Child of Surprise

Accident Law.

A law commonly known in the Witcher world, almost as old as human history.

The person who saves another can, according to the Accident Law, demand a reward from the person they saved, asking for the first thing the person sees when they get home...

Or something the rescued person doesn't know about but already possesses—usually a child the rescued person received when leaving home.

Such children are called "Child of Surprise".

In the original story, Lambert, Ciri, and even the protagonist Geralt were all Child of Surprise.

In addition to possessing the legal effect of a contract under customary law, the Accident Law also has the power of magic.

Once a requirement that meets the conditions of the Accident Law is made, the bond of fate between the parties to the oath and the contract will be firmly established.

Violating the Accident Law will bring disaster, such as serious illness, accidental death, or even the destruction of a country.

but.

The Accident Law is generally proposed by those who save others in order to make up for their losses.

It's rare for someone being rescued to actively request the use of the Accident Law, let alone request it with such determination and excitement...

At least until today, Vesemir had never seen anything like it.

After all, the Accident Law ultimately targets the children of those who are rescued in the vast majority of cases.

"H-how... how are you two... witch hunters..."

"I'm penniless, so... I should be able to use the Accident Law, right..."

"I have nothing to repay you for saving my life, but the Accident Law can at least make up for the Witcher's loss."

The fisherman, with a fawning smile, practically begged Ailin to use the Accident Law.

A strong stench of blood mingled with the smell of urine...

Ailin frowned and glanced at Vesemir.

"This is the person you saved, you decide!" Vesemir shook his head.

It differs from the previous game and the original work.

Before the Witcher class declined, it was customary for Witchers to receive payment for saving lives, whether they were ordinary Witchers or Witcher Master and Grandmasters.

Furthermore, unless the Accident Law is used, the rewards for rescuing people of different identities from different monsters will vary.

This is actually quite easy to understand.

A Witcher Master has a reliable and substantial source of income and can do without payment for saving lives.

But not for ordinary witchers.

If wealthy witchers waive the life-saving payment for the poor, then some low-class scoundrels will inevitably use this as an excuse to charge the poor witchers on credit.

It's important to know that the strength of ordinary witchers is far inferior to that of Ailin and Vesemir.

Most Witchers have just finished their trials and can only deal with Lesser Monsters like water ghosts and Ghoul.

Even if there are more than three of these Lesser Monsters, there could be danger.

Weapons and leather armor will also wear out and require costly maintenance and repairs.

If there is no reward for saving people and there is a great risk involved, it will definitely make ordinary witchers less willing to save other people who encounter accidents.

A vicious cycle.

Therefore, Ailin definitely had to accept the reward for saving his life, but the fact that it was done in Accident Law way made him feel somewhat uncomfortable.

The abduction of someone else's child, resulting in the separation of family, is something this modern man finds somewhat difficult to accept.

Moreover, he still vividly remembered the torment of the Trial of Grasses, and there was the precedent of Thomas Moru turning against him...

"Ailin, why don't you just say yes?"

Mary's words then interrupted Ailin's dilemma.

The young Sorceress, seeing the fisherman's tattered clothes and his body covered in foul-smelling blood, offered a word of support.

In her view, as a local, using the Accident Law was a benevolent act.

"Yes! Yes!" the fisherman quickly replied, "Witcher, I'm penniless, penniless..."

He seemed afraid that Ailin would ask him for some money or valuables.

Things have come to this.

Ailin could only nod and say:

"Since that's the case..."

"The first thing you'll see when you get home is my reward..."

"Buzz~"

Before he could finish speaking...

The Wolf Emblem on the Witcher's chest, baring its teeth, suddenly buzzed.

This is usually a sign that there are monsters nearby.

However, neither of the two Witcher Master was on alert, because they, who were not supposed to be able to sense magical fluctuations, actually detected them.

Moreover, Ailin also felt that he had become connected with something vague.

"This is?"

Ailin paused for a moment.

It was a feeling that was hard to describe, a sudden flash of inspiration or a whim...

Suddenly, Sadia's words about the guidance of fate came to mind.

"Is this the Accident Law?"

Mary was surprised to feel the magical fluctuations in the air.

This is a fluctuation that is difficult to describe.

Like the calm waves of a tranquil sea, though steady and gentle, they are unfathomably deep.

Mary glanced at Ailin, who was also looking surprised, and then focused her gaze on Vesemir's face.

