Evolved Abilities

Chapter 179

'Twas the darkest moment of the night before dawn, and not a soul stirred. The lands were slumbering, but a sliver of sunlight was starting to break through in the far horizon. A ram slowly appeared from the clouds high above, and a gigantic ship followed. The ship flew through the air, and an emblem with a pair of crossed swords painted in the center hung on the ship's sails.

A caped man was standing on the bow, as if he were the captain of the ship. He had two swords strapped to his back, and a crossbow hung over the swords. As he looked down at the lands that were unfurling before him, he saw countless legendary creatures screaming into the heavens.

The dragons breathed fire, the giants swung trees around, mammoths charged across the plains, and elemental creatures appeared and disappeared across the land.

The winds blew across the ship, taking the hood off and revealing the young face under it. "It's getting windy."

An abyssal crack appeared in the skies ahead, and the ship charged straight into it. The winds turned into a hurricane within the void, and it slashed the boy as if it were made of swords.

"Ow!" Roy opened his eyes groggily. Was that a dream? Wow, that was a weird one.

When he refocused his gaze, he saw a young child staring at him with her jaw open, and she was millimeters away from him. When Roy opened his eyes, he realized that she was pinching his cheeks, and she was petrified from the shock.

"Ciri." Roy's face fell. "What are you doing?"

The girl leaped back and hid behind the other witcher, though she stuck half her head out. "Don't blame me, Roy. It's all your fault. You were sleeping like a log. I was just trying to wake you up. Yeah, that's all. You wouldn't wake up earlier, no matter what."

"We'll talk about this later." Roy stretched his arms and stood up. He looked around him carefully to see if there were any dangers. Behind them stood the endless forest, while a prairie stretched before them as far as the eye could see. The sun was shining, and its light was blinding. Roy squinted. "Get cheeky next time and you won't be let off this easily. Now tell me what happened. Where are we right now?"

"Huh? Oh, I woke up first. You guys were still knocked out, weaklings. Lady Eithné said she lost the bet, so she let us go." Ciri patted her chest and heaved a sigh. "She sent a team of dryads and escorted us here. It's the eastern border of Brokilon." She swung her fists proudly, and Geralt patted her head.

Roy massaged his own. He was still groggy after that. Most of the water's poison had been neutralized, and the Poisoned status on the character sheet was nearly transparent. He seemed spaced out because he was still thinking about that dream he had.

"What is it, Roy? You seem like you're still not out of it. Is something the matter? Or did you have a strange dream?" Geralt crossed his arms. It sounded like he knew why Roy was looking out of it. "Most people start to see the past and the future after they drink the Water of Brokilon. They're projections of the user's wishes, excitement, longing, and even fear. If you wish to tell anyone about it, you have two listeners right in front of you. Isn't that right, child?"

Ciri nodded with excitement.

"My dream was an odd one. It did not make sense. I wonder if what I saw was just an illusion or a projection of the future." That ship looked like the one the Wild Hunt uses to traverse time and space. So why was I on it? And those monsters I saw did not belong to this world. What was that place? "I need time to think about this, you two."

There were a lot of things he had to clear up, but that could be left for another time. For the time being, he concentrated on his character sheet and read through it.

'You ingested the Water of Brokilon that has the Child of the Sun added to it. +1 to Will and Spirit.

'Roy

Age: Fourteen years and seven months old

Status: Viper School wi6tcher, Knight of Lake Vizima

HP: 130/151 (Poisoned)

Mana: 150 → 160

Strength: 9.3

Dexterity: 10.3

Constitution: 11.1

Perception: 8

Will: 9.5 → 10.5

Charisma: 7

Spirit: 11 → 12'

'Your Massacre has reached Level 5. Your Will has reached 10 points. Fear is evolving.

Fear: You may cast this skill to Fear any and all enemies in a (1) meter radius around you. A mandatory Will check will be performed on them. If their Will is lower than yours, they will lose control of their bodies for up to (2) seconds. 4 minute cooldown.'

