"Damn Svalbloc!" Kratz slammed the table hard, causing the ink bottle on the table to fly up and spill black ink everywhere.
The Clet family has absolute prestige in the territory they control. When Kratz gave the order to check the missing people, a steady stream of soldiers ran towards the villages in the territory and contacted the usual tax officials and promulgators to count the number of people in each village.
Due to time constraints and the limitations of the household registration system of that era, only a small number of villages participated in the statistics at this time. More remote villages or the population hidden in the villages were not included.
Even so, nearly a hundred people have been counted.
You have to know that the Svalblod sect did not capture a hundred old, weak, women and children, but young men who were strong and capable of supporting a family. Considering the rich martial arts environment in Skellige, these young men were all capable of taking up weapons and putting on armor and going into battle.
In other words, Kratz lost hundreds of reserve soldiers.
The entire Skellige had only about 7,000 navy personnel. Even though Kratz was one of the top families in the archipelago, this loss still made him feel heartbroken.
The matter did not end there. The tax officer brought even worse news.
The Great Skellig Island is ruled by two families. The southern part is controlled by the Clet family of Kratz, and the northern part is ruled by the Drummond family of Lugo the Mad. The governance of Kratz is definitely more rigorous than that of Lugo the Mad.
The tax collectors at the border of the two families' rule were all familiar with each other. They brought a piece of news to Kratz: there were many missing young people in the territory of the madman Lugo.
Even in the past, this was not news that would make Kratz smile - the regret caused by the loss of the young man far outweighed the pleasure of the powerful enemy being hurt.
And in the current situation, this is a problem that makes the situation even more serious.
"The Svalblod Cult has gained more young men, or more 'warriors'," Lane pondered.
"But there aren't so many giant bears on this island for them to train berserkers to control. And normal people are definitely not people they can control freely with their minds - if they could do that, they would have ruled Skellige long ago."
Lann took a deep breath: "Then there is only one possibility, a possibility that is worse than creating a berserker-"
Kratz took over Lann's words: "Living sacrifice!"
A word that sends chills down one's spine just by hearing it.
The Svalblod cult despised the weak and loved to sacrifice living people to their gods; they would kill those who could not fight or were not good at fighting like livestock to please Svalblod. This bad habit became more and more serious and eventually evolved into a massacre of the village, which led to the Skellige people to exterminate the Svalblod cult.
They didn't expect that they would have to face this bad habit again now.
"Since it's a 'sacrifice', then we can definitely gain power from it." Lann took a deep breath. "In the past, they used the so-called 'weaklings', but now they are young men who are of the right age to become soldiers. They will definitely be able to please their evil gods better and gain more powerful power from it."
"Uncle Easter is right. We may not be able to worry about the fight for the throne now." Kratz stood up and put on his bearskin cloak. "This may be a disaster that will sweep across the entire Skellige."
"Fortunately, we discovered the enemy's plot in advance. I will go to gather the soldiers now. If there is any news..."
Kratz was suddenly interrupted before he could finish his words.
…
“Boom boom boom—”
There was a loud banging sound outside the study, the force was so strong that it made people worry whether it would cause any damage to the door.
Then there was a commotion:
"Wait a moment, you can't go in, please calm down, this is Master Kratz--"
It seemed that the guards at the door were stopping someone, but the visitor was obviously in an emergency and could not wait for the guards to pass the order according to the procedure.
With a loud bang, the door was kicked open and Geralt rushed in, followed by the butler who was trying his best to stop him.
"Something happened." Without waiting for the butler to apologize to Kratz, or for Lann and the others to ask about their purpose, Geralt rushed to speak. His first sentence made the expressions of everyone present become serious.
According to the previous arrangement, Lane and Kratz accompanied Kratz back to count the number of people and assemble the soldiers. The main force was still stationed at the foot of the mountain in case of accidents, while Geralt and Gerd, the two most experienced witchers, accompanied Bill up the mountain to find the hiding place of the Vilk people.
I didn't expect Geralt to come back early.
"What happened? Did we find the Vilkans? Or did we alert the enemy to our presence and now they're running?"
Geralt denied both of Lann's guesses: "It's worse than that."
"Other candidates for the throne noticed our actions and blamed us as competitors for hiding information from them. They laughed loudly at our gathering at the foot of the mountain waiting for reinforcements, believing that the dangers we mentioned to them were all fabricated lies."
