The Divine Hunter

Chapter 489: Potion and Evolution

[TL: Asuka]

[PR: Ash]

The house was smaller than Roy had anticipated, but it had everything he needed. A hearth sat in the center of the lounge, and a big cauldron hung over the flames. A store room stood beside it, and the racks within were empty, waiting for the house’s master to fill them up.

Roy stepped onto the creaking stairs, coming to the second floor. He looked around and saw two bedrooms standing by the narrow corridor. They were both decorated in an astonishingly similar manner. A wooden bed with hay and skin sheet and a chest at the end of the bed. There was a candelabra standing on the nightstand, but not much else. Moonlight shone into the room through the window, lending it a quiet feeling.

The moons were shining beautifully in the night. “This is going to be my base in Skyrim from now on.” Roy lay down on his bed and smiled. He was reminded of the excitement Flynn felt when he saw his house. He looked like a guy who was going on his first date. Arvel looked calm, if not a bit confused. He had carried out his daughter’s last wish, and now he had nothing to live for.

Roy’s companions had gone to sleep, but Roy held his throbbing chest and wiped off the blood from his lips.

‘Hp: 100/320 (internal injury, fire breath injury, dragon blood mutation)’

The injuries were serious. Most people would’ve lost consciousness by then, but Activate managed to stop the condition from getting worse, yet it couldn’t solve the root of the problem. Roy sat up and meditated for two hours until his Mana had recovered, and his spirits were high.

Three bottles appeared on the wooden table before the window, and they were filled with liquids of different shades of crimson. One was dark red, the other was bright crimson, and the other was light red. These were the essences of Mirmulnir, Gruffyd, and Coral. The bottles glistened and glimmered under the pale moonlight, magical bubbles moving and breathing within them.

The dragon’s blood was different from the other essences. The mana in it was made up of soul and light, while the other essences’ mana was made up of chaos energy. It was a little different from the recipe the Master of Mirrors gave him, since he made it with the witcher world’s dragon in mind, but Roy had no choice.

He stood in front of the table and put his hands on the surface, his eyes glimmering with determination, then he took a deep breath and quickly moved his hands. The blood was poured into a special glass cup the size of a fist, and not a drop of the blood was spilled. The essence was split into three different layers. From top to bottom was: Coral’s blood, Gruffyd’s blood, and Mirmulnir’s blood. There was a silver line between each layer of blood.

Like an artist painting a picture, his hands danced across the herbs and ingredients, picking the colors he needed and adding them into the blood. Merigold, buckthorn, longrube, and more. He stirred the mixture, and a whirlpool appeared on the surface of the liquid, bubbles quickly surfacing to the top. The mixture quickly changed colors. First it was multicolored, then a deep crimson, then a bluish-green. The more the colors changed, the less the liquid remained. Slowly, it evaporated, and only half a bottle was left. After ten color changes, the liquid condensed into a deep-gold concoction that was only a finger deep. An inexplicable, irresistible sweetness came from the cup, filling the air with its scent. Roy thought he could hear something whispering in his ear, telling him to drink the concoction.

The witcher gulped and held the cup in his hands, then his mana flowed out of his fingertips, pierced the glass, and merged with the liquid within. If he had a microscope, Roy could’ve seen the reaction between the minuscule particles, and it was violent. As violent as a meteor crashing into the earth, burning everything around it.

Ten minutes later, Roy was out of mana, and the concoction took another form once more. This time, it was as silent as the water in an old well, as deep as the sky without light. He raised the cup and swirled it, but the liquid lost all scent and was as plain as water. Through the moonlight, Roy checked out the liquid, and that was all it took to get lost within the scenery.

‘Tempering Potion

Components: Blood filled with mana and life (dragon, sorcerer, higher vampire), longrube…

Effect:

This potion contains incredibly condensed mana and life force from other types of living beings. They can react with the user’s blood and change regular bloodlines into something with a higher affinity for magic, strengthening the user’s latent potential and talent.

Your Elder Blood can evolve should you consume this concoction.

Note: Tempering Potion is an unstable concoction. The effect grows weaker with time, and it will lose all powers after an hour. Consuming this concoction will purify your bloodline. However, this process will be accompanied by a sense of discomfort and a chance of death.’

Roy shook his head, smiling. He had gone through two Trials, and that was the worst thing he had ever encountered. Nothing more could scare him, and besides, he had no choice. He hesitated for a moment and reluctantly unstrapped his blades and placed them on his chest. He then engraved some simple message with the empire language he just learned. Should he die from this ordeal, the blades would be given to Flynn and Arvel.

