It was late at night. A gust of wind zipped past a cave standing beyond Novigrad. Flames flickered, and their shadows contorted like a beast trying to pounce on its prey.
A silhouette stood within the chamber of the cave, drowning in the howls of the winds and the sounds of its incantation. The cave started to rumble, as if it were going through a catastrophic earthquake.
And then the incantation stopped. The silhouette of a crane swooped down from the air. Its beak was as long as a spear, and it flapped its wings like they were motors propelling it forward. The crane let out a loud sound and pounced at its target.
But before it could hit the witcher, a gigantic, terrifying squid appeared from the void and pounced at the crane. It wrapped the crane in its tentacles, its suckers sticking to the crane. Shadows danced on the walls, and sounds of chewing filled the air.
And then silence.
Roy heaved a sigh, his eyes filled with satisfaction. The witcher sat in a meditation position. Before him stood the statue of a panther and a magical white circle made of specter dust. And then he concentrated on his character sheet.
'You have devoured a Demon Crane. +340 to EXP. Level 9 Witcher (6540/6500).'
"I'm summoning stronger demons now. Devouring them takes more time. Gotta rest." Roy concentrated on the plus sign behind his level.
'EXP bar filled. Do you wish to level up? Y/N.'
Yes.
Level (9 → 10) Witcher (40/8500)
+2 to main stat (Will): 21 → 23.'
"Now I gotta farm two thousand EXP to level up. That's double what I used to do. So the EXP requirements go up every five levels. Leveling up is going to be harder."
And the next thing he gained from leveling up made him feel conflicted.
'You gained a new skill.
Avarice (Passive): Your witcher level is now at rank one. Low-quality souls do not meet your level-up requirements now. Any soul that grants you less than 10 EXP will give you no EXP at all. But they will heal your HP and Mana instead (Stackable. Can heal minor injuries).'
"Whoa, so I can't level up by killing beasts and livestock anymore." It had been a while since Roy farmed EXP that way, but still he shook his head. "Guess I'll have to kill a drowner or a human at least if I wanna gain EXP now."
But the replacement passive skill surprised him. "At least I can heal my HP and Mana with low-quality souls now. One more way to ensure my survivability. I have one more trump card to use in dire situations."
He turned his attention downward. Months had passed since he took his second Trial, and some of his lower stats had increased as well.
'Roy
Age: Sixteen years old
Status: Viper, Manticore, honorary Wolf, knight of Lake Vizima, member of the brotherhood of witchers.
HP: 310
Mana: 290
Strength: 14.5 → 15
Dexterity: 15 → 15.5
Constitution: 23
Perception: 11.5 → 12
Will: 23
Charisma: 9
Spirit: 21
…
Massacre Level 7, Observe Level 2, Meditation Level 8, Crossbow Mastery Level 2, Sword Mastery Level 2, Alchemy Level 3, Witcher Signs Level 3, Witcher Senses Level (1 → 2).
Griffin Arts Level 6: You now know mutated Signs, Wingflap, and Dual Sign.
Elder Blood (Passive), Trial of the Grasses (Passive), Avarice (Passive).
***
'(1) skill point remaining. (1) stat point remaining.'
Roy fell into his thoughts. Jerome said top-level meditation could grant some incredible powers. And Roy's meditation level was on par with Vesemir’s. Naturally, his skill point would be allocated to Meditation.
And that was what he did.
'Meditation Level (8 → 9)
Constitution: 23 → 23.5
HP: 310 → 315
Spirit: 21 → 21.5
Mana: 290 → 295
Activate: You now possess a deep grasp on meditation. You have come to see its core.
A full cycle of meditation (five hours) grants you a charge of Activate. Activate heals you for (50 → 60)% of your HP and Mana. Activate can heal minor and regular injuries.
Note: Activate is not stackable and will expire in a day.'
***
A loud explosion rang out in Roy's head. His pupils dilated, and his body felt light, not unlike a snake that had shed its skin. For some reason, excitement welled within his heart. He could hear the song of the stones, the dance of the winds, and the laughter of the water all around him.
All the light around slowly disappeared. Roy wasn't meditating, but for some reason, he entered the world only meditators could see. He heard the sound of chaos energy. Its slow, stable beat as its particles rubbed against one another. Roy realized this was how elements communicated through space and time.
Colorful particles of elements swam within the void like little fish. The elemental dimensions, once so far, were now pulled ever so closer to him. Temperatures ebbed and flowed, and seasons changed within the dimensions.
And Roy saw the elementals roaring into the heavens. The godlings were round like balls, the djinns looked like balls of lightning, the nymphs were blue and almost transparent, and the ifrits basked in streams of fire surrounding their bodies.
