Nicolas du Lac

“*I do not begrudge the lion for eating the antelope, nor the wolf hunting the sheep. But men, dwarves, gnomes, elves, they have a choice.*”
―Nicolas to Kareem, during a conversation in The Sunken Galleon Inn.

## Relationships

### Father

Daniel Merloup

Nicolas du Lac was a human born and raised in the edges of the Korath desert, who later returned to his fatherland of Toussaint and followed Fristos on his journey back to Etolia. He was conceived, rolled, written and portrayed for The Witcher: Trials in the South TTRPG Campaign by Eshin Harth.

### Biography

#### Early Life

Sometime around 1185, Count Michel Beauchance of Toussaint, hosted a knights tourney in honor of his esteemed guest and cousin, Telem Locris of Etolia. The grand melee attracted a great number of people and became the stage for a young knight in the Count's service to rise above all. Damian Merloup won his way to the Grand Final, where his zeal got the better of him and in his attempt to be praised and noticed by Lord Beauchance, mortally injured his opponent, a knight but also nephew to the Count. This incident came to pass as a double catastrophe, since it also affected the life of Fristos of Etolia, who at the time was in Lord Locris' entourage, along with his father Klestafraz.

It was with a very heavy heart that Count Beauchance cast Sir Damian Merloup into exile, to serve at the fringes of the Korath desert, for the rest of his life. The young knight moved to a Korathi outpost with his wife and after almost two years the couple had a son, Nicolas. The boy soon started receiving proper training as a squire from his father, in order to later become a knight.

#### Gadeth aen Dhu

Before he turned ten years of age, Nicolas was approached by an unknown man that offered food and fresh water to the boy, if he agreed to help on an errant. Nicolas was given a ring and was instructed to lure a shady and dangerous individual and to grab his hands as soon as chance arose. The boy agreed, executed the unknown man's orders to perfection and as he took the robed figure by the hands, his target was clearly thrown out of balance, getting stunned in the process. Before the man had time to recover, a crossbow bolt landed on his head, killing him on the spot.

The unknown man later introduced himself as Gadeth aen Dhu, a mage hunter from the city of Nilfgaard, who took upon contracts to bring down rogue mages. It was revealed that the ring Gadeth gave to Nicolas was made of dimeritium. The mage hunter offered to take the boy with him back to civilization to be trained and learn to survive, presenting the boy as his own. Damien and his wife agreed to Gadeth's offer, seeing how there was no future for the boy in the desert. Nicolas spent many years with the mage hunter, roaming the kingdoms around the Alba river, educating himself in history, social aspects and warfare.

#### The Aen Saevherne

Many years later Gadeth aen Dhu and Nicolas were instructed to apprehend an Aen Seidhe mage, who publicly opposed Fergus var Emreis and the beginning of his reforms of the Nilfgaardian state to an absolute type of monarchy. Their mission was successful, but on that same night they took the Elf captive, the mage saw something in Nicolas and started talking to the young man about the sense of honor and virtues that Nicolas hadn't heard since the time his father Damien stayed restless at nights in desperation, recounting the chivalric life his mistake had deprived him and his family of.

The Knowing one told Nicolas that he trod on a dark path, unworthy of his heritage and utterly meaningless. He advised the young man to seek out Loc'hlaith, the Lady of the Lake, after he proved that he was leading his life according to the five chivalric virtues dictated by her. At that moment, Nicolas found purpose in his life, freed the Aen Saevherne and escaped under cover of the night, while his foster father was asleep.

#### Nicolas du Lac

Since that day, Nicolas obtained a reputation of mockery, as the House-less dreamer knight, who imagined of meeting the Lady of the Lake and would not stop until he did. The young knight wore that mantle with pride, determined to prove to everyone, that he was not the uncivilized head-hunting wildling of the desert.