Chapter 154: Chapter 154 - Madara is back.
[Chapter Size: 2100 Words.]
Third Person POV
Northern kingdoms.
...
...
[System: 30% of total power acquired.]
Seven days had passed since the war ended in a way no one had expected. Meanwhile, in a cave on Sodden Hill, Madara emerged for the first time after spending so much time mastering his chakra. He had received around 5% of the system's power for his role in ending the battle. This resulted in not only his chakra being nearly depleted but also an enormous surge of energy, significantly multiplying his current reserves. So much so that he had great difficulty attempting to control such overwhelming power.
Madara was not at the mountain's peak; instead, he found a spot on the slope, facing what had been the battlefield. He finally stepped out of the cave, his gaze falling directly on the area where he had stood just a week ago, wielding his Susanoo to reshape the landscape before him.
There were a few scattered tents, and it was possible to see many people—thousands, though still a fraction of the Northern army's original size seven days earlier. They seemed to be inspecting the aftermath of the battle. However, the most striking sight was the trail of destruction stretching in a straight line from that point to two distant mountains—or what remained of them. Half of both mountains had been cleanly severed, and the entire region lay in ruins.
"It's like they say... maps need to be redrawn with every movement of Susanoo's power. And to think, I didn't even use many of the system's other ultimate abilities..." murmured Madara, observing the devastation with a neutral expression.
Despite the chaos and fear he had unleashed, Madara was acutely aware that he had claimed thousands of lives. The majority were Nilfgaardians, but his attack undoubtedly killed Northern men as well and may have even annihilated villages caught in the crossfire while the mountains were obliterated. He didn't know the exact death toll, but that didn't matter to him now. After all, he had fully understood the consequences of his actions when he unleashed the attack.
"I just wonder what the continent's political structure will look like after this war," Madara pondered the pros and cons. After all, this would change the power dynamics across the entire continent. People would live in constant fear, knowing that a giant blue colossus roamed freely, capable of destroying kingdoms at will. It didn't matter how high their walls or secure their castles; before raw power, they were mere ants, easily crushed regardless of lineage or birthright.
On one hand, this move had shattered Nilfgaard's dreams of advancing northward. Their army had been nearly wiped out. Perhaps it would even force them to retreat south.
On the other hand, it was highly likely that fear surrounding Madara's name would grow. Although many would dismiss the notion that a mere child could have done this, some had witnessed the events on the battlefield and would suspect him. It was possible that they would come after Madara with full force, making him the most wanted person in the world. But that didn't concern him. His greater worry lay with those close to him.
"So be it... I'll eliminate every single one of them if they dare use Ciri or anyone else," Madara decided. He was growing stronger by the day, and soon he would be able to instill terror in anyone who dared to oppose him without even exerting effort. At 30%, he was already virtually invincible against most threats on the continent.
Setting aside the scene of destruction, there was nothing left for him there. He left the mountainside and headed north, crossing over the top. It was time to check on the situation, particularly to see if Ciri was safe and whether Geralt was with her, protecting her.
The journey was somewhat long, but he was faster now. His body was far more powerful than when he had first traveled south, leaving Ciri behind. Madara pressed on through the entire night without stopping, descending the mountain the same way he had ascended. He passed through the scorched area where he had unleashed a fire jutsu against a Leshen. Through the night, he continued sprinting across the fields at incredible speed.
After more than a day of nonstop travel, he finally approached Lyria and Temeria, near the mountains that separated the two kingdoms.
At the location before Madara's arrival, Geralt was not having an easy time as he tried to meditate there over the past few days to pass the time.
Meanwhile, a young girl was training in the open area of the hideout, executing sword movements in the air. He had to admit, the girl was quite impressive. She had even asked him to train with her, but he refused.
So, she continued training on her own for the past few days, highly focused. The strangest part was her practice with throwing knives, which she was also working on, imitating that boy. Geralt had to admit she could throw a strange knife even faster than a bolt from his crossbow, without the need to reload—a skill Geralt thought would be quite useful to have.
"Ha!" The girl made a sound with her movement as she continued slicing the air with carefully refined motions, indicating that she was already building a solid foundation. Although still young and with some flawed movements, it was merely a matter of polish. Geralt was surprised, as this kind of training usually took years to master and was typically acquired by squires older than Ciri, or even by knights who rarely had such proficiency. He knew Madara was involved in this, but there was another person who surprised him even more.
'Calanthe must have allowed this... Which is a surprise, knowing the former Queen of Cintra...' he thought. 'I heard Madara had a lot of influence in Cintra... to the point that Calanthe even paired him with Cirilla and declared him King.'
Feeling Geralt's gaze on her, Ciri stopped moving her sword. She turned to him with a defiant look, wanting to show off as she pointed the sword she was holding at him.
"See? I'm stronger than an adult now!" she said.
He didn't respond immediately. He knew it was true. She could defeat any untrained adult. Even a group of poorly coordinated opponents could fall before her sword before they got close to her, which was impressive.
"You have talent, Ciri," he commented in his neutral tone, nodding at her.
