The Divine Hunter

ng is different from what the Viper School teaches.” Letho gesticulated clumsily.
“If we continue with our traditions, you’ll be well fed and sheltered, but you’ll also be locked in Gorthur Gvaed and trained for years.
You’ll never enjoy anything there.
Auckes, Serrit, and I think that being in this kind of state weakens the trainees’ will to live.
The 100% failure rate of the Trial of the Grasses over the past twenty years relates to this.
It’s time to change if we don’t want the Viper School to disappear.
The old witchers usually only start taking requests after they finish school.
But now, it’s also a part of the test.
Only by supporting yourself can you know how hard it is to make money.
That’s the only way you’ll treasure it.
And only by forming a deep bond with the material world can you stare death down in the trial,” Letho concluded.

Roy kept quiet.
He thought what Letho had said was sophism, but he had a point.
One of the training methods involved locking the disciple up, while another let them do whatever they wanted.
Letho went for the second one, though Roy had some objections.
“If we spend all our time working, how are we supposed to train?”

“Well, you seemed to have well handled it along the way.” Letho patted his shoulder.
“I trust you can find the balance, boy.
Don’t forget what you learned.
It’ll help you survive.”

“Is this a challenge?”

“If you think it is.
Or it can be a test, if you wish.”

Roy relented.
He’d been angered in the beginning, but excitement welled up within him after he’d calmed down.
Can I survive in a big city like Aldersberg with my own skills? “Are you leaving me?” Roy asked.
He noticed the hints in Letho’s explanation.

“Don’t worry,” Letho answered.
“Just a temporary separation.
I have to get an ingredient for your preparatory potion, and it’s in a dangerous spot.
Going solo makes it easier for me, so take this chance to explore.
Once I get back, the only time you’ll be alone is after you pass the trial.”

Roy smiled bitterly.
In other words, I’m left behind because I’m too weak, and I would’ve been a burden.
“What’s this preparatory potion you talked about?”

“It’s a potion with a lower toxicity level.
It’ll help you adapt to the Decoction of the Grasses.
You’ll need it, since it can gradually increase one’s resistance to poison.
Can’t just take the Decoction of the Grasses right away.
It’s too poisonous.
All the trainees would die.”

Roy could understand why Letho wanted to go alone.
“How long will you be gone? Will I be learning anything else?”

“About a month or two.
Give me a moment.” Letho took out a black leather note from the horse’s saddlebag.
“You know a lot of herbs now, so it’s time to start potion-making.
There are more than a dozen recipes here, and the note has some common monster traits written in it.
Should be enough to last you a while.”

“Humans use normal potions, while witchers use potions and decoctions brewed with magic.
This is going to be your basic alchemy training.
That’s all I have to say, boy.
Time is of the essence.” He patted Roy’s shoulder.
“You’re a disciplined one.
Don’t disappoint me.”

“Wait.
Do you still have that Dragon’s Dream you used against those drowners?” Roy had to get something to protect himself after Letho’s departure.

PR/N: For those who don’t remember, Dragon’s Dream is a kind of alchemy bomb infused with flammable gas.

Letho thought about it before handing a green, glass canister to him.
“You don’t know how to cast Igni, so Dragon’s Dream won’t be of any use.
Dancing Star’s a better choice.
Once this canister is smashed, a circle of fire with a ten-feet radius will appear.
Even if it’s underwater, the effect’s going to last for a long time.” Letho warned, “Be careful when you use this.
It’s the last one in stock.
The materials alone cost a hundred crowns.
Keep this as your trump card, and don’t use it unless absolutely necessary.”

“I understand,” Roy answered.
“And how am I supposed to know when you’re back?”

“I can find you as long as you’re still in the city.”

Letho left without another word, and a short while later, he was but a little speck in Roy’s eyes.
Roy kept Dancing Star in his inventory space, feeling safer with it around.

***

When he opened the old, ancient, leather notebook, the words inside jumbled up and floated around him, giving him a headache.
He realized one big miscalculation.
I probably only know about a hundred words in common speech, and that’s including my parents’ names and the herbs Letho taught me.
How am I supposed to learn this on my own?