The Howls of the Pack Echoed Through Kaer Morhen!

"Valerius... Valerius..."

The young Ban Ard Sorcerer suddenly opened his eyes at his companion's soft call.

What greeted him was the slightly dazzling morning light, and Shaquille's deathly pale face, his eyelashes, hair, and wrinkles all beaded with mountain dew.

Still groggy, Valerius immediately realized that he was not lying in the soft velvet bed of Ban Ard's Mage Tower, nor was he in the newly opened Pink Tavern in the city, thick with the scent of cosmetics...

He was at Kaer Morhen, the Ancient Sea Fortress, the witchers' sanctuary, the city surrounded by wolves...

As... an enemy.

Valerius shuddered violently. Wet morning dew fell from the trembling tips of his hair, slipped into his collar, and made him shiver again.

"Hiss—"

Drawing in a sharp breath, he hurriedly clutched his collar, then painfully rubbed his neck, which was stiffer than the fallen-leaf maple he had been leaning against, and said:

"S-Sorry..."

"I think... I accidentally fell asleep..."

"You don't have to think," Shaquille raised an eyebrow and said irritably. "You did fall asleep, and you slept very soundly. Your snoring kept getting louder too. You're not going to blame me for disturbing your sweet dream, are you?"

"No, no..." Valerius scratched his head awkwardly and quickly changed the subject. "But it's already dawn? Why is a castle hidden deep in the mountains at the edge of Kedwen guarded so tightly?"

He turned to look at Kaer Morhen's still heavily guarded walls and buried himself deeper in the grass.

Shaquille did not mind Valerius's clumsy attempt at changing the subject.

After all, Valerius could hardly be blamed. Sorcerers often stayed awake through the night for research, experiments, or simply pleasure, but that was only possible when there were no outside disturbances, when they were fully immersed in their work and