Okay, so a single-target skill is now crowd control. I have one more skill I can use to get out of a tight spot now. And Roy also realized something important. If his skill were to reach Level 5, it could evolve if the stat associated with it were to reach 10 as well. So the next skill to evolve would be Meditation.

Roy kept reading.

'Your Aen Elle bloodline is evolving.'

Elegance of the Wind had disappeared from the character sheet, but it was replaced by another ability.

'Elder Blood (Passive): Aen Elle's most ancient bloodline. Those who inherit this bloodline can control incredible powers. Your bloodline is too diluted. You only possess a part of the bloodline's powers. They are uncontrollable.'

Diluted? Roy frowned, and he felt a little disappointed. I spent all that time just to get a diluted bloodline and two points added to my stat? "No. I might be unable to use the bloodline's power, but that doesn't mean the character sheet can't."

He kept reading. Eventually, he noticed that his job's perk had changed.

'Mount. You can bind a tamed mount and build a telepathic connection with it for better communication. You can spend (100 → 50) Mana to summon your mount right to you.

Unlike weapons, you can unbind mounts and give it back its freedom.

Bound mount: Wilt.

This perk has absorbed the power of your Elder Blood and increased its space ability.

Now you may spend 50 Mana to teleport to where your mount is.'

***

Roy was shocked. Wait. I can teleport now? So I can return to that stable in Cintra whenever I want now?

Roy knew this was an important perk, especially in battles. If he was in a dire situation, he could teleport back to Wilt immediately, making it a perfect skill to save his skin.

50 Mana per use? I can cast it three times in a row. Perfect if I need to cover a lot of ground.

"Hm, my perk can enjoy the power of the Elder Blood. I wonder…"

Roy turned his attention to the experience gauge. 'Level 5 Witcher (3080/2500).' Now that I have escaped the worst Brokilon could throw at me, there's no need to keep Full Recovery anymore.

He leveled up, and a surge of warmth coursed through his body, washing off the Water of Brokilon's remaining poison.

'Level (5 → 6) Witcher (580/3500)

Main stat—Will: 10.5 → 11.5

You gain 1 skill point and 1 stat point.'

"Once we get back to Cintra, I'll add this stat point to Will, making it 12.5. Just enough to tame that little griffin by force."

There was also bad news, however. He needed 3500 EXP to level up instead of 3000. The EXP needed has increased. Roy closed his eyes to feel the changes that had happened. He had increased his Will, though he felt no changes at all. Not the point.

'Bound weapons

Hand crossbow—Gabriel (Can be Leveled Up)

(Gabriel has been strengthened three times. Thanks to your Elder Blood, it has gained some degree of spatial ability. You may pick one of the two effects below.)

Instant Shot: Costs 20 Mana. Your next shot will ignore space and reach your target immediately. Limited to effective range.

Blink: Costs 20 Mana. You may transport yourself within the vicinity of Gabriel's bolt (one-meter radius). Limited to effective range.'

"I can't use Elder Blood at will, but the character sheet has added the traits into my skills." This feels magical.

He had two choices. If he picked Instant Shot, his bolts could reach his target while ignoring air resistance, weather, and essentially most elements that would affect them. If his aim was true, his target would have nowhere to run, but Quen, magical shields, armor, and tough hide could still block it.

Compared to that, he preferred Blink. Teleporting to his enemy was useful if he wanted to land more hits. If he used Fear with Blink, he could take his enemy out in moments. And it could be used to evade his enemy's attacks, giving him more flexibility in combat.

Blink it is!

'Gabriel

Type: Hand crossbow

Materials: Cottonwood, tendon, hemp, mana.

Details: Weight (6 → 7) pounds. Bow length (2.2 → 2.3) feet. Draw weight (40 → 50) pounds. Effective range (55 → 64) meters.

Effect:

Simplify: As long as there are bolts remaining in the inventory, Gabriel will reload itself. Reloading time is now 0.4 seconds.

Guided Arrows: Costs 20 Mana. Shoots out a magical bolt. Increases its effective range and armor penetration. The bolt will hone in on the target. It can change its direction up to 45 degrees.

