Mary brushed her long golden hair and continued: "Kaer Morhen is far in the Blue Mountains, a place rarely visited by humans."
"No matter how fiercely Kaedwen and Aedirn battle, what does it have to do with us?"
"Could the armies of both nations actually fight all the way up to the Blue Mountains?"
Vesemir glanced at Allen upon hearing her words and asked: "Allen, do you think it's related?"
Allen let out a deep sigh and lowered his head, pondering.
Although he didn't know much about the internal situation of Kaedwen's court, it was clear from Dyson—who seemed to have been caught in a mage's conspiracy and assassinated—that the prince, who had lost his father, probably didn't trust the nobles within his country who might have ties to the male mages. He was more inclined to trust a lowly tutor from Toussaint, who had no power or influence.
As such, the new king and the faction of Ban Ard mages and nobles were at least estranged, if not outright hostile. And this was something Allen had personally caused.
He was quite pleased with the political turmoil he had triggered, wherein Kaedwen's two major enemies of the School of the Wolf—mages and royalty—had turned against each other.
The longer this standoff continued, the more advantageous it would be for the School of the Wolf.
However...
Once a powerful external enemy emerged, everything would change.
Whether it was due to an old blood feud or Aedirn's ambitions for expansion, as soon as Aedirn made a move, Kaedwen would almost certainly pause its internal strife. The new king, already unstable due to his father's death, would be even more reliant on the support of powerful domestic forces, especially those with the strong magical might of Ban Ard and their vast noble influence.
Thus...
Vesemir's so-called merciful Lado would face a dilemma.
In the face of a potential fall of his kingdom, would he choose compromise or revenge?
If he compromised...
Allen thought of Tomas Moreau's face, twisted by hatred, and sighed again.
So how could it not be related to the School of the Wolf?
While a fierce battlefield might not directly affect the ancient stronghold of Kaer Morhen, the key question was whether this war would actually happen. It mattered greatly to the School of the Wolf.
Or more precisely...
Would the war's intensity be enough to divert their enemies' attention, so much so that they would ignore the Witchers in the distant Blue Mountains?
"Snap~"
The sound of a finger snap interrupted his thoughts.
A faint red barrier shattered and then rose again.
Mary, after all, was not yet fully skilled; her proficiency with the soundproofing barrier wasn't quite enough.
"Allen, what do you think?" Vesemir encouraged when he saw the young Witcher raise his head.
So...
Allen voiced his analysis.
The more he spoke, the more Vesemir's expression turned to one of amazement, and Mary's face grew increasingly serious. When Allen finished laying out his thoughts, Vesemir took a deep breath and thought: "Is political insight something you're born with?"
Now he was even more convinced that Lady Vera had definitely given Allen extra lessons.
However...
He glanced at the confused-looking Mary.
Why would Lady Vera only teach Allen?
After a few moments of reflection, Vesemir asked: "So, do you think Laodo... the new king, will compromise?"
"I don't know," Allen shook his head. "I'm not sure how much he cares about his father's death."
"Is he impulsive and reckless, or hesitant and indecisive?"
"I also don't know how much power he can mobilize, or how many military nobles are willing to follow his orders."
"There are too many unknowns..."
"Do you think we can do anything about it?" Vesemir pressed on.
Allen was silent for a moment, then shook his head again.
The School of the Wolf had no Witchers in the courts of Kaedwen or Aedirn. While Vesemir and the other master Witchers knew some nobles, these were mostly simple transaction-based relationships.
You pay, I risk my life.
Simple and direct.
There might be cases of life-saving debts, but Witchers, being what they are, often collected their rewards on the spot.
Some even took the debtor's children as payment due to the Law of Surprise...
Given the usual mortality rate of Witchers, a life-saving favor could easily turn into a blood feud of child-killing revenge.
So what could the three of them do in the face of larger forces?
Should they open a Conjunction of the Spheres in Vengerberg?
Allen quickly dismissed the idea in his mind.
"Let's just send word back to Kaer Morhen," Allen finally said. "Maybe the Headmaster and Lady Vera can use this information for something..."
"And then..."
Allen paused before continuing, "When we meet the king of Aedirn, we'll adapt to the situation..."
"But I doubt there's much hope; we might even attract trouble."
"Master Vesemir, what do you think?"
After a few seconds of thought, Vesemir sighed deeply: "Let's proceed as you said, and adapt as needed..."
Allen nodded and looked at Mary, "Do you have a way to contact Lady Vera, like a messenger bird?"
Mary shook her head with some difficulty: "Mental projection spells are very complex; I can't do that yet."
