Thomas Morra Confessed

Time flies, and a week has passed in the blink of an eye.

This week was extremely fulfilling for Ailin.

The day after he returned, he used the Conjunction of the Spheres in the cave of the Old Spearhead.

All Conjunction of the Spheres share the same one-month cooldown period. Once a Conjunction of the Spheres is used, all others must wait one month before they can be used again.

This deviates somewhat from his initial plan after unlocking "Conjunction of the Spheres - Water Ghost," which envisioned that unlocking one more Conjunction of the Spheres would result in one more Conjunction of the Spheres per month.

But upon closer reflection, it actually makes sense.

The fact that the cooldown time of the Conjunction of the Spheres was halved after absorbing the energy of the Circle of Elements from the Witcher's Handbook also shows this.

That one-month cooldown period wasn't a deliberate restriction imposed by the Witcher's Handbook; rather, it was because the Conjunction of the Spheres needed that month to absorb the energy required to locate the space, pierce the passage, and summon monsters.

There's only so much energy, so it's impossible to summon it repeatedly.

Considering the limits of the attributes, Ailin did not choose "Conjunction of the Spheres - Ghoul" or "Conjunction of the Spheres - Giant Ghoul".

Since the monster that appeared when the Evil God descended was killed by the Evil God's incarnation, Ailin did not obtain the Heart Essence Fluid, he did not even know the name of the large monster summoned by "Conjunction of the Spheres - Ghoul", so we will skip the former for now.

As for "Conjunction of the Spheres - Giant Ghoul", nearly half of the attribute bonus from the Corpse Lord is added to Ailin's only attribute that has reached its limit, so the cost-effectiveness is also very low.

Therefore, he chose "Conjunction of the Spheres - Rotfiend".

After killing the large monster that had "responded to the summons"—the Grave Hag — Ailin immediately consumed the Grave Hag's Heart Essence Fluid, reaping considerable benefits.

Name: Ailin

[HP: 100%, Stamina: 980/980, MP: 1260/1260]

[Attributes: Strength 99, Agility 92 (+5), Constitution 98 (+5), Perception 93, Mysticism 126 (+2)]

[Affinity: Water 16 (Magic Source - Water 6%) (+1), Earth 19 (Magic Source - Earth 9%), Wind 11 (Magic Source - Wind 1%), Fire 24 (Magic Source - Fire 14%), Space 2]

With both Agility and Constitution exceeding 90 points, and Constitution just one point away from granting him a second "Limit - Initial" attribute.

Moreover, after his physical attributes improved, he felt that his explosive power had also increased significantly.

Ailin seemed to vaguely sense the overflowing feeling that Soyer and Vesemir had described when they reached their limit, though it was still somewhat ethereal and not quite real.

He estimated that when Agility reaches the same level, it doesn't even need to reach 99 points; 95 points or more is enough to condense the Vessel of Great Deeds.

certainly.

Ailin definitely wants to reach the "Limit - Initial" level for all attributes, and after the second breakthrough, he will see if he can condense the Vessel of Great Deeds.

That will not be discussed for now.

The "Conjunction of the Spheres" skill provides a significant boost to attributes, but after use, there is a long cooldown period.

Perhaps the initial idea of multiple "intersections" per month can only be unlocked after the Witcher's Handbook absorbs several more "Fragments of the Gate of Ade Gais" or "Guiding Stone of the Gate of Ade Gais".

Um...

Not necessarily.

This time, the cooldown time after the "Conjunction of the Spheres" ended was half a minute shorter than the last time.

Ailin observed through the Wolf Emblem that the concentration of Water Element floating in the air of Kaer Morhen had subtly increased.

He estimated that this was likely the effect of the "Planetary Alignment" that occurred in Ban Ade six months ago, which had spread to Kaer Morhen, increasing the amount of energy available for the Witcher's Handbook to absorb in the environment.

This only reduces the cooldown time by half a minute for now, but as the number of Conjunction of the Spheres increases, the improvement will definitely accelerate.

It's something to look forward to.

However, the attribute growth only saw a significant increase on the second day after his return, and for the next six days, there was no increase in attributes at all.

There are actually quite a few monsters around Kaer Morhen.

However, Ailin was concerned about Soyer's health and the progress of Ida Emin's interrogation, so he didn't dare to go too far, lest he be unable to find out Thomas Morui's laboratory location in Toussaint after it was interrogated.

Unable to spend the night outside, and with the abundance of Water Element leading to an unusually large number of water ghosts, the living space of other monsters is squeezed out.

