Shadows in the Night

"Dorregarey?" Geralt had never heard the name.

Jaskier grinned and said: "Yes, Master Dorregarey, a very interesting person."

"He advocates the balance of all things, and humans should not interfere with all creatures in nature, even drowners, and ghouls, are all within his protection. An extremely endangered animal protectionist, he should appear in my poems, as a villain in the story, so interesting, haha."

Geralt was speechless for a moment. Indeed, the world was vast, and it contained all sorts of individuals. Needless to say, being a witcher was one of the most hated jobs for this magician. He glanced at the magician who was still chattering outside the king's tent, and hurriedly dragged Jaskier into Yennefer's tent, so as not to be caught by this guy's tail and entangled, and it would be too troublesome.

Yet, Geralt couldn't help but ponder the current status of mages and sorcerers. Even if they face kings and nobles, they will not have any fear. They have the most powerful warlock brotherhood in the northern continent to support them. The lords also need to give them a little bit of face. It is impossible to place a random charge to judge them like dealing with ordinary people.

The two had been drinking in the tent, and Yennefer came back halfway and drove the two drunk men out of her tent. The journey is about to start, and the sorceress must pack her luggage. As a lady, she has a lot of luggage. Geralt didn't care about this, he and Jaskier walked shoulder to shoulder and continued to drink on the haystack in the stable. It made him feel more comfortable than those hostile or contemptuous gazes.

Although King Niedamir was only the ruler of the small realm, he was not petty. After preparing to set off, he spent over an hour packing the camp supplies and filling up twelve carriages. The group included members of the dragon hunting team, soldiers, and members of the Holobur scouting team who were exploring the road ahead, totaling about 150 people.

They formed a formidable convoy and ventured into the Great Keszhuo Mountains under the guidance of a local guide. Climbing from the foot of the mountain to the mountainside took about six or seven hours until they found an open area to camp as the sunset. They were approximately a third of the way to their destination: the green dragon's lair.

Amidst their journey, during the early hours of the next day, a figure dressed in black, nearly indistinguishable in the night, stealthily infiltrated Yennefer's tent. It was Wayne. He originally wanted to look for Geralt in the tent, but he couldn't be able to find him. He only saw a big white-haired dog resting on the wooden pillar in the center of the tent as if taking a nap.

The dog seemed quite alert, reacting swiftly as Wayne opened the tent curtain. It stood up, fixed its gaze on Wayne at the entrance, and seemed poised to pounce at any moment. To prevent the dog from alerting others, Wayne acted swiftly, casting an Axii sign that immediately induced the dog into a coma.

As Wayne contemplated whether to render the dog unconscious, it suddenly snapped out of its stupor, opening its mouth and speaking in Geralt's voice.

"Hold on, Wayne, it's me," Geralt said. Wayne was stunned for a moment. He looked at the large white dog on the ground in shock, then glanced at the sorceress sleeping peacefully not far away. What kind of play is this? 

Wayne seemed to understand the situation and remained silent for a few seconds. Geralt was also a little embarrassed at this time. If possible, he didn't want to show such an ugly face in front of his good brother, but Wayne came to him dressed like this. He must have something important to discuss, and he couldn't help but expose himself.

"Let's go out and talk, don't wake up Yennefer, she has a bad temper." Looking at the large white dog that was talking to him, he was stunned for a few seconds before he reacted and let Geralt crawl out first. It was early in the morning, and everyone was sound asleep except for a few night guards who were still dozing off. Under the cover of the night, one person and one dog found a hidden place several hundred meters away from the camp and started talking in low voices, exchanging all the information they had.

Wayne didn't hide anything either, telling Geralt everything about Borch, the green dragon, and the baby dragon, and then revealing Borch's request and his thoughts. He believed that if it was Geralt, the righteous and principled witcher would not object to what he was about to do next.

The large white dog sat on the ground, frowning like a human, and asked, "That is to say, your goal now is to drive away those ordinary people, and it is best to drive away King Niedamir and his soldiers as well. Leave only those who want to slay dragons, and let them have a fair duel with Borch at the top of the mountain?"

Wayne nodded. In his opinion, those soldiers and the citizens of the city were all victims of being coerced by those in power.

Even if they succeed in slaying the dragon, they won't get any benefits, and if they fight the dragon, they will be the first to sacrifice. These people are just a group of poor individuals; there is no need to fight them.

After thinking for a while, Geralt nodded and said, "Yes, I will cooperate with your actions. However, you have to remember that you'd better not reveal your identity, and don't let the golden dragon cause unnecessary casualties. After finishing the business, it is best to let Borch and his family leave here quickly. If news of the dragon spreads, it will attract more greedy hunters and countless mercenaries who are crazy about wealth."

"Don't worry, I will," Wayne assured him.

Wayne waved goodbye to Geralt, then quickly disappeared into the darkness.

Geralt watched Wayne's departing figure with a helpless look on his face. He sighed and quickly ran back into Yennefer's tent on all fours.

Tonight was destined to be restless; he wanted to stay by Yennefer's side and protect his goddess.

Half an hour later, the entire camp suddenly became chaotic. Guards on duty ran around shouting in horror:

"It's on fire! Come and put out the fire!" "Our supplies are all burned! The stables are on fire, and many horses are killed!" "There must be traitors! We have been attacked. Someone is trying to prevent us from going up the mountain."

When Geralt and Yennefer, who had been dispelled, walked out of the tent, they saw a chaotic scene. Some people were busy fighting the fire, some were chasing fleeing horses, and some soldiers were hastily getting dressed, equipped with weapons, guarding outside Niedamir's tent, fearing an assassin would rush out and assassinate their king.

In this chaotic scene, the young king dared not show up casually. Only the overweight and disheveled overseer, Gyllensteen, was trying to maintain order in the camp.

It was a pity that they were halfway up the mountain, and the nearby water source was seriously insufficient. There wasn't enough water to fight the fire, and it was night. In the deep mountains and old forests, no one dared to run around because such individuals were likely to become the rations of wild beasts and monsters.

By the time the sun rose and they frantically put out the fire, more than half of the entire camp had been burned. Especially affected were the food, horses, and carriages. Most of the journey's materials had been lost in the fire.

It was a huge blow to the dragon hunting team who were still in high spirits yesterday.

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