Recaps

Yavi refined mithril with meteorite iron powder and began forging it into a sword while Thomas helped him prepare dimeritium. After a day of work, Yavi had shaped the mithril into a sword blank and planned to finish it before making a dimeritium sword.

• Yavi used the forge and Igni Flame Sign for six hours to melt mithril, skimmed off the slag, and mixed in meteorite iron powder.
• While the mithril cooled, Yavi showed Thomas a large piece of dimeritium and asked him to keep it secret; Thomas agreed and helped cut the ore.
• Thomas and Yavi worked until night, then ate with Thomas's wife, and Yavi paid Thomas two hundred crowns for his help and their meal.
• Yavi returned to the smithy to sleep, and Thomas joined him the next morning to continue cutting dimeritium.
• Yavi forged the cooled mithril ingot into a sword blank, then rested at the smithy and planned to finish the mithril sword and make a dimeritium sword the next day.

Yavi and Thomas finished forging two swords, naming them Moonlight Cursed Blade and Demon Breaker before parting ways. After returning to Oxenfurt, Yavi received Elena’s invitation and agreed to have dinner with her and her parents.

• Yavi tested the mithril sword’s Aard-enhanced edge by slicing an iron ingot cleanly in midair.
• Yavi tested the heavier dimeritium sword and found it powerful against magic and armor.
• Yavi and Thomas named the dimeritium sword Demon Breaker and the mithril sword Moonlight Cursed Blade.
• Yavi thanked Thomas for helping forge the swords, and Thomas said he would likely settle near Novigrad.
• Yavi received Elena’s letter, visited her at the girls’ dormitory, and accepted her invitation to dinner with her parents.

Yavi discovered that Demon Breaker’s magic resistance prevented him from storing it in his Talisman Space, but found that binding the griffin feather to its hilt let him put it away. He then joined Elena, Marvin, and Noelle for the banquet, where the meal was served.

• Yavi found that the Moonlight Cursed Blade entered his Talisman Space, but Demon Breaker would not while he was touching it.
• Yavi bound the griffin feather to Demon Breaker and successfully stored the sword in his Talisman Space, then planned a custom scabbard for it.
• Yavi went to the restaurant Elena had reserved and greeted Elena, Marvin, and Noelle.
• Marvin welcomed Yavi and made conversation as the waitress served an elaborate banquet and poured wine.

Yavi accepted Marvin’s forty gold coins in exchange for agreeing to watch over Elena while they were both at school. The next morning, Yavi attended Oxenfurt Academy’s opening ceremony, then met his alchemy lecturer and classmates.

• Marvin gave Yavi forty gold coins and asked him to look after Elena on campus, and Yavi agreed.
• Yavi returned to his dorm drunk, slept, and woke the next morning for the opening ceremony.
• Yavi attended Loriess’s speech at Oxenfurt Academy’s opening ceremony and fell asleep before being startled awake by applause.
• Suge led the Alchemical Studies class to its classroom, introduced herself as their lecturer, and had the thirty-two students introduce themselves.

Yavi arranged for Thomas to make a hidden-compartment scabbard and met Oxenfurt Academy’s deputy dean, Atle, before beginning his first day of classes. After presenting his modified healing potion in alchemy class, Yavi went with Suge to the academy’s magic practice area to begin training.

• Yavi asked Thomas to make a metal scabbard for Demon Breaker with a hidden compartment for the griffin feather, and Thomas promised it in three days.
• Loriess introduced Yavi and Suge to Deputy Dean Atle and told them to attend afternoon magic instruction after their morning classes.
• Suge told Yavi that Atle had resented Loriess’s appointment as dean after he had expected to get the position.
• Yavi presented his Weakened Swallow Potion in alchemy class and explained that ordinary people could use it to heal injuries.
• Yavi and Suge went to the academy’s underground magic practice area, where they waited for Loriess to begin their training.

Yavi spent his weekend relaxing at Oxenfurt Academy, where Elena’s roommates learned he had saved her from a griffin and persuaded him to join their weekly afternoon-tea gatherings. After a nap, he woke to overhear two girls searching the men’s dorm for someone they accused of stealing a student’s identity.

• Yavi slept in, ate breakfast, and met Elena and her roommates in the dining hall.
• Sophia, Claire, and Martha learned Yavi had rescued Elena from a griffin, while Elena admitted she had told them about it.
• Yavi asked the girls to keep the story quiet, and they agreed on the condition that he attend their weekly afternoon teas.
• Yavi returned to his dorm for a nap and woke when he heard high heels outside.
• A timid girl questioned whether her senior should confront someone in the men’s dorm, and the senior accused that person of stealing her little brother’s identity.

Mel stormed into Yavi’s room to expose an alleged impostor, then recognized him as her long-lost younger brother. After discovering that Master Kharkov had kept their letters from reaching them, they reunited and arranged a private dinner.

