[Chapter Size: 2400 Words.]
Third Person POV
Skellige.
...
...
A concern began to invade the banquet as more than five people had simply suffered an attack, many of them important nobles from some kingdoms who had come through portals, collapsing in a way no one could explain.
It seemed to be more than just the drink. They checked if there was something in what they were drinking, and even mages performed a... and while they were being taken to the castle infirmary, the banquet still went on.
People began to approach the main table to greet the king, and at the same time used it as an excuse to greet Madara and Ciri. They always gave them invitations to talk at their tables, obviously full of interest, like anyone else present there.
"I hate politics... Even though some know what you did in the war, they see us as a pair of naive children who can be their puppets." Ciri began to speak of possible futures as she closed her eyes to see any possibility of the future.
"We are doomed to this for a long time." Madara replied with a tired tone.
However, some seemed to be afraid, mainly of Madara, since even they could say that Madara had something to do with the state in which the nobles who were feeling ill found themselves, as these same people had made comments among their acquaintances.
Whispers even arose that Madara had acted against them. There were wizards present to detect any use of magic and even guards of the king himself, since the idea that the banquet or the wedding could be attacked was on the table, and security was much more reinforced.
However, no one was able to detect whether Madara had really done anything to those nobles. Some fell into a rather pitiful state, as if their minds were broken, and were placed in beds to be treated by healers.
"King Bran, it is an honor to see you again." Said one of the many men who approached the table.
"Ah, Charles, it's good to see you." Said King Bran with a laugh. "How are things all the way to Novigrad?" Asked the king with a certain enthusiasm.
"Well as always. The sea routes are clear of pirates, at least most of them. I'm making a great profit, yes, almost no losses lately." Said the man, happy with his own words.
"That's great, Charles." King Bran replied.
"It's good to see you, my friend... but I'm here to speak with Princess Ciri and Lord Madara." He said. From the way they spoke to each other, they seemed to be friends.
"Is that so? Of course, make yourself comfortable." Said King Bran as he turned to Madara and Ciri. "This is a noble merchant from Redania. He was selling his goods through the islands when he learned of your wedding, so I invited him." Said King Bran, while Ciri stared at the man who approached them and bowed.
"Princess Ciri of Cintra, Lord Madara, I am here to wish you a happy marriage together and a prosperous union." He said as he greeted them.
"Thank you. We are happy for your words." Ciri replied in a political and moderate tone, which she had grown quite accustomed to in the past 20 minutes.
"Thank you. And these words are not only mine, I received a message from King Vizimir II of Redania." He began. "He asked me to deliver a wedding gift to you. And I had a special one among my goods on my ship and I would like to do so, if possible. But it is outside."
"And what would that be, Charles?" King Bran asked, suspicious. Madara and Ciri certainly did not like the idea of receiving a gift from a king, especially when it seemed like a desperate gesture to draw closer to them.
"It is something of great value." Said the merchant, who was already there after the king had asked for the most valuable thing he had at the moment, willing to pay any price above market value just to give it to them. This act was a gold mine.
"Well, it is a special commodity brought from the Continent, and I knew it was worth a lot of money. That is why I have not offered it to anyone on the islands until now, for it was a gift only a king could afford. So nothing more fitting than to deliver it, since it was practically fate that made this happen."
"Come on, man, just say what it is." King Bran interrupted Charles before he continued.
Despite sighing, the merchant seemed to want to build suspense about it. "Well, what I have as my most precious commodity is nothing less than a unicorn." He said, while everyone stared at him in surprise.
"A unicorn?" King Bran muttered, astonished. "I remember they are creatures from fairy tales. I don't know anyone who has seen one. Are you sure it exists?" Complained the King of Skellige.
"Ah, I can very well confirm that they exist, King Bran. The man who captured it said he caught it when its mother was not around. It is still young, nothing more than a foal, but it will become a fantastic animal, as he described what its mother was like. I am certain it will be a great gift for a king and queen to display in their court in the future conquered Cintra." He said, pointing to the young couple.
"A unicorn... Do you know what they are?" Ciri looked at Madara, who narrowed his eyes.
