Astartes of the Bear School

Chapter 999 981. Novigrad

What made Geralt think something was wrong was why a farmer and his daughter driving a donkey cart that he met on the road could actually know Lan En's name.

Geralt is a veteran witcher who has been on the mainland for decades, and he is a little different from ordinary witchers.

——He has a friend, a friend who is a well-known poet and singer.

Dandelion often joins him on adventures, becoming deeply involved in the Witcher's commissions, as well as in his daily life.

Even when their relationship could be called 'best friends', he witnessed Geralt's twists and turns of love.

Dandelion's talent allowed him to compile what he saw and heard into poetry and drama scripts.

Through the spread of these things, Geralt has gained a reputation and popularity far beyond that of ordinary witchers.

Although these stories combined are not as shocking as Lan En's performance in a war, there is no doubt that Geralt has been a celebrity in this world and this era.

The kind that is quite famous.

That's why he could sense something was wrong.

"You might not believe it."

Lann tilted his head towards Geralt and said.

The two demon hunters continued walking on the road, without hurrying to speed up their pace. They seemed to be looking at the father and daughter in front of them who were leading a donkey.

"I once made friends with a high-level vampire."

"Are you kidding me? Are you the kind of advanced vampire I think you are?"

"Don't be surprised, Geralt. Regis has a very good character and is a blood-forbidden vampire. Even if you meet him, you will think that he is a decent gentleman. Well, he just smells of coriander. It’s a bit too strong.”

The corners of the old demon hunter's mouth twitched slightly. It was obvious that he had never thought about a high-level vampire. When Vesemir was teaching him, he turned around and ran away without hesitation when he encountered a monster. The most profound impression on Lan En was that he was covered in coriander. Taste?

"No, let's get back to the point. I saw his disguise at that time because he opened his mouth to my story. At that time, I hadn't done anything big yet. I wasn't as famous as you."

"That's what you say." Geralt looked disbelieving and raised his chin towards the father and daughter who were walking with their donkeys on the road ahead. "Do you think they are also advanced vampires?"

"No, of course not. But it's not normal at all for both of them to recognize me immediately."

Lan En's hood shook from side to side.

What he did affected the entire north-south structure, and affected the lives and deaths of hundreds of thousands of people. This is indeed an unparalleled influence.

Even if this happened in his home world, his name would definitely dominate the global trending headlines for several years, and even enter textbooks.

But...this is the magical Middle Ages.

It is different from the information age in my home world.

In the information age, viral information can make a person a celebrity in an instant and be recognized on the street.

But even this kind of person must have over 100 million fans to enjoy the treatment.

With only a few million fans walking on the road in a normal manner, almost no one would take a second look, let alone recognize him.

In this magical Middle Ages, although the things Lan En did were shocking, every well-informed bard pointed to these stories to make money.

But due to the speed and method of transmission, Lan En didn't think he would be recognized by any farmer he met on the road in the wild.

It's more like being intimidated by my own size.

After all, an ordinary farmer might meet a bard several times in his life.

"Of course, it's not that there's something wrong with them. It's just."

Lann didn't finish his sentence, but Geralt understood what he meant.

There is no problem with the ‘audience’, but there is a problem with the ‘storyteller’.

"Your story spread too quickly and too widely."

Geralt said in a slightly hoarse voice worriedly.

He didn't have any real feeling before. After all, he was traveling with a clear goal, and then went to Aretuosa to work and earn money.

But now that they were nosy on the road, they actually felt how big Lan En's reputation was now.

"But being famous isn't a good thing, meow?"

The flannel ball that had been sitting in front of Lan En raised his head, with a puzzled look in the cat's big watery eyes.

Lan En smiled and patted the kitten on the head.

"Of course it's a good thing to be famous, but to be famous to this extent."

Fame is a good thing worth pursuing throughout life. It can make people feel the happiness and satisfaction of self-realization, and its psychological comfort and motivation are unparalleled.

Almost everyone who has escaped from worrying about the basic needs of life begins to pursue this kind of thing at some point.

This thing is of course excellent.

But when a person gets used to the reputation that surrounds him, and has regarded this ecstatic environment as the norm, what if the reputation disappears next?

The pain of drug withdrawal is nothing more than that.

In other words, these heightened reputations are like 'anesthetic powder'.

Whoever masters the 'narcotic powder' may master those who are addicted to the anesthetic powder.

Reputation can be a good thing, but it can also be a good 'dog leash'.

Tie up those you can no longer live without.