But Vesemir shook his head with a complicated expression:

"I... don't know. I've used the Accident Law more than twenty times, but this is the first time I've encountered a situation like this."

"Ailin... it seems you have no choice but to agree..."

Having spent three or four months with Ailin, Vesemir could naturally guess Ailin's thoughts.

"What's wrong, gentlemen?" The fisherman did not sense any magical fluctuations in the air.

His only worry was that the monster with the terrifying blue eyes in front of him might change its mind.

"It's nothing," Ailin paused for a few seconds, then shook his head. "Lead the way, take me to your house, and bring me my reward..."

The fisherman beamed, bowed obsequiously, said "thank you" twice, and prepared to lead the way.

"Etc!"

Vesemir suddenly spoke up.

The fisherman quickly turned around.

"Ah!"

He came face to face with the ferocious, furious head of the Greater Griffin tied to the side of "Radish," and plopped down on the ground, terrified out of his wits.

The strong, pungent stench was truly tormenting the Witcher's nose.

Seeing this, Ailin looked helplessly at Vesemir.

Vesemir also sighed helplessly and waved his hand, saying:

"Let's wash up by the river before we hit the road..."

Upon hearing this, the fisherman subconsciously glanced at what was beneath him, then at the crystal-clear lake beside him.

Those two water ghosts just now suddenly jumped out of this seemingly safe lake.

"No... no need..."

"Don't worry, we will protect you," Vesemir interrupted.

Witchers can tolerate unpleasant odors for the sake of their missions, but that doesn't mean they like them.

The fisherman glanced at the two witchers again.

Seeing their cold, inhuman eyes, and after pondering in his mind whether the water ghosts or the witchers were more terrifying, he shakily went into the water to wash himself.

for a long time.

After the fishermen had mostly cleaned themselves of the dirt, the group continued on their way.

The fisherman's home was not in Vengerberg, but in a village surrounding the royal city.

Perhaps because it is located next to a small river and the village is mostly inhabited by fishermen who make a living by fishing, the village is called Fisherman's Village.

It's not far from where Ailin rescued people; it only takes about half an hour to walk there.

Upon reaching the edge of the village and the wooden fence surrounding it, the fisherman's tense mood noticeably eased.

He pointed beyond the fence to the end of the muddy path in the village and said:

"Witcher, that's my home."

Then, without realizing it, he quickened his pace, as if he couldn't wait any longer.

Upon seeing this, Vesemir and Ailin exchanged glances and then frowned.

Although what the rescued person sacrificed due to the Accident Law was not necessarily a child, the illiterate fisherman certainly wouldn't know that.

After all, there are many stories about the Child of Surprise circulating in taverns and among bards, but there is no such thing as an accident in this world.

This fisherman... he seems to have a grudge against his own flesh and blood, eagerly trying to send the child away...

What outrageous thing did that child do?

Even Mary, who had been feeling sorry for the fisherman's plight, sensed something was amiss and looked at Ailin, hesitant to speak.

Perhaps it's the Greater Griffin's menacing head that inspires fear.

The villagers he encountered along the way didn't dare to greet the fisherman and kept their distance.

Then, with timid eyes, they watched as Ailin and his group walked through the muddy and filthy shack village toward the end of the village.

The fisherman who was leading the way didn't care about any of that.

After all these years, they are finally going to get rid of that monster that made him lose face in the village.

The fisherman felt completely refreshed.

Even if no one washes clothes, cooks lunch and dinner, or he has less money for alcohol in the future, he doesn't care.

With one less mouth to feed, we might be able to buy a new outfit for our two-year-old son.

"Tap~ Tap~ Tap~"

With hurried footsteps, my familiar but not exactly cozy home was near.

Out of a certain degree of caution.

The fisherman paused at the last bend in front of his house.

I looked up at the sky.

"At this time, that monster must be washing clothes outside."

The fisherman nodded in satisfaction.

After pulling up his slightly damp pants with both hands...

"Squeak~"

The dilapidated wooden gate was opened.

In an instant.

The fisherman, who was about to step inside, suddenly froze at his doorstep.

"What's wrong?"

Ailin led the horse behind the fisherman.

At this moment.

"Wow--"

Suddenly, the sound of a child crying came from in front of the fisherman.

"They must have been frightened by the residual magical aura of the Greater Griffin; children are more sensitive."

Vesemir took the reins from Ailin and was about to lead the carrot with the Greater Griffin head hanging on it a little further away.

