The next day, the demon hunter and his dwarf friends found a captain in the Dorian tavern who was willing to take them to Kaedwen.
Finally, in the second half of the demon hunter's journey, the group did not encounter any form of danger again.
Everyone got off the ship in Vergen safely and smoothly, heading towards Kaer Morhen located in the north of Kaedwen.
One month later.
When the sun penetrates the thick clouds, the mountaintops will shine with golden light - but this is usually only visible in the morning or before sunset.
The team is very close to the Blue Mountains, so be extra careful.
Now that living space is becoming increasingly scarce, there is still no human presence in the Blue Mountains. It is not without reason.
Blue Mountains is famous for being wild and rugged. Even if it is known that there is a witcher's fortress hidden deep in the Blue Mountains, it would not be easy for a layman to find it without the guidance of a witcher from School of the Wolf who is familiar with this land.
Outsiders are likely to turn into a ravine or canyon and become completely lost.
"This damn place is so cold, it's freezing me to death. Lynn, why don't you School of the Wolf find a place that's warm in winter and cool in summer to open a college, just like Aretuza Academy?"
"Not even Ben Ade is this far north."
Glancing at Yarpen, who was sitting next to him with white gas constantly blowing out of his mouth, Lynn smiled.
Although it has only been a few days since November, the temperature has dropped significantly since entering Blue Mountains.
Inside the mountains and outside the mountains seem to be two completely different worlds.
"I used to have the same idea as you, Yarpen. It wasn't until I completed all the Witcher trials a few months ago. After going down the mountain for the first time and experiencing the malice of the mortal world, I finally understood the good intentions of my ancestors."
"Not everyone likes witchers. Even if witchers will protect them from the threat of monsters, they still always think that witchers are dirty, despicable, and carry infectious diseases."
"If they knew that there was a witcher base camp right next to their home, I'm afraid they wouldn't even be able to eat."
What Lynn said is not alarmist.
Except for Kaer Morhen, the base camp of School of the Wolf, all the base camps of other demon hunter schools have been destroyed.
The most serious one is in the south, which is within the territory of the Nilfgaardian Empire.
There are always people who think that the south is more advanced than the north, and Nilfgaardian Empire is more tolerant than Northern Kingdoms.
If the discussion is about militarism and strict hierarchy, then the South is indeed far ahead.
As for tolerance, this is not necessarily the case.
Just like a person always lives under a piece of land from birth to growth.
He is deeply aware of what is happening on this land.
Over time, people will develop feelings of rejection and even disgust towards this land.
I always feel that the land I live in is an ideological depression, or a salt-alkali land.
But I yearn for another country that I have never been to but only described through other people's words.
It's like it's a beacon of humanity, and everything there is advanced.
Actually it is not.
At least as far as the living environment of witchers is concerned, the south is not necessarily superior to the north.
Maybe even worse.
In the north, there are only two ways for a witcher to die:
Either killed by monsters or killed by mobs.
But in the south, there will be another one.
That means being killed by a bounty hunter.
The dignitaries in the south hate witchers even more than those in the north.
It's just that the people of the Empire are accustomed to using words such as system, civilization, and advancement that are easy to confuse people's hearts to disguise themselves and put a layer of elegance on themselves.
No matter how stupid and arrogant the northern nobles are, at least they will not pay bounty hunters to kill the witchers who appear in their sight just because they can't stand it.
"I think I can understand," Yarpen shrugged, "Just like Mahakam, if Mahakam could not produce the weapons and equipment that kings need to fight, Mahakam, which is located in the center of the continent, would definitely have suffered the same fate as the demon hunter."
At this moment, the dwarf named Pauly in the dwarf team of Yarpen suddenly asked.
"Lynn, why do you want us to repair the castle? Is it because the witcher plans to recruit more apprentices?"
The chill in the air suddenly increased a bit.
Everyone fell silent.
Seeing that Lynn didn't speak, Yarpen reacted the fastest and said hurriedly, "Pauly, don't ask if you shouldn't, or I'll kick your ass hard with my boots."
"What are you doing? I'm just asking casually. If Lynn is inconvenient to answer, just tell me and I'll shut up." Paulie looked a little aggrieved.
"Actually, you just want me and my brothers to stay warm," Lynn said in a relaxed tone, "You don't know how frightening it is to live in a pile of ruins. Not to mention freezing to death, you have to worry about the ceiling falling and hitting people at any time."
Lynn's explanation is so confusing.
Although Yarpen and Pauli are not fools, they can all hear that Lynn's purpose is definitely not just this.
But they all remained silent and did not ask any more questions.
Anyway, Lynn is the employer, and he can do whatever he likes with the money.
Lynn also fell silent after changing the topic.
Although there is a comradeship between him and Yarpen, and Yarpen's men, including Zoltan and his men, are not bad people.
But Lynn naturally won't reveal his big plan to everyone.
Before the witcher can really develop and grow, it still needs to keep a low profile.
Naturally, the fewer people know about such an important thing, the better.
So, no one spoke again during the rest of the journey.
The surroundings are getting colder and colder, and the wind is getting stronger and stronger.
In the mountains, this means a storm is coming.
Fortunately they were very close to Kaer Morhen.
The team walked up a flat pile of gravel, crossed large piles of rocks washed down by glaciers and streams, and then stepped into a narrow mountain path between rock walls.
The rock walls on both sides were nearly vertical and seemed to be connected high above the team's heads, with only a sliver of blue sky exposed.
With the rock walls on both sides blocking the cold wind, everyone felt much warmer than before.
The cold wind could only howl at high places and could not reach them.
The mountain road widened, and after crossing a ravine, it turned into a valley. The valley was a wide depression, and the forest spread among the jagged boulders.
The surrounding terrain opened up, and they followed the stream at the bottom of the valley.
As they passed through another valley and climbed up a semicircular hillside.
Finally, Kaer Morhen's appearance with his back against a steep rock wall appeared in front of them.
"I finally know why you came to us." Yarpen murmured.
"My dear, even in its current appearance, it can be called magnificent."
"It is a sin to let it be left to corrode slowly in the long river of time."
"Don't worry, Lynn, we will help you get it done. There are so many strong dwarf boys, plus you, if you just repair the city wall, it should be enough."
"We will do our best. You can always trust the efficiency of the dwarves."
At this time, a loud shout came from the city wall, interrupting everyone's conversation.
Thanks to the idler for the reward!