Chapter 420: The Irresistible Force of Full Pay
Six months later.
In a remote field within the Hengfors Duchy, Lynn stood before a small lake.
He took several bottles of superior Tawny Owl potion and drank them down. Once the potion's effects took hold, he clapped his hands together with a snap, and power began to gather between his palms. As more and more magical energy accumulated, scorching flames erupted from his hands.
In the next moment, Lynn thrust his palms forward. A terrifying fire, like an opening red lotus, burst forth with astonishing heat, sweeping out from his hands into a massive sea of flame that engulfed the small lake before him.
Hiss, hiss, hiss!
The lake water began to churn violently, vaporizing and emitting huge plumes of white steam that spread through the air. Time passed, but the flames Lynn released did not diminish in the slightest. Under the continuous scorching, the water in the lake evaporated at a visible rate, revealing the stones at the bottom.
Finally, all the lake water was gone, leaving behind only a large pit scorched black by the intense heat.
Lynn looked at the scene with satisfaction. Though his face was covered in sweat, his heart was filled with joy and excitement.
This was the fruit of his months of study at Aretuza Academy. His previous hypothesis was correct: after systematically studying the magical theories related to the various Signs, he received a prompt that allowed him to unlock the limits of the Signs and advance their level further. He naturally upgraded the Signs without hesitation, raising their level from Master to Grandmaster.
The power and range of a Grandmaster Sign were drastically higher than those of a Master Sign, just as the difference between Master and Proficient, or Proficient and Acquired. An Acquired Sign was, at best, a small spark, struggling even to light kindling. A Proficient Sign could produce a decent flame, but its power was insufficient. The power of a Master Sign was considerable, but few witchers achieved Master level in both swordsmanship and Signs.
And the Grandmaster Sign—a realm no witcher had ever stepped into—possessed terrifying power and range. Even without Lynn's other specialization bonuses, a Grandmaster Igni Sign could melt weapons and armor. The range of the Quen Sign could reach hundreds of meters and was capable of withstanding a coordinated charge from a unit of heavy cavalry.
Even more terrifying, the potency of Grandmaster Signs increased exponentially, while the consumption of magical energy actually decreased. For example, the Igni Sign he had just unleashed to dry up the small lake only consumed about a third of his magical energy. Even after drinking several bottles of superior Tawny Owl, this efficiency was remarkably significant.
More importantly, the charging time for such a wide-area "spell" was less than half that required for a sorcerer's orthodox magic. He could release it in about half the time.
He also discovered that after his Signs reached the Grandmaster level, all their effects were no longer susceptible to the dampening effects of dimeritium or his own "God-Chosen Champion" anti-magic title. This meant that if he activated his title's effect, the enemy couldn't use magic, but he could cast his Signs as freely as he wished. And dimeritium would be useless against him.
Lastly, he had done one seemingly minor thing. He raised a force of twenty thousand troops across the entire Hengfors Duchy. These twenty thousand were, of course, not standing troops but militia. However, unlike other countries where conscripted peasants were hastily trained—or not trained at all—before being sent to battle, Lynn's militia were required to gather and train for one full day every week. By the standards of this era, this level of training could already be considered on par with a regular army.
Another six months passed.
One day, the nobles of Ispaden suddenly found a rumor circulating in their territories that the checkpoint at the Kestral Pass had fallen.
Initially, the nobles dismissed it as mere gossip. They issued orders prohibiting the spread of such rumors. But instead of dying down, the rumor spread like wildfire.
Sensing grave danger, the nobles finally dispatched spies to the Kestral Pass. Before long, the reconnaissance spies returned, bringing with them shocking news: the Kestral Pass had indeed fallen, and the banner of Duke Augustus's black and gold double-headed eagle was flying over the ramparts.
Completely unprepared for the loss of the Kestral Pass, the nobles quickly scrambled to assemble an army and marched grandly toward the pass.
