Where Would a Wolf Not Eat the Sheep Right in Front of It?

[Name: Water Divination]

[Type: Magical Ritual]

[Requirement: Ritual Studies LV2]

[Materials: Water*1, Fifth Element *2, White Myrtle Petals*2, Pearl*2, Moon Shard *1, Papakan Fruit*1]

[Function: Gaze at a body of water and briefly see something that has happened in the past two days or is happening now.]

Viewing past events, Ritual Studies difficulty LV2

Observe the events unfolding, Ritual Studies difficulty LV5.

Whether examining past or present events, it is necessary to confront the influence exerted by the participants in those events.

[Note: Is the high cost your problem, or is it a problem with the Water Divination?]

The Fifth Element, Pearls, Moon Shard...

A single pearl costs at least five hundred Oren.

While the Moon Shard is not a real fragment of the moon, it is a precious mineral.

However, due to its clear and full feminine qualities in occultism, a serving is priced at around 700 Oren.

The chief remembered this item clearly because it was among the materials he exchanged with Ban Ad.

All these factors combined would require approximately three thousand Oren to complete a single Water Divination ritual.

Even Ianna, the High Priest of the Temple of Melitele and the most esteemed person in the entire Northern Continent, couldn't help but show a pained expression on her face when she saw Vesemir snap her fingers and take out these materials for Ailin to use.

Her original plan was simply to have Ailin use two simple but practical rituals— Magical Message and Water Divination —to pique his interest.

Then, by continuously practicing Purification Ritual, which are relatively inexpensive, one can master the basic techniques and essence of Ianna's school of rituals.

Unexpectedly, Vesemir immediately pulled out all the materials for the Magical Message and Water Divination without hesitation.

It was as if they had been prepared all along.

certainly.

Ailin had initially wanted to refuse, but Vesemir's icy expression sent a chill down his spine.

It was as if facing a natural enemy, and instinctively, they dared not refuse.

As for the outcome of the ceremony...

Besides receiving a bottle of Dog Oil from the Purification Ritual,

Vesemir put on the perfect gem imprinted with the Magical Message and wore it around her neck.

Water Diviner Ailin tried to summon the image of the Wild Hunt galloping across the sky two days ago, but only managed to create two ripples on the water's surface; he failed.

Only with the help of Vesemir and Ianna could the target be changed in time, reflecting the large ice clusters of the Gors Velen trading market.

In general.

Compared to "Ritual: Flesh Giant," which only requires blood, flesh, and bones, the ritual taught by Ianna is safer and more practical, but the materials required are expensive.

So Ailin's previous approach still had some problems.

Besides the fact that the Purification Ritual is inexpensive and suitable for dissemination,

The other two rituals are unlikely to be used by many Witchers of the School of the Wolf for the time being, so they have little value for widespread adoption.

However, for the school and his Witcher Company, this expensive but easy and safe ritual was a perfect match.

for example.

Magical Message are well-suited for group activities, including but not limited to reconnaissance and exploration of underground ruins.

As for Water Divination, its uses are even more extensive; Ailin can think of about ten types right now.

More importantly.

Rituals are not skills.

Although it cannot improve or increase power.

However, it will not increase Ailin's character level, and no matter how many rituals he learns here, his rewards for hunting monsters will not be reduced.

It's a perfect match for The Witcher's Handbook!

"Da da da~"

The crisp sound of footsteps came from the corridor, interrupting Ailin's thoughts.

The next second.

The Witcher's nose twitched.

The aroma of tomato stew, slightly sour, mingled with the sweet grain scent of cream bread, wafted from the corridor.

It stimulated the Witcher's keen sense of smell.

"Gurgle~"

After a busy morning, Ailin's stomach suddenly growled.

The spacious iconostasis was suddenly filled with loud gut rumbling.

The Witcher blushed.

"Alright, the morning session is over. You can have your lunch now!"

Ianna smiled and handed the ritual remains that the Witcher had collected to Nannick, who had come with Lyra.

Taking the basket containing lunch from the junior priest, Ailin glanced at the statues of the goddess's three saints.

"Um... would it be disrespectful to a lady to dine in front of the icon like this?"

I was distracted by an unexpected situation this morning and didn't notice this.

At this moment, being watched by the young girl, the pregnant woman, and the old woman made Ailin feel a little uncomfortable.

Ianna, Nannick, and Lyra all laughed when they heard this.

