But Queen Mi Wei quickly adjusted her mood. She looked at the snake hunters who were cleaning up the monster's body, and then looked at Lan's lion eyes.
"I suddenly admire your foresight. Are those behind you demon hunters?" Queen Mi Wei said, "Their skills are amazing. I really hope to have a few demon hunters in my territory now."
Lann smiled slightly without saying anything. He waved his hand and put the golden rune sword back into the scabbard behind him.
After confirming Lann's identity, the knights under Queen Miwei also confirmed that the magical sword in his hand was the object of countless knights' dreams. Their eyes were almost always glued to Lann's Sword of the Lady of the Lake until the golden rune on the surface of the sword was completely covered by the scabbard.
Reinforcements from the fortress came rolling in, but stopped awkwardly in front of everyone, as support was no longer needed here.
Lan looked back and saw that his warriors had almost finished cleaning the battlefield. He stretched out his hand and made a "please" gesture to Queen Miwei.
"Your Majesty must be frightened. Why don't you go back to the fortress and rest?"
Queen Mevy also smiled: "Come together, Lannister."
The embarrassed United Kingdom army, the Cintra army that returned with a full load, and the reinforcements that had taken a ride on horseback left the battlefield in an orderly manner and entered the fortress not far away, raising a cloud of dust.
The body of the fork-tailed dragon was taken away, but the ghouls were left behind.
The limbs scattered all over the place squeezed the blood into the soil, and the wind blew up a disgusting fishy smell.
Theoretically, this kind of scene is most likely to attract zombies, but unfortunately, it is a zombie lying here this time.
After a while, crows began to fly in the sky.
Suddenly, the trees in the jungles on both sides of the road shook, and pairs of eyes appeared in the woods observing the noise on the continent, and then disappeared.
No one knew how long the owners of these eyes had stayed here without being discovered. Only when they decided to leave did they show any movement.
The leader of this group of people was a guy wearing a black cloak and brown leather armor.
His face was painted with colorful paints so his true appearance could not be seen, but his pointed ears revealed his identity——
Elf.
They shuttled through the jungle for a long time and soon came to a small camp. In order to hide, the people in the camp did not light a fire, but the atmosphere between the tents was suppressed and boiling.
The human races here are more diverse. In addition to elves, there are also dwarves, halflings and gnomes, with a total population of more than a hundred.
Only humans are missing.
If you want to find a common point among so many races, it is that they all wear decorations made of squirrel fur.
Seeing the leader elf coming back, several elves immediately surrounded him eagerly, asking in a chattering manner whether the plan was going well.
The elf shook his head. No one knew what he said, but a few words were vaguely heard in the wind.
"Failure...Mevi...Henselt...Witcher!"
…
There used to be a saying in the North: "Whoever controls the Pontar Valley controls the entire North."
From this sentence we can get a glimpse of the strategic position of Pontar Valley.
Haji Fortress is the only war fortress in Pontar Valley and the largest military fortress in the entire Northern Kingdom.
Throughout the long course of history, Redania, Temeria, Aedirn, and Kaedwen have all had control over it, and have also gradually lost ownership of it.
Until it became the no-man's land it is today.
The furnishings in such a no-man's land are naturally not very comfortable. But for the demon hunters, such an environment is already a rare comfort.
A hall in the fortress was turned into a living room for marching, with a bed, a desk and a dining table hastily placed there.
Lann was sitting at the desk writing something, the Snake Faction witchers were drinking and chatting around the dining table, and the servants and soldiers were standing guard outside.
The fire in the fireplace burned warmly.
In addition to these people, there is a slender figure looming in the room. She is sitting in front of a drawing board, applying colors and drawing lines.
She had a thin and slender figure, and wore a dark Gothic-style long dress that looked like mourning clothes. She lifted the black veil and draped it behind her head, almost blending into her ebony hair.
Alice, she is painting.
The spacious and warm room, the earl concentrating on his work, the demon hunter taking a rest, and the soul painting with a smile. These seemingly inharmonious elements have reached a delicate balance at this moment.
People who are in it even feel a little comfortable.
Spread out in front of Lan was the [Griffin School Contact Notes], and it was time for him to contact his mentor after a long time.
“Dear teacher, I am writing to you.