I haven't been able to hunt any unfamiliar monsters this week, let alone large ones.

This left Ailin somewhat speechless, both amused and exasperated.

In Vengerberg, in Arland, when you don't want anything to happen, things happen one after another: wraiths, Greater Griffin, Giant Ghoul, Evil God, one after another.

Now that I want one, the entire Kaer Morhen area is practically deserted except for water ghosts and a few scattered ghouls; all other monsters are as if they've all died out. I can't find a single one.

That's outrageous.

certainly.

Ailin wasn't truly without any solutions.

Hunting Quest: Ghoul II (Kill 248/250 Water Ghosts)

Hunting Quest: Rotfiend II (Kill 97/100 Rotfiend)

[Hunting Quest: Giant Ghoul II (Kill 15/20 Giant Ghoul)]

Ghoul creatures are quite widespread. They are rare in Kaer Morhen, but monsters that gnaw on corpses can be seen everywhere in the war-torn area below the mountain.

It's easy to collect all three second-tier hunting missions.

The horde of cannibalistic creatures summoned by the Planetary Alignment will definitely boost his attributes, at least agility, physique, and perception, to their maximum level.

However, the Planetary Alignment does not distinguish between friend and foe, and can harm both others and oneself.

Kaer Morhen was certainly not a suitable place; he couldn't afford to draw the attention of the Wild Hunt, Ban Ade, the Rissberg Civil Conglomerate, and even the entire Northern Continent to the homeland of the School of the Wolf.

Although Ailin's bottom line is not high, he is not a madman or demon who cannot distinguish between good and evil. He would not release his Heart Essence Fluid anywhere.

The civilians of Kedwen were already struggling to survive due to the war between the two countries.

The only suitable location now is Ban Ad.

But the timing is awkward. Releasing the Planetary Alignment in Ban Aard ahead of time could lead to the wizards completely evacuating Ban Aard, and with Otolan of the Rissberg Civil Conglomerate in the picture, it would be difficult for Ailin to pull off such a risky move.

It would be better to wait until we rescue Henry Gedimidis before seeking an opportunity to release him.

Of course, Ailin couldn't rely on Ben Ade forever to just watch the wizards wreak havoc.

He had no objection.

But sooner or later, Ban Ad will not be able to hold on, and the Planetary Alignment and even stronger interactions that will accumulate in the future will inevitably increase. This is not something he can refuse to do.

The White Frost will one day descend, and the Conjunction of the Spheres is the solution devised by the Goddess Meritellie.

This is his mission.

Whatever the reason, he had no choice but to do it.

therefore.

He is also selecting a suitable location, and there are already some leads. However, he still needs to wait for the results of Ada Emin's interrogation and for Soyer to be unharmed after the Second Mutation before taking formal action.

Of course, aside from the Grave Hag summoned by the Conjunction of the Spheres, the gains in terms of strength were not significant.

But he didn't waste this week.

The day after Francesca Fantaby left, Ailin, with the help of Aristo and Mary, selected fifteen members for the Monster Hunting Legion.

Using the remaining Essence Fluid and Purification Spirit in advance, Fred's attributes were raised to the same level as other young witchers. Then, Combat Points were used to improve his School of the Wolf Two-Handed Sword and various signs...

Ailin activates the Legion skill "Bestow Honor" and appoints Fred as the first captain of the Monster Hunting Legion.

[Bestow Honor]

[Level: 1]

[Type: Legion Passive Skill]

[Active Effect: Grants the "Captain" title to one legion member. A previously granted title can be revoked once. (A "Captain" can lead ten members. As long as the members are within the "Captain's" influence range, the outcome of the battle is independent of the legion commander and calculated separately.)]

This position was originally intended for Huus.

However, Huus is currently seriously injured and is still recuperating at the Temple of Melitele, so this position cannot be left idle. Therefore, Fred was directly appointed instead.

As a result, Ailin figured out some of the characteristics of the "Bestow Honor" skill.

Currently, the system allows the team leader to lead ten members, but in reality, having more or fewer than ten members will not have any impact.

Ailin estimated that in the future, each captain might have different effects similar to a halo, which only members recognized by the system can enjoy.

Or perhaps there will be some special mechanism for settlement in the future.

However, in Kaer Morhen, although Fred's team members are all newly recruited Witcher apprentices, unless Ailin himself is available, Ernie, Klar, and the other twenty-two members all go out hunting with Fred every day.

Anyway, it's just hunting some water ghosts. Although there aren't many Experience Orbs, and they're just Lesser Experience Orbs, it's better to have some than nothing. It's also a good opportunity to help him take care of the kids and boost the Monster Hunting Legion's battle record.

