The Witcher: Darkness Falls

Gradually, more and more people appeared on the road, and Leon knew that they were approaching the city of Nilfgaard.

Sure enough, an hour later, a huge monster appeared in their sight and became more majestic as they approached.

The entire city of Nilfgaard was not built on a plain, but on a low mountain.

All the buildings are arranged vertically in an orderly manner. At the top is a Gothic castle, which is the palace of the Emperor of Nilfgaard and the heart of the entire Nilfgaard Empire.

Further down are some residential buildings, as well as colleges and the like.

Almost all the buildings here have pointed roofs, and the roofs are covered with golden glazed tiles. As long as the sun shines, the whole city looks like gold, shining brightly.

This is the origin of the City of Golden Pagodas.

After entering the city, Leon took Zival straight to Stregobor's residence.

Stregobor had told him that if he needed him, he could go to Bakara in Nilfgaard.

"That's where the Nilfgaardian Senate is. This is the highest power center of the empire. Even the emperor needs to listen to the opinions of the Senate.

Of course, there are exceptions. After Emhyr Emreis came to power, he was both the emperor of Nilfgaard and the head of the Senate. He was a dictator.

Nilfgaard annexed almost all the countries in the southern continent through war. A series of victories made everyone place Nilfgaard's hopes on Emperor Emhyr, and the Senate could not decide anything.

But... you know, Emperor Emhyr's three northern expeditions failed in succession, which severely damaged the empire. Especially after his death, the Senate gradually came to power.

By the way, did you ever participate in Nilfgaard's three northern expeditions?" Leon turned around and asked Zivar.

Zival rolled his eyes and asked, "Am I that old? I'm only over a hundred years old. I'm still young!"

Leon nodded. According to the dwarf, over a hundred years old is indeed very young, and it is the right age to travel around.

"Do you see that huge square over there? That's the famous Millennium Square, where Nilfgaard executed criminals. And over there..."

After entering the city, Leon acted as Zival's tour guide and introduced him to the heart of the Nilfgaard Empire, the City of Golden Towers.

Due to Nilfgaard's lenient policy towards humanoid races, non-human races can be seen everywhere here.

Dwarves, halflings, gnomes, half-elves, and even pure-blooded elves are seen doing business here.

"Tsk tsk, pure-blooded elves, quite rare!" Zival looked at several pure-blooded elves.

"Dor Bretanner was given to the elves by Emperor Emhyr, and the Elf Queen was also conferred by Emperor Emhyr. Dol Bretanner is a vassal of the Nilfgaard Empire, so it is not surprising that pure-blooded elves appear in the city of Nilfgaard." Lyon said.

"Haha, these traitors from the northern countries." Zivar sneered.

Dol Bretanner originally belonged to Aedirn, but was removed from the armistice agreement of the Second Northern War and given to the elves.

Because the elves betrayed the northern kingdoms, the infamous Scoia'tael was organized by the elves as a guerrilla force of the Nilfgaard Empire in the north.

Although some humanoid races such as dwarves and halflings have joined the Scoia'tael, Zivar still feels uncomfortable.

"The place we are going to is still ahead, and it will probably take a few hours to get there," said Lyon.

Zival looked around and exclaimed: "It's so big, even bigger than Vizima in Temeria!"

In terms of scale, the area of ​​Nilfgaard is at least three times that of Vizima!

"Initially, Nilfgaard wasn't this big. There was only that area over there, and many of the famous buildings I just told you about were over there.

But later it gradually expanded, and the current city of Nilfgaard is actually several cities combined.

There is a better and safer living environment here, more convenient service facilities, and most importantly, there are more job opportunities.

This is more suitable for young people who are eager for change. "Lyon introduced.

Zival nodded, that was indeed the case.

If he were given a choice, he would definitely choose to settle down in a big city.

On the one hand, safety in the countryside is not guaranteed, and on the other hand, it is very inconvenient.

For example, on this trip, they spent most of the time walking in uninhabited areas, with only a few small villages occasionally, where even the most basic accommodation problems were difficult to solve.

Because not many people go there normally, no one would open a hotel in such a village.

"Where are we going next?" Zivar asked.

"The port of Bakara is at the southernmost tip of Nilfgaard City, close to the mouth of the Alba River. We will go there to find the wizard," said Leon.

"Port Bakara... Port Bakara... Why does it sound familiar to me?" Zivar felt a little puzzled, as he had never been here before.

But after thinking for a moment, he suddenly realized: "I remember that the Catalonia set out from here two hundred years ago.

In addition to the goods, dirty rats also set off!

The source of the plague that lasted for several years is here!"

Lyon was not so clear about this, but he was still quite surprised to hear the news now.

"I heard that the plague swept across the entire north and the outbreak was centered in Vizima. Was Mahakam affected?" Leon asked.

Zivar nodded and said, "Of course, but it has little to do with me, because I was not born at that time.

But my father told me that the kings begged the wizards for help, and in addition to using magic potions to cure people and disinfect the city, the wizards also strongly recommended that they keep cats. "

"Raise a cat?" Leon was a little confused.

Zivar introduced: "Of course, it's to catch mice. The reason why the plague broke out is actually related to the witch hunt."

Leon listened carefully. For him, as long as he didn't know something, he would like to know it.

Zivar said: "You know, wizards like cats, and people believe that wizards can turn into cats.

During the witch-hunting movement, witches were described as demonic beings and were hunted everywhere, along with their cats.

This resulted in the rats carrying the germs arriving in paradise after they disembarked from the ship. They multiplied in large numbers and eventually caused a plague.

We in Mahakam don't believe in this and haven't killed cats crazily. Besides, some of us know how to prepare magic potions. Although they can't cure diseases, they can prevent them.

In addition, Mahakam is not open to humans, and entry requires our permission, so the losses we suffered were not great.

At the wizard's suggestion, the King of Temeria even sent someone to Mahakam to borrow a cat."

At this point, Zivar chuckled twice, and then he continued: "But the problem still lies with the freighter.

If it hadn't brought disease-carrying rats to Vizima, this wouldn't have happened."

Leon thought about it and realized that it was true.

The two chatted as they walked and soon approached the port of Bakara.

"Huh? Leon, did you notice that the weather ahead is not right?" Zival asked suddenly.

Leon nodded, he had already noticed it.

The sky near the port of Bakara was not completely clear, but at least there were not so many dark clouds, and even the wind had become much gentler.

But behind them, the farther away from the port of Bakara they went, the thicker the dark clouds in the sky became, and it was even raining near the city gate.

Leon thought about it, then suddenly smiled and said, "It seems that we are lucky. Stregobor is at home."

"What do you mean? How can you be sure?" Zival asked puzzled.

Lyon pointed to the sky and said, "Strigob is good at weather magic. This is probably his work. Let's go and find him."