I have arrived at Haji Fortress, and am about to attend the Northern Talks that will determine the fate of Cintra. This is a crucial step, and the expectations of those who trust me, those who are loyal to me, and those who follow me are all on me. I have a mission, and it often makes me breathless. "
[Translation]: What a sense of responsibility and justice this disciple has. Do other disciples have such ability and awareness at this age? The Lion Knight of Cintra, who is always shining and confident in the eyes of outsiders, also has moments of confusion and anxiety in his heart, and only appears in front of his teacher for help. So teacher, are you really not going to help your proud disciple?
"I was pleasantly surprised to meet a tortured cat-faction demon hunter, Kaiyan, in Novigrad. I rescued him from the warlock's laboratory and helped him recover his sanity and health. He has now joined my demon hunter cult and is stationed in Novigrad to help me collect information while fulfilling the original duties of a demon hunter, hoping to restore some reputation for his cat-faction companions..."
[Translation]: Does the experience of this cat-school demon hunter feel very similar to yours, teacher? Do you feel empathy and want to come out and meet him? Moreover, the way the cat school saves the school is to enter the world, do you want to learn from it as well?
"At the same time, I also met four demon hunters from the Serpent School, one of whom I had rescued in the White Orchard. I learned that the Serpent School had long been destroyed by Nilfgaard. After learning about the situation in Cintra, they gladly joined my Demon Hunter Cult plan and worked together to make demon hunters great again..."
【Translation】：It is the same school that was destroyed. Teacher, look at their awareness.
"During this journey, I found that the number of monsters appearing is greater than before, and the frequency is higher. This has also been verified by other people in the North. Perhaps something has changed in the outside world, and now is the time when demon hunters are most needed..."
【Translation】：Teacher, please come out soon.
"I hunted two fork-tailed dragons on the way. The decoction made from their mutation-inducing substances will be of great benefit to the Griffin School. After this meeting, I will need to go to Kael Siren to get your guidance. At the same time, I also hope that with your help, my troops can return to Cintra as soon as possible..."
After adding a series of heartfelt greetings, he signed his name.
Lan let out a long breath and moved his stiff neck.
"Lan, you've been sitting there for quite some time, how about having a drink together?"
At the dining table, Kolgrim shouted at Lan.
Lan went over and took the glass: "I'm writing a letter."
"Letter?" Serrit was surprised. "You nobles write letters directly on books?"
Lann chuckled and shook his head, waved his contact notes in front of them, and put them back into the [Inventory] with a flip of his hand.
"This is a unique communication technique of the Griffin School, a magical prop. What I write in this book can be exactly presented in another book thousands of miles away."
Lan did not hide this matter from his colleagues in the Snake School as he did from Yada.
After hearing this, Lei Suo once again said in amazement with a blank expression: "Is it really the Griffin School..."
After being with Lann, they had to endure a little griffin shock from time to time.
"What about you guys? What were you talking about just now?" Lann drank the wine in the glass.
Just now he was concentrating on how to express his "missing" for Geron in the letter, and didn't pay much attention to the conversation with the demon hunter.
"About those soldiers from Kaedwen." Oaks shook his head, looking very indignant.
Demon Hunters have sharp senses, while Snakes, as assassins, are particularly sensitive to other people's eyes.
From the moment they entered the Pontar Valley, the Kaedweni soldiers looked at them with strong hostility and contempt; this hostility became even stronger after they rescued Queen Mevi and the Kaedweni arrived late.
Lann had heard countless bad things about Kaedwen and their king Henselt during his journey. Now that he hadn't seen King Henselt yet, the rumors about Kaedwen were only in name only.
Kaedwen is the most extensive country in the North and the second largest country in the entire continent after Nilfgaard.
However, such a vast territory has not given birth to a sufficiently civilized country. Kaedwen has a cold and ruthless climate, with a large number of vast primeval forests distributed throughout the territory, and the Kaedwen people are also known for their barbarity and vulgarity.
