Chapter 21
A few days later. Training ground.
Vesemir danced between the robots. They were too slow for him.
Slash, slash, sideways pirouette.
Another robot fell, missing an arm and head. Vesemir used Igni on the next opponent. The fire melted the robot's circuits, turning him into a large, red-hot piece of scrap metal.
Aizawa watched his son. The boy had even trained on Sunday... Together with Power Loader, they tried to understand the scope of Vesemir's knowledge and skills. The problem was that the young Witcher had not shown the full extent of his skills.... He also did not show that strange teleportation that they had seen a few days ago in a music video. Nezu allowed Vesemir to train with robots that even third-graders could have trouble with....
"Your kid has been holding that pace for twenty minutes now. He is fast, strong, and damn durable..." Power Loader said, staring at the data on his laptop. The sword that Vesemir was currently training with was created by him and had tracking technology. He could track the speed of the blade, the force with which he struck, the angle of impact and many other things.
".....but he's not giving it his all. He hasn't even tired. His heart rate is elevated but stable."
Aizawa didn't answer right away. He stared at his son, who had just jumped over the blades of one of the robots and landed in a full pirouette, delivering a precise cut across the neck of the machine.
"Maybe...he doesn't trust us....He doesn't show us everything he can because he might think that one day he'll have to run away...or fight us."
In the meantime, Vesemir raised his hand and wordlessly made the Aard sign. The air in front of him exploded with a kinetic shock, scattering three robots in a radius of several meters. One of them still got up, but after a moment he was stabbed with the sword into the motherboard, which was located at the back. Power Loader shook his head.
"Damn.... 20 minutes and he already knows most of our robots' weak points."
Aizawa smiled like a psychopath... that smile instilled fear in all of his students... that smile meant only one thing.
"Release more robots... and increase the difficulty."
"Are you sure?"
"He'll get bored soon if we continue at this pace."
Power Loader nodded. He did as Aizawa told him.
.
.
.
Vesemir sensed that the pace of the fight had changed. The robots were faster and now attacked in larger groups. He had to be faster now too. He danced among the opponents, moving with his sword. He used it like a pendulum to strike again from a different stance.
Spin, cut, block, block.
Now it was close, but manageable. He decided to use Quen to get between his opponents and slaughter them. An orange spherical glow illuminated him and he moved between the robots.
With one jump he found himself in the middle and began to cut. He moved quickly, but his sword was even faster. His blade sang in the air as it cut through all the robots that came within the boy's reach. Sparks flew with each collision of steel and robots.
With each step he made use of physics and magic. Just a moment ago, he would have lost his head if not for Quen. Quen's orange shield flickered, but it still worked, allowing him to fight in the middle of the circle.
He didn't know how many robots had fallen. Maybe five... eight... now eleven.
Another powerful attack hit Quen, destroying the shield. The spell exploded around him, pushing and paralyzing the robots under the shock wave. A few more moves, a few more cuts... and the last robot fell to the ground.
.
.
Power Loader took a step back, instinctively covering the laptop screen with his hand, as if the explosion of the magic wave could transfer outside the training field. The graphs on the laptop screen were scattering in all directions, overloaded with the sudden change in temperature, pressure and force of the impact.
Aizawa didn't move. He stood calmly, with his hands in his pockets. Power Loader looked at Aizawa.
"What... was that?"
"You're the one holding the laptop. You tell me."
Aizawa was still looking intently at his son, who had just slipped his sword into the sheath on his back and was standing among the scrap that had been created as a result of this fight. His chest was rising in a steady rhythm. Aizawa understood. This wasn't the peak of his skills... the boy had barely warmed up. Finally, he muttered to his interlocutor.
"This wasn't the full extent of his abilities. He didn't use teleportation. He only used three of those... signs... I think that's what he called them. Fire, air and barrier."
Power Loader looked at the screen once more, then slowly closed his laptop. He sighed quietly.
"Aizawa... this isn't a quirk... this is something else. I have no idea what, but my system doesn't pick it up. The fire appears out of nowhere... the air and that barrier too. I don't have any data on the origin of this... power."
They both watched as Vesemir calmly walked towards them. When he was close enough, Aizawa asked.
"Vesemir. What was that? That strange orange glow around you?"
The boy stopped a few steps in front of them.
"One of the Witcher signs. It is used to defend against blows."
Power Loader frowned.
"But... where does it come from? How do you create it?"
"In my world, there is such a thing as magic. Witcher signs are the effects of magic. My grandmother could explain it to you better. She is a sorceress."
"But HOW does it work?"
Vesemir sighed heavily.
"Magic has many sources. It can be the omnipresent chaos, elements such as air, fire and others. Through the so-called 'Conjunction of the Spheres', magic in my world changed.... while in your world, magic either returned or appeared for the first time."
Aizawa muttered quietly.
"So, in our world, not only monsters could appear, but also magic that people can now use?"
"It's not that simple."
"Explain."
"Mages are born with a predisposition to magic... but they must be trained. In my world, there are schools of magic such as Aretuza or Ban Ard, where those who have the potential can become mages... It should be remembered that magic is dangerous. Besides, all mages are... sterilized."
Power Loader looked at Vesemir.
"How do you mean... sterilized?"
"Most mages are unable to have children, due to sterilization during their training. This practice has been adopted in Aretuza. Not all mages are sterilized, but most will never have children of their own. Remember that magic is chaotic, and a child born to a mage... is often born with certain problems, if the child manages to survive the gestation period. At least that's what the mages trained in Aretuza claim. I suspect that this may be partly a lie."
