The Drowner King

"What the hell!"

Ailin exclaimed in surprise, freeing his left hand to wipe his eyes.

When he opened them again, the bloody scene before him had vanished.

It was just a warning.

"Ailin, what's wrong?"

Vesemir shouted from a distance.

The Witcher Master had already reached the cave entrance, with scattered corpses littering the ground behind him.

Ghastly blue, dark red, murky yellow.

The air was still thick with the unique stench of Drowners.

It was enough to make one gag, to feel nauseous.

If Ailin from ten days ago had seen this, he would surely have been so terrified his gallbladder would have burst.

But after ten days as a Witcher apprentice, having killed so many Drowners, Ailin had grown accustomed to this hellish tableau.

"Vesemir..."

Before Ailin could reply.

The scene before him changed drastically again.

Two red-to-black banners, flashing, appeared at the very top of Ailin's vision.

[WARNING! WARNING! WARNING!]

[Conjunction of the Spheres fluctuation detected! Conjunction of the Spheres fluctuation detected!]

As the banners flashed, the scenery before Ailin's eyes seemed to flicker as well.

Heads, severed limbs, and stone walls tilted and distorted.

No, that's not right!

The cave walls were actually shaking.

Several Drowner heads bounced up, flying around wildly from the tremors.

"Boom—Boom—"

Heaven and earth seemed to be roaring.

Fine gravel mixed with dust rained down from the cave ceiling.

For a moment.

The Witcher apprentice, inside the cave, felt his entire body falling.

The black sky was approaching, the brown ground was receding.

For the first time, Ailin realized that during an earthquake, the sky and ground really did change color.

"Ailin! Ailin!"

Vesemir shouted anxiously.

In the face of this cataclysm, even a powerful Witcher Master could barely protect himself.

The Drowners outside the cave had all fallen to the ground due to the sudden earthquake.

Vesemir was at the cave entrance, just a few steps away from clear daylight.

But instead of moving forward, he anxiously gripped the rock wall, struggling to get closer to his apprentice.

"Ailin! Ailin!"

The Witcher Master shouted again.

The Witcher apprentice, however, had no strength left to reply. He was like a small fishing boat in a raging storm, battered by the power of the entire world.

"Boom—"

With another violent tremor, Ailin was instantly thrown into the air by the ground, completely defenseless.

The pitch-black rock wall instantly loomed larger before his eyes.

"Bang!"

Leather armor met rock, flesh met rock, bone met rock in a brutal embrace.

"Ah!"

The Witcher apprentice couldn't help but let out a roar.

He felt his left arm break, and pain shot through him from head to toe.

Was the influence of the Conjunction of the Spheres really this strong?

"Still too careless!"

The cotton cloth on his shoulder armor wiped the blood from his eyes.

Ailin gritted his teeth against the pain, clinging tightly to the rock pillar beside him.

He then opened his inventory with a thought and used five Drowner's Heart Essence Fluids in quick succession.

The cold liquid landed in his stomach, and a faint warmth spread through him.

Drowner's Heart Essence Fluid couldn't heal wounds, but it could alleviate pain, and once stamina was replenished, the body's recovery speed would also greatly increase.

Not long after.

The earth's fury gradually subsided.

"Ailin! Ailin!"

Vesemir's anxious voice rang out again.

Just as the Witcher apprentice was about to reply, a familiar mechanical voice suddenly sounded in his ear.

[Ding! Main quest activated: Visitor from Another World (Kill Drowners King 0/1)]

"Gwaaa—!!!"

A powerful roar, deafening and earth-shattering, echoed out.

Ailin turned his head towards the sound, his face instantly paling.

Shit!

"This isn't a Drowner!"

At the cave entrance.

"Ailin! Ailin!"

As soon as the tremors subsided, Vesemir rushed towards the Witcher apprentice's location.

"Buzz!"

The Witcher Master's chest medallion suddenly vibrated violently.

Vesemir stopped in his tracks, crouching slightly and looking around.

"Gwaaa—!!!"

Following the sound, the Witcher Master's amber cat-like pupils instantly contracted.

A monster suddenly appeared in the depths of the dimly lit cave.

Its height was roughly four meters, its muscles bulging, and its massive form made the once spacious cave feel incredibly cramped.

Its flesh was like that of a peeled frog, with muscles rippling perfectly.

Red, blood-like fins extended from its tailbone all the way to its forehead, appearing from a distance like a mohawk from a past life.

An intense pressure emanated from its entire being, the Chaos Magic so thick that it caused the school medallion to vibrate uncontrollably, almost leaping out of his padded armor.

"Damn it, where did this monster come from?"

Vesemir placed his right hand on his medallion and quickly approached the Witcher apprentice in a few strides.

"Ailin! Are you alright?"

Ailin released the rock pillar and quickly got to his feet, flexing his left arm.

Aside from the pain from the impact to his muscles, it was fully functional.

The Witcher apprentice breathed a sigh of relief.

"Master Vesemir, I'm fine."

The Witcher Master nodded, then focused his attention on the Drowners King that had suddenly appeared.

This was a monster he had never seen before.

It looked like a Drowner, but since when could Drowners grow this large?

Ailin was also observing the monster.

The Drowners King clutched its head with its massive claws, its huge body swaying unsteadily.

The teleportation from the Conjunction of the Spheres seemed to be causing it considerable pain.

He quickly used appraisal.

[Name: Drowners King] [Level: ?] [Attributes: Strength?, Agility 13, Constitution?, Perception 11, Mysticism?]

What the hell?

Why were the results from using appraisal incomplete?

The Witcher apprentice's expression darkened.

Judging solely by the data, this Drowners King was no simple creature.

The Drowners outside the cave had also recovered from the earthquake, rushing in from outside in groups of three and five.

Vesemir's expression was tense. After a moment of thought, he quickly moved to meet the Drowner horde and then extended his left hand.

Alde Sign.

A fierce telekinetic shockwave erupted from his palm, and the Drowners in front of Vesemir were blown away like tiny specks of dust.

Most of the monsters hit by the attack died instantly.

A silver sword was indeed a good friend to deal with Drowners, but a sufficiently strong Sign was even better.

After one Alde, the Witcher Master then cast Igni.

Continuous, scorching flames ignited the pile of Drowner corpses at the cave entrance, forming a wall of fire that blocked the inside from the outside.

Previously, he had only used his silver sword to kill enemies because Ailin's life was not threatened. Vesemir wanted to resolve the situation in the simplest way, and also leave a few Drowners for Ailin.

After all, the Witcher apprentice seemed to have an inexplicable desire to hunt Drowners.

But now, with unknown monsters present, it was natural to quickly deal with the Drowners that could be eliminated first.

"Gwa la—!!!"

The strong magical fluctuations awakened the Drowner King.

After letting out a roar, its fist-sized, blood-red eyes quickly locked onto the two Witchers in the cave.

Sacrificial Great Law, protect my trial by water!!!