Well, right now I am shivering in my robes. Normally, I am not one to wear robes. It is the clothes of preference for a sage though. Especially during intense conflicts, the sages always wear robes. Maybe the snowlords might not even notice it but I am not taking any risk. (How else am I going to justify bringing the robes so far here anyway.)

  My comfort is still something that I can ignore. Sometimes defeating the enemy is more important. It is going to make things very hard for me, especially during close combat. I wonder how exactly the bastards fight in such cumbersome clothing. Well, knowing their affinity for spells, they don't need to worry about combat. They hold the ability to burn the snowlords to their death, even in these frigid wastelands.

  Right now we are in the best room in the fort, sitting on a circular table that I think must be built of some kind of fancy wood. I did not bother to ask Shamon about it. I barely had enough time as it is to fulfill the head office's curiosity.

  I am surprised that this room is not looted already. This is not a matter of the discipline of these soldiers anymore. They have spent months stationed here without any real supervision. I am surprised that they weren't even tempted to try.

  The only thing that I know about it is it has some kind of a formation engraved into it that is supposed to grant it more durability. Right now I hope that the formation will be able to hide what I have inside that table. (I modified the formation as much as I dared to for this thing.)

  The disadvantage of that is that I will be able to shatter that table in a single hit. If I can do so, so can the snowlords. Let's just hope that tempers don't rise too much today. I don't want a fight to start because the giant got a bit excited.

  The room itself is quite bare though. The only other thing that is worth noticing about the room is the window that gives a view of, well the frozen wastelands.

  “Oh sage, if you are checking me out now. I would suggest that you keep your eyes to yourself.“, the lady soldier finally speaks first. Turns out, I was staring at the few creatures. Thankfully, they have assumed my fear to be my lust.

  Controlling my awkwardness, I speak out as a sage would.

  “Why would I not, my lady? Such a fine physique you have.“, I reply. Don't judge me, all sages tend to have the same personality. I wonder if you can call being horny a personality though.

  Regardless of my embarrassment, I focus on my future enemies. I forgot to mention it to you yesterday but the other two snowlords were a man and a woman. The woman is pretty beautiful, but there is an edge to her. She is not someone I want to be on the opposite side. Yet, it is the third man of the group that leaves me wary. I can get a grip on the other two people in this group, but this one is a mystery through and through. He could either be the most brilliant person in the group or the dumbest. The fact that I can't tell puts me more on guard with the man.

  Now that I have looked at them properly, it is clear that they would be about as strong as the giant, but they have burnt through their mana somehow. My present assumption is that they must have burnt their mana to come after me.

  “Well, I have not certainly come here to be ogled. I shall consider it an attack the next time that you ogle at me.“, she replies, clearly used to it and quite annoyed at it. Looks like the snowlords have quite the experience dealing with sages. That is a point to be noted.

  “Certainly, my lady. I certainly would not like to be attacked by you.“, I reply. Well, a sage would make use of more expletives but I think the enemy has yet to notice. (What can I say they tend to be rude bastards as well.)

  “Well, then begin with an explanation, sage.“, the giant speaks, his voice so laden with killing intent that it is a wonder he is not attacking already. Let's hope he doesn't slam on the table. I would like to learn something before the battle begins. “Why are you here? You are lucky the spear tribe did not find you. The ashes have barely settled in the Spear Valley. They would have made target practice out of you.“

  “Well, I wouldn't know of which treaty that you are speaking of.“, I reply, taking the most sarcastic tone that I could take. It would kind of give away that I am not a sage when I do not have any idea about a treaty they made. "Even if I did, I acted in self-defense. Do you expect me to follow any treaty while they attack me in my sleep? Do you expect me not to attack the creature that forced me to burn through my mana channels? Look at my southern gate and tell me if I should not have reacted as I did."

  (Well, I guess I should explain that. That was Shamon's idea. To put my hand in a false sling, to drop the enemy's guard around me. Well, my arm is in a pretty bad situation due to over-enhancement due to my vital mana, so they can use their mana sense to look at it. All they will see is a hand with no mana in it. If they had a mana sense as strong as mine they would still see the vital mana flowing through my hand. It is taking quite a bit of my control to achieve this.)

  Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

  “Well, Mr sage, the beasts were under strict order to not kill you. It would be easier for the beasts to kill themselves than kill you under the rules.“ he replies. "The word of their beastmaster is absolute to these creatures."

