"Wait..." Allen ran up to Big Stone in a few strides and placed the rotten meat back into its hands. "Gifts between friends cannot be refused."
Big Stone held the meat, looking somewhat at a loss. Near them, Broken Stone and Little Stone stood with their mouths agape, eyes fixed hungrily on the meat in Big Stone's hands, but neither dared to speak.
"...friend... gift... return gift... cannot accept..." Big Stone was indeed different from the others, especially noticeable when the other two rock trolls stood beside it. Unlike them, Big Stone didn't drool at the sight of food. Even after Allen refused the return gift and placed the meat in its hands, Big Stone still insisted on refusing.
If not for its troll-like appearance, Allen might have suspected Big Stone was a well-mannered noble wrapped in a troll's skin. However, to complete the "Summon I" mission, the meat had to be given away.
"If you can't give a return gift, you can help me instead. Consider the meat as payment."
Big Stone seemed to ponder this for a moment before replying, "...Witcher... need help..."
Allen nodded.
Big Stone glanced at the swamp hag's head on Allen's waist and continued, "...Big Stone... monsters... not kill..."
Allen smiled, "No need for killing. Just help me move some things later."
The swamp hag and a few ghoul corpses still lay in the snow. Allen had planned to get Hughes and the others to help move them tomorrow. Now, with three rock trolls, it would be much easier. And as long as he remained in Kaer Morhen, such tasks would surely arise frequently.
Big Stone, hearing this, finally accepted the rotten meat. It turned to look at Broken Stone and Little Stone, "...Broken Stone... Little Stone... Witcher friend... move things..."
"...roar... eat meat... move things... eat meat... eat meat..." Broken Stone, excited that Big Stone accepted the meat, tossed Little Stone into the air, who landed in the soft snow outside the camp. This scene angered Big Stone, who promptly delivered another punch to Broken Stone's head. In no time, two green stone balls rolled around on the ground.
Allen couldn't help but smile at the sight. "Big Stone, you all eat first. I'll go to the Circle of Elements and come back to find you later to move the stuff."
Big Stone turned and nodded, its fierce face looking especially honest, "...Witcher friend... rest assured... trolls... keep promises..."
Allen gave a warm nod and began heading up the mountain.
----------
The mountain path was treacherous. The higher Allen climbed, the thicker the snow and the colder the temperature. The withered trees on either side were bent under the weight of heavy snow.
"Phew..." White steam instantly turned to ice crystals upon exhalation. Despite the harsh environment, Allen's good mood remained unbroken.
With the sound of snow being pushed aside, he hummed a tune from his past life as he moved towards the Circle of Elements, using the Igni Sign to warm himself occasionally. Even in this extreme cold, he felt quite comfortable.
His good mood was largely thanks to the rock trolls. "I was too narrow-minded before, just thinking of gaining the trolls' favor to complete the task," Allen reflected. Since leaving the trolls' camp, he increasingly felt that asking them to help move the bodies was a brilliant move. Right now, his relationship with the trolls was still shallow, only able to ask them to move things. But if this give-and-take continued, might there come a day when he could ask them to help defend Kaer Morhen? And after completing the "Summon I" mission, unlocking the "Conjunction of the Spheres - Troll" might even allow Big Stone to train some rock troll guards.
"That would be much better than just giving gifts."
"If the enemies in the Kaer Morhen defense battle were to suddenly find a group of rock trolls guarding the fortress..."
"Wow, what a sight that would be!"
The more Allen thought about it, the more excited he became. His enthusiasm drove away the cold, and after another ten minutes of walking, he reached the Circle of Elements. Gazing at the snow-covered ruins, he opened his Witcher's journal.
After two days of contemplation, he had figured out how to hunt the Drowner King alone. Now, all he needed was for the "Conjunction of the Spheres" cooldown to end.
[Conjunction of the Spheres - Drowner, Cooldown Time: 12 days 1 hour 21 minutes]
"If only the Circle of Elements' energy could reduce this cooldown completely!" he sighed, lifting the swamp hag on his waist and continuing towards his target.
"Huh?" As he reached the ruins, Allen was stunned by what he saw and stopped in his tracks.
A huge pit appeared before him. Stepping closer, he noticed the pit not only lacked snow but even the rocky foundation was exposed, seemingly shaved off a layer.
"What... what happened here?" Allen stared at the scene in shock.
Walking through the snow into the pit, he noticed more details. Smooth cut snow surfaces, missing pieces of the ruins, bare trees without snow, irregularly distributed black silt like riverbed mud, and...
Three-toed footprints leading down another path.
The distinctive tracks immediately grabbed Allen's attention. He instinctively glanced at the swamp hag on his waist.
"Could it be?"
Squatting by the footprints, he grabbed some snow, closed his eyes, and activated the mutagenic glands in his nostrils. In the darkness, colors emerged in his mind's eye. Filtering out irrelevant scents, he twitched his nose.
The scent on the snow, though faint, was caught by his Witcher's keen senses. He focused on two identical, kelp-like dark green lines, one from the snow, one from his waist.
"It's the same swamp hag!"
Allen stood up abruptly.
Swamp hag, foglet arm bones, Kyov, the Circle of Elements...
So, this swamp hag came from another world? And the traces here are due to the Conjunction of the Spheres?
Allen looked again at the ground, which seemed to have a chunk gouged out of it.
"Yes, it must be."
This swamp hag might even come from the world of the "Ritual: Flesh Golem."
"No wonder that pyramid's style was so bizarre, different from the game. It wasn't a ritual from this world."
Allen nodded in understanding, then frowned as he looked around again.
"The traces here come from the Conjunction of the Spheres. That's easy to judge. But why did this 'natural' Conjunction of the Spheres happen within these two days, right after the high mountain trial? Is it because of the Witcher's journal?"
...….
📢20 advanced chapters on p@treaon📢
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105. The Charity Job.
106. What Are You Talking About?
107. Shattered Dream.
108. Grass! Grass!
109. The Beginning of the Witcher Corps.