The Overlooked Witchers

"We'll fly a large circle around that valley to avoid causing trouble for Sala, who's stationed with troops down the mountain, at this time..."

Ailin put away the panel, turned around and saw Vesemir thoughtfully weighing the Dwarven Bomb in his hand. He paused and said:

"But yes, we're leaving just like that."

"The curses of Evil God are impossible to guard against. Even if they fly through the sky and drop bombs, it is difficult to guarantee that you will not be affected."

"What if the ' Good Girl ' is attacked..."

He didn't say anything more.

Vesemir shuddered visibly, gripped the Greater Griffin's mane tightly with his right hand, and then slung the Dwarven Bomb over his shoulder.

The Greater Griffin raised its neck, emerging from the dark clouds amidst a cloud of gray mist.

The two witchers glanced sideways and fell silent.

The gray cliff was covered with carnivorous creatures, densely packed together, like a piece of bluish-white cloth crawling with lice.

Expanding outwards from that not-too-big-to-small cliff, the Spiked Fiend, due to its size, resembled an ugly giant in the forest, half of its body emerging from the woods.

They came from seven directions, crashing through countless trees and leaving claw-like marks in the vast forest.

The traces were covered with swarms of carnivorous creatures, and beneath the dense canopy of the forest, there were even more.

To Ailin's surprise, when the Greater Griffin appeared, none of the carnivorous creatures chased, attacked, or even took any action. They simply looked up at the sky, staring at them with their blood-red eyes.

The wind seemed to have stopped.

The entire forest was completely still.

It was deathly silent, eerie, and terrifying.

Evil God is watching them!

The Greater Griffin's uneasy cry jolted the two witchers, who had almost forgotten to breathe.

Originally, in order to distract the ghouls, Ailin planned to have the Greater Griffin approach and provoke them before going around them.

But now...

A chilling fear gripped him at that moment, its cold, bony fingers rubbing against his heart.

A strong sense of crisis prompted him to immediately issue an order in his mind.

When the Greater Griffin was still thirty or forty meters away from the cliff, it turned and flew eastward.

The ghouls still didn't give chase.

Thousands upon thousands of cold gazes watched them leave in silence.

I don't know how much time passed.

The Greater Griffin flew far away from that valley, leaving only lush green clumps, like patches of green in an oil painting, and the eerie feeling was gone.

But Ailin inexplicably knew that those hundreds of bloodshot eyes were still staring at them, staring at him.

"Don't be afraid."

Ailin turned his head as Vesemir gently patted his shoulder.

"It's the same old trick of the Evil God," Vesemir blinked slowly. "He's intimidating us because he can't do anything but intimidate."

"Have you encountered Evil God before?"

"What can't a Witcher encounter if he lives long enough?" Vesemir chuckled. "So yes, I have, and more than once."

He finished speaking.

He seemed lost in thought, and after a long while he murmured:

"People always need faith."

"Women who believe in Meritellie hope for safe childbirth and a happy family... Those who believe in Freya crave captivating beauty and love..."

"The knights believe in Cliff, yearning for the favor of the Heavenly Father, so that His thunder may cleanse their impurities and weaknesses, and help them fight against evil..."

"The scholars believe in the prophet Rebidia, and wish that the saint may share in his wisdom..."

"And what about those who have gone astray? What do they believe in?"

"Evil God?" Ailin asked rhetorically.

"Yes, Evil God. Lost people worship those wicked deities." Vesemir nodded. "Compared to righteous gods, those evil gods are often exceptionally generous: power, wealth, authority, pleasure, revenge, curses, intrigue, slaughter..."

"It's as if you can get everything from the generosity of the Evil God, at the cost of other people's blood and flesh, other people's lives."

"And that couldn't be simpler, wouldn't it?"

Ailin didn't speak.

Vesemir didn't care and sighed to himself, "But Evil God are always greedy. Besides coveting the flesh and blood and lives of the innocent people offered by their believers, they also covet the sacrificers themselves."

"The alienation of people by Evil God always lies dormant in the spirit first, and then in the body."

"For a long time, about a hundred years ago, strange monsters such as human-faced poisonous spiders, werewolves, Bear Beast, and Winged Demon were everywhere in the Northern Continent, in every remote forest, swamp, and valley that was close to human settlements."

"Are they all followers of Evil God?" Ailin asked.

