"Pure... malice?"

Hearing that description, Roland thought carefully for a moment, but still could not make sense of it.

Aside from that feature, Teresa could not provide any more useful information.

Roland could only set the matter aside for the time being while quietly raising his guard.

In his view, in a world filled with transcendent power, caution was never wasted.

Because Roland and Hobby had repeatedly scrutinized and refined the plan before deciding to set out and exterminate the pirates, and had even deliberately avoided sea areas where danger might exist, the voyage toward Wailing Gorge was unusually smooth.

They encountered no accidents.

During this period, Roland did not slacken either.

Aside from continuously cultivating the [Nameless Knight Breathing Method], he also kept practicing various sailing skills.

His days were as regular and fulfilling as they had been on land.

In only a few days, the ship had already left the Royal Capital of the River Kingdoms far behind.

Looking into the distance, the steep outline of Wailing Gorge was already faintly visible.

However, Roland's gaze did not remain on Wailing Gorge.

Instead...

"Hah..."

He leaned against the bulwark, gazing at the distant land shrouded in mist, and let out a long breath.

Although he had heard countless rumors about the Misty Lands from others and through various channels, he understood how dangerous it was. Even when he had been hunting monsters to complete the job requirements for [Knight Apprentice], he had deliberately detoured around it, and the commissions he accepted had avoided that area.

Therefore, since arriving in the River Kingdoms, this was the first time he had personally seen this domain swallowed by mist.

And under the unusually sharp perception of Mana Elements granted by [Material Synesthesia], even though he was separated from the Misty Lands by a broad stretch of water, he could still clearly feel the astonishing concentration of Mana Elements there.

Such dense mana even gave him a strange discomfort.

It was like the dizziness that came from drinking too much ale.

He shook his head and took another deep breath.

The cold sea wind blew against his face, yet it could not drive away that odd feeling.

Roland could only give a few instructions to Hobby and Teresa before returning to his cabin to rest.

Perhaps because they were drawing closer and closer to the Misty Lands, that dizzy discomfort intensified during the next stretch of the voyage.

Left with no choice, Roland sought relief in sleep, attempting to resist the peculiar sensation that way.

When moonlight flowed through the porthole and across Roland's face, he abruptly opened his eyes.

Glancing at the ink-black night outside the cabin, Roland shook his heavy head and sat on the edge of the bed, his expression somewhat dazed.

Only after a while did his consciousness fully return.

"I didn't expect [Material Synesthesia] to have this kind of side effect..."

He sighed helplessly and carefully examined his own condition.

His mind was unusually clear, and his stamina was full.

Aside from his head still feeling somewhat heavy, there were no other abnormalities.

After closing his eyes again for a moment and confirming that he was no longer sleepy, Roland could only rise.

"I might as well go out on deck and get some air..."

Thinking this, he put on his clothes and pushed open the cabin door.

It was deep night. Aside from a few patrolling sailors, there was no one else on deck.

Thud, thud, thud.

The dull sound of leather boots stepping on the deck was especially clear in the silent night, like suppressed drumbeats.

The sound echoed with the slap of the waves, weaving together into a low nocturne.

After briefly greeting the sailors he passed, Roland fetched a jug of clean water and walked toward a quiet corner.

Gulp... gulp...

Along with soft swallowing sounds, the cold liquid slid into his stomach, and Roland felt his heavy head clear somewhat.

"After preparing for so long, I actually ran into this kind of problem..."

He sighed softly, drew the mithril longsword at his waist with a backhand motion, and swung it a few times through the air.

"But this condition... shouldn't affect the battle ahead."

As the sharp blade traced several cold arcs beneath the moonlight, Roland's gaze turned once more toward the distant region swallowed by mist.

The gray-white mist, so dense it seemed impossible to disperse, was like a huge, damp, cold burial shroud pressing heavily over the horizon.

Moonlight struggled at its edges, only to be mercilessly devoured and twisted, allowing through only a sickly, deathly glow.

The mist itself was not still. It churned and writhed with a pace that made the heart tighten, as though countless invisible behemoths were sleeping and breathing deep within.

Merely looking at it sent a chill from the depths of the soul up his spine.

It seemed to silently declare that this was a forbidden zone for the living, a place of chaos where the laws of reality had been thoroughly twisted.

"I wonder how Avril is doing now..."

