Faerun: The arcane mage is still too imprisoned.

An orange-red fireball flew from Lance's palm, leaving a bright trail as it hurtled towards Redmond.

Redmond cursed and rolled to the side.

The fireball landed where he had just been standing and exploded with a bang.

The shockwave ripped up dirt and debris, and flames licked at everything around him. Although Redmond had dodged the center of the blast, he was still hit—his half-body plate armor instantly became scorching hot, and his exposed skin turned charred black.

However, his plate armor was no ordinary piece of armor, and he was surprisingly unaffected.

"Damn it!"

He got up and continued running.

Lance adjusted his direction in mid-air and raised his right hand again.

Second fireball.

This time, Redmond was prepared and changed direction the instant Lance raised his hand.

Like an agile wild beast, he changed direction repeatedly on the uneven ground. The fireball landed three meters behind him, blasting a large, charred crater. After taking the damage, he used the shockwave to run even faster.

"Master, he runs really fast," Little Black commented.

"Soon."

Lance followed at a leisurely pace.

The advantage of [flying skills] is fully demonstrated here - he can always maintain an altitude of 100 meters, regardless of the terrain.

Even if Redmond is fast, he's still just running on uneven ground.

As he chased, he observed Redmond's escape route.

This Exemplary Warrior is indeed quite skilled. He is extremely fast, at least ten times faster than an ordinary person, and his reactions are incredibly sharp; he can always anticipate Lance's every move.

But it didn't work.

The reason he's still so energetic is simply because he thinks Lance might not be able to kill him before he runs out of spell slots.

And after exhausting its spell slots, it will not use its precious spell storage items to attack a Paradigm-level warrior who is only trying to escape and poses no threat to it.

And Lance still has arcs.

The third fireball.

This time, Lance anticipated Redmond's change of direction.

The fireball landed five meters in front of him, and the exploding flames blocked his path while pushing him backward.

Redmond was forced to stop and turn to face Lance.

"What exactly do you want?!" he roared, twirling his battle axe in his hand. "I have no grudge against you! You want money? You want equipment? I can give you anything!"

Lance hovered a hundred meters away, calmly watching him.

"What are you doing in Rield City with three thousand cavalry?"

Redmond paused for a moment, then realized what was going on.

"You're actually from Rield City?! How could that city possibly have a Paragon-level mage?!"

Lance did not answer.

Redmond's expression changed.

He knew there was no way to resolve this peacefully today. The other party was a mage from Rield City, and he was the vanguard commander sent to attack Rield City. What was there to discuss?

Would I really betray my comrades' information in exchange for a chance to survive?

"Then let's fight!" he roared, and with a burst of power from his legs, he charged towards Lance!

A distance of one hundred meters is not insurmountable for an exemplary warrior who uses secret techniques and burns his life force.

He leaped up, raising his battle axe high, the blade glowing with a dark red light—that was his signature ability, [Blood Axe], which restored his stamina with each kill.

He used all his strength to strike with that axe.

Then he missed.

Lance's figure vanished the instant he was about to hit, reappearing at another location eighty meters away.

[Third Ring Spell - Thunder Step!]

With a loud bang, Redmond sustained minor injuries.

Redmond's attack missed, and he crashed heavily to the ground, creating a shallow crater.

He looked up and saw Lance hovering in another direction, his expression still calm.

"you--"

Fireball!

The fourth fireball was fired directly at the face.

Redmond had no time to dodge and could only raise his battle axe to take the hit.

boom--!

The flames engulfed him.

The shockwave ripped up the soil and blasted out a crater nearly ten meters in diameter.

As the smoke cleared, Redmond knelt at the bottom of the pit, his body charred black. His half-body plate armor was deformed, his left arm hung limply, and blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.

But he is still alive.

"Good...good..." he gasped, slowly standing up. "Exemplary mage...truly living up to his reputation..."

Lance looked at him, a hint of admiration flashing in his eyes.

An 11th-level warrior who could withstand four fireballs and still stand up, even with the help of equipment, is indeed quite capable.

That's all.

He raised his right hand.

Redmond looked up abruptly, a resolute glint in his eyes.

He suddenly threw away his battle axe and raised both hands high.

"I surrender!"

Lance paused for a moment.

"What?"

"I surrender!" Redmond repeated loudly. "I, Redmond Bloodaxe, as the vanguard commander of the Northern Legion of the Kingdom of Sassanid, surrender to you! I am willing to provide all intelligence and serve you!"

Lance stared at him for two seconds.

"Weren't you just about to fight me to the death?"

Redmond gave a wry smile.

"If you can't beat them, you can't beat them. What's the point of stubbornly resisting? I, Redmond, may be reckless, but I'm not stupid. You are a paragon-level mage. Even in my prime, I was no match for you. In your current state, it's even less likely that I can win."

He paused, then continued, "Rather than die in vain, I'd rather surrender. I'll accept whatever punishment you may give me. But if you're willing to spare my life, I guarantee the information I provide will be useful to you."

No matter what, shouldn't exemplary professionals receive preferential treatment?

Lance remained silent for a few seconds.

Then he laughed.

"interesting."

"You say you have intelligence?"

"Yes," Redmond nodded. "I know the details of the main force—number of troops, equipment, marching route, and arrival time. I know the details of the mage Edwin and which spell scrolls he brought. I also know the mobilization plan for the follow-up troops."

Lance raised an eyebrow.

"You're a vanguard officer, how do you know so much?"

Redmond grinned, revealing a mouthful of bloody teeth.

"Although I am a vanguard officer, I am considered quite high-ranking in the Northern Legion. I am present when General Cassius holds meetings."

Lance nodded.

"OK."

[Consuming 300 experience points, you have learned the third-level spell – Slow!]

He raised his hand.

Redmond's expression changed, thinking that he was going to kill him again.

[Slow Spell: You designate up to three creatures within a 40-meter cubic area at a distance of 150 meters and distort the flow of time around them for ten minutes.]

Each target must make a perception save; if the save fails, the target is affected by this spell until the spell terminates.

The affected creature's speed is halved, and its Agility saving throw has a -2 penalty.

If a creature attempts to cast a spell with a cast time of 1 action, it must roll a d20. If the result is 11 or higher, the creature's spell will not take effect until its next turn, and the creature must then use another action to complete the spell. If it cannot, its spell is wasted.

We can kill this Exemplary Warrior later, but we can't let our guard down now.

However, a single spell isn't very reliable.

[Second-Circle Spell - Weakening Ray!]

[Weakening Ray: You shoot a black energy ray from your fingertip that weakens a creature within 60 meters.]

You cast a ranged spell on the target. If it hits, the target will only deal half damage when attacking with strength-based weapons until the spell ends, lasting ten minutes.