Vesemir nodded. "At first, although we were puzzled by the appearance of these monsters, we just killed them according to the requirements of the quest."

"But later, after the monsters were killed, they always left behind some human characteristics."

"This drove us to trace it back to the source and discover the truth."

"Evil God!"

"These monsters are the creations of Evil God."

"Once we find the source, it will be very simple." Vesemir patted Elsa behind Ailin. "You can always trust your sword."

"Once we kill those followers of the Evil God, we can then kill the corpses, ghosts, and demons possessed by that Evil God..."

"Evil God can only utter some harsh words, just like before, putting on a show of threatening and intimidating."

"But look..."

Vesemir pointed to himself. "It's been so long that I've almost forgotten all about those messy things related to Evil God, and I'm still alive and well."

It must be said that his words, given Vesemir's age, were indeed very persuasive.

Ailin felt much more relaxed.

However, just a few seconds later, a vivid ritual array filled with the flesh and blood of ghouls flashed through his mind, filling the entire valley.

He frowned.

"Is it really that simple?" he wondered.

The curse left on him by the Evil God with the big eyeball was something even Ianna couldn't break. It was only after his soul ascended to the divine realm of the Goddess Meritellie that it was resolved.

Yes or no...

Just as there are ordinary people, sorcerers, and demon hunters, there are also different levels of power among Evil God.

A mere few dozen water ghost heads can create a curse that requires the intervention of a righteous god to break.

The Conjunction of the Spheres caused a slight fluctuation in space, which allowed demons to be dispatched to construct a ritual for Him, creating such a huge commotion without a sound.

What level of Evil God is the big-eyed Evil God?

However, Ailin did not ask Vesemir any further questions, because he noticed that Vesemir's eyebrows were furrowed into a dark cloud.

"She was just trying to comfort me..." Ailin sighed softly.

The Evil God that Vesemir speaks of have human followers who bewitch and kill people for some purpose.

The big-eyed Evil God had a very clear purpose: to have the ghouls set up the ritual, and even deliberately concealed their whereabouts, carrying everything in secret.

How could these two be the same...?

——

"Shh~"

The chalk moved across the flat ground, leaving behind winding marks.

Many people watched from the sidelines.

for a long time.

The chalk stopped abruptly at the break point of a line.

"That's all I saw," the chalk owner sighed.

He is Ailin.

Riding on Greater Griffin, he did not land on Mount Mahakam.

Sala's Monster Hunter Army and Guard Knight, having been warned by Arthur who had left beforehand, knew that even the Evil God couldn't catch them, so there was no need to worry.

Therefore, after some discussion, the two Witcher Master of the School of the Wolf returned directly to the back mountain of the Temple of Melitele and immediately sought out the High Priest Ianna.

The lines drawn with chalk right now represent the scene of the valley he saw.

"This is a ritual, isn't it, Mother Ianna?"

Ailin stood up, her azure Cat Eyes gazing at the elderly man surrounded by the crowd on the outside.

"It's a ritual." Ianna's expression turned solemn. After carefully examining the incomplete ritual array he had drawn, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "And it's a ritual that's almost complete— Summoning Ritual, or to put it another way—"

"Divine Descent Ritual!"

"Whoosh!"

The surrounding area immediately erupted in an uproar.

They were in the basement of the temple's library.

The spacious interior walls were predominantly a deep blue, adorned with numerous shimmering runes and lines.

This is a place specifically for studying rituals. The runes on the walls act as a shield against Divine Power, preventing any accidents from happening during the inscription process.

So it's only natural.

The crowd of onlookers consisted of priests from the temple who were well-versed in ritual studies.

"Please keep quiet!"

Nannick spoke with a cold expression, and the basement gradually quieted down.

"What is the Summoning Demon... Divine Descent Ritual?" Vesemir asked nervously.

"It's just like you imagined. This ritual can summon Evil God." Ianna's expression was grim. "Hundreds of years ago, the Evil God ' Centipede Skull Serpent,' which destroyed three great cities, countless villages, and caused the deaths of nearly 100,000 people, descended upon this world through a similar ritual..."

Three big cities...100,000 people...

Ailin gasped.

There were only a little over 8,000 people in Arland, which means that twelve Arland were destroyed!

He was right after all.

This big-eyed Evil God was even more dangerous than he had imagined.

"High Priest, how long will this ceremony last..."

