The Wild Hunt and the Ants

Wild Hunt?

Ailin's heart skipped a beat, and she immediately had a bad feeling.

He exchanged a glance with Vesemir, whose expression was equally grave.

"Mary, you wait here..."

Without turning his head, Ailin gave a brief instruction, and the two witchers channeled their magic, activated the Quen Shield, and quickly ran out of the tavern.

"Bang!"

The moment the tavern door was pushed open, a cacophony of shouts and cries for help flooded in.

"Buzzing~"

The School Emblem hummed even more intensely, as if it were about to leap from its chest into the air.

Just as they stepped out of the tavern, before Ailin could even see where the Wild Hunt was...

A streak of icy blue light fell from the sky like a shooting star, landing in the bulk goods trading market not far from the tavern.

"Watch out..." Vesemir shouted, his expression changing drastically.

The next second.

"Boom!"

The timber trading market was blown to pieces.

The shockwave instantly shattered the pale gold shields on Vesemir and Ailin, who were not far away.

Before Ailin could react, she was blasted back to the tavern.

"Click~ Click~"

It crashed into five or six sets of chairs, and even smashed two deep dents into the oak bar counter before finally stopping.

"Buzz~"

"Buzz~"

The bell rang loudly beside my ears.

Countless scenes overlapped and intertwined before my eyes, making my brain feel like a jumbled mess.

A long time passed.

Only then did Ailin taste the strong metallic flavor in his mouth and remember to breathe.

He was panting heavily.

It sounded as if someone was crying out, calling his name...

All the sounds seemed to be muffled by a layer of water, indistinct and unclear, as if they were in another world.

An unknown amount of time passed.

The ghosting and noise gradually subsided.

My cheeks were gently pinched, and cold liquid flowed in.

at the same time.

Warm water droplets were dripping onto my face.

A few more seconds passed.

A warm feeling spread through Ailin's chest, followed by a cool sensation that rose from his stomach and permeated his brain.

"Pop~"

The moment the sound of a soap bubble being popped rang out.

Ailin suddenly became as sharp-witted and perceptive as if he had surfaced from the water.

"Ailin! Ailin!"

A girl with a dirty face was hugging him, her eyes blurry with tears, calling his name.

Crystalline tears left two dirty tear streaks on her full, round face.

My nose was filled with a faint sour smell mixed with a faint orange fragrance.

"I'm fine!" Ailin struggled to get up.

My whole body aches.

However, they are all within tolerable limits.

He glanced at the crystal bottle beside him, which still held a trace of green liquid, patted Mary on the shoulder, and asked:

"Where is Master Vesemir?"

"How is he?"

He remembered that when he was hit by the blast wave, Vesemir suddenly stood in front of him, facing the shockwave directly.

"Ah?"

"Ah!!!"

"Oh, right... and Master Vesemir!!!"

Mary exclaimed.

He frantically pulled another bottle of "Veridian Sigh" from Ailin's reagent bag.

Fortunately, the reagent bag was a gift from Lady Vesemir, and not a single bottle of potion was broken in the shockwave.

Otherwise, it wouldn't just be a matter of a huge financial drain.

You should know that Ailin still has two bottles of North Wind in the test kit...

If he had been shattered by the shockwave, he doesn't know if he would have had another chance to change jobs.

Mary moved away.

Ailin glanced around.

The tavern was in a mess, with pieces of wooden tables and chairs scattered everywhere.

The double wooden door is now truly double-opening.

The place was empty, and you could see the daylight outside, but something seemed to be blocking the entrance to the tavern, so you couldn't see it clearly.

Then Ailin turned her head and looked in the direction Mary was looking.

Vesemir lay limply amidst the ruins of the bar, his eyes vacantly widening and contracting.

Fresh blood flowed from his mouth and forehead, which was very frightening.

certainly.

Ailin estimated that he himself didn't look much better.

but.

He wasn't too worried about Vesemir's injuries.

After carefully sensing it, Ailin knew that Vesemir's vitality was still as strong as ever.

I'm just a little dazed from the shockwave.

After Mary walked over, the dwarf who had been watching over Vesemir immediately stepped aside:

"Is Vesemir alright? Is he alright...?"

Ignoring the heavy losses suffered by their own tavern, the dwarf focused all his attention on Vesemir.

It's obvious.

This dwarf known as Blackbeard was indeed Vesemir's close friend.

"Don't worry, Master Vesemir will be fine." Mary carefully pried open Vesemir's mouth.

Drink down the Veridian Sigh.

A few seconds later, the bleeding on Vesemir's body stopped.

The dark golden Cat Eyes widened and contracted.