而这个国家的国王亨赛特更是因极度贪婪与易怒而闻名，也是出了名的痛恨非人种族。他为了组建围剿非人种族的游击队而投入了大量的金钱和人力，是掀起大陆种族矛盾的头号分子。
很多传言都说过，如今残杀人类的“松鼠党”是尼弗迦德皇帝暗中资助而组建起来的，这种说法并非无所考究；但哪怕这是真的，松鼠党能这么迅速地集结起一批对人类痛恨到骨子里面的杀手，亨赛特国王也功不可没。
尼弗迦德皇帝能够这么轻易地入侵北境真的要感谢北境的各种奇葩国王。
“这几天时不时地就有科德温的士兵过来挑衅我们。”寇格林姆闷闷不乐地说道，“说真的，如果不是考虑到我们现在也是代表一方政治势力担心引发冲突，我早就好好教训那些臭家伙了。”
兰恩乐了：“我还要谢谢你这么考虑到我咯？”
寇格林姆理所当然地点头：“不客气。”
奥克斯没好气地锤了一拳寇格林姆的肩膀：“我们以前遇到官方军队什么时候不是躲着走的？就算没有兰恩，你也放不出屁来！”
“谁说的？！”寇格林姆顿时梗起脖子。
他眼珠子转了转，突然指着一直在旁边不出声的光头大汉说道：“让雷索把他的‘剧毒银剑’借给我，我就敢让那些科德温士兵尝尝厉害！”
正在默默喝酒的雷索一愣，无奈地摇摇头。
作为蛇派当代领袖的他最沉稳、冷静，但是和所有猎魔人一样他也没有摆过什么架子，很多时候寇格林姆他们都视雷索为兄长，“长兄如父”的那种兄长。
他在刚刚的饮酒座谈的时候一直扮演着倾听者的身份，没想到寇格林姆突然把自己拉出来当挡箭牌。
背后刚到手没多久的【蛇派剧毒银剑】闪闪发光，将其视若珍宝的雷索自然不可能随便借给寇格林姆的。
兰恩笑了笑，主动岔开话题朝着雷索问答：“这把剑的手感怎么样？”
雷索的脸上闪过一丝陶醉和享受：“非常棒，我真的不知道你是从哪里把它找回来的。但是我要再次感谢你，兰恩。”
这一路走来雷索已经用这把剑参与了不少的战斗，尤其是在要塞门口对战叉尾龙的那一次，【蛇派剧毒银剑】切开类龙生物的鳞片和脊椎不比砍翻水鬼难上多少。这让雷索更加感激兰恩。
“这把剑是我见过的品质最好的剑，甚至连我的导师给我的狮鹫银剑都不如他。”
当然是除了兰恩现在身后背负的【湖女之剑】和【爱丽丝】之外。
兰恩用开玩笑一样的语气说道：“我甚至怀疑这把剑是不是你们学派领袖伊瓦·邪眼的佩剑。”
这句话原本只是兰恩顺嘴一说，但是接下来蛇派猎魔人的反应却出乎了他的意料。
无论是雷索、寇格林姆、奥克斯还是瑟瑞特都一本正经地开始摇头。
“不，伊瓦师傅的剑我见过，和这把剑完全不一样。或许这是哪位在外面牺牲了的前辈的佩剑吧。”
在蛇派众人的眼中，这句话再平常不过。但是兰恩却听出了不一样的味道。
“等等，难道雷索你见过‘伊瓦·邪眼’，你们学派的开派宗师？”
雷索理所应当地点了点头：“是的。”
然后他就见到了兰恩惊讶的表情，思考一下就想通了其中的关隘。
“一直以来你只见到我们四个蛇派，这可能让你有些误会。但其实伊瓦师傅尚在世，也是因为有他在我们几人才得以在尼弗迦德覆灭蛇派的时候幸存下来，蛇派应该是还有五人才对。”
“你确定吗？那可是猎魔人教团时期就活跃的大宗师，要是依旧在世他现在得多大？”兰恩难以置信地说道，“他现在还在尼弗迦德吗？为什么没有跟你们一起来北境？”
面对兰恩的询问，雷索却摇了摇头：“伊瓦师傅虽然尚在世，但是不久前他独自踏上了旅途。他的邪眼似乎看到了什么东西，让他不得不朝着目标前进。也是因此他将导师之位传给我，让我带领大家寻求学派的复兴之路。”
寇格林姆也帮腔道：“那还是在我到达北境之后的事情，我和兰恩你遇见的时候甚至还打算写封信寄回来给伊瓦师傅呢。等见到雷索他们之后我才知道伊瓦师傅离开了，还让我遗憾了好久。”
蛇派众人的话让兰恩陷入了沉思。
他承认他馋了。
伊瓦·邪眼。一个因为身体具备出众的耐药性而比寻常猎魔人经受了更多猎魔人突变的超级突变体，一个猎魔人教团时期就存在至今的开派宗师，这样的一个人会有多强？
而且根据雷索他们崇敬的语气和复述的情况来看，伊瓦·邪眼绝对还是当打之年。
