The Choice He Had to Make? Ronnie Dickinson's Vessel of Great Deeds

After Tissaia de Veres left with a large group of people, the reception room fell silent.

Exhaustion immediately surged in like a tidal wave.

This shouldn't have happened.

Once Ailin's physical condition reaches 90 or 10 points, not to mention staying up all night for a day, even going a week without sleep won't affect his condition.

But the fates of Bont and Huus remain unknown last night, and the subsequent killing of the Leshen and the storming of Drakkenberg must be taken into account. The reactions of the Rissberg Civil Conglomerate and Redania must also be considered, along with persuading Tissaia de Veres...

Too much happened overnight.

This is not physical exhaustion, but mental exhaustion.

Ailin often thought that, given how much effort he put into the School of the Wolf, he was actually not much different from the school's leader.

Fortunately, the final outcome was good.

Evans will not see the sun rise tomorrow. While Tissaia de Veris and Aretuza stand on the side of the School of the Wolf, his relationship with the Temple of Melitele and Arland grows ever closer.

Things seem to be moving in a positive direction.

Of course, that's just an assumption.

Ianna and Nannick noticed the three witchers were exhausted. They didn't say much about the rescue of Hen Gedimidis, but simply told Ailin to think it over carefully after he woke up and not to compromise because of "a little favor". Then they sent the three of them back to rest.

And it's impossible that the three members of the School of the Wolf would actually go back to their rooms and sleep after leaving the reception room.

They first went to Huus's room to take a look, and then went to the treatment room.

Seeing that Bont and the two shield guards had stabilized under the combined effects of herbs and Divine Art in the temple, he dragged his weary body back to his lodging in a corner of the temple.

at this time.

The long row of Witcher huts was already filled with the sound of continuous snoring.

"They're really carefree." Vesemir shook his head.

"Let them rest," Dante advised, clearly aware of Vesemir's educational practice of using meditation instead of sleep. "They've had a lot going on last night, and the children are tired."

"Can anyone be more tired than Ailin?" Vesemir retorted.

Ailin gave a wry smile and did not answer.

To be honest, he also envied Ernie and Klar, who were carefree and without pressure, and all they had to do when they encountered monsters was kill them.

But he cannot lie flat.

The School, Kedwen, Ban Ade, the Rissberg Civil Conglomerate, the Wild Hunt, and White Frost...

I wonder when this will ever end?

People who are always worrying will have endless worries, but people who can just lie down can lie down forever.

"Ailin, I know that your strength has now surpassed ours," Vesemir hesitated for a moment before saying, "But it is still too dangerous to go deep into Ban Ade to rescue Hen Gedmiddis."

Although Tissaia de Veres claimed that she had commissioned the School of the Wolf to rescue Henry Gedimidis.

But everyone present knew that when Tissaia de Veres entrusted the School of the Wolf, she was most likely entrusting Ailin, or at least Ailin was an indispensable part of it.

Vesemir frowned, and continued:

"Henry Gedimidis is Senne's biggest bargaining chip. Not to mention the other factions of male wizards in Ban Ade, none of them have been found in Ban Ade to this day. How are you going to find them?"

"Even if we find the place, it will definitely be heavily guarded."

"Moreover, there is also Otolan, who is no weaker than Henry Gedimidis, and is currently in Ban Ade."

"Ailin, the School of the Wolf does owe Tissaia de Veris a great favor, but it doesn't have to be repaid with one's life, especially your life."

"I know, Vesemir," Ailin nodded, "I certainly wouldn't charge in knowing it's a dead end, but..."

He paused:

"I don't think Tissaia de Veres wouldn't have thought of this. Most likely, she has some inside information or magical artifacts that can reduce the danger..."

Vesemir was skeptical that Tissaia de Veres could provide something like this:

What can reduce the danger of infiltration?

"That's Ban Ade Academy, once the largest wizarding power in the Northern Continent."

"Even the Wild Hunt couldn't destroy the old Ban Aard Academy, let alone now."

Ailin didn't speak.

He wasn't really sure about it either.

Francesca's gift, "Night Color," allows for stealth and silence at night, and the School of the Cat Two-Handed Sword assassination skills have just demonstrated astonishing achievements.

However, the laboratory of the Rissberg Civil Conglomerate in Drakkenberg and the Ben Ade College are different.

Ban Ad is a tiger awakened by the Wild Hunt, baring its fangs and crouching low.

to be honest.

