When Rody came out, Kris had already changed into a fitting suit of silver armor. Already handsome, he looked particularly dazzling in the silver armor blessed with holy light magic, like a sparkling diamond.

Rody looked at him and curiously asked, "Why this getup?"

"Are you not planning to go to the Thunder Hidden Mist Land? It's not easy to leave the city right now without dressing up as members of the Prayer Guard Corps," Kris replied with a smile.

"But don’t we still have the competition?" Rody remembered that the preliminaries were ending in a few days, followed by the top 100 competition.

"You don't know. Those who love to show off will throw a grand celebration after entering the top 100. After several days of festivities, some hopefuls or those with connections will be sent out on hunting missions. They will kill magical beasts and bring them back to the city in a grand display, so people cheer for them. Others will gather crowds to give speeches to promote their reputation. The actual competition is still far off! I bet the Magic Martial Arts Competition will proceed as it always has, with the 'Death Training' format. It's unlikely that Camalon will quietly hold this competition. Moreover, the envoys from various countries and spectators haven't arrived yet. The top 100 competition will only proceed once tens of thousands of people come, increasing Camalon Empire's prestige and income," Kris explained, pointing to the silver armor on the table, suggesting Rody to take a bath and change into it.

"Why should I take a bath? Who loves to be vain like you!" Rody changed into the armor directly.

"Dressed like this, you really look like a knight nobleman. Okay, I know you hate knight noblemen, I'll stop talking!" Kris was struck by how Rody looked in the fitting silver armor. Rody, who usually wore a mage robe, now appeared even more heroic, like a deity descended to earth, causing Kris to take a few more glances involuntarily.

"Indeed, it looks better than wearing a mage robe." The valiant female knight also nodded in agreement, leading the way.

Outside, a female knight squad was waiting. Rody and Kris mounted their horses, and two handmaidens came over, each handing them a flag. Once they pulled down their windshields, no one could recognize that the two flag-bearing knights were the recently seen Rody and Kris.

The twenty-plus member female knight squad set off thunderously, unobstructed and unquestioned, smoothly reaching the teleportation gate.

The valiant female knight showed her token, then led Rody and the others. The twenty or so riders passed through the teleportation gate together, arriving at a directed small station in a wilderness area.

Compared to the teleportation arrays in Filis that can only transport two people at most, the teleportation gates of the Camalon Empire are indeed much better. Rody found that not only could more than twenty riders and their horses be teleported, but they also landed very precisely at the directed station, without any vibration. If such teleportation gates were used in war, they would be incredibly effective for surprise attacks or secret crossings, making movements unpredictable.

Of course, a powerful nation like the Camalon Empire, possessing tens of thousands of heavy armored cavalry and hundreds of thousands of ironclad warriors, might not need to consider such tactics.

The valiant female knight led Rody and his group for half a day and then parted ways at a crossroad.

"We will take our leave here. We wish you all the best!" She led her subordinates ‘thunderously’ in another direction.

"She is the cousin that Kaylie has a crush on," Kris mentioned, and Rody suddenly remembered. In the Evil Forest, when everyone talked about their first love, Kaylie had said his first love was his cousin. Moreover, to comfort him, Rody had even said he would give Kaylie his cousin, never expecting to actually meet her today.

"How do you know the Holy Maiden?" Rody asked Kris as they rode side by side. "Is the Holy Maiden Bicrystal?"

"No," Kris shook his head but did not elaborate on who Bicrystal was.

"Hey, are you really a... never mind." Rody originally wanted to ask if Kris was male or female, because he found that Kris never knew any men; all his friends were women. Moreover, more importantly, the more he observed Kris, the stranger he seemed, making Rody suspicious. But it was hard to believe that a woman would talk like that and be bold enough to bathe with him. If Kris was a man, how could he be so familiar with the Holy Maiden? If he was a woman, his personality and physique didn't quite match.

"Rody, we should compare our skills in bed sometime, then you’ll know whether I’m male or female! Hahaha!" Kris’s comment immediately dismissed Rody’s inner doubts.

"Shut up!" Rody felt it was absurd to think a woman would talk like that.

"Is Jill really that beautiful? To make you wait so devotedly for her to grow up. You know, most men wouldn't do that," Kris asked again.

"Much more beautiful than your Bicui silk!" Rody couldn't help but strike at this inexplicable guy. Was Gill beautiful? Was that his business? He didn't even covet his Bicui silk, nor did he inquire about his relationship with the Saintess, but he asked about Gill. Was Gill someone he could set his sights on? She was Felic's hope... Right, the other two stars of hope mentioned by the Saintess, could one of them be Gill?

Then, who could be the last star of hope?

How exactly should one unlock potential? Can potential really be developed without training? Chris is also a star of hope, but how many stars of potential does he actually have?

Rody really wanted to take out the ink crystal magic mirror to check Chris's background, but felt that he should trust the other party.

