The Witcher: The Alchemist Who Walked the Witcher’s Road

In the blink of an eye, time had flown by. It was another busy, lively morning. Beside Pier Seven at the harbor, Yoana had come to see Victor off, wearing a sky-blue skirt, a rose-pink blouse, and the latest fashionable ladies' hat.

The ship that would take the boy to Skellige was the Black Pearl, captained by Sukrus. The fare was waived entirely, his cabin had been upgraded, and meals were included.

Strange as it was, that was exactly how things had happened. When the Phantom Troupe went to the Golden Sturgeon to ask about ships bound for Skellige, Captain Sukrus had personally stepped forward and declared that carrying the Dragonborn Bard would be an honor. He was willing to waive the fare completely.

Normally, free things came wrapped in poison, and there was no such thing as a free lunch, but Angoulême's danger sense had not gone off even once from beginning to end, which meant the captain truly had no intention of harming them.

So Victor had accepted Sukrus' goodwill.

As for why Angoulême had not come to see him off today, it was because she was sulking. In the end, Victor had still decided not to take her along, leaving the girl in Novigrad to protect Fergus' smithy.

With the sea breeze stirring her golden braid, Yoana took hold of Victor's hand. "Honestly, you should have taken Angoulême with you. Fergus and I will be fine. With the reputation you've built up, nothing's going to happen to a proper, tax-paying smithy like ours. There's no need for her to stay behind."

Victor placed his other hand over the blacksmith woman's and gave it a few light pats. "I have other things to consider. There are some private matters I need to resolve quickly, and for now Angoulême isn't suited to come with me. Once I deal with them and make sure there won't be any lingering consequences, I'll come back for her."

Yoana's hands were rough with calluses, and the feel of them was oddly comforting.

"Besides, the reason I'm leaving her here is because you, Fergus, and all these friends are here looking out for one another. Novigrad is going to be a place where I spend a lot of time in the future. Building a profitable smithy here matters, and the responsibility on your shoulders is heavy.

"Like I told you before, don't stop the school donations, and don't stop the food donations for the nonhumans either. Don't be afraid to spend money. Do whatever good you can within reason. Everything else can wait until I come back."

"All right, Boss, I understand. I'll do as you asked. Be careful out there, and make sure you come back safe. Your Dragonslayer is still waiting for you."

In just a few short days, there had naturally been nowhere near enough time to finish Victor's order, that absurdly oversized Dragonslayer. And now that the hopelessness of the whole thing had sunk in, Yoana sometimes went to Hattori's dumpling shop, no, Hattori's smithy now, to keep an eye on the progress.

Her thinking was simple. Just like Angoulême had said, she was one of their own. Since it was already inevitable that Dragonslayer would end up hanging on a wall as decoration sooner or later, then naturally she had to make sure it was made with genuine materials and crafted beautifully.

"Don't worry. I'll take care of myself and stay away from danger. You just wait for me to bring back the tools of Clan Tordarroch.

"In my mind, I already have an excellent design waiting for you to make for me with that set of tools. Say it again, where are they?"

"Clan Tordarroch. They live in the mountains on Undvik. As long as you come back safe, even if you ask me to make armor for a rock troll, I'll help you do it."

She said that because after several days of hearing Angoulême's stories, Yoana had completely made peace with the matter. She had also reached an understanding with Hattori: if the boss wanted to lose his mind, then let him lose his mind. Just humor him and give him that courtesy. As long as the fits were not too frequent, there was no need to argue with him.

...

Their conversation had just reached a natural pause when an unexpected person appeared at the docks. Unexpected, yet not entirely unreasonable: the King of Beggars' sabre fighter, Babu Tabard.

When he saw the Zerrikanian, Victor gave Yoana's arm a gentle squeeze and told her to head back first. A conversation with someone from the underworld could involve all sorts of things, and there was no need to drag the woman smith into it.

"Sukrus, how long before the ship leaves?" Babu clearly knew the captain and shouted the question directly.

"I've still got to unload these damned barrels of mead. About two more hours."

Sukrus was a typical Skelliger: tall, broad, with black hair streaked by a few threads of gray, at the height of his fighting years. When the weather was good, Skelligers were armed merchants. When the weather was bad, they were pirates.

So even in the face of the notoriously fierce Zerrikanian, Sukrus showed not the slightest trace of fear.

"There's still time. Care to take a walk with me?" Babu turned and asked Victor.

"Sure."

The tattoo-covered Zerrikanian and the witcher in standard mercenary gear strolled together down the stone-paved streets of the harbor district.

Seagulls cried overhead, and the heavy stench of fish drifted in from the roadside.

"You know," Babu said, "ever since that day, I haven't been able to stop thinking about you."

Hearing that, Victor frowned. This was definitely not a confession.

Babu sounded unusually animated, clearly in excellent spirits. "I've looked up a lot of information. I know what kind of creatures dopplers are. The occasional mad one isn't rare, but no matter what, they still need to copy the right person if they want to bring out real strength.

"So I kept thinking about you. About that swordsmanship of yours, all thunder and lightning, your superb combat skill, and that razor-cold killing intent.

"Ah... I really want to settle life and death with you. To cut you down, or be cut down by you."

"Could you not? There's no need for that between us."

"There is. That doppler's sword is still lodged in my heart. I can't forget it. Under that pressure, these past few days I've felt my swordsmanship improving noticeably.

"I used to think I was excellent. Then I met him and realized I was nowhere near enough. So, Victor Corion, find a chance and let's fight again.

"I really want to know just how strong you are."

