A Viziman Contract

After inquiring about Ciri once more and finding her busy with meetings yet again, Geralt donned his armour and strapped his swords to his back. He made his way out of the palace and towards the larger city of Vizima. His first stop: the noticeboard next to the watchtower.

The city had changed little since he'd last been there a few years back. Only the uniforms of the guards were now black and gold instead of silver and blue. Otherwise, the inhabitants were still mostly Temerians, haughty in the merchant's quarter and meagre in the trade quarter where they had shoved all the non-humans.

The board next to the watchtower was conspicuously empty. There wasn't even a notice for a missing pet, let alone anything more worthy of his time. In fact, it was so empty that he wondered if anyone had come by to rip off all the parchments fixed to it in an act of blatant vandalism. But there were guards posted all around, so that couldn't have happened without them stopping the culprit.

All over the city, it was the same. All the noticeboards stood empty. It was as if no ill could happen inside the city walls, not a problem in sight. The only parchments pinned on doors and walls announced the obligation of every man to report to the watchtower or nearest garrison to be taken into evidence to fulfil their duty of service to their new master, the Nilfgaardian Empire.

The apparent lack of postings didn't deter Geralt. As all witchers knew, the next best place to find a contract was at the local tavern. He weighed his options, then headed for the Hairy Bear Inn, the tavern in the poorer part of town. If he was going to take a contract, he wasn't going to do it for the coin. He wanted to alleviate his boredom while Ciri dealt with Emhyr, but while he was at it, he might as well help a less fortunate soul.

The tavern stood hidden in the slums of the trade quarter, but all knew this was the best place to see a fistfight. The braver of the bunch even played poker here, but that was always a gamble. You never knew who tricked the dice, as most were not above cheating.

The innkeeper was not the same as last time he had passed through, so with a smooth movement, Geralt pulled his witcher's medallion over his leather breastplate to sit in full view. It was the quickest way to advertise his services without saying the words. He headed for the bar and ordered an ale instead of the hard liquor he would have preferred. After all, he wanted to keep sober.

"You a witcher?" the man tending the bar asked as he set the mug of ale in front of him.

With a finger under his chain, Geralt lifted the medallion a little higher, so the edges of the silver wolf caught the light better.

"School of the Wolf," he answered, knowing more questions would follow.

"The city watch hired you for something?"

"No, this is just a stop. A short one, judging by the empty noticeboards around town. Seems the Nilfgaardians are doing just fine without my services. Soon I'll be heading on the Path to someplace where I can make some coin plying my trade."

The barkeep coughed and leaned in. "Some would disagree that things are fine, but don't let anyone know you heard it from me. Men have been disappearing from the city and the nearest village for the past few months."

"No one thought to report them missing to the authorities?" Geralt asked.

The barkeep scoffed. "Of course they did! But they were shown the door each time and told the men were likely cowards who fled for fear of being conscripted into the army."

"I've seen the posters." He took a gulp of his ale. "It's not unheard of for men to flee the draft. Especially when it's for the invading army."

With a wave of his hand, the man dismissed him. "No, these men were not cowards. One of them was my friend. He was thriving under the rule of the black cloaks. He would have gladly served, but unfortunately, he's gone missing for a fortnight." With a swift look of appraisal, his eyes swept over Geralt. "You wouldn't be interested in looking for him, now would you? I mean, I know witchers hunt monsters and all, but I'd be willing to pay you for your time."