Faerun: The arcane mage is still too imprisoned.

After dealing with the three ill-fated lovers, they dragged them to an inconspicuous alleyway.

[Phase 1 Mission: "Helping Ivan" Completed!]

[Phase 1 Reward: Zero-Ring Trick - Aard Sign Learned!]

Phase Two Mission: Eliminate the Blood Wolf Gang!

[Phase Two Reward: First-level spell - Summon Scout Mosquito!]

[Aard Sign: You unleash an invisible shockwave forward, dealing force field damage to a seven-meter cone in front of you. The target must make a power saving throw. If the save fails, the target takes 6 force field damage and is pushed back up to 5 meters. If the save succeeds, the target takes half damage and is not pushed back.]

If the target is a large or larger creature, the push-away distance is halved.

"Wuhu, good stuff!"

Lance almost burst out laughing when he saw the effect of the Alder sign.

Turn off the panel.

Now it's so quiet here that only Ivan's rapid breathing can be heard.

He stood there, staring wide-eyed at the three corpses on the ground, still crackling with electricity. He looked up at Lance, his lips trembling as if he wanted to say something, but he couldn't utter a single word.

The gold coin in his hand was digging painfully into his palm, but he gripped it even tighter.

"Lord Lance..." Ivan's face was filled with fear, "He...he...you...you...you...you...you..."

"Of course they were killed."

Lance answered crisply and decisively, bending down to pull out several dozen copper coins and a few silver coins from the three men's pockets.

[A magical trick!]

After cleaning the coins with magic, he casually put them in his pocket.

"Keeping this kind of person alive is just asking for trouble. Why not kill him and let him live until the New Year?"

He turned around, his sky-blue eyes looking at Ivan: "How seriously ill is your grandmother?"

Ivan's eyes reddened again: "Grandma has been coughing up blood for several days. The pharmacist said she needs tuberculosis medicine, which costs one gold coin, but I don't have that much. Thank you..."

"Lead the way," Lance interrupted him. "Where do you live?"

"Huh?" Ivan was stunned.

"What do you mean, 'ah'?" Cielsa stepped forward. "Lord Lance told you to lead the way, so just lead the way."

Ivan looked at Lance, then at Sissa: "Alright, please come with me."

The three people walked through the narrow alleys of the slum.

The setting sun dyed the clouds on the horizon a dark red, and the air was filled with a strange smell of garbage and sewage.

Occasionally, a ragged resident would peek out from under the door, only to quickly retreat back inside.

"You live here?" Lance asked suddenly as he was walking.

"Yes," Ivan said, puzzled.

"So you still have used books to sell? Where do they come from?"

"It was left to me by my father, I..." Ivan said, as if he was about to cry again.

"Stop," Lance interrupted abruptly. "I'm not interested in your father, so you don't need to say anything more. Just continue leading the way."

"...Oh," Ivan said sullenly.

"It's just ahead."

Ivan led them into a narrower alley, at the end of which stood a crooked wooden hut.

Ivan pushed open the creaking wooden door.

It looks worse inside than outside.

The space was so small that it was hard to turn around. There were several bundles of hay piled in the corner, which Lance guessed were used as a bed.

In the middle is a small stove made of stacked stones, with a chipped earthenware pot on top.

Inside, an elderly woman with white hair was curled up on a straw mat, covered with a thin blanket full of patches.

She slept restlessly, with each breath producing a wheezing sound from her chest, and occasionally she would cough violently, arching her whole body.

The light streaming in from the doorway revealed traces of blood on the corner of her mouth.

"Grandma..." Ivan knelt down beside the straw mat, his voice choked with sobs.

The old woman groggily opened her eyes, her cloudy gaze taking a while to make out her surroundings, before she shakily reached out her hand: "Ivan... he's... he's back?"

"Yes, you're back." Ivan grasped her hand. "Grandma, a kind person helped us, it was the mage..."

Lance had already squatted down beside the straw mat. He reached out and touched the old woman's forehead—it was frighteningly hot.

"It feels like it's going to be shipped out soon..."

[Consuming 100 experience points, you have learned a first-level spell—Healing Mantra!]

[Healing Mantra: You designate a visible creature within 30 meters and restore its health by an amount equal to 4 + your casting key attribute modifier. This spell is ineffective against constructs and undead.]

"Step back a bit," Lance said to Ivan.

Ivan hurriedly moved aside. Lance placed his hand on the old woman's chest, made a gesture, and began to chant a spell in a low voice.

A soft white light emanated from her fingertips, seeping into the old woman's body like flowing water.

Lance has an intelligence of 18 points, and his intelligence adjustment value is 4 points. The [Healing Mantra] is enough to make the old woman owe him at least one life.

However, the [Healing Mantra] only restores health points; it cannot cure diseases or remove toxins—that requires the second-circle spell [Secondary Restoration].

Therefore, Lance could clearly sense that the old woman's life force was currently at full capacity, but the lesions lurking in her lungs were slowly eroding her vitality.

[Healing Mantra] It's like adding water to a leaky bucket; it can temporarily maintain the water level, but it can't plug the hole.

The old woman slowly opened her eyes. Her gaze cleared considerably; she looked at Lance, then at Cielsa, and finally at Ivan.

"Ivan...and who are these two?"

"Grandma, this is Master Lance, and this is Miss Celsa." Ivan wiped away his tears. "The Master just cured your illness and... he even gave me a gold coin to buy medicine."

The old woman struggled to sit up, but Lance held her down. "Don't move. My spell only temporarily stabilizes your condition; the root of the problem remains. Use that gold coin to buy tuberculosis medicine at the pharmacy first thing tomorrow morning, understand?"

Ivan nodded vigorously, tears welling up in his eyes again: "I heard you! Thank you, Lord Lance, thank you..."

Lance stood up and dusted off his clothes. "Don't worry about the Blood Wolf Gang. I'll handle it tonight. Don't go out these next few days. Take good care of your grandmother."

Then he took out a few silver coins and dozens of copper coins and placed them on the straw mat.

"Yes, yes!" Ivan knelt on the ground and kowtowed three times, his forehead hitting the muddy ground with a dull thud. "Ivan will remember the kindness of the Master for the rest of his life!"

"Good, that's truly a man of honor and loyalty."

"Remember what you said. I hope that when I really need your help someday, you will still recognize me."

"Alright," Lance said, pulling him up. "Let's go."

By the time they emerged from the alley, it was already dark. Cielsa followed Lance for a while, then suddenly whispered, "That child...it's been so tough."

Lance didn't reply.

"Are you really going to the Blood Wolf Gang's stronghold tonight?" Cielsa asked again.

"Hmm." Lance continued walking. "Twenty-three people, one level 1 warrior leader, the rest are ordinary people, easy to handle."

"You're such a kind person, but..."

"But what?"

Sissa bit her lip: "I want to go with you."