Chapter 589: Geralt's Curtain Call (Requesting Subscriptions, Monthly Passes)

Chapter 589: Geralt's Curtain Call (Requesting Subscriptions, Monthly Passes)

After learning that the killer's target was a senior knight who 'lacked the five virtues', and analyzing the next potential victim, Geralt and the Duchess immediately sprang into action. Yet, they were still a step too late.

The fourth victim still appeared, and Geralt the White Wolf witnessed the killer firsthand, chasing the Beast of Beauclair all the way to a secluded farm.

After an intense battle, a mysterious figure suddenly appeared in the center of the battlefield, taking a claw for the White Wolf. However, upon seeing his face, Geralt was stunned.

Through their conversation, players also understood the relationship between Geralt and this mysterious person.

Regis, once Geralt's good friend, a higher vampire.

In The Witcher world, higher vampires are immune to sunlight, and blood is not a necessity but a drink, much like fine wine. Just like humans, some enjoy drinking, others do not.

In his early years, Regis had given up his habit of drinking blood for certain reasons. He met Geralt and joined his quest to find Ciri. However, Regis was later killed by a powerful entity, a fate even a higher vampire could not escape.

Geralt had believed his friend was dead, but fortunately, years later, Dettlaff, also a higher vampire and the Beast of Beauclair, found Regis and resurrected him at great cost.

According to Regis, Dettlaff did not understand human deception or lies, yet enjoyed being with humans. However, he himself did not comprehend good and evil, so it was highly possible he was being used by malicious individuals. Therefore, he hoped the White Wolf could help him find the true mastermind. Hearing his old friend's words, Geralt the White Wolf nodded in agreement.

Playing through this series of game content, Grayson was quite surprised.

Because it didn't feel like mere DLC content at all.

It was completely separated from the main story of The Witcher, with only one or two dialogues serving as easter eggs hinting at the prequel.

Yet, the story of Toussaint was entirely self-contained, like an independent new work.

In terms of gameplay, although it still retained The Witcher's dialogue choice system, it added elements of detective work.

A murder occurs, clues are sought, the killer is found, only to discover the killer is merely a puppet with a greater mastermind behind them.

The entire mode was intertwined, and in the process, it better showcased the local customs and traditions of Toussaint to the players.

Especially as the story delved deeper, more and more content emerged.

Firstly, the Corvo Bianco vineyard given to Geralt by the Duchess was not just a decoration.

It could genuinely be decorated and even DIY customized.

Compared to the previous life, Chen Xu made significant changes here. In the previous life, this vineyard management element, so yearned for by many players, wasn't extensive. Players merely paid the majordomo for automatic renovations, with only minor decorative details left for them to arrange.

The only major function was cultivating mutagens and dyeing gear.

In response, Chen Xu and the team slightly modified it during development, allowing players to experience more of the simulation and management fun in the vineyard.

This completely stunned Grayson. Was he playing The Witcher: Wild Hunt or a simulation management game?

And this was just the beginning.

As the story progressed, more new weapons, new equipment, new gear sets, new build types, and the mutation system directly made Grayson question whether this was an expansion pack or a sequel.

Of course, more importantly, it was the story of Blood and Wine.

It remained in the pure style of The Witcher: Wild Hunt, presenting players with the indescribable trolley problem and moral dilemmas.

………………

It could be said that the story of Blood and Wine was far longer than Grayson had anticipated.

If he hadn't known it was a DLC, he would genuinely have believed it to be a brand new game.

Upon encountering Dettlaff and Regis, the story of Blood and Wine had only just begun to unfold.

To investigate the truth, Dettlaff had to be found first.

But Dettlaff had gone into hiding, and even a powerful monster hunter like the White Wolf was helpless against a higher vampire's concealment.

So, the severed hand of Dettlaff from the earlier manor now came in handy.

Regis told Geralt they could use the severed hand to brew a Resonance Potion. Drinking it would allow them to relive Dettlaff's memories.

However, the Resonance Potion's recipe was complex, requiring rare ingredients like the saliva of a Spotted Wight. Fortunately, Regis had found a Spotted Wight in an abandoned manor, so Geralt immediately set off.

But upon arriving, the White Wolf encountered something unusual: various spoons were laid out in the Spotted Wight's house.

After investigating the information, the White Wolf soon learned that the Spotted Wight living there was actually the manor's young lady, cursed. The one who cursed her was a mirror-selling beggar.

Here, players could choose: either kill her directly and take the saliva, or endure the disgust and share a meal with her, which would lift her curse. Moreover, a kindly cook would then join the Corvo Bianco vineyard in the future.

Successfully obtaining the saliva, the White Wolf, with Regis's help, brewed the Resonance Potion. Geralt drank the potion and relived Dettlaff's memories concerning the severed hand.

After further investigation, the only annoying part was that the 'Boy Kid' was still irritating. The 'Boy Kid' from the first time in Red Dead Redemption when heading to Saint Denis, and the 'Boy Kid' in The Witcher, were both equally annoying!

Suppressing the urge to chop the 'Boy Kid' in two, Grayson quickly gathered new clues. It turned out Dettlaff only killed people because his lover had been kidnapped. The mastermind behind the kidnapping used his lover to blackmail Dettlaff into assassinating characters on a list. Dettlaff's own hand was cut off after the fact because one of the people he killed was someone he knew.

However, after investigation, the matter was not so simple, as Dettlaff's lover turned out to be the Duchess's sister: Syanna.

And regarding the Duchess's sister, this was another dark past of the Toussaint royal family.

Syanna was born during the Hour of the Eclipse. Legend had it that noble girls born at this time would suffer a curse, becoming fierce and bloodthirsty. The Duchess's parents firmly believed this, hence their prejudice against Syanna, ultimately leading the royal family to banish Syanna from the realm.

