Faerun: The arcane mage is still too imprisoned.

"Mages," Graham turned to Alfred and the others, "the city's defensive magic array needs your maintenance. Also, the Sassanids certainly have spellcasters on their side; we'll need your help then."

Alfred nodded: "No problem. I've always maintained the city's defense magic circle; it can be activated at any time."

"Mage Lance," Graham looked at Lance, "do you have any suggestions?"

As he asked the question, a pale gold exclamation mark appeared above Graham's head and slowly rotated.

Lance narrowed his eyes.

"A quest has been triggered? I haven't seen that exclamation mark in a while..."

Lance had a sudden thought and clicked on the exclamation mark.

A pale blue light curtain unfolded in the field of vision.

[Mission Triggered: Battle of Rild City]

[Mission Description: The Kingdom of Sassanid has invaded with an army of 30,000. Help Rield City defend against the invaders.]

[Task Time Limit: One Month]

[Task Rewards: Determined based on task progress]

Lance popped a grape into his mouth, chewed it, and spat out the seeds.

"I wouldn't call it a suggestion, but I have an idea."

Tell me about it.

Lance stood up, walked to the map hanging on the wall, and pointed to a location.

"According to the intelligence from those scouts, the Sassanid army should be in this position now, and even if there is a slight deviation, it shouldn't be too great."

"Instead of waiting for them to attack, we should send a team out first to find out their movements."

He paused, then looked at Graham.

"I know the [Flying] skill, which allows me to move quickly. If I can find their main force's location, or even their supply lines, I can find an opportunity to burn their provisions and catch them off guard."

Graham frowned; he sensed that the operation was somewhat dangerous.

Lance's strength is no less than his, his potential is even greater, and he is also a rare mage...

He would rather the kingdom lose Rild than lose Lance.

A city can be reclaimed, but once people are gone, they are truly gone.

However, as a warrior, he couldn't easily fathom the mage's thoughts.

What if they are confident?

Mages are probably the class that dislikes taking risks the least...

After much deliberation, Graham finally asked, "Isn't this a bit too dangerous? Are you sure?"

"Of course," Lance said without hesitation.

Lance can now use thirty-three third-circle spells in a row at his maximum potential, and even if he uses up most of them in the process, he still has more than a dozen left.

If anything goes wrong, just cast five [Flash] spells followed by five [Flight] spells. Who can kill him?! Who dares to kill him?!

Graham looked at the others. "What do you think?"

Alfred pondered for a moment, then nodded: "Although I also feel there is some danger, since Mage Lance has said so, there must be a way to protect myself... I think it's worth a try."

The other mages also expressed their agreement, while the nobles looked at each other in bewilderment and remained silent.

Graham didn't hesitate any longer and said, "Then it's settled. Mage Lance, I'll leave the reconnaissance to you. Just let me know if you need any support."

Lance nodded: "Okay. I'll leave tomorrow night."

"Mage Lance," Graham waved his hand, and five scrolls appeared in his hand.

"These are the scrolls for [Flight] and [Blink], and three scrolls for [Fireball]. You can use them."

"Alas... it's a pity I don't have any magical equipment suitable for a mage," Graham said regretfully.

"Lance, if you perform meritorious service, the kingdom will certainly not be stingy with bestowing upon you a title."

"With your status as an elite mage and your potential, you might be able to rise to the rank of count, on par with me, in one go."

"I hope so." Lance accepted the scroll.

"Mage Lance," Alfred said, extending his hand. Ten scrolls appeared out of thin air in front of him, floating in mid-air and emitting a faint magical glow.

"These are scrolls for [Flight], [Blink], and [Fireball], three of each, plus one for [Spell Counterspell]. I'm giving them to you."

Lance paused for a moment.

He looked down at the ten rolls, then looked up at Alfred.

The monk had a gentle smile on his face and a calm gaze.

"This..." Lance blinked.

"Master Alfred, isn't this a bit inappropriate? Ten third-circle spell scrolls are worth at least 15,000 gold coins on the market, and they're the kind that are hard to find even if they're priced at."

Alfred smiled.

He waved his hand casually, "It's alright, take it."

Alfred had just handed out ten rolls, his hand still clattering...

"Wait a minute," he said, reaching into his pocket and feeling around.

A young monk standing nearby stared wide-eyed – there was more?!

Alfred pulled a small wooden box from his pocket. It was about the size of a palm and covered with fine magical runes carved on the dark brown wood.

He placed the box on the table and opened it gently.

There was a ring lying inside.

The silver ring band is polished very smoothly and has no unnecessary decorations.

A hazy gemstone is set on the ring face. Its color is not particularly attractive; it looks like a glass bead shrouded in mist. You can glance at it and then turn your head away, and you might forget what it looks like. It is very inconspicuous.

But Lance's eyes lit up.

[Item: Ring of Mist Concealment]

Type: Magic Ring

[Quality: Tier 2]

【Effect: Three times a day. After activation, you can enter stealth mode for ten minutes.】

This invisibility effect cannot be detected by any detection spell below the fourth ring, including but not limited to [Detect Invisibility], [True Sight], and [X-ray Vision].

[Note: With this, you will be both an assassin's nightmare and their dream.]

After reading the instructions, Lance silently did some mental calculations.

Three times a day, ten minutes each time.

It cannot be detected by spells below the fourth ring.

What does this mean?

This means that as long as he doesn't encounter a level 8 or higher archmage, he can freely roam under anyone's nose.

How many mages of level 8 or above are there in the entire Sassanid Kingdom?

Even if they existed, they wouldn't be sent to fight this kind of siege warfare.

This ring is truly destined for him!

Alfred took the ring out of the box and handed it to Lance.

"This ring is called the 'Mist Concealment Ring,' a second-tier magical equipment," he said, his tone tinged with reminiscence. "I obtained it during an adventure when I was young, and it's been with me for quite some time."

Lance took the ring and weighed it in his hand.

It's very light; you can barely feel its weight.

He looked up at Alfred.

"Such a valuable item, you should at least lend it to me, right?"

"What are you saying, little one... Of course it's for you."

Lance was silent for two seconds.

Then slip the ring onto the middle finger of your right hand.

The silver ring fit snugly against the skin, the cool sensation fleeting before quickly disappearing.

"Thank you. Please let me know if you need anything in the future."