"Then we'll have to return as quickly as possible," Allen mused, stroking his chin.
Kaer Morhen was at a high altitude, out of reach for regular carrier pigeons.
There was a pigeon station in the village at the foot of the mountain, but relations between Aedirn and the Witchers weren't great, and there was no dedicated pigeon route between Vengerberg and Kaer Morhen.
"War takes time," Vesemir comforted. "Even if the Kaer Morhen is in trouble, it won't happen in a day or two. We'll head to Ellander after we claim the reward."
"The lord there is friendly with us, and we can use his pigeons."
"That's the best we can do," Allen nodded.
Then, after chatting for a bit, Vesemir went into the room to check on the little monster and her brother. Mary explored and, after discovering a dedicated bath, happily closed the door for a soak.
As for Allen...
He stood by the windowsill, frowning as he looked outside. He had just dealt with Henselt, stoking enmity and hatred between enemies. But now Aedirn appeared, threatening to undo all his previous efforts. The time he had gained from the king's death now seemed uncertain again.
Allen suddenly felt like the world was a Möbius strip. No matter how hard he tried, no matter how far he went, he always seemed to return to the same place. As if fate had already arranged everything, and all of mankind's efforts were futile.
Outside, the spring sun was shining brightly, fresh buds sprouting on trees, glistening with rain. It was a scene full of life. Yet the clouds of war loomed on the horizon, and danger lurked quietly.
No!
The world has already changed because of me.
If it weren't for me, the Headmaster would've died in Ban Ard, as would have Hughes, Bont, and Fred.
And Francesca...
She found her mother because of me. Sadia escaped the male mages and Henselt, sending her child to Kaer Morhen. The Aen Elle may become the School of the Wolf's most loyal allies.
And Henselt...
He's dead. Will a divided Kaedwen really be stronger than when I first arrived?
And I...
Attributes, skills, potions, spells, rituals...
I'm more than ten times stronger than I was a few months ago. The Trial of the Grasses' mortality rate is practically zero now, and with the Monster Hunters...
The School of the Wolf will only grow stronger!
Even Aedirn's invasion is entirely because of me...
The more Allen thought, the brighter his gaze became as he looked out the window.
I can win.
I will definitely win!
------------------
"Knock, knock~"
There was a gentle knock on the door of the room. Allen, who was sitting on the sofa, got up and opened the door. Standing at the door was Jacob.
"Master Allen, these are the materials you requested." He handed Allen a bulging paper package.
Allen opened it and looked inside.
Dog fat, white crape myrtle petals, and Berbercane fruits...
"Thank you, the quality of the materials is excellent," Allen nodded in satisfaction. He accepted the package with one hand and was about to take out his money pouch with the other.
"No need, Master Allen." Jacob smiled and waved it off. "Consider it a small goodwill gesture from my shop."
Allen paused for a moment, but didn't refuse.
"Thank you, then."
"As long as you're satisfied." Seeing that Allen accepted the materials, Jacob smiled even more brightly.
"I won't disturb your rest any further."
With a nod, Jacob left.
"Bang~"
Allen closed the door and immediately caught a whiff of a faint orange fragrance.
"Are the potion materials here?"
Mary, who had just finished her bath, walked out of the room, eagerly taking the package from Allen's hand. All along the way, her heart had been like a cat scratching, constantly curious about what formula Allen had come up with during the journey and what effect it would have.
"Dog fat, white crape myrtle petals, and Berbercane fruits..." Mary opened the package. "Are you planning to make blade oil?"
Having already mastered several of the formulas Allen had created, Mary could roughly guess his potion-making system.
The base for potions was dwarven spirit.
The base for blade oil was dog fat.
The essence for heart extracts only required a monster's heart.
Of course.
It would be especially difficult.
Remembering the days of endless work amidst the burnt, stinking mess of trying to make the drowner heart essence, Mary shuddered.
Thinking back now.
Ever since Allen appeared in her and Vera's world, she had inexplicably become much busier, even though her mentor had previously left her to her own devices.
Vera's love had also been divided.
Although...
There hadn't been much to begin with...
"What's wrong, did you catch a cold after your bath?" Allen asked with concern, only to be glared at fiercely by Mary.
It's all because of this witcher!
Mary ground her teeth in her heart.
What's with the sudden attitude... Allen scratched his head in confusion, then answered Mary's question: "A type of blade oil, and a potion..."
"What?" Mary froze for a moment, then turned to look at Allen. "You came up with two formulas during the journey?"
"The blade oil was thought of on the road."