Despite riding the temple's unique bright magic horse, which has great stamina, Rody and Chris, both enduring hardship, rode on the road all day, passing several small towns, but were still very far from the 'Lei Yin Mist Land'. The magic martial arts competition didn't matter much to Rody; he was participating only to obey the Grand Marshal's orders, representing the honor of the Grand Alliance's military in secret, and also to regain some honor for Felic, repaying the efforts of Dean Buck and others who had searched for him from afar.

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Chris, however, felt the sooner Rody's problem was resolved, the better. They hurried until dusk, both man and horse exhausted, before stopping.

He didn't say it, but Rody understood very well that Chris must also long to unlock his own star of potential, to enhance his strength. And it seemed that unlocking his potential was somewhat related to Rody, hence his particular urgency.

"I'm feeling a bit bored, keep me company and talk for a while," Chris suddenly crawled into the small tent during the night, lying down next to Rody.

"Talk about what?" Rody gently closed the magic notebook of the beautiful female tutor and asked.

"Anything, everything is fine," Chris turned over and even pulled Rody's blanket over him. He wanted Rody to talk, but he himself closed his eyes as if to sleep. Rody wasn't too surprised by this behavior, as Chris often did the same in the Evil Forest.

"Do you have something on your mind?" Rody observed for a while and realized that Chris seemed off that day.

"Who doesn't have a little something on their mind? Are you saying you don't?" Chris said angrily.

"I didn't provoke you!" Rody became even more puzzled.

"Let me throw a couple of punches, I'll cool down and go back to sleep! Just a couple of punches!" Chris made an inexplicable request.

"Are you sleepwalking or am I?" Rody prepared to grab Chris and throw him out, but Chris turned over in a huff, back facing him, like a petulant child, making Rody wonder if he was dreaming.

"I like someone, but I can't let them know. It's painful," Chris suddenly sighed softly.

"Is it the Saintess?" Rody thought Chris might have feelings for the Saintess, but due to their different statuses, Chris's unrequited love for the Saintess and inability to confess were normal. But then, wasn't Chris in love with Bicui silk? With his friend heartbroken, Rody naturally tried his best to comfort him, gently saying, "Maybe the Saintess likes you too, just not saying it. How about I ask her for you?"

"How could the Saintess like me? What nonsense are you talking about!" Chris was greatly annoyed.

"If I hit a nerve, you should admit it," Rody became even more certain. When it came to Bicui silk, Chris was relaxed, but as soon as the Saintess was mentioned, he vehemently denied it, obviously hiding something.

"Have you slept with the female boss?" Chris asked.

"Hey, you're heartbroken, but don't drag me into it, or I'll turn my back on you." Seeing what seemed like tears in Chris's eyes, Rody dared not look anymore, fearing it would hurt his pride. He gently lay down, staring at the tent ceiling for a long time, then softly said, "I do quite like the female boss. Although she's always drunk, she listens to my troubles. Whatever makes me unhappy, I can tell her."

"I'm also your friend, but you never talk to me," Chris said resentfully. "You even doubt me!"

"You never told me either," Rody quickly defended.

"Did the female boss tell you? Do you know all her secrets? Do you know all of Gill's secrets?" Chris angrily said, "Who doesn't have a little secret?"

"So, everyone keeps their own secrets. It's fair that way," Rody nodded.

"But you're not fair. You tell the female boss your troubles, but not others," Chris latched onto that point, determined to make an issue with Rody.

"I was in a bad mood at that time, so I wanted someone to talk to," Rody turned over, ready to throw this unreasonable guy out, but for some reason, he couldn't do it and just lay down, whispering, "I was like you are now, in a bad mood, talking harshly. Actually, sometimes talking to someone about your troubles is quite comforting. I was feeling oppressed for a long time, and after talking to the female boss, I felt much better. You can tell me anything, too. After talking about it, I guarantee you'll feel nothing's wrong tomorrow, and you'll be in a great mood."

"I'm thinking about my first love, but I'm not their first love, and they probably don't think of me…" Chris's voice was tearful, and Rody pretended not to hear. He was especially afraid of people crying, especially men, simply not knowing how to comfort them.

"…" Rody decided to remain silent, just like the female boss.

"That's not fair!" Chris stretched out his hand and punched Rody. At first, Rody was greatly annoyed, then he felt a lot of sympathy.

"First love is nothing great. I don't even know who my first love was." As soon as Rody said this, Chris couldn't help but cry. Rody never expected Chris, who could withstand an orc berserker's axe and was a man who would bleed but not cry, to cry over a first love. He felt both strange and sympathetic. For a handsome man like Chris, being rejected and ignored would indeed be heartbreaking.

"You don't know who your first love is? You must be kidding!" Chris threw another punch, apparently not believing Rody's words.

"I can't tell..." Rody recalled the past and remained silent for a long time.

