The Witcher: Lord of the Empire

After hearing Eist's plan, Lann turned to look at King Bran. "What do you think of this, Your Majesty? If I may be frank... this is extremely dangerous."

King Bran's face was no calmer than Lann's. In the past, he had repeatedly persuaded his brother not to take risks, but he never succeeded.

"In Skellige we value three things above all else: honor, the achievements of our ancestors, and legendary weapons." King Bran sighed. "Eist pursues glory with determination, and at the same time follows in the footsteps of our ancestors. As his brother, I should support him..."

"Then give me your support." Eist intervened. "I will take fifty elite warriors from our clan with me and find a blacksmith who will forge me a weapon capable of defeating the ice giant. Then, I will set sail for the island of Undvik."

"Don't worry, my brother." King Bran said quickly. "I have invited the other five clans to a meeting in three days on the island of An Skellig. Lann and I will try to convince them to support your cause. Perhaps you will not have to become king, nor risk your life..."

"Even if they agree to help, that kind of support would never be as effective as a revenge mission for the king." Eist replied, unconvinced.

Lann tried to persuade him as well: "Maybe we don't have to rush so much. Let me try first. If it's not possible, we can rethink our strategy regarding the ice giant."

Even Ciri, who still did not fully understand the magnitude of the danger posed by the Frost Giant, joined in. Seeing Bran and Lann's worried expressions, she sensed that it was a terrible threat and feared that her grandfather might be in great danger.

In the end, Eist sighed and reluctantly agreed to allow Lann and Bran to negotiate with the other clans first. However, in the meantime, he would also begin preparing his team, waiting for the right moment to act.

King Bran cast a grateful glance at Lann and Ciri. To change the subject, the king decided to stop talking about the ice giant and steered the conversation towards the situation on the continent, in the north and in the south.

"Nilfgaard..." King Bran sighed. "I never imagined that it would become such a huge power. I remember when I could still go by boat and plunder its City of Golden Towers."

"I have also plundered that city." Crach finally said, having remained silent until then. "It is a beautiful city. When the sun shines on it, everything looks like gold. At that moment, I truly believed everything was gold... only to leave empty-handed.

"In those days, that city was the entire territory of Nilfgaard." Eist added, frowning at the memory. "Emhyr... who would have thought that man would be able to turn a small city into this gigantic power in such a short time?"

Eist's words caused everyone to fall silent. Although Nilfgaard was their enemy, no one could deny Emperor Emhyr's skill and ambition, nor the Empire's current strength.

King Bran took a deep breath and slapped his forehead. "Let's forget about those times gone by. Since the enemy is already here, the only thing we need to think about now is how to confront them."

"There are still a few days before the banquet begins. What plans do you have during this time, Lann? How about I arrange a few people to take you around?"

Lann thought for a moment before answering.

...

"Can you tell me more about the ghosts on the mountain?"

At Kaer Trolde Harbor, Lann addressed a peasant-looking man.

Seeing Lann and the three witchers behind him, as well as the forty Cintra soldiers accompanying him, even the brave Skellige man couldn't help but show a nervous expression.

"By your armor... are you from Cintra? Who are you and why do you care about this?"

"I heard the sailors talking about it, and they told me that you know the details. I came to ask you for information." Lann replied politely. "I am Lann Lannister of Cintra."

Behind him, Milva and House exchanged a look and sighed.

Back when they were in Brokilon, the duke had already shown an enthusiastic interest in helping to resolve trivial matters. Back then, it was understood that his intention was to ensure the stability of his land, but now, here he was again, even in Skellige!

The peasant looked at Lann in astonishment. At first he thought the name sounded familiar, but after looking at Lann's cloak, hair, and eyes, he suddenly remembered who he was.

"Are you the Lion of Cintra?" The man exclaimed, surprised. "I've heard your stories at the tavern! Sailors and merchants always bring up your exploits. Your performance on the battlefield sounds truly inspiring, man!"

"By the gods! You look only a little older than my son! Don't worry, boy; I can't speak for other clans, but the people of Ard Skellig definitely support you. We have scores to settle with Nilfgaard, too!"

Behind Lann, House clenched his fists. How dare this peasant be so irreverent? He considered whether he should break the peasant's hand for touching the duke on the shoulder.

Lann, however, did not care. To him, respect depended on context; if a noble treated him this way, he would feel offended, but coming from a simple man, it was not a cause for displeasure. Besides, they were in Skellige.

"Yes, yes," Lann replied, smiling. "Crach is my cousin, and he invited me to spend some time here. I thought maybe I could help out. Hearing rumors of a ghost on the mountain, I wondered if I could be of assistance."

The man continued speaking: "You want to know about the ghosts on the mountain, you have asked the right person, listen to me..."

Soon, a system alert sound resonated in Lann's mind.

[New Quest Discovered - The Cabin in the Woods:

The villagers built a cabin in the mountains as a shelter for hunters and lumberjacks. However, a tragedy occurred, and a tormented spirit has haunted the place ever since. The villagers' axes are useless against this intangible being. Perhaps a witcher can solve the problem.]

Lann nodded with satisfaction, turned back and thought about it, and stretched out his hand. "Geralt, are you willing to make a trip? I will arrange Milva and five people to follow you. Can you teach them how to deal with this kind of evil spirit? This task is also registered in the castle, and you can get a reward. The bounty will belong to you at that time."

Geralt sighed. "Of course, although I'm intrigued... what are you trying to achieve with this?"

"The Order of Witchers." Before Lann could respond, Coen interjected. Patting Lann on the shoulder, he added: "That's what our Griffin School should do... No, that's what all witchers should do!"

"Leave that task to me, Lann. I don't need the reward. I'd rather the money go to the families affected by the Specter. They need it more."

Facing Coen who suddenly felt a sense of mission, Lann couldn't help but twitch his mouth. "No, no, Coen, that's not necessary... I want to discuss this matter in the future. Although the bounty is nothing to me, it is still indispensable for the entire witcher group..."

After patiently persuading Coen to calm down, the witcher, full of motivation, set off with Geralt towards the mountain.

Kolgrim, arms crossed, watched his two companions walk away, then looked at Lann. "And me? What work do you have for me?"

Unlike Brokilon, where Lann could gather quests and sit in the comfort of his study waiting for experience points to come in, here he had to go out in search of quests himself.

"House!"

"I'm here, sir!"

Lann pointed to the tavern: "Go and gather information for me. Not just about quests; find out what you can about the other clans of Skellige, especially their stances on Nilfgaard and Cintra."

"Yes, sir!" House nodded firmly. And when he looked up, he saw just in time a bag of coins being tossed to him by the Duke, before he caught it.

"Don't skimp on paying for a few drinks if you have to. The people of the islands aren't very formal, so act naturally. And if they give you trouble, you don't need to be too restrained. Cousin Crach can help us handle the consequences, you don't have to worry about anything."

House, somewhat stunned, held the bag and touched his waist. "Ah... Sir, the reward you gave me last time has not been spent..."

"Then take some colleagues and teach them how to collect information. If you form a good team, the job will be easier."

"...Yes, sir."

---

I will post some extra Chapters in Patreon, you can check it out. >> patreon.com/TitoVillar

---