Vesemir hadn't finished speaking.

"Knock knock~"

There was a knock on the basement door.

Then a large group of people anxiously walked in from outside, filling the small basement to the brim.

"Excuse me, High Priestess Ianna..."

"Um?"

"Master... Master Ailin, Master Vesemir, you're both back?!"

Ailin looked up.

It was Arthur who spoke, his eyes wide with surprise as he looked at Ailin and Vesemir.

Beside him stood the solemnly dressed Old Duke, a glamorous woman in a blue and light green open-chested dress, and seven young witchers, including Ernie.

"We took a shortcut," Ailin said succinctly.

A shortcut... Arthur was stunned. He knew the terrain of the Mahakam Mountains like the back of his hand, so how could he not know that there was a shortcut in the Mahakam Mountains that led directly to the Temple of Melitele?

"Sir Ailin, Master Vesemir, did you really see the last Monster's Nest?" The Old Duke, ignoring Arthur's surprise, leaned on his cane and looked at Ailin, asking anxiously.

Ailin nodded heavily, about to recount the horrific scene in the valley.

"Da da da..."

The sound of high heels clicking on the floor interrupted him.

"What is this?" The woman beside the Old Duke walked gracefully closer, her eyes fixed on the chalk drawing on the ground.

The magic emanating from the air seemed to fluctuate with the magic.

"Buzz~"

"Buzz~"

The Wolf Emblem on the chests of the two witchers immediately trembled.

Erin thus guessed the woman's identity—Agatha, the magical advisor and court sorceress of Erland.

really.

"It's the one you're thinking of, Agatha," Ianna said softly. "Arland may face a disaster even greater than May Festival ..."

"Besides..."

Her gaze swept past the shock on the Old Duke's face and landed on Vesemir: "The Summoning Ritual will be completed in a day at most."

"The Northern Continent will once again welcome the descent of Evil God after more than three hundred years."

"So there's not much time for questioning, surprise, and denial; let's get straight to the point."

"Mason!" Ianna looked at the Old Duke with a solemn expression. "This is a war. Stop worrying about those dirty political considerations. You need to use all your strength to lock down the ghouls on the mountain."

Ianna's tone was almost commanding, but the Old Duke didn't care.

He didn't even ask how the deduction that the Evil God only had one day left to descend was derived; after thinking for a moment, he simply said:

"One day is enough time, but we need at least half a day to send troops up the mountain."

"Other soldiers need to be mobilized, and troop deployment is not that fast. Moreover, even if they are deployed, there isn't enough Necrophage Oil to use."

"Although the Guard Knight and Monster Hunter Army have been stationed at the foot of the mountain, they are equally vulnerable in the face of thousands of ghouls..."

"It's just a blockade, not an annihilation." Ianna shook her head. "The main force isn't your soldiers; it's just in case."

The Old Duke paused, and before he could speak, Ianna looked at Agatha:

"Is it possible to get in touch with Ms. Tissaia?"

"I'll go back and contact them right away," Agatha nodded readily. "If the Dean knows the situation, he won't refuse."

"Thank you so much," Ianna said earnestly. "The Temple of Melitele will never forget the help from the Aretuza Academy."

"Preventing the descent of the Evil God is an ancient rule inscribed on the stone tablet of the Novigrad Alliance Treaty." After saying this, Agatha didn't wait for a reply, immediately walked out of the basement, hurriedly opened the portal and left.

However, just before she stepped into the portal, she seemed to suddenly remember something, turned back to the Old Duke, and asked:

"Lord Mason, shall we come together?"

"Take me with you." Mason sighed, his whole body hunched over. He understood what Ianna meant by "blockade"—it was using the lives of his soldiers to hinder the Evil God Evil God's advance after failing to stop its descent.

"Bang!"

The portals disappeared.

Ianna continued to issue commands to Nannick and the other priests from the basement.

Ailin, Vesemir, and seven other young witchers stood frozen in the corner, at a loss for what to do.

For some reason, Ianna seemed to ignore them.

In the matter of the descent of the Evil God, nobles, witches, and even priestesses who are powerless have tasks, but these professional demon hunters have been overlooked.

After the priests in the basement had mostly finished their tasks and left, Ianna herself was preparing to walk out, Ailin couldn't help but ask:

"Mother Ianna, what about us?"

What can we do?