The Divine Hunter

"You mean to say my son has been trapped in a dream for a whole month?" Louisa's jaw dropped a little, her eyes filled with disbelief. "Everyone dreams, so why is my son trapped in his?"

"You're right, Louisa. Most dreams only last for a night. Sir Aryan's condition is really rare." Letho kept quiet for a moment, and he said, "From what I know, there are three possible reasons this happened."

"Go on, witcher." The witch doctor stared at Letho and asked curiously, "What do you have in mind?"

"One, Aryan subconsciously doesn't want to wake up."

"Why? Why does he want to torture himself like this?" Louisa's voice was trembling, and her fingers were white.

"Maybe he doesn't want to face the truth. Something happened in the garden. Something repulsive and unbelievable. That's why he ran away from everything and fell into a deep sleep." Roy stared at the woman, and he saw a flash of panic appear in her eyes.

"My son is trained by the best knights in the city. H-He's more resilient than most adults. He'd never run away like a coward," Louisa answered weakly, oblivious to the fact her nails were digging into her hand. "That can't be the reason."

"Then let's move on to the second possibility. The previous suspect, Amos, is a Gwent performer. However, he might also be a professional hypnotist. He could have planted suggestions in Sir Aryan's head and put him in a deep sleep."

The witch doctor and Lady Louisa held their breaths and focused on what Letho said next, "But we've talked to the troupe members, and from what they told us, Amos is no hypnotist. He doesn't even know any hypnosis."

"So you don't think he's the culprit?" Louisa licked her lips, and she tensed.

"Amos and Aryan are both victims here," Roy said confidently.

A long silence later, Louisa asked raspily, "What's the third possibility then?" Half of her head was hidden in the shadows, where the sun didn't shine.

"Ah, that involves a little secret of the castle." Roy glanced at the witch doctor. "We'd rather talk about this in private, Lady Louisa. If it's fine with you."

Louisa weighed her options and smiled apologetically at the witch doctor. "That's all for today, Master Sasilie. You may leave. Sylvia will show you to your accommodation. We'll keep this up until the talisman loses its magic."

"Do you dislike me that much, witchers?" A frown furrowed the witch doctor's brows. "I've told you about the prophecy, and this is how you repay me?"

"This might be more complex than you think, Sir Sasilie. We don't want to drag you into this," Roy said genuinely, then he turned to Louisa. "We'll explain everything in time."

The witch doctor put his hands on his hips and left the room reluctantly. He shouted, "You promised me a proper guest's treatment, Sylvia, so get me a baby goat right now! I want a female one!”

***

Louisa closed the door and shut out the voices from outside. "May we go on now, witchers?"

"Of course, Lady Louisa. Let's talk about the third and final possibility." Roy smiled. "It's about something we found in the garden." Roy took out the card they found in the garden and showed it to Louisa. "Amos left us this clue before he was injured."

Louisa looked at the man on the card, and she froze. "Is this a joke, witchers? What does this card have to do with Aryan's case?"

"Do you know this man, Lady Louisa?" the witcher asked. "He is none other than Foltest, the king of Temeria, but he is also the one who put your son to sleep!" Roy announced, and he exchanged a look with Letho.

Louisa took a deep breath and frowned in displeasure. "Witchers, if this is your idea of a joke, then it's not funny. Accusing the king of Temeria of a crime? That's impossible. He was handling the nation's affairs. He couldn't make it here in time. There's no way he's behind this."

"We're not joking," Roy said solemnly. "According to our investigations, Foltest did join the banquet, but under the pseudonym of Setlov. You do know him, don't you? The important guest from Vizima."

Louisa blanched, and she stared at the ground.

"The servants told us everything. His Majesty went to the garden at about the same time Sir Aryan fell. He's a prime suspect, and this card points him out as the criminal."

Louisa clasped her hands together "No, witchers, you misunder—"

She was about to explain, but Roy cut her off. "Lady Louisa, Princess Adda of Vizima is my friend. To be exact, I saved her life." Roy circled Louisa. "She told us His Majesty left Vizima on a trip about a month ago. It's a coincidence your banquet was held at that time. Or is it? Why don't I ask your husband about it? There should be some clues to point out that His Majesty did leave Vizima somewhere."

Louisa wanted to deny it, but she heaved a sigh in the end. "Very well. You're great investigators, witchers. No doubt about that. Setlov is His Majesty's pseudonym, but there's a reason for that. His Majesty is friends with the baron, and the baron's land is critically important to Temeria. It's normal that His Majesty snuck out and came to celebrate our girl's birthday, isn't it?" She bit her lip. "But he's not the one who hurt Aryan. I promise!"

"And why are you so sure about that?" Roy looked at her, but she was averting her gaze. "Oh, it can't be… Lady Louisa, did… did you have a tryst with Foltest that night?"

"Silence!" Louisa shrieked. No longer was she the weak and dejected woman. She looked up and glared at Roy darkly. "I called you here to save Aryan, not to sully my name! Do you have any idea how disastrous it would be if someone heard that lie and told everyone about it?"

Letho crossed his arms and leaned against the wall. He wanted to see how Roy would settle this.

Roy shook his head and let out a sigh. "Why should I care? From what the servants told us, you and Foltest were the only ones in the garden. Oh, we figured that part out ourselves. And you two were the only possible people who could hurt Aryan."