Aizawa was silent for a moment. He looked at his son with an unreadable expression on his face. Before he could ask a question, Vesemir continued speaking.
"My mother is... an heir to elven blood. She has exceptional abilities. They are magical, and yet she gave birth to me. I myself, despite the lack of witcher mutations, can use magic to a limited extent. I believe that mages are deliberately lying, or have been lied to... the reason is simple. Power. Kings who are not mages prefer to have mages under their control. Imagine the possible powerful magical families that conquer the world."
Aizawa glared at his son.
"Then why are you holding back? Why don't you use your full abilities?"
"Hmmm... I guess I'm used to not showing too much if there's no need."
Power Loader crossed his arms over his chest, frowning.
"Why did you do that?"
"In my world, I'm considered a mutant. Only old people have white hair. Using magic left and right is asking for trouble. Not so long ago, mages were burned at the stake in the North. And they weren't the only ones. It was enough to be simply accused of being a mage or a non-human. A neighbor would report another neighbor to the Inquisition, saying that he might be a mage or helping mages, because they had a fight a long time ago. Brothers would report each other. Those were not good times."
Power Loader fell silent, his expression hardening. For a moment, he looked like he wanted to say something, but the words wouldn't come out. Aizawa lowered his gaze, his gaze moving over the ground covered in the remains of shattered robots. It was hard for him to understand that his son was raised in something like the dark ages of the Middle Ages. Witch hunts. The Inquisition... all of this had long been present in this world... something that was history to them, was the present to Vesemir.
Aizawa clenched his jaw. For a moment, he looked as if something was choking him from the inside. Finally, he raised his head and looked straight at Vesemir. He asked the question quietly, but his tone was hard.
"Son... How much of this... did you see yourself and how much of it is stories?" How many times have you seen someone burned, killed or disappear because they were... different?"
Vesemir pondered... he turned his head towards the park, where the lake was...
"I didn't count. Sometimes I took the sword in my hand and did what I thought was right. Sometimes I did nothing. Once, Merdan and I and the team burned a priest who tied elven children to a stake." Power Loader quivered as if someone had struck him straight in the heart. Aizawa didn't look away, but his gaze told Vesemir everything.
"A crowd of people gathered in the village. The priest of the Eternal Fire wanted to burn an entire elven family, starting with their children. We rode into the village on 20 horses, fighting our way through the crowd, hungry for spectacle. This was on lands belonging to Nilfgaard, so as the Crown Prince I had the right to pass judgment... and I did. I told the priest that if he was innocent, the holy fire wouldn't burn him. We tied him to the stake and freed the children. I don't have to tell you what happened next."
Power Loader stood still. He wasn't used to such stories. The boy spoke about this crime as... simply... as if he was preparing a meal.
"How... could you do something like that... burn a man alive."
Vesemir calmly measured Power Loader with his gaze.
"Mind your words, sir. In my world, you would have been killed because you look like a freak. Sir, I won't preach morals to you about what I should have done. When you have a choice between a lesser and a greater evil, many people don't choose... and that's the problem."
Aizawa didn't break the silence. He saw in Vesemir's eyes that shadow of a man who did what others couldn't. Not because of cruelty. But because of responsibility. Power Loader didn't understand it yet...
"But you burned a man at the stake..."
"I saved the lives of this family and the villagers. If I had killed him quickly, then after we left, people would have murdered those elves. Since the priest died burned in the holy fire, the villagers took it as a sign from their deity."
Power Loader took a half step back, confused. There was still opposition in his eyes. Vesemir took a step towards him.
"Don't you dare to ever compare the laws of this world to mine again. In your eyes, I am a murderer. In my eyes, you are a fool who lives in a fairy-tale world that separates him from the truth. It would be better for you if this changed... and quickly."
Power Loader froze, overwhelmed by the weight of Vesemir's words. A mixture of anger, incomprehension, and... shame formed in his head. He didn't answer immediately. He knew that any hasty response could cause irreversible consequences. Aizawa stood between them, looking at Vesemir.
"Vesemir... He wasn't trying to judge you. Just to understand."
Vesemir looked at his father. His eyes were still smoldering with controlled anger.
"You are unprepared for what is coming. The monsters will soon start showing up in greater numbers. Soon you won't have time to understand. All you will have left is to fight. None of you could handle the Wraith. You can't protect people without knowing what you are fighting and believing that sometimes you have to kill someone to save the innocent. This is your weakness, and I don't understand how you could have done it."
Aizawa listened in silence. His eyes didn't leave Vesemir's for a moment. The boy's words were cold, precise, painful. But there was something more hidden beneath them. There was no haughtiness in Vesemir's voice... but experience, reason, and the burden of responsibility.
"You're right. We are not prepared. We need the knowledge you can share with us about the monsters."
Vesemir nodded slowly.
"I'll start writing down what I know and remember. I'm afraid that monsters I've never even heard of may have entered this world."
Aizawa's phone vibrated. He pulled it out of his pocket and saw the message. He showed the photo to Vesemir for evaluation.
"These are Endregas. Poisonous insectoids. I need to prepare a few things and we can set off."
Power Loader shook his head.
"Do you want to set off right after training?"
"I want to set off as soon as possible. My job as a Witcher is to kill monsters that threaten people..... Father... please inform the people responsible for security to secure the area for at least a hundred meters. The Endregas will kill anyone who gets close."
End of Chapter 21