Chapter 24: 24. The Nature of Sorceresses.
Watching Letho's figure slowly merge into the red sunset, Vesemir suddenly asked: "Do you know why Letho has to leave?"
Allen withdrew his gaze and asked, "Why?"
Vesemir adjusted his black wide-brimmed hat, picked up the four bags of drowners on the ground, and walked towards the castle while explaining: "It's the rule. Letho offended a senior sorceress, one of the top figures on the Northern Continent. He has to pay the price for it, and this has nothing to do with Lady Vera's temperament."
Allen, carrying his bag of drowners, followed Vesemir and asked, "Even if it was unintentional?"
"Even if it was unintentional,"
Vesemir paused and then continued: "Self-imposed exile for a year is already the lightest punishment. If he stays and outsiders find out, even if Lady Vera doesn't intend to do anything, his end will be much more miserable than it is now."
"You might not understand this now, but even someone as strong as Lady Vera cannot do whatever she wants. She represents a… group of interests…"
Allen raised an eyebrow at this.
A group of interests?
Is it the sorceresses?
Speaking to the end, Vesemir shook his head and muttered to himself, "Why am I talking about this with a 13-year-old apprentice?"
He turned his head to gaze into his apprentice's eyes and earnestly advised: "In any case, don't dislike Lady Vera because of Letho's matter. This is the trouble Letho brought upon himself by not controlling his mouth. He brought this on himself."
"Being on good terms with Lady Vera will greatly benefit your future."
Seeing Vesemir's concerned and sincere eyes, Allen felt a warmth in his heart.
"I understand, Master Vesemir."
Seeing that Allen truly took his words to heart, Vesemir nodded in satisfaction.
About half an hour later, the sky gradually darkened. It seemed that the banquet in the main castle of Kaer Morhen had reached another climax, as the sounds of lively clamor could faintly be heard even at the apprentice training ground.
"Just throw the drowners here." Vesemir opened the cage.
"Thud."
The drowners were thrown into the metal cage.
Vesemir locked each of the five cages, checked them again, then picked up the black cloth on the ground and covered the cages.
"Alright, go to Lady Vera to get your dinner and then rest early." Vesemir patted Allen on the shoulder.
Allen nodded and then walked towards the south tower.
…
"Knock, knock, knock."
He gently knocked on the door of the alchemy room.
"Creak~"
Mary opened the door; the sorceress Vera seemed to be absent from the alchemy room.
Allen said, "I'm here to get the apprentice's dinner."
Mary nodded, went inside, and brought back the exquisite water bag. Allen took the water bag and was about to leave when he suddenly remembered the experiment records and asked:
"Mary, has Lady Vera finished reading those experiment records?"
Hearing this, Mary's young face immediately tensed up. Her expression became serious and earnest, as if Allen had said something outrageous.
"Witcher 'apprentice'!"
"You should call me Lady Mary."
"Although I am currently studying magic under Lady Vera, I have been a genuine sorceress for two years."
The girl deliberately emphasized the word "apprentice." She was clearly very dissatisfied with Allen addressing her by name.
Allen glanced at the "genuine" sorceress Mary, who looked no older than fifteen, shrugged, and said: "Alright, esteemed Lady Mary, may I ask you to answer this question?"
Mary was very pleased with the witcher apprentice's willingness to correct his mistake. She gently brushed the hair off her forehead, revealing a slightly raised brow, and pretended to be mature as she said:"Of course, Lady Vera hasn't started reading those experiment records yet."
"Alright then."
Allen sighed regretfully and was about to leave. He didn't dare compete with Sorceress Vera for reading the records.
At that moment,
"Allen, what are you doing here?"
A deep male voice came from behind. The witcher apprentice turned around. He saw that it was the chief of the Wolf School speaking. Following closely behind him, Vera also walked in from the corner.
Seeing Allen standing at the door of the alchemy room, the sorceress paused for a moment, then somewhat awkwardly distanced herself from the chief.
"Chief, Lady Vera," Allen greeted, "I'm here to get dinner."
"You came at the right time, I have something to discuss with you," the sorceress nodded, then turned her head expressionlessly and said, "Sol, I'll keep in mind what you just said."
"Alright, I'll be off then." The chief nodded, bid farewell to Allen and Mary, then turned and left.
Allen felt a bit uneasy and asked, "Lady Vera, is there something you wanted to talk to me about?"
Letho had to self-exile just for teasing the sorceress a bit. The shock from that incident hadn't yet faded from Allen's mind.
At this moment, even his tone of speaking became cautious. The sorceress didn't notice Allen's unease. She tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear and inclined her head towards the alchemy room, signaling to go inside to talk.
After sitting down inside, Allen felt somewhat anxious, unsure why Vera had called him. He could only empty his mind, trying not to think about anything related to Letho.
The loose-tongued witcher hadn't gone far yet.The sorceress didn't sit down.
She leaned against the wall next to Allen, looking down into his eyes, and asked: "Allen, can you tell me what it feels like to have the Witcher's Eye?"
The witcher apprentice instantly perked up.
Finally, it's here!
Allen knew there was no such thing as a free lunch in this world. The sorceress teaching him alchemy was indeed for the Witcher's Eye!
Emptying his mind and sticking to the pre-prepared story, Allen said: "I don't know what the Witcher's Eye is."
The sorceress stared into his eyes, as if reading his mind.
"No matter, just tell me what you felt after the Trial of the Grasses, what's different from other apprentices."
Allen dared not let his mind wander for a moment, continuing to empty his thoughts: "Alright, Lady Vera. In combat, after concentrating, I can vaguely see the flow of magic in monsters…"
This was what the chief had said the first time he used the "Hunting" skill.
It was the only characteristic of the Witcher's Eye that Allen was sure of. But before Allen could finish speaking, Vella raised her hand, interrupting him.
Why is she stopping me?
Did the sorceress notice something?
Allen's emptied mind momentarily froze, and sweat instantly broke out on his forehead.
However, the sorceress, after raising her hand to signal a stop, merely ordered behind Allen: "Mary, take notes."
"Alright, Lady Vella."
Mary's voice sounded obedient and soft, even somewhat childlike, lacking any semblance of a "genuine" sorceress. But at this moment, the witcher apprentice had no intention of making any remarks.
Realizing it was just a false alarm, he desperately emptied his mind again, fearing the sorceress might read something she shouldn't. Even if it was something about Letho, it couldn't happen.
Who knew whether the sorceress's true nature was the intellectual and gentle demeanor in class or the cold-blooded terror described by Vesemir and Letho.
Allen didn't want to take that risk.
.....
📢10 advanced chapters on p@treaon📢
For advance chapters: [email protected]/Uchiha_Itachi007 (replace @ with a)
25. Mirage Pearl.
26. Prophecy.
27. Master Vesemir is Too Fast.
28. No Alchemy Class?
29. The Little Celebrity of the Ancient Sea Fortress.