Vilgefortz's Purpose

The scorching sun beat down on the earth, and a rugged path ran from north to south, with scattered thatched and mud-brick houses of the village situated on both sides of this narrow road.

Although fewer people stay outdoors during the day due to the sweltering summer heat, it's certainly not like it is now:

Standing at the village entrance and looking out, there was no one in sight; the entire village seemed to have been suddenly abandoned.

The keen senses of the witchers triggered an alarm. As they entered the village, countless eyes peered through cracks in doors, windows, keyholes, and walls, scrutinizing the two witchers dressed as mercenaries.

"Who do you think they are?" Vesemir led his horse forward, his eyes fixed on the road, as if the gazes did not exist.

Ailin gently stroked the uneasy mare who was snorting. "Demavend II... or some great nobleman of Ard? It makes no difference to us."

"We attracted a lot of attention in Fujian, and the traces we left last night were too numerous and obvious. The fact that they only came looking for us now means we've hidden ourselves very well."

"That's true." Vesemir nodded, hesitated for a second, and asked, "Won't it have any impact?"

"Won't."

Ailin shook his head. "You said it yourself, no one has ever been able to subdue Greater Griffin. As long as we don't admit it ourselves, who would believe that something that has never happened before is happening now?"

"That's true," Vesemir said with a sigh of relief. "Who would have thought?"

"I experienced all of this firsthand, and I still can't believe that I just came down from the powerful wings of Greater Griffin."

Vesemir's face still showed barely suppressed excitement.

My first time flying, and in this way, in this vehicle...

With the Greater Griffin beneath my feet, I felt the powerful heartbeat pulsating beneath my feet, standing shoulder to shoulder with the clouds, the gale, and the mountains...

Vesemir smacked his lips in remembrance, feeling that he might never forget this special moment for the rest of his life.

Noticing the expression on Vesemir's face, Ailin smiled.

actually...

So what if someone guesses it?

Adhering to neutrality may have shielded the School of the Wolf from many storms and maintained its stability through countless sunrises and sunsets.

But things are not like they were in the past, when the Witcher Conclave had just fallen apart.

With the Witcher Trials having a near-zero mortality rate, the number of Witchers from various schools will inevitably surge. With their power and strength increasing dramatically, how could they possibly remain neutral?

This is unrealistic.

Ailin didn't even need to do much deduction.

Once the news of the trial's mortality rate is exposed, countless greedy eyes will surely be focused on it.

Adhering to neutrality will only be misunderstood as cowardice, attracting wolves to surround and devour you.

The only way out is to respond forcefully.

Of course, showing off your muscles isn't something to rush into; what's more important now is building up your strength.

However, information travels too slowly in the Witcher world, and changes in human perceptions and impressions are also slow. Changes must be made known to the world little by little in order to reduce future enemies and avoid trouble.

The timing is actually quite good.

Taming Greater Griffin is too much dependent on personal strength, unlike the death rate in trials, and there isn't much to gain from it.

It essentially violated the principle of neutrality, but because it did not accept the bounty, there was not much to criticize. Furthermore, due to the conflict between the school and Kedwen, it did not involve other forces and was unlikely to provoke strong resistance from the entire Northern Continent.

The only concern is Ard's reaction after they find out or guess what will happen.

To be honest, it's better for the school to remain hidden for now, to keep a low profile and slowly accumulate strength.

However, compared to the risks involved, subduing the Greater Griffin and keeping both the nobles and wizards of Kedwen busy is more advantageous.

"Squeak~"

Tie the reins to the stable in front of the inn and push open the wooden door.

A few days ago, when the landlady saw Ailin and Vesemir return, she immediately came up to greet them warmly.

Today, although she was wiping glasses behind the bar as usual, her movements looked stiff and cautious.

Hearing the door open, and seeing the two witchers, his eyes darted around as if to warn them.

Ailin glanced around the room.

The peasants who used to drink and eat all day are gone, replaced by soldiers with long swords at their waists and wearing standard leather armor.

A dozen or so people, each ordering a drink, filled the hotel room to capacity.

However, the drink remained untouched, whether out of disdain or due to disciplinary requirements, it was unclear.

Upon seeing the two witchers, the two men near the door, who were only armed with swords but not armor, exchanged glances and looked behind the witchers, seemingly waiting for a third, fourth, or even a ninth person, so they did not get up immediately.

