Killing Him Requires a Silver Sword

The familiar bone-chilling cold, the familiar floating spirits, and the familiar fear of a frozen soul...

The reaction after using the Ghoul-Troll Spirit was almost exactly the same as that of the One-Eyed Nekker. Considering the similar suffix of "Demon Spirit," one can't help but suspect that the Ghoul-Troll Spirit and the One-Eyed Nekker might have the same origin.

However, the One-Eyed Nekker's physical form comes from the One-Eyed Serpent Giant walking on the Path of the Beast Roar in the opening cutscene, while the Ghoul-Troll Spirit gains "rebirth" from the troll's corpse.

The more the Witcher thought about it, the closer this guess seemed to be to the truth.

"However..." He slowly landed on the soft cashmere carpet from his semi-spirit state, and put on a smooth silver silk nightgown to cover the various hideous scars on his body.

"If my guess is true, ' Conjunction of the Spheres - Demon Spirit' and ' Conjunction of the Spheres - Troll' should be two different worlds, so why are there monsters of the same type appearing?"

"Could it be that, like most of the monsters in the Witcher world, they originated from the Conjunction of the Spheres?"

"What is this power that transforms living beings into ghosts and demons?"

The Witcher muttered to himself.

Could it be the legendary White Frost?

That twilight that even the gods could not resist...

He stared blankly at the obscured sky for a while.

The roof beams are meticulously carved with various creatures representing different aspects of the Witcher world: humans, elves, dwarves, halflings...

Each animal is depicted in a different pose, and all are remarkably lifelike.

I wonder what the craftsmen who built it were thinking.

The Witcher always felt that the crisscrossing wooden beams among all kinds of creatures were like an invisible cage imprisoning all living beings in the world.

Spiderwebs clung to the corners, and ants and insects gnawed at the mottled walls.

He felt like he had grasped something, but he was still far from finding the first piece of the puzzle to the truth.

"Phew~"

With a sigh of relief, the Witcher withdrew his gaze.

The information that the Ghoul-Troll Spirit can extract... no... it can only be called speculation, and that's all we can do for now.

I'll jot this down for now and add to it later.

Name: Ailin

Age: 14

[Title: Child of Miracle]

[HP: 100%, Stamina: 650/660, MP: 780/780]

[Attributes: Strength 66 (+3), Agility 61, Constitution 65 (-1), Perception 75 (+7), Mysticism 78 (+5)]

[Affinity: Water 15 (Magic Source - Water 5%) (+1), Earth 10 (Magic Source - Earth 0%) (+1), Wind 9 (+1), Fire 4 (+1), Space 2]

The Ghoul-Troll Spirit's Purification Spirit not only has similar effects to that of the One-Eyed Nekker's Purification Spirit, but also reduces the demon hunter's constitution by a small amount, although the attribute enhancement effect is only half that of the One-Eyed Nekker.

Furthermore, in terms of elemental affinity, the Elemental Affinity water, earth, wind, and fire all increased slightly.

This made him even more certain of his earlier guess— that the Ghoul-Troll Spirit and the One-Eyed Nekker shared the same cause.

in addition.

Earth Elemental Affinity has officially reached 10 o'clock, entering the "Magic Source" state.

In the Wolf Emblem's Inner Vision during the [Demon Hunter] state, the newly generated blood in his bone marrow was simultaneously shrouded in a luminous blue and a dim yellow magical glow, appearing even thicker than before.

Besides the Water Element fluctuations becoming clearer, the earth element fluctuations around him were also faintly perceptible.

"Speaking of which, when I first sensed the fluctuations of Water Element in Vengerberg, I was planning to ask Vesemir, the sorceress, for some Water Element magic..." the witcher suddenly thought, "Now that I can sense another earth element, I can find an opportunity to learn it and try it out in the next day or two..."

Although he now possesses quite a few skills, the new Path of the Beast Roar is quite powerful, not much weaker than so-called spells.

But it's always worth a try.

No one ever thinks they have too many trump cards.

After sensing the elemental fluctuations around him, the Witcher pulled out a knife from the reddish-brown maple table beside him and stabbed it fiercely into the back of his hand.

"Sizzle—"

The strange sound of a dull knife cutting cowhide is enough to make one's ears itch.

The sharp knife used to cut the steak only left a white scratch on the back of my hand before it slid away due to inertia.

The Water Element endows the skin, flesh, and bones with high strength and toughness, while the earth element makes these three parts more dense and hard.

The Witcher was quite certain.

The "magical favor" he received was no less than that of a water ghost.

"When I first transmigrated and drank the Drowner Heart Essence Fluid, my thoughts about gaining water affinity seem to have come true..." The Witcher's expression was somewhat strange.

