Suffering through this hell, they eventually came to a halt due to the scout. "Captain? We got an issue here."
"Finally.", increasing his pace, Valric left Orlen in the dust as he hurried to run away from the blabbermouth.
"What's the issue?", while happy to be away from the other captain, he was still pretty tired. His voice wasn't exactly listless, but it sure neared it.
"I think there's a detection array in front of us. It's very well hidden, but I felt the mana flow. Should we try to dismantle it or trigger it?"
The scout had followed his captain for quite some time. His captain's methods were always the best approach to any situation. While they often made a mistake, nobody died in the end, so to him, that was already the best case scenario. And despite his tired appearance, he had full confidence in his leaders abilities.
After all, the captain fulfilled his job at the border, even encountering a member of the Colors, risking his life. And yet he made it back and informed the Commander. He was more than just a captain.
"Hmm, get our array expert.", Valric didn't mind showing his vulnerabilities. He knew his strengths and weaknesses well. It was impossible to be perfect in every field, so there was no need to feel shame to not know something.
"Yes, sir.", and while Varlic had no perfect expertise on the matter, he still knew enough to handle some basic ones.
Being left alone, Valric took his time inspecting the array with his willpower. An array, to the experts he knew, was an expression of a person's personality. The way they drew the lines, the logic behind it, the path of where mana was supposed to flow, the runes they chose. Each detail was something that someone manually had to draw.
It was inevitable that their feelings became a part of the entire thing. Valric wasn't an expert, he was even average in his class, but his ability to piece information together and get the right people on the tasks made him who he was.
"Sir, I heard that there was an array?"
"Yes, what do you think it is?", instead of giving the information he got from the scout, he would rather have the man make up his own conclusions. In the world of arrays, one could draw an array that looked like a basic explosion array, but it could be nothing more than a simple wind blade.
Learning to deceive mages through arrays wasn't easy, but experts are capable of creating the most complex arrays on the smallest of surfaces. He couldn't take it lightly.
The man couldn't see the array as it was further in the woods, but using his willpower he was able to replicate most of it. Drawing a copy of it on thre ground, he inspected it closely. "This seems to be a detection array, but it's too complex to be one."
"What do you mean?", Valric wasn't going to pressure the man into giving answers or pretend he knew what it was. He just wanted answers.
"If I'm reading this correctly... if I dismantle the array like you normally would, a signal is sent out. I can't tell to where thought, sorry."
"No problem, thanks for your insight. Say, what do you feel when you look at this?", Valric was trying to create a plan, but needed more information for that to succeed.
"Well, whoever made this is a perfectionist."
"Why do you say that?"
"When you first start to learn about arrays, you get drawings of how they are meant to look like and then you learn how to create it step by step. Since beginners struggle to replicate drawings perfectly, they naturally develop their own style over time. Even my copy of it is filled with my way of working."
"So you're saying that whoever made this has stuck to the theory? They don't have their own style?", Valric was thinking about who they were up against. If they only knew theory, as long as they did the unexpected, they would outclass them.
"Not exactly. You see, the drawings in class were made by other mages, so it contains their personality as well. But this is void of it, this is function over form, pure logic contained."
Staring at the array, Varlic got lost in deep thought.
'Whoever made this is a perfectionist, a monster of logic, capable of removing his own personality when it comes to arrays. Not much to work on.'
Valric hated fighting against perfectionist because they always had to go out of their way to make his life as miserable as possible. Often they had unique spells to serve a specific function because they knew it would come in handy or the entire battlefield was covered in traps, each one designed to lead you to the next.
"Why don't we just avoid the array?", one of the soldiers who got tired of waiting suggested.
"There's no point. The entire woods are encompassed with this array. Except if you want to fly over them, then we'll be undetected.", the scout said. Having nothing to do, he tried to calculate the reach of the array.
"No, that won't work. Our position won't be revealed, but it also tracks mana movements in the air. A signal would be send that someone, somewhere, was approaching. We would have to completely avoid the forest and walk around it in order to not be detected.", the array expert said.
"And that would only work if mister perfect forgot to also place arrays there.", Valric added.
Seeing that their chances of avoiding it were slim, the best way would be to dismantle it, even if it took some time. "Dismantle it as if it was a normal detection array. Let the man get his signal."
"Yes, sir.", the array expert didn't doubt his captain for a second, immediately getting to work.
Olren who had been watching from the side stepped up. "Sir, why would you let the signal reach our opponents? This would only give away our position and limit our movements. I think we should completely get rid of the array. That would be the only correct way in my opinion. You know-"
"Shut it.", Valric had gotten enough, he was tired, exhausted and didn't have the mental capacity to deal with this ear-wretching being.
"We're dealing with a perfectionist, considering he's a mage. He's most likely a noble with high standards and a big ego. An array designed to make it seem like a normal detection array but with a built in function to alert the caster when it is dismantled poorly.
If we dismantle the entire thing, we'll lose too much time I'm not willing to waste. Plus, if he's so talented in arrays, even if we dismantle it, there might be a hidden function to alert them anyway."
Valric explained his current viewpoint. His doubts and theories blended together to form a basic plan. "If we completely dismantle it, we'll give away what we're capable off. We need them to underestimate us. That's all."
"It's done sir, we can move on."
"Good, let's surprise them shall we?"
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"It won't be long now, are you prepared?", Asta stood on top of the hill, watching over the forest. Lucas and Jacob stood side by side, one more nervous than the other.
"How many people are we talking about?"