"Because of us, they have determined that the Vilkers are on the mountain, and now they have assembled a large number of troops to go up the mountain in order to seize the throne." Geralt took a deep breath, "There is no time for us to prepare, we need to launch a general attack directly."
"Damn it!" Kratz slammed the desk hard, and the documents, papers, and pens on it all fell to the ground with a crackling sound.
"Gather the troops and set off now to support those idiots whose brains were chopped off by axes!" Kratz shouted outside the house, then turned around and looked at Geralt.
"Geralt, remind me, which families are those idiots you are talking about?"
"Our old friend Crazy Lugo, and another one called Hogg, the guy with a weird skin color."
Kratz cursed: "The bandit from Faroe Island, Hogg Blackhand of the Dimen family, he is just as stupid as Lugo who only knows how to rob!"
…
Hogg Blackhand is the head of House Diemen and the lord of Faroe Island.
As a young man, he was caught in an autumn snowstorm and his longboat accidentally hit a reef, causing him to suffer frostbite. This left his hands and arms with a particularly dark complexion, earning him the nickname "Blackhand."
Even in Skellige, where raiding is almost a rite of passage, Hogg Blackhand is a very cruel existence. When he raids, he is almost slaughtering. His notoriety has spread to the coasts of Novigrad and Nilfgaard. He even spares no effort when attacking the hostile families in Skellige.
Therefore, the Diemen family has a particularly bad reputation in Skellige.
The Faroe Island he ruled was located at the southernmost tip of Skellige. It was also the most primitive and uninhabited island, and the people there could only survive by looting - this might also be an objective reason for the formation of Hogg Blackhand's character.
That is why Hogg Blackhand is almost eagerly searching for any opportunity to make Faroe Island prosperous.
Becoming the king was the biggest opportunity in his eyes. He and Madman Lugo were the only two people who wanted to compete with Easter for the throne. The patriarchs of other families either chose to support him like Dona or abstain.
At this moment, Hogg Blackhand was standing with Madman Lugo, facing Easter with an ugly face.
…
Easter originally planned to return to Little Skellige to find King Bran and dispatch more family soldiers to support him, but when he heard that the madman Lugo and Hogg Blackhand forced their way into the mountain, he rushed back immediately.
I didn't realize I was late.
When he was preparing to go up the mountain with his men, he received news that Madman Lugo and his men had already gone up the mountain; when he led his men to the halfway point of the mountain, they happened to meet Madman Lugo and his men on their way back.
According to Madman Lugo and his men, they have found the gathering place of the Vilkas.
Because soldiers from the Clete and Tursek families had already searched the mountains, they had helped the madman Lugo and his men eliminate a large number of wrong answers, which in turn reduced their search range. Then they discovered the route that Geralt, Gerd and Bill were taking. After they had a general direction, they sent out hundreds of soldiers to search for the hiding place in the mountains regardless of the noise. Finally, they soon found the hiding place of the Vilka people.
At this moment, Bill was following behind Gerd. They stood in the queue of the Tuersek family, their faces full of self-blame.
Madman Lugo spoke eloquently: "Those followers of the evil god are just some guys who are not worthy of the stage. The real warriors who dared to fight were killed by our ancestors. The remaining soft bugs are no different from the people we usually rob!"
"Did you meet them? Kill them all?" Easter said expressionlessly.
"No, it's even better." Madman Lugo said, "They heard our movements and ran away. We even rescued a lot of kidnapped boys and saved them from becoming living sacrifices to the evil god!"
Madman Lugo opened his arms and showed East the dozen or so young men who had joined his team. They were all listless, with gray skin, dark circles under their eyes, and in a trance - but they were all still alive.