Combining these clues, both Grayson and the players now understood the situation. Clearly, Syanna was the mastermind behind it all.

Finally, after the truth was revealed, Dettlaff, realizing the one he loved most had deceived him, fell into uncontrolled rage.

He issued an ultimatum to Syanna: meet him at the prison ruins in three days to explain herself, or he would unleash a bloodbath upon Toussaint.

On the other hand, the Duchess, torn between her childhood guilt towards Syanna and the dignity of the royal family, refused to hand over Syanna and asked the White Wolf to find a way to kill this Beast of Beauclair.

But with a higher vampire intentionally hiding, three days were nowhere near enough for Geralt to track him down.

So, on the final night, countless lesser vampires under Dettlaff's command invaded Beauclair, transforming the once fairytale city into hell.

And after the Toussaint bloodbath, the game officially entered its most essential mode: The Witcher's moral choice system.

From this moment, the player's different choices would lead to different endings.

Witnessing the catastrophic scenes of the Toussaint bloodbath, Regis began to waver regarding Dettlaff's actions of taking out his anger on innocent citizens.

He told the White Wolf there were currently only two solutions.

One was to satisfy Dettlaff's demands and find Syanna, whom the Duchess had hidden. Dettlaff would then retreat, but Syanna might be harmed.

Second was to seek help from a reclusive Elder Vampire nearby. He was the oldest of the 'shadow clan' among higher vampires and could forcibly summon any vampire within Toussaint, Dettlaff included.

But the crucial point was that the Elder Vampire was incredibly powerful, and no one knew what would happen upon meeting him.

If they chose to meet the Elder Vampire, Regis would go with the White Wolf. This Elder Vampire, unable to tolerate the smell of humans, had lived in seclusion in a cave for centuries. He strongly resisted any disturbance, and Regis was rendered motionless with just a single sentence from him.

Similarly, if the White Wolf uttered just two unnecessary sentences here, he would be instantly killed by the Elder Vampire, with no chance to fight back. Almost ninety percent of players who liked to ask many questions, upon reaching this point without consulting guides, relied on saving and reloading repeatedly, testing little by little, to successfully pass 'without taking damage'.

After their discussion, the Elder Vampire warned Regis to be careful. For only a higher vampire's kin could truly kill another higher vampire. Because of this, there was a strict ban among vampires against kinslaying; anyone who violated it would face endless pursuit.

Under the Elder Vampire's power, Dettlaff appeared, but no matter how Regis pleaded, Dettlaff remained unmoved.

Finally, a great battle was unavoidable, and Regis and the White Wolf defeated Dettlaff. Knowing Dettlaff would not give up, Regis ultimately had no choice but to end Dettlaff's life himself.

Finally, the White Wolf learned that Syanna's last target was the Duchess. However, Syanna stated that she had let go and would not act again.

But the knot of hatred in Syanna's heart had still not unraveled during the final ceremony. Syanna feigned an embrace with her sister and pierced the Duchess's heart with her hair ornament. She herself was shot through the throat by a guard's crossbow. Toussaint, once like a fairytale, was plunged into sorrow.

Of course, besides this 'total party wipe' ending, there were two other different endings. As for triggering these two endings, players also needed to control the White Wolf to enter a storybook.

In the storybook, the White Wolf would learn the sisters' story. This tale, full of absurdity and darkness, truly surprised players.

However, the most crucial part here was collecting a red ribbon.

After collecting all the elements needed to leave, Syanna would also communicate with Geralt the White Wolf on the clouds, finally resolving her emotional knot.

Thus, when facing Dettlaff again, there were two different endings.

The first ending was that Dettlaff suddenly killed Syanna and left Toussaint, but the White Wolf was imprisoned by the Duchess out of anger for secretly taking Syanna away. Fortunately, Regis informed Dandelion of Geralt's imprisonment, and Dandelion traveled thousands of miles to Toussaint to rescue the White Wolf.

As for the other ending, the key item was the red ribbon. If the red ribbon was bought and given to Syanna, it could block Dettlaff's fatal blow. Afterwards, Regis still killed Dettlaff, and Syanna and the Duchess successfully resolved their emotional issues, but Regis had to embark on a long journey of being hunted.

Finally, the White Wolf conversed with Regis under the moonlight, then released a sigh, put down his wine glass, and gave a slight smile to the player looking through the screen. After years of wandering, the White Wolf finally found a place to settle in Toussaint, a land that didn't discriminate against witchers: Corvo Bianco vineyard.

And here, if the player continued with a previous save, one of either Yennefer or Triss would come. If the 'Three-Way Tango' storyline was completed, then his adopted daughter, Ciri, would arrive.

Even if the 'Dead Wolf' ending was achieved earlier, his good friend Dandelion would come.

Two years later, Ciri, Regis, Dandelion, Keira, Triss, Yennefer, and all those who had helped the White Wolf gathered at Corvo Bianco vineyard.

Without experiencing the game's side quests, but following the DLC's main story on the easiest difficulty, Grayson still grinded for about ten hours.

He didn't play the other DLC, Hearts of Stone. But he no longer had the inclination, because he knew that this DLC, titled 'Blood and Wine', was enough to blow players away.

Especially the final ending, what about the promised 'death of the White Wolf'? A single DLC, and you have a brand new mutation system, new gear sets and levels, and manor gameplay? Is that even necessary?

In that instant, Grayson was incredibly grateful that he had listened to Alex's advice and chose to delay 'Lost Curse'. Otherwise, they would have been in huge trouble!

In fact, just as Grayson thought, all players who had played the DLC were completely blown away at this moment. The White Wolf's perfect curtain call – this was a path no one had ever imagined!

(End of Chapter) <>