The Witcher: Make Witcher Great Again

Chapter 413: Hold on Firmly, There Will Be a Way

The woman chickened out.

As expected of Philipba Ehrhardt, even when she's chickening out, she still insists on putting on airs and refuses to speak properly.

But... oh well, that's just how this woman is anyway.

In the original storyline, the "Kingslayer," who was used as a pawn and tool by Philippa, turned around and ruthlessly tricked Philippa and the Sorcerer's Guild.

This completely ruined the reputation of the sorceresses' gathering place.

The mastermind behind the "Kingslayer" was none other than Emhyr Emreis, the Emperor of Nilfgaard.

But Philippa didn't even dare to hate the other party, and even wanted to switch sides and serve the other party.

Of course, someone like Philippa wouldn't stay subservient to others for long.

Her desire to become Emhyr Emris's court advisor was nothing more than a way to replicate what she had done in Redania when the time was right.

However, this is enough to prove that as long as your fist is bigger than Philippa's, she won't dare to act recklessly.

"Cooperation? Of course, I would be happy to cooperate with the future Queen of Redania. However, Lady Philippa, you should be worried not about me, but about the Brotherhood of Warlocks."

“I know what you’re thinking, Witcher,” Philippa sneered. “Don’t even think about using my ‘magic’ against me.”

“No, you don’t know.” Lynn shook her head, her expression sincere.

"If you really knew, you wouldn't have come looking for trouble with me."

He paused for a moment, then continued, "You should know about the newly enthroned Emperor Emhyr Emris of the Nilfgaardian Empire, right? He is the son of Fergus Emris."

"His father was overthrown by a highly influential nobleman from the city of the Golden Tower, and he himself was transformed into a hedgehog-like demi-human monster by a sorcerer named Blasens."

Philippa paused for a moment, then asked, "Wait, how did you know all this?"

Philippa, of course, knew about these things.

But she was puzzled as to where Lynn had gotten that information.

After all, a mere witcher is nothing like her, a court advisor of Redania, who also controls the intelligence network of an entire nation.

“I have my own sources of intelligence,” Lynn said, looking at the dumbfounded Philippa. “This demi-human monster, or rather, the former imperial prince, changed his name to ‘Doni’ and, while wandering in the forest region of Sintra, encountered the then-wounded and helpless Sintra prince, Ebin’s Rogner.”

"After saving the other party, Doni used the Law of Accident on him, which means that he asked Rogner to repay the life-saving grace with 'something he did not know but actually already possessed'."

"Ms. Philippa, I think you should know what this is, right?"

Philippa nodded: "Pavita, the late princess of Sintra."

"Exactly."

Philippa was naturally aware of what had happened in Sintra many years ago.

Calanthe, the lioness of Sintra, longed for a son her entire life.

However, fate played a cruel trick on us.

She has only one child.

She was also a princess.

When Princess Pavita of Sintra turned fifteen, Queen Calanthe, who ruled Sintra, held a marriage selection banquet for her.

The banquet was attended by many nobles, including those from the Skellige Islands, as well as a witcher.

That was the famous Geralt of Rivia.

But the real purpose of this marriage selection banquet was not to choose a partner for Princess Paveta, but to get rid of the hedgehog spirit who would take her daughter away as a gift when the time came.

Calanther had planned to use Geralt to get rid of Donny at the marriage party (because Calanther was certain that Donny would come back fifteen years later to claim his reward).

However, by a twist of fate, Donnie's curse was lifted.

Therefore, Pavetta eventually married Doni.

The couple also had a daughter named Celia.

Then, Doni and Paveta died in a shipwreck, leaving only Ciri to be raised by Calanther.

Thinking of this, Philippa suddenly asked, "You just said that Emhyr Enris is Doni? Then Doni is Emhyr Enris?"

Lynn smiled slightly: "Ms. Philippa, what you said is truly a great lesson to me... However, yes, they are the same person."

Philippa frowned and said, "That ship is in trouble..."

Lynn spread her hands.

