As all Redanians know, the capital of Redania is Tretog.
But in fact, Tretogor was not the first choice for the Redanian nobles to inherit their family. After all, with the academic holy land of Oxburgh and the commercial center of Novigrad, Tretogor seemed a little too ordinary as the capital.
Many great nobles were willing to set up their family estates in Oxburgh or Novigrad, including the Ephraim family, the founding heroes of Redania.
As a prominent founding noble family, the Everec family's manor is extremely luxurious and elegant.
The manor is located in the Niubao area and is most famous for its huge family cemetery. Many small manors are not even as large as the Everec family cemetery.
The fate of this manor is as unfortunate as its owner. After a glorious period in the founding of the country, the Everec family quickly fell into decline due to poor management by their descendants, and even had to sell their ancestral home.
The patriarch of this generation finally bought back the manor after going through untold hardships, but then a series of unbelievable events broke out, which eventually led to the male owner of the manor leaving and the manor became abandoned again.
A panting horse stopped in front of the manor gate. It was sweating profusely after running here from Novigrad almost non-stop for a whole day.
Sitting on its back was a skinny man in a hooded cape. From the occasional glimpse of his face when the wind blew it up, it was clear that he had no hair, no eyebrows, no eyelashes, and no beard. His head looked like a peeled egg.
At this moment, the man looked at the endless manor and couldn't help but sigh:
"It's really huge... The residents nearby have heard that scavengers and explorers have never come out after entering. I wonder what's inside... Are there any evil spirits?"
The man lifted his cloak, revealing a set of fine leather armor. Although it was not a high-end custom-made product, it was obviously the highest-grade one among the finished products of the blacksmith shop, and the price was definitely not cheap.
He had a long sword with a lion head on his back, which looked like the cavalry style of Sintra. He also had a dagger on his waist with a snake head carved on it.
A pair of dazzling red eyes cast their gaze into the darkness of the manor, full of curiosity.
This man is Lann's new follower, the cat-faction demon hunter - Kaiyan.
Due to the time constraints, Lann was unable to equip him with good enough armor, and even his equipment was hastily put together. He was only equipped with a Cintra steel knight sword and a silver-plated dagger temporarily borrowed from a snake-faction demon hunter. This was considered a barely sufficient means for him to fight against monsters.
And Lann asked Kaiyan to come here alone at this moment, naturally with a mission.
Kaiyan recalled Lann's repeated warnings, "Don't enter the manor, don't enter the manor, don't enter the manor." He shook his head and gave up the idea of exploring a little. He pulled the reins lightly and walked towards Everec's family cemetery.
In front of him was an abandoned building covered by various shrubs, weeds and trees. If Lan were here, he might have thought it had a bit of the flavor of The Wizard of Oz.
But the cat-faction witcher obviously didn't have such leisure time. He walked all the way inside, crushing the bits of sunlight that came through on the deep path, and soon came to the door of a basement.
He walked around for about two hundred meters before he saw the real intersection of the Everec family cemetery.
He raised his head and drank a bottle of [Cat] potion. The whites of Kaiyan's eyes began to be stained with red light. His red pupils flickered red light in the darkness. If other demon hunters saw it, they would probably misunderstand it as a monster and draw their swords on the spot.
All the way down, this underground cemetery has many forks, and at the end of each fork is a small tomb. The atmosphere here is depressing and dark, forming a sharp contrast with the sunlight and plants on the ground.
"Huh?" Kaiyan suddenly made a sound of surprise.
He checked the tombs one by one, looking for his target, but suddenly found an unexpected reward.
In front of me is a nomadic-style scimitar that looks quite old, but well-maintained, and is obviously a burial object of the owner of this tomb.
If Lann is here, the [Inventory] may give a hint for [Ophir Scimitar].
Kaiyan naturally didn't know the origin of this knife, but he tried swinging it twice and found that it felt much better than the standard Cintra Knight's sword, so he accepted it with no psychological burden.
"It's a pity that it's not a silver sword. But that's true, who would keep a silver sword in their home..."
Before Kaiyan finished his mumbling, his red cat pupils suddenly shrank, as if he had sensed something, and even the blood light he exhaled became much more condensed.
He looked in a certain direction in the void, as if thinking about something. Then he took out a bottle of sword oil from his bag and began to apply it to the silver-plated dagger and the newly acquired scimitar, his face cold.
“Buzz.”
It was not until this time that the cat-head badge on Kaiyan's neck began to vibrate slightly.