Someone was trying to influence me this way.

Lan En looked at the muddy road under his feet and felt something subtle with interest.

And once you can exert influence, it means you can control.

——

Watching the farmer and his daughter finally reach their destination on the road, the two demon hunters were able to speed up their progress and arrived outside the city walls of Novigrad that afternoon.

"While you can still see the unobstructed wilderness and sky, once you enter the city, you will feel that even the sky is divided by buildings."

Geralt said this to Lan En.

The outskirts of Novigrad are dotted with farms producing food, as well as village settlements formed by people who have no money to settle in the city, so they gather outside the city.

This is an alluvial plain created by the water of the Pontal River.

This was the rare time Lan En saw a large piece of flat land in the Magical Middle Ages.

There are mills and windmills squeaking in circles in the wilderness. Even if the fertile land has not been taken care of, bright flowers, green grass, and trees can still grow.

The ever-changing blue sky and white clouds at the seaside look even more free and easy against the backdrop of a wilderness.

In the city of Novigrad, there are large areas of red roof tiles and stone walls. Although the dense buildings are messy, they also carry the unique vitality and vitality of the city.

Novigrad, the Pearl of the North, the Free City.

It is widely regarded as a city with the potential to become a world capital.

Lan En had briefly learned about this city before coming. The permanent population is more than 30,000, and the floating population is more than twice this number.

In this world similar to the European Middle Ages, it is a well-deserved large city.

Of course, if we want to talk about the grandeur and strangeness of the buildings, Yharnam and Lothric are still the pinnacles that Lan En has ever seen.

So Geralt was disappointed. Lan En, who came to Novigrad for the first time, did not feel shocked by the rows of buildings.

For young people, this urban atmosphere where many people live in a city makes them feel familiar and curious.

After all, with the current population density of Novigrad, he felt that it could be called 'lively'.

The two walked across a stone bridge spanning a shallow tributary of the Pontar River and entered the city through Novigrad's shining gate.

This city, built on a delta where a river flows into the sea, cleverly uses the tributaries of the river as a moat.

Lan En's size and Qilin wearing a magical harness caused a commotion at the gate of the Glory Gate.

Although Novigrad is on the territory of Redania, the king of Redania has no right to send soldiers to garrison it.

The local violent agency responsible for maintaining order is the Temple Guard under the Eternal Fire Cult.

Although their clothes are also red and white, the red represents the 'eternal fire'.

The temple guards who were responsible for checking into the city were obviously confused, but people in big cities should have heard the stories about the Civil War and the Battle of Sodden Mountain.

A leader of the temple guards obviously recognized Lan En. He did not do anything extra, but asked the two demon hunters to pay the money and enter the city according to the rules.

Although actually ‘paying money according to the rules’ is quite abnormal.

After entering the city walls, Novigrad is truly revealed to people.

The bustling crowds in various costumes all have their own goals. The crowds are flowing, and everyone is running for livelihood and profit.

There are merchandise sellers wearing nose-clip glasses, 'female waitresses' wearing short shorts, long boots, and collars open to the middle of their chests, as well as sweaty and unkempt craftsmen and workers on the roadside.

"Wow."

The calico cat sitting in front of Lan En looked around curiously.

Elu Cat, who grew up in the New World, has obviously never seen so many people living together. The population density of the New World was a tragedy.

The Qilin under the magic harness also looked much more lively, and the sound of its hooves stepping on the stone tiles became clearer.

"Welcome to Novigrad."

As a regular visitor, Geralt greeted Ball and Qilin politely.

The calico cat nodded while still looking around. Qilin also snorted with a snort.

Lan En, who was wearing a cloak, was so intimidating that despite his size and Qilin's size, he didn't feel crowded on the road.

Because people who are close to them are moving in the opposite direction to squeeze others.

"Let's go find Dudu first and explain your matter to him clearly."

As a frequent visitor to Novigrad, Geralt began to arrange the itinerary for the new arrivals, one person, one cat, and one cologne.

Thanks to this steady and tough appearance, what he says is very convincing.

"I remember he was having a drink at the Kingfisher in the afternoon, we could"

Geralt was making arrangements, but after the two witchers turned another corner in the alleys of Novigrad, a burst of noise and uproar overcame Geralt's voice.

The sound of "cracking" explosions came from a distance.

Then the two witchers on horseback sniffed at the same time.

They smelled of cherry jam.

"Asshole! Incompetent! A poet? I think that's nonsense!"