[Chapter Size: 2600 Words.]
Third Person POV
Hengfors League.
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All three of them were still continuing their journey to the south, but they still had to make a change of route, as they finally spotted a property they were looking for.
"This is the Abutec family estate. Are you sure you want to do this? This will slow us down a bit." Geralt asked Madara from atop his horse.
"Ciri and I had training in monster hunting, but it's good to put some things into practice. Not for me exactly, but Ciri needs it, since she's only been facing physical monsters, none spectral." Madara said, already aware of the problem in advance after gathering information from the town's mayor.
Geralt listened to Madara's reasoning and ended up agreeing.
Madara transformed into a kunai, while Ciri picked it up. Ciri now had her hair dyed black and wore men's clothing. Despite her well-developed feminine body at that moment, it was enough to put on clothes resembling those of a slightly chubby boy so she could disguise herself.
Thus, they proceeded to enter the lands of the Abutec family, with two horses, leaving Madara's behind. They passed through several hills until they had a view of a vast vineyard with people working here and there, as well as guards scattered around watching over the place, and there was a huge house in the distance like a mansion, with a cluster of small houses where the workers lived.
They were quickly spotted, and a group of guards approached them.
"Stop! Who are you?" They stopped in front, immediately demanding their identities, looking suspiciously at Geralt with those inhuman eyes.
"We received this from the mayor of the city of Barhim, further north. He said your lord has a job. I also have to collect the money promised to me for hunting some monsters in the region." Geralt said, while the men took the letter, checked the seal, and thus allowed them entry without much more trouble.
"Alright, follow us. But if you try anything suspicious, our lord won't think twice about executing you. Understood?" he said, while Geralt nodded and followed the two further into the property.
The mansion came into full view shortly after, as the men informed the guards and let the witcher enter with the "chubby boy."
They stopped after passing through the gates and arriving at the courtyard, where there was a slightly chubby blonde noblewoman with two children walking outside, observing them with curiosity.
Soon, the woman asked to be let in, while Geralt and Ciri dismounted from their horses. A man in aristocratic clothing approached them with the look of someone in charge there, gazing at the witcher with curious eyes and a certain gleam.
"A witcher? That's great. I heard about you being in the region in recent weeks. I thought you were further north. Lucky me." He said, seemingly referring to the other witcher they had encountered more than a week ago.
"Anyway, I am Lord Lucas Abutec. Welcome to my estate, which my family has cared for over generations. I am surprised by the letter you brought. Since you have defeated dozens of monsters in the region, I will make the payment, as the mayor confirmed it, despite it sounding unbelievable. However, I also need you to do something for me." He said, without extending his hand to Geralt or showing any interest in greeting him.
"Yes." Geralt simply gave a nod.
"Let's go inside. We can talk better in there." He said, and both headed into the house, going straight toward the stairs.
"I'd like to speak only with the witcher." The nobleman said near the entrance to his office, while Geralt had to leave Ciri waiting. Geralt nodded, going in alone, while Ciri stayed there at the entrance, waiting with the guards.
"Tell me, chubby boy, do you also want to be a witcher? Don't you think you need to get in shape first?" A guard mocked as soon as the door closed.
Ciri looked at him as if he were an idiot before ignoring him, laughing with his friend, another guard at the entrance.
Geralt sat with the nobleman, who explained his situation.
"You understand, witcher, how to get rid of this thing that's haunting my family's house? Every night we feel it walking around... frightening my wife and children!" The nobleman said after his explanation.
"I understand. I'll have to investigate before I can be sure of what I'm dealing with." Geralt said, listening attentively.
"Alright. Feel free to ask whatever you want, as long as you don't disturb my family." He said, and Geralt nodded.
Leaving the place, he found Ciri with the nobleman's son, a boy of about six or seven years old, who was asking her some questions about witchers, from what little he could understand.
Before she could answer, the boy's gaze turned to the side, startled.
"What are you doing, Curtyner! Don't mingle with this sort of people!" A female voice, full of mockery, said.
