The Red Dragon's Roar! Toussaint!

Kaer Morhen is not large. Within its square walls, the area it occupies is roughly the same size as a typical village, and even smaller than a small town.

This is determined by the intended use when building a fortress.

Although it is unknown what Kaer Morhen's hypothetical enemy is, Kaer Morhen has always been a military fortress.

Regardless of the military fortress, no matter how sturdy the city walls or how deep the moat, the core is always people.

They guarded the fortress, drawing their bows and shooting arrows, clearing obstacles and engaging in fierce street battles. In every defensive position, they were like a millstone, crushing the invading enemy into blood and gore.

Without people, even the most impregnable fortress is just an empty city.

Therefore, in war, experienced generals can easily deduce the size of the defending army from the size of the fortress.

Of course, the reverse is also true.

The difficult birth of the Witcher personnel and the extreme training methods determined from the beginning that Kaer Morhen could not be large in scale. Moreover, its crisscrossing ravines and narrow passages made it the easiest place to bring out the individual combat power of the School of the Wolf Witchers.

If you're fast, ten minutes is enough for an ordinary person to walk from the west city gate to the east castle hall and back twice.

In such a "narrow" place, Ailin had already figured out most of the daily life and training after he transmigrated here. After passing the Trial of the Mountains and becoming Witcher Master, no place in the Ancient Sea Fortress was on guard against him.

The residences of all the Witcher Master, and even the Chief, can be accessed simply by bringing a bottle of wine from the castle hall.

He thought he knew this place inside and out, but when Vesemir led him to an unremarkable wall and pulled down a fixed candlestick, revealing a deep, dark void, he realized...

Kaer Morhen is not large, but it holds many secrets.

"This secret passage was created at the same time as Kaer Morhen, and not many people know about it." Vesemir snapped her fingers.

A ball of light illuminated the path ahead.

The secret passage was rough. The left wall was flat and solid, built of uniform limestone, while the right wall was grayish-white and pitted, with obvious layers, and was the unique gray granite of the Blue Mountains.

The steps on the ground were carved out, and they were winding and crooked.

The dampness seeped into the texture of the rocks, making this irregular passageway resemble a dried-up riverbed in the mountains after a rain.

Ailin lowered his head and pondered, confirming his location.

He should be located behind the main castle now.

The Ancient Sea Fortress built against the mountain. The wall on the left side of the secret passage is a castle, and the right side should be the majestic mountain of the Blue Mountains.

Ailin didn't quite understand.

It was perfectly normal for castles to have secret passages to facilitate the escape of nobles in the event of a sudden attack, for political intrigue, or for meeting with mistresses.

But Kaer Morhen is not King's Landing from Game of Thrones, a place with a total population of no more than two hundred, a permanent population of less than one hundred, mostly men, hidden deep in the mountains and forests, and only densely populated during the harsh winter.

None of the three functions mentioned above are very useful.

Um...

Etc!

Ailin's gaze fell on Vesemir in front of him.

Kaer Morhen was the chief architect of the project, and the two were probably in the throes of a passionate romance at the time.

It's not entirely impossible for a couple to build a secret passage for a clandestine rendezvous in order to avoid negative influences on their school of thought.

However, thinking of the chief's serious and restrained appearance, Ailin became somewhat uncertain.

"Arrive."

Vesemir's voice interrupted Ailin's reverie.

The gaze passed over the Sorceress's shoulder, and before the narrow passage, a large, black iron-textured door seemed to grow out of the gray-white rock wall, fitting perfectly.

The ferocious wolf head relief is decorated with sword and flame patterns, reflecting a ghostly blue light under illumination.

This light... looks somewhat familiar.

"Aetherium?" Ailin wasn't sure.

"It's Aetherium," Vesemir nodded. "The purity isn't very high, but it's enough to shield against magical fluctuations."

No wonder Lady Vesemir doesn't use teleportation portals... Ailin thought to himself.

Aetherium can suppress magical energy. Where there is a large amount of Aetherium, the activity of the four elements will be inert to a certain extent.

The success rate of ordinary spells is reduced, let alone a portal, which is known for its precision.

Of course, due to the purity of the Aetherium, the degree of magic inertization in this area is not high.

only...

Why is the chief here?

Ailin recalled that the location behind the door did not correspond to any of the main castle locations; rather, it was more like a stone chamber that had been dug out in the mountains.

"Cast Quen, and maintain the Oterrohp Sign," Vesemir instructed, turning back before opening the door. "I'm about to open it."

Ailin frowned upon hearing this.

