NOVEL NEXT Chapter 199: The Roar of Lions
At the same time that Lann was being transformed by Master Mirror, in other parts of the continent...
Kaer Morhen, the land forgotten by the world.
Ciri, who was sensing the chaotic energies, suddenly collapsed to the ground, before Yennefer's astonished gaze.
Her eyes filled with a hazy color, and she began to murmur: "The time of sword and axe is near, it is the era of the roar of lions. The time of frost and flame is coming, it is the era of madness and contempt..."
...
Duen Canell, the heart of the Brokilon forest.
Three girls who were bathing in the spring were suddenly lifted up by the water, before huge waves began to form around them.
Ellie and Eithne stood together, muttering under their breaths: "The world will be reborn with the new sun, and the Elder Blood will be reborn from the seeds of hope. This seed will not sprout, but it will ignite a flame..."
The Lady of the Lake, who had been forcibly expelled from the Brokilon spring, cowered in a hidden corner, clenching her trembling hands.
"He's gone... but he left behind something far more terrifying..."
...
Vizima, the capital of Temeria.
Princess Adda, who was strolling along the shore of the beautiful Lake Vizima, suddenly collapsed, frightening Keira, who quickly went to check on her.
Adda held her abdomen in pain. Before the sorceress's astonished gaze, the white locks of hair that had recently appeared on the princess's head disappeared at great speed, and her red hair became softer, brighter, and more resplendent like fire.
"What happened?" Adda raised her face to find Keira's expression of surprise, confusion, and then a wry smile.
...
Thanedd Island, Headquarters of the Brotherhood of Sorcerers.
Atop the castle's observation tower, Tissaia was observing the path of the stars through a telescope.
Suddenly, she let out a cry of shock and disbelief. “This is… Conjunction of the Spheres?”
...
Gaunter's World, Lann.
He didn't know how much time had passed.
Endless images of alternate worlds appeared and disappeared before Lann's eyes, devouring his reason and strength.
[Boom!]
Until a loud bang rang out, allowing Lann's consciousness to return to his body, and his eyes to regain clarity.
The system had been issuing alert notifications for some time now, and the panel was flickering with a light that nearly blinded Lann.
[Quest - Heart of Stone - Part Five - Completed]
[Character Level +1]
After four levels of advancement, a new system panel was launched.
[Name: Lann Lannister
Gender: Male
Race: Witcher
Level: 28
Talents: Elder Blood, Sharpshooter
Experience: 1279/2000
Health: 3800/3800
Mana: 12/4600
Inventory: ... (+)
Abilities: Muscle Memory (5/5), Precise Blows (5/5), Strength Training (5/5) ... Magic Tide, Blink, Teleport, Dimension Travel.]
[Follower column: Black Wind, Milva, Ace, House, Levin, Kiyan.]
Although the changes on the panel were not as drastic as when he first transformed from a human to a witcher, the power of the enhancement is even greater.
The most obvious change was in his talents.
[Elder Blood] has removed the suffix of 'Partial Awakening', which means that the power of this bloodline has been completely awakened, while the two talents [Magic Aura] and [Medium] have disappeared, leaving only [Sharpshooter].
Thinking of Master Mirror's displeasure when he first sensed his [Medium] talent, and the words about 'eliminating influences' and 'giving something better', Lann estimated that it was more likely that these magical talents were fused with [Elder Blood].
Of course, the [Medium] talent may have been erased by the Master Mirror instead of being fused. As for the truth, Lann just needs to go out and find a spirit to see if he can still sense it. However, he preferred to believe in the first option.
In addition to the change in his talents, the improvements to his basic stats were also evident. Both his health value and mana had increased significantly, far more than he should have gained by going up four levels at once.
Lann suddenly felt the urge to go find a troll to practice boxing with.
However, he also noticed that although his mana limit had increased drastically, at this moment his mana had almost run out. This was not normal.
Thinking about the countless images that had passed through his mind and the energy he had felt flowing uncontrollably within him, Lann began to have a suspicion...
He looked down and at the bottom of his skill bar he discovered three new skills: [Blink], [Teleport] and [Dimension Travel].
These were all skills from the [Elder Blood] branch. Originally, this page only contained the [Tide Magic] skill, but now there were new surprises.
[Blink]: The Elder Blood heir can disperse chaotic energy around him, allowing him to instantly teleport to any location that energy touches.