Gazing at that distant mist, thick and impossible to dispel, Roland's thoughts drifted toward the Elf girl who seemed lively and cheerful on the surface.

But the doubt lasted only a moment before dispersing.

Although he still did not know the Elf girl's true identity, merely from Galvez's usually respectful attitude toward her, Roland could determine that her strength was absolutely not inferior to his own.

Therefore, even if the River Kingdoms' operation to subjugate the Wolf King failed, the Elf girl likely would not be in mortal danger.

As his thoughts wandered, that uncomfortable dizziness rose again.

However, compared with before, Roland felt that his body seemed to be adapting to the discomfort caused by the excessively high concentration of Mana Elements.

He took several deep breaths and was just about to withdraw his gaze and return to the cabin to rest when his eyes caught a strange faint light beneath the heavy night.

The light was like a firefly, flickering above the sea near the Misty Lands.

Then, like pollen scattered by the wind, it dragged a bright trail through the air.

"What... is that?"

Roland narrowed his eyes slightly, trying to see more clearly.

But in the next instant, that faint light, which had originally been far away, flashed without warning into the air above his head.

In that split second, Roland's nerves tensed by instinct.

The moment his brow tightened, the mithril longsword at his waist became a streak of cold lightning, tearing through the moonlight and stabbing straight toward that point of light.

To Roland's surprise, the faint light was astonishingly fast. It brushed past the sharp blade and dodged aside.

Seeing this, Roland held nothing back. The [Nameless Knight Breathing Method] thundered into motion inside his body.

Scorching currents instantly surged through his limbs and bones. Along with a piercing sound of torn air, the mithril longsword ripped through the air again and slashed fiercely.

Just as the longsword swung and Roland opened his mouth, intending to warn the sailors and summon Teresa and the others for support, a light, urgent voice suddenly rang out.

"Wait... wait a second!"

Before the words finished, the sword edge had already pierced through that point of faint light.

But the light did not disperse. Instead, it scattered beneath the sharp blade like stardust and instantly re-formed three steps away from Roland.

In the blink of an eye, a slender female figure with butterfly-like thin wings appeared clearly before him.

The figure hovering several steps away was so tiny it was almost unbelievable. Her height probably did not even reach Roland's knee.

Her entire body emitted a soft, almost translucent glow, like the essence of moonlight condensed, gently pushing back a small patch of darkness around her.

This light was not still. It pulsed faintly like breathing, and its source seemed to be the pair of cicada-thin butterfly wings behind her, shining with iridescent color.

The wings trembled at a frequency difficult for the naked eye to catch, producing an almost inaudible hum as they held her lightly suspended in the damp night air.

Her face was exquisite, like mother-of-pearl and moonlight shaped by the finest craftsman, carrying a beauty not of the mortal world.

A pair of proportionally large red eyes, like secluded pools deep in a forest, were now fixed on Roland with lingering fright and obvious curiosity.

More precisely, they were fixed on the mithril longsword in his hand, which had nearly run her through.

Her red hair was like drifting stardust, glittering with tiny motes of light as it fell loosely across her slender shoulders.

Her body was covered in simple clothing woven from fine points of light and natural fibers, like living flower petals, perfectly integrated with her glow.

Although her body was tiny, the pure and dense mana aura she emitted rushed toward him almost like something tangible, making the air around Roland faintly charged.

This aura was completely different from the pressure coming from the depths of the Misty Lands.

It was more agile, purer, yet also carried a sense of alien distance that could not be ignored.

"Wait! I have no ill will at all!"

Sensing the pressure continuously radiating from Roland, the tiny figure shivered.

She hurriedly raised her slender arms high, her voice trembling.

"I only... only came to seek help!"

"Help..."

Although Roland sensed that the other party seemed to bear no malice, he did not relax his guard.

His body remained taut as a drawn bow, and the hand gripping his sword did not loosen in the slightest.

Meeting Roland's hawk-sharp eyes, the glowing little person had no doubt.

If she made even the slightest odd movement, that cold mithril longsword would mercilessly pierce her heart in the next instant.

And this time...

Remembering the fatal cold flash that had torn through the air just now, and sensing the strange, powerful energy fluctuations around Roland that were still rising, she swallowed with difficulty and completely dismissed the tiny thought of mischief she had originally held.

She would not have the same good luck twice.

