Chương 131: Farewell, My Rose
Chapter 131
One should finish all of their affairs before dying. They should say their goodbyes to their loved ones, write their will, apologize to the ones they hurt. Otherwise, those lingering feelings won't let them leave this world. Advice for a dying man.
"What should we do?" asked Dennis. "There is a huge commotion in the palace due to the wraiths."
"You must understand the nature of the wraiths," said Letho. "Those who'd despaired beyond the limit in their lifetime were turned into wraiths after their death. They had suffered endless pain. Maybe they were wronged, framed for something, or had their loved ones killed. There is a lot of hatred and anger in them. They have unfulfilled desire or vengeance, which is why they envy the living, who have a chance to fulfil their desires. Because of these lingering feelings, they cannot leave this place, so all we have to do is uproot the source of these emotions they have."
"Emotions?" asked the dwarf. "Will we have to go to the families of each and every victim and fulfill their wishes? Can't we make them leave by force?"
Letho shook his head. "They are quite difficult to deal with. Even if I weren't injured, it'd be difficult to fight eight wraiths in the narrow room as fire and poisons don't work on them. Fighting them is hardly possible. When wraiths are born, they cannot leave their birthplace. So, either we deal with the reasons for their emotions or let them stay there forever."
Dennis fell silent.
Roy led and said, "Imagine you were alive and well, and suddenly, you were killed for no reason, and before your death, you were tortured so much that you wished for death. Then you became a wraith. What would be your biggest desire?"
"I would want to kill him," said Dennis. "I would want to give him the most painful death to get my vengeance."
"And what if your murderer died and became a wraith too?"
"I wouldn't let him leave; I'd haunt him forever."
"So…" Roy patted Dennis and said, "Salvatore was burned at the stake and Simon became a wraith."
Dennis understood where Roy was getting at and said, "Then we only need to get rid of Simon and the rest of the six should be freed."
"Furthermore, Duchess Emilia is Simon's love. She is the fetter stopping Simon from leaving and also the reason behind the ritual of the Seven Deadly Sins."
A/N: I has decided to switch "Queen Emilia" to "Duchess Emilia".
"That's why Emilia is the root of everything. She was hanged in the room, unable to escape, and the rest of the wraiths were entangled with her. Get rid of her, and all the wraiths will vanish."
The dwarf's face twitched when he heard this. "Destroy the duchess' ghost?"
"More precisely, purification. Free her from her physical body."
The witcher said, "The wraiths do not have the emotions they had when they were humans, but the last obsession before their death. Let's find that last obsession of the duchess and then purify her."
***
The dwarf stroked his chin, which had a dark brown beard, and returned to the palace with two search witchers.
Along the way, he kept talking about the difficult situation the duchess had been in at the palace. Although she had been a noble, compared to Hereward, the prince of the country, Emilia was only a daughter of a Baron of Ellander.
Hereward always exploited this superiority over the duchess, and he was extremely cold to her. During weekdays, he wouldn't even look at her. To him, she was just a tool who'd give birth to his child. He treated her as if she were a puppet, and since they weren't able to conceive a child, he behaved more cruelly.
"If the duke hadn't been there, Miss Emilia and Knight Simon would've really looked good together—like their pair wouldn't have been comparable to any other, right?"
An absurd thought flashed through the dwarf's mind, and in an instant, he threw it away.
"The duke owes the duchess an apology, without a doubt. Maybe this is related to her last wish," Letho guessed.
Roy was surprised. He didn't think Emilia's obsession would be related to her husband.
Walking all the way in the palace through the promenade made by vertical columns, the three finally met the Duke of Ellander, Hereward—a tall, chubby man with a beard. (A/N : Prior to this, Hereward was referred to as King of Ellander or prince of Hereward. But he is Duke and Prince of Ellander. So from now on, most of the time he'd be referred to as Duke and sometimes as Prince.) He had a crown on his head, his face was flushed, he looked serious, and his back was covered by a white cloak. His movements were swift, yet powerful, and he looked quite grumpy.
***
After struggling for a bit, Dennis told Hereward about how to get rid of the wraiths. Hereward needed to apologize to the wraith the duchess had transformed into for the grievances she had suffered before.
Hereward scolded the dwarf, and the latter was scared to death, which could be seen by the expression on his face. He could hardly respond with anything.
But after venting for a while, the duke surrendered. Compared to being humiliated, he was even more disgusted with hiding in the minister's house and being considered a joke.
Afterwards, Hereward went to Duchess Emilia's room with a group of guards protecting him. Facing the wraiths who were guarding the door, he slowly started to apologize. The scene was quite funny. A gorgeously dressed aristocrat, who treated his subjects as if they were peasants, trembled and apologized to a group of ugly wraiths.
Only then did Roy comprehend Letho's intention—to make the duke, who had a deep prejudice against the search witchers, be embarrassed in public!
What a joy!
The corner of the boy's lips curled up. The pendant on his chest started vibrating. To stop it, he scanned the room and used his skill to observe, his dark golden eyes seemingly becoming deeper.
