The night was as dark as ink, the stars and moon were dim, and the chilly night mist gradually rose, making the surrounding scene hazy.

"Swish..."

At this moment, there was a faint sound of footsteps in the distance.

Hearing the movement, Thorne opened his eyes instantly, and at the same time, his right hand had already touched the position of the hilt of the sword.

The reason why he dared to live alone away from the caravan was because he was very alert to the perception of danger, otherwise he would have died many times in the wilderness.

From the sound of walking without hesitation, Thorne could tell that the footsteps in the distance didn't seem to have intruded here by accident.

And the purpose is very clear, that is, to move closer to him, so that it can be confirmed that the visitor should know his location in advance.

So how did the other party find him?

This makes Thorne a little puzzled. The Ranger itself has a concealment bonus in the wilderness, and his "Hide" skill has been increased to 20 points by him.

After reaching 20 "Hide" and "Sneak" skills, you will gain an additional ability.

That is, when used at night or in the shadows, it can achieve a stealth-like effect, and under this effect, it is difficult to detect with the naked eye.

In addition, his racial specialty "Mask of the Wild" and "Shadow Favorite" of the Shadow Hand faction have greatly enhanced the "Hide" skill.

Especially at night, even if Thorne didn't bother to use these stealth skills, his entire body would gradually disappear into the shadows.

It is so easy to spot him and pinpoint his location so precisely that, aside from the caster's detection magic, it's almost impossible for those with "perception" skills alone.

Thorne hid in place for a moment, and as the footsteps got closer and closer, until he smelled a familiar smell, his expression gradually relaxed, but there was still a trace of doubt and confusion in his eyes.

Feeling that the other party was about to approach, Thorne's thoughts moved, and a bright flame appeared in the palm of his hand, and then he waved gently to the ground under his control.

——“Desert Wind Sect (Enhanced Skill): The Flame of Chaos!”

Immediately, a summoning circle flashing orange-red light quickly emerged on the ground, and then a group of small fire elements about 1.2 meters tall appeared in front of Thorne.

The lighting characteristics of the small fire element reflect the surrounding environment like daytime, and at the same time, it will also clearly illuminate the slowly walking figure.

Feeling the light and warmth emanating from the small fire element, Thorne immediately instructed him to stand on the spot and not move, to act as a bonfire.

"Sit whatever you want." Thorne glanced up and pointed to the weed-covered ground.

"Use fire elemental creatures as a bonfire, and learn the summoning technique of the conjuration system another day."

Andrina sat on the grass beside Thorne, looked at the blurred human-shaped flame unexpectedly and said.

Thorne thought for a moment and guessed how the other party found him.

The most common low-level spells among spellcasters with accurate location detection magic are those few.

The second-level prophecy spell: "Ally Tracking", after this spell is used on one's own partner, it can find the other party in most situations, with an error of less than 10%.

And there is no distance limit, no matter how far the two sides are, even if other planes or companions die, the spell will be suppressed unless the other party enters an area similar to the anti-magic field.

Then there is the four-ring prophecy spell: "Mystic Eye", an invisible magical sense that can move at will and provide visual information anytime, anywhere.

As for the others, he is not very clear for the time being. There are too many types of magic in this world. Almost every day, there are technical wizards who develop new spells.

As for whether it is practical, it can only be known from future magic books.

Then he stopped worrying, and asked Anderina calmly, "Is there anything wrong with not going to rest so late?"

"It's nothing, I'm feeling a little dull, just come out for a walk." Anderina sat on the ground with her arms crossed and looked at the bright firelight, and replied absently.

"Then let's talk about it." Thorne saw that Andrina's pretty face was red with a hint of sadness, so he put the long sword on the ground again, leaning against the big tree behind him and said.

"Why didn't your troll butler come with you?" Thorne thought for a while to break the peace and asked his inner doubts.

"Not everyone likes to wander in the wilderness as much as you do. If there is a stable place to live, few people choose to go out and take risks. After all, it is too dangerous."

Andrina glanced at Thorne and said in a melancholy tone.