However, neither Ailin nor Vesemir intended to speak to them.

After exchanging a glance, he walked up the creaking old wooden stairs without changing his expression, under the gaze of more than a dozen pairs of people.

"You guessed right, Ailin." Vesemir smirked as he went up to the second floor. "The King 'asked' us to deal with the Greater Griffin ..."

The tone of the word "please" is strange, which is obviously intentional.

Ailin shrugged, about to speak.

"Knock knock knock~"

Heavy footsteps echoed from the stairwell behind me.

"Two people!" Vesemir whispered, then gave a wink, asking what to do.

Ailin gave him a wink, then bent his little finger and ring finger and drew an inverted triangle in the air.

Vesemir glanced back at the stairs, thought for a second, and then nodded helplessly.

Two unarmed men went up to the second floor, seemingly making a statement without any guard up.

Upon seeing the two witchers standing at the entrance of the building, seemingly waiting for them, their eyes lit up, and they took two steps forward as if they wanted to say something.

Almost simultaneously, Ailin and Vesemir channeled their magic, bent their little and ring fingers, and drew an inverted triangle in the air.

Axii, the Seal of Deception.

Two beams of white light instantly enveloped the heads of the two men.

The man facing Ailin immediately stopped in his tracks, but the one who cast the spell on Vesemir paused for a moment, then turned pale with fright and opened his mouth in horror as if to call for help.

Smack!

In a flash, Vesemir took two steps forward, patted the man on the back of the neck with his right hand, and then gently laid the unconscious man on the ground.

Ailin gave a thumbs up.

Vesemir rolled his eyes in annoyance, waved his hand, pulled a silver amulet from the man's collar, put it back, sighed, and muttered a few words as if complaining about his bad luck.

Seeing this, Ailin chuckled twice more, then turned to the hypnotized man:

"Tell me why you have come, and that we have always been here and have never left."

Instantly.

"Your Excellencies, on behalf of a distinguished guest, I would like to invite you..." the man said loudly and enthusiastically, even though the people in front of him had already reached the bottom of the stairs.

Ailin's ears twitched; she heard no sound from downstairs.

"Let's pack up and leave quickly before anyone notices. It would be quite troublesome if we were chased into that grove of trees."

Vesemir nodded, and then the two tiptoed back to their respective rooms.

Only the nameless man remained in the second-floor corridor, his voice loud and enthusiastic.

They said they were packing, but it was really just about carrying a few bags. Witchers travel far and wide, so they don't carry much with them.

The demon hunters who turned into jade statues carried quite a few things, but they were mostly miscellaneous items with little value, so there was no need for them to carry them.

Thanks to Vilgefortz's Shapeshifting Sealing Charm, which differed from the original story, the young Witcher's School of the Wolf- style leather armor and clothing were shrunk along with the jade statue.

Therefore, they only need to bring the most valuable and distinctive silver swords.

What should be done if traces are left behind?

This was unavoidable, after all, the horses of the seven young witchers were still left at the inn, and the Greater Griffin only had two claws to grab things.

The horse can leave some money, hoping the proprietress will take good care of it, and it can return after the curse is lifted and find a chance to ride away.

As for traces and such...

The Greater Griffin will no longer attack Vengerberg, so why would the people of Ard rush to send money over?

Let's go!

Less than five minutes later, two witchers emerged carrying several cloth bags. After exchanging a glance, they turned and left through the window of Ailin's room.

"Hercules~"

The horses neighed loudly, their rapid hoofbeats quickly fading into the distance, startling the soldiers inside the inn who were listening intently to the commotion on the second floor.

"What's going on!"

"Someone rode off on horseback!"

"Who are the officers talking to on the second floor?"

"What should we do? Chase after them?"

The leading officers were all on the second floor, and no one gave any orders, so a dozen or so people were huddled together on the first floor in a state of chaos, not knowing what to do.

It took a long time before someone finally brought the chaos to an end.

They ran as fast as they could towards the second floor, shouting:

"Sir Yore! Sir Kahn!"

"Hmm!!! Someone come quick! Sir Kahn has been knocked unconscious!"

"Sir Yore, what has happened?"

At this moment, the figures of Ailin and Vesemir on horseback had melted into the brilliant sunset.

——

It was just after nightfall.

Three black candles were lit, their light flickering in the darkness.

