Chapter Summaries

Ailin escaped Eredin Breacc Glas’s attempt to teleport him to Tir ná Lia, but his theories about Eredin’s power and motives were unsettled when the Wild Hunt king appeared behind him again. The chapter ended with Eredin declaring that he would not leave and wanted no one else involved in their story.

• Eredin spoke through the burning Regis, called Ailin a child of Elder Blood, and tried to activate the Conqueror’s Armor’s Rebirth effect to send him to Tir ná Lia.
• Ailin recalled the armor into the Witcher’s Handbook, breaking Eredin’s control and preventing the teleportation.
• Ailin fled Ban Ard on the Black Dragon while Regis watched and Eredin did not pursue him.
• As he flew toward Redania, Ailin reasoned that Eredin had limited energy and had mistaken him for an Elder Blood child, then considered the differences between Eredin’s and Regis’s motives.
• Eredin’s blue-gray light vanished, but his voice suddenly came from behind Ailin as the Black Dragon sank, revealing that he had not left.

Ailin resisted Eredin Breacc Glas’s attempt to control him by disrupting the Wild Hunt king’s distant possession of Regis with Planetary Alignment and Dimeritium Bombs. Just as Ailin gained the upper hand and attacked in Berserk form, Eredin warned of a future meeting and unleashed a blinding attack that engulfed him.

• Eredin Breacc Glas blocked Ailin’s sword and used mind-control magic to weaken his mental defenses and tempt him to join the Wild Hunt.
• Ailin pretended to be bewitched while searching for an escape, then used Planetary Alignment to disrupt Eredin’s possession of Regis.
• Ailin threw Dimeritium Bombs at Eredin and used Demon Hunt, slowing the Wild Hunt king and building progress against him.
• Ailin transformed into a golden-furred monster and charged Eredin, who recoiled before regaining his composure.
• Eredin warned Ailin that they would meet again, promised him a terrible gift, and disintegrated in a blinding flash that engulfed Ailin as he fled on Black Dragon.

Mary used Song of Spirit Breath to help Yennefer recover from the damage caused by Chaos Magic and left her studying in a quiet room at Kaer Morhen. Mary then secretly gathered supplies and went to speak with Ailin, intending to join the mission to rescue Henn Gedimidis despite Vesemir’s objections.

• Mary sang Song of Spirit Breath, and Yennefer’s deformities and pain continued to lessen as her Chaos Magic returned to its normal Magic Circuit.
• Mary told Yennefer she was expected to recover fully in about half a month, and Yennefer resolved to protect Ailin as family once she learned magic.
• Mary left Yennefer with books and notes to study, then slipped into the Alchemy Room and collected supplies while avoiding Vesemir.
• Mary decided to rescue Henn Gedimidis with Ailin and reasoned that Ailin could persuade Vesemir to accept her involvement.
• Mary knocked on the door of Ailin’s room after preparing her arguments for joining the mission.

Mary found Philippa Eilhart waiting at Ailin’s room, where Philippa told her she could take over the rescue of Henn Gedimidis while she pursued a political role in restoring Kedwen and advancing Sorceresses’ opportunities. Mary considered asking Ailin for guidance, but she and Philippa sensed something overhead as they left the tower.

• Mary arrived at Ailin’s room intending to discuss replacing Philippa Eilhart, but Philippa opened the door and revealed that Ailin had not returned overnight.
• Philippa told Mary that rumors about her rivalry with Philippa and her disagreement with Tissaia de Vries had spread through Kaer Morhen.
• Philippa said Mary could take over the rescue of Henn Gedimidis because Philippa was busy advising Rado and seeking to become Kedwen’s court mage.
• Philippa explained that she wanted to seize Kedwen as an opportunity to secure fairer work and greater power for Sorceresses, despite the deaths and instability that might result.
• Philippa asked Mary to think carefully about joining her, and Mary decided she might seek Ailin’s advice.
• Mary and Philippa sensed something overhead as they left the tower and looked up at the sky.

Shaquille and Valerius watched Kaer Morhen, hoping to test the War Beast, when a portal alarm drew the castle’s residents away from the walls. The portal brought Vilgefortz and Lydia back from a successful mission led by Ailin, carrying a mysterious covered figure that left Tissaia and the others stunned.

• Valerius woke beside Shaquille, and the two decided to leave Kaer Morhen and return after nightfall.
• Wolf howls sounded from inside Kaer Morhen, and Shaquille and Valerius saw the castle guards abandon the walls.
• Mary told Philippa Eilhart that the howls were an alarm for someone entering through a portal, then led her toward the courtyard.
• Philippa met Geralt Morra, a powerful Witcher Master of the School of the Griffin who had not yet returned to Kaer Seren.
• Vilgefortz and Lydia emerged from the portal in a battered state, and Vilgefortz revealed that Ailin had led them to complete their mission.
• Tissaia and the others noticed the humanoid object covered in black cloth on Vilgefortz's back and stared at him in disbelief.

