Faerun: The arcane mage is still too imprisoned.

"Lord Lance, how much longer until we arrive?"

"Almost there," Lance said. "At this speed, we'll be there in about half an hour."

Sissa nodded and looked ahead.

The night was dark, but the half-elf's dark vision allowed her to make out blurry outlines in the distance.

The walls of Rilder City were already faintly visible on the horizon.

Little Black nestled in Lance's arms, only its two round eyes showing.

"Master, I'm a little cold."

Lance looked down at it.

Little Black's fur stood on end, and it was blown about by the night wind.

Lance tucked it inside and wrapped it in his clothes.

"Are you still cold?"

Little Black rubbed against his chest.

"It's not cold anymore."

Sissa watched from the side, a hint of envy flashing in her purple eyes.

But she didn't say anything, she just flew silently.

Half an hour later, the city walls of Rild came into view.

The city was quiet at night, with only a few lights still lit at the city gate.

Patrolling guards carried long halberds and walked back and forth on the city wall.

Lance did not enter through the city gate.

He carried Little Black and, with Cielsa in tow, flew directly over the city wall.

The guards looked up as three dark figures swept overhead.

"Th-what is that?!"

"It looks like...a person?"

"How can a person fly?!"

"It's a mage! It must be a mage!"

"Should we sound the alarm?"

"Go ahead and knock, I'm not going to."

"...So, shall I really knock?"

"Knock your mother on the head!"

The captain of the guard slapped him hard across the face.

"You dare to meddle in the affairs of the sorcerer?"

"Exactly! If they didn't want to be discovered, how could you possibly see a mage? Since they're not hiding anything, there's definitely nothing wrong with them!"

The guards were talking amongst themselves, but no one thought it was an enemy attack.

Lance ignored the commotion below and continued flying into the city.

The outlines of the riverside villas came into view.

He lowered his altitude and landed in the yard.

As Cielsa landed, her legs buckled the moment her feet touched the ground, and she almost fell.

Lance reached out to support her.

"Are you alright?"

Cielsa shook her head, her face slightly flushed.

"N-nothing... I'm just a little dizzy..."

Little Black jumped out of Lance's arms and shook its fur.

"Master, I need to use the restroom first!"

It trotted into the house with small, quick steps and soon disappeared into the darkness.

Cielsa watched its retreating figure and couldn't help but smile.

"Little Black runs so fast."

Lance nodded.

"You should go in and rest too."

Sissa paused for a moment.

And you?

Lance looked toward the city center.

"I'm going to the city lord's mansion."

Sissa seemed to want to say something, but in the end she just nodded.

"Then I'll wait for you to come back."

She pushed open the door and went in, her footsteps gradually fading into the distance.

Lance took off again.

The City Lord's Mansion is located in the city center and is the tallest building in Rild City.

As Lance flew over, he could see the magnificent stone building in the distance.

……

The study window was still lit.

Lance flew to the window, reached out, and gently knocked on the windowpane.

"Knock knock knock!"

In his study, Graham Iron Fist was sitting at his desk reading documents.

He paused for a moment when he heard the knocking on the window.

Then he looked up and looked out the window.

Outside the window, a young man with long silver hair was floating around, waving at him.

"This is... Lance?"

"Flight?! He really is an elite-level mage!"

"But what is he trying to do, acting like this?"

Graham: "..."

He remained silent for three seconds.

Then he stood up, walked over, and opened the window.

Lance rolled in and landed on the study floor.

Its movements were as nimble as a cat's.

Graham looked at Lance, then at the open window.

He took a deep breath.

"Lance the Mage."

Lance looked at Graham,

"I am here."

Graham's lips twitched.

"Could you please use the door next time?"

Lance thought for a moment.

"Perhaps."

Graham: "..."

Lance added a sentence.

"But if we go through the gate, we might be stopped by the guards, and it will take time to report it."

Graham: "..."

He rubbed his temples, took a fruit plate, and placed it in front of Lance.

"I remember you contacted the Iron Fist Squad and left the city, didn't you? Tell me, what's the rush that you flew over in the middle of the night?"

Lance looked at him, his expression serious, and spoke slowly and deliberately.

"The Sassanid Kingdom, with an army of 30,000, has secretly crossed the border."

"The vanguard is less than five days' journey from Rild City."

Graham paused.

"How did you know?"

"The kobolds I went to hunt were in an abandoned mine. They had hidden an 8th-level beholder larva in the abandoned mine, planning to use it to create chaos from within."

"When I killed the kobolds yesterday, I also killed that thing. On the way, I ran into their five elite vanguard scout squads and got the information from them."

"That bewitching eye was created by an eighth-level mage..."

He spoke calmly, but what he said disturbed Graham greatly.

Upon hearing this, Graham's pupils suddenly contracted.

Then he went to his desk, opened a drawer, took out a parchment map, spread it out, and pointed to a certain location outside the city.

"An abandoned mine shaft—here?"

"right."

Graham stared at the map, a complex light flickering in his gray eyes.

"Eyed Demon Lava... A concealment array set up by an eighth-level mage... An army of thirty thousand..."

He muttered to himself, then looked up at Lance, his eyes sharp as knives. "Where are the five scouts?"

"They're dead." Lance said calmly. "I killed them after I finished interrogating them."

Is this intelligence reliable?

"That's your job to decide."

Graham stared at him for two seconds, then suddenly laughed.

"Okay." He nodded, his tone filled with undisguised admiration. "Okay!"

He stood up, strode to the door, and flung it open.

"Issue the order! Summon all nobles of viscount rank and above, the city guard commander, and the head of the security department. All are to arrive at the city lord's council hall within half an hour! Those who are late will be punished for treason!"

The butler's hurried footsteps and commands could be heard from outside the door.

Graham turned and walked back to his desk, took out a bottle of wine and two crystal glasses from the cabinet, filled them, and pushed one of the glasses toward Lance.

"Have a drink first," he said, his tone carrying a complex emotion. "Thank you for saving this city."

Lance took the glass and gently clinked it with his.

The two drank it all in one gulp.

Graham put down his glass and suddenly spoke up: "Lance, I have a question for you."

"Speaking."

"If you hadn't discovered and killed it, and that beholder had truly been released, how many people would have died in the city?"

Lance thought for a moment and answered truthfully, "That depends on whether the city lord takes action."

"What if I don't intervene?"

"If it's released at night, it will target densely populated areas—at least two thousand people."

"What if I intervene?"

"We should win."

"However, there's a small chance of dying."

Graham nodded and said nothing more.