Right now I am looking at the scholars. They are fascinating figures. They are beings of such great knowledge. It honestly seems impossible sometimes that a single person should know so many things. They are a mystery even for us who are at the hexmountain.

  It is not like I can speak anything about them anyway. Nobody knows the magic that they practice. (not even their magical path.) Nobody knows the hierarchy of their organization. Nobody even knows the name of their leader. All we know about them is what the average layman knows. If anything, the guards would know the most about them. We have the most access to the scholars. I am just not allowed to access that information.

  This isolation is not due to their desire to be mysterious. It is more because they would struggle to explain stuff to other organizations. What they speak goes over my head even if they bother to explain it to me. It could also be to demotivate any copycats. Every power in the continent has tried to create its variety of scholars. The results of every such organization have been a disaster. You could say that scholars are hated by everybody, but they are needed by everybody at the same time.

  As for why the guards seem so hostile to us, it is because our relationship is not exactly the friendliest. Us guards are sent on missions to both assist the scholars and be their wardens. We are here to make sure that the scholars stay within the line. After all, the secrets that they wield are precious and the scholars know that it is precious. I have not been in the guard corps for long, but I have heard rumors of what the guards can do. Let's just say that it is not pretty.

  Well, I do not like to be passive like this. We have been stuck in this room for about two days. It almost seems like the snowwinders have forgotten about us. Well, we have not been forgotten, about that I am sure.

  Standing guard outside of our rooms are the two soldiers who have escorted us here in the first place. These soldiers are trained to resist the observations of the scholars or so I think at the very least. Every faction has a regiment of soldiers who are trained to resist a black mountain visit. Not that they are particularly successful but people try at the very least.

  Just like their predecessors our wardens move with a careful gait. They are careful not doing anything that might give us information about the Snowwind empire. They don't speak unless they need to, even to each other. They don't eat anything in front of us. I have never seen them sleep. I get no insight into these people at all.

  They do not even tend to react to my provocations. Yesterday, I tried to get them angry by trying to leave our room. The instant that I left the room, it was almost like the soldiers just shifted into a battle state. Cool and calm, they would have fought me to the death without any hint of passion. Such a state is an achievement. One that only capable warriors can achieve.

  Thankfully, I did not have my armor on me or I would have activated it just based on my instinct. That would have led to quite a bit of chaos. After that, I decided not to provoke the guards too much. It would be wiser to wait for the enemies to make a move in this case. That is what I tell myself, but I honestly have no idea what move to make here. I mean, I could take these two out if I were to somehow get the scholars to attack them. (You would be surprised but each of these scholars is stronger than us.) Doing that is going to get me into a load of trouble. I could be removed from the guards as well. I mean, I have no desire to be in the guards, I am only here due to my master. I don't like to lose to my master's challenges as well. I certainly lose to the bastard without even trying my best.

  Speaking of Trevor, the man has been busy looking around the room. The man is looking for any formations that the other side could be using to spy on us. He had been busy looking for them. I have been looking for them as well, but all the obvious ones I have already detected. (The ones visible in my mana sense.)

  Andrew and Jacob are both cultivating. They seem oddly eager to cultivate which makes me think that they are at some key point in their cultivation. I mean I could ask them about their cultivation but speaking to them about this is something that I don't want to do. Let's just say our history is complicated. I want to know how they are doing it as well.

  Cultivating requires a type of focus that is pretty hard to maintain. I certainly am not able to do it. Granted, I have never needed to meditate. One of the benefits of being a formation mage is that I don't need to rely on my cultivation that much. Cultivating helps, but not as much as a good formation would help. That is the disadvantage of my power as well.

  Well, I will need to talk to Trevor soon enough. The man was supposed to act as my advisor based on the negotiation that my master had done with the head office. I don't know who Trevor is, just that he is important. The man is someone that my master speaks positively about. He has no cultivation to speak of, but he is important enough that my master had made him part of my troop as one of his requirements.

  Oh yeah, my master had three conditions he had given the head office when he was selling my service for the guard corps. (As I said, I had no interest in being in the guard corps. My master forced me into it.)

  The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  First was that Trevor was meant to be a part of my troop, essentially leading this troop. I don't know why specifically Trevor, but the man has experience and that cannot be denied. Maybe that is what my master had considered when making the request. Maybe he just meant to torture me by giving me a non mage as an additional responsibility.

  The second one was even more direct. This my master put in just to torture me, I tell you. He placed me this close to the northern wastelands and that too on my first mission. On this matter, I do not want to speak for long. It would be quite risky if I let something loose now.

  As for the third, that is the weirdest of them all. He restricted my troop to only having four soldiers, including me. That is why I have such a restricted troop. Otherwise, a troop is supposed to have at least ten people.

