Wizard: This witcher is neglecting his duties.

Chapter 7 The Test of Completion

After a night of drinking and chatting, all the Witchers except Wayne, who hadn't been drinking, were drunk.

With no other option, he had to carry the drunkards back to their rooms one by one, like carrying sacks on his back.

According to past memories, Kaer Morhen is the home of the School of the Wolf. Vesemir, Geralt, Lambert, and Eskel, the four Witchers of the School of the Wolf, would return here almost every winter before the heavy snows closed the mountains, unless they were distracted by other matters.

Besides them, there was a witcher named Belengal who would occasionally return here to recuperate. He was a rather quiet man, and apart from Vesemir, his relationship with the other three was not particularly close.

During all those years of training, Wayne had only seen him once, in one winter.

Having played the Witcher series, he knew that this Witcher would eventually be captured by a group of Vizimar gangsters and sorcerers, forced to reveal the location of Kaer Morhen, and also compelled to disclose the secrets of the Trial of the Green Grass, ultimately triggering a series of events.

However, these things haven't happened yet and have nothing to do with Wayne now.

Throughout the winter, with four skilled witchers by his side, he trained even harder, especially in swordsmanship. The four swordsmen with different styles fought against him or against each other, which increased his practical experience day by day.

Unfortunately, not long after, heavy snow blocked the roads between Kaer Morhen and the outside world. Affected by the cold weather, the harvests from both fishing and vegetable planting were far worse than before.

This took away a lot of fun for Wayne, but fortunately he gained a few more companions. In his spare time, he would take the food he had made to these veteran witchers and listen to them tell him about the monsters and quests they had encountered in the past.

It also allowed him to learn a lot, including various customs and interesting stories that he couldn't learn from books.

Time passed quickly. The winter in Kaer Morhen lasted about three months. When the ice and snow melted the following year, Geralt, Lambert, and Eskel all left the castle again.

Witchers don't earn their money by chance; to survive and fill their stomachs, they must travel around the world on missions to hunt monsters.

In the following year, perhaps having gained some recognition of Wayne's abilities, Vesemir no longer stayed by his side every day to help him train. Instead, after assigning training tasks, he would take time to go down the mountain to find work and earn money.

He had to cover all the expenses of training Wayne. Although the old Witcher had some savings, money always dwindled with each passing year, and training a Witcher was quite expensive.

The days of training in Kaer Morhen always passed very quickly. Wayne did not slack off at all, honing his abilities day after day, and also diligently studied almost all the books in the castle about monsters.

During that year, he successfully reached level five in Witcher, and his swordsmanship and sign levels reached level five and level eight, respectively.

Not only that, he also gained a special class perk that could be awakened using ability points when he reached level 5 skill level.

Swordsmanship Specialty: Cat's Agility. Grants cat-like agility and instinct for danger. Effect: Increases weapon attack speed by 25% and Intuition by 3.

Sign Specialty: Powerful spellcasting. By briefly charging up and consuming more mana, you can cast more powerful signs.

Combat class bonuses and two class specialties have significantly improved his combat abilities, far exceeding the standards that a typical Witcher apprentice can achieve.

When the winter of that year came and the mountains were blocked by heavy snow, and the Wolf School witchers gathered in Kaer Morhen, Wayne, who was already sixteen years old, finally could not bear the loneliness and asked his mentor Vesemir to let him graduate.

"Master Vesemir, I hope to officially descend the mountain and become a true Witcher next spring."

Upon hearing Wayne make this request, Geralt, Lambert, and Eskel, who were all present, all had different expressions.

Before the old witcher could speak, Lambert said sarcastically:

"Little guy, don't be too arrogant. Although you have good talent, you've only been learning swordsmanship for a few years and you want to graduate already."

"I don't want to end up collecting your corpse in a monster's lair someday."

Eskel took a sip of beer and echoed, "..."

"Although Lambert's words are unpleasant to hear, I agree with his point of view."

"Wayne, you're still young, don't be impatient."

"We've seen many fledgling young witchers who didn't die at the hands of monsters, but from various accidents, from the hands of mobs."

"You still have a lot to learn and need to spend a few more years accumulating experience."

"We Witchers have very long lifespans; you have plenty of time to grow."

Geralt remained silent, observing Wayne with curiosity, wondering why his fellow disciple was in such a hurry to graduate.

The old witcher, Vesemir, had a very serious expression. He stared intently into Wayne's eyes for several seconds before finally asking:

"Why, child? I have always taught you that the most important things for a Witcher are patience and caution."

"You are still in the learning and growth stage, and you shouldn't be impatient for quick results."

"Tell me, what are your reasons for doing this?"

Wayne gave everyone a serious and sincere smile and said to his mentor:

"Teacher, I have memorized all the books in the castle, and I am quite proficient in the Wolf School's swordsmanship."

"I think it's becoming increasingly difficult for me to improve by continuing to practice in the castle."

He looked at the old witcher's wrinkled face and said softly:

"You once said that practice is the best teacher."

"In order to reassure you that I can graduate, I have decided to go all out and challenge several senior members of the Wolf School."

"I hope you can make a decision after you have seen my capabilities."

Upon hearing this, Vesemir gave his apprentice a deep look. He wasn't a domineering person, and since Wayne insisted so strongly, he considered for a moment, then sighed and said:

"Since you insist, child."

"Then let's wait until tomorrow morning, at the castle's training grounds, and see what makes you so confident."

Lambert laughed heartily and immediately said:

"Kid, you just need to be beaten down by reality."

"Let me be your first opponent tomorrow. I'm going to teach you a lesson: you can't be too arrogant and complacent."

"I won't hold back. Just wait until you're all black and blue."

Wayne didn't care about Lambert's provocation. This guy was a born sharp-tongued, a born debater, and a true-hearted witcher.

He smiled and nodded at Lambert, saying:

"Then you'd better watch out, Lambert, I'll do my best too."

(End of this chapter)