Wizard: This witcher is neglecting his duties.

Chapter 184 The Contest with the Skelliges (Thanks to the generous donor "Cola Without Carbonation Tastes Better" for the donation)

After receiving Queen Calanthe's permission, Wayne greeted Geralt and then got up to walk toward the table where Princess Pavila was.

Of course, this was not because the princess was too beautiful and aroused Lord Wayne's lust.

Rather, from the moment the princess entered the banquet hall, a strange magic began to permeate the entire hall. Geralt should have vaguely sensed it as well, but only Wayne, who possessed the blood of the ancients, truly knew where this power came from.

He walked slowly to the table where Princess Paveta was sitting, and without any hesitation, sat down opposite the beautiful princess.

This action immediately drew the attention of the men at the table. Apart from the warning look from King East, his nephew Kratz almost stood up in a fit of rage.

This young Skellige man, known as the Wild Boar of the Sea, had his eyes almost glued to the beautiful princess Pavita from the moment she appeared; the intense affection in his eyes was almost tangible.

Perhaps in his mind, Princess Pavetta, as the most competitive heir in the Skellige Islands, had already become his chosen wife.

Meanwhile, Skellige Archdruid Mossack, sitting on the far left of the table, looked at Wayne with a curious gaze.

This old druid was Geralt's friend; he was the one who rescued the young Geralt during the Kaer Morhen massacre.

While others were still curious about Lavix of Horn City, he had already recognized the White Wolf and was wondering what the Witcher's purpose was in coming here.

Moreover, as a friend of Queen Calanther and King Ister, this Archdruid had already sensed the unusual atmosphere at the banquet and the magic that was beginning to permeate the surroundings, and was pondering a countermeasure.

After Wayne sat down, Princess Pavita looked up at him with some curiosity, and Wayne returned the smile without the slightest fear. His handsome appearance and gentle smile naturally gave people a good impression.

Unfortunately, at this moment, the fifteen-year-old Sintra princess was preoccupied with her own thoughts, constantly worried about the safety of the hedgehog-man Donnie. She simply nodded politely to Wayne, then lowered her eyes and fell into her own thoughts.

However, this interaction between the two immediately angered King East, who had practically come to regard Pavitra as his niece-in-law. He glared at Wayne and said in a threatening tone:

"Young man, whatever your relationship with Lavicks of Horn City, you seem to be sitting in the wrong place. This seat at the table is not for just anyone."

Wayne was unconcerned by King Skellige's threat. Not only did he barely operate within the Skellige Islands and therefore not need to care about the other party's attitude, but he also had no intention of actually doing anything to Princess Pavira.

This is the mother of Ciri, the future daughter of destiny. Ciri is probably several months pregnant with her now.

However, speaking of this, we have to criticize that damned hedgehog man, Donnie. He's an old man in his thirties who goes to the palace every night to seduce other people's princesses. He's like an old cow eating young grass, and he's gotten a young princess pregnant by several months. He's simply a beast.

Moreover, this guy never had any good intentions. The fact that he was able to save King Rogner might have been a well-orchestrated show by the sorcerer Vigo behind him, with the aim of breaking the curse of the hedgehog man on him by taking advantage of the accident rate. Perhaps he was also planning a famous conspiracy about the ancient blood.

Wayne had actually considered taking down the hedgehog man at the banquet, but after reviewing a lot of current intelligence about the South, he gave up on the idea.

In fact, more than a decade ago, the Kingdom of Nilfgaard had already begun to annex other small countries, expand its military, and develop its military strength. However, such news rarely circulated among the northern kingdoms, and the northern kings, who were still fighting over petty gains, paid little attention to news from the south.

This led to the Nilfgaard Kingdom expanding at an extremely rapid pace over the past few decades, quickly becoming an empire with immense military power.

Therefore, even without the hedgehog man dancing on a grave in the future, the Civil War will inevitably break out.

In fact, it was precisely because of the ambitious and prickly man's repeated failed expeditions and squandering of the national strength accumulated by his father and even his grandfather that Nilfgaard, this powerful military empire, rapidly declined.