"Tell me, I want to hear," Chris, who had stopped crying at some point, asked with a slightly sniffling voice.

"Why are you so curious? I didn't ask about yours... Alright, I'll tell." Rody, fearing that Chris would start crying again, decided to share a little secret of his own. He was sure Chris wouldn't mention it to anyone else because he still had the upper hand with Chris being a crybaby. After thinking for a while, Rody slowly said, "First love, I really can't tell what it is. Maybe it's the female boss, maybe Gill, or maybe an unknown Dark Elf whom I've never seen nor known the name of."

"What?" Chris suddenly turned around, and Rody could see his face streaked with tears, looking quite pitiful.

"Don't look at me, wipe your tears," Rody felt a bit overwhelmed by Chris's tears, finding it very strange. He wouldn't feel a deep sense of pity if he saw another man's tears.

"Who asked you to look... Look up!" Chris pulled up the blanket over his head and started wiping his tears.

Well, Rody thought his blanket was ruined.

Having such a crybaby friend was just his bad luck. But this guy was quite capable on the battlefield, not shedding a tear or frowning even when injured, a truly tough nut. But the pain of first love was enough to make him cry. Rody thought about the Heavenly Fragrance Saintess, her unique and moving beauty, no wonder Chris liked her so much.

"Keep talking!" Chris urged Rody to continue as he stopped speaking.

"Talking about what?" Rody was puzzled.

"Your first love, tell me about your Dark Elf first love!" Chris would make a great magic reporter, Rody thought. He had casually mentioned the Dark Elf, and Chris had firmly decided that she was Rody's first love, something even Rody himself couldn't confirm.

"There's nothing much to tell. I don't know her name or what she looks like, I don't know anything," Rody said offhandedly.

"You're lying! How can you like someone without knowing anything about them?" Chris was annoyed.

"I don't know if it's love, but for so long, I've never forgotten that faint, blurry shadow. I don't remember what she looked like... but her eyes seemed to emit a beautiful light. At that time, I was fleeing with my mother on my back. She could have killed me and my mother, but although she sounded cold, she was surprisingly kind-hearted. Even after knowing I was a necromancer, she didn't harm us. Maybe it's because she spared me that there's the miraculous young Rody today!" Rody reminisced, thinking that if the Dark Elf had killed him with a moon blade, there would have been no hope for humanity.

"..." Chris stayed silent under the blanket for a long time. Rody found it odd; the man loved gossip and wanted to hear, but then he didn't believe it when he heard.

"It's true!" Rody emphasized: "Why would I lie to you!"

"If that Dark Elf woman comes looking for you, would you still like her?" Chris suddenly asked very softly.

"How could she possibly come looking for me? She doesn't even know me. We just met by chance on the road! She was tracking down Terri and Lotte, who had stolen their clan's moonstone, and had been discovered. She was fleeing when she encountered me. Besides, I was just a kid back then. I've grown up now; she definitely wouldn't recognize me!" Rody laughed loudly: "Don't take it seriously, okay? Do you think a Dark Elf who lives for hundreds of years would fall for a human?"

"How did you deceive her? Using your charm, right?" Chris asked after a while.

"Charm? I was a kid back then. What charm! But, I did use a strategy. Ha, I grabbed her breast, causing her to be mentally disordered. Then I said something so absurd it made her laugh and cry, infuriating yet amusing her. Eventually, her murderous intent was laughed away, and my mother and I were able to survive. Sometimes, people are like that. When they're cold, they can be ruthless, but once their mind is disturbed, their hidden kindness emerges." Rody nodded: "If I see her again, I think I'll apologize! I took advantage of her with my words."

"You grabbed her breast? Was it big?" Chris was very concerned about this.

"Pretty big, not like the elves in legends... Why are you so gossipy? Go back to sleep!" Rody got angry at such a question.

"I think when you see your first love again, you should grab her breast again, take advantage of her again. I believe she will like you even more!" Chris climbed up, grinning. After talking with Rody, his mood seemed to lighten, but Rody himself was annoyed.

"With that attitude, no wonder the Saintess doesn't like you!" Rody was very angry.

"Bad boys are loved by girls. Maybe it was your boldness back then that made the Dark Elf fall for you," Chris laughed: "If you were like that with the female boss, you wouldn't be a virgin now! Okay, I'll stop, don't be mad. There's nothing wrong with being a virgin. Keep your virginity, it will come in handy one day!"

"How did I end up with a friend like you..." Rody sighed at his misfortune.

"I think it's not bad knowing you," Chris hurried out before Rody could hit him. Rody lay down angrily, covering his head with the blanket. Suddenly, he smelled a very faint fragrance. It was somewhat similar to the rich scent of the Heavenly Fragrance Saintess, but slightly different. Rody wondered, sniffing his own clothes, which had no such scent. Where did this fragrance come from?