Advance on Tor'watha (1)

"However, Lanlos." Just as the young mage was still surprised by the other's name, Lor'themar's expression was once again occupied by seriousness. "You must understand, this is not a job; this is war!"

Watching Lor'themar lead the way for the group, Lanlos smiled slightly and whispered to himself, "To me, it is just a job."

The entire command room was quite crude; aside from a map covered in markings pinned firmly to the table with a dagger, there was almost nothing else. It was evident that the Troll attack had been sudden indeed; no one had expected to encounter these monsters so close to Silvermoon City.

"The first encounter with the Trolls was yesterday. The raid was too swift, and the entire patrol was nearly wiped out."

"To prevent similar incidents, I dispatched scouts immediately and have roughly determined the scope of their patrols."

Pointing to the mountain range at the far east of Quel'Thalas, Lor'themar's golden brows knit together. "These Trolls are not acting on their own; they are organized and disciplined. If I am not mistaken, somewhere in this mountain range, their secret camp must be lurking."

"A secret camp? How many people?"

Everyone looked at Lanlos. Except for Lor'themar, the other few mages wore expressions of surprise, as if they could not believe this kid dared to ignore their questions.

"It cannot be determined yet. Originally, I wanted to borrow some spellcasters capable of scouting this area from Landral, but I didn't expect..." After looking at each of these mages in turn, Lor'themar sighed softly.

This dismissive gesture made some of them burn with anger.

"Captain, watch your words. Lady Landral and several Magisters are busy with the safety of the Eastern Temple, which is far more important than a few measly Trolls."

The leading spellcaster glanced at Lanlos with angry eyes and shouted at Lor'themar without any sense of propriety. The latter, however, acted as if he hadn't heard, focusing his gaze on Lanlos. "And it seems you all have some conflicts."

"A small problem." Shrugging, Lanlos couldn't be bothered to care about these people's alienation and hostility.

"I hope so." Nodding, Lor'themar returned to the main topic. "We will launch a surprise attack on the Trolls at dawn tomorrow. Before that, I will take a scout team to determine the Trolls' patrol routes and the scale of their camp."

Scanning the five mages before him, Lor'themar asked, "Who among you is willing to act with me?"

No one replied. The other four mages once again looked at Lanlos with perfect tacit understanding, causing Lor'themar's gaze to rest upon him.

Lanlos's gaze did not waver in the slightest, meeting the other's stare with extreme indifference. Seeing this, the perpetually worried Lor'themar finally smoothed the wrinkles on his forehead. "Very well, it is you, Lanlos."

"No problem." Ignoring the gloating looks from those around him, the young mage nodded slowly, his calm exterior revealing no emotion.

Verien was one of the earliest apprentices at the Eastern Temple. Compared to Landral's other apprentices, his Arcane attainments were simply disastrous. However, he seemed to lack self-awareness, attributing it all to the Magister's favoritism with resources.

He was originally destined to muddle through his days at the temple, but he never expected to be named by Magister Landral to become the leader of the mage squad supporting the Farstrider Enclave. Enjoying the constant flattery from colleagues who had previously mocked him behind his back, Verien was nearly floating on air.

Of course, he hadn't forgotten the brat who dared to talk back to Lady Landral. If it weren't for Vereesa backing him, Lanlos's journey here wouldn't have been so quiet.

Now, it was perfect; he had been worrying about not having a chance to teach this kid a lesson. A scout? Go seek your own death!

Glancing at Verien, who was glaring at him viciously, Lanlos tightened his brow and was about to speak, but the mage immediately shifted his gaze. Smiling silently, Lanlos continued to focus on Lor'themar's briefing.

He knew what the other was thinking. Scouting was a role that tested individual ability; if one's professional skills were not up to par, it was easy to expose oneself to an enemy encirclement. At the very least, Verien himself couldn't guarantee he would complete the mission alive.

But he was wrong about one thing: the reason Lanlos hadn't become the team leader wasn't a matter of strength or intellect.