Vilgefortz and Lydia van Bredevoort brought the rescued Henn Gedimidis to Kaer Morhen, where Ailin’s absence unsettled the Witchers. A Senne’s messenger arrived with a warning about incoming War Beasts, but Geralt Morra captured the Sorcerers and brought them into the bailey, leaving Shaquille stunned by what he saw there.

• Vilgefortz revealed Henn Gedimidis, and Tissaia de Vries used Lock and Key Opening to remove his Aetherium shackles.
• Mary asked where Ailin was, and Vilgefortz and Lydia van Bredevoort said he had stayed behind to cover their retreat and would return soon.
• Geralt Morra leaped onto the battlements after Shaquille and Valerius delivered Senne’s threat, then cut apart their fireballs.
• Shaquille told Geralt Morra that a coordinate crystal would bring War Beasts to Kaer Morhen, and Geralt escorted him and Valerius down from the wall.
• Shaquille looked across the bailey and cried out in shock, asking where he had ended up.

Shaquille and Valerius realized Ban Ard’s Dean Henn Gedimidis had been captured and brought to Kaer Morhen, just as Riesberg’s War Beasts attacked the stronghold. Soyer swiftly killed the monsters, revealing his Second Mutation, and the chapter ended with Tissaia de Vries protecting Vilgefortz while confronting the School of the Wolf.

• Shaquille recognized Henn Gedimidis frozen on the ground at Kaer Morhen and wondered how he had been taken from Ban Ard.
• Several portals opened above Kaer Morhen, releasing Riesberg’s grotesque War Beasts into the outer ward.
• Vesemir used the Crimson Fox’s Leech Transfiguration Spell to shrink some of the attacking monsters, but the modified War Beasts resisted it and crashed into the wall.
• Soyer charged into the red mist and swiftly slaughtered the War Beasts, demonstrating the power of his Second Mutation.
• Shaquille and Valerius feared Senne had wanted them dead, while Tissaia de Vries stood protectively beside Vilgefortz and faced the School of the Wolf’s witchers.

After the War Beast’s destruction at Kaer Morhen, distrust kept the survivors in a tense stalemate until Vilgefortz submitted to Aetherium shackles so the group could search Ban Ard for Ailin. Vera’s group emerged from a portal to discover that Ban Ard had vanished.

• Mary questioned why the group was waiting at Kaer Morhen instead of going to Ban Ard, and Vilgefortz admitted they should search for Ailin.
• Vilgefortz put on Aetherium shackles with Aristo’s help, enduring a severe magical backlash so the others could trust him enough to travel.
• Vera opened a portal, and Mary, Vesemir, Vilgefortz, Geralt Morra, and Dante went through to search for Ailin; Lydia van Bredevoort stayed behind.
• Tissaia de Vries opened another portal and left with Philippa Eilhart, while Soyer and Aristo remained at Kaer Morhen and ordered Shaquille and Valerius taken to the dungeon.
• Vera’s group emerged from the portal and discovered that Ban Ard had vanished.

Lady Vesemir and the others found Ban Ard vanished and feared Ailin was missing, while Francesca learned the same news in Dol Blathanna. As a portal opened and someone demanded to know where Ailin was, Lady Vesemir warned Mary that she would not want to know the answer so soon.

• Lady Vesemir, Mary, Vesemir, Dante, and Geralt Morra discovered that Ban Ard had disappeared, and Vilgefortz said he did not know what had happened after he left with Lydia van Bredevoort.
• Mary panicked over Ailin, while Vilgefortz admitted he was no longer sure Ailin was safe and Lady Vesemir suggested another way to find him.
• Francesca asked Carla about the Free Elves’ losses and learned that two Squirrel formations had been disbanded; Adda of Vengerberg then told her that Ailin had gone missing.
• Lady Vesemir found that elemental concentration around Ban Ard had at least doubled, and Vesemir reported that witnesses had seen a Black Dragon destroying the city.
• Mary demanded to know whom Lady Vesemir had contacted, but Lady Vesemir warned her she would not want to know so soon before an orange-red portal opened and a voice asked where Ailin was.

Mary recognized Francesca Findabair when she arrived at Ban Ard, and Adda of Vengerberg reported the Free Elves’ losses before the messenger bird flew west. Meanwhile, Ailin dreamed of a Black Dragon and awoke gravely injured under Visenna and Colin’s care, realizing they were Geralt’s biological parents.