Ailin had no desire to test the effectiveness of the traps Ben Ade had prepared for the Wild Hunt.

"Is Ban Ade really planning to establish Sorcerer Kingdom?" Dante frowned as he stepped on the cobblestones of the path and interjected, "Didn't Tissaia de Veris also say, 'My people have heard,' but that's all they've heard."

"That's right." Vesemir's eyes lit up, and he said urgently, "Warlocks interfering in royal power is a real taboo. The original Novigrad Alliance was established precisely to avoid this."

"Later, as soon as the Supreme Council of Warlocks was established, 'Pure White' Pharad was nominally just a royal advisor but in reality ruled Temeria, died."

"You have to understand that back then, 'Pure White' Pharad was one of the earliest warlocks in the Northern Continent. His strength and Talent and Skill Association, but he still died in the end."

"How could Senne dare to take such a risk?"

"Can they really withstand the external pressure and hold out until the Sorcerer Kingdom is established?"

Upon hearing this, Ailin silently walked to the door of the cabin and stopped.

"The specifics of how to proceed, where Henry Gedmiddis is, and what assistance he has, will definitely have to wait for Tissaia de Veris's statement tonight," he said. "However, I just thought about it, and since Ban Ad wants to establish Sorcerer Kingdom, perhaps now is the right time..."

Is it the right time?

Vesemir and Dante looked at each other in bewilderment.

"Perfect timing, what do you mean?" Vesemir asked.

Ailin, leaning against the wooden door frame, organized his thoughts:

"Now that the Kedwen has been destroyed, there are a large number of exiled nobles in the country. They have soldiers and money, but they originally only had two choices: one was to follow the exiled royal family of Kedwen, and the other was to surrender to Ard."

"The first path is dangerous; the royal family of Kedwen has suffered a crushing defeat, so it is clearly not a good choice."

"But the second path is not a good one either. Ard's hatred for Kedwen is deep-rooted, as Tissaia de Veris mentioned before. Surrendering to Ard seems to mean becoming a prisoner."

"Even if they manage to escape unscathed, it will likely come at a great cost."

"And now..."

Ailin paused, glancing at Vesemir and Dante:

"Senne offered a third path – joining Ban Ad."

"Although there is the threat of the Wild Hunt, compared to the imminent calamity of war, there is a protective shield and powerful male wizards to protect us."

"Now that the city of Ban Ade has been destroyed, there is plenty of room to accommodate people."

"As long as we abandon the so-called tacit understanding of the ancient Novigrad alliance, we might not even have to hand over much wealth and could become a founding father of the nation."

"How many nobles, desperate for a cure, do you think will be loyal to Kedwen?"

Vesemir remained silent.

Ailin didn't mind. He continued, "Nobles have the ability to govern. They have talents such as craftsmen, blacksmiths, and tax officials. A few nobles can govern a city. This is the potential population."

"It just so happens that Ard's military advance has been interrupted by the Wild Hunt for some reason, and most of them have suffered heavy losses, which gives them more room to develop."

"We have the population and the space for development. If we're a little bolder, establishing Sorcerer Kingdom isn't out of the question."

"What about other countries and Conclave of Sorcerers?" Dante asked, frowning. "They won't allow this tacit understanding to be broken."

"Are you really not allowed?" Ailin asked expressionlessly.

Dante and Vesemir were stunned by what they heard.

"What do you mean?" Vesemir asked. "Didn't Tissaia de Veris represent the Conclave of Sorcerers Council in making this request?"

Ailin Road:

"Otolan is also Conclave of Sorcerers, and like Tissaia de Veris, he is one of the five members of the Talent and Skill Association. He is currently in Ban Ade, why not stop him?"

"Ban Ade was once the largest force in the Conclave of Sorcerers."

"Is it really true that only one male wizard, Senne, wants to establish a nation for sorcerers?"

Vesemir was truly stunned. Naïve of politics, he felt something growing in his head.

Dante also looked deeply shocked.

In the simple and unpretentious worldview of The Witcher, all wizards Brotherhood of Sorcerers and are a unified whole.

Just like all witchers, although they are divided into wolves, griffins, vipers, bears, manticores, etc., when traveling in the Northern Continent, they can be regarded as a whole. Even now, there are still many old sorcerers who call them the Witcher Conclave.