Furthermore, as mentioned earlier, the manpower at the Farstrider Enclave consisted mostly of recruits or disabled personnel nearing retirement. Compared to Trolls who could evade frontline Elves, they were insufficient to complete this scouting mission. The only ones capable of doing this job well were Lor'themar and his team members.

"Come and meet him, Lanlos. This is Halduron, my lieutenant." Lor'themar pointed to the person walking in through the door and spoke to Lanlos.

The latter turned his head immediately, feeling a dazzling light hit him, which made him squint his eyes.

Long golden hair drifted gently in the wind, held in place by a headband with exquisite patterns, barely avoiding covering his face and vision. Although the set of gold and red chainmail was not much different from what Lor'themar wore, a closer look revealed that both the edges of the pauldrons and the sides of the breastplate were engraved with gorgeous and intricate patterns.

Coupled with that handsome, flower-like smiling face, if Lanlos didn't know him, he certainly wouldn't have thought this was a grown man.

"Hello, Lanlos. I look forward to your guidance in the upcoming mission." Unlike Lor'themar's serious and earnest demeanor, Halduron was excessively kind, but Lanlos didn't feel anything was amiss.

On the contrary, in his view, this was what a Ranger was—this was what an Elven Ranger should be: relaxed, easygoing, and free. Just from a simple meeting, the feeling Halduron brought to Lanlos was like a light breeze, ethereal and dashing, refreshing and delightful.

"I look forward to your guidance as well." Smiling slightly, Lanlos gripped the other's right hand firmly and took the opportunity to lightly touch his shoulder.

Seeing this scene, the corners of Lor'themar's mouth rose involuntarily. The power of a spellcaster was strong and mysterious; even in Quel'Thalas, mages were respected beings. Unlike Verien's arrogance, Lanlos's affinity and respect were very well-received by him.

He believed this operation would go very smoothly.

Consistent with Lor'themar's thoughts, Lanlos was equally glad about his choice. With a group of teammates whose strength was guaranteed, whether for scouting or other missions, safety and the success rate would be greatly improved.

Night fell quickly, but everyone at the Farstrider Enclave did not sleep peacefully as they usually did. Everyone was fully armed, advancing toward the eastern mountain range under the cover of darkness.

"Ahead is the Trolls' patrol range. Remember, your mission is to mark attack targets for those recruits. Unless absolutely necessary, do not alert the enemy." Lor'themar spoke quickly, so fast that even Lanlos almost couldn't hear clearly, but their strong tacit understanding made it easy for the other members to understand his meaning.

Watching everyone nod, Lor'themar waved his hand, and accompanied by a faint rustling sound, a dozen dark shadows disappeared from Lanlos's sight.

"You follow us." The mission for Lor'themar and Halduron was different from the others; they needed to advance deep into the mountain range with Lanlos's help to find clues to the existence of the Troll camp, or even its specific location.

As for how to help...

Lanlos placed his hands on the shoulders of the two men, one on each side. As a complex and long incantation was slowly chanted, the faint light around the three of them distorted. A few seconds later, their figures actually disappeared directly under the moonlight.

Invisibility—the first time Lanlos saw this spell, he had firmly memorized it.

"With my strength, the effect of the Invisibility will only last for four minutes. If you cannot cross the Troll's blockade within this time, find me at the designated location." Although they couldn't see him, Lanlos's voice came from the shadows under the tree, and he was still gripping their shoulders tightly.

"No problem. Watch for the signal. Once we cross the blockade, you withdraw immediately." As soon as Lor'themar finished speaking, the sensation in Lanlos's hands vanished instantly. With a light breeze blowing against his face, Lanlos watched the two extremely blurry silhouettes disappear rapidly.

Afterward, he walked slowly toward the forest in his memory.

This was the advantage of a spellcaster; as long as he didn't take the initiative to attack, even if he stood right under the Trolls' noses, no one would be able to find him.