Therefore, without waiting for Roland to ask again, the tiny figure began pouring out her purpose at an astonishing speed, like a loosened spring.

Her crisp voice was as pleasant as birdsong in the forest.

"I... my name is Tracy. I am a Pixie. I live in..."

Tracy moved her arm somewhat stiffly and pointed toward the distant region swallowed by mist.

"I live inside there."

"I came here presumptuously to seek your help... please..."

Her voice abruptly became sorrowful, carrying intense grief.

"Please help us save our homeland..."

"Pixie?"

Hearing this name, Roland's brow furrowed slightly.

Pixies were a type of tiny fae creature that dwelled deep within ancient forests or hidden magical places.

Ancient texts described them as condensations of moonlight and forest dew, their bodies emitting a soft glow. Transparent butterfly wings shining in rainbow hues grew from their backs, allowing them to fly silently.

They were naturally playful, even somewhat prone to pranks, and especially loved using faint glowing dust or illusions to tease lost travelers.

It was said they possessed innate magical talent, could easily hide their forms, scatter strange powder that induced intoxication and sleep, and even briefly turn people into harmless small animals with prank-like magic.

In ancient legends, they were regarded as guardian spirits of the forest, closely connected to the core pulse of nature.

Recalling the descriptions of Pixies in ancient texts, Roland's tense nerves relaxed slightly.

According to the records, these fae creatures were naturally friendly. Aside from enjoying harmless pranks, they did nothing excessive and had no tendency toward evil.

Even so, Roland still did not lower his guard.

"Save your homeland? I'm sorry... our destination this time is not the Misty Lands. And..."

He straightened slightly, his eyes fixed on the other party's every movement.

"Why did you choose me to save your homeland?"

"Because... because..."

Looking at the unwavering vigilance in Roland's eyes, Tracy sighed dejectedly.

"Among the ships passing by the Misty Lands, I did not sense anyone stronger than you... so please..."

Perhaps realizing that no amount of pleading could move the young man before her, the Pixie's tone suddenly changed.

"If you can successfully save our homeland, I promise you that the Fae Queen will surely bestow a blessing upon you."

"A blessing..."

Hearing these words, Roland's thoughts stirred.

Fae creatures like Pixies were themselves very weak, but perhaps because they were limited by some law of the world, the blessings they bestowed were unusually powerful and varied in effect.

At least in ancient records, many famous heroes had relied on fae blessings to survive crises of life and death.

Thinking of this, heat stirred in Roland's chest, but he shook his head and suppressed the impulse.

He had always preferred gathering information first, then deciding on an action plan.

As for the Misty Lands, even though he had inquired and observed through many channels, what he knew was still extremely limited.

A fae blessing was certainly powerful.

But to Roland, if the price was his life, it was far too heavy.

Seeing the young man before her shake his head again, faint light welled in Tracy's deep-red eyes, and faint sobs escaped her.

Roland remained unmoved. He only said softly, "Is there anything else? If not..."

Hearing the obvious intent to send her away, the tiny Pixie hurriedly wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes.

"Can I... stay by your side for now?"

"When I left that place, I exhausted all my strength crossing the mist, so..."

Tracy clasped her ten fingers together and pleaded sorrowfully.

"I only need to stay on your ship for a few days. Once I recover my strength, I will leave immediately and absolutely will not cause you trouble. Also..."

Although they had exchanged only a few words, this tiny Pixie had already seen Roland's practical nature between the lines.

"In return, I can provide you with necessary assistance."

"Assistance?"

The Pixie's proposal made Roland sink into thought.

Temporarily sheltering a Pixie was harmless to him.

Although he did not plan to go to the Misty Lands to save her homeland, Roland also had no intention of making an enemy of a Pixie.

According to ancient records, these fae creatures hid all over the world. Although they were naturally freedom-loving and often acted alone, they had none of the conflicts over interests that other races suffered among themselves. Their relationships with one another were instead extremely harmonious.

In other words, if one won the friendship of a Pixie, it was equivalent to obtaining the goodwill of her entire race.

However, before extending a helping hand, Roland had to confirm that the other party truly had no malice.

As for the method...

Just as he was thinking, footsteps came from behind him.

What followed was a clear female voice, completely different from the Pixie's crisp tone, carrying a touch of heroic spirit.

"Mr. Roland? What are you doing here so late?"