Right now I am standing outside of the patriarch's office. I have been standing here for the last couple of hours, waiting for the man to call me in.

  I have been making use of this time to study the people who have been conferring with the patriarch.

  The very first man was some kind of a soldier. The man had a scar on his face that disfigured his nose to a little stump. I have to assume that he is some kind of a warrior. He sat in there with the man for almost half an hour and left with a scowl on his face.

  The second man was some kind of a formation mage. He was in there for an hour and left with a grim expression.

  The last person to enter was Alfred who did not come out yet.

  Such a type of waiting is nothing new to me. One of the favorite tactics that people have with formation mages is to make them wait. They think that would make us impatient and more easy to deal with. It is used so frequently against us that waiting becomes a habit.

  This certainly helps out with our allies. They make us wait for about as long. Some tend to do it because they are genuinely busy and it is hard for them to make the time needed to meet us. Others do it as a show of force. You can't show your irritation to either. We can't afford to annoy our allies and a man needing to show off tends to take offense quickly.

  In this case, I have to assume that it is the former since the mayfires are good allies. If it is the latter, the files of the guard corps need some serious updating.

  The patriarch of the mayfires is a reasonable man. Based on what I have been allowed to read about him, the man seems to be a practical sort. His background is also pretty unique. He did not start as a mayfire. He was supposedly a mercenary that they hired. He became a man of the family through marriage and took his position after years of plotting. The Mayfires come from the east, they don't allow one without their blood to take a commanding role.

  The other three people in my troop are still in the room resting. They are warriors, not soldiers that have any diplomatic responsibilities. That particular responsibility is completely mine. Anyways, I would prefer at least a few of us be well rested for the eventuality that the mayfires are going to betray us.

  I will be honest, I don't know what to expect here. Right now the main issue is the fact that I don't understand where the mayfires lie. All of the documents that I have on them tell me that the mayfires are our good allies.

  Yet one cannot ignore the fact that the mayfires are hiding something from us. A pretty large something at that. Now the question we have is why and whether we can keep trusting them.

  I don't have much that I can do against the Mayfires. For better or worse they are the dominant force here and that is not a position that I enjoy as a formation mage. This is the ideal position to be exploited after all.

  Right now, they can ask me to do anything and I don't have the option of refusing them. If I am unlucky, (or lucky.) they might give me a risky job such as helping out in the maintenance of the barrier. I am not worried that I will be given this task. The influence of the black mountain must count for something.

  Well, if they do end up giving the task they will have to share the formation's design too. Well, I would be willing to work for an entire year if it meant I would get to study a barrier like this. This type of barrier is something that even my master would want to have a look at.

  Well, I think I will be given a more rudimentary task such as fixing the weapons and the armor of the soldiers. It is a task of vital importance as well. One worthy of a mage from the guard corps, they will say. After all, if the said weapon or armor must not fail in the middle of a battle. The outcome would usually be death for that soldier. Still, it is gruntwork at its core. There is nothing that will come of use from this other than helping me waste some time.

  I am so lost in my thoughts that I almost don't notice the door to the room opening up. I think there are formations on it to reduce the noise produced by it. Just how much mana must they have inside the isolating barrier? Even as I get up, I can see Alfred who is leaving gesturing me to go into the room.

  The moment that I enter the room, I can tell that the mana in the room is completely still. I could try moving this mana but I won't be able to do it. Better that I try to blow away an iron rod with my breath. If I had a formation, I might be able to do something.

  This is not only due to being inside the barrier but also due to the man in front of me as well. He has complete control over the mana surrounding us. He is not somebody that I should be taking lightly. I would say his mana control is only a few steps worse than my master. (My master is the best in the black mountain at mana control.)

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  The patriarch of the mayfires is a surprisingly small man. I would say that the man would come to my shoulders if we were to stand side by side. Yet, one would just need to look at the man to tell that he is not a man that you should be trifling with. Age has barely touched on the man, though I guess that he easily could be the age of my master. His eyes seem to convey his experience.

  His room is bare, with the only thing of interest being a sword that has been placed on an altar to the side. Looking at it, I can swear that I can feel the heat of the room spike as if the room has been set on fire. I avert my eyes before I can offend the people here. Nobody likes the curiosity of the black mountain. This is something important to the mayfires. They also don't like to speak about it, since I have read nothing about it in the documents given to me,

  "The disciple of the grand wolf.", the man suddenly speaks, as he checks me out. "I didn't expect that they would be sending you for such a mission. Be thankful we were informed that you were coming. Otherwise, we would have hunted you as one of those deplorable vampires. That sword of yours lets you use their mana."

