Count Reuven's Treasure - The Witcher 3

It turned out Sigi Reuven was none other than Sigismund Dijkstra, former head of Redanian intelligence and a man well-known to Geralt from past adventures. In an atypical bout of ignorance, Dijkstra had no inkling I was involved in the theft of his gold. He treated Geralt's appearance as a fortunate coincidence and offered him a handsome sum in return for help finding his stolen wealth - and the thief who had stolen it. Geralt and Dijkstra thus both wanted to find the exact some person - yours truly - albeit for entirely different reasons. Seizing this bit of good fortune, Geralt accepted the offer and hoped against hope Dijkstra wouldn't catch on to his double dealing.

Like an excavator uncovering an ancient elven masterpiece, Geralt slowly revealed the hidden brilliance of my plan. He discovered we had not barged in directly from the sewers like brain-dead lugs, but had instead struck from the inside, by placing a bomb in one of the tubs' drainpipes.

Hearing this, Dijkstra summoned his faithful eunuch, Happen, and had him examine the bathhouse guest registry. From it they learned the tub in question had been used that day by a certain Margrave Henckel. Nothing unusual about a margrave giving his corns a bit of a soak - but this particular margrave had shuffled off his mortal coil, corns and all, a few months prior to the break-in. Dijkstra thus tasked Geralt with examining the margrave's residence, in the hope that the witcher would find some trace of the stolen treasure there.

The old spy's intuition did not lead him astray - Margrave Henckel's home truly did prove a source of many interesting and vital clues. Firstly, they discovered that Geralt's doppler acquaintance of yore, Dudu, had been one of the heist's participants. It was he who had disguised himself as Margrave Henckel and placed the bomb in the drainpipe.

A letter left by Dudu contained further revelations - Ciri had taken part in the heist as well, the stolen gold had ended up in the hands of the commander of the Temple Guard, Caleb Menge, and I, Dandelion, was now this heinous man's prisoner.

Geralt clearly needed to confront Menge. The question was how. The cautious guardsman would never agree to a meeting - unless, that is, Geralt had something to offer him, a prize so tempting he'd throw caution to the wind…
Triss Merigold, vile sorceress and member of the even viler Lodge of Sorceresses, was willing to offer herself up as irresistible bait for this fanatic hunter of witches, putting her life in danger in order to save Ciri and, I dare say, with a thought in her heart for the art-loving denizens of the North, who otherwise risked being deprived of their most prominent bard.

Caleb Menge took the bait hook, line and sinker, oblivious to Geralt's trickery to the very end. Said end was brought to him by Triss, who stuck a knife in his throat in an emotional outburst understandable from someone who had just been subjected to cruel and unusual torture.

Luckily, Geralt had by this time already squeezed the information he needed out of Menge. He had learned that I, Dandelion, was rotting in the Temple Isle dungeons, waiting to be transported to Oxenfurt, where I would play my last leading role in a spectacle sure to leave the audience in tears - my own execution. Yet Triss, gods bless her heart, had a plan for preventing this...

The witcher has many virtues, but sadly patience and subtlety are not among them. And so, instead of sticking to the plan, Geralt decided to do things his own way - by slicing down every witch hunter in sword's reach and butchering Caleb Menge before getting any useful information out of him.

Luckily, however, Geralt did not leave the compound empty-handed. He found instructions among Menge's documents for contacting a mysterious individual who seemed to be directing the Temple Guard's actions. There was a chance this eminence grise, whoever he or she was, knew something about my fate.

Dijkstra was less than satisfied with Geralt's performance as a treasure hunter. Firstly, the witcher had not actually recovered any treasure - just a key found on Menge's body that might open a vault that might contain the treasure, assuming said vault could even be located. Secondly, Dijkstra realized Geralt had been hiding something from him the entire time - the identity of the criminal mastermind responsible for planning the heist (but was this truly so difficult to guess, dear reader? After all, who else but a bard could have planned with such cunning and panache?). The old acquaintances ultimately parted on good terms - but it was clear to both their next meeting might not be so amiable.

Triss Merigold is usually an excruciatingly warm and tender-hearted individual. Yet on this day the witcher discovered the red-haired sorceress has a darker side as well. When Menge's contact refused to cooperate, Triss used her powers to force him to talk by making him feel unbearable pain - and then to ensure he would never speak of what he'd undergone.

This blood-curdling interrogation informed the witcher that I was imprisoned on Temple Isle, awaiting transport to my execution in Oxenfurt. A dark situation indeed - but Triss had an idea how to keep it from getting any darker...

Fear gripped the witcher's heart as he knocked on the bathhouse doors. He knew that, shortly before I disappeared without a trace, I had been planning to rob Sigi Reuven, one of the most powerful and dangerous men in the North. He would have to inquire about my fate without arousing any suspicions, which was a tall order indeed - for while Geralt may be an excellent witcher, he is one lousy actor.