Then Roy gulped down the concoction. It slithered down his mouth and dropped into his belly. Feels a lot better compared to the dragon blood. He let go of the glass and sat on the bed with his eyes closed, and he tried to feel the concoction taking effect.

A surge of warmth came up from his belly and enveloped his whole body. For a moment, it felt like he was in a hot spring, and the water was massaging his whole body, delighting his every cell. A few moments later, that comfortable feeling was replaced by discomfort and a prickly sensation. Everywhere there was blood, there was a battle raging within. The fighters were his own blood and the concoction. They battled and clashed vigorously, while Roy felt like a thousand steel needles were piercing his skin, cutting his blood vessels, muscles, bones, and skin. He quietly lay down on the bed and curled up.

Blood flowed out of his pores and openings, drenching the sheets in red. His face was covered by sweat and blood, and pain made his veins and vessels pop, contorting his very visage. The only sound he could make was a gasp, and his cheeks were puffed as he gnashed his teeth so hard he could break them.

Still, the witcher did not roar. The pain he felt from taking the second Trial was worse than this. The concoction destroyed the defenses his blood created, consuming and assimilating them into itself. The witcher’s blood was consumed, and bit by bit, some golden blood appeared. The Elder Blood.

It was not threatened by the concoction, instead, it retaliated fiercely, gobbling up the concoction that consumed Roy’s blood, taking in all its power, including the mana and life force. The Elder Blood was nourished, and it quickly expanded within the witcher’s body.

Five minutes later, the witcher heaved a sigh, and his cheeks relaxed. The Elder Blood had consumed all the concoction, and twenty percent of the witcher’s blood was now Elder Blood. As if by choice, they took up residence in the most important organs of the human body, including the brain.

When the Elder Blood was nothing but a small part of Roy’s body, it refused to even move an inch, but now that it was one-fifth of Roy’s blood, the Elder Blood was slowly creating more of its own kind. Still, without the concoction as nourishment, this transmutation would take probably a few centuries to complete.

The witcher opened his eyes, and they shone like the moons in the sky. He leapt out the window and disappeared from the keep.

Roy washed his face and stood up, cheering himself up. He then turned his eyes to the sky, and the constellation of The Warrior shone beside the moons, swinging its blades around. Roy closed his eyes and felt the air closely. His mind went into the void and passed through the walls between dimension and universes.

Eventually, he reached a place he knew very well. Gryphon.

“Rawr?”

Gryphon!

“Rawr, rawr!”

Billions of miles away, a beautiful griffin raised its head from the branch it was napping on, its eyes wide. The beast opened its beak and roared in delight. It leapt off the tree and wagged its tail so hard it might fall off its rear, and then it rolled around the fallen leaves, revealing its belly. It was almost trilling, and there was a hint of complaint in its voice.

“Sorry I didn’t call, but I had no choice. Everything’s fine here. I’m traveling, but I’ll be back soon.” Roy spun around and swung his fists happily. That vague connection with Gryphon now felt a lot more concrete. The griffin was the waypoint his Worldgate needed. The key he needed to get back home.

He then changed his vision and looked at the world through Gryphon’s eyes. The river around him disappeared, changing into a patch of alder forest standing under the darkness, and the only source of light was the moon above.

“The House of Gawain. Go there, and don’t wake anyone. I just want to take a look.”

***

Ten minutes later, Roy finally saw the orphanage. The walls were filled with graffiti, and the children were sleeping quietly within the house. Roy heaved a sigh of relief. The grandmasters left them alone, but this doesn’t mean we’re safe.

***

He closed his eyes to feel something again. Aside from Gryphon, he felt three more concrete bonds. One was from Arvel, and another was from something he didn’t know. It was in the same world as Gryphon, but Roy thought it felt really weak. Who could it be? I’ll figure it out when I get back. The third one was from Flynn.

The witcher didn’t move, but two hundred Mana had been taken from his reserves, and a black door tore open the space before him. It was big enough for one person to pass through, and Roy stepped into it. He was greeted by a dark corridor. There was darkness within, but the void was filled with rivers of stars. Every star would lead to a different place. A different world. The waypoint of his world stood right before him, and it shone bright like a beacon.

