Crack!
The vampire in midair heard the sphere beneath it crack, but its attention was focused entirely on the wall it was about to grab.
"Almost! I can nearly reach it! Once I get out of here and heal, I'll have my reven-"
Boom!!!
The huge explosion beneath it interrupted its visions of the future, and the blast destroyed its last escape route. A bone-chilling cold spread rapidly with the shock wave, coating everything nearby in white frost. The vampire's limbs and torso instantly stiffened, and ice began forming rapidly on its skin. Once the shock wave faded, the vampire plummeted toward the ground.
Thud-crack-
The vampire's frozen body slammed into the flagstones, shattering the ice covering it. Able to move again, it immediately struggled to rise, but before it could find its footing, a silver streak flashed past. The world before its eyes began to spin. In its final second, it saw its own body collapse and the back of the witcher holding a silver sword. Then its vision dimmed, until its consciousness slowly faded...
"Phew... I nearly let this thing get away. If it really had escaped, never mind how embarrassing that would've been-it wouldn't have been easy to find it again..."
After the fight ended, Yavi took a deep breath, inwardly grumbling about the battle. Good thing I had the Enhanced Northern Wind Bomb I made. Otherwise, keeping it here really would've been difficult.
Grumble as he might, his hands could not stop working. He took out a small silver dagger and began cutting away the usable materials from the lesser vampire's body. Its claws could be smelted into metal to make it more resistant to wear and sharper, while its liver was an indispensable ingredient for a potion...
Within a few minutes, Yavi had expertly collected everything useful from the vampire's remains. Then he waved a hand at the remains and immediately stored them in his talisman space, ready to take them to the law enforcement officer and claim the bounty after daybreak tomorrow.
"Um... sir... did you kill that monster?"
Still somewhat frightened, Matilda approached Yavi from behind and asked cautiously. She had watched his entire fight with the vampire clearly from the sidelines. Even the vampire had been killed by the man before her; as a woman, she was even less capable of resisting...
"Yes, madam. There's no need to be afraid anymore. I've dealt with this vampire."
Yavi blinked, and his brown, catlike eyes immediately became clear blue eyes like sapphires. Witchers developed brown, catlike eyes because, after undergoing the Trial of the Grasses, all their internal organs could store magic, causing this mutation. Yavi was different, however. He already possessed magic and an affinity for it, so he could control the magic within his body. His magical affinity also allowed him to rapidly draw magic from the surrounding air to cast Signs. After casting a Sign, an ordinary witcher had to wait for his internal organs to absorb magic again, and could only cast another once his reserves were full. This was why Yavi had been able to cast several Signs in succession earlier.
"I... my legs are weak right now... could I trouble you to take my son and me home? We live just a little way ahead."
Matilda had truly been badly frightened by what had just happened. Compared with the terrifying vampire, the young man before her seemed a little more dependable.
"Of course, madam."
Knock, knock, knock...
There was a gentle knock at the door. Red, who had been growing somewhat worried about his wife, hurried over to open it. As soon as he did, Matilda and Glen hugged him tightly. Looking at his wife and child crying before him and the young man standing behind them, Red, a merchant, vaguely sensed that something had happened...
"Thank you for your hospitality. I enjoyed the meal."
"Please, there's no need to be so polite. Saving my wife and child's lives was the same as saving mine..."
Red showered Yavi with thanks, but Yavi told him not to dwell on it. In truth, the mother and son had helped him in a roundabout way, so there really was no debt to speak of.
"Oh! Right! Are you going to the law enforcement officer to collect your bounty tomorrow? I'll go with you. Officer Qiaogeli and I are old acquaintances. I'll have him give you a little extra."
These merchants really are all sly old foxes. He hasn't spent a penny himself, yet he's using someone else's money to earn a favor. A clever move indeed.
Yavi thanked him aloud, but inwardly grew a little more wary of Red and the shrewd group that merchants were.
After dinner, everyone returned to their own rooms to rest, and the night passed uneventfully...
Early the next morning, Yavi got up and washed. After having breakfast with Red and his family, he set out with Red to see the law enforcement officer.
The two wound their way through Novigrad's streets and reached the administrative district. Having learned that Yavi was not a local, Red gave him a general overview of Novigrad and some useful information along the way.
When they reached the law enforcement building, they happened to encounter Qiaogeli giving his subordinates a string of instructions. Qiaogeli was not particularly surprised to see Red. He merely glanced at Yavi, then led them both into his office.
"What brings the great merchant Red here? Trouble with your goods again?" Qiaogeli knew Red well, so he began teasing him as soon as they sat down. "But... I seem to remember this lad taking a bounty from me a few days ago. Everyone who took that bounty before either died or disappeared. I thought you'd meet the same fate..."
"Qiaogeli, you old rascal, listen here. If Mr. Yavi hadn't saved us, you wouldn't be seeing me here now..." Red glared indignantly at Qiaogeli, then gave him a vivid, embellished account of what Matilda had told him. Once he finished, Yavi displayed the vampire's corpse.
With both a witness and physical evidence present, the rest was simple. Qiaogeli could use the corpse to report the job completed, and Yavi could receive a larger bounty. It was an outcome that pleased everyone.
As they were about to part, Qiaogeli handed Yavi a bulging coin purse. "The agreed amount was 230 crowns, but in recognition of your bravery, I've decided to award you an additional 70 crowns on behalf of the law enforcement squad. There are 300 crowns in here altogether. Count them."
Yavi took it and hefted it in his hand to gauge its weight. Satisfied, he appeared to tuck it into the pocket inside his clothes, but in fact, the instant he put it into his pocket, he stored it in his talisman space. Keeping important things somewhere safe was still the surest option.
They then said their goodbyes, and Yavi returned to Red's home to collect his luggage and prepare to continue his journey...