Demon Hunter: School of the Wolf.

Chapter 585 The Protagonist Offstage
Lord's Hall, Kaer Morhen.

Soy, Vera, Aresto, and Vesemir and Dante, who had been maintaining order in the chaotic village of Kael at the foot of the mountain and were also monitoring Rado and his group, returned.

They were sitting at opposite ends of a long table when a letter passed through their hands before landing in Aresto's.

"What's the situation in the village now?" Soi asked, sitting at the head of the table.

Vesemir looked away from Aresto's face and reported, "Although the number of refugees is still increasing, the situation has basically stabilized."

“We built a simple wooden bridge over the Buina River and rented several boats. Every day at a fixed time, our apprentices would escort a group of refugees to the other side of the river.”

"Sir Mien of Lord has agreed to take in some of the refugees, and has also made contact with several nobles in the north of Cordwin for the rest."

“No nobleman would refuse labor that comes knocking on his door,” Dante shrugged. “North of Cordwin has always lacked farmers, artisans, and craftsmen because of its climate, terrain, and poverty.”

"The previous war had not yet spread to the northern nobles, whose defenses were still quite sound and who were not afraid of the influx of refugees."

"They would be more than willing to exchange people for just some stale grain and black bread harder than stone."

North of Cordwin has always been synonymous with poverty, suffering from severe population loss and an inability to retain important skilled workers such as blacksmiths and tailors.

The war between Aden and Cordwin was a disaster for the nobles south of Cordwin (south of the Gwyneth River), but a godsend for the nobles in the north.

Moreover, because Rado had suddenly come to power and lacked prestige, he had not yet subdued the nobles in the south.

The few troops that the North managed to squeeze out, "for the sake of the overall situation," were slowly assembled and, before they could even cross the Gwinwich River, returned home after hearing the news of their defeat.

Aside from the unfortunate souls whose legs were crushed by horses and wheels during the march, there were almost no casualties.

They are not only unafraid of the onslaught of starving refugees, but they would even love to bring all the refugees under their control.

what?
You said the land in the north is barren and there isn't enough land to cultivate, so what's the point of having so many able-bodied young men?
In this world, Sunny and Demarvi II are not the only ambitious people.

Vesemir nodded: "The nobles are indeed unusually proactive, but the refugee crisis has shown signs of slowing down."

“Aden is preoccupied with internal strife in the south and it will be difficult for them to move north in the short term. Many refugees who have been separated from their families or who do not want to leave their homes have already begun to return home.”

"The ghouls that have been following us have hunted quite a few over the past few days, so things should calm down for a few days."

"Erni and Clara, now with a few apprentices, are maintaining order in the village and watching over the farmland to prevent it from being ravaged by starving refugees."

"Their strength has improved rapidly, and they are no match for groups of ordinary ghouls. As long as there are no 'accidents,' this rotation is sufficient for now."

Soy nodded, as if he hadn't heard the deeper meaning in Vesemir's words.

Seeing this, Vesemir exchanged a helpless glance with Dante.

“La…” Vesemir opened his mouth, about to mention a certain important figure who was staying in Kael Village and causing everyone a lot of trouble.

Aresto, however, was the last to finish reading the letter. He gently placed the smooth, youthful chiffon paper on the table, his tone wistful:
"It's rare to see those long-eared... elves being so humble. I thought they were born never to bow their heads."

Vera shook her head slightly: "This letter was sent by Himmler Fantaby."

"He was an anomaly among the mountain people, always humble and reserved, unlike a normal elf."

Soy clearly admired Himmler's approach: "But if it weren't for him, the Mountain People would have been wiped out during the Revolt of Aeririen..."

“Most of the Mountain People don’t think that way, and they could have succeeded without having to flee to the depths of the Blue Mountains,” Vera countered. “Himmles Fendaby’s retreat has divided the Mountain People in two.”

"They could have won, but they were utterly defeated due to a lack of fighting strength."

"Moreover, if the Arielian rebels had held out for another two years, the political situation in Cordwin would have changed due to the death of the old king."

"The outcome is still unknown."