The Witcher Master frowned warily, but breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that it was Mary and Blackbeard in front of him.

Then, as if suddenly remembering something, he quickly asked:

"Where... where is Ailin?"

"Is he alright?"

Mary hadn't even had a chance to speak.

"Hahahaha, Master Ailin, you don't need to worry about him..."

The dwarf beside him laughed heartily, winking and making sarcastic remarks:

"The first person this young lady cared for and fed medicine to with tears in her eyes wasn't you, Vesemir..."

"It's been me, the bearded tough guy, watching over you the whole time..."

Aren't you going to say thank you?

Upon hearing this, Mary blushed with embarrassment, wiped away her tears, lowered her head, and remained silent.

"Get lost!" Vesemir cursed irritably, then breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that Ailin had already stood up.

"Where are the two brats I brought?" he asked.

"Don't worry, they're fine." The dwarf shook his head. "The tavern maids took them to the underground wine cellar, where it's safe."

Vesemir was finally completely relieved.

Helped to his feet by Mary, Vesemir wiped the blood from his face and looked out of the tavern.

Screams, cries, and screams came from outside the door.

The two witchers strained their keen hearing, but they did not hear any explosions or sounds of horseback fighting.

After the effects of the Veridian Sigh medicine had fully taken hold and the body's injuries had largely healed.

Ailin and Vesemir exchanged a knowing glance, took a deep breath, and applied another layer of Quen to themselves.

Immediately afterwards.

The two witchers then headed towards the door.

at this time.

Ailin felt his sleeve being pulled.

Turn around.

Mary looked at him pleadingly:

"Don't go, Ailin, it's too dangerous outside..."

"You no longer have the Veridian Sigh..."

Ailin glanced at Vesemir.

The Witcher Master was still cautiously walking towards the door, as if he hadn't heard anything.

Ailin shook his head and said:

"Someone has to go out and check the situation."

"Don't worry, I'll be careful."

"Go to the cellar quickly, Yennefer and Royce are shy..."

"We... we'll be back soon!"

As he spoke.

Ailin didn't dare look Mary in the eye, and followed Vesemir with his head down.

We haven't even seen what the enemy is yet...

With so many people in the tavern, is it really possible to escape by simply hiding?

As for letting Vesemir go out on his adventure alone, he and Mary hid in the wine cellar...

Ailin is a bit too shy to do something like that.

He didn't want to die, but he wasn't afraid of dying either.

Otherwise, what's the point of being a Witcher?

After catching up with Vesemir, the Witcher Master glanced at him, a look of satisfaction gleaming in his amber Cat Eyes.

However, Vesemir said nothing, focusing all his attention on the tavern entrance.

"Buzzing~"

The School Emblem suddenly trembled.

Ailin froze, his body flashing with blue magical light.

"It's Asery's Water Shield..." he thought to himself.

The young witcher was about to turn around for a look, but after thinking about it, he decided not to turn around and walked straight ahead.

A second later, the same glow also flashed across Vesemir's body.

Vesemir glanced back:

"Mary is a Good Girl, don't let her down in the future."

After hesitating for a second, he sighed and advised:

"Or... you should stay."

Ailin shook his head and didn't say anything.

They cautiously followed Vesemir out of the tavern.

At this moment.

"Knock knock knock~"

Heavy footsteps came from behind.

Vesemir turned his head and asked in a soft voice of surprise, "What are you doing here?"

"Hmph~" The Blackbeard dwarf raised a warhammer and snorted, "This is my home!"

"If you, an outsider, can go, why can't I?"

Vesemir was silent for two seconds, then whispered "Be careful," without offering any further advice.

"Don't worry!" The dwarf raised his heavy warhammer. "You've forgotten, my hammer has smashed a giant's toe before."

The three of them worked together to quietly move away the blood-stained pieces of broken wood and bricks blocking the doorway.

They were all stunned when they saw the scene outside.

There was no one left at the tavern entrance; to be precise, there was no one alive.

Everywhere there were the corpses and remains of humans and horses.

The original market for bulk goods disappeared, and in its place grew a cluster of ice that was taller than the gates of Vengerberg.

Ailin, Vesemir, and the dwarf stood below, shrouded in shadows that reflected the iridescent light, looking like two ants.

The chilling air turned into a thin mist, making people shiver.

"A dwarf's beard!" The Blackbeard dwarf gasped, his mouth agape in astonishment. "What... what kind of magic is this?"

He looked at Vesemir and asked in a low voice:

"Vesemir, I just heard someone shout... Wild Hunt ..."

Vesemir shook his head:

"I heard it too, but I didn't see what the enemy looked like, so I'm not sure yet."

