Chapter 217: Firework of a Different Color
The market was adorned with colorful tents, filled with a dazzling array of goods.
Standing at the entrance of the market, Lynn activated his witcher senses.
All sorts of pheromones clearly revealed themselves in the world before his eyes.
"Found it."
Among the numerous but not chaotic pheromones, a single red plume of smoke was particularly conspicuous.
So, Lynn followed this red smoke, invisible to others, deeper into the market.
In the deepest corner of the market, Lynn noticed that the peculiar spice scent he had detected in the bakery and on Alfred was emanating from there.
The stall displayed various bottles and jars of spices.
There was red chili powder, golden ginger powder, light green coriander seeds, dark brown cinnamon sticks, and more, all colorful and diverse.
The stall owner was a short dwarf.
Seeing Lynn squat down in front of his stall, he greeted him warmly.
"Hello, esteemed sir. You clearly look like a man of status. What would you like? O'Fieri spices that showcase your masculine charm? Or Zerrikanian spices that enchant ladies?"
"Or perhaps, you'd like something favored by others? Like this one, it's the same as City Councilor Jefferson Perales's."
"If you don't tell anyone, I can secretly give you a special price, guaranteed to be better than anyone else's."
Lynn picked up a bottle of O'Fieri spices.
Then he picked up a bottle of Zerrikanian spices.
Others might not discern the difference.
But with his extraordinary witcher senses, he sniffed out the characteristics of elven spices.
These two bottles of spices weren't from O'Fier or Zerrikania at all; they were the result of different combinations of elven spices.
However, Lynn didn't expose him.
Instead, he pretended not to notice and continued to ask.
"How do you manage to acquire so many high-quality spices from other countries around the world?"
"That's my trade secret," the dwarf chuckled.
Lynn put down the two bottles of spices and looked directly into the dwarf's eyes.
"You won't even tell me, 'Geralt'? We're companions from the same school, you know."
The dwarf was startled at first.
Then, the smile on his face slowly froze.
Finally turning into an expression of terror.
That expression seemed to say, "Damn it, how the hell do you know?"
Then, he grabbed the spices on the ground and violently threw them forward.
He himself then bolted in the other direction.
"Cough, cough... Damn it."
Perhaps these spices, when sprinkled on one's body, could indeed add a lot of charm.
But inhaling them into one's nose was certainly not a good idea.
Especially for a witcher with heightened senses of smell.
And in that brief moment, the dwarf had already run a long distance, disappearing into the crowd.
But in Lynn's activated witcher senses, he remained clear and prominent.
"You won't escape."
At this time, there weren't many people in the market, only a few scattered customers.
Lynn easily bypassed those Browse in the market, quickly approaching the fleeing dwarf ahead.
At this moment, the dwarf had reached an enclosure where pigs were kept. He stepped onto a flat cart parked beside the enclosure, and from his posture, he seemed to be planning to jump into the enclosure, using the pigs as cover to escape.
But just as he stepped onto the cart, preparing to jump, Lynn's right hand suddenly became a blurry phantom, violently flicking out. The throwing knife, having launched later, arrived first, precisely hitting the connection between the cart's body and its wheel.
With a crash, the cart toppled sideways.
And the dwarf, who was preparing for a difficult jump into the enclosure, fell head over heels into the muddy, feces-covered ground trampled by the pigs.
Everyone in the market stared dumbfounded at the scene.
Someone let out a scream, though it was unclear who.
Only then did others snap out of their stupor, fleeing in a panic towards the market exit.
Lynn moved to the front of the enclosure.
"Got you."
"No, I got you."
A voice identical to Lynn's came from the opposite side.
In Lynn's eyes, the dwarf's body began to change.
First, he swelled up like an amorphous mass of dough, then thinned and grew taller.
His chestnut curly hair gradually turned silver, cascading over his shoulders.
His brown waistcoat developed an oily sheen, transforming into a green cloak.
A sword hung from his waist beneath the cloak.
Lynn looked at the handsome face identical to his own on the opposite side and couldn't help but quip, "Damn, why am I so handsome?"
"What should I call you, 'Geralt'? Or a doppler? Or... a mimick?"
"You're the weird one!" The "Lynn" opposite replied in the same tone, "I have a name, but I'm not going to tell you. I won't tell my name to a monster slayer."
Lynn let out a laugh.
"It seems you already know my true identity."
The doppler scoffed.
"Of course. When I transform into someone, I acquire their voice, way of thinking, mannerisms, professional knowledge and skills, and so on."
"Or, to use your witcher terminology, I can replicate the imitated individual's brain features, psyche, and soul."
"But I find it strange. Shouldn't all witchers have a pair of cat-like eyes? Why are your eyes blue?"
Lynn squeezed the Deception Medallion hanging on his chest.
"Because the form you're imitating now isn't my true appearance, but the one I've altered with the Deception Medallion."
"Sir Doppler, who refuses to reveal his name, you've already caused my companion to be jailed. I certainly don't want to be arrested by the city guards while trying to apprehend you."
When a doppler mimics a subject, it gains some of the subject's memories—though not all.
Thus, he knew about Lynn and Geralt's relationship.
"Listen, regarding your companion, I apologize. I didn't expect things to escalate this much, nor did I expect you to arrive in Novigrad precisely at this time."
"I originally intended to wait until Alfred left Novigrad, then transform into him to have the wanted poster revoked at City Hall..."
However, the witcher shook his head at the doppler's explanation.
"That has nothing to do with what you intended. Reality is only concerned with your choices. You made a choice, and my companion bore the consequences. That's why I'm here for you."
The doppler anxiously said, "Witcher, you cannot hand me over to the authorities! You know what the Eternal Fire will do to me!"
He gritted his teeth.
"You leave me no choice."
The doppler's hand and the witcher's hand simultaneously reached for their respective sword hilts.
Both swords were drawn at the same time.
.....
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