Victor knew the man had misunderstood something. And the part he had misunderstood was exactly the reason Victor had decided to travel alone. He wanted to find someone worth cutting down in a place where no one knew him, and test his blade there.

Victor had a feeling that, with the strength of his spirit as it was now, killing one or two villains probably would not drive him mad.

But he could not gamble on that.

That was why he had to stay away from Angoulême for now.

Once he sank into that state of madness, it was obvious he would no longer know friend from foe. There would be only pure killing intent and a swordsmanship that grew stronger the more he killed.

"I don't want to fight you." Victor refused calmly. There was no benefit in it, and the risk was high.

"Don't say that. You'll force me to find a way to make you fight me."

Victor's brow tightened even further. Babu had clearly become obsessed. His proud swordsmanship had been crushed by an even more demonic blade, and now he was desperate to break through, no matter the means.

"Give me some time, all right? When I'm ready and I come back, I'll fight you seriously." The boy relented in helpless resignation.

Having gotten his promise, the tattooed Zerrikanian smiled. "I knew you'd agree. Don't worry about your shop. While you're gone, I'll keep an eye on it for you."

...

After parting from the sabre-madman, the two of them had wandered, almost without noticing it, to the vicinity of Hierarch Square. Victor simply decided to stroll through the square for a while.

As he passed the Kingfisher Inn, he stopped.

It was the largest inn on the eastern side of Hierarch Square, a tavern, a full entertainment venue, and even one with its own band.

What made him stop was not any performance at the inn that day, but one particular notice on the board outside. He was all too familiar with what it said.

...

Missing Apprentice

Our smithy apprentice Luf has gone missing, and we don't know where he ran off to.

He's a young man from Skellige, of medium build, and handsome besides. We are deeply worried for his safety.

If anyone knows where he is, please provide information. The reward will be worth your while.

Fergus' Smithy

...

Victor stared at the notice with complete attention. He wanted to burn every word into his memory. One glance at the phrasing was enough to know it had been written by a dwarf. Yoana could speak the common tongue, but she could not write it.

That notice was destined to become like countless other old, faded flyers on the board, eventually covered over by newer advertisements.

And then no one would remember the name Luf ever again.

Not long after the boy had walked away, the innkeeper posted up a new board.

The Kingfisher Inn

Welcome, one and all

Nightly standing performance

Priscilla Callonetta appearing live with passion and grace

Guaranteed to strike every heartstring

...

At the same time, elsewhere in Hierarch Square, a gentleman stopped at a newsstand and leafed through the papers.

"Still no news of Batman today?"

The owner answered warmly, "Ah! Sir, you're here again! Still none today! No idea what's happened either. Before, Batman was showing up every day, and now he's vanished all at once..."

Paying no attention to the newsvendor's endless chatter, the gentleman turned and disappeared into the crowd, muttering to himself.

"...Batman, where are you? Have you abandoned your followers...?"

...

When Victor returned to Pier Seven, he was not surprised to see the person who should have appeared by now: the white-haired elf, Boslaer.

The white-haired elf was all smiles and enthusiasm. "Getting your notice was wonderful. Should I say thank you? At least you didn't vanish without a word like Master Dandelion did."

"Who knows what that man was thinking?" Victor replied casually.

"Master Dandelion? He's doing very well in Skellige now. I heard he's already become a guest of honor at King Bran's court." The one who cut in was Sukrus, who happened to be passing by with a barrel of mead on his shoulder.

"Is that so? Alonso will surely be delighted to hear the latest news of the master." The white-haired elf smiled.

Sukrus rolled his thick neck. "Heard it before I left on this run, so it's definitely the latest."

A small pouch of crowns flew through the air and landed in the captain's arms.

"Thanks for the information. And take good care of my friend."

Sukrus tucked the purse into his chest. "That goes without saying. The Dragonborn Bard is important..." Whatever came after that was mumbled too softly for either Victor or Boslaer to catch.

They chatted, and they laughed.

...

Not long after, the Black Pearl raised sail on schedule, and Victor Corion took his leave of Novigrad.

Standing at the prow, with the damp salt of the sea wind in his face, the boy still found it marvelous, even on his second voyage aboard a three-masted sailing ship in this fantasy world. He breathed deeply and savored the romance of an age standing on the edge of great ocean voyages.

Quietly, he thought of Captain Sarah, Captain Blackbeard, Captain Edward, Captain Luffy, and others like them. The sea rolls ever onward, washing old heroes and legends into memory, and aboard the ship that cut through the waves before the wind, Victor turned over his own strange thoughts.

Without warning, Angoulême gave him a light shove from behind, nearly sending him overboard. But she had grabbed his belt at the same instant she pushed, so in the end it was only a fright.

"What are you thinking about this time?" the girl asked first with wide, round eyes, not even giving Victor time to scold her.

"That could scare someone to death, you know!" Once he steadied himself, the boy let out a long breath. "...I was wondering why you're here. But I already have the answer."

"I disobeyed the captain's orders. Dock a month of my spending money. I'm prepared to accept it."

Looking at Angoulême's earnest face, Victor did not get angry.

If anything, he felt a little happy.

Though he had made the decision on his own and left her behind in Novigrad, the truth was that setting out alone had left him somewhat uneasy.

He rubbed his nose.

"The road ahead is dangerous..."

"I will follow you to the very edge of the horizon!"

The sunlight was brilliant.

// 20 chapters today, I'll upload them throughout the day

//Check out my P@tre0n for 30 extra chapters //[email protected]/Razeil0810