"Then why don't you choose to stay in Twilight Town, I think it's still very safe there." Thorne expressed his opinion a little puzzled.

"I'm not too sure. When I didn't arrive at Twilight Town, I was looking forward to it, but after I arrived suddenly, I didn't have much interest." Andrina shook her head and sighed.

"Are you confused?" Thorne looked stunned for a moment, looked at her unexpectedly, and guessed.

The life of the rich is different. They don't worry about food or clothing, and sometimes they get confused. It's like they are running around for various things every day, Thorne can't help but sigh in his heart.

"That's right." Andrina nodded.

"Everyone will have different goals and needs at different stages of life. When you are confused, you must first figure out what you need most for yourself, and then work hard in this direction."

Tucao returned to Tucao, Thorne still comforted Anderina seriously.

"Goals and needs? Did you know? The belief and ideal of the Night Lords of Stallman is to establish a realm of their own for their tiefling race.

Then gather them together and avoid wandering among the most run-down lanes, ruins, and shadows in every corner of the continent.

To change the way the world thinks of the tiefling race, so that they are no longer watched and whispered, is too great an ideal for me to bear. "

Andrina was silent for a moment, looking at the fire of the fire element and said calmly.

"This is indeed a great ideal, but unfortunately they are descendants of the devil, and their bloodlines have long been polluted. Not everyone can resist the erosion from their bloodlines, but at least she has put it into action, isn't it?"

Thorne said with a thoughtful look after listening to Andrina's words.

"Then what is your belief? Can you talk about it?" Andrina turned around, staring at Thorne's face hidden in the hood, and asked curiously with anticipation.

"Me?" Feeling the curious gaze of the other party, Thorne considered it for a while, and said truthfully:

"As a ranger, it is natural to stand on the front line of the wilderness, defending against all incoming monsters and humanoid tribes, and avoiding the destruction of civilization."

"Do you mean the town of the waterfall?" Andrina asked Thorne with her head tilted slightly, letting her loose long hair sway in the wind.

"That's right, after all, it's another... home in this world. They taught me a lot there, and they must protect it well." Thorne paused as he spoke, and said firmly.

"Home?" Andrina muttered in a low voice, looking down at the red weeds reflected by the fire element, and fell into contemplation.

"That's right! It's a pity that the professional ability of a ranger alone cannot play the role of a finalist like a spell caster. So in order to improve my strength, I decided to leave alone and find the so-called way to become stronger."

As a ranger, he has excellent tracking and hunting skills, unmatched in Fallstown except by his mentor.

But in the face of the vast invasion of humanoid creatures, there is no way to do it. Even if the weakest goblin stands still and lets him slash down one by one, how many can he kill?

He didn't want to experience any more when facing the siege of a large group of enemies, watching his companions fall one by one, but there was no way to do it, it was a pale and powerless sense of frustration.

One night, he suddenly saw the "eye of insight" flashing on the wizard tower of Winter City as if telepathically.

So he quietly left without saying a word, and at the same time swore in his heart that if he couldn't become stronger, he would never come back.

Then, under the guidance of the light of the wizard tower, he came to Winter City, perhaps because of fate, perhaps because of the so-called fate, where he got the inheritance of the Nine Swords.

"So, is the Nine Swords Grandmaster who killed the incarnation of the Demon Lord that night your mentor?"

Andrina recalled what happened that night, and the inheritor of the Nine Swords mentioned by the sorcerer Anaxis, with a look of surprise.

"Tutor? Not sure. Although I have regarded him as my mentor in my heart, he never mentioned it. Maybe it's because I'm too weak." Thorne said with regret.

After speaking, he slowly got up and looked in the direction of Winter City. Unfortunately, the terrain here is relatively low, and there is no light from the wizard tower.

Only the cold moon hangs alone, and the clear light is pouring all over the ground, like a layer of silver frost condensed on the ground.

Thorne looked up at the sky, but saw that the distant sky was filled with a faint mist, and the edge of the mist was dotted with a few lonely stars, faintly twinkling and dazzling.