Faerun: The arcane mage is still too imprisoned.

The city guard commander, who also served as the first sheriff, standing before the desk—an elite level 8 warrior—respectfully bowed his head:

"No, Lord City Lord."

"It is highly suspected that the new half-elf mage did it."

Graham paused as he turned the page.

"Oh?" He looked up, seemingly lost in thought. "It's that child..."

The commander added, "He entered the city about nine days ago, and that night Baron Yodl's mansion was massacred, followed by the annihilation of twenty-five gangs over eight consecutive nights."

"There were obvious traces of magic at the scene, and... it was very blatant, with no attempt to conceal it."

Graham smiled.

"It was done by a monk... then it's not surprising," he put down the report, leaned back in his high-backed chair, "then it's not surprising."

As everyone knows in the continent of Faerûn, the mage profession has always been quite legendary.

The lower the level, the more divine beings there are. The higher the level, the more divine beings there are.

So no matter what strange or unusual things happen, as long as it was done by a sorcerer, everyone will quickly accept it and exclaim, "Oh, it's a sorcerer again..."

"Ignore him!"

Graham waved his hand.

"Let him be. As long as he doesn't attack other nobles or legitimate caravans, and doesn't cause large-scale destruction to the city, he can take care of as many gangs as he wants."

"They're all scum anyway... better off dead."

The sheriff said cautiously, "But...but other nobles might have objections...after all, some of the gangs are also theirs..."

"When did you become one of them?"

"No, no, no, I was saved by the city lord. I will never forget this kindness. I will always be the city lord's man!" The sheriff prostrated himself, trembling with fear as he pledged his loyalty.

"Since you still consider yourself one of my men, then don't do anything unnecessary," Graham said calmly.

"The nobles have objections?" Graham sneered. "Then let them come find me!"

"I'm practically selling hooks (money-grubbing services) just to get a few more permanent, officially recognized mages in the city!"

"I'd like to see who dares to ruin my plans for a few thugs!"

"If anyone dares to cause trouble for someone and makes them leave in anger... then I'll just have to ransack their house to make up for my losses, and then chop off their head to comfort my soul."

"Yes, sir." The sheriff faced Graham and crawled backward.

"Wait, there's one more thing," Graham called out to him again.

"Is there anything else you need?" the sheriff asked as he climbed back up.

"Pass on what I just said to each family exactly as it was."

"This..." the sheriff hesitated, "isn't this a bit inappropriate...? Perhaps I should revise it again..."

"No, not a single word will be changed!"

"...Yes, sir." The sheriff had no choice but to agree.

Silence returned to the study. Graham picked up another document from the table—a report on the recent activities of Lady Arya Silvershine.

"So even the Yinhui family can't sit still anymore..." he muttered to himself. "Fine, let her go and find out what's going on."

After closing the study door, Graham looked out the window, a thoughtful look flashing in his gray eyes.

"A half-elf, a full-fledged mage, so young, yet so powerful, and so reckless in his actions..." he muttered to himself, "Whose child could he be?"

"My kingdom of Eriland doesn't seem to have any illustrious half-elf families... so they must be from other countries..."

"Which country could it be? It can't be ordinary people..."

Either way, it's worth observing.

On the afternoon of the eighth day, Lance was testing the newly upgraded [Secondary Dimensional Pocket] in his study.

The space was twice as big as before, and could hold much more. He put all the gold and silver jewelry he had plundered inside, along with several sets of spare clothes, dry food, water bags, and even a folding bed—there was enough space for any eventuality.

Just then, the doorbell rang.

Cielsa ran to open the door, while Lance looked out the second-floor window toward the entrance.

A richly decorated carriage was parked outside the villa, pulled by two magnificent pure white horses. The carriage bore the coat of arms of the Silver Shine family—a silver moon surrounded by thorns.

Lance had heard before that the current head of the Silver Glow family was a female duke.

The carriage door opened, and a pair of long, slender legs stepped out.

Her fiery red hair, like burning flames, cascaded freely over her shoulders, swaying gently with her steps.

Her face was exquisite and charming, with slightly upturned eyes and a faint smile on her red lips, captivating all who beheld her.

She wore a tight-fitting, deep red hunting outfit, the leather clinging to every curve of her body—her slender waist looked as if it could be broken with a single grasp, and her full hips swayed with each step, radiating a fiery aura with every step, as if even the air itself was slightly distorted by her presence.

But Lance's attention was immediately drawn to something else.

"wrong!"

"The air is really hot!"

The air around the Duchess was indeed distorted, and the temperature was noticeably rising.

She's a professional, and not just any ordinary professional.

Lance narrowed his eyes slightly. 'It should be some kind of variant class, even capable of influencing the surrounding environment... This class is probably quite powerful.'

He focused his attention, and the information came to him:

[Target: Arya Silvershine]

Race: Human

[Class: Heart of Flames (Warrior Variant)]

[Level: 10]

Level 10! Elite Rank Perfection!

A master who is just one step away from becoming a paragon of excellence!

Lance was startled; this was the highest-level creature he had ever seen with his own eyes.

No wonder they were the first to come to us; they are indeed very capable.

The duchess had already entered the living room.

Sissa stood to one side, watching the uninvited guest with some wariness.

Arya's gaze lingered on Cielsa for a moment before turning to Lance, who was coming down the stairs.

"How shall I address you?" Arya spoke first, her voice mature and slightly magnetic. "I am Arya Silvershine, the current head of the Silvershine family, and a duchess of Rield City."

"Lance, Lance Charlotte."

A hint of undisguised amazement flashed in Arya's eyes: "You are younger and more charming than I thought..."

"Excuse me for asking, are you truly a mage, and not a sorcerer?"

"...Of course I'm a mage," Lance replied calmly, walking to the chair opposite her and sitting down.

"Doesn't it look like it?"

"Yes, yes, yes," Arya said with a smile, "You really do look just like me!"

"Your Excellency arrived quite quickly."

Arya sat down in the chair opposite her, her movements graceful. She crossed her legs, the hem of her hunting dress slightly raised, revealing a section of her calves clad in leather boots.

"Since you're making no attempt to conceal yourself, of course I have to hurry." Her tone carried a hint of helplessness, but her smile remained. "However, sir... aren't you being a little too fierce?"

Lance raised an eyebrow.