"Mrs. Meritellie is the Mother of All Things," Lyra chuckled, covering her mouth. "Would you feel disrespectful to your mother if you ate in front of her, Ailin?"

The priest had barely finished speaking.

The entire iconostasis seemed to freeze.

Lyra initially accepted the prepared ritual remains as normal, but only realized what was happening when Nannick gently poked her lower back.

"I'm... I'm sorry, Ailin... I forgot about you... I didn't mean to..."

The young priest hurriedly apologized.

"It's alright..." the Witcher chuckled, "I'm used to it!"

He really didn't care much.

After all, he has been single for over thirty years and is no longer the child who would be overly sensitive at the slightest provocation.

The priest waited a while to confirm that he really didn't care before letting out a sigh of relief.

At this moment.

Smack!

A snap of the fingers.

On the other side, two large shelves suddenly appeared, with a large pile of magical materials neatly arranged.

Among them are extremely expensive materials such as pearls and mithril.

The magical glow intertwined.

The magical fluctuations in the Hall of Icons instantly caused the School Emblem on the Witcher's chest to hum incessantly.

Vesemir suddenly turned around, her back to the witcher, facing the magical materials:

"I have other things to do these next few days, so I won't be coming."

"Ianna, if you need any materials during practice, just take them from here..."

Without saying goodbye to the others, the Sorceress left.

Of the few who remained, all except Ianna looked at each other blankly.

After a few seconds of silence, Lyra asked cautiously:

Is it because of me?

Ianna gently patted the young priest's shoulder and said softly:

"Good child, this has nothing to do with you..."

Then she looked at the equally bewildered Witcher, sighed softly in her heart, and nodded slightly.

They left too.

Leave the sanctuary and enter the garden.

Not far away, Ianna spotted Vesemir.

She was staring at a bright red carnation.

After Ianna approached, she stared at the Sorceress for a while before saying with a hint of schadenfreude:

"I thought you were going to cry..."

"I'm just feeling a little unwell..." The Sorceress didn't turn around.

She looked at the blood-red, layered, and crooked petals, and repeated the same sentence:

"I'm just feeling a little unwell..."

Ianna had never seen Vesemir look like this before.

Eccentric, heroic, sarcastic, vengeful...

She had seen many of Vesemir's faces, but never this one.

So distraught, so exhausted and evasive...

This suddenly made Ianna a little jealous of the boy in the sanctuary who was less than a sixth of her age.

Although...

Only one point.

She took a deep breath and silently recited the lady's prayer to calm the emotions that shouldn't be there in her heart.

Then she said:

Are you really not going to tell him?

A long silence followed.

Vesemir withdrew her gaze from the petals and stared into Ianna's eyes.

Then...

He shook his head firmly.

Ianna looked at Vesemir's expressionless face and sighed helplessly again:

"Don't worry, I won't tell him."

Three days later, in the early morning.

Sanctuary.

"Not bad...not bad..." Ianna withdrew her right hand and nodded in satisfaction. "I can no longer find the energy belonging to the Evil God within your body."

"But just in case, you should stay here for the full seven days before leaving..."

The warm current in her body gradually disappeared, Ailin confirmed it once again with some regret.

The Wolf Emblem does not reveal the energy that Ianna called Divine Power.

Then.

"Don't worry, Mother Ianna," he joked, opening his eyes, "How could I bear to leave before I've learned all your rituals?"

"I wish I could stay a few more days..."

"Hahaha~" Hearing this, Ianna laughed heartily a few times and affectionately patted Ailin's hair:

"The other day, your nanny was joking with you."

"You can study here for as many days as you want, and even if you don't go back to Kaer Morhen, your nanny can support you..."

Well... that's not necessary...

Ailin thought to himself.

There are still many things waiting for him at the Ancient Sea Fortress...

"Pity..."

Ianna changed the subject, gently stroking Ailin's hair, and said with some regret:

"It's a pity that there aren't many rituals you can learn here with Granny."

"At your learning speed, you Little Monster, it probably won't take more than a few days to drain Grandma dry..."

Um?

There aren't many rituals left to learn?

Ailin paused for a moment upon hearing this, then looked at the ritual book in Ianna's arms.

Apart from learning three rituals on the first morning.

On average, it takes about half a day to learn one ritual over the past few days, and it gets slower and slower as time goes on.