The witcher leapt at it, and he jumped into a clean, albeit stark room. The first thing he heard was a loud snore, and when he took a closer look, he saw Flynn sleeping soundly on his bed. He was having a nice dream, perhaps, a big grin curled across his lips, and his stubble was drenched in his drool.

“Perhaps he’s dreaming of Adrianne. Lambert’s going to love having someone with the same interest in women.” He looked at the Dragonborn. After taking in the dragon soul, the Dragonborn’s body was still undergoing a change. His Constitution, Strength, and Dexterity was already at rank one (ten points per rank). Even his Spirit and Charisma were increasing. And his injury from the dragon’s breath was healed as well.

Do Dragonborns gain their strength from consuming dragon souls? Hm, that’s a bit like my character sheet. Oh, I see. So that’s why we’re connected. Because we consumed the same dragon soul. My mount counts as a waypoint, and this soul is a waypoint too. Even if Flynn dies, as long as his soul lives, I can still find my way back here. “Alright, thanks to him, I can fulfill my promise to Arvel before I go home.”

***

Roy left Flynn’s house and teleported out of the keep’s walls, charging ahead on the plains to work off some of his excitement, then he meditated under a big tree. The sky was his blanket, and he meditated until his Mana was restored fully, then he summoned his flame atronach. Roy looked at his minion and mused. If I can use the dragon’s soul as a waypoint, then can I use this minion as a waypoint and grant me access into Oblivion? It did take a bit of my EXP as payment. He dispelled the minion and let it return to Oblivion, then Roy tried to feel the creature, and a smile curled his lips. Knew it. Through the bond, he crossed the clouds, the stars, and the moons, and he entered an eerie place that was ever changing. Roy felt flames and magma roiling around him.

Compared to the bond he had with Flynn, Arvel, and Gryphon, this was a weak one. It was almost nonexistent, like the dying light of a candle. If he used Worldgate on this bond, he might end up somewhere else in Oblivion.

The atronach took too little EXP. Which means the only way I can have a reliable waypoint in Oblivion is to get myself a stronger and greedier minion. Roy wasn’t in a hurry to explore the domain of the Princes. He would put it off until he could understand On Oblivion fully.

***

Roy went around the plains and caught himself a wolf who tried to attack him. He knocked it out with Axii and cut off a part of its tail, then he beheaded the wolf. Roy tossed the tail five yards away and placed the head and body together. He then held his breath and looked around in a circle that covered him and the carcass.

He then, without chanting or making any movement, cast another spell. Two hundred Mana was taken from his reserves, and the world around him spun. The power of time stepped in, and Roy’s dizziness disappeared, and his Mana was restored to its full capacity. The hands of the creator stitched the carcass up together, and the wolf returned to life, though he had no tail left.

Once again, it pounced at the witcher, forgetting that it had died once. The witcher didn’t take long to pin it down again. He looked up and saw the tail he cut off lying on the cold, hard ground alone. “Everything in the Ring of Time changes depending on the stage of time I leap into. It can even reverse death, but things outside the ring aren’t affected.” Roy mused. Hm, twenty seconds is probably not enough for Arkay or the Princes to take the deceased’s soul, or the Ring of Time can only revive an empty shell.

“If I use this well, this can save my life in a lot of sticky situations.” Roy imagined a scene where his companion was shot in the head during battle, and then he would cast the Ring of Life to revive them. Wait. I can use this on more than one ally. As long as they’re in my ring, I can revive them. I can revive an army if they can fit in the ring. And if I’m also in the ring. I can restore all my Mana too. It’s a free revive. Still, the twenty-second limit and 200 Mana cost is a bit too steep. And I can only use it once a day. No, wait.

Roy whipped out Aerondight and caressed the blade. Sherry sang a hymn, and Guardian’s blessing was now placed on the Ring of Time.

‘Ring of Time Level (1 → 2): Costs 180 Mana. You may use this skill 2 times per day.’

I have more leeway now, and this should work on Worldgate too. “I can’t believe Guardian can buff abilities stemming from Elder Blood. This is more useful than I imagined. But these abilities only level up through the ingestion of Tempering Potion. Wonder if the second dose can make it stronger. Gotta see if Gruffyd’s blood can help.”

Roy looked at the horizon. Dawn was breaking through, and just like that, the night went by. He patted the head of the terrified wolf, and he said, “You escaped with your life. Treasure it.” He tossed a bone to the wolf and let it run off into the wilderness. And then he thought about his friends in Skyrim as well as the court wizard. “Time to say my goodbyes and get some answers.”