  "Patriarch, I greet you.", I greet, as I bow my head.

  "There is no need for such formality, kid. We are in a state of war. Such formalities waste too much time.", the man speaks. "I must say that the fates are on our side."

  "Why would you say that, patriarch.", I speak.

  "Well, we needed a formation mage, kid", he speaks. "Just as we were worrying about what we could do, you pop like a little miracle."

  "What could I even do, patriarch.", I reply feeling my heart drop. I don't want to craft another formation while enemies are attacking. "There is not much that we formation mages can do during a battle scenario."

  "Well, we need you to do a vital job for us.", he speaks. "We need you to man the defensive lines surrounding the fire altar."

  "Well, I can do that job very well, patriarch.", I speak, trying to keep my voice level. "However well I can do it, your formation mages will do a better job than me."

  "Well, our formation troops were one of the first forces hit. We lost a majority of them. We have only twenty of them left and right now we need them for something else." He replies.

  "Well, I don't mind taking over the defensive line.", I reply. "But I would like to enquire what you mean to use these twenty formation mages for. Wouldn't they serve better here with me?"

  "Well, it is nothing sinister, Antonio.", he speaks. "Right now the necromancers have taken over the southern half of my fort. They have filled it with some type of toxic miasma. Any person entering it dies within a few minutes. Until this poison is dealt with, we can't fight them. Even I can't enter that miasma."

  "How do you plan to get rid of this poison?", I ask.

  As he speaks, he gets up to the altar. He grasps the sword after bowing down to it once. The instant he does so I can feel the mana in the room get even more still, if that is possible.

  "This is the ancestral sword of my people. It is the formation stick for the barrier surrounding the fire altar.", he speaks. "My mages tell me that I can use the sword to access the mana that is present here in the fire altar. This much mana will be enough to burn through the miasma."

  As he speaks, I realize that the man is asking for a second opinion on the matter.

  "Well, the only way that would be possible is through projection. I would say that such a thing is technically possible. I would say that it is possible, but even in the best case, you would only be able to use a fourth of the magic present here. You will lose the remaining mana.", I reply. "Also, controlling this process is going to be very hard. If anything goes wrong the sword could explode on your face. You would need an entire troop of formation mages to monitor the process. I could give a better idea if it will work if I could study the sword."

  The man stares at the sword for a bit but he decisively puts it back.

  "Well, then your task is to protect the fire altar. All the young masters will be left here under your command. They will support you while we go and deal with this necromancer problem.", the man speaks. "You must hold against any attempts to infiltrate the place. If you fail and they manage to damage the barrier around the fire altar. That would mean the death of me and everybody that is going to go with me. Will you be able to hold against infiltration?"

  "I can, patriarch.", I reply. "controlling formations is something that I have been doing since my childhood. Very few would be better than me. My only question is why am I being made to command them."

  "Well, the youngsters certainly know how to fight.", he speaks. "I daresay that they could challenge your legion on that front. The problem with them is that they don't know how to survive. You know how to do that if even a tenth of the stories about you are true. Will you be able to do that"

  "Yes, I will manage.", I reply.

  "Good, good.", he speaks. "You should take rest now then, Antonio. You are not going to have much of it when they begin attacking. You can meet up with Alfred, for anything that you need."

  "For now, I will need nothing, patriarch.", I speak, getting up and bowing. Just as I was about to leave the room.

  "What do you think the black mountain will make of all of this mess, kid.", the man speaks, a steely edge to his tone.

  "I can't speak about how the guard corps think, patriarch. This is my second mission under them.", I reply. "All I can tell is that they do not tend to be comfortable not knowing something. Especially if it can harm them. They certainly don't expect such secrets from their allies."

  "Well, I guess it was to be expected.", he speaks. "Tell your head office that I am willing to speak about what we were attempting here if we survive the battle."

  "I can't speak for the head office, patriarch. I can only tell you that they are listening.", I reply.

  "Well aren't they always.", the man speaks. "You can take your leave now. Just be ready for a fight."