When they arrived outside the Kestral Pass, they sent a team of scouts toward the ramparts. An arrow with a letter tied to it was shot down from the pass and stuck in the ground. The scouts were startled and quickly retreated, taking the arrow and the attached letter back to the nobles.
The letter's content was:
If they were willing to surrender, they should come to the pass with only a few attendants. In doing so, they could still retain their titles and half of their territories. If they refused, the battle would take place the following day, and strength would decide the outcome.
"Keep half the territory? They clearly offered all of it before."
Over the past two years, the Ispaden nobles had all taken turns garrisoning the Kestral Pass, and they had all received the surrender-cajoling letters left by Letho during his infiltration. But at that time, the conditions offered by Kovir were a guarantee of their titles and the entirety of their land. Now, they were only offered half of their territory. Half was instantly confiscated.
Nevertheless, even with such harsh conditions, a portion of the nobles began to waver. After all, the strength of the Kovir army was somewhat beyond their expectation. They had previously left five nobles and five thousand soldiers at the Kestral Pass to guard against a Kovir attack. Logically, a pass defended by five thousand soldiers, even facing a siege by tens of thousands, should not have been taken without even being able to send out a call for help. Yet, the Kovir army had achieved this.
Didn't this prove that the Kovir force that attacked this time was extraordinary? Wouldn't resisting them be like throwing an egg against a rock?
They had no way of knowing that the five nobles previously stationed at the pass were precisely the ones who had secretly pledged loyalty to Lynn. That was why Lynn was able to gather his army and take the Kestral Pass without firing a single shot. Those five nobles and their private armies were now also inside the pass, though they were not flying their own banners.
Although a minority of the nobles believed they should accept the terms Lynn offered, the remaining nobles felt they should fight the Kovir army to the death. The reason was simple: they believed that even if the Kovir army had taken the pass, they must have suffered heavy casualties and could not have much military strength left. They still had a chance to win.
Since the nobles advocating for surrender were a minority, the final decision was to fight the following day.
Time quickly arrived at the next day. The two armies formed their battle lines on a plain far from the pass.
Upon seeing that the opposing Kovir force consisted of a mere five hundred cavalry, the noble coalition's confidence surged. Even though their side had only managed to muster ten thousand men due to the haste of their assembly, this number was far too great compared to five hundred cavalry. Each of them could drown the enemy with a mouthful of spit. How could they possibly lose?
Even the nobles who had advocated for surrender the night before no longer mentioned it.
Just as the nobles were about to give the order to attack, they saw the enemy drop their banners, turn their horses around, and bolt. The nobles were first surprised, then ecstatic.
"Quick, chase them! Don't let the enemy escape!"
The soldiers also became excited. They knew that pursuing a fleeing enemy was the least risky endeavor. Thus, the Ispaden noble coalition charged forward, completely disregarding their formation. Everyone rushed forward eagerly, afraid of falling behind.
This was especially true for the conscripted peasants. In this era, commoners were obligated to provide military service to the nobles, who only had to provide food but wouldn't pay any wages. Therefore, the common people's enthusiasm for war was naturally not very high. This was why conscripted peasants would easily collapse when the battle turned against them. But in a favorable situation, especially a pursuit, the conscripted peasants' morale would soar because whatever they managed to loot would be theirs.
However, no one noticed that a small group of nobles, who had also supported a decisive battle the night before, seemed to have arranged beforehand to restrain their subordinates and prevent them from breaking formation. They deliberately lagged behind, remaining at the very rear of the advancing army.
The Kovir army ran very fast. They wore only light leather armor. To run more easily, they first tossed their banners, then their lances and sabers. The noble coalition following behind scrambled to seize the abandoned goods, and some soldiers even began fighting amongst themselves over the spoils.
The chaos spread throughout the entire army, forcing the nobles to execute several soldiers before the riot was finally quelled. By then, the Kovir army had already fled into the distance.