  Naturally, the head office agreed to this since it does not affect them. They can just remove me if I fail a mission. That is how I have ended up in this room, stuck like this.

  Anyways, why did I speak about all this? Yeah, Trevor was sent here to guide me on matters of significance like this. The man has not been speaking to me since the last couple of days. He doesn't want anything we speak to go to be overheard by the enemy. That is why he has been looking for surveillance formations in the last couple of days. I would have tried and help the man if he were willing to take it. Right now I am more likely to distract the man than help him out even if I were to interfere.

  Still, I hope that something will happen soon. This waiting has been very trying and certainly not good for my mind.

  (After about a couple of hours.)

  After seeing Trevor avoid me for so long, it was a surprise to see Trevor approach me.

  "Well, you have been busy the last couple of days.", I speak, hoping that the man could not hear the sarcasm in my tone.

  "A man has got to keep busy, captain or it is very easy for him to lose his mind.", replies Trevor. "Regardless, the lesser that they know about our conversation the better."

  "Well are you confident that we are not being spied on?", I ask the man.

  "About as confident as I can reasonably be. I am sure that they are listening to us anyway.", Trevor speaks. "That won't be an issue. I shall not speak about anything particularly sensitive. After all, I am sure that what I shall speak the snowwinders have heard a thousand times. After all, much of it, we have got from them only. What do you know about the purpose of the frozen peak?"

  "Well, I know that it is the northernmost fort of the Snowwinders and one of the only structures that are closest to the northern wastelands.", I reply.

  "Well, you are a new captain. That is all you need to know.", speaks Trevor. "Well, the purpose of the frozen peak is quite simple. This fort is meant to hold off the snowlords."

  "But there is no other power in our surroundings.", I exclaim.

  "Well, there is one. I am sure you can guess from where they come." Replies Trevor. As they speak I do realise about whom he is talking about.

  It is a pretty popular myth, about a tribe of people that could survive even in the northern wastelands. They are considered to be one of the sworn enemies of the legion. (The legion has a pretty big list of sworn enemies, to be honest.) Every soldier worth his salt has fought them or at the very least has a story related to them. They are known as the snow tribe and today I have learnt that the snowwind empire calls them snowlords.

  "Well, what does that have to do with me? I am a formation mage. It is not like they can send me onto the battlefield.", I reply. I can feel a shiver in my spine as I ponder the possibilities with a sinking heart.

  "Do not try to assume what the commander will ask you to do. I am sure that whatever task you will be given will be something that you will be able to manage.", replies Trevor. "If they give a particularly unreasonable task, I am sure that the head office will be the first to act."

  "Well, I will still have to complete the task, aren't I?", I ask the man.

  "Well, you know the head office. I would think it wiser you deal with it yourself.", replies Trevor. "Well, it is time for you to learn. You need to tell me what you know about the snowlords."

  "Well, most of what I know comes from stories told by soldiers of the legion. I am sure that most of what they have told me is exaggerated.", I reply. "Otherwise I can't believe half the stuff that they have claimed about the snowlords."

  "Well, then it is safe to say that you don't know much. That is a pity. I can't say that I know much about the tribes either. The legion is a better source of information on them.", speaks Trevor. "Well, all I know about them comes from the records of the snowwinders. At the onset of winter, the snowwinders are harassed by the snowlords. Every year they and their beasts descend from the northern wastelands to conduct raids into the snowwind empire. They are supposed to be very dangerous enemies."

  "Well, that much I know. They are supposed to be soldiers that can twist the very weather around them. They are supposed to have skins of iron that no ordinary weapons are supposed to be able to pierce. The grandest claim I have heard of them is that they can summon blizzards at will. Also, I don't think I have heard any story in which the legion has ever fought them head-on, only through stealth or traps.", I reply while remembering the many stories of the snowlords that I heard. They were one of the few enemies among their massive list of enemies that they were willing to speak about.

  "Well, that can be considered to be the truth if a bit exaggerated. The snowlords are masters of manipulating external mana. Their soldiers can manipulate mana for kilometers around them in the wastelands.", speaks Trevor. "As for their ability to manipulate weather or summon blizzards, you of all people should know how hard that is. They can affect the weather around them though."

  "Well, that all is fine but why are we discussing the snowlords so suddenly?", I ask the man.

  "Well, I had to make sure that this information was given to you correctly. The Snowwinders are not particularly open with such knowledge and you are going to be needing it soon.", he replies. "Also, your master was very insistent that you at the very least have a working idea about the snowlords. The snowlords are the worst threat you shall face here. Also, I am sure that you must be recording. Shut it down for now. I am not sure if you are supposed to know this at your present clearance, let alone people with the clearance to read your logs."