• Mary recognized Francesca Findabair and hid her anger when the Elf Princess appeared at the portal.
• Adda of Vengerberg told Vera that the Free Elves had escaped Ban Ard’s encirclement during a Conjunction of the Spheres, though the Mountain Folk suffered heavy casualties.
• Francesca Findabair revealed that she had the messenger bird and sent it flying west.
• Ailin dreamed that he was a Black Dragon before the vision ended in darkness.
• Visenna and Colin treated Ailin’s severe injuries, and Visenna used magic to soothe him as he drifted in and out of consciousness.
• Ailin overheard Visenna and Colin discuss his witcher training and realized they were Geralt’s biological parents.

Ailin realized that Visenna and Colin had rescued him, but feared Colin was still fated to die and that their danger might come sooner than expected. Too weak to warn them, he suffered a painful collapse and blacked out again as they tried to help him.

• Ailin recognized Visenna and Colin as Geralt's parents and realized he had been taken thousands of kilometers from Ban Ard to Temeria.
• Ailin recalled that Colin might die in the events surrounding Fregnall and the Koshchey, and resolved to protect his rescuers despite his helplessness.
• Ailin opened the Witcher's Handbook, but its information overwhelmed his damaged soul, so he forced it closed.
• Colin told Visenna that he felt stronger, and they recalled surviving the Koshchey's attack and losing their companions.
• Ailin tried to warn Visenna and Colin, but severe pain overwhelmed him; he briefly woke while Visenna, Mary, Vesemir, Soyer, and Aristo attended him, then fell unconscious again.

Ailin woke badly injured in a carriage with Visenna and Colin after his battle with Eredin Breacc Glas and the Wild Hunt. As the carriage stopped, he considered the consequences of the battle and the dangers of the Spiral and White Frost.

• Ailin woke with his face bandaged and sensed that Visenna and Colin were nearby on a busy road.
• Ailin reasoned that the Black Dragon had likely cushioned his fall, but wondered about its consciousness and the meaning of its final roar.
• Ailin reviewed his fight with Eredin Breacc Glas and concluded that, despite the grave risk, he had made the best choices available.
• Ailin considered how Senne's death and Henn Gedimidis's rescue had eased the threats facing the School of the Wolf.
• Ailin suspected the White Frost's activity had disrupted his access to the Spiral and rejected using it to hinder the Wild Hunt because it could endanger the real world.
• Ailin prepared to inspect his gains in the Witcher's Handbook, but the driver stopped the carriage.

Ailin reviewed the settlement for his battle against the Wild Hunt while recovering from severe injuries in a stalled caravan on the Old Road. As he considered the School of the Wolf’s next steps, he realized the time was near for him to take control of it.

• Caravans stopped on the Old Road, and Visenna and Colin learned that no one knew what had caused the sudden congestion.
• Colin rode ahead to investigate while Visenna checked on the injured Ailin, who failed to warn her about the danger he remembered.
• Ailin opened the Witcher's Handbook and received an A-rated settlement for subjugating Regis Galen Price, Senne Gobel, Miguel Courtney, the Aen Elle, and a sorcerer.
• Ailin worried that his injuries had left him disabled and hoped the School of the Wolf would find him and help him recover.
• Ailin concluded that the Wild Hunt’s threat could push the Northern Continent’s powers to seek the School of the Wolf’s cooperation and resources.
• Ailin planned to promote cooperation among witcher schools and realized that the witchers’ return would soon let him take over Soyer’s position.

Ailin examined Regis Galen Price’s loot and considered what it revealed about the path to transcending one’s life level. Colin returned with news that a black dragon had appeared near Brugge, prompting Visenna to abandon their destination and head for the Druid Circle of Myna.

• Ailin concluded that Regis Galen Price’s Element and Vessel of Great Deeds might point toward the Alder Folk’s path to advancement, then realized Regis’s memory crystal was his only direct clue.
• Ailin reviewed his other loot, including eighty-four Immortal’s Memory Crystals and ninety Experience Orbs, and decided he needed to learn Elder Speech quickly.
• Colin returned and reported that Brugge had sealed its gates after a black dragon flew over the city three days earlier.
• Visenna rejected the claim that the dragon was a Black Dragon, then said its appearance mattered more than anything else.
• Visenna ordered Colin and Ailin to return to the Druid Circle of Myna immediately.

Ailin woke in Visenna’s carriage and asked whether she had seen a Crystal Bird as Visenna and Colin debated what to do after the Black Dragon’s appearance. In Tir ná Lia, Eredin Breacc Glas revealed that a genetically modified being had destroyed most of the Red Riders and carried Adagath’s Gate, then demanded war.

• Visenna refused to enter Brugge or use a portal and argued that returning to the Druid Circle of Myna was safest, while Colin worried about the injured witcher and their search for the Golden-Furred Beast.
• As panic spread along the Old Road, Visenna entered the carriage, and Ailin used their mental connection to ask whether she had seen a Crystal Bird.
• Eredin Breacc Glas told Avallac that a genetically modified being wearing Conquest Armor had summoned a Black Dragon and wiped out eighty-six Red Riders, including Regis Galen Price.
• Eredin Breacc Glas revealed that the being carried Adagath’s Gate, the Alder Folk’s hope of escaping the White Frost.
• Eredin Breacc Glas demanded a war that would drown the earth in blood.