The Civil War is the inevitable trend of the future, and it cannot be stopped by killing one or two people. Moreover, even if the Civil War is stopped, it will not benefit the Witcher. On the contrary, killing the Hedgehog Man will make him Ciri's father's killer, which is simply not worth it.

Wayne, maintaining a smile, looked up at the dark-skinned, hook-nosed King East and said with a laugh:

"Your Majesty King of East, please rest assured, I am neither a suitor of Princess Pavira nor a rival of your nephew. The reason I am sitting here is because of a secret mission given to me by Queen Calanthe."

As he spoke, he glanced at Kratz, the sea boar who had been staring at him with a defiant gaze, and slowly pulled out several decks of Gwent from his pocket, saying with a smile:

"This joyous banquet would be too boring if it were just about drinking and eating. How about we play some fun games?"

As people who have always been engaged in maritime piracy and trade, the Skelliges are no strangers to Gwent, a game that can be played all day long while sitting on the deck, and is a favorite of many captains.

Kratz, the sea boar, was a big fan of this, but the red-haired Skellige youth didn't immediately accept the challenge. Instead, he first looked at Wayne with disdain, then extended his muscular, thick, and powerful right hand, and provocatively shouted:

"We Skelliges never play Gwent with cowards. If you want to play Gwent with me, we'll have to have a manly contest first."

"You can choose to drink with me or arm wrestle with me. You don't need to beat me. As long as you can last thirty seconds in my arms, I will respect you as a warrior."

Upon hearing this, Wayne looked at the sea boar with a strange expression, wondering why he, a witcher, would arm wrestle and drink with him.

All I can say is, young man, you've narrowed your options. Not to mention that his physical abilities are among the best of all witchers, four or five times better than the average person, even just considering Wayne's past experience of drinking potions mixed with high concentrations of alcohol like beverages, you can imagine how much alcohol he can handle now.

Of course, the reason Kratz said that is probably because Wayne's current attire does not show his characteristics as a witcher, making him look like just a strong and handsome human boy.

In order to demonstrate his masculinity in front of Princess Paveta, this sea boar made such a bet.

As Kratz shouted, the young Skellige men behind him immediately surrounded him, joining in the commotion and using provocative words to provoke Wayne.

Since these people were courting death, Wayne wouldn't tolerate it. His smile remained unchanged as he glanced at King East's expression. Seeing the king's smug look, clearly confident in his nephew's abilities, Wayne then addressed Kratz and the young men behind him:

"No problem, I've always heard that the warriors of Skellige are all passionate and generous men."

"Since you've put forward the challenge, of course I won't refuse. However, a one-on-one drinking contest or arm wrestling is too boring and not manly enough."

"How about this, we'll have both kinds of competitions together. Everyone who wants to arm wrestle with me, we'll first drink a whole bowl of strong liquor, and then we'll arm wrestle. The loser will then have to punish themselves by drinking another whole bowl, until someone on both sides collapses."

At this point, Wayne added with a smile:

"Moreover, for each round of the competition, we have to put up one hundred gold coins as a wager, until only one winner remains on the field, and all the prize money goes to that person."

"How about this, isn't it more interesting?"

Everyone present was not stupid. Under these competition conditions, those who participated later would definitely have the greatest advantage, while those who participated first would suffer the most.

Before Kratz could speak, one of his captains immediately shouted:

"I'll challenge you first!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Skelliges immediately brought over two large bowls of strong liquor and a small purse containing a hundred gold coins, which they threw on the table.

Wayne chuckled and did not refuse the captain's challenge. He took a large money bag full of hundreds of gold coins from his belt, placed it on the table, and threw it directly into the betting pool without even counting the coins.

This extravagant gesture immediately sparked whispers among the Skellige people, some clearly taken aback by Wayne's lavish demeanor and confident actions.

Regardless of what others thought, Wayne casually picked up a large bowl of strong liquor, drank it down in one gulp as if it were water, then stretched out his right arm, raised his eyes to signal to the man opposite him that the match could begin at any time.

As people who spend their lives sailing the seas and making a living by raiding, the Skelliges are all very confident in their strength. Without sufficient strength, how could they possibly maneuver sails and steer the ship on the high seas?

Without the slightest hesitation, the captain immediately extended his right arm and pressed it against Wayne's right arm.