Although puzzled, he raised his right hand after staring at Vesemir for a few seconds.

With magical energy flowing within him, he slightly bent his thumb and forefinger and drew a triangle in the air in front of him.

A brilliant golden light flowed across the leather armor, then disappeared.

Quen Sign.

Then, he crossed his arms in front of his body, and a purple, transparent, spherical protective shield formed from the soles of his feet and closed above his head.

Oterrohp Sign.

"Ailin, the strength of your sign..."

Vesemir, who was watching the whole process, felt the fluctuations of magic and a hint of surprise flashed in her eyes.

Unlike the Oterrohp Sign Ailin had when he discovered he was being mind-read.

At that time, he was only activating the Divine Wall, and the magical fluctuations were fleeting. With the more powerful sorcerer Ida Emin nearby, they were not noticeable.

But at this moment, in the narrow secret passage where only the two of them were, intense magical fluctuations, like the tides during a full moon, vibrated back and forth against the walls, sounding deafeningly loud to the Sorceress's keen senses, like the tolling of a great bell.

This is not a technique like a divine wall, but rather an intensity boosted purely by a large amount of magic power.

"I've made some progress in the last two months," Ailin said modestly.

"This is more than just a small improvement," Vesemir shook her head, "The magical fluctuations Mary can release are not even as good as..."

She seemed to realize something, her tone suddenly paused, and she held her breath.

The magic fluctuations are even stronger Mary's?!

"Ailin, you... have awakened your talent!"

This is a certainty, not a question.

The Genetic Mutation induced by the witcher's potion-making process can grant magical talent, but there are limits to that.

To surpass Mary, Sorceress who has already graduated from Aretuza, one must awaken Sorcerer Talent to achieve that.

"Yes, I awakened some time ago."

Ailin wanted to learn some practical spells from Vesemir and hadn't originally intended to hide them.

"Alright, alright!" Vesemir smiled, her eyes curving into charming crescents. Without Ailin even having to ask, she said, "You've always been very opinionated. Is there any magic spell you'd like to learn?"

"Defensively, Quen and Oterrohp Sign are sufficient for now. If you want to combine them with the Witcher's swordsmanship, Blind Dust and Magic Flash are good skills."

"The Magic Heal can stimulate natural healing abilities. Hunting monsters is dangerous for witchers, so they need to learn it before auxiliary spells like Blinding Dust and Magic Flash..."

"Gliding can reduce one's weight during descent, giving one a better chance of survival when encountering a strong enemy on a cliff..."

"Airbag creates fresh air, which works very well underwater and in areas with toxic gases..."

"And there's Talfer's Prison, the Clean Water Spell, the Rainstorm Spell..."

"Aren't you skilled in alchemy?"

"Flame Crucible, Impurity Separation, and... these are all very useful spells."

"However, Fire Magic is too dangerous, so let's start with Water Element first..."

"Wrong!"

"You haven't tested your Elemental Affinity yet. We need to test your talent after awakening first. If your Water Element affinity isn't enough, Earth Element is also a good option..."

Vesemir became excited when she heard that Ailin had awakened his warlock talent.

He said that Ailin was very opinionated and let him choose the spells he wanted to learn, but then he arranged Ailin's "schedule" all by himself.

"Lady Vesemir, there's no rush. I'll be staying in Kaer Morhen for a while, so I'll have time to study." Ailin, somewhat amused and exasperated.

"Stay for a while?" Vesemir caught the key phrase. "It's almost autumn, and the School of the Wolf's witchers will be back in a few months. Are you still planning to go down the mountain?"

"We might have to go down the mountain again," Ailin said somewhat awkwardly, changing the subject. "Let's not talk about that now. Let's check on the chief first. We can discuss the spells, talents, and affinity tests later."

As soon as she finished speaking, Vesemir's joy vanished instantly.

She pursed her lips, stared at Ailin for a long while, trying to imprint him on her beating heart. "Okay, let's talk properly after we meet with Soyer."

He finished speaking.

Smack!

A snap of the fingers.

Several colors of magical light shimmered on Vesemir's body.

Each magical fluctuation it emitted was several times stronger Oterrohp Sign.

Ailin wanted to ask why such careful precautions were taken when meeting the chief, but thinking of Vesemir's expression just now, and knowing that the answer was behind the door, he patiently watched Vesemir cast spell after spell in an instant.

Once all the magical glow had dissipated, Vesemir glanced back at Ailin, then reached through the magical shield of the Oterrohp Sign with her left hand and grabbed his wrist.