  “Well, I guess that we have played around here enough.“, I speak. “then am I to understand that the snow tribe is behind this attack? Because I was ambushed by your troop leaders. As if that was not enough, your creatures attacked us with such ferocity that we barely survived. My soldiers say that it is something called the death trance.“

  The only reply to this is that the giant opposite me has begun to laugh. His laugh is booming as is befitting his size. He is pissed off if his fists are any indication. He would be very bad in a true negotiation. He stops as he realizes that I am speaking seriously. I can see the confusion creep onto his face. Then he gets angry enough that I worry that he will slam the table now.

  "There is no way that the lord.....", the giant starts angrily.

  The male snowlord behind begins to cough. As he does so, the man regains his calm.

  "There is no way that the beastmaster would have issued the final command.", the man speaks, referring to the death trance as the final command. "It is only used in the worst scenario. We have been tracking you since you stepped foot here. Things are well enough that we don't need to use it."

  "Well, there is one case where the beastmaster would have done so.", he speaks, his voice silent yet clear. "That is if the legion was involved. Why are you here, sage? We have been clear that your tribe's services are not needed here anymore."

  “You dare to compare me to one of these orphans.", I shout, fear crawling my spine like a snake. "As for why I am here. The only reason that I am here is that the snowwinders offered me a good deal. I shall build their formation and leave. I wonder if that breaks the treaty.“

  Both the lady and the giant have risen like dogs provoked into action. Yet, the thing that caused my heart to freeze is the man behind these two. He is still sitting as if my words could have bothered him any less.

  “You bastards. All of you.“, he suddenly gets up and slams the table, which holds thankfully. “You and your kind have agreed not to fight in this war. Remember what we have given to you, we can snatch it just as easily from you."

  "Sure, I am right here. Let's see how you do it.", I scream as I feel the world around me taking on a higher definition. In the background, I am processing everything he says. You never know when it will be useful.

  "I wonder what you feel about sleeping?"

  "Well, a soldier of the legion doesn't sleep in enemy territory.", I find myself replying as I realize my fuck up.

  A glance and I see that the male snowlord has finally gotten up, at attention. The other two have paused as if they are shocked. Rookies.

  Fuck this, this has gone on for long enough. Mana flows into my arm as I slap the table. As the table crumbles under my arms, my little trap is revealed. I am surprised the damn table managed to handle the pressure of what I had hidden in it. Half through the meeting I was expecting it to explode on me.

  It is a water spear, though not a normal one. I will speak about it in detail later but for now, I grab it. The instant that I do so the power of the spear overwhelms me. The mana in it washes into me like a tidal wave. I am surprised the spell model has not collapsed already. A lesser mage would have lost control of this mana, but I grasp the mana and direct it into me, ensuring that I do not lose control for even a second. The side effects of losing control would be deadly.

  I don't even think as I siphon the mana flowing into me, forming into the runes of a basic spell. I have already half-formed the runes as I realize that it is a mage hand.

  With the mana I have put into it, the mage hand formed is the size of a giant. (What, the ones I usually create tend to be half the size of my own hands.). Well, I do not waste any more mana as I direct the hand towards the giant. The force of the hand is enough to carry him right out of the window and the hope is that it will last until he is far away.

  Well, I didn't get to celebrate that victory as the lady had already begun to charge towards me. I am not even able to react as the lady punches me right into the wall. I can feel my skull vibrate as I punch through the wall.

  Well, this was the expected case. There is no way that I will be able to fight these bastards in a direct fight. Well, that was never the plan anyway.

  “That was certainly rude, my lady.“, I speak out, trying to provoke this lady. I need an opening in her guard. I don't have mana for another mage hand. “well, what else can be expected of the tribes? All of you are brut.....“

  I don't get to complete the statement as the lady appears in front of me like a ghost and I can feel her hands on throats as she lifts me. Well, I did not account for their physical strength. The damn bastards are really on the stage beyond. I open my mouth, coughing out blood.

  “You should be careful, you damn bastard.“, she speaks, as she begins to apply pressure on my throat. “The men of the legion have been killed for lesser.“

  “How much lesser?“, I squeak, almost on an impulse. The result is a tightening of her hands. I can feel my spine cracking. Are you supposed to be able to hear that?

  “Well, as long as you are of the legion you have to be killed.“, she speaks, the venom in her throat causing me to pause for a second.

  The world has begun to blacken around me as I finally stab into her with my spear. The spear barely penetrates her flesh. That is enough as I push all of the mana of the spear into her body. I can feel the spear physically diminish in my arms until it dissipates completely. I can see the body of the lady swell up like a balloon as the pressure on my throat finally disappears.