"Of course it was deliberately created, with the aim of secretly returning to Nilfgaard and reclaiming the throne."

Upon hearing this, Philippa gasped in shock.

This amount of information is simply too much.

Even she felt her head buzzing.

If what they just discussed is true, then...

"To fake one's own death by shipwreck in order to deceive others, but it is impossible to do so without the help of a sorcerer."

“The sorcerers of the Nilfgaardian Empire will only be loyal to the emperor, and it doesn’t matter who the emperor is. In that case, the only ones who can help Emhyr Emrys are the sorcerers of the North.”

Lynn clapped his hands in admiration: "Bingo, your guess was absolutely correct!"

Philippa snorted coldly.

"Hmph, in the end, this is just your side of the story."

Although that's what he said, Lynn could tell from the sorceress's expression that he already believed her to some extent.

“Ms. Philippa, you may not believe me, but with your control over Redania’s national spy network, you should be able to easily gather information about the warlocks within the Brotherhood of Warlocks who have betrayed the North and secretly defected to Nilfgaard.”

“You’re a smart man. Once you verify information from multiple sources, you’ll naturally know whether what I’ve told you is true or false.”

Philippa crossed her arms in front of her chest.

“I will naturally verify it, but… I suspect you’re telling me so many secrets because you want something in return. So, tell me, what do you want?”

“I’ve already said it, Ms. Philippa, you shouldn’t be worried about me. In other words, we can actually be allies.”

"ally?"

If Lynn had said this before telling Philippa about Emperor Emhyr Enris's past, Philippa would have scoffed at it.

But now, Lynn has proven enough that he is no ordinary witcher.

At least, most warlocks, if unable to cast spells in front of Lynn, are no different from lambs to the slaughter.

Therefore, Philippa began to seriously consider Lynn's proposal about forming an alliance.

"Ever since 'Pure White' Rafald was suppressed by the Warlock Brotherhood, the highest position a warlock can attain is only the position of royal advisor. Ms. Philippa, don't you find it a pity? Don't you feel regret?"

Lynn stretched out his hands, a seductive expression on his face just like the one worn by the shampoo boy.

"Whether they are kings or nobles, no matter how noble their bloodline, they are still just mortals. Yet warlocks and demon hunters, who are clearly extraordinary beings, are forced to submit to mortals. Why? And by what right?"

In the end, Philippa was persuaded by him.

She promised not to cause Lynn any trouble.

Lynn promised to remain silent about Philippa's subsequent attempts to steal the country. Watching Philippa leave, transformed back into an owl, Lynn finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"Now, it's time to act quickly."

……

The merchants of Novigre were completely dumbfounded when the Thyssen family returned to their loyal followers, Kowell and Povis.

Because Novigrad is the closest country to this far north, the country will almost always choose to purchase anything it needs from Novigrad.

Including dyes.

In the past, the two kings who ruled Cowell and Bovis both had a strong preference for blue.

Therefore, whether it was the clothing of its courtiers, the uniforms of the army, or the flags, there was an extremely high demand for indigo dye.

However, times suddenly changed.

The Thyssen family, which once ruled Cowell and Bovis, is back.

Furthermore, the Thyssen family didn't want indigo dye; they only wanted carmine.

At this moment, the merchants of Novigrad were surprised to find that the entire market of Novigrad's Carmine had been swept clean by a nobleman from Toussaint.

As a result, the merchants from Cowell and Povis could only do business with the professional manager under that nobleman, who made a fortune from them.

While Dudu was raking in gold coins from Kowell and Bovis, on the other side, Lynn led his army and left the Marquisate of Targo.

However, he did not rush to the Isparden Dominion immediately.

Instead, they went to Maruul, which borders the Principality of Targos.

When the Povis split, Maruil, along with Creeden, Kangon, the Arc Coast, and Holoppel, became independent.

The Arc Coast then became a vassal state of Redania, and Marul, along with Kreidon and Holoppel, was formed into the Henvers Alliance by Kangon.