He straddled the table with one hand on his hips, his muscles taut, clearly taking the arm-wrestling match very seriously. Wayne, on the other hand, sat casually in his chair, a gentle smile on his face, seemingly not taking the strong captain seriously.

This stance, besides causing dissatisfaction among some, also made others feel uneasy.

As a Skellige shouted for the match to begin, the burly captain opposite Wayne roared, veins bulging on his forehead, and with all his might, he forcefully twisted Wayne's wrist and pressed it down.

His companions cheered him on loudly, instantly bringing the atmosphere to a climax and attracting the attention of all the surrounding guests.

However, they kept shouting for twenty or thirty seconds, until the captain's eyes were wide open, his face turned red, and his thick arms trembled slightly, while Wayne's arm, which was right next to him, did not move at all, not even trembling.

A few dozen seconds later, Wayne leisurely picked up a glass of red wine with his other hand, tilted his head back and gulped it down before looking at the Skellige men, whose expressions had become serious, with a confident and indifferent gaze.

Then, he slowly pressed down with his right arm, gently pressing the captain's right arm, which was already red from straining all his muscles, onto the table, winning the first match with a crushing force.

Upon witnessing this scene, not only King Ister and the sea boar Kratz, but also the Skellige delegation watching all realized that their opponent was no ordinary foe.

However, the Skelliges were known for their resilience and willingness to face any challenge. Their ability to conquer the seas through courage and experience in the Middle Ages, an era with limited maritime technology, speaks volumes about their character.

Following the initial captain's defeat, the other members of the Skellige delegation did not back down and all challenged Wayne one by one.

Wayne readily agreed to all of them. He drank bowl after bowl of strong liquor and used his primal strength to defeat the Skellige strongmen one by one. By the time the money pouches on the table had piled up to nearly two thousand gold coins, the Skellige delegation opposite him had been almost entirely defeated by him, leaving only King East and Kratz who had not yet challenged him.

After drinking more than a dozen bowls of strong liquor, even with Wayne's superhuman physique, he felt a slight intoxication. His feat of defeating more than a dozen Skellige strongmen drew everyone's attention to him in the banquet hall. Even Princess Pavira, who had been mostly silent, was secretly observing the handsome young man Wayne with curiosity.

In fact, at this point, there was no need for any further competition. Everyone knew that even if King Ister and Kratz joined the fray, they would be no match for Wayne. Moreover, the many lords from Sintra's vassal states and their own country were already smiling, waiting for Wayne to embarrass these two great nobles of Skellige.

Unfortunately, Lord Wayne could not possibly do that. The delegation had already lost face by defeating more than a dozen Skelliges in succession. If King East and Kratz were to lose face as well, it would likely affect Queen Calanther's plans.

He could even feel the sharp, sword-like gaze roaming over his neck, and the owner of that gaze was none other than Queen Calanther, who sat in the main seat.

Facing the solemn gazes of King East and his nephew Kratz, Wayne suddenly laughed, reached for the money bag on the table, pulled it in front of him, then withdrew his arm and took out the two decks of Gwent he had just received. He then addressed the two Skellige nobles:

"The warriors of Skellige are truly brave and passionate men. Each of them has an amazing capacity for alcohol. After drinking so much, I'm already a little tipsy."

"Your Majesty, Mr. Kratz, how about we stop our arm-wrestling match and play a few rounds of Gwent instead?"

As he spoke, Wayne winked at Princess Pavira, who was secretly watching him, and said with a smile:

"I suppose the beautiful Princess Pavira has never played this kind of game before. It would be a good opportunity for her to learn. Once she learns this game, it will surely add a lot of fun to her otherwise boring life."

Hearing Wayne, who held the upper hand, say this, the quick-witted King East immediately seized the opportunity and said to the young Skellige behind him:

"Yes, Mr. Wayne is right. Let's put an end to these crude contests of drinking and strength."

"Today is the day Princess Pavira chooses her husband, a celebration for the Kingdom of Sintra. We should play some civilized games."

As he spoke, King East looked at Wayne, his expression complex, but with a smile on his face, and said:

"Come on, Wayne, I'm a pretty famous Gwent player in Skellige."

"Let's play a game and see who has better skills."

(End of this chapter)