"The potion formula came to me back at Kaer Morhen, but I was missing one key ingredient..."
Allen explained truthfully.
"Oh, I see..."
Mary looked at Allen's nonchalant expression, as if creating formulas was as easy as eating or drinking, and suddenly felt a bit deflated. Her frustration rose inexplicably and then faded just as inexplicably.
"Hmph~"
With a light snort, Mary brought out a cauldron and other simple alchemy tools from the room.
"Creak~"
Vesemir, hearing the commotion outside, also came out, carrying the little monster wrapped in cloth, along with her brother.
The two little ones seemed to have accepted the fact that their father had sold them, or perhaps Yennefer really was good with children, as her brother was calm and well-behaved.
"Are we going to start making a new potion?"
Vesemir walked over with a look of anticipation. Like Mary, he was also very curious about the formula Allen had come up with during the journey. Would it be useful, and what kind of effects would it have?
With the three of them working together, they quickly set up the cauldron on the stone platform in the living room.
"First, we'll make the blade oil. Like the necrophage oil and specter oil, this is a blend specifically designed to counter hybrid monsters like griffins..."
Allen explained the method for making the hybrid beast oil while using magic to infuse the white crape myrtle petals.
The hybrid oil, which only required Alchemy Level 1, wasn't very difficult to make.
In fact, none of the blade oils were difficult to make; it was mostly just soaking, boiling, and simmering.
The most technical part of the process was at the very beginning, where magic was used to process the ingredients and activate the hidden magical nodes and circuits in the plants.
Even the materials used were cheap and easy to find plants. For instance, blowball for necrophage oil, arenaria for specter oil, and the white crape myrtle petals Allen was using now. They were all very easy to obtain, even if you had to buy them, and they were cheap. Any witcher could easily gather them.
The process was simple, the materials were easy to find, but the effects were especially prominent. It felt like the result of countless refinements, leaving only the simplest, most essential part. Every time Allen used it, he was curious about how such a seemingly simplistic formula had been created.
Before long.
A large pot of thick, amber-colored, bubbling oil was ready.
It was six portions of hybrid beast oil.
"You... finished it just like that?" Mary only came to her senses when she saw him bottling it and asked in surprise.
"Yes." Allen nodded.
After bottling the oil, he divided three vials and gave them to Vesemir, then handed one of his own vials to Mary.
Mary used the method unique to alchemists to sense it. The faint magical energy felt different from necrophage oil, but quite similar.
It was clearly a successful product.
Although they hadn't tested it yet, with the success of necrophage oil and specter oil as precedents, neither Vesemir nor Mary had any doubts about its effectiveness. Vesemir was happy, taking the hybrid oil with a big smile.
Mary, however, felt a sense of disorientation. She knew the process for making the oil was simple; she had made necrophage oil before. Her disorientation and shock stemmed from Allen's nonchalance...
Coming up with a formula that only required two ingredients while riding a horse, and knowing the result without even testing it...
It was as if the formula had already existed. But Mary was sure this was a completely new alchemy system.
"Is this what a true alchemy genius looks like?" Mary stared at the young witcher.
She felt that Allen's talent was even more profound and captivating than his sapphire-blue eyes.
After making a batch of hybrid oil, Allen noticed there were still plenty of materials left, so he guided Vesemir and Mary through making their own batches.
Aside from Mary nearly failing due to her distraction, which earned her a scolding from Allen, both batches were successful, and Mary and Vesemir learned the method after just one try.
The two little ones squatted quietly nearby, listening. It was hard to say whether they understood anything.
After finishing the hybrid oil, Allen was about to take out the Berbercane fruits and water hag mutagens.
Just then.
"Knock, knock, knock~"
There was a sudden knock at the door.
Vesemir glanced at the darkening sky outside and muttered in confusion as he went to open the door.
"Creak~"
Standing outside was Terek, the deputy commander of the Aedirn royal knights. He was there to inform them of the time to meet the king... Vesemir immediately understood.
After talking with Allen, he had been thinking of ways to persuade the king of Aedirn, so he was looking forward to this meeting.
But unexpectedly...
"Sorry, Master Vesemir."
Terek's face looked grim: "I'm afraid... you won't be able to meet the king!"
....…
📢20 advanced chapters on p@treaon📢
For advance chapters: p@treon.com/Uchiha_Itachi007 (replace @ with a)
235. Archgriffin, Give Me Some Points!
236. Set a Small Goal First!
237. The Iron Knight Flying in the Sky and the Ominous Skeleton Soldiers.
238. The Wild Hunt and the Ants.
239. Is There Really Nothing We Can Do?