A unicorn was a type of mysterious creature in the world of The Witcher. More than the symbolism many used, it was a creature absent from the games — it did not appear in The Witcher 3 nor was it mentioned — but in the original work, they were the ones who taught Ciri to use her powers. They had the ability to travel between worlds, and it was no coincidence they came to her rescue when she was fleeing from the Aen Elle, in the books.
"If he speaks the truth, this is a gift that even we cannot deny. Even if we owe a favor to another king." Madara said, and Ciri opened her eyes.
"Then I would love to see it." Ciri said openly, as she broke into a smile.
"Great. If King Bran allows, I could show it. It is outside." Said Charles.
King Bran nodded. "Of course, if little Ciri wishes it, go. But take some of my men."
"You don't need to worry. As long as I have Madara by my side, nothing will happen to me, and also because I am very strong." She said, while the king laughed.
"I'm sure you are, my young one."
The two then rose from the main table, and that movement was noticed by the whole hall. Charles began guiding Ciri and Madara outside, until they were approached by Geralt.
"Any problem?" He asked, after all the banquet was still only halfway through, and he did not like some of the comments certain sorceresses made about the two at the main table when they went to speak with Yennefer. Some carried sarcasm, others even a direct threat, as if she had known about Madara's existence the whole time and had deceived everyone. They were accusing Yennefer of protecting Madara and Ciri, and she herself did not deny it to her sisters...
"We're just going to see a gift, would you like to come along, father?" He said, as Geralt nodded. None of them saw a problem with that and accompanied them outside. No one else approached them, while outside Madara and Ciri, with Geralt, waited as the man spoke with some of his employees, who brought a cart parked near the castle to deliver the gift when requested.
The cart came covered by a cloth, and everyone could see that there was a cage. The man climbed onto it and pulled the cloth that covered whatever was inside.
"Well, here it is. The gift given by King Vizimir II." He said, as he removed the cover and revealed a young animal crouched in a corner with its legs collapsed on the ground, staring in fear. Several people outside looked curiously and in surprise at what appeared to be a very white foal with a horn on its forehead. It was white as snow and was quite frightened.
"He's so beautiful..." Ciri murmured. "But he's so scared." She recognized with pity.
Madara said nothing as he stared at the animal. It was said unicorns should not be provoked. He could not help but wonder what its mother might do once she realized her foal was no longer where the thief had stolen it from.
Eleanor had proven that one should never meddle with a mother's child, especially when it was a unicorn's mother — she would make the captors' lives a true hell the moment she discovered who had taken her young.
"Try to approach, he's scared. They understand our language... and it's better you be truthful with him. We cannot keep him, but we will take care of him until his mother comes to fetch him." Madara said to Ciri. She would be better suited to calm the animal.
Ciri looked at him in surprise, and a moment later, took a few steps on her own, carefully approaching the cage while the animal stared at her intently. No one else dared to come closer.
"Hello, little one. They said you are my wedding gift. I know it's complicated, and I know they took you from your mother, but all I can say is that I will not hurt you. I'm sorry for this, all I can say is that I will take care of you from now on... until your mother comes to get you." She said with a sincerity that made the unicorn not look away from her.
Madara saw a bond forming between Ciri and that animal at that very moment, feeling a little surprised, but he shouldn't have been. After all, in the original story itself, Ciri had created this bond with the unicorn she saved in the desert. Perhaps this was destiny. That unicorn seemed younger than the one she encountered in the original work, and who knows, it was already meant to cross her path. That's why he asked her to do this.
The animal truly understood the words, and Ciri moved closer, touching its white fur, without failing to show a smile.
"Open the cage." She said, immediately turning to the noble called Charles.
The noble merchant was surprised, for the animal normally hated being touched. Still, he displayed a satisfied smile upon seeing that the princess liked the gift and got along with it. He immediately looked at one of his men and ordered:
"Quickly, open the cage."
The movement of the servant behind the bars startled the unicorn, but Ciri calmed it, stroking its fur. When the door was opened, Ciri immediately went to that side and called it.
"Come, you will stay with me now." She spoke as if she had found her own animal, just as Madara had done with Totó and with that dragon called Ignavros.
