Wizard: This witcher is neglecting his duties.

Chapter 32 Gargoyle

Crossing the arched stone bridge over the pond leads to another dark corridor carved with various exquisite murals.

Several armed elves and dwarves stood guard on the terrace outside the corridor, protecting their inhabitants from monsters rushing in from the other side of the corridor.

Upon seeing Wayne approach in full armor, the elves and dwarves nodded respectfully to the witcher, showing their reverence.

Unlike the ordinary residents in the camp, they, as warriors, could better appreciate the power of the Witcher.

The dozens of water ghosts that were killed yesterday are still fresh in my mind. Such a large number of them could only be defeated by an army of more than twenty people.

However, just two witchers were able to kill them almost without taking any damage, and judging from the wounds on those monsters, almost every one of them was a fatal blow, a level that ordinary people could never achieve.

He deserves our respect.

Wayne responded with a smile to the dwarves and elven warriors' attitude, feeling a sense of pride.

No one dislikes being respected, especially witchers who risk their lives to eliminate monsters.

Unfortunately, there are too few reasonable people in this world, and too many ignorant and unruly people. Coupled with the deliberate guidance of the ruling class and the Church of Eternal Flame, the profession of Witcher, which should be respected, has ended up in this awkward situation.

It's embarrassing.

Upon entering the corridor, it was still pitch black, but with the help of the cat potion, Wayne was able to see his surroundings clearly.

This site should have been undisturbed for thousands of years. Even if there were any traps or mechanisms set up back then, they would probably have been damaged by time.

Wayne gripped his sword and carefully made his way forward, quickly passing through the corridor and arriving at a huge room that resembled a banquet hall.

The banquet hall was very large. Although it had no windows, the walls were carved with exceptionally exquisite marble reliefs, especially the ceiling, which was a huge landscape composed of various bizarre sculptures.

The hall is very spacious and must have been furnished with many exquisite pieces of furniture in the past.

But these wooden furniture pieces have long since turned to dust over thousands of years, leaving only some metal items that still retain some of their original appearance.

A pang of regret flashed through Wayne's mind. He took a step forward, about to continue exploring the interior of the banquet hall, when the Witcher badge on his chest suddenly vibrated, accompanied by a barely perceptible buzzing sound, like a vibrating cell phone.

Wayne was startled and immediately stopped moving, gripping his sword tightly as he carefully observed his surroundings.

This was the first time he had encountered such a situation, but he knew exactly what he was going through, both in the game and through Vesemir's teachings.

My badge started vibrating. There must be a sorceress nearby, or rather, there must be traces of magic nearby.

Wayne squinted and moved even more quietly, carefully walking along the wall, trying to reach the back of the banquet hall to see where the traces of magic came from.

However, the owner who designed this site was quite capable; perhaps he was a magician himself, or perhaps he invited a highly skilled mage to help him.

As Wayne stepped into the dance floor area of ​​the banquet hall, he heard a cracking sound coming from the ceiling above him, like rocks breaking.

Before Wayne could even look up to see what was happening, a powerful gust of air swept down towards his location.

In an instant, Wayne's hair stood on end, and without thinking, he rolled to the side and left the spot.

Bang! Crack! Crack!

The sound, like a boulder weighing several tons crashing down from a great height, sent a shiver down Wayne's spine.

He braced himself with one hand on the ground to steady himself, and looked up to see a hideous monster, resembling an overweight goblin, standing where he had been standing.

This monster was made entirely of grayish-blue stone, with a blank face, glowing eyes, and a pair of deformed wings on its back, making it completely unlike a normal monster.

However, Wayne recognized what it was at a glance.

Gargoyles are stone statues that have been given life. They are mostly used to protect the laboratories or treasure rooms of mages. They are controlled by a gem called the Gargoyle Heart, which was developed by the mages. They are quite troublesome to deal with.

After all, this monster can no longer be considered a carbon-based life form. Its entire body is composed of hard stone, and ordinary weapons will only scratch the surface of the stone and destroy the sword, without having much effect.

Fortunately, the master witchers of the past had already thoroughly studied this monster, and the weaknesses of gargoyles were recorded in detail in the monster knowledge they learned in Kaer Mehen.

Besides being vulnerable at the joints, these monsters are also afraid of the Witcher's Silver Sword, which is infused with magic-resistant metal.

Although the silver sword's effect on them is far less clean and efficient than cutting flesh and blood, it can still kill them if enough damage is accumulated.

In addition, these monsters are also afraid of anti-magic bombs. When they are enveloped in the dust of anti-magic bombs, they lose control because their magical power is blocked.

The book described these monsters as having thick skin and immense strength, but they were quite slow-moving and not invincible enemies.

Wayne let out a soft breath, picked up the silver sword Geralt had lent him, cast an enhanced Quen shield around himself, then released a massive Yarden magic trap on the ground, and focused his mind to await the gargoyle's attack.

If this monster weren't completely mindless, attacking enemies solely according to the program set by the mage, and utterly immune to the burning of the Igni sign and the control of the Aard and Axie signs, he would never have chosen to confront it head-on.

The gargoyle that fell to the ground remained standing in place.

Seemingly because it had never been activated for thousands of years, the gargoyle's internal program sluggishly or was obstructed. It stood there blankly for more than ten seconds until Wayne almost couldn't hold back and launched the first attack. Only then did this huge, fat creature stagger and pounce on Wayne.

However, when the two came together and Wayne actually fought it, he discovered that this stone monster was not as difficult to deal with as he had imagined.

Because the gargoyle's reaction speed was too slow, or rather, Wayne's speed was too fast.

With his own abilities and the system's enhancements, Wayne's swordsmanship is comparable to that of a master assassin from the Cat School. He can easily roll and leap behind the gargoyle to dodge the monster's powerful attacks. Often, by the time the gargoyle finally turns around to face Wayne, its back joints have already been attacked several times.

When the two are face to face, Wayne only needs to roll around a few times to dodge the slaps and trampling, and he can get back behind the gargoyle and attack its weak points at will.

Finally, after Wayne flipped over the gargoyle for the seventh time and repeatedly slashed at its back joints with his silver sword, he succeeded.

The enormous gargoyle could no longer hold on. From its limbs and neck to its torso, it broke apart like a jigsaw puzzle, scattering into many scattered parts on the ground.

Among these parts, a fist-sized, red and green, crystal-like magical artifact from the gargoyle's chest cavity also fell in front of Wayne.

This is the Gargoyle Heart, the source of power for the magic statue.

While it may not be considered extremely valuable, even less so than a warhorse, it could still provide enough for an ordinary person to live on for several months if traded to scholars or mages who study magic.

(End of this chapter)