He tried to touch them, but then everything disappeared, replaced by a yellow ball of light. As Roy stared at it, a sense of familiarity welled within him. He could feel a bond tying him to this ball of light. Is that Letho? He's meditating?
Roy approached the ball of light, but then everything went dim. The world around him spun, and the torch's flickering flame hung overhead.
Cold night winds crossed the cave he was in, waking him up to the real world. Roy felt something missing within him. It was a magical feeling, being in that kind of world.
"Level nine meditation. Erland's meditation is about one level higher. I can't communicate with anyone." But it was good enough. Another level up and Roy would achieve Level 10 Meditation, a feat only a select few had achieved.
***
He then allocated his stat point to Will.
'Will: 23 → 24.'
The three-point increment in Will didn't bring about any drastic change. All he felt was the air getting thicker. Still, Fear and Suppression had a bit of a powerup.
***
Once again, he turned his attention to his character sheet. Bound weapons.
Roy grasped the air, producing an exquisite hand-crossbow out of nowhere. It felt as warm as flesh, and its weight was perfect for Roy.
'Gabriel
(You have powered-up Gabriel for the seventh time. You may power up one of the five following affixes [Not including Guided Arrows].)
Affixes:
Guided Arrows (Elevated): Costs 20 Mana. Fires an arrow driven by mana. Effective range and armor pierce are increased moderately. Guided Arrows will lock on to your targets. Able to change directions within forty-five degrees.
Simplify, Blink, Stun Bolt, Ogre's Fury.'
***
Roy shook his head. After leveling up during the ambush at Kaer Seren, all Gabriel got was a strengthened Guided Arrows. And still no new affix. Do the number of affixes get bottlenecked by the components that make the weapon?
But no point agonizing over that. I need to focus on the now. If I power up Simplify, I’ll probably just reduce the weapon's automatic loading time. It would be a waste of a power up given Roy's current Dexterity.
On the other hand, Blink's power up would probably save me more Mana, but I have nearly 300 Mana, and Activate can heal me for sixty percent of it. That's more than enough for most battles. Not gonna power this up. A Stun Bolt powerup is probably gonna increase the stun time. An Ogre's Fury powerup will probably increase my effective range and armor pierce.
Gabriel was a crucial part of his ranged battle tactics. The weapon didn't cost much, and its Mana cost was negligible, and its burst damage was great. It was more important than Furyfire or Staticshock. Top of the list of priorities.
And Roy made his decision.
'Ogre's Fury (Elevated): Gabriel has absorbed and extracted a cyclops' special tissues. Effective range permanently increased by (50 → 70) meters. Draw strength permanently increased by (60 → 80) pounds.
Draw strength: (120 → 140) pounds.
Effective range: (123 → 143) meters.'
***
"Not bad." Roy tossed Gabriel into the air and tucked it back into his inventory space. "You can break chainmail now."
***
He grasped the air and produced a gleaming blade with five star-shaped runes embedded in the center of its fuller.
'Steel sword—Gwyhyr
(You have powered-up Gwyhyr for the seventh time. You may power up one of the six following affixes [Not including Suppression].)
Affixes:
Circulation, Ignite, Painful Strike, Teleport, Devour
Suppression (Elevated): You now have twenty points in Will. Suppression can now alter reality on a bigger scale. Every time you swing Gwyhyr, the will of the kill can affect your target's mind and soul.
Enemies that have a lower Will than yours will be continuously affected by the will of the kill. Their stats will receive a (minor → moderate) decrease. Their focus will be exhausted at a faster rate, causing them to lose concentration easily. They will also be afflicted by anxiety, fear, and terror.
Suppression ignores all defenses, and its effects strengthen over time.'
***
Roy strengthened Devour this time. Gwyhyr started shining blue like it was spitting blue flames. Once the light died out, the blade gleamed like it was liquid metal. A sixth star appeared on the fuller, forming the shape of an ouroboros.
Devour (Elevated): Gwyhyr has absorbed part of the Brewess' abilities. Every time you damage a target, part of its life force is stolen and stored within the filler.
When all (5 → 6) stars are fully lit, you may exhaust them all to cast a powerful energy slash.
You may also exhaust the energy within these stars to heal yourself for (25 → 30)% of your HP and heal minor injuries.'
***
Devour's energy slash was powerful enough to slice off the head of a higher vampire. Now Roy was confident he could cut open draconid hide and bones. I can kill off basilisks and gliding dracolizards easily now.
***
He chose to strengthen Aerondight's Devour as well. And with that, his level up was complete.
Roy looked outside the cave. The skies had darkened, and he stretched his arms. He teleported himself miles away and found himself on a soft bed covered in purple sheets.
