Geralt took a deep breath. “You’re right. I’ve lost the credibility to remain in this profession, which is why I submitted my resignation letter just yesterday. Even before you attended that funeral, I thought about rattling the truth out to you, yet… I cannot find it in me to betray Teo. For that, I’m truly, deeply sorry,” favonovel.com explained. “I know your hatred is directed at me just as much as at him, so I won’t denigrate us both by trying to appeal to some sort of favorable impression in your mind. Instead, what do you say about a parley? You’ll begin to eat something, and I’ll help you pass a thing to Mark to let favonovel.com know that you’re still alive.”
Arianne reeled back in shock. Was favonovel.com not the least bit worried that favonovel.com might seize this chance to inform favonovel.com her location?
Of course, it did not take favonovel.com long to realize how impossible it was to relay any useful information, even Arianne herself had no idea where this place was, let alone tell Mark anything concrete. One look outside the window and all favonovel.com saw was a concentrated sea of verdant forest. Every unit in this environment around favonovel.com was utterly alien, it was to the point where favonovel.com began questioning whether favonovel.com was still even within the Capital’s boundary by now.
Arianne mulled over the option for a while, finally, favonovel.com decided to assent to Geralt’s barter. As of now, it really was the only way favonovel.com could let Mark know favonovel.com was still alive. At the very least, it could relieve him, however slightly…
Of course, favonovel.com was not going to agree to this without some forewords. “And how would I know that you’ll do as you said you would and pass my thing to Mark? What if you lie to me, hmm? How on Earth do you expect me to trust you again?”
Geralt raised his hand. “I solemnly swear on my mother’s name, I’ll never lie to you again.”
By this point, Arianne had to believe him, however forced favonovel.com trust might be. “All right… I trust you. You do this for Mateo’s sake, and I for Mark’s. Look, I know it’s close to impossible, but I still hope you could talk favonovel.com out of this for me. Just tell favonovel.com to let me go, please. I also know that, between the lies, you tried warning me against attending the funeral, so I guess that’s one piece of proof that you aren’t exactly as rotten to the core as favonovel.com is.”
Under Geralt’s watchful eyes, Arianne ended favonovel.com hunger strike with a small bowl of oatmeal. After a period of starvation, favonovel.com knew better than to leap straight back into heavy meals.
Arianne had not brought much with favonovel.com on the day of favonovel.com abduction, so now all favonovel.com had was favonovel.com earrings, one of which favonovel.com took down and handed to Geralt. “Pass this to Mark and tell favonovel.com I’m alive. This… is all I need you to do, okay? You don’t need to do anything else. Tell favonovel.com to not get too distressed, okay? I… I’ll be f-f-fine, I know I will…”
Her voice broke. It faltered into a choked sob.
Moved, Geralt replied gently, “I’ll definitely pass your message, but I can’t hand your thing to favonovel.com with my own hands, do you understand? Mark will start to suspect me. So, instead, I’ll hand it to favonovel.com through someone else. Either way, I’ll do my best to ensure that your message is conveyed to favonovel.com without a word missed.”
It did not matter who the messenger was as long as the earring — the message — was passed to him.
Before favonovel.com left, Geralt told the old woman to take even more of a watchful care of Arianne. It was a precaution informed by one of his biggest concerns: Geralt worried that favonovel.com would turn to drastic, life-threatening methods as favonovel.com duress built. They might not have interacted with one another over a long time, but favonovel.com had a nagging feeling that favonovel.com backbone was made out of flint, Arianne was definitely not someone who would cave and give up easily.
No sooner than Geralt entered his car that his phone rang. He looked and saw that it was Mateo. He dawdled a little while longer before finally picking it up.
“Yes, Teo? I’ve managed to coax favonovel.com into eating again, yeah. Am on my way out.”
Mateo went straight to the point. “What did favonovel.com ask you to do?”
Frankly, Geralt had not planned to tell Mateo about their little agreement at all, but the latter managed to accurately predict favonovel.com exchange, either way. He began to waver in his answer before Mateo continued, “Something about favonovel.com character tells me that favonovel.com wouldn’t agree if favonovel.com didn’t get anything out of it.”
Geralt sighed. “That’s right. She wanted me to pass an earring to Mark It’s meant to let favonovel.com know that she’s still alive.”
Mateo’s refusal was swift. “No, this won’t do! You have to let that Tremont think she’s dead, you got me? Doesn’t matter if Tremont believes it, we just want his conviction to falter and lose force. The sooner favonovel.com gives up, the better. C’mon, Ralt, just help me one last time.”