“他们可都是我大史凯利格岛的领民。”疯子卢戈得意地笑起来。
“救出史凯利格的领民，这确实是一项功绩。”伊斯特朝着那些被解救的青年点点头，但是他们个个精神恍惚，居然没有注意到伊斯特的动作，也没有给予回应。
“不过卢戈、霍格，我们的任务你们还记得吗？我们是要清缴掉斯瓦勃洛教派，完成我们先辈遗漏的任务，为史凯利格清除掉一个祸害——而你们的贸然行动将这一切付之一炬了。”
“好，伊斯特！看看现在的情况，你还觉得斯瓦勃洛教派是个祸害吗？他们只是一群听到消息就逃跑的小丑而已！我觉得或许兰尼斯特在你们家族的城堡里面杀掉的狂战士，就已经是他们全部的力量了。”
卢戈嗤笑一声：“从这角度来讲，你们确实覆灭了斯瓦勃洛教派，可惜那个成绩算不得数。”
一直在旁边冷眼旁观的霍格·黑手也开口了：“伊斯特，我尊重你，但是现在的情况是你已经没有胜算了。虽然我们谁都没有完成覆灭斯瓦勃洛教派的成绩，但是我和卢戈现在至少已经摧毁了他们新的聚集地，解救了被抓去作为活祭品的人质。哪怕之后什么都不做，我们也已经领先你了。”
因为常年的海上劫掠生涯，霍格黑手的一只眼睛呈现失明的纯白色，倘若与他对话的是别人，或许还真的会被压迫住。
但是伊斯特的表情没有丝毫变化，他身上的气势比卢戈和霍格两个人加起来还足：“你们不明白，根据我们获得的情报，斯瓦勃洛教派还有更多的狂战士。这已经不是王位争夺的事情了，既然你们已经来了，那么我邀请你们留下来，继续去山中搜寻维尔卡人的聚集地，他们肯定还有其他藏身之处。”
“我们会的，伊斯特。”霍格·黑手冷冷道，“但不是现在，也不会和你。”
疯子卢戈则大笑起来：“如果维尔卡人还有狂战士，以他们的性格他们会不出动吗？狂战士，哪来的狂战士？”
说着，他狠狠一指那些被他从维尔卡人藏身处救出来的十几个青年：“难道会是他们吗？他们会是狂战士吗？”
青年们个个精神恍惚，对着疯子卢戈的话没有丝毫反应。
伊斯特深吸一口气，只觉得和疯子卢戈的交流格外费劲。
……
在伊斯特的身后，格德看着精神萎靡的比尔，想了想，把宽厚的手掌搭在了他的肩膀上：“不要自责，也不用担心，目前为止你所展示出来的品质当得上勇士的称号，现在发生的事情也不是你的错。”
“你和你爱人的事情也绝对会有不错的结果的，兰恩是个很不错的人，如果不是我已经有了跟随的领主，我估计也忍不住……”
比尔用力地摁住脑袋，似乎在忍耐极端的痛苦，他打断了格德的安慰，断断续续地说道：“我的头好痛……格德先生，有什么地方不对劲。”
豆大的汗珠从比尔的额头滴下，但是他说的话却越来越流畅：“我的记忆变得更加清晰了……这两位领主大人找到的地方不对，似乎不是我之前被抓到的地方，那不是维尔卡人真正的聚集地……而且，发生了一些事情，一些事情，我忘了一些事情……”
“不对，不对，不该是这样的……”
比尔的表情变得惊恐起来，似乎自己犯下了什么十恶不赦的罪状；那灰败的脸色变得好似尸体一般，连双目都失去了光泽。
格德皱起眉头，下意识地把右手握向剑柄。
在做好战斗准备的同时，格德试探性地摇了摇比尔，似乎想要给状态不对的同行伙伴一点关切。
但是紧接着他的动作却猛然顿住了。
熊派猎魔人的耳朵动了动，敏锐的猎魔人感官让他在周围捕捉到了一点不一样的动静。
眼前三大家族的领主在争吵，在谈判，他们身后的士兵都将注意力放在了对面。
但是在这剧烈的争吵声下面，格德却听到了低沉的、被掩盖住的宛若吟唱的声音，这个声音用着格德听不懂的语言，带着一种沧桑、坚定、而又一丝狂热的味道。
像是在祷告。
这种好似祷告的声音从他们的四面八方传过来。
声音自然是由人发出来的，这说明了一件事情——有位置的敌人将他们包围了。