The demon hunter smiled a bloodthirsty smile, revealing two fangs. He then slapped the ground with his left hand, and a small purple magic circle surrounded him.
At the same time, two green will-o'-the-wisp fires ignited in the air, and two demons wearing tattered cloaks appeared in the air, screaming and attacking with iron rods raised high.
Kaiyan seemed to have anticipated this, and he turned sideways deftly and passed through the gap between the two demons' attacks. When he turned around, he saw the attacking monster being covered by purple light.
"Ambush me?" Kaiyan sneered, "I am the one who ambushed you!"
He wiped the straps of the alchemy backpack with both hands, and two particles of [Moon Dust] exploded on the ground with a "bang", adding a circle of silver light to the purple magic circle.
As a result, the two demon spirits could no longer become virtual, and their damaged bodies were completely exposed to the enemy.
Without giving the enemy time to react, the cat-faction demon hunter rushed between the two spirits like lightning. His blood-red eyes moved so fast that they even left a breathtaking trail in the darkness.
Cat School Sword Dance!
No light could be seen in the dark underground secret room, only the "puff puff" sound of slashing could be heard. The two demon spirits kept shaking in the air with their iron rods held high. The steel swords with sword oil kept smoking cutting scars on the demon spirits' bodies as if they were burned.
The steel sword may not be powerful enough to defeat the enemy, so make up for it with numbers!
Kaiyan's rotation seemed endless. Ten, twenty, thirty, and forty strikes. He had never felt that sword dance was so handy in his hands. He actually used the steel sword to chop the two demons into powder, which was then blown away by the wind.
After the battle, Kaiyan took a deep breath, looked at the demon spirit, and touched the six remaining [Moon Dust] on his body.
"It's very high-end stuff, much better than what I used before. Should I say it's worthy of the Griffin School?"
Then he continued to savor the battle: "My perception of demon spirits has improved, and I can even detect enemies before the school's badge. My sword dance is also smoother, and many of the skills I had forgotten before seem to have been re-engraved into my muscles... Is this all due to the power of the 'Ancient Blood'?"
"If that's the case." The demon hunter took a deep breath, "That would be great..."
Pulling his mind back to the mission, without the interference of other spirits, Kaiyan continued to search in the catacombs.
Following the passage, we came to an open basement with dozens of tombs densely packed on the circular walls.
In these tombs, Kaiyan finally found his target: "Vlodimir Everec, it's you!"
The demon hunter stepped forward and kicked over the coffin lid, revealing the shrunken bones inside. He took a step back to avoid the stench, and then pulled out part of the corpse's torso.
Step back, there happens to be a prayer bowl in this basement for praying for the dead, which is now used as a brazier by Kaiyan.
He used the Igni Sign to ignite the part of Vlodimir's arm that was torn out. After it was burned out, he used the ashes to draw a hexagram on the ground and lit a candle at each of the six corners.
Then he knelt on the ground in a meditative posture and began to chant:
“Life and death, fire and blood.
Reborn from the fire, returning from the ashes.
Those who have left, please return to the world—"
Kaiyan opened his arms, his pupils rolled up to reveal the whites of his eyes, and after repeating the spell five times, six candles suddenly emitted green flames as high as a person. The remaining ashes in the brazier were lifted up by an invisible wind, and a human figure was vaguely outlined in the air.
Then the ashes disappeared, and a transparent figure appeared in front of Kaiyan. Ordinary people might not be able to see this person with their naked eyes, but in Kaiyan's [medium] perception, he was more dazzling than a torch.
Kaiyan muttered to himself, "It worked in one go. I thought I had to burn half of the bodies first."
"That's because I couldn't wait to get out!" Unexpectedly, the transparent figure began to chatter in response to Kaiyan's words, "You'd better explain why you opened my coffin. You still have my great-grandfather's knife on your waist!"
As the low voices echoed in the basement, the figure of the ghost gradually became more solid. It was another young man with a boar's head, wearing a nomadic robe with diagonal buttons. He looked 70% similar to Ogierd, but very immature and far inferior in temperament.
"Are you Vlodimy?"
"You just opened my coffin, and you still ask me who I am?"
Kaiyan felt a little itchy, and there was still some sword oil on the scimitar, so he wanted to see how many blows the ghost in front of him could withstand.
But remembering Lann's instructions and what would happen to the ghost, Kaiyan laughed viciously again.
"I came here from your brother Olgierd. I have a request for him. In exchange, he wants me to summon his dead brother, that is, you, so that I can take you to enjoy a day."
