Chapter 23: Yuanfang, What Do You Think?
Lynn used the remaining bread to clean the meat sauce spotless off the plate.
The village elder's daughter turned over a lightly moist hand towel.
Lynn thanked her and cleaned his hands with the towel.
Geralt, however, had also eaten food and drink.
He exchanged a glance with Lynn, and finally gave him a reassuring look, urging Lynn to speak with the elder.
So Lynn pondered his words and said.
"Thank you for hospitality. Let's get down to business if possible now. I heard that you are threatened by monsters."
The village elder's face instantly turned bitter.
"Yes, you're right, Witcher master. That's right, we are a peaceful village. Previously, except for taxmen, there were essentially very few outsiders visiting."
"But not so long ago, a monster came to our cemetery, killed the gravedigger who was guarding the cemetery. And has been taking over, not willing to leave."
Lynn nodded and said, "What's it like, a monster?"
The elder responded in a local accent.
"Everyone has their own theory. Villagers are going mad guessing about mutant crab monsters and manticores. I think it's all rubbish."
"We pleaded with the noble lord who rules our village for help, but we didn't even see the noble lord. We were sent back by his guards with a word, 'This is your business, clean up after yourselves.'"
Lynn was curious: "Has anyone ever laid eyes on the monster themselves? Even from afar?"
"Of course, and very close up. The result was either death or maiming."
The village elder sighed: "I knew that monster was not something ordinary people could handle, but Gwyn would not listen. He wanted to send a team of young men to the cemetery. And because of that. only Gwyn and Roy came back alive."
"Okay, please bring the survivors here. We need to interview them in person."
Lynn's order was immediately followed.
Two disheartened young men entered the room and sat in front of Lynn.
"Your village elder informs us that there are creatures in the graveyard in your village. Did you catch a look at what the creature was like?"
The young man called Gwyn responded dejectedly: "It was rather dark at the time. Roy thought he saw something."
Gwyn had hardly spoken when he was interrupted by Roy, who was annoyed.
"I did see it! The monster was like a crippled old woman, especially its claws were extremely sharp. Smith was in two pieces with its claws, and his pitchfork."
Old woman, crippled, sharp claws.
A snapshot of a monster appeared in Lynn's mind.
He could almost second-guess what he had to deal with.
He pondered thoughtfully, "And then?"
Roy swallowed hard, as if recalling some terrible memories.
"I was standing right next to Smith. There was blood all over my face, and I heard Sangji and Troy screaming."
"I was afraid. I was not thinking of anything else during that time. I just didn't want to die like that. I have not even taken a woman's hand yet. It would be a pity if I died like this."
Lynn nodded and pitied him, "Understandable."
It was just too difficult to make some villagers who never received combat training fight to death when they encountered monsters.
Additionally, even if they did not flee, the final result would only be some more corpses.
That beast. if the report given by this villager were true, even if some completely armed soldiers wielding silver swords appeared, they could not exit the cemetery alive.
Lynn glared over her shoulder at Gwyn on the side.
"What about you? Didn't you see anything?"
Before Gwyn could open his mouth, Roy spoke on his behalf with a look of scorn.
"Him? He was the one who commanded us to head to the cemetery to kill monsters initially. Thus, when that monster attacked, he also ran away first. What did he see?"
Gwyn blushes right away.
He scowled fiercely at Roy.
For a moment, Lynn believed Gwyn would explode.
But he finally put up with it.
He merely stood up calmly and left.
The wooden door at his back was shut with a crash into the door frame.
Roy didn't take it seriously: "It doesn't matter, let the coward go. He doesn't know as much as I do. If you want to know something, master, just ask me."
Lynn stepped away from the door and nodded.
"Can you remember any other details?"
"Details. oh, yes, one other thing is that we went to the cemetery in the afternoon, but never did see any trace of the monster. The monster never popped out until it was almost dark."
Realizing that he could not learn any more, Lynn stood up.
"Okay, we know all we need to know."
Roy spoke sincerely: "I hope you can kill that creature and avenge my friends."
After Roy had left, the village elder returned into the room, scowling and apprehensive in front of them.
"Witcher master, do you really think you can eliminate the monster?"
Lynn grinned: "Just give us a while to discuss it."
"Alright, alright."
The village elder nodded curtly.
He did not forget to close the door when he left.
When there were only the two of them left in the room, Geralt, who had been holding his tongue, finally spoke.
"It appears you have surmised something, haven't you?"
Lynn put his fingers on his chin and thought.
"There are several kinds of monsters who like to haunt cemeteries: ghouls, devourers, arachas, grave hags."
"But there is only one kind of monster that matches the description of the old woman Roy recounted to us:"
"—Grave hags."
Grave hags look like disabled, humped, and distorted old women.
They typically patrol the edges of cemeteries and fields of battle.
Because they know that the aforementioned two places are their favorite foods.
Grave hags subsist on dead human bodies.
They especially love human bone marrow.
They draw it out from bones with their soft, extended tongues.
As with other varieties of carrion feeders, grave hags also attack live people.
Since they prefer rotten corpses, they don't consume them immediately after they kill humans but bury the corpses in the cemetery and wait for them to rot.
In addition, grave hags highly value their home area.
Their nests seem to be imitations of human dwellings and are normally built near cemeteries.
If they have already eaten their meals, they will leave their nests during the night to hunt.
The victims are lone travelers, or family of the deceased who are too bereaved to witness the sunset.
Only in special situations will ravenous grave hags come outside to hunt during the day.
But since sunlight will weaken grave hags severely, you will have to try to hunt them during the day when sunlight occurs.
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