"That's a lie! Do you have any proof? Show me! Not this Gwent card, of course. It's a joke! For all I know, you could have planted false evidence," she shouted hysterically, but then she lowered her voice when she heard the sounds outside.

"Proof?" Roy shook his head. "The way you reacted is the best proof. And I think the baron would believe it if we told him his wife had an affair with the king."

Louisa tensed. She was no longer the elegant lady she was a moment ago. She knew the old, impotent, and controlling baron would do anything to find the truth about this affair, even if he had nothing but rumors to go on. And that scared her. The La Valettes had more coins than they could count, and an army to be reckoned with. They would crush anyone and anything who challenged their authority and dignity.

Even in the original timeline, Baron La Valette would have a fallout with Foltest, and one of the reasons was this affair. He saw his wife having a tryst with Foltest, but Louisa kept denying it.

"What do you want, witchers?" she hissed. "What can you get from threatening a defenseless woman like me?"

"Oh, we're not threatening you, Lady Louisa. All we want is the truth. What happened in the garden that night? Why'd my friends get accused for something they didn't do? Why'd you do that to the troupe?" Roy took a step forward, and Louisa took a step back. "Tell us the truth, and we'll keep your little affair a secret. You know, we could have gone to the baron right after we found out what happened, but we came to you first."

Louisa turned even whiter, and beads of sweat trickled down her cheeks. She could feel the bed against her back. She held her hands under her chin, her fingers trembling violently.

What Roy said next finally broke her down.

"Oh, and we know a special sign too. It turns our targets into honest puppets who'll spill their dirty little secrets to us. All we have to do is ask. But it'd leave a bad taste in our mouths if we used that on a baroness, so we tried to be accommodating, but you spent almost all our patience." Roy stared at the terrified woman, and he took another step forward. "If that's not enough, we also know how to prove if a child is related to their father, and it's simple, really. Just a few easy steps. Wanna hear? Step one—"

"Stop!" Louisa finally gave in. "You win, witchers. I'll tell you everything. I'll tell you the truth, but please, stop with the threats." Louisa looked up at the witcher. There was fear and indignance in her eyes, but Roy also saw relief in it. She kept checking the door and confirmed that the coast was clear. Louisa, for the first time since they met, cursed, "Damn it! I should have stopped you before you even entered the castle!"

***

Maria Louisa patted Aryan's face with a wet towel again, as if trying to hold her fear in. "You know this already, of course, but His Majesty and I agreed to meet up in the garden that night—"

Roy interrupted, "Lady Louisa, when exactly did you start having an affair with the king?"

Louisa growled quietly, "Do you really have to pick apart a poor lady's last shred of dignity?"

The witchers said nothing and ignored her plea. Roy knew how cunning this woman was. She could have been a great diplomat.

"Fine. It was during fall last year, at the king's banquet. That was the first time he laid eyes on me." Reminiscence flashed in her eyes, and she looked a little delighted thinking about it. "He was a very dominant man. Wouldn't take no for an answer."

"What else? What can a couple do when they're alone?" Louisa mocked.

"Aryan and that performer just had to show up right when we were about to climax. They overheard our conversation and realized that Setlov was His Majesty. Aryan was raised to be a knight. He has a strong sense of justice and won't tolerate any misdeeds. He came right out and confronted me." Louisa had a look of agony and shame on her face. "I was shocked. I couldn't think straight. I had no idea how to explain this, and Aryan… Aryan stormed out of the garden."

"Are you sure you're not lying?" Roy asked, "Did you really let Aryan go just like that? What if he told the baron what he saw?"

"What else could I do?" Louisa asked, almost roaring. "Did you expect me to attack him? He's my own son! I-I just hoped he would calm down and keep it a secret from his father. For my sake."

"So what happened next wasn't your fault?"

Louisa shook her head in agony. "I should have gone with him. Nothing would have happened if I did, but Amos was a bigger problem. We had to deal with him."

Louisa stared at the ground. She said darkly, "Amos the Gwent performer. He was an insatiable man. His Majesty has promised to give him a mountain of coins. Enough for him to live in luxury his whole life. All he had to do was keep things a secret, but that wasn't enough for him. He tried to blackmail His Majesty into granting him the title of nobility. Laughable, isn't it, witcher?" Louisa scoffed. "A lowly, traveling performer, trying to become an aristocrat overnight. We couldn't give him what he wanted, and His Majesty dislikes threats. He prefers negotiations. He pretended to agree so he could approach Amos. Then he stabbed the performer with a dagger, and…" Fear flashed in her eyes. "Strangled him with a talisman."

"But we never expected that the performer would leave a clue behind in the form of this Gwent card. And then you two found it. You know the rest," Louisa said weakly.

"He's a cruel man, that Foltest." Roy sighed. He was shocked about how easily Foltest could decide on committing murder, but then he thought it was just natural. Foltest must have led an even worse life before he ascended the throne. It would have been impossible to become a king if he wasn't cruel.

"Oh, that's surprising. You couldn't guess where we hid the body?" Louisa heaved a sigh of relief and smiled smugly. "It's a garden. It's filled with flowerbeds. What better place to hide a body?"

***

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