"I just wanted to understand what's going on, mom..." The boy explained, but the woman simply pulled him away, while Geralt was approaching Ciri, watching the boy being taken away.
"Any problem?" Geralt asked, while the girl shook her head.
"No. He told me about how the scary spirit comes at night to torment the family. And he wanted to understand a witcher's life, but his mother seems quite snobbish." She mocked.
Ciri found it ironic, considering that she held a much higher noble position than that woman, yet here she was, being treated as someone inferior, snubbed by her.
"Anyway, let's go out and take a look at the family crypt." Geralt asked Ciri, who nodded, following him outside, while the guards received orders from the guard captain about the witcher being allowed to move around the mansion and the estate.
First, Geralt and Ciri entered the crypt, which was a dark place, full of stones where the great members of the Abutec family who had died in the past rested.
Geralt looked at the floor, checking the tombs, especially Wilson's, which had been opened recently.
"It was opened weeks ago... at the same moment the ghost began to roam the house." Geralt commented.
"Do you think it's the master of the house's brother?" Ciri asked.
"He got very irritated when I asked questions about the eldest who died seven years ago. It's very likely a vengeful spirit, since he admitted that his brother died on this property in a tragic incident." Geralt said, observing closely.
"Can you tell how old that boy was?" Geralt asked.
"Almost seven..." Ciri replied, a little confused.
"Strange... he has Lucas's face..." Geralt murmured, finding something odd in that small detail — after all, the boy should be a few months older.
"Would you assume Lucas Abutec killed his own brother?" Ciri suddenly asked, as an explosion appeared beside her, with Madara walking into the place.
"We'll have to investigate further before we can state anything." Madara said, as Geralt felt the atmosphere grow heavier.
"I'll check his office. I'm sure he must have some diary. Ask the staff more about this. There must be some old enough to have information on it. And also go check the place where his brother died." Madara said.
Geralt walked through the mansion with Ciri by his side, with her learning as the witcher tried to persuade people — though he wasn't very good at it with that serious face he always had. Ciri mocked him several times, and the witcher remained impassive, tolerating the girl's provocations.
Meanwhile, Madara walked slowly through the mansion until reaching the wife's bedroom, while she was looking out the window at the witcher walking around the estate and speaking to all the staff. She seemed quite bothered.
"Why does he have to keep asking questions? Isn't it enough to just get rid of the ghost?" She murmured, displeased.
Geralt went to the vineyard, where they found the place where young Wilson had died, hitting his head on a large stone in the middle of the vineyard during the night, according to reports. He checked the impacted spot, but there was nothing unusual.
Geralt and Ciri were granted permission to sleep among the servants, since they wanted to witness the ghost that appeared on many nights. They would try this approach there.
The house began to show a drop in temperature during the early hours. When Geralt and Ciri got up, Madara was in the office reading the diary and several hidden documents about business deals and even secret safes.
That was when he also began to feel something. Moaning sounds began echoing through the house. They could hear servants trembling in fear, while the guards saw nothing, walking nervously through the mansion.
Madara moved through the dark corridors with his Sharingan activated, while Geralt also came out to investigate.
Madara was able to see it — there really was an invisible specter flying through the halls. And there was no doubt it had Wilson's face, just as they had suspected. He had become a vengeful spirit. Now they needed to find the reason behind his motivations.
"Should we fight him?" Ciri murmured, also sensing the presence of the creature, which merely drifted through the corridors, moaning some unknown words.
"No..." Geralt commented.
"What is he saying?" she murmured.
"He's saying 'give me back my life'..." Madara landed beside her and informed.
"His death was no accident. His own brother killed him." Madara said, though it wasn't written exactly like that in the diary. There were highly suggestive circumstances leading to the belief that the brother had killed the elder sibling.
"Tomorrow you'll speak with him and you'll have to bring him to the crypt. I want to gather some more information tonight." Madara said, and Geralt nodded in agreement.
The spirit continued wandering through the night, while the master of the house remained in his room, not leaving, though still hearing the moans. His children, full of fear, had also been sharing the room since the spirit began to appear.