Hearing his brother's name, Vlodimir's murderous feeling suddenly subsided: "You were sent by my brother? How do you prove it?"
Kaiyan began to think of Rann's instructions again.
"A few days ago, your brother taught one of his men a lesson because your horse was too dirty, and then he set a manor on fire as a bonfire."
The ghost laughed when he heard this: "Ha, that's something he could do!"
Vlodimir became excited. He didn't know if he was just a little bit stupid or if he lost some of his intelligence after becoming a ghost, but he believed Kaiyan's words so easily.
"How are you going to take me to enjoy the day I return to the world of the living? I can't wait. Wine, horses, girls. I've had enough of this dark place!"
Kaiyan shook his head, and in the other party's puzzled eyes, he said:
"I thought you would prefer knives and swords. Wouldn't it be more intoxicating to let the knife in your hand cut the enemy's body while you turn a blind eye to the enemy's attack?"
"I just happened to know about a big stage that's going to be built and there's going to be a great, great party there..."
As he spoke, the blood in Kaiyan's eyes beat more intensely.
The bloodthirsty cat's instincts were aroused.
Vlodimir looked at his transparent body, which was strong enough to ignore the attacks of corpses, and seemed to be thinking about something.
"What exactly do you mean by that party you just mentioned?"
Kaiyan lowered his voice and replied, "Eternal Fire, remember?"
"I'm just dead, not stupid." Vlodimir said dissatisfiedly, "A bunch of weird guys almost fought with us several times."
"Now that you know, it's easy to explain: I received news that the Eternal Flame has started an internal conflict. Believers are killing believers, knights are killing knights, and flames are fighting against flames."
Kaiyan's voice was low, like the whisper of a devil: "Sneak into the team of the Knights Templar, find a poor guy to possess, kill his former companions openly, then leave, find the next poor guy, and repeat. Doesn't it sound interesting? If you want, you can even possess their leader to command your former enemy to fight. This level of infighting is rare, and you won't have such an opportunity again in the future..."
The eyes of Frodiimi's illusory figure suddenly became solid.
To him, Kaiyan's proposal was indeed very attractive, or rather - too attractive!
"You are a genius, red-eyed guy, you are a person who knows how to enjoy yourself!"
Frodimir rubbed his hands and said, "Let's go quickly!"
…
One day later, Temple Island, Eternal Fire Headquarters.
The Eternal Flame is a very special religion, and it is special because it does not have a specific god. The believers worship the "eternal flame", and they believe that the eternal flame is a symbol of survival, which can guide them through darkness, toward progress, and a better tomorrow.
I don't know if it was influenced by this religious view, but since there was no "God" above their heads, the top leaders of the Eternal Flame were extremely keen on politics and actively organized armed forces, until they became the main rulers of Novigrad today.
At this time, believers were gathering in the auditorium for today's morning prayer.
In each brazier, a mixture of fish oil, beeswax, rose essence and carmine burned into a fiery red flame that was not only bright but also had a strange fragrance.
Caleb Manji was outside the auditorium, watching the scene in fascination, as if he was the one being worshipped.
"And the Chapelle?"
Hearing the leader's question, a temple guard stepped forward: "He is..."
Before his men could continue, Caleb Manji immediately interrupted them with a reprimand: "Keep your voice down! Can't you see we are at morning prayer?"
In fact, no believers noticed the situation here, but the temple guard immediately lowered his voice and said softly: "He is mobilizing the patrolling guards before the war. The gangs have been active in the past two days and many conflicts have occurred. He is preparing to take people out to quell the rebellion."
Caleb Manji smiled with satisfaction: "It seems that everyone can't wait."
"But I can't just let Chapelle go like this. If I want the Eternal Flame to have only one voice in the future, I have to overthrow him in front of everyone..."
Caleb Mangi muttered to himself: "Evil pagans, dangerous spellcasters, filthy inhuman races, after today, all this filth will disappear from Novigrad."
"Gather our men and target Shapet."
"Also light our signal and let Olgierd and the warlock enter the city. The action begins!"
The temple guards shouted in unison, “Yes!”
This time Caleb Manji had no voice to accuse them.
One person was shouting in an unusually high pitch, and his excitement was simply abnormal. But Caleb Manji didn't care. The soldiers were so eager to fight, wasn't that a good thing for him?
…
Outside the city of Novigrad, in a manor closest to the city, the Wild Boar Army is entrenched.
Riens proposed to find a closer village to occupy, but Ogierd refused because he did not want to disturb the villagers' normal lives and the manor was more respectable.