• Mel burst into Yavi’s room with Pep Holt and Kent Werner, intending to confront an impostor.
• Mel recognized Yavi, and the siblings embraced after realizing they had both been told the other had stopped writing.
• Yavi suggested Master Kharkov had withheld their letters to protect him from missing home, and Mel said their reunion mattered most.
• Mel introduced Yavi to Kent Werner and Pep Holt, then sent them ahead to prepare for a student council meeting.
• Mel invited Yavi to dinner at the Oak Restaurant at seven and gave him a small badge.

Yavi shared a family dinner with Mel, who told him about their younger sister Amy, their brother Jace’s family, and how their mother still missed him. Yavi said he could not return home until he was strong enough to control himself, and Mel promised their family would reunite.

• Yavi arrived early at the Oak Restaurant, where Mel joined him after a long student council meeting and ordered honey cake, remembering his childhood favorite.
• Yavi told Mel about the hardships of becoming a witcher, and she urged him to eat more and served him a tender piece of venison.
• Mel revealed that Yavi had a twelve-year-old younger sister named Amy who admired him and longed for his return.
• Mel updated Yavi on their father, their eldest brother Jace, Jace’s twin daughters, and their mother’s habit of visiting Yavi’s old room.
• Yavi said he would not return home until he could control himself and protect his family, and Mel took his hand and promised they would be together again.

Yavi learned more about the conflict between Mel’s Popular Election Faction and Vivian Ross’s Royal Election Faction at Oxenfurt Academy. After Vivian’s group provoked Mel’s faction in the cafeteria, Yavi learned that Mel was one point behind in the student council election and could lose the presidency if her faction lost the next competition.

• Mel warned Yavi that the crown-badged Royal Election Faction was her faction’s rival and urged him to avoid conflict with them.
• Yavi spent the next half month studying alchemy and magic while wearing his Popular Election Faction badge, then reunited with Mel and her faction members at lunch.
• Mel introduced Yavi to Saina Green and Maxim Bryan, who joined Kent and Pep at the cafeteria table.
• Vivian Ross led a group of Royal Election Faction students into the cafeteria, glared at Mel’s table, and knocked over a supporter’s schoolbag before leaving.
• Yavi learned from Saina that Mel and Vivian were competing for the student council presidency, that Mel’s faction was one point behind, and that the next competition could decide the election.

Yavi learned that Mel’s Popular Election Faction was struggling ahead of the student council competition, then gave her a thousand crowns when she asked for money. Three days later, Yavi and Suge arrived at the packed great hall to watch the competition, while Yavi remained wary that the election might turn dangerous.

• Yavi overheard students say Mel’s Popular Election Faction was at a disadvantage against Vivian’s Royal Election Faction.
• Mel visited Yavi and asked for three hundred crowns to help with the election.
• Yavi gave Mel a thousand crowns and a cloak, and promised to support her regardless of what happened.
• Mel told Yavi the student council election would take place in the great hall in three days, and Yavi promised to attend.
• Dean Loriess gave Yavi and Suge the afternoon off, and they found seats near the front of the crowded great hall.

Yavi arrived at the Popular Election Faction’s swordsmanship competition and found that Hill had joined Vivian’s side after being offered more money. With Mel’s team left without its strongest fighter, Yavi volunteered to compete alone, leaving the auditorium stunned.

• Yavi and Suge reached Mel, who explained that she had hired Hill Lorenst to help the Popular Election Faction win the competition.
• Vivian arrived with Aphelios and Hill, revealing that she had paid Hill a thousand crowns to do nothing and leaving Mel’s team shaken.
• When Mel’s group wondered how to proceed, Yavi stepped forward, picked up a training sword, and challenged Vivian’s faction to the competition.
• Vivian mocked Yavi for proposing to face all five opponents, while Mel warned him about the odds and Yavi told her to trust him.

Yavi faced the Royal Election Faction’s swordsmen in the duel and defeated two challengers with calm, precise strikes. As the Popular Election Faction cheered and Mel watched proudly, Yavi called for the next opponent while three challengers remained.

• A Royal Election Faction upperclassman mocked Yavi and attacked him, but Yavi dodged his blows and knocked him down with strikes to the knee and neck.
• Yavi warned the faction that the defeated fighter would have died in a real sword fight, then called for the next challenger.
• A lean swordsman took a measured stance and traded attacks with Yavi, but Yavi bypassed his guard and struck his temple and abdomen, defeating him.
• The Popular Election Faction cheered Yavi, and Mel watched him with pride as he pointed his sword toward the three remaining challengers and said, “Next.”

Yavi won three matches in a row, and a fourth Royal Election Faction challenger surrendered before the fight began. Aphelios then faced Yavi, and their fierce duel was still underway.