"Have you seen the Wild Hunt?" the dwarf asked as he quietly followed the two witchers outside.

You could tell from his incessant chatter and his hand gripping the hammer handle so tightly that his knuckles turned white.

His heart was not as calm as he appeared on the surface.

Vesemir shook his head. Seeing the dwarf's nervousness, he had intended to persuade him to go back.

But remembering Blackbeard's stubborn dwarf personality, he gave up.

"I've never seen the Wild Hunt, nor do I believe it was the Wild Hunt that attacked this place..."

"After all, the Wild Hunt is just a legend among the elves!"

Vesemir shook his head, then put his index finger to his lips to signal for silence.

The dwarf nodded.

Then crouch down and peer outwards little by little.

There was no one on the street, only corpses and huge clusters of ice.

Even the pitiful cries and wails gradually disappeared.

In a short time.

The only sound in the entire Gors Velen was the howling of the cold wind blowing through the ice clusters.

The frigid temperature and eerie atmosphere made the dwarf's teeth chatter in fear.

"What about the Wild Hunt?"

Seemingly noticing the strange gazes of the two witchers, the Blackbeard dwarf spoke softly.

"Have no idea..."

Vesemir looked around with a serious expression, but there was still no one there.

It was as if those enormous ice clusters had grown out of nowhere without any reason.

"Da da da~"

Amidst the faint sound of footsteps.

The three men, cautiously leaning against the barriers, searched the entire Gors Velen but did not see a single monster.

Not to mention the flying steel knights and skeleton soldiers.

If it weren't for the ice clusters at the tavern entrance, which even contained the panicked merchant and cook, the three of them might have wondered if they were just daydreaming.

Just as the three of them were frowning and pondering what exactly had attacked the Gors Velen.

"The Wild Hunt is gone!"

A middle-aged man wearing glasses and walking with a leisurely gait emerged from a nearby house.

But you can see the dust on his face and the scratches on his clothes.

Ailin could easily recall the scene of his previous desperate escape.

"Who are you?" Vesemir asked, frowning.

"Excuse me..." the middle-aged man gave an elegant bow. "Please allow me to introduce myself. I am Ernesto, a master's tutor and lecturer in the Department of Mysticism at the Oxenfurt Academy. And you are?"

"Vesemir, the master of the School of the Wolf of Witcher Master ..." Vesemir said.

"The School of the Wolf Witcher Master, Ailin ..." Ailin said.

"John Kramer, the owner of Blackbeard's Tavern..." the dwarf said.

Ernesto paused for a moment at Ailin's age, but said nothing.

After a brief self-introduction, Blackbeard eagerly asked:

"Human, did you really see the Wild Hunt?"

"A vast army of knights riding across the skies, a harbinger of war..." Professor Ernesto, the occultist of the Cowburg, stammered, "Yes, I saw it..."

Are you sure that really is the Wild Hunt?

Vesemir stared at Ernesto expressionlessly, as if trying to see if he was lying.

Ernesto paused for a moment, then lowered his head and pondered for a few seconds before saying:

"Theoretically speaking, I don't really know if they are Wild Hunt, but..."

He looked directly into Vesemir's eyes:

"Skeleton horse, ghost army, bluish-black flames..."

"At least those Skeleton Knight flying in the sky are exactly as described in the ancient texts..."

"I watched them ride out of the void," Ernesto said, pointing to a spot in the sky, "Like there was an invisible door in the heavens..."

"About three or four hundred knights swept across the sky above the Gors Velen..."

Seemingly worried that the two witchers wouldn't believe him, Ernesto added:

"It wasn't just me; many people in Gors Velen saw it!"

The dwarf glanced at Vesemir.

Vesemir remained silent.

Ernesto continued:

"Then the knight wielding the long staff following behind the King of the Wild Hunt seemed to notice us..."

He casually flicked a blue light and left.

"Why?" the dwarf suddenly asked.

"Why what?" Ernesto was taken aback.

"Why did the Wild Hunt attack the Gors Velen? After the attack, they did nothing and simply left?"

Upon hearing this, Ernesto lowered his head and remained silent for a long time.

It wasn't until he saw the ants marching in a line along the roadside that he subconsciously said:

"Could it be that the spell of Wild Hunt is like a toddler stepping on an anthill he sees by the roadside..."

"There was no purpose, it was just..."

"They just have the ability to do it..."

Everyone remained silent for a long time after hearing this.

No one wants to be an ant, but no one can refute this conclusion.

Until Ailin suddenly spoke up and asked:

"Professor Ernesto, do you know which direction they went?"

Ernesto paused for a moment, then pointed in the direction from which Ailin and the others had come.

"East! They've headed east!"