"Send the cavalry to intercept them." The nobles decided to let their cavalry detach from the infantry and pursue the enemy alone. The Free Duchy of Ispaden also had cavalry, but the cost of maintaining them was prohibitive. Thus, even the entire noble coalition only managed to gather a few hundred cavalry. Furthermore, the noble coalition's cavalry was poorly equipped. They lacked lances designed for cavalry and used infantry pikes instead, and their armor coverage was low. However, since this was a pursuit, they assumed there would be no major problems.
Thus, the noble coalition's cavalry broke away from the main army and chased after the enemy. Noticing the enemy cavalry pursuing them, the Kovir forces also sped up their flight. Soon, they disappeared from view, along with the noble coalition's cavalry.
The nobles roared at the infantry to quicken their pace, and the soldiers ran grimly onward. After running for some time, a forest came into view.
"A forest?"
"Where is the Kovir army? Where are our cavalry?"
"Judging by the scattered hoof prints on the ground, they must have chased them into the forest."
"Then let's follow them without delay."
"No, wait. Something is wrong."
Silence. It was too silent. Moreover, the area looked too much like a place for an ambush.
Just then, screams suddenly rang out. The nobles were shocked. Then, they witnessed a scene they couldn't believe.
A portion of their own troops, who had deliberately lagged behind the main force, had, without warning, launched an attack on them.
"You bastards! Are you mad? You're attacking friendly forces!"
However, the only reply was a shower of arrows.
At the same time, the Kovir army charged out of the forest. And it was not five hundred, but twenty thousand. While only three thousand of these twenty thousand soldiers were standing troops, with the rest being militia who trained once a week, even the militia were far superior to the noble coalition's conscripted peasants in terms of training and fighting spirit.
Because Lynn's militia were paid a full wage.
The Kovir army, pouring out like a tide, slammed hard into the disordered and bewildered front lines of the noble coalition. The coalition, which hadn't even had time to organize a formation, was immediately shattered. The conscripted peasants, who were only there to pad the numbers, instantly threw down their weapons and fled at the sight of the rout. As soon as one ran, a second and third followed…
The army was routed.
After this battle, most of the Ispaden nobles and their private armies were annihilated. Only those nobles who had already secretly defected to Lynn remained.
Thus, the Free Duchy of Ispaden, which had been a headache for successive Kings of Kovir, fell completely into Lynn's hands. And this was not a mere superficial allegiance, but a physical control over the majority of the land.
After the Free Duchy of Ispaden truly became Lynn's property, the non-humans secretly transferred from the Kingdom of Kaedwen by the Kovir merchant caravans no longer needed to be sent to Novigrad. The Free Duchy of Ispaden was vast and sparsely populated, with plenty of land to settle these non-humans.
Time passed quickly.
Several years went by, and it was now 1263. This was the year the First Northern War erupted in the original story.
At the training grounds of the ancient sea fortress, Kaer Morhen, a group of young apprentices was hard at work, enduring grueling training.
"Lord Lynn is here," someone shouted.
The apprentices stopped their movements and looked with adoration at the black-haired young man passing by outside the training ground. The black-haired young man waved in acknowledgment to them.
If not for this man, they, who had become orphans for various reasons, would have died long ago. This man had saved them and granted them a brand-new life where hard work and effort were rewarded. Their predecessors who became witchers were not only granted powerful abilities but also a status equivalent to that of a Knight.
In this feudal and backward era, how difficult was it for a commoner to achieve class mobility? It was difficult enough for a native peasant to even settle in a city, let alone become a Knight. Why were the bards' poems about commoners rising to Knighthood so popular? Precisely because such instances were so rare in reality.
But now, this man had generously given them that opportunity.
Because the improved Trial of the Grasses was not one hundred percent successful, Lynn had previously given every apprentice two opportunities to choose. When these children began their physical training to become a witcher, most were under ten years old. By the time they were officially ready for the improved Trial of the Grasses, they would be around fourteen or fifteen, and their mindsets and reasoning abilities would be different from before.
If they regretted their decision, Lynn permitted them to change their minds. Even if they did not become witchers, the training they received at Kaer Morhen was enough to make them an elite.
After all, anyone might betray you, but your efforts will not.