When they previously invaded the Principality of Targos, various city-states sent a considerable number of troops.

After the war was lost, some people were lucky enough to return to their hometowns, but others never returned.

All the city-states, including Maruul, were severely weakened.

At the same time, a great deal of dissatisfaction with King Niedamir emerged.

Therefore, Lynn believes that now is the best time to enter the Humphries League.

Therefore, Lynn marched to the walls of Maruil, claiming that the Humphries Alliance had previously invaded the Marquisate of Targo and that he was now there to seek justice for the Marquisate of Targo.

Lynn tied a letter to an arrow and shot it into the city.

The letter demanded that Count Marul pay 100,000 linta (the currency used by the Humphries League) as war reparations.

Not long after, a signal arrow was shot down from the city wall.

The letter attached to the arrow said that the amount of 100,000 linta was too large, and even the count who ruled Marul could not raise such a large sum of money in a short time.

He hoped to have a few days' grace, promising to personally present the compensation in a few days.

Lynn wrote another letter, tied it to an arrow, and shot it into the city.

"My Lord Count."

A guard took the letter from the arrow and handed it to Count Marius.

Count Maruer opened the letter with a mixture of anxiety and nervousness.

Immediately, the tension disappeared.

"My Lord Earl?"

In high spirits, Count Maru casually handed over the letter: "Read it yourself."

The guard respectfully accepted it with both hands and looked down at it.

The letter contained very little, just one sentence:

—Grand Duke Augustus of Cowell, with kindness and generosity, granted Count Marius's humble request.

The guard's face lit up with joy: "My lord, we don't have to fight anymore?"

Although 100,000 linta is not a small sum, who cares? He didn't agree to these humiliating terms. He's just a guard with a fixed salary. Why should he worry about it?

But if his side could reach an agreement with Kovir's army, that would be a real benefit for him.

After all, he and his family lived in this city, so it would be best if there was no war.

“What are you thinking?” Count Maruel sneered. “It’s just a way to buy time.”

"I was prepared to be rejected, but I didn't expect them to agree so readily. They were too naive. This way, we can at least buy ourselves ten or fifteen days."

"Ten days to half a month is enough for us to forcibly conscript the people in the city to defend it. The enemy only has a mere three thousand men. As long as we hold firm, the enemy will retreat on its own."

Seeing his guards standing there in a daze, Maruer snorted in displeasure, "What are you all standing there for? Go down and deliver my military orders!"

After urging his guards to leave, Count Marius picked up his wine and began to drink.

However, he thought of something and summoned another guard, instructing him to notify the officer on duty to double the manpower for night watch.

Although an agreement had been reached with Grand Duke Augustus, Count Marius was still uneasy.

What if the other side is also trying to lull us into a false sense of security, and has no intention of negotiating at all, but instead launches a night attack?

It should be noted that the northern and southern camps that besieged Iwato Castle were defeated because they were attacked at night.

Even though Maruul's walls are taller and stronger than those of ordinary military camps, it's always good to be cautious, otherwise, there's no going back once a serious mistake is made.

Time soon came to night.

After dinner, Count Marius would normally have gone to bed early.

But the thought of the three thousand troops outside the city made Count Maruer not even dare to take off his armor.

Boom, boom!
Outside the window, thunder rumbled.

Soon, a torrential downpour began, starting in an instant.

Count Maruer suddenly had a bad feeling.

He summoned the captain of his personal guard.

"Call everyone together, let's go up to the city wall and take a look."

'The Earl certainly knows how to pick his timing...'

The captain of the personal guard thought to himself.

He certainly knew there were enemy troops outside the city, but hadn't he already reached an agreement with the enemy?

Now that we've already yielded, the enemy can just sit back and collect the money. Why would they bother with a forced attack on the city?

However, although the captain of the guard thought this way, he dared not show it, much less be negligent.

The guards were assembled very quickly.

Surrounded by his personal guard, Count Marius and his entourage walked toward the city gate.

(End of this chapter)