Chapter 389: Who Are You?
"That was a truly epic battle, my champion."
On the Isle of the Black Swan, at the pool where the Mermen once worshipped the Elder God, the Lady of the Lake sat on a large stone in a maidenly pose. After quietly listening to Lynn recount the battle, she offered a captivating smile.
"I can already sense that the Elder God Dagon's projection has completely vanished from this world. The remaining evil is insignificant; its total dissipation is only a matter of time."
"This is all thanks to you, my champion."
Lynn replied courteously, "My Lady, it is my honor to serve you. Furthermore, I believe it is everyone's duty to eradicate evil from the world."
The smile on the Lady of the Lake's face deepened.
"The sword Aerondight is now officially yours. May it aid you in all your endeavors."
"Additionally, I shall bestow upon you another gift."
As the Lady of the Lake finished speaking, a beam of golden light descended from the heavens and bathed the witcher. Lynn felt neither blinded nor hot in the light; instead, he was overcome with a warm, comforting sensation.
The gift the Lady of the Lake spoke of was obviously not as simple as a tanning session.
When he opened his status panel, lines of text appeared:
New Title: Divine ChampionActive Effect: Renders an area with a diameter of one thousand meters a magic-free zone for thirty minutes. Usable once per day.
Passive Effect: Immune to all mental attacks that do not exceed the power of the Lady of the Lake's divinity. All attempts at soul corruption, whispers, or pollution directed at the blessed individual are ineffective.
Lynn was ecstatic. This title wasn't just for show; it held immense practical value.
The title's active effect transformed him into a sorcerer killer. Most sorcerers in this world, with the exception of a few, like Vilgefortz or Mousesack, were not adept at close combat. Being cornered and unable to use magic was essentially a death sentence.
In The Witcher 3, so many sorceresses hid in Novigrad, only to be rescued by Geralt... This was because Novigrad had been infiltrated by Radovid, the Eternal Fire was used as a tool by the mad king, and witch hunters carrying dimeritiu had made Chaos energy unstable. While sorceresses of Triss's caliber could manage, ordinary mages struggled to cast spells at all, leaving them dependent on rescue.
As for the passive effect, while it seemed less useful on a mortal battlefield, it would prove invaluable if he ever faced a devil like Gaunter O'Dimm in the future.
A few days later, on a desolate patch of land in the province of Velen.
Suddenly, a portal shimmered into existence. A dozen or so figures stepped out. With the exception of Lynn and Triss, the remaining men and horses who passed through immediately started retching uncontrollably. Fortunately, the knights' helmets had visors that could be raised. If they had been wearing bucket or other enclosed helmets, they might have vomited directly inside. Even if cleaned, the helmets would forever carry an indescribable stench.
"This is why you can't transport armies en masse using portals," Triss explained to Lynn. "For one thing, portals can't stay open indefinitely. For another, it takes ordinary people quite a while to adapt to the transition."
After defeating the Dagon Shade and returning to meet Foltest, the King kept his promise. He had the royal decree granting the fief finalized that very day. He also dispatched a company of knights to escort Triss and Lynn to the province of Velen.
These knights served two purposes: they were Triss's sworn vassals, and they were a clear deterrent to prevent Baron Vissarad from having any unnecessary ideas.
After half a day, when the knights finally recovered, the group proceeded toward Crow's Perch.
Crow's Perch was the seat of Baron Vissarad. As the lord of Velen, Vissarad spent most of his time either there or in the provincial capital, Gors Velen. As for the other villages in the land—the farmers who lived in misery, constantly threatened by darkness and evil—Vissarad cared nothing for their fate, leaving them to fend for themselves.
Although Temeria was a feudal kingdom based on land division, Foltest's power was slightly greater than that of a French sovereign. As long as a noble didn't go too far, the King generally wouldn't interfere on their lands.
However, if a noble allowed their territory to descend into chaos, even encouraging the growth and spread of dark creatures, that was another matter entirely. Feudalism did not grant permission to create a nuclear wasteland on one's own land without consequence.
Of course, nobles were still a privileged class and received relatively greater consideration. While Foltest intended to strip Baron Vissarad of the Velen province and grant it to Triss, he wasn't reducing the Vissarad family to commoners. Instead, he had allocated a separate plot of land outside Vizima and granted it to Vissarad as a hereditary fief.
Naturally, the area of this new fief could not compare to the entirety of Velen. It was merely large enough for Vissarad and his family to continue living comfortably without laboring, but any notion of class advancement was permanently off the table.
Crow's Perch castle was unlike others. The entire fortress was built on an inland island, and apart from a certain hidden passage unknown to outsiders, the only connection to the mainland was a rickety bridge.
A makeshift checkpoint was set up outside the bridge. Two crossbowmen stood behind the barricade, listlessly passing the time.
Suddenly, a fully armed column came into view. The guards initially thought their eyes were playing tricks on them and quickly rubbed them. Confirming they weren't hallucinating, one guard frantically raised his crossbow.
"Halt! State your names! Or I will fire!"
The column stopped before the checkpoint. Only then did the guards notice that the group was led by a sorceress and a young man with two swords on his back. Behind them were knights clad entirely in heavy armor, their warhorses also wearing barding.
The guard's hand, gripping the crossbow, began to tremble. It was obvious that a force like this could never be mistaken for mere bandits or robbers.
"Put down your crossbow, you fool! Do you know who stands before you? She is Lady Triss Merigold, newly appointed ruler of Velen by His Majesty Foltest!"
The two guards lowered their crossbows, but when they heard the knight's words, they exchanged looks of profound confusion.
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