The animal went to the entrance, while Ciri embraced it. It was no more than a meter tall, looking just like a small foal with a strange horn. Ciri lifted it before setting it on the ground, and the unicorn shook its body, still trembling after being captive for so many months. Ciri kept caressing it and smiled, looking at Madara.
"Come see him, Madara. He's yours too." She said.
Madara approached, and the animal shrank a little at another person being there.
"Hey, hey... He's my husband, don't be afraid." Said Ciri, while she kept calming the unicorn.
Madara crouched beside her, analyzing the small being before touching it as well and giving it some affection.
"Well, he needs a name. Ciri, how about you give him that?" Madara said.
Ciri, a little surprised at that, smiled.
"I'll call him Eira. It means snow, what do you think?" She asked, stroking the animal all the while with a smile.
"That's a very good name for him." Madara said, while the animal grew more comfortable with his touch.
"Let's take him to our room." Ciri asked, and Madara nodded.
They went back into the castle after thanking the merchant, while the little unicorn immediately hid behind Ciri's dress upon seeing Geralt at the entrance.
"He certainly didn't like you." Madara said with a slightly ironic tone.
"I'm used to it." Geralt crossed his arms.
"Don't be so pessimistic, father." Ciri complained. "Anyway, let's go to the room now. And honestly, I'd rather not even go back to the party."
"It's better that one of us is there. I'll accompany you to the room and then return to the party, since we still need to keep up appearances." Madara replied.
"All right. I'll leave that to you then, future king of Cintra." She said, laughing, while Madara rolled his eyes.
In any case, they returned to the room, while Ciri kept trying to calm Eira, placing him on their bed.
"I hope he's clean." Madara said.
"Look at him. Do you think he could dirty anything?" Ciri laughed, stood up, and gave Madara a kiss before he started to leave.
"Just come back soon. I'll be waiting for you." She said, hugging the unicorn on the bed.
Madara closed the bedroom door before returning to the banquet. People looked and whispered upon seeing him alone, but he simply made his way to the table, where he found someone talking to Yennefer at her table, which was close to the main one.
The woman in front of the sorceress stared at him, and Madara couldn't help but greet her.
"It's been a long time, rector of Aretuza." He said as he saw her eyes fixed directly on him as he passed.
She had rather complicated eyes, but she returned it with a gentle, slightly seductive smile, which was quite normal in the political acts of a sorceress, even more so someone as old as she was.
"I've heard a lot about you, Madara Uchiha." She said.
It was none other than Tissaia de Vries.
◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆
🦝 Raccoon here: 🦝
I deeply appreciate your support since the beginning of this exciting journey!
I hope each chapter has provided incredible moments. If you like my work and would like to support the continuation of this fanfic, consider becoming a patron with plans starting at $2!. As a token of gratitude, I offer access to more than 210 extra chapters with 7 active fanfics at the same time, along with other exclusive benefits on my profile, such as images and significant decisions for the stories.
Even if you are not a patron, I am making chapters available a few hours earlier here, so become a free member on the platform!
🌟 RaccoonLeague | Patreon🌟
Visit our Patreon for more: https://www.patreon.com/RaccoonLeague
Extra Content Already Available:
🏴☠️ One Piece - I Am a Different Luffy!: 30 extra chapters!
👑 Game of Thrones: The Legend of Jon Arctic!: 30 extra chapters!
🌀 Naruto - Minato Namikaze SI!: 30 extra chapters!
🗡️ The Witcher - As Uchiha Madara! 30 extra chapters!
⚡ Harry Potter - Shadow Monarch! 30 extra chapters!
👑 Game of Thrones: DragonBorn! 30 extra chapters!
Except for One Piece with daily chapters and DragonBorn once a week, all fanfics are updated 3 times a week, there's just a pause in updating in the week, only to create drafts for the week's chapters.
In addition to the extra chapters, daily chapters are posted and 25 chapters per week!
Your support is very important and makes all the difference in keeping these stories alive.
Thank you very much for being part of this journey! I hope you continue to enjoy the story and that it brings even more joy to your life!
Visit our Patreon for more!!
◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