"I was able to detect around 75 mages, around half seem to be in the lower Rank 2, with the remaining Rank 1.", Asta explained what he felt. He had tons of arrays set up in the forest, each one giving him intel about their movements.
"The army of the Prince consists of squadrons, correct?", Lucas posed his question to both Asta and Jacob. Asta had some intel on the inner workings, but Jacob should have more according to him.
Seeing Asta didn't answer, Jacob started to feel the pressure to abide. "The..uh.. the prince holds an army consisting of commanders, each with their squadrons. How many squadrons is dependend on the commander as far as I'm aware."
"That seems like a bad way of doing things, but whatever. Asta, your detection arrays malfunctioned."
"Excuse me? Who are you to tell me my works of art failed?"
"You said there were 75 people. The leader of the previous group introduced them as a squadron. There were 50 people then. So either this is a special squadron or there is someone trying to downplay their own powers."
Asta looked conflicted, he knew Lucas was making a right deduction, but he hated the fact that he didn't think of it, but even more so that his arrays were being downplayed. "Fine.", stretching out his arms, he activated the arrays manaully. It didn't take long before he opened his eyes again.
"An extra 25, most of them Rank 2, with a small number middle and upper Rank 2.", Asta looked pissed off. He was certain his arrays would work, and they did, but the enemy was able to manipulate them to their advantage. Having his tools toyed with angered him to no end.
"If they gave away that they'll be with 75 means they'll ambush us."
"There's an easy fix for that.", Asta said gravely.
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The quadrons moved through the forest as stealthely as possible. It wouldn't be long now before they encountered the enemy forces hiding in the outpost.
The scout held his hand up. "I looked ahead, they look like they are waiting for us. I'm seeing three mages of Rank 2."
Olren was about to ask how he did so without alerting them, but Valric raised his hand.
"Our scout is capable of sending his willpower in small amounts that are almost untraceble. They won't have noticed."
Olren nodded and opened his mouth as if to add something, but Varlic hurriedly cut him off. "Now we've reached the first point of contact. Like previously discussed, I want your entire squadron and half of mine to initiate them. We'll ambush them with our strongest forces, this should allow us to get rid of them."
Many of the mages present were wondering if such a tactic was even necessary hearing the numbers from the scout. They were with a hundred, who were they to fight so seriously? If just half a squadron fought, their chances of winning were immense. Of course, only the Rank 2 mages had such thoughts, the Rank 1's were glad to know they'll have all the backup they can get.
"Olren, I'm giving this opportunity to you. Distract them, if their power is lower than expected, kill them. But in no way should you underestimate them. We are walking into a lion's den, don't take them lightly."
Just as he was about to speak, he closed his mouth and resolutely nodded.
Olren had a lot of experience leading his group, but in his own eyes, there was plenty to learn. Having this many people under him certainly boosted his confidence, yet it also burdened him.
"Everyone, pay attention. I'll go over our tactics briefly. We'll split in three evenly divided groups. Valric's soldiers shall stay together since they know how to work together. My squadron will split in two. Valric's troops will form a blok on the right, while I'll be in the left wing. The remaining soldiers will be in the center."
As Olren spoke, the members shifted around, forming groups as they listened closely.
"Hey... pssst..", a whispering voice came from the right blok. Garric was whispering to Elara. Lucky or not, their groups were situated right next to each other. Elara wanted to focus on her captain's speech, not be distracted by Garric. Even if the forces were overwhelming compared to their enemies, she wasn't one to ignore her own captain.
"Don't worry about this, this is just a little training exercise to keep us away from the big jobs. I heard the secretary of the commander say this was just to make us appear busy, so we can extend our break a bit."
Hearing those words actually soothed her worries a bit. The confident faces of all of Valric's men solidified that. "And if things get worse, know that I'll be there to protect you!"
"Garric.", the voice was quiet, but Valric, who was listening in on both Olren and Gar instantly put him in his place again. The men wanted to laugh, but seeing as Olren just kept talking they focussed on his words.
"We don't know what our enemies are capable off, but they will not be weak. Take extra caution to watch out for arrays on the ground and destroy them if at all possible. Keep track of your fellow soldiers and take care of each others wounds."
While Valric disliked the man, it was clear he cared for his troops, which he could appreciate. It was a leader's job to care for his men, that much was evident, but actually fulfilling that correctly wasn't as easy. There were some things he didn't agree with, but all in all, he nodded in approval.
"Alright everyone, time is up, let's go do this.", normally there was a rally cry, but now, he didn't want to do so in order to somewhat keep their element of surprise.
Splitting up in their respective groups, Elara stood at the back of one of the center wing. Her group was meant to bear the brunt of their attack. This meant they would also be the first one out in the open. The other wings would then appear and close in on them, encircleling the enemy combatants.
Of course, tactics in theory were nice and all, but when it came to practical use, there were plenty of things that could go wrong. For all they knew the enemy wouldn't rush in but rather wait things out.
Elara's mind was filled with doubts, thinking about the small briefing she felt like she was missing out on crucial information, yet she didn't dare ask the men around her. Her friend was in the left wing, so she was mostly alone.
Gar's face appeared in her mind and her heart felt a bit at ease before her face tinted red. 'What am I thinking!'
Remembering those words, spoken in his barretone voice made her ears red. 'Now's not the time! Focus Elara! Focus!'
Bringing herself back, her wing was about to exit the forest. They were hidden through some spell, but the moment they would exit, the camouflage would stop. "Go!"