"Haha, George, since I already know about your difficulties, it's not in my character to do nothing," Wayne chuckled, taking a sip of cherry nectar. Considering his tone, he continued, "I have two proposals now; you can listen to them."
"Oh?" George was a little curious upon hearing the words. What would this young witcher say when he met him for the first time?
"What proposal, Wayne?" George inquired.
Wayne showed a kind smile and said, "The first proposal, isn't your reward for this commission orens? I will lend you the orens first, without interest. After you complete the commission, return the money to me. Just do it."
"You should see that I don't need this little money," George remarked, casting an envious glance at Wayne's complexion and attire. Indeed, Wayne's current appearance resembled more of a noble young master, well-clothed and well-fed, rather than a witcher who lived and slept in the open.
Thinking about it, perhaps it was indeed an invisible influence of luck. Since Wayne descended from the mountain, aside from the first task of Misha looking for a child, which only offered five ducats as a reward, everyone else they met had been honest and generous. Good people who not only paid well but also possessed good character.
Of course, this was partly due to the fact that their employers were well-known individuals, not troublemakers from the countryside.
"What's the second proposal then?" George inquired.
As a witcher of the Griffin school who believed in chivalry, although Wayne seemed to be a very kind person, George didn't want to be helped by others for no reason. After all, monetary debts are easy to repay, but human debts are not.
Seeing that George rejected the first proposal, Wayne was not disappointed. This proposal was not of much significance in the first place, and it was only a small loan, which would not make George owe him any big favors.
"As for the second proposal?" Wayne refilled his glass, looked at George, and said, "George, as you know, dragons are highly intelligent, and their numbers are so less that they are about to become endangered species. It would be a pity to just kill it and take away the dragon skin or other materials."
Hearing Wayne's hidden meaning, George asked with a frown, "Do you want to capture this dragon alive, or let this dragon go?"
Wayne laughed and didn't express his thoughts directly but asked George, "Have you heard anything about the dragon hunting operation in Holobur City a few months ago?"
George shook his head and replied, "I just came back from the Skellige Islands two months ago. I only heard some sporadic news. I don't know exactly what happened."
Wayne didn't mind. Instead, he used his excellent eloquence to drink and eat meat with George, telling him the ins and outs of Holoburl's dragon-hunting operation. After recounting the story, he presented the second proposal.
"That golden dragon friend of mine certainly doesn't want to see his own kind being killed by us witchers like this," Wayne explained. "George, if you are willing to assist me, I will inform my dragon friend, and the three of us will subdue the green dragon together."
"No matter how it is dealt with in the end, it will definitely not have another chance to pose a threat to any human beings in the future," Wayne emphasized.
Seeing that George was still silent and did not make any comments, Wayne added, "Well, as for your reward for assisting me, I am willing to pay you a thousand Oren, and I will bear the repair cost of your equipment, as well as all the consumption during this mission. How about it?"
The remuneration given by Wayne is almost the highest that George has seen in the past ten years. However, as a witcher, he was still puzzled and asked directly, "Why bother, Wayne? Wouldn't it be nice to kill that dragon directly?"
Of course, Wayne couldn't say that without his intervention, George would have died at the hands of this dragon, and he really felt that killing him directly for a rare green dragon would be a bit wasteful. If it was a female dragon, Borch would definitely not mind, and he would have another mate.
Hearing George's question, Wayne sighed and said, "George, we witchers aren't invincible. We must try our best to increase our chances of survival. Think about it, if you don't follow my proposal, and you are alone, wearing this worn-out armor, and go to fight that green dragon. Are you sure you're safe and sound? If you die at the hands of this green dragon, then many people who may need your help in the future will lose the chance to live. It would further weaken the Griffin School, perhaps even lead to its extinction."
"Our purpose is to protect those vulnerable civilians. As long as this purpose, process, and means are achieved, whether the monster is dead or alive is actually not that important, is it?" Wayne expressed, picking up the wine glass and raising it to George.
"Of course, this is just a suggestion. No matter which one you choose, or which one you don't choose, it doesn't affect us becoming friends," he added after a few seconds of silence.
George looked at Wayne with a smile full of vicissitudes. As a witcher of the Griffin school who has been active in the northern countries for more than 100 years, he is actually not a rigid and stubborn person.
"Wayne, these two proposals are too preferential treatment for me. If the person who made these two proposals was not a witcher, but a businessman or nobleman, I would definitely think that they are all liars and even do it. It's good to be prepared to be reckless after the fact."
"To be honest, when I received this dragon hunting commission, I already had a premonition in my heart that this might be my last mission. But now, if I can get another witcher and a dragon to help me, I think maybe my career as a witcher can be continued" George pondered.
Everyone understands the principle that cooperation brings benefits to both, and confrontation brings harm to both. If it is not a matter of principle, no one will refuse a win-win situation.
With that said George took the initiative to toast Wayne a glass of wine and said sincerely, "Thank you, Wayne, I choose the second proposal. Now, you are my employer."
Now that an agreement has been reached, the conversation between the two has become much more casual. Wayne directly invited George to stay in his guest room and let him taste his superb cooking skills.
When the two enjoyed dinner together, they also began to chat about the assignment of this task.
"My dragon friend will probably have to wait for a week before arriving here," Wayne remarked, picking up a piece of crispy and tender fried chicken and stuffing it into his mouth before continuing with a smile, "Tomorrow, you will first buy some materials for making alchemy bombs or potions in the city and replenish the supplies for battle."
"Of course, you can also use our wolf school's bombs and potions. In my warehouse, there are a lot of them," he added.
George smiled when he heard this and asked curiously, "Are you talking about the warehouse on the first floor? To be honest, I was really taken aback when I saw the things in that warehouse just now. There are so many bombs, and so many potions, why are you preparing so many?
Wayne shrugged, unable to reveal the true reason, so he just said vaguely, "These things are not prepared for this battle. After this entrustment is over, in the second half of the year, I have a large task, and I need my witcher friends to help me. At that time, if you have time, please come and help me, George."
George didn't refuse immediately, but he didn't agree immediately either. He said vaguely, "Of course, there is no problem, but I have to see what the entrustment is first."
Wayne understood George's concerns, knowing that he was worried about the commission involving political factors. He didn't expose it but laughed and explained, "You will definitely have time, George. My commission is to clean up a growing evil god's lair. There are many monsters in it. I can't clean up so many by myself, so I want to find some friends to help."
"Evil God?" George frowned upon hearing this. Even in his more than 100 years of life as a witcher, he has never encountered a mission related to evil gods.
"If they are evil gods, they must be cleaned up as soon as possible. These guys are weird and evil. If they are left alone, they may cause a large-scale disaster at some point," Wayne affirmed, nodding. However, he didn't dwell on the topic and continued, "After all your equipment and supplies are ready, George, you can go first and go to Velen to gather information about our actions. My dragon friend and I will join you in a few days. I remember that there seems to be a place near Velen called Crow's Nest, right? Let's meet outside the gate of Crow's Nest."
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