Witcher: Master Kiliman’s Grand Ambitions-Chapter 34: Scoring a Demon Hunter Teacher for Free

"How are you feeling?"
"Is your body okay?"
"This arm... well, what do you plan to do with it?"
After confirming there were no other enemies in this hideout, Kiriman helped the weakened Berengar up and leaned him against a nearby wall.
Though it was just an arm injury, this witcher looked as if he had endured horrific torture - eyes bulging, face pale, gums bleeding from being clenched so tightly. Clearly, he had been in excruciating pain.
Hearing his questions, Berengar showed a bitter smile and an indescribable expression that seemed almost like relief, saying: "Not bad, probably won't die."
"This is a first-level spell, Bone-Corroding Arrow."
"I once saw it in Kaer Morhen's library collection - a very vicious magic, a spell used by certain dark sorcerers for executions and torture."
"It uses dark attribute energy to erode the flesh, corrupt the blood and tissue, completely destroying the body's foundation."
"Unless a high-level healer is willing to treat me, it should be very difficult to cure."
"Even Swallow potion won't work."
At this point, Berengar gave a self-mocking laugh and continued: "My witcher career should be considered over."
"High-level healers are already rare, holding high positions and power. Ordinary people aren't qualified to meet them, and even if found, I probably don't have the means to get their help."
"And those sorcerers charge exorbitant fees - there's no way I could afford their treatment."
"Besides, missing an arm, I'm basically useless now. Maybe in the future, I'll have to rely on farming to support myself."
Kiriman didn't pay attention to his self-deprecation, instead pondering what this so-called "first-level magic" meant.
In his previous life, whether in games or the original works, the witcher profession was described in the most detail, while sorcerers' power was difficult to measure with simple levels and wasn't described thoroughly enough.
So he knew nothing about this magic level classification system.
However, Kiriman was someone who spoke his mind and didn't like keeping questions to himself, so he directly asked: "What does first-level magic mean? Does magic have many levels?"
Berengar looked at him with surprise, probably not expecting such a powerful Snake School witcher to lack knowledge of such basic magical knowledge.
But this farmer-like witcher wasn't a sarcastic person. After considering for less than a second, he honestly replied: "I'm not entirely clear on the specifics either."
"But according to the standards set by the Sorcerers' Brotherhood, chaos magic is divided into four levels based on the harm it causes and the difficulty of use."
"First level is weakest, fourth level is strongest. Well, maybe we should also include those non-standard cantrips."
"Most sorcerer apprentices who've studied magic for less than twenty years can only use first-level spells."
"Formal sorcerers, ordinary members of the Sorcerers' Brotherhood, can mostly use first to third level magic depending on their strength."
"Only the leadership of the Sorcerers' Brotherhood, those powerful sorcerers called high-level sorcerers, can use the most powerful fourth-level magic."
"But now across the entire continent, most of those early-promoted high-level sorcerers have already exhausted their lifespans and become marks in history."
"The truly remaining high-level sorcerers probably number less than ten now."
"Plus with the previous two Nilfgaard wars and the Thanedd Island coup, the Sorcerers' Brotherhood is practically nominal now. There aren't many truly powerful sorcerers left anymore."
After listening to Berengar's explanation, Kiriman nodded, feeling he had learned many new things.
He hadn't expected this seemingly simple and honest fellow to know quite a lot.
If he just let him fade away like this, it felt somewhat wasteful of this encounter.
Looking at the self-proclaimed cripple Berengar, an idea suddenly emerged in Kiriman's mind - a win-win solution.
So he directly said: "Berengar, I have an idea you might consider."
"Actually, my teacher died very early, almost right after I completed my witcher trials."
"As you've probably seen, while my strength is decent and I've had some unusual encounters,"
Berengar looked at him with surprise, probably not expecting such a powerful Snake School witcher to lack knowledge of such basic magical knowledge.
Speaking thus, he looked at the weakened witcher before him with sincere and earnest eyes.
"In your current condition, life will definitely be difficult going forward."
"How about this - I'll find you a retirement place and pay you a substantial monthly fee."
"In return, without violating your principles, teach me all the witcher knowledge you know."
"Believe me, I'm a generous person."
"First level is weakest, fourth level is strongest. Well, maybe we should also include those substandard cantrips."
"Think it over carefully. This path should be a good choice for you."
Perhaps Kiriman's proposal was too unexpected, too abrupt.
Berengar stood frozen in place, blinking, not knowing what to say.
Kiriman didn't press him, instead reaching out to pat his shoulder before turning to deal with the Salamander Gang hideout.
After such a long delay, the sorcerer who took a crossbow bolt to the chest had already died with wide-eyed stare.
Without ceremony, he directly used the Soul Absorption sign to extract this sorcerer's soul.
What surprised Kiriman was that the sorcerer's soul was far more powerful than ordinary people's. If an ordinary person's soul was a quail egg-sized ball of light,
Then this dead sorcerer's soul was like a chicken egg - not only emitting the faint glow of ordinary souls but also surrounded by something resembling chaotic magical energy, incredibly marvelous.
By visual estimation alone, the Soul Points contained in one sorcerer's soul were probably over ten times that of ordinary people, likely reaching around fifty points.
He felt some confusion but didn't dwell on it.
The Witcher King system contained too many secrets, and with his current power, he couldn't possibly unravel all these mysteries.
He planned to find opportunities later to check books about souls or consult experts who studied soul-related matters.
Thinking this, Kiriman advanced another few dozen meters into the secret chamber, soon seeing a massive, dim, damp cavern with torches mounted on walls.
In this cavern, not only were daily necessities, unknown goods, and large quantities of smuggled weapons piled up,
But also two massive iron cages placed in the cavern's center, near the fire pit.
Inside these iron cages were over a dozen underage boys and girls of different races.
They were bound hand and foot, gagged, dressed in rags, locked in the cages with dim, hopeless eyes, seemingly having fallen into despair.
Seeing this, Kiriman knew his efforts hadn't been in vain. This search mission should be considered complete.
And he and the Salamander Gang had probably formed a serious grudge.