The skies were grey the next afternoon. A nket of fog that came from Pontar draped the baron''snd, filling the air with humidity and the stench of fish and riverweeds.
Thedies of the troupe were escorted by a soldier, and they were led away from the castle. Their hair was wet, apparently because they bathed earlier. Their rancid smell was gone, and their cuffs had been taken off. Their greasy, squalid clothes were changed out for clean ones, and they looked different.
"You''re lucky Sir Aryan woke up in time, bitches. Count yourselves fortunate the baron decided to let you go." Dn was pushing thedies, cursing, "Now take your stuff and make yourself scarce. Leave the fief in three days. You can go wherever you want, but nevere back, or the next time youe will be yourst."
"Pee yew. You''re less civilized than my cat." The young witcher came out of the tower behind them, eyes shing with anger, and he cracked his knuckles. "Nowy your disgusting hand off thedies. They''re no longer prisoners you can torture. Touch them again and the next time will be yourst."
Dn looked livid and irked, as if he just heard the most offensive thing in the continent. He bared his teeth, but then he remembered that horrifying encounterst time, and he swallowed his words in horror.
The Zerrikaniandy suddenly stuck her tongue out and drew a finger across her throat.
***
"So, how does freedom feel,dies?" Roy saw Dn off, smiling happily, and he went to thedies'' side.
"I knew you wouldn''t leave us for dead, Roy." Kanti wrapped her arm around Roy''s shoulder and leaned closer to him. "You caught the culprit and cleared our names, didn''t you? Thedy gave us a lot of coins as rpense.”
Roy nodded. <em>The culprit is just some bullshit I came up with. There''s no way the baron would believe anything I say about Gaunter. Who''d believe something that powerful exists? Thedies probably wouldn''t either.</em>
"Where''s Ferroz anyway?" Roy looked around, but only thedies were here. Ferroz the Joker was nowhere to be seen.
"Ferroz is…" Kanti suddenly hung her head low, her smile wiped away.
Sadness welled in Eveline''s eyes, but she said nothing.
It was then Roy noticed the three hemp sacks behind thedies. He sniffed the air. One of them smelled like burned flesh, the other smelled like flowers, and thest one smelled like a slightly rotten corpse. "Is he…"
"Yes, his corpse is in there." Kanti sighed. "Right after the servants told us the culprit was caught, he killed himself."
"You sure it''s a suicide and not a murder?" Roy looked at the sack darkly.
Eveline shook her head. She said, "He lost his will to live, but he wasn''t gonna die until his name was cleared. Now that the truth is out, he went ahead to see Collins."
Roy was shocked. <em>I racked my brains and challenged the Master of Mirrors to save you guys, and one of you killed himself? </em>"So Amos and Collins are in here too, aren''t they?"
Collins was one of the troupe members, but the baron had executed him by fire. Roy saw his charred body on the za before. <em>And Amos was buried in the garden because of that bitch and her affair partner.</em>
"Yeah. We want to take the bodies and bury them together once we leave the city. It''s thest thing we can do for our friends."
The air was glum for a moment. Roy stared at the hemp sacks, and he could see the shape of the distorted corpses within. He pitied Ferroz, though he was angry too. <em>He watched his lover die, and he didn''t even think about getting revenge on the guy who ordered the execution? He''d rather kill himself than avenge his lover. What a coward. </em>But then Roy shook his head.
<em>I have no right tough at him. He''s just a performer. He has no power to strike back against someone like the baron. There''s barely anyone who would rise up against the nobility who treats them as less than humans. They''re just one among the countless. Those who tried to rise up were forced to hide in the mountains and make a living as bandits.</em>
***
"Here." Eveline led the way. Roy was holding one sack. He and Kanti were following her. "This isn''t the way to the inn. Where are we?" Roy asked curiously.
Eveline pushed a lock of hair behind her ear. She answered without looking back, "Roy, Ferroz might have died, but we won''t forget what you did for us. I''ll repay this debt in the future."
"You''re my friend, and I''m saying it again, but you don''t need to repay me. And why the future anyway?"
Roy was about to say something again, but then Kanti huddled closer and held his arm. "Eveline''s right. The people of the dragon never forget their debts. You saved me from that treacherous dungeon, and thus I owe you my life. I''m more than willing to fight for you, Roy. Of course, I can also do all sorts of things. You''ll be happy with it." She suddenly licked her lips.
Kanti spread her arms and spun around, showing off her tanned, beautiful body. She had an aquiline nose, deep-set eyes, full lips, and her cheeks were tattooed. This woman was feral and exotic. "You''re not as muscr as the dragon''s people, but you''re handsome," she said seriously.
Eveline exined, "Roy, Kanties from a ce east of the Blue Mountain. Her people are excellent warriors who have mastered the art of battle. They''re loyal and dependable. Every Zerrikanian is a brilliant mercenary. All the merchants and officials dream of hiring a Zerrikanian bodyguard.”