'Wraith
Age: 38
Health: 70
Strength: 6
Dexterity: 7
Constitution: 7
Perception: 3
Will: 4
Charm: 3
Spirit: 0
Skill:
Wailing Level 4: Wraiths are filled with resentment, and are born from people who have suffered and have been wronged during their lifetime. Their wailing can evoke fear in people's hearts. Enemies cannot resist. This makes them lose their courage.
Astral body (Passive solidification): The body of the wraith is neither physical nor astral. They can solidify when attacking and get astral while defending. In astral form, they receive 0 physical damage, and normally, the physical damage is reduced by half. They launch insidious attacks while in astral form.'
***
"Emilia, I still remember the first time I saw you. I could tell at a glance that you were a beautiful, gentle and understanding woman."
The apologies lasted for half an hour. At first, the duke had been unwilling to, but then he did, as if he didn't care, and lastly it became "sincere", and the expressions of the wraith did not change at all.
Baring its teeth and swinging its claws, it stared at him.
"Fuck! Is it that I, the son of the King and Duke of Ellander, am not worthy enough to be the last obsession of this woman?!"
"Your Majesty, can you think of anything else worthy of the duchess' obsession?" Dennis asked cautiously, but Hereward was furious.
"Shut up! This lowly woman is not qualified to be called a duchess!" He stared at the roaring wraith, and after a long time, calmed himself down. "My tone was too rough, don't mind it. Her love affair could only be her obsession. Before, I showed evidence of the slut's beloved to her, and then she threw it out. I was almost going to burn it. Do you think that stuff might give her peace?"
"The diary Mr. Roy found at Simon's house?"
"Yes."
"We can give it a try," said Letho.
Duke sent someone to fetch that diary. For a moment, the leading wraith banged the door like crazy, and the guys behind it also got restless, but they were all blocked by an invisible barrier, unable to get out of the room.
"Sure enough, it's that thing! This bitch! Can't forget the sweet scent of her beloved's words, even after dying!"
At that moment, Hereward waved his hand indifferently, asking someone to burn the diary.
But the witcher stopped him.
"Your Majesty, even if burning this book has no direct effect, it might agitate the wraith even more. I think gentler means should be used."
"Witcher, don't you think I've lost enough face? Do you think I can be called a dignified duke after reading my wife's lover's diary?"
"Your Majesty." Roy stepped forward, pretending to be generous and fearless, and said solemnly, "Don't worry, I can do this for you. You can rest outside, as you must be tired."
Hereward didn't want to let others know of the secrets in the diary, so he took all his men and left the room and went far away.
There were only two search witchers near the room, and Letho crossed his arms and stood still, as if he were watching the show. As Roy slowly opened the diary, his face had a complicated expression. Never had he expected for such a thing to happen.
A witcher, facing a group of wraiths and reciting romantic poems, this... this scene was too weird.
"My Rose, the first time I saw you, I was fascinated." Since he was doing this thing for the first time, Roy obviously lacked the emotions bards used while speaking. He said it too plainly.
But when the wraith heard those words, a trace of confusion flashed in its eyes, and its expression was no longer malicious.
It's effective!
"After meeting you today, I cannot stop myself from thinking about you... My worries are blown away like there's a spring breeze when I talk to you."
Roy stuttered but continued.
"I am in the same situation as you are. Although I'm a knight, I'm powerless to fight for you… "
***
Five minutes later, when he finished reading, two of the wraiths lifted their heads slightly, and their swollen and rotting cheeks glowed with memories.
"On the ashes of the seven deadly sins, the most beautiful flower in the world will bloom, and I dedicate that to you..."
"Farewell, my rose!"
That was the last sentence.
Two of the wraiths faced each other and hugged tightly — so tightly it seemed they were merging into one.
Although they still looked like monsters, their expressions made it seem like they were at peace, as if they were happy, and that their feelings had been transformed into some substance and were overflowing from their bodies.
A faint light was emitting from them, just like melting ice, their translucent bodies slowly dissipating. The remaining six wraiths seemed to have regained their memories, and rushed towards the two, surrounding and brutally biting them.
Roy rubbed his eyes and looked at the scene. They were getting higher and higher.
They were becoming one by biting and embracing each other, like an illusory statue that had different expressions, entangled limbs, and was rising from the ground.
Accompanied by a burst of dazzling emerald green light, there was a deafening scream in the room, and in a flash, everything vanished.
The wraiths turned into dust which radiated evil green emerald light all over the sky.
The scene before them looked beautiful and came the notification in front of Roy
'Purified the wraith, experience gained +60, Witcher Level 5 (500/2500)'
"Was this Simon's purpose? Getting himself killed, and by means of someone passing this diary on to the duchess?" Roy whispered. "You couldn't stay together during your lifetime, but you wouldn't be separated after you died."
The secret ritual of the Great Sun religion is really evil!
In Elder Speech, it meant a place or location far away, meaning that it would follow the witcher on a faraway journey.
Wilt neighed happily and bowed respectfully.
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