Even if he spent thirteen Experience Orbs on the first night to raise his ritual skill to LV5, it would be the same.

Or rather, if his Ritual Studies hadn't reached LV5, he wouldn't have progressed this quickly.

after all.

The time-consuming part is not learning the ritual, but setting up the ritual.

Yesterday, he learned a large-scale ritual. Just arranging and processing the materials to complete a basic ritual array took him half a day.

certainly.

That magic circle called the Life Ritual, which can increase healing ability by a percentage, is indeed worth the long time.

Therefore, the number of ceremonies held by the Ailin Academy over these three days did not actually exceed double digits.

"Has Granny been drained so quickly?" Ailin asked in surprise.

Ianna wasn't angry. She opened the book in her arms and pointed to a ritual in the book:

Would you like to learn this ritual?

Of course...

Just as Ailin was about to say that, his face suddenly turned red after seeing the name of the ceremony.

On the ancient, yellowed parchment, the words "Pregnancy Ritual" were clearly written.

"And this..."

Ianna turned another page.

This is a "Childbirth Ritual".

"This next ceremony would be quite suitable for you..." Ianna turned another page, "But you're not old enough, and..."

She grinned mischievously. "I've heard that you witchers don't seem to need rituals to liven things up..."

The title page, written in the margins, reads something that looks like a potion, "Stag's Blood."

After glancing at it, Ailin sighed and rubbed his forehead in exasperation.

"Mother Ianna, please stop teasing me..."

After getting to know the High Priest better over the past few days, Ailin realized that Ianna was indeed a kind and gentle old lady.

Gentle and considerate, she was generous with her knowledge when teaching ceremonial subjects.

But at the same time, she likes to tease him from time to time, like she is now, which is a bit of a wicked hobby.

"Hahaha~" Ianna laughed twice after hearing Ailin's words, then stared at the blue Cat Eyes for a long time.

He felt a chill run down his spine and flinched, then asked:

"What is it, Mother Ianna? Is something the matter now?"

Ianna shook her head and sighed:

"If it weren't for your eyes, I would sometimes really doubt whether you are a witcher or not..."

Ailin paused, and before he could answer, he heard Ianna continue:

"Which witcher your age didn't flirt around when they first came down from the mountain..."

"If it weren't for the fact that young Witchers at this time are often broke, they would practically live in the Pink Tavern every day..."

"Just like your mentor Vesemir, stories of his absurd behavior when he first became a Witcher still circulate in Arland..."

"And you..."

Ianna looked Ailin up and down, clicked her tongue, and said:

"What wolf wouldn't eat a lamb that's been delivered right to its mouth?"

The Witcher was speechless for a moment.

After a few seconds of silence, he abruptly changed the subject, saying:

"So, all the rituals that followed were like this?"

Upon hearing this, Ianna glanced pitifully at Ailin twice more, then sighed and said:

"Don't put too much pressure on yourself. Relax appropriately, and a balance between work and rest is the right way..."

Um?

Ailin suddenly couldn't hold back anymore.

The High Priest of the true god, his elder, seems to be hinting that he should release his stress through...?

Ianna seemed to understand the Witcher's thoughts and pointed to the statues of the girl and the pregnant woman:

"Unlike the serious Cliff, the lady is the goddess of fertility..."

"Acknowledging one's own desires is encouraged in the Lady's teachings..."

"Mother Ianna, let's talk about the ceremony instead..." Ailin felt she couldn't win the argument with the High Priest, so she changed the subject again.

This time, Ianna didn't elaborate further. Instead, she sighed again and said, "Cherish the people in front of you," before turning serious and saying:

"After all, I am the High Priest of the Temple of Melitele, and many of my rituals are related to fertility and harvest..."

"So while there are still some rituals you can learn, there aren't many left."

Ailin nodded, letting out a sigh of relief:

"In that case, Mother Ianna, you'd better leave the rest of the ceremony to me!"

"Alright, alright," Ianna said softly, ruffling his hair as she heard the witcher's urging.

"I really owe you guys..."

you?

The Witcher, while pressing down on the hair, caught the key words.

But before he could ask a question...

"Da da da~"

Hurried footsteps suddenly came from outside the corridor.

"A little lamb is coming..."

Ianna's ears twitched, and she glanced at the Witcher.

The next second.

Lyra appeared, jogging along.

"What's wrong, Lyra?"

"High Priest, the Old Duke urgently needs to see you..."