Now that someone wants to kill him... it seems... it really seems like they'll have to use the silver sword...

Time flies.

In the blink of an eye, a month has passed.

Afternoon.

The bright sunlight melted away the years of dampness Ancient Sea Fortress, and under the leisurely white clouds, a large crowd gathered outside the largest apprentice training ground in Kaer Morhen.

"Clang~ Clang~"

Two agile figures clashed swords in the training field, then separated.

The gasps of surprise rose and fell with the clang of metal, echoing back and forth between the towering city walls.

Who will win?

Leaning on the newly repaired railing, which still smelled of wood, the blonde girl stared intently at the two figures moving about inside the arena.

The boy carrying two swords on his back stood to the side, arms crossed, seemingly lost in thought.

Upon hearing the girl's question, the Cat Eyes swept across the training ground.

"The Tabang," the boy said calmly. "He's the most hardworking of the new batch of apprentices, his understanding of the school's swordsmanship is also excellent, and what's even more remarkable is his exceptional physical talent as a witcher..."

"Tiva is a bit clever, knowing how to take advantage of the injury to his left leg that the Tabang left the day before yesterday, but he is still far too weak in the face of absolute strength."

"He hasn't had much luck this week."

The girl nodded without speaking, seemingly engrossed in the intense duel and unable to spare any attention for discussing the matter with the boy.

However, if you look at her from a different angle, from the training ground, you'll find...

Although the girl's head didn't move, her two bright eyes kept peeking restlessly through the gaps in her lowered, smooth golden hair at the boy beside her.

Obviously.

For her, the blue-eyed boy beside her was far more appealing than the somewhat immature swordsmanship duel before her.

"Clang~"

Just as the girl was pretending to watch the apprentices' fight, she was secretly glancing at the boy's figure.

Just as the boy had predicted, the battle situation in the training field changed from a stalemate.

The apprentice Tiva was consciously moving to his opponent's left, intending to take advantage of his opponent's injury and cause him to lose his balance.

However, due to his lack of confidence in winning and his excessive focus on his opponent's injuries, he was able to exploit his weaknesses.

Tabang pretended to lose his balance with his left leg, twitching it to attract Tiva's attention. Then, taking advantage of the moment when Tiva's gaze shifted, he immediately pivoted on his right leg.

Spin and slash!

By the time Tiva came to his senses, he could only watch as the longsword rapidly approached.

"Bang!"

The thin, pale yellow magical shield appeared and disappeared for a moment before fading to just a thin layer.

"The winner is the Tabang!"

Ernie, standing at the edge of the training field, immediately shouted, separating the two fighters and announcing the result of the match.

"Well done!"

Ailin smiled and nodded gently at the approaching Tabang.

The calm and alert boy during the duel revealed a simple, honest smile afterward. He scratched his head somewhat sheepishly and said:

"Thank you, Commander."

Ailin nodded again, then looked at Tiva, who was somewhat discouraged by his defeat:

"Tiva's performance in this battle was also quite good; he has made great progress."

"Seizing the enemy's weaknesses and attacking, dodging, and wearing them down is a sound strategy."

"The enemies of demon hunters are usually monsters that are stronger than us in one or more aspects, such as strength, speed, defense, perception, or magic. So there's no need to talk about morality or chivalry... we just need to target their weaknesses and relentlessly attack them..."

"Witchers are stronger than monsters because they can think..."

Upon hearing Ailin's praise, Tiva immediately lifted his head from his dejected state.

"Since I performed so well, can the guild leader reward me with an extra Purification Spirit?"

Tiva walked over with a grin, taking advantage of the situation.

"No!" Ailin rolled her eyes, casually tossed two bottles of Nekker's Purified Spirit from the reagent bag over to his mouth, "You're getting all worked up just because I told you you're panting?"

"The strategy is fine, but the people involved are the problem."

"You haven't even mastered the basics of swordsmanship. Didn't Master Alsto teach you where you should look when facing an opponent?"

"So you just focus on the weaknesses because I told you to target them?"

"Can this really make the opponent look like they've lost?"

Tiva was once again ridiculed and looked at Ailin with his hands clasped together, pleading for mercy amidst the laughter of the apprentice witchers around him.

Ailin then smiled, shut his mouth, and let him go.

"Let's continue, next group," Ailin said, glancing at the apprentices waiting in the "player preparation area." "It's rare that the Tabang accidentally injured their left leg the day before yesterday. This might be the closest you've ever come to the championship."

"This week's champion's reward, in addition to the Purification Spirit, includes two more portions of Ghoul Heart Essence Fluid than last week..."

