually made up something about completing one full year of service, or even given no reason at all, Victor would have agreed. But she just had to use knighthood as her excuse. She was practically asking to be kicked.
Laughing and talking, they returned to the inn entrance. Just as they were about to go in, Shani stopped Victor.
"Walk with me."
"With pleasure."
"If I don't bring it up, you won't take the initiative?"
"I'm very sorry… lesson learned."
…
The two of them walked like that. With a certain silent understanding, they passed through the checkpoint and returned to the Temple Quarter.
They passed the Order of the Flaming Rose headquarters, now reduced to bare ground. They walked past Vizima Cemetery, where candlelight shone brilliantly within, all oil lamps lit in memory of the dead.
When they reached the Hairy Bear Inn, the late-night clamor and liveliness had not faded at all. Just as the owner had once said, even if the sky collapsed and the earth split open, Vizima would never lack people who drank themselves senseless and then collapsed onto a horse.
With the full moon high in the sky, they once more walked onto the lakeside embankment. Victor and Shani retraced that road, and both felt a faint warmth in their hearts.
Taking a black cloth from his bag and spreading it on the ground, they sat on the cloak and admired the night scenery of Lake Vizima, the moon mirrored in the water.
They talked about everything, sharing what each had experienced over the past year, until deep into the night.
"On the way back, are we singing again?"
"Of course. We'll make everyone in the Temple Quarter hear us!"
…
Walk with me through the streets of Vizima
Do not stop until every lamp has gone dark
You will hold my sleeve
I will tuck my hands into my pockets
We will walk to the end of the Temple Quarter
And sit outside the Hairy Bear
, excerpt from the medieval folk ballad "Vizima," anonymous
…
Amid strings and song, they returned to the third floor of the inn. Just as they were about to return to their separate rooms, Shani suddenly called out to Victor.
"Hey, take this!"
He opened his hand. A note with a key clipped to it fell into his palm.
He trembled and raised his head. "This… this is…?"
"The address and key to my clinic. Whenever you come to Oxenfurt, you don't need to find an inn. If I'm not there, just let yourself in." She spoke as though it were nothing.
Victor raised his eyebrows and put the key and address into his herbal satchel. "Thank you."
Shani turned gracefully and waved her hand.
…
…
…
At midnight, Victor woke in shock. He discovered, to his astonishment, that he was suffering sleep paralysis in the inn. Someone was sitting on top of him!
Experienced as he was, he naturally would not shout and scream in an attempt to call for help. Instead, in the darkness, he first sniffed at the fragrance drifting into his nose.
His supernatural sense of smell activated, and he instantly judged it to be the scent of rowan blossoms. Then his entire body went rigid.
In the language of flowers, rowan blossoms meant beauty, loyalty, and kindness.
That was Shani's scent.
Although he really did like Madam Shani, and although he did not mind certain intimate things happening, this seemed… too fast and too sudden!
Victor felt that he was not mentally prepared yet!
In a daze, the youth seemed to fall into a sea of rowan blossoms, rising and falling with the tide, swept along by the waves.
Then he suddenly woke up. No, this weight was completely wrong. His abdominal muscles remembered this weight!
The youth struggled fiercely and reached toward the side of the bed. The Igni Sign lit the candle, and in an instant, the entire room became visible.
Then Victor was greatly shocked. "Why are you wearing Shani's clothes and using her perfume?"
Sitting on Victor's abdominal muscles, Keira laughed merrily and ripplingly. "Oh ho ho ho. Since I was seeking a thrill, I had to see it through to the end."
Victor covered his forehead helplessly. "…You're such a tease."
Keira puffed up angrily and bounced hard on him twice. Victor's abdominal muscles came under tremendous pressure.
"Don't think I don't know! You two look exactly like the kind of pair who'll end up tangled together sooner or later!"
"Hey! Don't talk nonsense. We are very pure!" the witcher declared righteously.
"Hmph! If you were really pure, my illusion wouldn't have worked so easily!"
Keira raised her hand and snapped her fingers. She was still sitting on Victor's abdominal muscles, but both of them were now fully dressed.
Victor was neatly dressed in sleepwear, and the sorceress was also neatly dressed in sleepwear.
She leaned her upper body forward, her light-brown eyes shining, her snow-white curves looming over him like a mountain. "You fell into my illusion! No room for doubt. I won this round!"
"I surrender!" Victor simply raised the white flag.
The flagpole bumped her. Keira caught the flagpole in her hand, and the witcher immediately raised both hands in surrender.
With this kind of madwoman, who knew what she would do? If he angered her, one bend and one snap were possible. If he pleased her, one swallow and one release were not impossible either.
The subtle atmosphere continued for a while before she released him.
"Although you completed the agreement and spared Vizima from an even worse disaster, because of various reasons, and because I graciously let you off just now, your reward has been reduced! The thing you wanted most is gone!"
Facing the haughty Keira, Victor displayed disappointment and regret with superb acting skills.
Very satisfied with his perfectly timed dejection, the sorceress said with a smile, "But perhaps there will still be a chance next time, so don't be too sad!"
Then she nimbly jumped down to the floor and flicked her finger, sending a note in front of Victor.
"This is what you previously asked me to investigate. For now, this is all the information I have. When I find anything more detailed, I'll notify you!"
Victor smiled brightly. "Thank you. Keira, you're so good to me. You've helped me a lot!"
The sorceress snorted, opened a portal, and left.
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