"Witcher... Witcher," the fisherman turned his head stiffly, like a doll in a rusty music box, "I... I suddenly remembered that I have some money at home..."

"Could you... could you... could you..."

Ailin and Vesemir, who turned around, looked at each other with increasingly cold eyes, so much so that the fisherman couldn't utter a complete sentence.

Do you know what the Accident Law is?

Before Ailin could speak, Vesemir loosened the reins, strode over, looked down at the fisherman with disgust, and reprimanded him sternly:

"This is a contract, a contract with fate, a contract recognized by the northern kingdoms, a contract that even the king must abide by..."

"Do you know what happened to the last person who broke the Accident Law?"

The fisherman was so frightened that he instinctively shook his head.

Vesemir remained unmoved and gave a cold laugh, saying:

"Zevellana, she became Queen of Metina because of a dwarf Lomprestilte, and promised to give her first child to the dwarf..."

"Yet when the dwarf came to demand his payment, he dared to use witchcraft to drive him away!"

"Soon..."

"Zevellana and her children all fell seriously ill and died!"

"Remember..." Vesemir stepped forward again, looking down at the fisherman and emphasizing:

"The sorceress queen and all her children—including the one she had promised to fate—were all dead..."

"None of them survived."

Amid the children's cries, the fisherman's once fawning face turned as pale as a corpse.

If the child hadn't been right behind him, he would have been so frightened that he wet his pants again.

Do you think you have more power and are more powerful than Zevellana?

The fisherman shook his head repeatedly, cold sweat pouring down his forehead.

"Go in, give us the Child of Surprise, and we'll leave," Vesemir said coldly.

He didn't understand why the fisherman's behavior had changed so drastically.

However, Vesemir didn't care, so he didn't want to know.

But to violate the Accident Law...

That's impossible!

He absolutely will not allow it!

In the past, when the Accident Law violation was violated, only the party who violated it was punished.

But when they made the contract by the river, the reaction from fate was so strong that even he and Mary, two outsiders, felt it.

Therefore, Vesemir dared not gamble...

If Ailin were to soften her heart and agree...

Will fate also bring misfortune upon the future of his most admired apprentice and school of thought?

therefore.

Vesemir had to gamble on this possibility before Ailin could even speak.

The fisherman is cowardly and selfish.

Under the piercing gaze of two monsters with Cat Eyes, and the tragic fate of Queen Zesna.

Her affection for her youngest son seems to be...

There aren't that many left.

He opened the door shakily and invited the two witchers in, but they refused.

"Give us the Child of Surprise, and we'll leave," Vesemir said coldly.

"Okay... okay, you two... witch hunters, please... please wait a moment..."

The fisherman entered the house.

A little boy, about three or four years old, was sitting on the ground in the yard, crying loudly.

The crying annoyed the fisherman.

The already waning affection has faded even further.

"It's better that they've taken him away. With one less mouth to feed, I can have one more drink every day..."

He thought to himself.

Then, without trying to comfort the little boy, he picked him up and handed him to Vesemir had a cold expression on his face.

Just as the Witcher Master was using an Axii Sign to lull the crying boy to sleep...

"Dad," a timid, hoarse female voice suddenly came from the dark room, "Who are they?"

Why did you give Clay to them?

moment.

Upon hearing the woman's voice, the fisherman erupted like a volcano, rushing into the thatched hut with a speed that even the water ghosts couldn't match.

"Smack!"

A loud slap came from the darkness.

"How many times have I told you?! Ugh!!!"

"Don't call me Dad, don't call me Dad, why won't you listen?"

"But you are my father!" the hoarse female voice wailed.

"Smack!"

"Would I give birth to a monster like you?" the fisherman roared in fury after being retorted.

"You damned bastard, a freak cursed by the gods..."

"Why didn't you do laundry today? Why weren't you outside?"

"Smack!"

"Ah—I haven't eaten for two days, so I looked for..."

Before the woman could finish speaking...

"Smack!"

Another hard slap.

"Oh! You dare to steal food!"

"Smack!"

The ear-piercing slaps, curses, and wails made the three people, who were already planning to leave, involuntarily stop in their tracks.

Vesemir, holding the sleeping little boy, hesitated whether to try to persuade him.

But then they saw the fisherman's face flush with anger, pulling at his black hair, and grabbing a black creature that looked like a girl...

They dragged it out.