Besides that.

After that night, Philippa Ehrhardt unexpectedly became obedient.

Through sparring, communication, and training involving Kaer Morhen day and night, the two rapidly improved their teamwork.

On the third day, it was entirely possible to sneak into the castle hall in a very short time, during the daytime when Kaer Morhen was under the heaviest security.

Of course, considering that the guards were all apprentices, this was not difficult, but it was much better than the first time when they were flustered, hindering each other, and almost being discovered.

At least the two of them found the most suitable way to communicate covertly.

Later, Ailin asked Vesemir and Aristo, who knew the truth, to act as guards. After two days and three failures, they finally succeeded.

However, due to the lack of sufficiently strong opponents, the rate at which teamwork improved quickly slowed down.

Teamwork can't be rushed, and they still have plenty of time. They just need to improve steadily.

Other aspects...

He did not see Yennefer.

Mary said that Yennefer had made great progress, but she hoped that she would appear in an even better form next time she met Ailin.

Ailin didn't insist.

He was also very curious about what the Little Monster would look like the next time they met.

Or is it like the original story, bitter as gooseberry and sweet as clove?

Ailin didn't know, but he was really looking forward to it.

As for Soyer and Vesemir, they did not meet during these seven days, whether intentionally or unintentionally.

but...

Mary would act as a bridge every day, keeping Ailin informed about Soyer's health condition.

Mary said that Vesemir and Ida Emin had been trying to find ways to prolong Soyer's life, but Soyer's condition was inevitably getting worse.

Ailin was powerless to do anything about it.

Relying on Second Mutation and Thomas Molu's laboratory, he can also try to upgrade Xenogeneic Mutagenesis and gamble on a possibility.

This would allow him to upgrade Xenogeneic Mutagenesis out of thin air, deduce Second Mutation, and create related experimental equipment to improve the experimental procedures for the mitigation, recovery, and even breakthrough of Soyer...

Even if Soyer's life were ended by the dragon's curse, and his bones were buried and eroded into a skeleton, it would still be impossible for him to complete the task.

Therefore, even though he was a little anxious, he could only wait patiently.

"No news from Lady Vesemir today either?"

At the edge of the training grounds in Kaer Morhen, Ailin leaned against the rough wooden fence, his brows furrowed with barely concealed anxiety, and asked a question.

"No." Mary replied without looking up.

There was no need for combat or spell instruction.

But Mary, dressed in a red mage's robe, was toying with a pure white wooden staff.

The top of the wooden staff was entwined with white vines and inlaid with a fist-sized blue crystal, making it look extremely luxurious and imposing.

[Name: Kraft Hellick's Birch Staff]

[Type: Magical Item]

[Function:

Thunder: Air Element Specialization, enhances the effects of air element spells.

Balance: Balances elements, slightly suppressing elemental surges.

Save Mana: Reduces mana consumption.

[Note: A decent air element staff.]

Um...

This is what Ailin got from opening twenty-three Sorcerer's Chest a week ago.

To be honest, when Mary told him the next day that she was skilled in water and earth elemental magic and was currently learning Fire Element magic, he had planned to take back the staff and find an opportunity to make her a more suitable one.

Unexpectedly, Mary snatched the staff and carried it around all day, as if she were an elemental sorcerer specializing in air element.

When asked, she retorted, "The reason I'm not good at air element is because I lack a suitable staff."

"By the way," Mary asked casually, her head down and eyes darting around, "Do you and your advisor... have some kind of misunderstanding? Why do you always make me relay messages when you could go by yourself?"

A clumsy attempt.

And it's been a week already, so it's a bit too slow to notice.

Ailin glanced at it sideways and raised an eyebrow:

"What? You're finding it troublesome to relay Lady Vesemir's message?"

"Don't talk nonsense!" Mary was startled by Ailin's words, her body stiffened, and she quickly looked around, saying, "I... I never said I was unwilling to work for my mentor, please... please don't frame me..."

Before he could finish speaking...

"Fir..."

A simple and elegant syllable suddenly rang out from the training ground, interrupting Mary.

Ailin's eyes lit up, and he was about to look into the training field.

Just then, Aristo suddenly appeared from the high ground in the direction of the castle and shouted excitedly:

"Ailin, come quick!"

"The matter you were concerned about has been resolved!"

The thing I care about... Ailin was stunned for a moment, then overjoyed.

Could it be...?

Could it be Thomas Maurice?!