Eredin Breacc Glas persuaded Avallac to support a large-scale war to reclaim Adagath's Gate, despite the risks and the Elder Council's opposition. Meanwhile, the injured Ailin contacted Visenna and Colin, offering to help them return to the Druid Circle of Myna by sending a letter to Vesemir.

• Eredin Breacc Glas urged Avallac to back a war against Spiral Zone 43, arguing that the Alder Folk needed Adagath's Gate before the White Frost consumed the world.
• Avallac agreed to persuade Oberon Muirthach and warned Eredin Breacc Glas to keep the Red Riders cautious in the unstable Spiral.
• Eredin Breacc Glas left to confront the Elder Council after Avallac accepted their promise, and she said she was trying to save her.
• Ailin recovered enough to communicate through Visenna and learned that his messenger bird and swords had survived, though his potion pouch and sword bag were gone.
• Ailin told Colin and Visenna that the messenger bird could carry a letter to Vesemir, who could help them return to the Druid Circle of Myna.

Ailin contacted Vera through the Crystal Bird, and Colin recognized the injured witcher as the famous Godslayer Ailin. Meanwhile, Vera, Vesemir, and the others continued their exhausting search until a second Crystal Bird descended before Francesca Findabair.

• Visenna recognized Vera as the Crimson Fox, and Ailin instructed her to activate his Crystal Bird so it could contact Vera.
• Visenna released the Crystal Bird, and Colin recognized the wounded witcher as the legendary Ailin after recalling a ballad about his deeds.
• Francesca Findabair struggled through the mountain search with Adda of Vengerberg and the others while Vesemir urged the exhausted group to rest.
• Francesca Findabair checked the messenger bird for their direction, then looked up as another crystalline bird descended from the sky.

Francesca Findabair, Lady Vesemir, and the others learned that Ailin was alive and used Adda of Vengerberg’s portal to reach him. Ailin waited beneath an oak beside the Old Road, badly injured but conscious, as an approaching commotion interrupted Visenna and Colin’s conversation.

• Francesca Findabair received Ailin’s message and confirmed that he was alive on the Old Road between Temeria, Brugge, and Amelia.
• Lady Vesemir and Mary read Ailin’s message, while Mary and Francesca Findabair clashed over the messenger bird before Mary reluctantly returned it.
• Vesemir and Dante discussed Ban Ard’s sudden disappearance and wondered what it meant for the Wild Hunt and Henn Gedimidis.
• Adda of Vengerberg opened a portal, and Mary, Francesca Findabair, Lady Vesemir, and the others went through to reach Ailin.
• Visenna and Colin carried the bandaged, exhausted Ailin beneath an oak beside the Old Road, where a growing commotion caught their attention.

Ailin lay hidden beside the Old Road while Vesemir’s group searched for him, and bard Yevgeny Villard recognized the approaching witchers and sorceresses. Vesemir accidentally transformed Ewald into a leech after he stumbled into her spell, and the group was then approached by a man asking for Vesemir.

• Ailin overheard two bards discussing the group of witchers and sorceresses approaching along the Old Road.
• Yevgeny Villard recognized Vesemir and Dante, and told Ewald about Ailin and the trial of Baron Evans in Arland.
• Vesemir’s spell transformed Ewald into a leech, and she gave him a bottle to hold himself in until he returned to normal.
• Vesemir and Dante discussed whether Ailin had gone to Brugge after their messenger bird was lost.
• A wandering knight cautiously approached Vesemir and asked whether she was Lady Vesemir.

Lady Vesemir reunited with the badly injured Ailin and learned he was stable but exhausted. As Ailin arranged for Visenna and Colin to return to the Druid Circle of Myna, Lady Vesemir broke down over her guilt as his mother, and the chapter ended with Mary, Francesca Findabair, and Colin arriving.

• After Colin explained Ailin's condition, Lady Vesemir, two girls, and the others hurried to find him.
• Visenna told Lady Vesemir that Ailin's injuries were severe but stable and that he had regained consciousness.
• Ailin used telepathy to ask Lady Vesemir to send Visenna and Colin to the Druid Circle of Myna and explained how to help treat his injuries.
• Lady Vesemir confessed her guilt over abandoning Ailin and pleaded with him to call her Mom once more.
• Visenna overheard the exchange and realized that Ailin was Lady Vesemir and Soyer's child.
• Lady Vesemir told Mary and Francesca Findabair that Ailin was asleep, then Colin arrived with the others.