• Yavi defeated the third challenger by parrying his attack and stopping his wooden sword at the man's throat.
• Maxim and the Popular Election Faction celebrated Yavi's three consecutive wins while Dean Loriess watched with interest.
• The fourth challenger dropped his sword, surrendered, and fled as Vivian endured the Popular Election Faction's taunts.
• Aphelios stepped forward to restore the Royal Election Faction's standing and challenged Yavi to a duel.
• Aphelios and Yavi traded rapid attacks, with each fighter's swordsmanship drawing gasps from the audience.

Yavi defeated Aphelios, prompting Loriess to challenge Vivian to put Hill forward for an extra match against him. Mel objected, but Yavi signaled that she should stop arguing, leaving the hall waiting to see whether the match would happen.

• Yavi outlasted Aphelios and forced him to concede, drawing loud cheers from the Popular Election Faction.
• Vivian left the hall, and Aphelios followed her after seeing her retreat.
• Loriess called out to Vivian and proposed an additional match between Yavi and Hill, with the faction standings at stake.
• Mel protested that Loriess was interfering unfairly, but Loriess argued that Yavi was not eligible to represent the Popular Election Faction and had won only because he was Mel's brother.
• Mel asked for the match to be rescheduled because Yavi had already fought five times, but Loriess pointed out that he appeared unfatigued.
• Yavi shook his head at Mel, signaling that she need not argue further.

Yavi agreed to fight Hill, and Hill insisted that they use real swords and battle with the intent to kill. They took ceremonial longswords and faced each other, with Hill realizing that Yavi had the aura of someone who had survived true battles.

• Yavi agreed to defeat Hill to secure Loriess's offer, and Vivian urged Hill to fight him.
• Hill accepted and challenged Yavi to a real-sword match, asking him to fight as if he meant to kill her.
• Mel pleaded with Yavi to stop, but he reassured her and accepted the risk of dying in the match.
• Loriess provided sharpened ceremonial longswords, and Hill and Yavi took their positions on the dueling platform.
• Yavi adopted an unfamiliar sword stance and revealed a cold killing intent that made Hill realize she had underestimated him.

Yavi and Hill fought a dangerous sword duel, with each landing a wound and gaining the upper hand in turn. Hill set up a decisive strike against Yavi’s shoulder, and Mel screamed in terror as the blow came down.

• Yavi and Hill clashed swords, and Yavi’s precise attacks forced Hill onto the defensive.
• Hill changed her style, wounded Yavi’s chin, and disarmed him before pressing him with unpredictable attacks.
• Yavi spotted a hesitation in Hill’s right shoulder and cut her shoulder, leaving both fighters bleeding.
• Yavi countered Hill’s sweeping attack and drove her back, then rushed in as she struggled to regain her footing.
• Hill baited Yavi into attacking an apparent opening, circled to his right, and brought her sword down toward his shoulder as Mel screamed.

Yavi defeated Hill in the swordsmanship match, giving the Popular Election Faction a one-point lead over the Royal Election Faction. The faction celebrated at the Oak Restaurant, while Yavi wondered about Vivian’s absence and remembered Hill as she left.

• Yavi redirected Hill’s strike, broke her sword, and held his blade to her throat, winning their duel.
• Loriess announced that the Popular Election Faction had taken a one-point lead, and Mel checked Yavi for injuries.
• Yavi offered Hill a potion for her injured shoulder, and she accepted before leaving the platform.
• The Popular Election Faction celebrated at the Oak Restaurant, where Mel praised Yavi and everyone toasted their victory.
• Yavi noticed Vivian was absent and, amid the celebration, found himself thinking about Hill and looking toward the night sky.

After the victory banquet, Mel went with Yavi to his room and confessed how exhausted and afraid she felt, saying he made her feel less alone. Yavi used Axii to put her to sleep, and the next morning he downplayed what she had said while they shared breakfast.

• After the drunken crowd left, Mel asked Yavi to take her to his room so they could talk.
• At Yavi's room, Mel embraced him and confided that the pressure to lead others to victory frightened and exhausted her.
• Yavi used the Axii Sign to calm Mel and put her to sleep, then tucked her into bed and stayed awake until dawn.
• Mel woke with a hangover and remembered holding Yavi, but found her clothes intact and the room empty.
• Yavi returned with breakfast and White Honey, then told Mel she had only complained about pressure when she asked what she had said.

After his tournament victory made him a target of persistent attention, Yavi joined Mel’s Popular Election Faction for protection and helped draw new members to it. His studies and cultivation resumed, while rumors spread that joining the faction was a way to get close to him.