Blink: Costs 20 Mana. You may transport yourself within the vicinity of Gabriel's bolt.'

***

'Steel sword—Gwyhyr

(Gwyhyr has been strengthened three times. Thanks to your Elder Blood, it has gained some spatial abilities…)

Silver sword—Aerondight

(Aerondight has been strengthened one time. Thanks to your Elder Blood, it has gained some spatial abilities…)'

The swords gained the same effect.

'Teleport (New): Costs 50 Mana. Teleports you within the vicinity of Gwyhyr/Aerondight. No distance limit.'

***

Roy felt weird. It was as if his swords had become a spatial anchor. Do I have to throw them everywhere the next time I fight?

There was a reason Blink only cost 20 Mana, while Teleport needed 50. Teleport had no distance limit, while Blink was only valid for Gabriel's effective range.

After he was done clearing things up, Roy heaved a sigh. Fear had a huge boost, and it was his most frequently used skill. His weapons and mount had their own spatial abilities thanks to the powers he gained as well. Another fulfilling trip.

"I might be restricted to my mount and weapons for now, but if I keep strengthening my bloodline…" I will eventually open the gates of the world and cross dimensions.

***

Ciri quietly came to Roy—who was spacing out—and she tugged his pants. "Are you alright, Roy?" She seemed concerned. The trip to Brokilon made her realize something, and that was that Roy truly cared about her.

"Don't worry." Roy set his problems aside and picked the girl up. "I've never been better."

"What about you, Geralt?" He smiled at the White Wolf. "You're not that young anymore. Can you take the poison in the water?"

"After the Trial of the Grasses? This poison is nothing. But it still is lethal for humans," Geralt answered calmly. He did not seem fazed by the ordeal at all.

"Child." Roy looked Ciri in the eye. "Do you feel any changes in your body?"

"I think so." Ciri pinched her chubby arm, and her face scrunched up. "Roy, am I getting fatter?"

"You're a child. You look cuter that way. Anything else?"

"Um… I don't know. I feel like something has changed, but I also feel like everything's still the same. I can't tell."

Roy had cast Observe earlier. Ciri's Elder Blood was still in its early stages of awakening, and most of its abilities could not be controlled. But it must have changed somehow. Probably only shows up when the time calls for it.

"Roy, is there something on my face? Why are you staring at me? Put me down!" Ciri flailed her legs.

Roy laughed, and he put her down. "So what will you do now, Geralt?"

Geralt was standing on Brokilon's border, and there were two diverging paths before him. "I will return to Brugge to finish my mission. Roach is still there. If you want to come with me, I think I can give you a room with a hot bath."

"Sure. We'll go to Brugge, then. And I need to talk to you." Roy was reminded of the witchers who were waiting for him back in Cintra, and he smiled.

"What are we waiting for, then?" Ciri held their hands and started going west.

"Wait, child! That's where Nastrog is. Do you want to see Prince Kistrin of Verden? He is your betrothed, after all. I can understand that."

"But…" Ciri seemed flustered, and a frown furrowed her brows. "But I just feel that something's wrong with the eastern path."

"What is wrong with it?"

"I can't say. It's just a feeling. It's not safe there."

To the witchers' surprise, their pendants started to vibrate after Ciri said that.

"Mana…" Geralt looked at Ciri in surprise. "Elder Blood. Did she awaken some kind of ability?"

"Very well, then. We shall head west." Roy knew Ciri's Child of Fortune skill wouldn't go wrong.

"Actually…" Ciri changed her mind. She didn't want to have anything to do with Verden anymore. "We can head east. It shouldn't be any problem."

"Is that so? Then we shall head east."

***

Ciri's premonition came true moments later. Not even ten minutes after the trio went east, they came out of a patch of shrubs and arrived in a desert. The moment they did, a troop of soldiers appeared out of nowhere and surrounded them.

They wore conical helms, chainmail armor, and dark grey coats that had Verden's royal emblem—black and gold squares—embroidered on them.