The Witcher: Lord of the Empire

Everyone lined up in formation before the half-smiling gaze of the succubus; it took them about ten breaths.

After the Succubus showed a relaxed attitude and without intentions to attack, House thought about the rumors he had heard in Toussaint and in the Baron's comments that had visited them before. So House tried to communicate with the other party: "Succubi, what do you want to do?"

"Everyone knows what a succubus wants to do." The female night devil smiled slightly under the moonlight. "But I was planning to rest tonight, but I just saw you guys... You just seemed to be talking about Tomas Moreau?"

House and Ace looked at each other: "Do you know him?"

"Of course. Toussaint is a good place, but before coming here I have investigated. I will not come here while Artorius Vigo or Tomas Moreau are still in Toussaint."

Hearing the target's name, House asked cautiously: "Do you know Tomas Moreau?"

The succubus responded indifferently: "I know him. He is dead and buried."

House showed an excited expression: "Where is it buried?"

“Haha.” The succubus chuckled. “That’s a good question, I do know, but why should I tell you?”

The look of the two assistants suddenly became dangerous, but the succubus in front of them remained calm and with an ambiguous smile despite the sudden change in the atmosphere.

With the hands pressing the gun, House left the idea of a direct attack. Not to mention that the witcher had warned them about the possible tyrannical fighting power of the succubus, the magical ability just shown by the other party made them dare not act too rashly.

Different from Ace and Swade who are purely militant, House seeks stability. “Succubus, what do you want?”

"I like communicating with people like you, it can save me a lot of trouble." The succubus showed a satisfied look in her eyes.

After saying that, she pointed at Ace: "Lend it to me for one night... no, one day... no, three days."

"Lend it to me for three days, and I will tell you the place where Tomas Moreau is buried."

"Don't worry." The succubus chuckled. "Since you have heard about me, you should know that I will not harm people's lives for no reason."

Hearing the succubus's request, everyone's expressions changed drastically.

Ace blushed: "What... What are you going to do, succubus?"

House blushed angrily: "What? Why him! What are you going to do to my brother? You damn devil!"

The surrounding soldiers exchanged glances with each other, and all looked at Ace with envy in their eyes.

The succubus smiled and said: "Oh, oh! What am I going to do? If you wanted to listen, it couldn't be finished in a day and a night."

"As for why I chose him, it is because he possesses a 'power' that ordinary people cannot see."

All the soldiers gasped and looked at Ace with admiration. How could this man have such 'power'?

The Succubus, seeing this, smiled slightly, slowly leaning back on a branch, supporting her head with her left hand. The moonlight spilled over his hips and sides, creating large shadows, especially on his chest, where the moonlight was completely blocked.

Then, she opened her small mouth with a playful look, stuck out her soft tongue, and licked her lips slowly from left to right.

Ace stared at her for a while before lowering his head and murmuring: "Can you see this 'power'... Since you say it like that..."

Ace hesitated for a moment, and then said solemnly to House: "For the sake of your lordship, how about I..."

House backhanded a punch to Ace's stomach, causing the pain to make him bend over and hunched over.

"You demon! I will not hand over my brother! Let's change the terms!" House exclaimed.

The succubus narrowed her eyes slightly: "Oh? Do you want to exchange for someone else? But others don't have the 'power' of this warrior."

The eyes of many soldiers behind him were once again focused on Ace, but this time something was slightly wrong.

Ace finally regained his composure and patted House on the shoulder: "Don't be like this, brother. You don't have to defend me like this. I think I can..."

House turned around and elbowed Ace again, causing him to arch off the ground. He turned his head and said to the succubus righteously: "Succubus, we follow the orders of Earl Lannister of Cintra. We need every man to fulfill the tasks assigned by the Earl; we cannot exchange our brother for information."

"We know you don't want to fight, but if you are willing to help us, the generous Earl will surely thank you."

“Lannister, all debts must be paid!”

The succubus smiled disdainfully: "Men always make sweet promises about the future... Wait, you said your Earl is called Lannister?"

House nodded.

The succubus finally put away her carelessness and asked after thinking for a while: "I think I've heard that name. What is your full name? Is it really from Cintra?"

House replied: "My lord is the young lion of Cintra, Lord Lann Lannister. Does it seem like you've heard of his name?"

The succubus straightened, her blood-colored pupils fixed on the group. She started muttering: "Lann, Lannister, Cintra... ha."

She chuckled and said softly: "So you are subordinates of Lara Dorren's descendant. He has much more 'power' than this warrior. So...

"Tomas Moreau's grave is not here, but in a cemetery south of Beauclair. Just go there and look for it. It is leaning against a tree, and there is a river twenty steps away. It is easy to find."

The succubus was in a good mood, as if she had received some excellent reward. With a twist of her waist, she bounced up and stood on the branch like a light bird.

"Be sure to tell your Earl what happened today. After you're done with your business, I'll go see him~"

House stared at the succubus but was horrified to find that the other person's figure was fading little by little under the moonlight.