可惜晚了一步不能去拉拢他，伊瓦不知道又用自己的邪眼看到了什么，居然抛下自己苟延残喘的学派一走了之。
也就是雷索确实给力，而且蛇派也是少见的有着凝聚力，这才让蛇派没有散掉。
而且从雷索他们的语气来看，他们甚至很理解伊瓦·邪眼的做法，并没有被对方抛弃的感觉。
“伊瓦宗师有跟你们说他去哪里，要去做什么吗？”
“没有。”雷索摇摇头，“但是我们相信他有不得不这么做的理由。”
“那你想要找到他吗？”
雷索这回沉默了，良久之后叹息一声：“想。”
显然对于宗师的出走，他并不是没有任何怨言的，只是那些琐碎的想法一直都被信任压在心底。
兰恩只能说道：“等我们回到辛特拉之后，我会加强对于猎魔人教团的宣传，尤其是‘蛇派也在教团里’的这个消息，如果伊瓦宗师看到的话肯定会过来找你们的。”
雷索点头。
两人碰杯，一饮而尽。
寇格林姆却突然想到了什么：“兰恩，你们狮鹫学派的创始人呢？我听伊瓦师傅说过，他似乎叫做‘拉尔维克的埃兰’？”
兰恩想了想说道：“我成为猎魔人还没两年，从没见过埃兰宗师。凯尔塞壬曾经被术士们制造的雪崩摧毁了，埃兰宗师误以为学派全军覆没，因此心灰意冷之下离开了，从此杳无音讯。”
“我的导师杰隆当时在外出接取委托的时候被自己的术士父亲关押起来做实验，因此逃过一劫。我误打误撞之下解救了他，随后在奇妙的命运安排下成为了猎魔人。”
兰恩简单介绍了一下狮鹫学派的现状。
而在不知道具体情况的雷索等人听起来，狮鹫学派貌似比蛇派还惨一点的样子。
“可惜了，伊瓦师傅对埃兰宗师赞誉有加，每每提起他的时候无不是心驰神往。”雷索叹了口气，“我还一直想亲眼见见伊瓦师傅口中的那个狮鹫骑士呢。”
几名猎魔人相顾无言，碰杯，饮酒。
一轮过后，寇格林姆突然想到了什么。
“兰恩，你说你们的埃兰宗师会不会也还活着？”
兰恩沉默，摇摇头：“这就谁也说不清了，或许吧。等我在辛特拉宣扬出去狮鹫复兴的消息之后，说不定他也会回来。”
话题过于沉重了，几名猎魔人再度相顾无言，碰杯。
不过这种气氛没有持续多久。
很快就插进来一声雀跃的欢呼，驱散干净了酒和沉默。
“完成了，我的画！”
爱丽丝高兴地从椅子上站起来，但是似乎很快又意识自己的行为有多失礼，立刻又单手捂嘴，抱歉地看向桌边的猎魔人们。
那张充满了忧郁和破碎感的哥特少妇风的脸上出现这种表情，真的有种别样的反差魅力。
事实上，爱丽丝很快乐。她已经浑浑噩噩、郁郁寡欢了不知道多少年，也不知道有多少年没有再体会过“悲伤”“痛苦”之外的情绪了。
兰恩微笑着朝她走去，看向画架上面的画。
上面是两个遥遥相对的领袖。
一者是金发狮瞳的威武骑士，看上去如朝阳一般年轻，却也有着山岳一般的威严。他此时正在将一把闪闪发光的符文长剑插回剑鞘，同时也在跟对面的人说着什么。
光是从画布上面，就能感受到这名骑士铺面而来的魅力。任何看向这幅画作的人都会被这名骑士第一时间抓住目光。
在他对面的是一名穿着镶金铠甲的女士，带着王冠，面色沉稳，却有着一丝不易察觉的狼狈。
他们的背后是骑士、森林，和两头巨大的叉尾龙的尸体。周围还散乱着一些其他的魔物。
“你说想要我画一幅画作为给女王的礼物，我第一时间就想到了这一幕。”爱丽丝轻声说道。
是的，爱丽丝当时就在现场。而且就在兰恩的身边。
虽然爱丽丝是【画中妖灵】，但是她的【椿】天赋给予了她非常多的可能性。除了自己的肖像画之外，她其实还能够附身在兰恩的【爱丽丝】弯刀之上。
爱丽丝附身【爱丽丝】，很合理。
After all, she couldn't always possess a portrait that was inconvenient to carry. Unlike the [Transformation and Sealing Technique], the painting she possessed couldn't be put into the [Inventory].