[Teleport]: The Elder Blood heir can mark objects or living beings with his chaotic energy, and can then teleport them to himself or, conversely, teleport himself to their location. If the mark is destroyed, the ability to teleport is lost.
[Dimension Travel]: The heir of the Elder Blood can traverse space and time.
Lann knew that as long as the Master Mirror was still in this world, it would definitely give him power to allow him, the 'fallen prince', to complete the revenge drama. And this power is also likely to be the fully awakened Elder Blood.
But when the Elder Blood was truly fully awakened and the accompanying power was truly mastered by himself, Lann had a sense of unreality again.
However, Lann noticed that he couldn't fully utilize [Dimension Travel]. He now understands that his mana must have been exhausted by this skill.
Just catching glimpses of other worlds had consumed so much mana. In order to reach other worlds, like Ciri did in The Witcher Series, Lann would have to keep leveling up.
According to Lann's estimation, that should be a long time later.
Before he could continue experimenting with his new powers, he suddenly felt an intense sensation of falling. The darkness surrounding him turned into an abyss, enveloping him and dragging him down.
Then, thick white fog appeared around Lann again. Lann was familiar with this white fog. When Master Mirror brought him and Olgierd out of the world in the painting, he used this white fog to cover their bodies.
The fog completely covered his vision, and when it finally cleared, Lann found himself back in the hall of the von Everec mansion.
At that very moment, Iris and the witchers moved again, and time, which had been stopped by the Master Mirror, began to flow again.
For them, Lann had just fulfilled the three wishes of Olgierd, who, overwhelmed by grief, had asked Iris for help.
Speaking of Olgierd...
Lann felt a slight murderous urge. He had saved Olgierd only to use him as a bargaining chip in his deal with the Master Mirror, but in reality, the two were bitter enemies.
He looked down at Olgierd, who was lying on the ground, but saw him still emitting heart-rending cries, increasingly weaker and more desperate.
Iris had stopped her hand in midair, seemingly remembering all the atrocities Olgierd had committed against her in the past.
The witchers watching frowned, they could feel that Olgierd's life was passing quickly. In just a few breaths, he was about to die.
"Iris..." Weak Olgierd stretched out his hand to his wife.
The beautiful soul in the painting finally came forward, she hugged her dying husband, without saying a word.
Olgierd muttered something and then took his last breath.
Everything had happened too quickly.
The black cat and the black dog condensed their bodies in the form of black mist. They looked at Olgierd with a strange expression and said: “His heart is broken.”
Kiyan, having witnessed all of Iris's memories, let out a sarcastic laugh. “Dying like this is too mild a punishment for him.”
Lann shook his head and said meaningfully at the scene in front of him: “But, like a story that has strayed from its original course and needs a hasty ending, this ending has a touch of romantic irony.”
Letho looked at Lann thoughtfully. He seemed to feel that something had changed in this young man in just a blink of an eye.
Meanwhile, with Olgierd's death, the violet rose Iris was holding also began to wither, slowly fading away as if it were an illusion blown away by the wind.
Iris let go of her husband's body, looking sadly at her empty hands, lost in thought.
Finally, she let out a deep sigh. “My memories are few... Only when I saw that rose could I remember my whole past. It made the world around me seem real, it helped me recognize things and remember who I was.”
"But now, even it is gone."
Letho offered his professional opinion: “Perhaps it was the strong emotional bond that tied you to that rose and allowed you to remain in this world. That rose is what we witchers call a pin.”
Although Olgierd had been a bastard, Letho had no complaints against Iris. After seeing all of Iris's nightmares, he felt sorry for the unfortunate woman.
Kolgrim also added: “The object one connects with is like an insect pinned to a display case by a pin, hence the name.”
Iris clenched her hands. "It sounds terrible... but no matter what, it's gone now."
She gently leaned down, closed the eyes of the corpse on the ground, and tidied up her appearance.
Then she stood up and asked Lann: "I heard Olgierd call you Lannister, are you a knight? Can you please tell me honestly, what will happen to me if I lose this rose?"
Lann thought about it and told the truth: "The world you created may no longer exist, including you."
Iris lowered her eyes. “Does that mean I won’t suffer anymore? Or that I’ll fall into nothingness?”
“I don't want to suffer anymore, but I'm scared of the idea of facing a cold, dark void... until I disappear.”
There was a hint of pleading in her tone, hoping to get an accurate answer.
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