Shift! The Side-Character Heroine

Olivia and Cirilla became legends after the “Tide of Thanedd Island.” Finally, Cirilla was no longer eclipsed by the magnificence of her little sister!

It was Olivia who had fabricated rumors and spun tales to pass the merit to her sister. Vilgefortz was no match for her, yet she did not want her ability to be known. Management and leadership was her cup of tea, rather than brutal battles.

How could a civilized leader behave like a barbarian, slaughtering those who opposed her with bare hands? She needed a knight in shining armor, someone who could ensure her safety and kill a legendary source mage such as Lord Vilgefortz. Cirilla fitted the bill.

With help from her sister, Cirilla’s name rose to renown. In the past, she was only known as “Olivia’s sister.” Now she was called the “Lion Cub of Cintra.” Nobody dared to challenge the one who took Vilgefortz’s head!

Of course, all this was all thanks to the reputation that Lord Vilgefortz had built for himself. He had started off as a famous source mage among spellcasters, single-handedly defeating at least twenty high-ranked source mages. He had manhandled Triss and Yennefer to such an extent that Yennefer had walked away from it without her sight…

Through all these battles, Vilgefortz was assumed to be the Number One Character across the land. People would shiver when they heard his name, especially spellcasters. Who would stand and face such a terrible man?

Who would have thought that Vilgefortz would be defeated by two young sisters, Cirilla and Olivia? Most of all, Cirilla was the one who took his life?

Yes, Cirilla was swift and pounced at her opponent’s weak spots. She was a good match against strong opponents such as Lord Vilgefortz. Still, Lord Vilgefortz was known for his undisputed close combat mastery. It was terrifying!

Now, Cirilla actually eclipsed the White Wolf Geralt. He was a legendary witcher who was quickly defeated by Vilgefortz with a staff and had helplessly watched him fight his two daughters. Geralt was not someone to be trifled with, but rumors had oversold him. One would think that he was a deity in the trappings of man. With such a defeat, people started to doubt if he could actually jump from two stories and land without getting hurt.

Cirilla, the “Lion Cub of Cintra,” was no small fry. All she needed now was fighting experience. With her “blink” and fine swordsmanship, nobody would stand against her in single combat!

Every leader was shocked by the death of Vilgefortz, including the leader of Scoia’tael, Francesca Findabair Not long ago she had had a great night with Vilgefortz in a ball. They both shared the same level of charm and strength.

That’s right, Francesca was a founding member of Lodge of Sorceresses, and was known to be the fairest of them all.[1] She was a pureblood elf with dark gold hair and beautiful blue eyes. As a sorceress, she was capable and magnificent, having powerful elven spells at her disposal.

Olivia, the Pearl of the Northern Kingdoms, was now known for her leadership. Her beauty had often been compared with Francesca. Those who prefer mature ladies would choose Francesca, while those who preferred youthful and energetic women would choose Olivia.

Francesca could be cruel at times. She had once said that “To live in peace, we first must kill. This is the cruel finale of human’s nature.” [2]

If one were to take a closer look at the sentence, it basically said, “Peace could only exist if we fight for it, tolerance would only eliminate peace.” [3]

Francesca was the only Elven Queen across the land, yet her authority was only limited to Dol Blathanna.[4] Like other sorceresses, she loved to dabble with politics, and was never one to shy away from sacrificing others to her ends. Most of the Elves outside Dol Blathanna claimed that Francesca was the thief who stole Scoia’tael’s victory. She had sent Scoia’tael to be slaughtered by humans as a condition for her to be queen and build her own elven kingdom.

Francesca could not believe that Vilgefortz had been slain. Even she did not have the guts to challenge Vilgefortz. She had pure elven blood, but was no good in close combat. Lord Vilgefortz had fought countless battles on his own…

Even the righteous protagonist had been crushed like a bug. Of course, protagonists lead tough lives too.

“Cirilla” had been etched on Francesca’s heart. It kept her awake at night…

During the coup on Thanedd Island, she had used Artefact Compression on Yennefer and spirited her away. Yennefer was like a mother to Cirilla!

Artefact Compression was a powerful spell that some mages used. The spell enclosed the victim in a jade shell and downsized them to the point that they could fit in the palm of their hand.

Only a powerful mage or sorceress could cast this spell. It allowed the caster to take the victim prisoner without worrying about any escape attempts, as well as conveniently stow them away. The trauma was highly dangerous to the victim and could cause organ damage to them. Should the target survive the compression process, they would remain comatose and unaware of their surroundings. When decompressed, victims are typically disoriented, dehydrated and in a weakened state.

In the Thanedd Island coup, Francesca Findabair had cast Artefact Compression on Yennefer and smuggled her off the island to Dol Blathanna.

Francesca had wanted to blackmail Yennefer into joining the Lodge of Sorceresses. Now, she was no longer as sure…

Translation Note:

[1] The Lodge of Sorceresses arose from the ruins of the Brotherhood of Sorcerers after the incident on Thanedd Island essentially killed the older order among mages. It was a secret organization composed entirely of female mages and even referred to as a sisterhood due to no men being invited, as the sorceresses saw men as too incompetent to handle governing areas of magic.

[2] This sentence was recorded on “Francesca Findabair: Queen of Dol Blathanna”, one of five possible Gwent leader cards for the Scoia’tael deck in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt.

[3] Words from Mao Zedong “以斗争求和平则和平存,以妥协求和平则和平亡”,

[4] Dol Blathanna known also as the Valley of Flowers in Elder Speech, was a kingdom and now an allod to Aedirn. It is bordered on the north by Kaedwen and the Blue Mountains to the east. It belonged to the elves for ages until humans came and laid claim to the land about one hundred years ago, and the elves fled to the mountains.