Dante's brow furrowed deeply. "But in the past, hundreds of years have passed, and no one has ever violated it again..."

Ailin listened to the young witcher's snoring beside him and took a deep breath. "The past is the past, Master Dante, times have changed."

"The number of School of the Wolf witchers is growing, and the number of warlocks will only grow faster than ours."

"In the era of 'Pure White' Pharad, how many warlocks were there on the entire continent?"

"Back then, only the most talented humans were chosen and sent to Ain Siddi to further their magical studies."

"The inheritance of magic is just an ancient master-apprentice system. A teacher will only take on one or two apprentices, and will not take on those with poor talent."

"But what about now?"

"There are sorcerer academies alone, such as Ban Ade, Aretuza, and the Nilfgaardian Empire Magic Academy. Those who originally lacked talent can now become sorcerers."

"The number of warlocks in the Northern Continent now is probably hundreds of times greater than during the time of 'Pure White' Pharad."

Senne is the leader of the Radical Faction, Radical Faction advocates that "magic is power," "human beings have the inherent right to enslave other species," and "a government led by immortals is the most ideal government"...

But without people, how can there be any factions?

Without people, how can we stir up a trend of thought?

Ultimately, while Senne's establishment of the Sorcerer Kingdom may have been timely, it was also somewhat inevitable.

A century later, Philippa Ehrhardt still usurped the throne of King Radovid V of Redania, Vilgefortz attempted to control Nilfgaard, Conclave of Sorceresses manipulated the political and war situation across the continent...

In various forms, for various reasons, and with various schemes, sorcerers have always tried to control the entire continent.

This was even under the condition that magic was depleted and the warlock's abilities were not apparent.

Ultimately, this is the warlock class with extraordinary power, who are no longer satisfied with the narrow scope of power of the Brotherhood of Sorcerers and hope to extend their power into the secular world.

After all, a sorcerer apprentice in the Brotherhood of Sorcerers is only at the very bottom, yet he possesses the power to easily kill ordinary humans, nobles, and even armed knights. How could he possibly be convinced?

"That nobleman?" Vesemir was still struggling.

Ailin shook his head. "Even I know that many warlocks come from noble families, and the two are closely connected."

"Perhaps the entire noble class opposes the establishment of the Sorcerer Kingdom, but when it comes to individual nobles, especially families with sorcerer members, they may not necessarily oppose it."

Therefore.

In this Northern Continent where the personal dependence between kings and nobles is not strong, the kings would probably definitely oppose it, but in reality, it might not be effective and they might risk starting a war.

"Senne really going to establish Sorcerer Kingdom?" Vesemir asked gravely.

"Population, ruling class, external environment..." Ailin said, "Aside from the Wild Hunt being a major threat, it must be said that whether Senne was forced into it or had planned it all along, he did seize the best opportunity."

Vesemir and Dante remained silent for a long time.

It doesn't take much political savvy to know that once the Sorcerer Kingdom is established, the School of the Wolf will be the first to be targeted, given that Senne has always hated Witchers and the Rissberg Civil Conglomerate, which now shares the same grudge against the School of the Wolf.

At that point, let alone whether Kaer Morhen will still be able to stay, under the hostility of an entire kingdom, can the School of the Wolf... no... the Witchers really survive in the Northern Continent?

Seeing the two of them silently bowing their heads, seemingly deep in thought, Ailin sighed and pushed open the door to her room.

This is.

"So you've already thought it through, right?"

Vesemir's tone was filled with unspeakable guilt and self-reproach.

Ailin didn't know what to say.

He paused on the threshold with his right foot, then silently walked into the room.

"Squeak~"

The flimsy wooden door emitted an exceptionally piercing wail.

——

I listened to the footsteps silently fading away through the door.

Ailin leaned against the wooden wall, looking at the amulet above his head.

The statue of the Three Saints of Meritellie, with its all-encompassing, warm smile, remains unchanged from when we left yesterday.

The bright sunshine, the gentle breeze carrying the scent of earth and grass, and the rustling white noise of the leaves—it was as peaceful as yesterday, as it is every day.

Unfortunately, people change every day, whether by choice or by force, and are pushed forward by time.

"It's a good time for a nap," Ailin thought to himself.

Unfortunately, he still has other things to do.

With a sigh of relief, Ailin opened the Witcher's Handbook with a thought.

[Ding! Use Ronnie Dickinson's Vessel of Great Deeds?]