Vera was the warlock who accompanied the army at the time, and no one present knew more about the inside story of the Ariel Rebellion than her, not even Zoe.

but……

“Even if the Mountain People win the Revolt of Aririan and drive the humans out of Cordwin, it won’t matter. They are destined to lose.” Soy sighed softly.

Vera was speechless.

For the people of the mountains, the Rean uprising may be victorious, but the people of the mountains will only gradually descend into the abyss as time goes by.

Perhaps as early as four hundred years ago, when the Mountain People's last rule in Toussaint ended and their last king, Difsov, swore allegiance to Ludovic, the first human king of Toussaint, their doom was already sealed.

It's just a matter of sooner or later.

Vesemir, Aristotle, and Dante looked at each other in bewilderment when Soi and Vera suddenly started arguing.

How nostalgic… The three Witcher masters of the Wolf School exchanged a glance.

More than a decade ago, the chief sorcerer of the Wolf School left due to ideological disputes with Soy. When Vera was invited to take over the chief sorcerer's work, the two would also have ideological debates from time to time.

They've been getting along so well all year, and they thought the two of them had changed their ways, but it turns out it's just that their time hasn't come yet.

Or perhaps it was the dangerous grass and mountain trials that kept Zoe and Vera from spending their time on these pointless arguments.

Vesemir suddenly realized something.

"Cough cough..."

Aresto coughed twice, drawing everyone's attention.

"So, what should we do with it?" He pointed to the letter in front of him, looked at Soi, and then at Vera.

The first to speak was Vesemir: "First of all, we can't let Erin know. I'm worried that if he gets impulsive, he might just rush into the Free Elves' camp."

"That's not a question of whether the academy is neutral or not, nor is it about those goblins in Elland who just need to stall for time."

"That was a full ten thousand soldiers, along with male witches, corpses controlled by necromancy, and a supernatural army of plague."

"The role that an individual can play in a war is negligible."

"Is this why you stopped me from informing Erin at the door?" Dante asked, somewhat puzzled. "But would Erin really be that impulsive?"

"He always seems so calm and composed, unlike a fourteen-year-old child."

Aresto looked at Vesemir with the same skeptical gaze.

Vesemir rolled his eyes at Dante: "If he were truly calm and restrained, would he have dragged you into Drakenberg?"

Dante was speechless.

Although the outcome was good, forcibly storming a fortress was indeed an extremely reckless act.

Looking back now, he is amazed that he was persuaded by Erin and that he not only successfully rescued Bont but also kidnapped Evans, the manager of Drakenberg.

“Aelin is a good boy,” Vesemir added, “but he’s too prone to taking risks for those close to him, and he takes his own life too lightly…”

Upon hearing this, Soi and Vera exchanged a glance.

"What's wrong?" Vesemir frowned, noticing the strange behavior between the two.

Soi shook his head helplessly and looked at Vera. Vera sighed softly, "It can't be hidden."

"Why?" Vesemir, Dante, and Aresto asked, puzzled.

Arlin is in Kaer Morhen, not on the front lines in Ban Ade. As long as they don't say anything and keep the witchers guarding Kaer Morhen quiet, Arlin won't get any information.

“Mary told me,” Vera said, rubbing her forehead, “that Erin lent the lovebird to Ida Emin before she left.”

"Perhaps out of courtesy, Ida Emin will not go through Kaer Morhen to inform Erin in private, but he will find out sooner or later."

The lovebirds... Vesemir, Aresto, and Dante looked at each other in bewilderment.

"Is Erin interested in that elf named Francesca?" Dante couldn't help but interject with gossip.

He was deeply impressed by the elven girl he saw when he returned—whose eyes were completely fixed on Erin—and who was practically clinging to Erin even though it was only a short distance and there were other people around.

"Did Mary give her lovebird to Erin too?" Before anyone could answer, Dante couldn't help but ask another question.

"Shut up!"

Vesemir glared at him, making him chuckle awkwardly twice before avoiding the complicated gazes of the others.

“It’s not because of personal feelings. Erin must have foreseen the current state of the free elves,” Vesemir said with certainty.

No one understands Erin's love life better than him; he's just a seemingly mature but clueless young man.