In the secluded garden clearing, chalk traces of the eight symbols of the Elven calendar's zodiac "Vika" (festivals) are drawn on the smooth stone slabs, while candlesticks are placed on symbols representing May Festival, Harvest Festival, and Pleasure Festival.

Inside the zodiac ring, chalk forms another smaller ring, adorned with magical symbols and surrounding a pentagram.

Not far from the pentagram pattern, Ailin was carefully examining the ritual array of the spell-breaking ceremony.

Yes.

Although it wasn't completely dark yet, the two Witcher Master of the School of the Wolf had already arrived at the Temple of Melitele in Arland with seven jade statues.

At dusk, in a small village outside Vengerberg, less than two hours later, we flew to the western side of the Mahakam Mountains.

But just over a month ago, it took Ailin almost a week to get there, covered in dust and sleeping in the wilderness.

Tsk tsk!

The difference was far more striking than the feeling of returning from the Greater Griffin's nest to the grove outside the hotel.

in addition.

They also learned from the experience of a Greater Griffin: landing at dusk, just before dark, is the least likely to attract human attention.

"Why is it that every time I see you, it's inseparable from a curse?"

Ianna placed the three small iron tripods on the three symbols on the inner ring and glanced at Ailin.

The complicated gazes made Ailin somewhat embarrassed.

The Shapeshifting Sealing Charm is not a curse, but a sealing spell.

That's what he wanted to say.

However, upon reflection, the difference between the two is not actually that significant; both are temporarily non-lethal and restrict the recipient's movements.

Moreover, judging from the expression of Ianna, the High Priest of the Temple of Melitele, it wasn't a complaint, but rather a teasing, playful remark, more like teasing a child.

Otherwise, why not mention Vesemir, who hid in a corner and concealed his body in the darkness from the moment he arrived?

Therefore, Ailin didn't speak, lest he be praised by Ianna in a strange way, such as "Oh my! Master Ailin knows so much!", "You've really grown up in just one month, you even know such obscure and strange spells!", "Tsk tsk! As expected of a knight of Arland, you're really amazing!" and so on.

Moreover, although Ianna joked, Ailin didn't say anything when he arrived at the temple with several jade statues.

Upon hearing the news, the busy High Priest of the Temple of Melitele, Ianna, immediately rushed over to personally greet them.

After learning their purpose, they immediately chose a suitable location to break the curse and arranged everything for the breaking of the curse in the garden in front of the icon room.

Ailin could sense it...

Ianna's enthusiasm wasn't due to Vesemir; she genuinely valued him and was very close to him.

"Mother Ianna, please stop talking."

"Be careful, because of what you said, Ailin might not want to come next time."

The junior priestess, Lyra, was also watching from the side. She heard the High Priest say in a sarcastic tone, "I'm just complaining."

Over the past month, her relationship with Ianna seems to have grown much closer.

"Alright, alright, I won't say anymore." The High Priest smiled and placed a crystal on top of each tripod.

The facets of the crystal perfectly match the structure of the tripod, meaning that their placement will be flawless. To ensure this level of precision, the crystal and tripod, though seemingly insignificant, must have cost a considerable sum.

However, after the High Priest's inspection, it was found that Vilgefortz really hadn't tampered with anything, and the tools used to break the curse were all top-of-the-line.

Someone unfamiliar with Vilgefortz, such as Vesemir, might think he was genuinely trying to mend a relationship and make a friend.

However, Ailin, who was familiar with Vilgefortz's experiences in the original work, was quite certain that he had ulterior motives and that his ambitions were not small.

Ailin just hasn't figured out what Vilgefortz is after.

In the original work, Vilgefortz is obsessed with power and strength.

Ailin and the School of the Wolf certainly couldn't give power to a Brotherhood of Sorcerers with exceptional magical talent.

"Then it can only be power," Ailin thought as he watched Ianna place the small, pale jade statue in the very center of the pentagram.

"Whoosh—"

The candle suddenly began to burn brightly, interrupting Ailin.

The facets of the crystal lit up, flashing beams of light.

The beams of light shot toward the small statue, whose color quickly changed from green to gold, and then became transparent a moment later.

Just then.

"Da da da~"

Footsteps suddenly came from the darkness at the end of the garden path.

Nannick hurried over, looking anxious.

Ailin noticed that she deliberately glanced at him a few more times as she walked over.

"What's wrong, Priest Nannick?" Lyra asked curiously.

"The Old Duke has arrived!"