"And?"
"Slow down. Most importantly, Zerrikanians are simple people. You saved her life, so she''s willing to be your mercenary free of charge. She''s doing this to repay her debt to you."
"You missed one thing, Eveline. I''m also brilliant in everything else. Not just fighting." She puffed her chest confidently, trying to sell herself.
"Are you sure she''s a bodyguard and not some sort of concubine?" <em>They sure are open, </em>Roy thought. He averted Kanti''s passionate gaze He was reminded of Borch Three Jackdaws. That man, or to be more precise, that shapeshifted golden dragon was Geralt''s acquaintance. He had a pair of Zerrikanian sisters following him around.
The sisters were not just capable fighters. They were capable in bed as well. There was this one time where they had a foursome with their master and Geralt.
"Sorry, Kanti, but witchers don''t need bodyguards orckeys." Roy took a deep breath. He couldn''t imagine himself hiding behind a woman in a battle with monsters. <em>That''s not what a man should do. </em>He shook his head.
"Do you think I''m weak, witcher? Do you think I''d drag you down?" Kanti unbuttoned herself, revealing her skin. Roy noticed an ugly scar under her corbone, and a green scorpion was tattooed at the edge of her breast. It was lifelike enough to inspire fear.
"I got this scar from killing a scorpion in Zerrikania. It was bigger than a buffalo and stronger than a regr man, but I killed it alone. This tattoo marks my victory. And I''ve killed many thugs and beasts over the years of travel with the troupe. All I need for battle is a sword and a crossbow and bolts."
"Kanti, I don''t doubt your skills. You''re an indubitably great warrior, and… Oh, please button your shirt." Roy looked away and said seriously, "Youdies make great friends, but once you be my mercenary, there''s going to be a gap between us. It''s not something I want—"
"I don''t mind." Kanti suddenly held Roy''s arms. "Witchers fight dangerous monsters all the time, don''t they? That''s what I want. I want to kill more monsters, get more victories, and gain more tattoos. There''s no greater purpose for me." Thedy''s eyes were starting to shine.
"But you have a better way out here. Listen to me." Roy pulled his arm away. <em>Oh no. I''m not letting you take my EXP away from me. </em>"Lady Louisa reimbursed you, didn''t she? You can build the troupe again with that money."
"It''s toote." Eveline pursed her lips. She had a sad look in her eyes. "Our members are dead, and the others have left us. We''re the only ones left. We can''t evene up with aplete show. Kanti and I talked about it. Once we bury our dead members, we''re going our separate ways. She has nobody else she can rely on in the northern kingdom. It''d be best if you can take her in."
"I''ll have to talk to mypanions about this," Roy said. "But why are you going your separate ways? I thought you were friends. Mypanions won''t mind taking two more people to Novigrad. The free city''s trade is marvelous. You''ll find work easily there, and it should be safe for a few years. Life is a lot better there too. At leastpared to the baron''snd.”
"Sorry, Roy, but I have other ns." Eveline looked up into the sky and sighed. She finally resolved herself. "I''m going home."
"Home?"
"Evelinees from Dol thanna. It''s somewhere in the Blue Mountains… In a ce the northerners call the world''s edge," Kanti exined. "She should have brought it up before."
<em>That''s one familiar name. Never been there before. </em>Roy massaged his temples, and he rummaged through his memories.
Dol thanna sat under the Blue Mountains. It was due east of Lower Posada, Roy''s hometown. Elven folk used to own the ce a few centuries ago, but ever since humans invaded it, Dol thanna became Aedirn''s eastern border. The local Ain Seidhes were forced into the Blue Mountains.
Even until today, the elves would destroy the fields and learn about agriculture from the humans. All while they were plotting how to take back Dol thanna.
Humans and elves had been fighting in Dol thanna for a long time, and the battle was getting more intense as the Northern War was getting closer. There was one important figure in Dol thanna, and her name was Francesca Findabair. She was the future queen of the elves as well as one of the leaders of Dol thanna elves.
***
"Why are you going back all of a sudden?" Roy asked. "Because of what happened to Ferroz and Collins?"
Eveline stayed silent, but then she stopped in her tracks and looked ahead. Roy realized that they were in a narrow alley. He looked in the direction Eveline was staring, but when he scanned the innermost wall of the alley, his pupils contracted.
There were four silhouettes standing on the wall, as if they came out of nowhere. They were crouching on the looming wall, and the leader was… an elf. There were blue highlights in his ck hair, and his features were chiseled. His eyes were big, and they shone. His ears were pointy, and he was in tight green brigandine. A slender sword hung around his waist.
Roy held his vibrating pendant and tensed up. He had cast Observe on the group of people. They were all elves from the mountains, and all of them looked like the typical ancient Ain Seidhe. <em>Purebloods.</em>
<strong>***</strong>
<strong>***</strong>