格德的琥珀色竖瞳猛然扩了一倍，好似被人攒住了心脏。他的感官告诉他，危险不仅仅来自于这所谓的“四面八方”，更来自于他的身边。
……
“吼——！！”
疯子卢戈和霍格·黑手突然听到了巨熊的齐声怒吼，震耳欲聋。
声音来自于他们身后。
而伊斯特，在他们的眼中露出了惊恐的表情，朝着他们扑了过来。
……
半刻钟前。
山腰处，图尔塞克、德拉蒙、迪门家族三家的士兵还在争吵着。
而群山的丛林中，低匐着大队的猎手。
他们的眼睛隐没在黑暗中，不发出一点亮光；他们的行进依托着林间的灌木，却不发出一点声响。
他们前进的方向就是半山腰处的三家族士兵。
与这些全副武装的士兵不同，这些猎手的装备十分简陋，现在连基本的皮甲都没有穿上；他们**着上半身，露出肌肉虬结的胸膛和胳膊，上面密布着足够把正常人肢解的密麻伤疤。
他们下身围着简陋的战裙，背上却披着厚实的披风，多是狼、野猪、熊之类的整块毛皮制作而成的。
看到这些披风，似乎也能够理解他们身上的伤疤从何而来了。
他们是维尔卡人，斯瓦勃洛的信徒。
仅仅只是拿着短斧和圆盾，人数也不过眼前这些家族联军的十分之一还不到，但是他们却有着十足的信心包围了这些史凯利格军队。
他们不畏惧死亡——甚至说，他们就是来寻求死亡的。
一个光头且留着大胡子的健壮人影从他们身后走出来。与低俯着身体潜行的维尔卡战士们不同，他端直着腰板，宛若闲庭散步一样在丛林中行进。
周围的树木好似都有着意识一般，主动给他让开了脚下的道路，甚至帮助他隐没他的行踪，不发出一点声响。
这一切无不说明着一个事实——他是一名德鲁伊。
而在看到德鲁伊出来之后，所有的维尔卡都朝着他鞠躬，低声轻呼：大祭司亚提斯。
亚提斯距离史凯利格一方的还有着不小的距离，但是他的眼睛却好似鹰隼一般穿过了重重的林木遮挡，将山腰间的一切尽收眼底。
“明明拥有这么多强大的勇士，他们却选择安于现状，缩在这个小小的群岛，将广袤的大陆让给那些孱弱之人……”
亚提斯冷冷地看着前方的队伍：“还玩着宛若过家家一般的国王游戏……哈，他们的队伍里面还有女人！还穿着铠甲拿着盾，他们把勇士的荣耀当成什么了？”
只见霍格·黑手的身后，赫然站着一名持盾女卫，英姿飒爽，身材矫健，手上密布老茧，当得上一句“铁娘子”的称赞。
但是在堕落德鲁伊的眼中，这一切却是离经叛道。
“果然，他们需要我神斯瓦勃洛的指引，他们需要照耀到我神的荣光。”
低俯着的战士们非常适时地低吟道：“我神斯瓦勃洛。”
亚提斯看了看自己身边已经时刻准备战斗的信徒，满意地点了点头。
“在小史凯利格岛的计划非常顺利，死去的战士也是血祭的一部分，信徒的献身更能取悦我神。”
“那么现在，为我神献上眼前的这些异教徒吧，我们数十年如一日的蛰伏就是为了今天。”
“去把，勇士们，去战斗、去厮杀、去牺牲、去取悦——我神斯瓦勃洛！”
低俯着的战士们眼睛渐渐地燃烧起来，就好像有一面战鼓在他们的胸膛中开始隆隆作响。
“为了我神——斯瓦勃洛！”
堕落德鲁伊的身影缓缓后退，树叶和灌木覆盖上他的足迹，为他遮掩行踪——他还有别的任务。
而顺着他离开的路径，丛林的深处开始有野兽的嘶吼传来。那不仅仅是狼、熊的怒吼，还带着一些大型魔物的嘶鸣，乃至于更加沉闷的吼叫。
永远不要去试探一名精通自然之道的德鲁伊大师能够在森林里面爆发出多强大的战斗力，尤其这位德鲁伊放弃了信仰，并且在这片森林之中经营了数十年之久。
应和着这些兽吼，所有的维尔卡战士则低俯到地上，不再顾忌隐藏自己的踪迹，开始大声吟唱祷词。
“吾神斯瓦勃洛，吾为汝子，吾为汝群，吾为汝刃；
请受吾血，请受吾肉，请受吾祭；
愿吾伤痛化神之福，愿吾苦痛化神之悦。
请神赐吾刃、请神赐吾力、请神赐吾气；
以神之名，摧神之敌；以神之名，攻敌之地。
愿您与吾等同在——吾神，斯瓦勃洛！”