Knight: from Apprentice to the Almighty

After a short rest, the four people and one Pikachu resumed their journey.

Perhaps because the Control Gemstone was being used as a bargaining chip, Vanessa became much more talkative than before, dutifully fulfilling her role as a guide along the way.

Even so, they were constantly harassed by Demons in the mist that had retained their sanity.

Viscous Mud Monsters, flame-spitting Fire Salamanders, and even a strange type of spider that could perform short-range spatial jumps.

According to Vanessa, these were all lower-level creatures from other planes that had managed to break through the planar barrier due to the overly high concentration of Magic Elements.

And this was indeed the case.

Although these Demons had various forms that Roland had never seen before, their strength was about the same as the Slime Toads they had encountered earlier.

With Freddy’s help, coupled with Roland’s cautious reconnaissance and meticulous planning, these monsters were defeated one by one.

And in the process of exterminating these Demons, Roland displayed his strength with almost no reservations, intending to completely stamp out any "little schemes" the Witch might be harboring.

The result was that Vanessa grew increasingly silent during the journey, but her pace clearly quickened.

Within the dense fog that sunlight could barely penetrate, the concept of time gradually blurred.

But by Roland’s rough estimate, they had reached the edge of the Land of Mist in less than ten days.

However...

"Haaa..."

Roland let out a soft sigh, took out two bottles of Concentrated Nutrient Potion from his waist pouch, tossed one to the good-natured Beastman beside him, and uncorked the other, tilting his head back to drink it down.

With the sound of the liquid sliding down his throat, the burning hunger in his stomach instantly vanished.

’How amazing...’

Feeling his depleted stamina rapidly recovering at an almost perceptible rate, Roland smacked his lips and turned to the Purple-haired Witch behind him.

"Miss Vanessa, the effect of this Potion you’ve concocted is truly astonishing. After we leave this region, would it be possible for you to teach me how to make it?"

"Hehe..."

Faced with Roland’s gentle smile, the Witch just gave a faint, noncommittal smile of her own.

Recalling the power Roland had displayed during their ten-odd days of travel, she couldn’t help but marvel.

’His combat skills are almost instinctual, his Flame Spells are simple and crude but incredibly powerful, and also...’

Thinking of the golden halo that had appeared around Roland when they encountered the Fire Salamanders, Vanessa’s surprise was mixed with a growing sense of doubt.

’What on earth are this guy’s origins? He’s mastered the Breathing Technique so proficiently... he can’t be far from the Extraordinary Realm, can he?’

Vanessa considered herself exceptionally talented. By her early twenties, she had mastered most of her Witch heritage and had even created several Secret Techniques to enhance her power.

But compared to the young man before her...

’A Transcendent who’s not even twenty? That’s absurd...’

Recalling Roland’s seemingly harmless appearance when she first met him, Vanessa sighed softly and completely extinguished the last of her schemes.

"Teaching you how to concoct the Potion... it’s not out of the question."

The Purple-haired Witch slowly raised her head, her gaze passing over Roland to look further ahead.

"But more importantly... you should be thinking about how we’re going to get over this mountain in front of us to truly escape this godforsaken place."

Since they were at the edge of the Land of Mist, the once-dense fog had already thinned out considerably.

This allowed Roland to see the scene ahead without any difficulty.

A towering mountain range stood like a colossal barrier, completely blocking the path forward without leaving the slightest gap.

Where its edges stretched back into the depths of the mist, it acted like a barrier isolating their world, seemingly sealing off the entire Land of Mist.

Witnessing this sight, Roland asked with a grave expression.

"Miss Vanessa, is there really no other way out?"

"Haven’t we tried several routes these past few days? And what were the results..."

Vanessa, on the other hand, didn’t look particularly solemn.

The Purple-haired Witch elegantly lifted the hem of her skirt, picked a relatively flat rock nearby to sit on, and said leisurely,

"You saw it all with your own eyes, didn’t you?"

Before she had even finished speaking, Roland’s brows furrowed tightly.

It was just as Vanessa said. They had changed routes several times recently within the mist, yet they could never bypass the barrier-like mountain range before them.

This mountain range, stretching from north to west, completely sealed off the paths in both directions.

Unless they scaled it by force, there was simply no way to get around it.

But scaling it by force...

Roland looked up at the sheer, carved-looking cliff face not far away and shook his head gently.

Leaving aside the nearly smooth rock face with no footholds, what if they were attacked by Demons while climbing?

Fighting on such treacherous terrain would be extremely difficult to handle, even with his current strength.

Once caught in a situation where they could neither advance nor retreat, death would not be far off...

At this thought, Roland let out a soft sigh.

"Since north and west are both impassable, our only choice is to follow this mountain range and explore to the south..."

Hearing Roland’s idea, Vanessa warned him softly.

"Don’t blame me for not reminding you, but the anomaly in this region originates from Magic Elements erupting from somewhere to the south."

"I understand."

Roland nodded lightly.

Heading south was risky, but it was better than sitting here waiting to die.

With this in mind, he immediately gathered everyone and explained his views and plan.

However, the result of the discussion...

Looking at his companions, none of whom raised any objections or even offered any suggestions for improvement, Roland sighed helplessly.

Back when he had formed an adventuring party with Teresa and the others to complete the [Apprentice Knight] trial, he had often taken the lead as well. But whether it was Galvis or Avril, even if they agreed with the general direction, they would still offer some constructive suggestions.

But these people before him...

Mason, aside from the Negative Energy surging in his body, was practically an ordinary person.

Beastman Freddy was good-natured, but his mind... was a bit too simple.

As for Vanessa...

Just as Roland turned his gaze to the Purple-haired Witch, he suddenly felt a slight tug on his shoulder.

He turned his head and saw Pikachu Tress pulling at his pauldron, her red eyes twinkling with excitement.

"Roland! Roland! I can feel my partner’s presence!"

"Your partner... is it another Pikachu?"

"That’s right!"

Tress nodded her little head vigorously.

"As long as we find the Fairy Queen, you guys will definitely be able to leave this place! Back then..."

The Pikachu lightly flapped the butterfly wings on her back, circled in front of Roland, and gestured with her slender arms.

"The Fairy Queen chanted a few words I didn’t understand, and then—SWOOSH—I suddenly appeared not far from the sea!"

"A Space Spell?"

Hearing this description, Roland raised an eyebrow slightly and looked at the Witch beside him, who was revealing a look of surprise.