Rience was furious. Looking at Ogierd, who was carefully maintaining his scimitar and preparing for battle, he shouted:
"Can you still say you have made a name for yourself with military merit? I heard that you used to be a nomadic people, but now it seems that you are more courtly than those nobles! We are so far away, what if Caleb Manji doesn't arrive in time when he sends us a signal?"
In contrast to the warlock's impatience, Olgierd was quite calm: "Don't worry, we won't miss Lannister, just like Lannister won't miss us."
This sentence made Reens stunned, and he seemed not to fully understand: "What do you mean?"
Olgierd chuckled. Compared with the dropouts from the magic academy and the military commander of the temple guards, Olgierd had received a good education since childhood, and he never slacked off even when his family fell into poverty. Therefore, he was relatively sensitive to some things.
Ogierd originally thought that the duel with Lann would be the greatest fun during this period, but he didn't expect that he had already seen several good shows before the fight even started.
"What was your original plan?"
Reigns said dissatisfiedly: "Don't you remember it clearly by now? Let the gangs start riots to mess up the city, forcing the Lannister cavalry into street fighting; then Caleb Mangi took advantage of the time when Shapet sent his men out to seize the Eternal Flame, and finally all of us joined together to take down Lannister, is there a problem?"
Olgierd sneered. "Not only are there problems, but they are huge ones. First of all: where are the four witchers you brought with you?"
Reigns frowned. "You know, their mission is to monitor the Lannisters and wait for us to join them in the city. They are the help sent by His Majesty the Emperor. They are not subordinate to me, so they have no obligation to report to me."
Olgierd shook his head. "You didn't gather your strength before the battle. You didn't even know how many swords you had and who they were facing. I didn't expect your plan to go smoothly from the beginning."
This was a naked mockery, and the information contained in Ogierd's words made Reigns smell something wrong. He was about to speak, but was stopped by Ogierd's words:
"You and I are both Lannister's targets, and I believe you are very high on Lannister's kill list. I don't know how the gangs do things, and I don't know how Caleb Manji does things. Whether they succeed or not has nothing to do with me. I just hope to have a good game with Lannister."
Olgierd finally finished oiling his scimitar. He wiped off the excess grease with a piece of silk as if caressing a lover, and continued:
"You have always wondered why I would go with you. This is why: I know that where you are, the Lannisters will come."
Seeing the sudden change in Rience's expression, he said with a smile: "Otherwise, you don't think I respect the warlock, do you? No way?"
This time, Reigns no longer cared about the hint of sarcasm in Olgierd's words. He asked anxiously, "You mean that something unexpected happened to Caleb Mangi and the gang leader? And Lannister would take the initiative to come to us? Why would they have an accident, and how would Lannister find us?"
The warlock spoke very quickly and in an urgent tone. He seemed unable to figure out what could have gone wrong with the perfect team he had assembled with great difficulty and the careful plan he had worked so hard to formulate.
"I guessed." Olgierd said carelessly, even starting to drink.
Reens breathed a sigh of relief: "That means you haven't received any actual bad news, right? The errors you just mentioned are just your speculations, right?"
"That's your second problem, Warlock." Olgierd shook his head. "You rely on luck and prayer for the success of your plan instead of doing something substantial to fill the gaps. I really can't imagine why the Emperor of Nilfgaard would send you here to preside over such a big event."
Riens wanted to say something, but he heard a sound of anxious running in the corridor. A soldier of the Wild Boar Army suddenly broke open the door and said anxiously:
"Chief, there is a fire in the direction of Novigrad, the signal is coming!"
Outside the manor, all the Wild Boar Army members were ready to go, fully armed. They looked towards the city, waiting for their leader to appear.
A triumphant smile appeared on the Warlock's face: "It looks like the plan is going well."
Olgierd closed his eyes, knelt down and gently stroked the ground. The sand trembled slightly, and the dull sound of horse hooves could be heard from beneath the ground.
"Your demon hunter is here."
Ogierd smiled, his eyes no longer looking at the fire in the direction of the city, but at the end of the road outside the manor.
There, a team of well-trained cavalry was rumbling towards them, led by a blond knight wearing silver-grey armor and a griffin cloak, looking very aggressive.
There was also a burly bald man next to him.
"Lannister? He actually came here on his own! And why is Letho with them?!"
The warlock's voice was almost a scream. It was not easy for him to make such a shrill sound given his throat that had been injured repeatedly several times.
Olgierd began to laugh wildly: "I guessed it right! Wild Boar Army - Charge!"
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