"Don't worry," Dieble declared reliably as they prepared to slip into the woods controlled by the Foreign Tribes. "I have experience with infiltration missions. I've even scouted this forest before, though I didn't go very deep."
Dieble was a Former Court Mage.
By his own admission, his mana pool wasn't particularly large, which meant high-tier magic was mostly out of his reach. In exchange, however, his technical proficiency was masterful—a fact acknowledged even by the Chief of the Court Mages, Albert Rosemary.
"Hiding. Anti-Sound. Anti-Smell. Anti-Search."
It was a simultaneous quartet cast.
He wove layers of magic together: a veil of invisibility, a dampener for noise and scent, and a shroud to mask their mana signatures from Life Search spells.
The ten members of the infiltration team were soon enveloped in magic so refined it could make one sigh in admiration.
"This should prevent any issues," Dieble said.
"Impressive as always, Professor Dieble."
"I'm not ready to let the youngsters show me up just yet. However, maintaining these spells makes it difficult for me to survey our surroundings. I'll have to rely on you for scouting."
"Leave it to me. Life Search."
Rest activated his own detection magic.
A pulse of mana rippled outward in a circle, reporting the presence of every living thing within range. The interior of the forest was teeming with the signatures of insects, animals, and monsters. For the time being, there were no signs of anything resembling a demi-human.
"Alright, lead us to the sorcerers."
"Fine..."
With a reluctant nudge, the Ogrekin boy, Rou, stepped to the front. He began weaving through the trees, casting frequent, wary glances back at Rest.
Walking directly behind Rou was the "Woman-hating Sword Saint," Wilhelm Lyubase.
Wilhelm appeared perfectly composed as he navigated the terrain, but his focus was absolute. It likely wouldn't take even a fraction of a second for him to draw the blade at his hip.
"Lyubase, keep it in check," Rest whispered.
"I have no idea what you're talking about," Wilhelm replied, shrugging with feigned ignorance.
Rest had spoken up just to be safe. Since Dieble’s magic made an ambush from demi-humans or monsters unlikely, the biggest concern at the moment was Rou attempting to bolt. If the boy showed even the slightest hint of trying to escape, Wilhelm would likely cut him down without a second thought.
Rest sighed internally. He likely wouldn't kill the boy outright, but he was exactly the type to slice an Achilles tendon to stop a runner. It wasn't that Wilhelm was being malicious—it was just his nature—but Rest preferred to keep the casualties to a minimum.
Even if they were enemies, he had no desire to go out of his way to hurt a child. Neutralizing the sorcerers peacefully would be the ideal outcome.
"The sorcerers have set up near my people's village—the Ogrekin Village," Rou said as he led the way, seemingly unaware of Rest's internal conflict. "They captured my sister and the other tribes' daughters. Now they're holed up in a castle they built with curses."
"A castle made with curses?" Rest asked.
"Yeah. When those men chanted their strange incantations, the earth itself surged upward and molded into the shape of a castle. The walls are incredibly hard; even the adult Ogrekin couldn't break them."
"They've likely used earth magic to construct a dome and then reinforced it with separate spells," Dieble analyzed. "It won't be easily destroyed."
It seemed the sorcerers were indeed exceptional mages. If they were barricaded inside a magical fortress, the difficulty of the rescue operation had just jumped up a notch.
This feels like dealing with a bank heist—criminals barricaded inside with hostages. I can finally empathize with the police back home.
Simply defeating the enemy wasn't enough; they had to worry about the safety of those inside. It was a massive headache.
"By the way, how many sorcerers are there?"
"One showed up at first," Rou answered. "But two others joined him later. I don't know if there are more now."
"I see... so we don't even have an exact head count. This just keeps getting more complicated."
Rest kept his Life Search active, but if the enemies were using Anti-Search techniques similar to Dieble's, he wouldn't be able to sense them until they were right on top of them.
Tense and alert, the group pushed deeper into the woods, wary of the formidable enemies waiting ahead.