He wanted to ask clearly about the other party's purpose of looking for Lann, and he must not let his Lord Earl suffer unknown harm.

Unexpectedly, the crows that were perching on the tree suddenly flapped their wings and flew toward him. After he drew his sword and drove away these annoying ominous birds, the succubus was no longer in sight.

Ace on the ground squirmed slightly: "Your Majesty the Earl's...'power'? How did this kind of news reach a place like this?"

House stepped forward angrily and tried to help his companion: "Our lord's deeds have always been about his bravery. Furthermore, he stays away from scandals, how could rumors like these circulate? At least I have never heard of it."

"I think what the succubus said is not the same thing as what we understand, but I don’t understand what it is..."

Ace did not accept his partner's help while on the ground. He waved his hand, standing up on his own, not looking as beaten up as he was that he couldn't get up.

Looking at his stunned companion, Ace glanced at him angrily and said: "I am the son of a knight. You don't really think that the fists you raised from raising horses can knock me to the ground, do you?"

House became anxious when he heard the other party's question: "Stop pretending, if it doesn't hurt, why are you lying on the ground! "I also train diligently!""

Ace shook his head and said with a sense of loss: "I was just worried that I couldn't control myself and would delay our lord's mission. So I purposely let you hit me a few times. After all, she was a succubus..."

“When I said ‘I can’, I really meant it...”   

House clenched his fists tightly and then relaxed.

Following the information provided by the succubus, the next day, the group headed south of the city of Beauclair.

Due to the need to get out of the city, they ventured out during the day. Furthermore, there was no longer a need to hide their actions in the dead of night, as no one was watching them.

They quickly found the group of tombstones by the river that the succubus had mentioned, and unexpectedly encountered five small groups of Drowners.

It was not difficult, a small wave of arrows was fired, and then they drew their swords and charged in formation. After killing three of them, the rest jumped into the water and fled.

Although the six people have an advantage in numbers and equipment, they are all facing the enemy for the first time. Moreover, these Drowners were more cunning than those encountered by Lann and the others, and in the confusion, two soldiers were injured when they fell to the ground.

The process of exploration immediately became more careful. The six-person team no longer acted separately. Four soldiers were always on alert, and two attendants were sifting through the tombstones.

Soon, they discovered their target.

A tombstone with the inscription 'Tomas Moreau' in Common Speech.

House and Ace looked at each other, and Ace took a step back: "I am the son of a knight. I don't dig graves. I just stand guard..."

House rolled his eyes at him and took a step back, allowing the two soldiers on guard to step forward and start digging.

The soil covering it was unexpectedly shallow, and within a few moments, Professor Moreau’s sarcophagus came out. The two soldiers lifted up the heavy stone slab together, and a thin skeleton was revealed in front of everyone.

The rancid smell of the tomb hit immediately, but fortunately, everyone was prepared and did not let themselves be overwhelmed.

House covered his nose, picked up a branch and rummaged inside for a while, and found a torn page of parchment, and nothing else.

[September 12, 1121

I have confirmed that Jerome has arrived and is currently residing in a castle in Toussaint. I'm excited, I haven't seen him in a long time, my son. But I must find a way to stay calm and continue with my plan.]

[September 13, 1121

He came shortly after sunset, which surprised me a little! He had changed a lot, he was very lean and covered in scars. Of course, he's furious that I lied to him about why I brought him here, but what other choice do I have? If my experiment is successful, one day he will be a father too and he will understand why I did this.

I opened the portal in the study and brought Jerome to my laboratory. The crystal is out of power, but luckily I have another one. I gave him some time to consider it, as I still expected him to voluntarily participate in the research. While waiting, I prepared the equipment, I think the leather straps on the table should be replaced.]

At that moment, Ace also approached, looking at what House had recovered from the coffin. "Is this all? Doesn't it seem like an experimental record? What utility could it possibly have?"

House analyzed: "This should be a page from the professor's experiment log, and this 'Jerome' should be his son."

"Is this Professor preparing an experiment with his own son? And do I tie it with leather straps? Also, do you need to prepare the instruments?"

House only felt his teeth were sore. Just hearing about these things was disturbing. Are all sorcerers like this? Advisor Mousesack seemed to be a decent person...

Oh, right, he's a druid.

A soldier suddenly interrupted: "Mr. House, Mr. Ace, something is wrong... The mage the Earl is looking for should be a man, right?"

"But the remains in this tomb are that of a woman."

When the two attendants heard this, they felt something was wrong and asked: "Are you sure?"

The soldier who spoke out nodded and said: "I have been on the battlefield before, helped military doctors, and seen a lot of... corpses."

"The differences between the bones of men and women are not big, but I can tell it apart."

Everyone gathered around him, and immediately other strange things were discovered in the tomb.

"Gentlemen, it seems that someone has excavated this place before us."

House frowned: "Someone came before us? Grave robbers, perhaps?"

The soldier who spoke shook his head and said in an astonished tone: "Looking at these tracks, it seems it wasn't dug from the outside... but from the inside."

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