Chapter 13: The King's Commission
The middle-aged man looked at Arthur and disdainfully addressed the guards behind him:
"Look at this! A warrant privately issued by some backwoods Baron can mobilize the guards of the capital city gate of Temeria!"
The guards practically bowed their faces to the ground, shaking like sieves: "Mayor, Sir Ignatius claimed in his letter that he was willing to pay all costs incurred during the arrest operation…"
"Nonsense!" the Mayor scolded. "Your duty is to guard the order of the Empire and uphold the King's dignity! You allowed yourselves to be ordered about by an outsider for a bit of coin, and even caused a loss of one hundred and thirty Orens in entrance taxes!" (Oren: Temerian gold coin. The current exchange rate to the Crown is 6.5:1.)
The guard raised his head and answered decisively: "Yes! I will return immediately to draft a letter, reprimanding Ignatius for his disrespectful behavior and demanding he compensate the three hundred and seventy Orens in financial losses caused by this disturbance!"
The Mayor waved his hand, and the guard instantly ran off as if granted a reprieve.
With the commotion at the city gate settled in just a few words, Arthur also tried to sneak away, but the Mayor called him back:
"Although I didn't issue the warrant, I still have to ask, for the sake of procedure: is this really not you?"
Arthur looked at the wanted poster. It was undoubtedly a drawing of him standing in the Baron's hall, with his expression of indignation captured vividly.
But he still braced himself and said: "It's not me."
The middle-aged man stared at him for a moment and then suddenly smiled:
"It's clearly you in the picture, but don't worry. I don't intend to arrest you. I have something I'd like to ask for your help with. Come, this is no place to talk. Clean up, and we'll speak in my office."
As he walked away, he muttered, "The Velerad family is becoming increasingly unreliable. They actually claim this fellow's voice possesses magic…"
Arthur thought the so-called 'clean up' meant a body search, but instead, he was taken to bathe and given clean, coarse clothes. Although there was hardly any service, being free of the sticky sweat made him feel much better.
"Answer whatever the Mayor asks; don't try to be clever," the guard instructed, knocking on the Mayor's office door.
"I am Velerad, Mayor of Vizima." Mayor Velerad sat behind his desk, playing with a heavy scepter. He looked quite authoritative, but his voice was unexpectedly amicable.
Arthur boldly spoke up: "My mentor was unjustly detained by the Baron of White Orchard. I came here to ask the Royal Court to save him. Since you are the Mayor, can you…"
Velerad raised a finger, interrupting Arthur:
"The Baron of White Orchard has no right to arrest people on my territory. Likewise, I cannot issue orders to a powerful, landed Baron. The Royal Court is equally limited in its effect. However, this matter is not entirely without recourse—the King has recently encountered some trouble and has put out a commission for a Witcher. If this matter can be resolved properly, you understand what I mean, yes?"
Arthur nodded, waiting to hear the details of the commission. But Velerad did not continue, instead staring into his eyes:
"Only, there is a small problem. You don't look like any Witcher I've ever seen."
Arthur: "I haven't completed the Witcher Trial yet, but you can trust my abilities—two days ago, my mentor and I hunted a Royal Griffin."
"I don't doubt that much." Velerad snorted through his nose and tossed a crumpled piece of paper in front of Arthur, signaling him to open it
[WANTED: WITCHER
A dangerous Witcher has gravely offended Sir Ignatius and is currently on the run.
This man is named Arthur Dayne, from the Pontar Delta Colony, which is further evidence of his psychological distortion and lack of reverence for law and order.
Any person who captures this individual and delivers him to the Castle of Amavet in White Orchard will receive the Friendship of the Velerad Family. All expenses incurred during the capture operation will be reimbursed.
Note: This man's voice contains magical power, potent enough to kill a griffin. Do not give him a chance to speak!]
Arthur crumpled the wanted poster and scoffed:
"He certainly thinks highly of me. Claiming my scream can kill a griffin…"
But the Mayor didn't laugh. He stared at Arthur and asked seriously: "Can your scream really kill a griffin?"
"Of course not."
"What about smaller things? Say, dead cows or horses?"
"Not those either."
"Even smaller? Would it harm dogs and cats?"
"Only if they were walking a tightrope a dozen meters in the air."
Arthur was bombarded with questions, making his head ache. He raised his hands in surrender:
"Mr. Mayor, a voice is just a voice. A voice can't kill a griffin, nor any other creature. This is a malicious trick by Ignatius. He hopes someone will simply kill me, so his own wicked deeds won't be exposed."
The Mayor nodded thoughtfully, then handed him a parchment:
"I'll provisionally accept your version of events, but I must warn you: you are absolutely forbidden from yelling or shouting at the Princess."
The Princess…
Baffled, Arthur looked at the parchment in his hand. Compared to the White Orchard warrant, this commission was far more solemn in its wording and script, though it also contained much more unnecessary verbiage.
The opening section of the commission stated in mournful tones that, due to the machinations of certain malicious individuals, Princess Adda had once again been cursed. Her appearance had drastically changed, causing extremely adverse effects in the palace area. The Princess's own physical and mental health was also under grave threat.
Therefore, the King was recruiting champions from all over the world. Anyone who could lift the curse without harming the Princess would receive the gratitude of the Royal Family, as well as a reward of one thousand Orens.
Arthur lifted his head from the parchment, looking suspiciously at the Mayor: "How long ago was this commission issued?"
Velerad sighed: "About three months ago. Why do you ask?"
Arthur rubbed his hands, hope igniting in his eyes:
"The reward listed here is substantial; it shouldn't have taken three months to solve. What kind of curse is the Princess suffering from that it's so troublesome you had to condescend to release me from a likely jail cell?"
The Mayor rubbed his nose: "Can't I simply be acting for the sake of legal dignity and justice?"
"With all due respect, what you've done far exceeds what's necessary to maintain the dignity of the law." Arthur was diplomatic, but inwardly, he was thinking about everything he had seen and experienced on the way.
The Mayor sighed, pointing to the end of the parchment:
"You will surely become an excellent Witcher someday; you have that kind of intuition. See the method of lifting the curse here? To remove the curse on the Princess, someone must spend a night with her in the crypt. But she is no longer a delicate young girl. She is a two-meter-tall creature of immense strength! Every man who craved the wealth and royal favor has been torn to shreds by the Princess."
Arthur blurted out: "I heard a white-haired Witcher lifted this curse before. Why not ask him for help again?"
This time, it was the Mayor's turn to look awkward:
"You're right. Geralt did indeed lift the curse on the Princess using that very method."
He rubbed his hands awkwardly: "But that was ten years ago, and the reward back then was three thousand Orens…"
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