The Witcher: My Own Path

Loona took her hands off the table and, sitting down in a comfortable chair, sighed deeply. For a good hour, with the help of a map of the capital and all the available intelligence she had on the Guilds of Blacksmiths and Craftsmen, she had been trying to figure out how to defend herself against future attacks and at the same time bite a little here and there on the rich Masters, while making life difficult for Teresa, Albert's ex-wife.

"So what have you got for me Loona and what the hell is really going on?" he asked and shifting nervously from foot to foot.

"I'm not going to lie Albert, the matter is serious".

The man tilted his head slightly to the side, not taking his eyes off her, waiting for her to continue.

Loona sighed deeply once more.

"More than an hour ago, I received news that Master Cicero and Master Andrew the biggest..."

"I know who they are, damn it, do you think I have such a poor memory! What happened!"

"As I mentioned, more than an hour ago I received a message that the two masters visited the royal castle today and demanded Foltest, to carry out an inspection of all the workshops and shops belonging to our Lord and therefore to the Order!"

Albert turned pale and his eyes, opened to their full width.

"Whatoo!" he almost shouted.

The mere inspection of the workshops and other businesses did not frighten the experienced merchant, for everything that belonged, to Lord Tyr, was legal and acquired by legal means and the inspection itself, while problematic, could at most halt the production and sale of goods for a few days, a week at most, putting some strain on the finances of the Order. The frightening thing about this was that almost two of the biggest giants of commerce in the capital with huge financial resources and manpower, had decided, to target Ser Tyr, with its slowly but strongly flourishing businesses and the petition to the king for permission to control was only a prelude to what was to come later".

"We can't allow it Loona, if we allow it..."

"I know Albert, fortunately the King has refused the request, apparently our Lord still enjoys his favour, however they will not stop there, they will find another way".

Somewhat calming his nerves, the man joined Loona in sitting down at the table.

"Besides, where the hell did you get this information, the royal palace, how?"

Loona waved her hand, dismissing his question. The truth was, she couldn't answer it herself.

"Back on topic, seriously, revenge, who the hell am I going to get revenge on? That mangy bastard along with that sneaky vampire took everything from me, but how am I supposed to take revenge when he's going to mobilise all his powers, adding all the power Andrew has and hit us. It will not be my revenge but only our death!"

"I know, the matter looks serious, but we can't give up, we still have a chance!"

"Chances of what?! However, you are right, we must inform our Lord immediately, he will know what to do!"

"No!!!"

Albert leaned back in his chair, surprised by his friend's sudden outburst, shaking off his shock, he looked deeply into her eyes.

"Loona, this is a serious matter, it concerns the survival of the Order, we MUST inform our Lord about it!"

"What do you want to tell him then!"

"The Master of the Sphere of "Espionage and Intelligence" and the Master of the Sphere of "Business Development and Management", members of the Supreme Council of the Order of the First Reconciliation, ask you Lord that, upon encountering our first major threat to the Order, you solve, all our problems and we will stand by, useless and looking pretty. It's not like you haven't been doing that My Lord for years right?!"

"Is that how it is supposed to look my friend? Doesn't everything Tyr has done for us put us in a position to, only take from him and never give anything? Can we really do nothing ourselves, for him and the Order? He has trusted us, he has given us the tools to be the claws and claws of the Organisation, not a fucking carpet, for anyone with a bit of oren to wipe their shoes on!"

Albert was struck to the core by these words, he remembered a recent walk through the Monastery district, he recalled the joy he felt, the laughter of children playing in the streets, the broad smiles of men wanting to shake his hand, and the flirtatious and shy glances of young women. He recalled the whole journey from the moment he met the magnificent young man at his lowest point in life until now, until he was even bigger, even stronger, than when ever before. She was right, she knew it and he knew it. The risk, however, was enormous. The fate of not only themselves but dozens of their comrades was at stake here.

He rose vigorously from his chair and strolled a few steps back and forth with his hand under his chin pondering. Loona followed him with her eyes, patiently waiting, for his answer.

"I agree!" He declared.

Loona smiled broadly.

"But we have to do it properly" He continued

"We have to prepare very carefully, gather as much information as possible. We MUST know everything! Not only about them, but about everything related to them. Acquaintances, friends, competitors, enemies, creditors, debtors EVERYTHING!!!"

Loona nodded at every word he said.

"And most importantly, I don't want to pinch them, I want to EAT them!!!"

The mistress of spies clapped her hands loudly and a beautiful smile adorned her face.

"Excellent my dear Albert, although I did not plan to go that far, I do not mind taking everything from them, strengthening the power of our Lord and the Order. Just destroying them would already be unimaginably beneficial, but taking everything..."

"Don't get so cocky Loona, let's not split the skin on a live bear, this is a serious matter, and if something goes wrong, we will be ruined" He warned firmly.

"These people are powerful and influential, and even if we manage to defeat them we will have to make sure that we somehow justify the seizure of their estates and businesses to the nobility and most importantly to the king, and that won't be easy! It must be a clean job, precise as the sword of our Lord!"

The destruction of the Guilds and the seizure of their estates and businesses stimulated Loone beyond belief, for a moment she lost her cool.

"You're absolutely right, I got a bit carried away, it won't happen again!"

Albert, nodded in understanding. He himself barely restrained himself from fantasising outright about the power, wealth and prestige that faced Lord Tyr and the Order if they were the biggest trading power in the city, which they might become once both Guild Masters were eliminated.

"Alright then, what have you been able to gather so far and where do we start, I hope you have at least an outline of some sort of plan right? Then there's one more thing. Teresa has to live, I want her to lose everything but her life. She has, to experience everything that I have experienced, she has to suffer the loss of reputation and property, she has to suffer rejection and loneliness. She has, to experience what it is like to be alone, at the bottom!"

Loona nodded in agreement with a friend's request, then pointed to all the documents scattered on the table with her hand, and her face took on an expression of shame and embarrassment.

"All these documents you see here are related to our case and I regret to say that they are only superficial, nothing special, practically anyone with a little self-denial and decent charisma could have obtained them in a few days. Besides, I'm not sure how up to date they are, as I haven't delegated anyone to look into the guild for years".

The colour in her face turned a strong pink as she finished presenting her somewhat embarrassing achievements.

Loona could have sworn that a huge question mark had appeared over Albert's head, and his face had taken on an expression of such surprise and disbelief that words could not get through his throat. He sighed heavily and rubbed his face with his hands.

"So much for claws and fangs, eh, Loona? So much for taking from our Lord and giving nothing in return. You really had me going there, but it turns out you've just screwed up big time. And if Tyr finds out, you're in deep shit! What were you thinking?!"

The food buyer almost shouted at her. The master spy hung her head in shame.

"You'd better fix it and do it quickly, not just that, but everything else you're behind on. I won't ask why, but this is the last time I'll cover for you. Let me know if you need more money or people who can help with small jobs. You have one week. If you don't come to me with something valuable by then, our Lord will hear about it. The guilds won't wait for you to investigate them thoroughly before they strike us. You have one week, Nightingale!"

He turned on his heel and headed for the exit of the Council chamber.

"And the day promised to be so beautiful" he complained to himself.