Before Ailin could finish speaking, the apprentices suddenly started yelling with high spirits.

Compared to the Purification Spirit that enhances perception, the apprentices still prefer the Ghoul Heart Essence Fluid.

After all, the increase in strength attribute is very intuitive.

More importantly.

The apprentices' slow progress in mastering swordsmanship is due not only to insufficient practice time but also to inadequate physical fitness. They can barely meet the strength requirements of many sword moves, and their movements are easily distorted by the weight of the steel sword.

therefore.

The Ghoul Heart Essence Fluid is exactly what the apprentices need right now.

"Oh!"

The apprentices who had already been eliminated suddenly became excited for some reason.

They leaped and bounded like monkeys in the mountains, stomping their feet and banging on the railings.

The agitated atmosphere only calmed down after referee Ernie shouted a few times.

The game continues.

In the apprentice training ground, the sound of metal clashing once again rang out, accompanied by cheers and shouts.

The noise from the outside world was automatically blocked out. The girl leaned against the wooden railing, tilting her head to peek out.

The boy carrying two swords stood tall and straight.

Aside from being a little good-looking, he clearly lacked the captivating charm of the great heroes in chivalric novels.

The kind of charm that attracts nobles to offer fine wine, kings to present swords, and warriors to offer their loyalty the moment one steps forward...

Yet, for some reason, it naturally exudes an infectious charm of intimacy and confidence.

Among so many witchers and witcher apprentices of similar age, it's only natural that one can tell...

Where is the focus of attention...?

Who was lifted high by the crowd?

He was regarded by everyone as a friend, a teacher, and the most important person in their lives...

The wooden rings on the railing, hidden in the shadows, are etched one by one onto her fair and delicate profile.

The bright sunlight gradually softened and became hazy.

"How did you come up with this idea?" the girl suddenly asked.

"In what way?"

Ailin, who was carefully observing the apprentice's movements during the fight, subconsciously looked down at the sound.

In an instant, their eyes met a pair of clear, large eyes.

His pupils, equally azure but slightly lighter in color, were like clear, unblemished mirrors, reflecting his image perfectly.

"Cough cough~"

Slightly uncomfortable, Ailin coughed twice and explained:

"Didn't King Kedwen organize Apprentice Combat Tournament from the School of the Wolf and the School of the Cat before?"

"It felt good to fight for my school during the competition, so I tried it out to see if I could inspire my apprentices..."

This is a lie.

Actually, it was because Ailin was annoyed that the apprentices were progressing too slowly in learning the School of the Wolf Two-Handed Sword.

Although Ernie and the Klar witchers worked very hard, they dragged their apprentices out of bed at dawn every day in order to get down the mountain as soon as possible.

But the apprentices didn't have carrots dangling in their mouths; their learning efficiency only lasted three days before they started slacking off.

Unlike Ailin, their generation has the 40% mortality rate of the Trial of the Mountains hanging in the sky, where they would die if they didn't do their best to improve themselves.

I don't know which big mouth spread the news that the Trial of the Mountains were reformed and that Ernie and his group of witchers passed the trials without taking any damage to the apprentices.

If you put yourself in Ailin's shoes, it's indeed difficult for her to work as hard as before.

certainly.

Ailin did not regret his decision to reform the content, procedures, and route of the Trial of the Mountains.

On the contrary, he was proud that the trials of the School of the Wolf had been changed because of him.

After him, no more spirits of children who died young will linger in the skies above the Ancient Sea Fortress.

but.

The problem of apprentices' laziness still needs to be addressed.

Moreover, a very real problem is that, with the death rate of the three trials —the Trial of the Mountains, the Trial of Grasses, and even the initial choice—reduced to zero, the apprentices, without the threat of death, will inevitably become more and more lazy.

This is dangerous for witchers who make a living by completing quests and hunting dangerous monsters.

in addition.

The school certainly wouldn't keep supporting a group of apprentices who have passed the Trial of Grasses but don't yet meet the requirements of the Trial of the Mountains.

Therefore, after Ailin discovered this trend, he began to think about ways to guide it.

fine.

The current system of weekly competitions with rewards of Essence Fluid and Purification Spirit based on rankings is very effective.

The apprentices' swordsmanship improved far more during the two weeks of the weekly competition than during the three days when Ernie and Klar suddenly rallied.

Moreover, it's also a good opportunity to clear out the various inventories in his inventory.

Of course, there's no need for Mary to know all this so clearly.

Ailin casually brushed Mary off and was about to continue observing the apprentices' mistakes in swordsmanship.

At this moment.

Vesemir suddenly walked over from the direction of the main castle.