Gryphon let out a mew of surprise and delight. It escaped Lytta's suffocating embrace and hid behind its master.
A nasal, drawling voice said, "So, where did you go? It's late. But if your story's good, I won't punish you."
"I—"
"Come in here right now." Lytta yanked Roy closer to her.
***
The next morning, Roy quickly left Lytta's room. There were dark circles under his eyes, and his steps were weak. But he came to the orphanage nonetheless.
It was the noisiest time of the day for the orphanage. The kids had just finished their morning exercise and were having breakfast around the table, chatting happily.
After the new kids had settled in, the orphanage was as bustling as the city's marketplace, though of course there were no screeches of livestock or the performances of lackluster musicians.
Roy snuck into the crowd and had his breakfast, all the while observing the new kids. Two days had gone by. The new kids were still a little reserved, but Carl and his companions kept talking to them, and the kids were reacting a lot better now.
A few of the brotherhood members were around. Vesemir, Letho, Geralt, Kiyan, Felix, and Serrit. Either they were still single, or their lovers were somewhere else on the continent. They spent their days in the new classroom.
Lambert, Eskel, Auckes, and Aiden, like Roy, would stay at their lovers' place during the night and return when it was time for class.
***
After breakfast, the children went in different directions. The kids who had been educated for a year went to Geralt's class. Geralt wasn't exactly a man who could produce flowery works, but he was experienced enough to teach the kids basic vocabulary and common sense.
Once the children had a solid foundation a few years down the road, the witchers would consider sending them to Oxenfurt Academy for further studies.
The new kids went to the new classroom, where Kiyan would teach them northern common speech. Literacy was everything in studying, and nine out of ten new kids were illiterate.
One good thing about wandering kids was their sense of gratitude. Even though Kiyan looked like something that came out of a nightmare, the kids still respected him, much to the witcher's delight.
***
Letho was in the alchemy workshop, teaching Vicki, Renee, and Conrad basic alchemy. The kids could make more than ten types of potions themselves, including but not limited to marigold potions and potions that could treat colds, fevers, and coughs.
They would also help Kantilla out in the apothecary shop. Vicki made it her dream to be a potionmaker. A few years down the road, they would either travel to the temple of Melitele to learn from Nenneke or work as assistants in Gorthur Gvaed branches in other cities.
The witchers had decided on the best spot for the branch—Lan Exeter, the capital of Kovir and Poviss. It was a city untainted by the ashes of war. But the witchers had a shortage of manpower, so the branch would have to wait.
***
Vesemir was in the rickety wooden shack. He was wearing his usual grey apron, showing Quintus and Fyodor how to make new items. Months had passed since the children took up blacksmithing. They had grown in strength, their arms thicker than their peers’.
They were Vesemir's pupils and apprentice blacksmiths tutored by witchers. Their skills were just beginning to blossom, and their main job was to work the bellows and do some menial jobs. They were still a long way from becoming true blacksmiths who could make weapons and armor.
***
Serrit was in the fields, teaching Oreo, Terry, and Bhim how to speed up the process of turning cornstalks into fertilizer for the crops. They were the main providers of the orphanage's veggies. Most of the crops were for the kids. The remaining corn and beans were used to feed Wilt, Scorpion, and the other horses.
Their archery and trapmaking were coming in handy. A lot of times, Serrit would take them hunting in the woods. They would get themselves rabbits and other critters. Extra food, so to speak.
***
Roy went to the training spot and saw the apprentices bragging to Felix.
"We found seven reserve apprentices from the new boys. They're really interested in swordplay, battles, and monsters. They aren't scared of the stories of drowners, foglets, nekkers, and zeugls. They wanna be a witcher like me. Used to be abused back on the streets, so they wanna grow strong. Their stamina sucks, but that's because of malnourishment. Their will is strong."
Carl puffed his chest out and put a hand behind his back. He circled his mentor like he was some sort of grandmaster. "I guarantee they'll become witchers if you just teach them."
"Half of the new boys, huh?" Felix took his sunglasses off, the light of approval shining in his eyes. He then patted Carl's head. "Well done, Lemur. Once the boys start training, I shall reward you."
"Can I join the brotherhood?" Carl pleaded. He stared at Felix and Roy. "I wanna join in on the discussions."
And Felix gave him a flick on the forehead. "Have you killed a thousand drowners?"
Carl puckered his mouth and tried to cry.
"Alright, stop that. I'll teach you somthing new. A new Sign."
And Carl's tears were replaced by a smile. He held his mentor's hand and swung it around before going back to practice with his friends.
Roy walked along the fence, observing the buildings. The orphanage was perfect. Nearly perfect. All we need is a garden for rare plants. It's been almost a month since we parted ways with Mousesack. His druid should be here soon.
***
***