"But it's still not enough," Ciri replied, making him raise an eyebrow. Then she continued, "I'm much weaker than Madara. He can fight an entire war, while I have to hide here. But he said I have potential. He was teaching me... even how to see the future. He said I could do it if I mastered my strength. Have you ever seen anyone who can see the future in the middle of a fight?" she asked curiously, wanting the opinion of another warrior.
"See the future? Well, that does sound useful... But no, I don't know anyone who can do that. If I did, they'd be a monster," Geralt admitted. It was another ability he would certainly like to have. It would greatly help extend his life by preventing him from dying in a fight.
"But he said I have the potential to do it! And I intend to master that skill!" she said proudly, carrying the typical innocence of a teenager.
"Can you two stop talking for a minute?" Yennefer's voice cut through their conversation as she prepared some sort of magic. She was surrounded by various items, including hearts and other parts of rare monsters from her collection, ready to spend them all on this spell.
"You've been at this for almost a week..." Geralt left Ciri aside and commented, looking at Yennefer.
"Silence, Geralt! I need to concentrate," she snapped sharply, focused on the task in front of her.
Ciri also stopped training, curiously watching what Yennefer was doing. The sorceress began murmuring words in ancient Elvish as she channeled her magic.
However, as soon as she finished, everything in front of her exploded. A display of lights and sparks erupted before everything went dark, without producing the expected result. Yennefer slammed her fists against the table in frustration, ignoring the pain caused by the act as she stared at the failed spell.
"Damn it, I can't find him anymore!" muttered Yennefer, frustrated.
"You've spent all this time looking for him. Don't you have a council coming up in a few days with the kings and mages, as you mentioned?" Geralt asked with a serious expression.
"I know, but I need to know if he's alive and well," Yennefer replied.
"But he is fine," Ciri said this time, maintaining the calm demeanor she had shown over the past few days.
"What do you mean by that, ugly girl?" Yennefer looked at her and asked, as Ciri hadn't spoken about it before, and Geralt and Yennefer had discussed it only when she wasn't present.
The nickname given by Yennefer made Ciri throw a disapproving look at her, clearly annoyed, but she continued. "I can dream about him every night. I see him standing in a cave, seeming to train to control his strength. He usually does that when he gains a lot of power," Ciri explained.
"Are you sure about this?" Geralt asked, watching her closely.
"Yes, as I've said before, we're bound by destiny. I can see him in my dreams every night!" she replied, fully confident in the idea.
Geralt turned his attention to Yennefer, who seemed even more frustrated, staring at all the destroyed ingredients around her. Even though she had heard Ciri, she still wanted to know exactly where Madara was.
"You still haven't told me what happened in the war," Geralt said. After all, Yennefer had arrived six days ago, saying she would wait for Madara. Despite Geralt asking several times about what had happened during the fight—since everything ended so quickly—Yennefer never gave a clear answer. She only said, "I'll talk about it with him as soon as he gets here."
This left both Ciri and Geralt without any concrete information about what had occurred. Ciri, however, mentioned having a dream in which she saw thousands of people dying on the night Geralt arrived. But the dream was vague, bringing only images of death and destruction without much understanding.
The dream had deeply frightened Ciri, but the next day, when she went back to sleep, she woke up calmer. Since then, she avoided talking about Madara or the war, as she seemed very at ease, as if she already knew Madara was fine and would arrive soon. So, she limited herself to curiously observing Yennefer.
Meanwhile, Yennefer paced back and forth, continuously trying to locate Madara with spells or establish contact. But without success. She seemed increasingly anxious.
Geralt ignored her and turned his attention to the beast sleeping in a corner of the hideout—one he expected to have to kill every night when it tried to attack everyone there. After all, it was a griffin—something Geralt would never have imagined coexisting peacefully with a group of humans. But there it was, lying in the corner, not bothering anyone for days.
Ciri had plenty of supplies in stock and used them to feed the griffin as if it were a dog, a behavior Geralt completely disapproved of. However, he couldn't form a coherent thought about it, since he had never heard of a domesticated griffin. After all, there were always people who tried to tame monsters throughout their lives, but it never ended well.
At that moment, the same creature seemed to go on alert, staring at the exit where the door was open. Ciri noticed this too and widened her eyes as the griffin rose, though not in a hostile manner.
"Toto, is it him?" she asked, drawing the attention of the two adults as the griffin began to walk toward the exit, with Ciri excitedly following it. At that moment, a shadow appeared against the morning sun. A boy with black hair and eyes stood in the doorway, his clothes in tatters. His torso was exposed after his armor had been broken, and he hadn't felt the cold enough to bother putting on more clothing over the past few days. He was greeted by a laughing and joyful Ciri, thrilled at Madara's return.
Raccoon Here: I know it seems like Madara killed people who had nothing to do with the war, but there's no way to launch an attack like that without collateral damage. So, it's entirely possible he wiped out some rural villages.
-------------Nexts Chapters ----------------
Chapter 159 - Meeting of All Northern Kingdoms 03.
Chapter 164 - Advancing to Kaer Morhen 01.
Chapter 174 - 43%.
Chapter 183 - Starting to act in Ard Carraigh.
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