Aresto coughed twice, drawing everyone's attention:

"Himmles Fendabe only hoped that after the free elves broke through, the school could safely receive a group of elves."

“We are allies after all, so this request is not unreasonable.”

“But it can’t be Erin,” Vesemir interjected.

“Yes, it can’t be Erin,” Dante agreed. “The situation in Kael’s Village has stabilized. I, Aresto, and Vesemir are all fine, but none of us know how to use portals, so…”

He looked at Vera.

Vera shook her head and glanced at Soy: "You don't all need to go, Soy and I will go."

Vera and Soy are both going... Vesemir was about to nod in agreement when he remembered the time bomb in Kyle Village.

“What should we do with Rado?” Vesemir could only bring it up himself. “A week has passed, and he has neither gone up the mountain nor left. I don’t know what he’s up to.”

“But there are more and more suspicious faces in Kyle Village.”

“It’s one thing to have the southern Cordwin accent and the Aden accent, but last night we even found a few refugees secretly communicating in Redanian and Temurian accents.”

He shrugged. "Could it be that Temuria has also started fighting with Redalia, or that Kael's Village is Meritelli's harvest, Cliff's golden oak table?"

"Why are people from all over flocking to Kaer Mohen?"

“I suspect they all came here because they were ‘sniffing’ out where Lado was.”

“Once they find Rado, and any conflict occurs, it will be very difficult for Kaer Morhen to avoid being dragged into a troublesome political vortex.”

Dante nodded and said, "I suspect Rado already knew."

“Recently, the spies he sent to purchase supplies have become increasingly arrogant. He is probably testing the attitude of the Wolf School.”

Soy tapped the table lightly, paused for a few seconds, and said, "Erin will handle it..."

“Soy!” Aresto interrupted impatiently.

“I do not object to Erin taking over as the leader of the Wolf School. By the end of the year, I will do my best to persuade White, Valerius, Gregor, and Dylan to agree that Erin’s abilities, character, and past achievements are worthy of the leader position.”

"But now you are the Grandmaster of the Wolf School!"

The bearded witcher master grew increasingly angry as he spoke, his beard trembling.

"This is Kaer Morhen, our Wolf School, which we built from scratch, brick by brick, piece by piece, with painstaking effort."

"So what if Erin takes over as the head of the Wolf School?!"

He slammed his hand on the table and stood up abruptly, bending down to gaze at the role model he had admired for centuries, the role model he had followed in his footsteps.

"Are you really going to abandon Kaer Morhen, which we built together, just because of that ungrateful bastard Harkor, just because the vessel of our great cause has been shattered?"

"Will they flee back to Toussaint like cowardly deserters?"

"Have you forgotten what you told us back then?"

"We are witchers. Once we choose this path, we either die fighting giants or are buried in Kaer Morhen!"

A pair of cat eyes, gleaming with molten gold, glared wide, burning with fierce rage.

The suppressed growl made the candlelight tremble.

"Soy!"

"You're not dead yet!"

A furious roar made Aristotle, his hair bristling, resemble a mad beast, glaring at Zoe as if he wanted to tear his flesh, break his ribs, and rip out his heart.

Look at the heart of that once strong, resolute, and invincible dragon slayer. Has it been unknowingly replaced by the heart of a coward?

Vera remained expressionless, but her hands, hidden under the table, were clenched tightly, her nails digging deeply into her palms.

Soi did not avoid Aresto's resentful gaze, but her smoky gray cat eyes flickered.

“Aristotle…” Vesemir and Dante gently tugged at Aristotle’s clothes, pressing him back into his seat.

Iris didn't struggle. She sat down with a thud and took a couple of deep breaths.

The candlelight flickered and trembled in the darkness, and wax dripped onto the candlestick.

Aresto lowered his head in disappointment and helplessness: "No matter how powerful Erin is, he's still just a fourteen-year-old child."

“You can’t push everything onto him, Zoe. You can’t put such a heavy burden on him.”

"He will be crushed..."

In an instant, a deathly silence descended upon the Lord's Hall of Kaer Morhen Castle.

Soi opened his mouth, as if he was about to say something.

"Boom~boom~boom~"

There was a knock on the door of the lord's hall.

(End of this chapter)