The inn room was small and cramped, but the bed was soft enough and the sheets were clean, and that was all that mattered to Dandelion who had collapsed onto it the moment they had entered it, his clothes still rumpled, his hair still disheveled, his face still carrying the ghost of the night's events. He was asleep before his head touched the pillow, his breathing deep and even, his body finally surrendering to exhaustion.
Sebastian stood by the window, staring out at the city.
Zoltan shuffled into the room, he glanced at Dandelion's prone form, then at Sebastian, his bushy eyebrows raised in question.
"So," Zoltan said, "What happened? Did you deal with it?"
Sebastian turned from the window. "Yes," Sebastian said. "I dealt with it. Quite the story, actually." He glanced at Dandelion, with a smile. "I'll let Dandelion tell you all about it tomorrow."
Zoltan's eyes narrowed. He looked at Dandelion, at the way the bard lay sprawled across the bed like a man who had been through an ordeal, which was true in this case.
"Oh," Zoltan said, "Seems like something happened to this idiot specifically. No wonder he's lying there like a troll."
Sebastian laughed. "Oh, you have no idea. If he tries to lie, I'll correct it don't worry." He paused, his smile fading. "Either way, I'll take a rest as well."
Zoltan nodded, already moving toward his own corner of the room. "It's late, anyway, I'm just glad we got this over with."
Sebastian settled onto a chair near the window, his back against the wall, his eyes closing. But sleep did not come. Instead, he found himself sinking into a state of restless meditation.
'Damn it,' Sebastian thought, his brow furrowing. 'I can't concentrate. My mind lately is anything but clear. Thinking about too many things at the same time is mentally exhausting. Mutations don't help with everything...'
The mask. The dwarf. Ciri. Geralt. Humans and their lies. All of it pressed down on him.
He sighed, opening his eyes. The room was dark, the only light coming from the pale glow of the moon through the window.
He did not sleep.
.
.
Morning came with the pale grey light of a Novigrad dawn, Dandelion woke up and groaned, and pulled the blanket over his head. Sebastian was already waiting.
"We need to go," Sebastian said. "I have a few words to exchange with Vogler."
Dandelion's voice was muffled by the blanket. "Can't it wait? I feel like I've been trampled by a herd of horses."
"No," Sebastian said. "It can't."
Zoltan, who had already risen and was nursing a cup of ale, nodded in agreement. "Lad's got a point. Best to get it over with, we have a place to go, remember?"
Vogler was waiting for them outside his home, his face pale with anxiety, his hands clasped together as if in prayer. He straightened as Sebastian approached, his eyes darting nervously between the witcher and his companions.
"Witcher!" Vogler said, "It's time isn't it? You said that you would deal with the house come the morn."
Sebastian stopped a few feet away from him. His expression was calm, but there was a hardness in his yellow eyes that had not been there the first time he talked with Vogler.
"Well," Sebastian said, "about that. I dealt with it last night, actually."
Vogler's face lit up with desperate hope. "You did?! It is haunted no more?! You killed the monster?!"
Sebastian's expression did not change. "Well, it was really a succubus, just like I mentioned. But no, I have not killed her."
Vogler's face went pale. "What?! But I.."
Sebastian stepped closer, his voice dropping to a low, dangerous register. "You knew from the start, didn't you?"
Vogler took a step back. "Wh-what? What do you mean?"
Sebastian's eyes bored into him. "You knew there was a succubus in your house. And yet you didn't care to mention that bit. You also failed to mention that you made a stupid promise to give her that house while you drowned in pleasure with her. And you were looking for a witcher... or anyone skilled enough to take care of the big problem that you got yourself involved in."
Vogler's face was filled with guilt and fear. His mouth opened and closed, but no words came out.
Then, with a surge of desperate defiance, he found his voice. "But she is a monster! She kills humans! Uses them for her demonic needs! And you are a witcher, are you not?! Your job is to kill monsters like her!"
Sebastian's fist connected with Vogler's face.
The man went down hard, his ass hitting the ground, his hands flying to his nose. Blood streamed between his fingers.
Sebastian raised his hand and flame erupted from his skin, dancing and flickering, casting dancing shadows across his face.
"Listen carefully," Sebastian said, his voice low and cold. "I'm a witcher, but I'm not a cunt. And I'm not a killer for hire. It is true that many of her kind are extremely dangerous, but so are humans. And remember well, I kill monsters. Human or otherwise."
Dandelion and Zoltan stood behind Sebastian, their expressions were both of shock and admiration. Dandelion opened his mouth to intervene, but he knew better.
Vogler stared up at Sebastian in terror.
"I will not pay you for this!" Vogler said with a trembling voice. "I hired you to kill the monster and rid my house of that pest! And you can't threaten me, or I'll call the Temple Guard!"
Sebastian's flame grew brighter, hotter. "I have no need for your filthy coin. But since you mentioned that bit, I think you'll have to pay me now, or I'll turn you into cinders alongside whoever you wish to call. After all, the contract was to take care of the haunted house. Not to kill a monster."
Vogler's face went white. He fumbled in his purse, his hands shaking, and produced a heavy leather pouch. He tossed it to Sebastian's feet.
"I'll remember this!" Vogler said with bitter hatred.
Sebastian bent down and picked up the pouch. He weighed it in his hand, then tucked it into his belt.
"You should," Sebastian said. "Because I'll return to this city in the future, and we might cross paths once again. You better remember that I don't like seeing people who tried to use me and trick men and then deny me my reward."
Zoltan let out a low whistle. "That sent shivers down me spine."
Dandelion nodded slowly, his eyes wide. "He really can be scary... That little Seb..."
Sebastian turned to Vogler one last time.
"Pick wisely what you try to fuck next time," Sebastian said. "Because it could be a Bruxa. And then that'd be the last anyone hears of you."
He turned and walked away, Dandelion and Zoltan falling into step beside him.
.
.
.
They walked in silence for a while, the sounds of Novigrad rising around them. Dandelion was the first to speak.
"That was... interesting," Dandelion said carefully. "To say the least."
Sebastian glanced at him. "What?"
Dandelion hesitated, then continued. "Well... you basically defended that succubus. And you were even ready to refuse the reward at first, from your words."
Sebastian was silent for a moment. Then he spoke,
"Look," Sebastian said. "I have a code. If a monster threatens me, even for a little, I would kill it without hesitation, without a second glance. But not only did I find that she never killed anyone, she also didn't even try to harm me seeing that a witcher came for her, most of her kind would react differently, yet she was willing to listen and she did listen to reason and it surprised me. They are usually hostile if they notice danger. I can't harm someone like that."
Dandelion frowned. "She still charms men.."
Sebastian nodded. "And that idiot returned for a second time, completely on his own. He enjoyed it, it seems."
Dandelion opened his mouth, "Well.."
but Zoltan cut him off.
"No wells," Zoltan said firmly. "I think what the boy did back there was right and correct. The bastard should learn his lesson. Plenty of lasses out there, and he chose to fuck around with a succubus, then try to hunt her because he said things he didn't mean. Pretty unfair, if you ask me."
Sebastian's expression softened. "Well, enough about all of this."
He reached into his belt and pulled out the coin pouch Vogler had thrown at him. He tossed it to Dandelion, who caught it with a grunt of surprise.
"Get a horse for Zoltan," Sebastian said. "We need to head to Temeria right away."
Dandelion weighed the pouch in his hand, then nodded. "Very well.. We shouldn't tarry, then."
/-\
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