• Yavi struggled with attention from admirers and avoided an older student who pretended to fall into his arms.
• Mel chased away girls cornering Yavi in the library and urged him to join the Popular Election Faction because the Royal Election Faction threatened him.
• Yavi agreed to join, and Mel offered to arrange his paperwork, uniform, and protection through the Disciplinary Committee.
• Yavi told Mel to keep the money he had lent her for warm clothes, and they went to the dining hall together.
• Yavi returned to studying alchemy and practicing spell seals, while Mel brought him to faction events where his presence attracted students and defections from the Royal Election Faction.
• Mel told Yavi that students were joining to get close to him, and he asked who had started the rumor.

Yavi’s homesickness disrupted his studies at Oxenfurt Academy, but Dean Loriess gave him a letter from Sicco Jett approving his return home for the winter solstice. He left her office excited, carrying money for the journey and gifts for his family.

• Yavi struggled to focus in class as memories of his family and northern home overwhelmed him.
• Loriess summoned Yavi to her office and told him she had noticed his distraction and homesickness.
• Loriess gave Yavi a letter from Sicco Jett, who approved his trip home for the winter solstice and said he would handle the Witcher Order.
• Loriess gave Yavi a thousand crowns and advised him to buy warm clothes and candied fruit for his younger sister.
• Yavi thanked Loriess and hurried out of her office, eager to go home.

Yavi learned he could return home for the holidays and prepared to travel with Mel, buying gifts for their family. As Mel helped choose clothes for their mother and sister-in-law, Yavi insisted on finding new clothes for her too.

• Yavi told Mel that his teacher had allowed him to go home for the holidays, and they planned to travel together with a caravan.
• Yavi packed his belongings and met Mel on the final day of the year at Oxenfurt Academy before they went shopping for family gifts.
• Yavi collected two longswords from Thomas, who had forged them with silver powder and dimeritium powder.
• Yavi and Mel chose jewelry, perfume, and clothes for their mother and sister-in-law, and Yavi bought several outfits.
• Yavi stopped Mel from leaving and suggested that she buy new clothes suited to her standing in the Popular Election Faction.

Yavi and Mel prepared gifts for Yavi’s family and joined Captain Hawk’s caravan at Oxenfurt’s west gate to travel home. Claire caught up with their wagon, and the caravan set off with the wilderness ahead and the prospect of meeting other students at the evening camp.

• Yavi and Mel bought clothes and sweets for Yavi’s nieces and his younger sister, Amy.
• Mel led Yavi to Captain Hawk’s caravan, and Hawk assigned them a place in a covered wagon.
• Mel explained the caravan’s watch rules as it began moving out of Oxenfurt.
• Claire hurried after the caravan, and Yavi pulled her aboard their wagon.
• Claire said other students were traveling with them, while Mel hoped they would avoid people from the rival election factions.
• Yavi joked about dealing with anyone annoying, and the three settled into a cheerful mood as Oxenfurt faded behind them.

Yavi traveled north with Claire and Mel in Hawk’s caravan, staying alert through a peaceful night at their roadside camp. At dawn, the caravan resumed its journey toward Gray Rock Town as the landscape turned rockier and snow began to fall.

• Yavi watched over the sleeping Claire and Mel as the carriage traveled north.
• Hawk halted the caravan at dusk, and the travelers set up camp and shared a meal.
• Mel told Yavi she had seen Anna and several members of her faction but not the people who annoyed her.
• Yavi checked the wagon and kept watch overnight while Claire and Mel slept; nothing unusual happened.
• Hawk led the caravan north again at dawn, and Yavi watched a snowflake melt in his palm.

Yavi detected an ambush near Redania and warned Hawk, who formed the caravan guards into a defense. As bandits attacked the caravan, Yavi protected Mel, Claire, and the students, killing several attackers while the fight continued around them.

• Yavi sensed at least forty bandits hiding in the woods and warned Hawk about the ambush.
• Hawk signaled the caravan guards to form a defensive line as the bandits rushed from both sides of the road.
• Yavi led Mel and Claire through the panicking students and killed a bandit who attacked a fallen female student.
• Yavi fought off several bandits with his silver sword, killing them as the caravan battle unfolded.
• Yavi used a red-and-green glow to strike down three more bandits who attacked him together.

Yavi helped the caravan repel a bandit attack and killed the bandit leader with a spear, protecting his sister Mel and friend Claire. After the casualties were counted, Hawk offered to refund Yavi and Mel's fares when they left the caravan.

• Yavi held off the bandits attacking the rear of the caravan while Hawk ordered the front to retreat.
• Yavi threw a spear that pinned and killed the fleeing bandit leader, sending the remaining bandits running into the woods.
• Yavi helped Mel and Claire out from beneath the carriage and confirmed that they were unharmed.
• Hawk tallied six guards killed and several wounded, while the goods and passengers suffered no losses.
• Hawk praised Yavi and offered to refund his and Mel's fares, and Yavi returned to his carriage.