The man left the room somewhat displeased when everything calmed down and day began, going first to his office to arrange his things, ignoring the night full of terror.
But he was easily surprised by Madara as soon as he entered alone. The Uchiha placed him under a genjutsu, beginning to extract all of his memories.
He released him afterward, then met with Geralt before leaving the room, explaining the situation.
"How horrible..." Ciri murmured. "Should we still help him? Someone like that?"
"We have no choice. Besides, we have to free the spirit. Although I would prefer it if it were indeed true, with the brother's death being intentional... so that Lucas himself would pay for killing his own brother." Madara said.
In the end, Geralt and Ciri had breakfast with the servants and then were called to see Lord Abutec, who was waiting for some answer as he watched the witcher enter.
"Tell me, witcher, do you have anything to solve my problem?" He asked immediately.
"Yes. But you also have to be honest, Lord Abutec." He began, and the noble raised an eyebrow at the tone the witcher used with him.
"I investigated the lives of everyone here and discovered that the ghost is a vengeful spirit. And he is your elder brother, who died by your own hands, many years ago. Isn't that true?" Geralt said directly, with the noble narrowing his eyes, still absorbing his words for a second before slowly becoming enraged.
"What are you saying, witcher?! Are you saying I killed my brother?!" He exclaimed, slamming the table. "You'd better give me a very plausible answer for this accusation, or you'll leave here without your head, along with your helper!" He threatened.
"I'm not saying you killed him out of greed because he was the heir. Everyone said you had a very good relationship with your brother... so maybe you did it out of love... because of a possible unexpected pregnancy with the woman who had been promised to your brother for marriage. I'm also aware that you went to his tomb and opened it three weeks ago... you were drunk, weren't you? I know because that expensive wine from your shelf had the same smell as the dry wine at the site, and as far as I've seen, only you drink that wine here." Geralt suggested, without softening the accusation.
The nobleman stared at him for several seconds with a raised eyebrow, his face beginning to change color, until he sat down without looking at the witcher anymore.
"I loved Lysandra since I was a child. I always loved her and hoped to marry her in the future. Which was a bit unlikely, as I was the second son..." he said quietly, opening a bottle of wine and drinking before beginning to sigh.
"..." Geralt said nothing, while Ciri remained silent the entire time.
"Heavens, how I loved that woman in my youth. I would have given everything for her, and we became lovers, with her giving me her virginity. We loved each other. But fate was very cruel to me and to her." He began to give a small, bitter laugh.
"I found out years later that she was engaged to my elder brother, who would inherit the family position. That was a huge shock for us, as we were lovers at the time. My life would be to serve my brother on the farm and perhaps be the lover of my own sister-in-law. I wanted it to be that way, but I had to stop it and stop living a love like that... So we had our last night together." He spoke with a distant look.
"Our parents had already died by that time, and my brother needed to take my father's position and produce an heir. Everything seemed certain — I would lose my love and live my life with my brother sleeping with the woman I loved. But then... she appeared pregnant... Pregnant from our relationship."
"I was lost. My child was growing in her belly, and she confessed to her father. He came to visit me, speaking seriously about my particular case... He gave me a choice: she would have to get rid of the baby... or I would find a way to replace my brother... I was terrified at the time, I didn't want my possible child... to die like that, especially not with the woman I loved... It would be a scandal if Wilson found out, and it would forever dishonor the woman I loved."
"So, one day, I suggested a celebration with my brother. I made him drink liters and liters of wine alone, while I held back, pretending I was drinking too. I suggested, like in the old days, that we run through the vineyard, while sending all the guards away."
"I did..." He seemed to struggle to continue... "I did... I told him the whole truth in that moment, he was devastated, and I made him run toward a large rock, and I helped push him... He hit his head so hard that he fell to the ground with blood spreading all over the place, unconscious and later dead." He spoke, while Geralt and Madara listened in silence, with Ciri at their side.
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Raccoon Here:
This was getting too big, so I split it into two parts, and I'm doing some quests like this because they're part of the Witcher world, so I created this one.
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