Ailin felt the coldness in his wrist and nodded seriously.

Vesemir tilted her head and pointed her right index finger directly at the menacing wolf head on the Metal Door.

"Buzz~"

The Wolf Emblem hums.

The eyes of the wolf's head in relief suddenly change from black to a ghastly green, as if a ferocious wolf is awakening from hunger.

"Howl--"

Amidst the ferocious howls, Ailin instantly felt himself being watched, followed by his body being pulled and torn apart, as if he were truly being devoured by a pack of wolves.

A strong sense of crisis made him instinctively want to retreat, but remembering Vesemir's instructions, he forced himself to remain motionless.

The pain from pulling and tearing is stronger.

However, not long after, the green light in the wolf's pale green eyes suddenly became dazzling.

Then Ailin's vision blurred and his body felt light.

When I came to my senses again...

"Roar!"

A sudden roar, as if the sky had collapsed and the earth had crumbled.

An immense pressure, like a mountain collapsing, suddenly pressed down on him, seemingly about to crush him into mincemeat in an instant.

In the blink of an eye, an invisible wave surged forth. The purple shield of the Oterrohp Sign struggled to hold on amidst the fluctuations, while the golden Quen Shield flickered with light and shadow the instant it was aroused from the dark red leather armor.

"Dragon's might! This is dragon's might!"

Caught off guard, Ailin was immediately terrified and recognized a familiar fluctuation in the oppressive aura.

He instinctively looked up.

A massive red dragon, comparable to the main fortress of Kaer Morhen, stared at him with ferocious vertical pupils, casting a shadow that enveloped him like a poisoned net.

The already enormous dragon's might grew even more immense during their eye contact, like a mountain collapsing and a tsunami crashing.

Ailin was completely stunned.

Where did Lady Vesemir bring me?

How could there be a dragon here?!

at the same time.

His instincts, honed by long-term training and killing, made his body act before his mind.

In an instant.

Ailin instinctively activated [Demon Hunter] immediately, and then tried to deactivate the Oterrohp Sign, sidestep, and pull out Balmor Dragon.

At this moment.

A cold sensation appeared on my right wrist.

Vesemir!

Lady Vesemir held my hand!

Ailin then realized that the appearance of the dragon had made him completely oblivious to everything around him.

And when he realized this.

"Roar~"

Amidst the ferocious and unwilling roar of the red dragon, flames ignited between each of its metallic scales, and then, upon encountering the most potent accelerant, they burst into flames with a deafening roar.

Flames shot into the sky, piercing a large hole in the dim, dark sky.

It really pierced a hole that was burning fiercely. Ailin was only stunned for a moment before the hole rapidly expanded, burning the entire world to ashes in the blink of an eye.

Then he followed the flames that burned the world and bowed his head again.

Vesemir was holding his wrist.

"Are you alright, Ailin?" she asked.

"N-nothing... it's nothing." Ailin blinked, finally recovering from the shock of the dragon's might.

Then he realized something seemed off.

His gaze passed through Vesemir holding his hand; the lush green grass on the ground swayed in the wind, and a faint, refreshing floral fragrance wafted in the breeze.

Pansies in shades of purple, yellow, and white; white saxifrage; lupins; bearberries...

On the rolling hills, a sea of blue lilies of the valley is in full bloom.

Amidst the sea of flowers, there are windmills with pure white blades turning, and rows of brightly colored cottages draped with grapevines.

Since his rebirth, Ailin's vision had never experienced such a high saturation of color, as if he had been sealed into an oil painting depicting pastoral scenery.

Compared to the scene of the majestic dragon destroying the world just now, it's not even in the same style.

"Where... where is this?" Ailin reluctantly pulled his gaze away from the beautiful scenery behind Vesemir.

"Isn't it beautiful?" Vesemir smiled gently.

"Beautiful!" Ailin nodded without hesitation.

Vesemir smiled even more broadly. He could tell that the smile came from the heart; it was the kind of smile that appeared when someone praised what she cared about most.

"What you see is Toussaint," she said, gazing at the sea of lilies of the valley. "Since the time of the elves, this has been the most beautiful place in the world."

Toussaint?

Ailin paused, his gaze passing over Vesemir's shoulder to look at the breathtaking scenery in the distance.

What teleportation spell could teleport him to Toussaint, far away in Nilfgaard?

Etc!

The place you "see" is Toussaint, so this isn't Toussaint, this is...

"An illusion," Vesemir nodded with a smile. "This is an illusion I created; we are still in Kaer Morhen."

"Let's go, I'll take you to see Soyer ..."