Chapter 306: The Bear Playing With a Wolf
"So it's him."
Lynn immediately felt a sense of relief. He cast aside his previous worries, anxieties, and calculations, and walked directly toward the Bear School witcher's table, taking a seat beside him.
"I hope you don't mind a little generosity from a fellow witcher, Gied."
The Bear School witcher, with his bowl cut like an Islander, revealed a warm smile, a look that shouldn't belong on a Bear School witcher's face. "I never expected to run into a brother from another school here. But how do you know my name? I believe this is our first time meeting?"
"Eskel mentioned your name to me. I'm Lynn of the Wolf School." Lynn told a lie without a second thought, his face not changing color or his heart skipping a beat.
In truth, Eskel had indeed mentioned Gied's name. Witchers had long lifespans, living for centuries. And aside from the Viper and Manticore Schools, most witchers were active in the North. It was only natural for them to cross paths. But Eskel had only mentioned it in passing, like a dog in the village barking at him when he returned home for the New Year.
What truly made Lynn recognize him at first glance was his memory from his previous life. The Bear School witcher Gied, though he never officially appeared in The Witcher 3, his legend was found all over the Skellige Isles.
"Eskel? Oh, so it was him." Gied didn't doubt Lynn's story. "So, Lynn, did you also come to Spikeroog for contracts? My apologies, if I had known you were coming, I wouldn't have taken them all."
"Since you're treating, if you don't mind, why don't we team up? We can split the reward later."
Lynn raised an eyebrow at that. "You're willing to split your reward with me?" Witchers rarely worked with other witchers, and the initiative to invite one was even rarer. This wasn't hard to understand. Even in Novigrad, a city with a huge transient population that even a fool would know was developed by the hard work of outsiders, there were still locals who felt that outsiders had stolen their jobs, and they hated and envied them for it. This was even more true for witchers, whose lives were always difficult.
"Haha, it seems my brethren have left you with a bad impression." Gied was quite self-aware and understood what kind of school the Bear School was. Seeing Lynn's expression change, he laughed and said, "You don't have to worry. I'm not like them. In fact, I've already earned enough on the Skellige Isles. What's the point of having so much coin? You can't take it with you. Just having enough is fine, wouldn't you agree?"
Since Gied had put it that way, it would be rude for Lynn to refuse. "If you're willing to split the reward with me, then I have no objections."
"Haha, you're straightforward. You're my friend now. Come, let's drink."
...
After spending the night at the tavern, the two of them left the village of Svareg early the next morning. Walking along a grassy wilderness path, Gied told Lynn about the two contracts he had on hand.
The first was from the Brokvar clan: a warrior named "Iron Hand" Jorgen, at the patriarch's command, had asked him to clear out a Melusine in a cave in the northwest of the island. A Melusine was an exceptionally large Siren, and other Sirens would obey it. Before the witcher arrived on the island, many fishermen and villagers had already been harmed by the Melusine. Therefore, the Brokvar patriarch had offered a very generous reward to any warrior who could kill the monster. Unfortunately, before Gied took the contract, there had been warriors confident in their own skills who had gone to fight it, but none had ever returned.
The second contract came from Count Torgil "the Crimson" of the Tuirseach clan. He hoped Gied could clear out Etniir Keep, which had once belonged to the Tuirseach clan's ancestors and was now surrounded by monsters. Count Torgil had even sent one of his men to be Gied's guide.
...
"Master Gied, you've finally arrived."
A burly, well-built man, also with a bowl cut and wearing armor, was hiding in a temporary, wind-sheltered camp. At first, he heard footsteps and instinctively grabbed his weapon. But when he saw that the people approaching were Lynn and Gied, he slowly lowered his weapon and said the words above.
Gied walked forward, slapped the man's arm hard, then said boisterously, "Let me introduce you. This is Count Torgil's squire, Olve. Olve, this is Lynn, a witcher from the Wolf School."
Hearing that the young man with Gied was also a witcher, Olve instinctively showed respect and said, "Master Lynn."
"You're too kind." Lynn extended his hand and shook the other man's hand firmly.
After the two had gotten to know each other, Gied patted his own chest. "For the rest of the journey, Lynn will be with us... Don't worry about the reward. When the count pays me, I'll give half to Lynn."
"Master Gied, what are you saying? As long as we succeed in defeating that evil monster, the count will not be stingy with his rewards."
Then, Olve took out the things he had brought: two heavy crossbows and over a hundred bolts. Although Sirens had the word "siren" in their name, these beasts could fly. Without heavy crossbows, they would be very difficult to deal with.
After resting for a night at the temporary camp, the three continued on their journey the next morning. By the afternoon of the third day, they finally arrived at the cave where the Melusine lived.
"Look, it's right there."
The three were standing on a high point. Lynn's eyesight was excellent, and he immediately saw the cave by the sea in the distance.
"That Melusine and the Sirens it controls are probably in that cave, but the problem is, we don't know the situation inside. If we just go in, the risk is too great."
Witchers were experts at dealing with monsters. It wasn't just about their mastery of swordsmanship; their understanding of monster habits and the terrain was also key to a successful hunt.
Olve didn't even think before volunteering, "I'll go in and scout the way."
Lynn quickly stopped him. If he were to just go in like that, what would be the difference from a suicide mission? It was best to avoid unnecessary sacrifices.
What's the best way to lure the Sirens out? Lynn's gaze remained on the bottomless cave. The dark cave was like a giant beast that would swallow any human who dared to venture inside.
Suddenly, a flash of inspiration came to him. "I have an idea. You two wait for me here."
Leaving these words behind, Lynn hurried away.
About two hours later, Gied and Olve saw Lynn return, dragging a stag with all four legs tightly bound.
"You want to use this stag to attract the Sirens?" As a witcher himself, Gied quickly understood Lynn's intention. Indeed, in a witcher's methods for dealing with monsters, there were many examples of using wild animals to lure monsters out. If they could lure the Sirens out into the open terrain, it would definitely be much better than fighting them in an unfamiliar cave.
"Yes, and I have this, too." Lynn flipped his wrist, and another potion appeared in his hand.
He poured the potion into the struggling stag's mouth and explained to the other two. "This is a special lure that I made. It can have a fatal attraction for most carnivorous creatures. What's even better is that this lure can be combined with other witcher potions without losing its properties."
This special lure was actually a potion exclusive to the Viper School. It was one of the formulas Lynn had learned after getting "Viper Toxin" to a master level. As he told the two, no carnivorous creature could resist its temptation. Therefore, before the special lure took effect, Lynn took out an antidote and had himself and the others drink it, to prevent them from falling victim to the lure.
Then, he took out another potion. A liquid the color of midnight flowed inside. As before, he poured this potion into the stag's mouth. The stag once again struggled fiercely, but it was just as futile as before. This was a superior Black Blood potion, which could fill the user's blood with a deadly toxin. Of course, ordinary people couldn't drink this stuff; they would die. It was a proper poison.
(End of this chapter)
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