For this reason, Alice, who was possessed by the scimitar, saw the scene where Lann used his great power to rescue the queen, and reproduced the scene by adding some of her own subjective emotions.
By the way, if Lann wants to use a machete to chop someone, he must tell Alice in advance so that she can remove the possession. This lady is currently unable to adapt to negative distance contact killing.
It cannot be said that Lann knows a lot about art, but under the education of his old butler and the influence of Queen Calanthe during his time as an earl, he has some appreciation ability.
He praised sincerely: "It is a very wonderful work."
Alice lowered her head. "I don't know if my painting is worthy of being a gift for such a diplomatic occasion. I'm afraid it will bring shame to Cintra."
Lann comforted him again and again: "Please don't say that, your artistic attainments are far beyond your imagination."
There is actually a hidden Easter egg in the original game that explains Alice's painting skills.
If the player personally completes Open Sesame, one of Olgierd's three wishes, they will head to the Borsodi Brothers Auction on their way to Borsodi's House.
When the game company set up the auction items, it paid tribute to many artworks from Lann's previous real life. Among them was a painting called "Starry Sky over the Pontar River", and the author's name was "Fanlu".
The name, brushstrokes, color techniques, and even the name of the painter are all tributes to a famous artist and masterpiece - Van Gogh's "Starry Night over the Rhone".
This Fanlu is actually a pseudonym, and his real identity is Alice.
In other words – Alice’s painting skills are at Van Gogh level.
But Alice herself never knew this. She had always only painted as a hobby and had never sold a single painting before her death.
The more Lan looked at the painting, the more satisfied he became.
Alice was more and more satisfied with Lann. What could make her happier than praising the painter's paintings?
"It will take about one to two days for the surface to dry, and about a month for the whole painting to dry."
Lan En frowned slightly when he heard this, and said helplessly: "Such a beautiful painting is indeed worth waiting for. It's just that Queen Mi Wei can't see her for the time being."
But Alice chuckled: "If it were an ordinary painting, I would prefer to wait for it to dry naturally. But since it is a work with a political mission, perhaps doing so will make it have more stories..."
Just as he finished speaking, a bright emerald flame suddenly ignited on Alice's body, and the flame quickly spread over the painting and passed by.
The flames died out quickly.
Seeing Alice smiling and making a "please" gesture, Lane tentatively touched the canvas lightly with his fingertips.
Dry.
"You always have the ability to surprise people, Ms. Alice."
The beautiful spirit gave a ladylike salute: "Not nearly as much of a surprise as you have given me, Knight Lann."
Behind Lann, Kolgrim took a sip of wine and asked Letho, "What are they doing?"
Lei Suo didn't even turn his head: "Just watch."
After a long time, Levin, who was standing guard outside the door, suddenly heard someone calling him from inside the room.
"Levin!"
"Yes! Sir!"
Levin knocked twice and then pushed the door open, waiting for instructions.
"Go and give Queen Miwei a visiting card. I will visit her at dinner time."
This kind of thing should have been done by House, but House has now been thrown into the "temporary steward group" of Haji Fortress by Lane. After all, he is the only one with relevant experience among the people he brought.
Therefore, this kind of temporary diplomatic affairs can only be handed over to Levin for the time being. Lane also plans to train the young people in the small town to become independent talents in the future. This is a real opportunity for young people to train.
"Yes! My lord!" Levin responded in a sonorous voice, pushed back Milva who was peeking into the house, and turned to leave.