บท 105: 105. The Charity Job.
Allen flexed the fingers of his right hand, and as the magic flowed, heat surged from his heart, through his right hand, and shot out.
Igni sign.
"Fwoosh~"
Sparks of intense heat ignited flames. Allen lit the torches in front of the altar one by one in the order of water, earth, air, and fire. He mentally opened the Witcher's Journal, waiting for something to happen.
The story of how the swamp hag crossed over from another world was indeed intriguing. However, in the face of the fate of the school's downfall and his potential demise, the crucial question was how to further enhance his and the school's power.
Besides, the Witcher's Journal didn't speak. Just relying on the swamp hag or the traces of the Conjunction of the Spheres wouldn't bring much useful information. Eventually, he would be trapped in a maze of guesses, delaying the important matters.
"So, let's put it aside for now. There are many mysteries regarding the Witcher's Journal; this is just one more," Allen comforted himself, then activated the magical perspective of the wolf medallion.
The free-flowing magic in the air was several times more than it had been a couple of days ago, twinkling and swirling around the Elemental Circle, resembling the Milky Way. Seeing this, Allen felt a surge of confidence. Unfortunately, ten minutes later, the cooldown time of the Conjunction of the Spheres in the Witcher's Journal had only decreased by ten minutes.
"Turns out, there are no shortcuts," Allen sighed regretfully, deactivated the magical perspective, and turned back to the rock trolls' camp. As he left, he kept glancing back at the large pit. Clearly, Allen hadn't let go of his curiosity about the swamp hag's story as easily as he had claimed.
When he arrived at the trolls' camp, Big Rock, Broken Rock, and Little Rock had finished eating the carrion and were standing in a row on the main path.
"…Witcher… friend… troll… move stuff…"
Seeing Allen approaching, the rock trolls hurried to meet him.
"Urp—"
Broken Rock paused and couldn't help but burp, releasing the distinct rancid smell of decaying meat towards Allen.
"Bang!"
Before Allen could react, Big Rock immediately punched Broken Rock.
"…Broken Rock… deserved that…"
Then, ignoring Broken Rock's reaction, Big Rock smiled foolishly at Allen and said,
"…Witcher… friend… troll… move stuff…"
Allen nodded kindly and led the three rock trolls towards Old Speartip's cave. Rock trolls were cave-dwelling creatures with some night vision ability, so they had no objections when Allen led them into the cave.
"Thud~ Thud~ Thud~"
The slight tremors from the trolls' steps reminded Allen of the suspected Conjunction of the Spheres' traces, prompting him to ask,
"Have you noticed anything strange near your camp in the past two days?"
Broken Rock and Little Rock looked confused.
Big Rock paused, tilted his head, thought for a while, and said, "…Ground moved… loud noise… Little Rock… couldn't sleep…"
Little Rock, hearing his name, blinked his small green eyes in confusion. Seeing no one paid attention, he continued to follow Broken Rock.
Ground moved, loud noise…
So, there really was an "earthquake" near the Elemental Circle… Allen stroked his chin, pondered for a moment, and asked,
"Big Rock, do you remember when the ground moved?"
Big Rock stopped again, tilted his head, thought for a long time, and said,
"…Dark night… bright light… dark night… Little Rock couldn't sleep…"
One dark, one bright…
So it happened the night after the trial ended. No, it shouldn't be just a coincidence.
My earlier guess should be correct—it was caused by the Witcher's Journal absorbing energy, leading to changes. The Elemental Circle was originally a point of connection for the Conjunction of the Spheres. It makes sense that a sudden depletion of magic caused spatial instability at the connection point.
Following this line of reasoning, perhaps the swamp hag indeed came from another world through the connection point. So, the "Ritual: Flesh Colossus" also comes from another world?
Is it really such a coincidence?
Allen lowered his head in thought. After a moment, he noticed three gazes fixed on him. He looked up and saw Big Rock still looking at him, seemingly waiting for his next question.
After pondering for a moment, Allen, having no more questions, nodded gently and said, "Thank you, Big Rock. Let's keep moving."
Big Rock scratched his head, appearing a bit shy.
"…Witcher… friend… friends help each other…"
The return journey was uneventful. Apart from a few ghouls that appeared near the drowner totem, there were no abnormalities.
As for the ghouls, before they could even reach Allen, Big Rock and Broken Rock had each grabbed one and smashed them to the ground, killing them instantly. Their sharp claws produced sparks but did not harm the trolls.
Allen didn't even have time to draw his sword before gaining a few more spoils. The three rock trolls didn't want the ghouls. According to Broken Rock, "…Monster meat… not tasty… Witcher meat tasty…"
Had Allen not spent some time with the rock trolls and developed some understanding of their common language, he might have thought Broken Rock wanted to eat him. Of course, though Allen didn't mind, Big Rock still caught the slip and gave Broken Rock a hard punch.
Through the playful interactions along the way, Allen learned that the three rock trolls were a family. Little Rock was an underage troll, and Broken Rock was his father, while Big Rock was his mother.
Yes, the largest of the rocks, Big Rock, was "female" and was reportedly much older than Broken Rock. Regarding her past, the otherwise open Big Rock was uncharacteristically reticent and seemed unwilling to divulge more.
There were likely stories here, stories that might explain Big Rock's unique personality. Naturally, Allen was curious, but out of respect and to avoid damaging the fragile relationship between him and the trolls, he refrained from pressing further.
After all, in his heart, he believed these three rock trolls would eventually become his allies. These stories would be known in due time; there was no need to rush.
------------
Kaer Morhen's gate.
Guarding the castle actually came with a salary of three orens a day. This pay rate was already very high among the gate guards in the Northern Kingdoms. Even in the famously wealthy free city of Novigrad, guards earned only one oren every seven days, let alone other cities.
However, for Witchers, this clearly wasn't a good job. It wasn't enough to make them leave the feasting and merrymaking in the main hall during winter to freeze outside on guard duty. This position was merely a "charity" job.
Today, the guards on duty were the Witchers Marco and Sully.
"Damn it! Kaer Morhen is getting colder and colder!" Sully huddled in the gatehouse, rubbing his hands vigorously. He wasn't a particularly talented Witcher, only slightly stronger than an ordinary person. The cold weather made him eager to finish his shift quickly and return to the main hall for a warm drink.
Marco, standing dutifully in the cold wind, glanced at Sully but said nothing, his contempt evident. "If it weren't for being injured and owing the school 234 orens for equipment repairs, I wouldn't be here with someone like him."
Just as Marco was lamenting his fate, he noticed something. From the slope at the end of his line of sight, two large "stones" carrying several headless human corpses appeared. Rubbing his eyes, he saw the stone was the dark blue heads of rock trolls, terrifying and blood-stained. His expression changed drastically.
Rock trolls were large monsters, beyond their capability to handle. Without time to think, Marco quickly ran back, pulling the alarm and shouting: "Rock trolls are attacking!"
...…
📢20 advanced chapters on p@treaon📢
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106. What Are You Talking About?
107. Shattered Dream.
108. Grass! Grass!
109. The Beginning of the Witcher Corps.
110. Have the Wildcats Named Their Price?
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