Faerun: The arcane mage is still too imprisoned.

Lance responded expressionlessly, nodding, smiling, and saying a few polite words.

"No problem."

"polite."

"good."

A series of moves flowed smoothly, neither too enthusiastic nor too cold, maintaining just the right distance.

After chatting for a while, Lance finally found an opportunity to sneak onto the balcony with Cielsa and Little Black.

A night breeze swept over us, and the fragrance of plants in the garden ahead completely washed away the perfume smell in the banquet hall.

The wind made the hem of Lance's robe flutter, giving him a rather elegant air.

Sissa took a deep breath, exhaling all the suffocating smell in the banquet hall: "It's much more comfortable outside."

Little Black jumped down from Lance's shoulder, placed its four paws on the stone railing, and peered down—the garden was brightly lit, and several servants were clearing away the dishes.

"Those nobles," Cielsa leaned against the railing, turning to look at Lance, "are all so afraid of you..."

Lance nodded.

"It's only natural."

Why?

"Because they have neither strength, nor morality, nor even courage."

"really……"

Little Black turned around and meowed.

Cielsa smiled and reached out to touch its head, but the little black dog flicked its tail and swatted her away, continuing to admire the scenery.

The two remained quiet on the balcony for a while.

Footsteps sounded behind me.

Lord Graham emerged from the banquet hall, followed by his loyal underling Piekson, who trailed half a step behind, maintaining a very proper posture.

The night breeze blew by, dissipating much of the smell of alcohol from the city lord.

"How did that scene feel?" Graham asked.

Lance thought for a moment: "It's alright."

"Not bad?" Graham chuckled.

"As expected of a mage's answer; several mages have given me the same answer before."

Lance didn't respond—mainly because he didn't know how to respond; he couldn't very well say "indeed," could he?

Graham didn't seem to mind and asked with a smile:

"Lance, would you be willing to work for the City Lord's Mansion?"

"This..." Lance hesitated for a moment.

Graham stared at him expectantly.

"That depends on what position and benefits the city lord can offer."

"Oh!" Graham's eyes lit up, and he leaned forward slightly.

"What conditions does Mage Lance want?"

"High pay, low workload, close to home, high status and great power, but you don't have to work much. Ideally, you can work whenever you want and not work whenever you don't want to."

Langston paused, glanced at Graham,

"Isn't this putting you in a difficult position?"

"No problem, no problem."

Graham said with a smile,

He pulled a small booklet from his pocket, about the size of a palm, with a leather cover.

To put it politely, it looks very vintage.

He handed this to Lance: "This is for you."

"Tsk, I still didn't ask for enough."

Lance took it without making a sound and opened it—

It lists more than a dozen positions: City Lord's Advisor, Librarian, Supreme Judge, Chairman of the City Planning Committee...

Lance: "I can't believe I'll see the Chairman here."

Each position listed a monthly salary, which was a uniform two thousand gold coins.

Lance looked up at the city lord. "The positions listed here..."

"It meets all your requirements."

Graham tapped the booklet: "It seems that Mage Lance is indeed very young... Mages are a scarce resource in Forgotten Realms. You surely know that."

Lance nodded.

"How scarce are they?" Graham said. "Everyone is going to great lengths to win over mages."

"The positions offered by my city lord's mansion are mostly city lord's advisors, librarians, and the like, which are exclusive to cultured people like mages."

"certainly,"

Graham chuckled: "Even if the mage does nothing, the city lord's mansion can afford to keep him... After all, there are so many people who want to keep him but can't even get a turn."

He pointed to the booklet.

"Since Mage Lance has made the request, the position that best suits your qualifications among these dozen or so is the Supreme Judge."

"It has the highest level of authority, flexible working hours, and you can go whenever you want or not."

Lance turned two pages and asked, "What exactly does a judge do?"

"They are the high-ranking judicial officials responsible for arrests, investigations, and trials." Graham paused, then added,

"However, if Mage Lance is interested, he can personally administer the punishment."

Lance: "...Isn't this workflow a bit too comprehensive? Is it appropriate?"

"But," Graham's expression turned serious,

"In any case involving nobles, wealthy merchants, or professionals, the results must be personally reviewed by me before arrests and executions can take place."

Lance raised an eyebrow: "But what if I don't understand the laws of Rield City?"

Graham smiled.

He laughed casually, as if he had heard a joke.

Even the usually silent sheriff, Pierre-Jacques, couldn't help but laugh out loud and said to Lance:

"Law education produces only idiots!"

Lance: "?"

The sheriff explained, "Who says a judge has to know the law?"

Lance: "???"

The sheriff continued, "Send the verdict however you please... they're just a bunch of lowly people anyway."

Graham waved his hand, signaling the sheriff to be quiet.

Then he said to Lance, "Of course, too many people can't die, or it will affect the city's prosperity."

Lance looked at the booklet in his hand, then at Graham.

A knowing glint flashed in his sky-blue eyes.

"it is good."

Lance nodded. "That's it."

Graham smiled with satisfaction: "The office is on the second floor of the police station. There's a map in the brochure. You can go whenever you're free."

Lance handed him the booklet: "I've written it all down."

Graham took it: "As expected of a mage, you're quite the genius."

The two looked at each other and smiled.

A night breeze blew across the balcony, and faint music drifted from the banquet hall in the distance.

The banquet ended just after 10 p.m.

Lance and Cielsa stepped out of the city lord's mansion, and a cool night breeze greeted them.

Little Black was awakened by the wind. It poked its head out from Cielsa's arms, looked around groggily, and then shrank back inside.

Arya saw them to the door: "Did you have fun tonight?"

Lance nodded: "It's alright."

The carriage drove away from the city lord's mansion and disappeared into the night.

Inside the carriage, Cielsa leaned against Lance and yawned.

Little Black climbed from her lap to Lance's lap, found a comfortable position to curl up in, buried its head under its belly, and continued to sleep.

The human and the cat moved in remarkably synchronized manner.

Lance looked down at the furry thing on his leg, then at Cielsa yawning beside him, and couldn't help but laugh.

"You two are starting to look more and more alike?"

Cielsa looked down at Little Black, but Little Black didn't react. She then looked up at Lance: "Really?"

Lance nodded: "Yes."

Sissa thought for a moment, then suddenly smiled.

The moonlight outside the window is beautiful, and the night in Rild is still long.