บท 298: Chapter 298: Two Rangers, Four Legs
As Lothar watched the once-glorious council chamber devolve into a noisy marketplace due to the squabbling of kings, he couldn't help but roll his eyes. In the face of such calamity as the destruction of their nations, no one could maintain a gentlemanly demeanor.
Lothar had to reassure Genn, "Don't worry, the Horde can't fly. Even if they could, it's not like hundreds of thousands of Horde members would fly through the sky and land in your capital. If that were the case, we might as well slit our throats with our swords."
As he said this, Duke's brow furrowed, realizing a serious issue that had been overlooked for far too long—the Alliance currently had no proper air force.
This was no simple matter.
Duke knew precisely where the gryphons were located, at Aerie Peak in the Hinterlands, but that area was under the control of the absolutely neutral Wildhammer dwarves. In the past, without the threat of the Horde, the stubborn Wildhammer dwarves would not even pay attention to their Bronzebeard brethren, let alone humans.
This was a lingering issue from the three-way war between the Bronzebeard, Wildhammer, and Dark Iron dwarves, known as the War of the Three Hammers.
Thinking of this, Duke felt a throbbing pain in his temples.
The military council had no significant progress, with the most substantial resolution being to strengthen the eastern Shadowfang Keep on the Southshore coast. This stronghold, under the command of Archmage Arugal of Gilneas, served as an excellent defensive core.
As for the plan to reinforce the entire Northshore and Southshore coasts, it was shelved due to a lack of cement and funds. Genn almost resented Duke for this, muttering that Duke had used up all the cement to strengthen the Hillsbrad Foothills defense line.
Lothar patted Duke's shoulder, saying, "Don't mind him."
Duke could only give a bitter smile.
Perhaps this was the tragedy of the weak—not Duke himself, but the current Alliance. Even after Duke had twice decimated the Horde's forces of over two hundred thousand, the Horde still had the upper hand in terms of both quantity and quality of troops.
The gap in quality might be closing, but the numerical disadvantage would require at least two more major battles to even out.
Until then, the Alliance would remain on the defensive.
This created an almost paradoxical situation.
To attract more forces to join the Alliance, they would have to let the Horde wreak havoc in the northern continent.
Doing so would render their current defense lines useless.
If they maintained the frontlines, allowing the Horde to recuperate in the southern continent, Ironforge would eventually fall, leading to a North-South standoff and a century-long war.
Duke's head ached.
After the inconclusive military council, Duke returned to Southshore Town.
Upon his arrival, he discovered four long, pale legs dangling from the roof of his house.
Duke had encountered dangling legs before, but why were there four now? Did planting a pair of legs in the winter yield two pairs in the spring?
"What a ridiculous idea!" Duke exclaimed.
"Attention! Storm warning, storm warning! In ten seconds, an updraft will occur here, possibly blowing away large amounts of clothing," Duke pinched his nose, imitating the most unconvincing mechanical voice.
Surprisingly, Alleria, who had the thinnest skin of them all, performed an elegant dove-roll and gracefully jumped down. Meanwhile, Queen Sylvanas above chuckled without a care, her pale legs swaying casually.
Giggling, Sylvanas said to her sister, "Don't believe him, Alleria. If he dares to do such a thing, we'll shoot down all of his magical energy orbs as if they were apples."
Duke rubbed his temples, acknowledging that the competitive Queen Sylvanas might indeed do as he suggested.
"Alright, I think I know why the bored Windrunner sisters are here," Duke said, shifting his gaze.
"Ugh, we've been stuck here all winter for the sake of the Alliance," Alleria said with a defiant stance.
Duke waved his hand, and suddenly the Mage's Hand fetched a whole stack of complaint letters.
"Yes, yes, before Winter Veil, the sheep that the George family had prepared for the celebration went missing, only to be found later in the Windrunner camp."
The two pale legs above his head stopped swaying.
"My naga told me that a nimble thief stole more than a dozen gold pearls from my murlocs…"
A gust of wind blew through, and strangely, the spring breeze was still a bit cold.
"Two barrels of dwarf gold ale that King Llane used to celebrate the new year, sent by King Magni Bronzebeard of Ironforge, mysteriously disappeared."
Alleria looked at the retreating back of a certain future queen.
As he spoke, a gust of wind lifted the roof of Duke's house, and the two sisters disappeared.
"Sylvanas—" An angry shout from the eldest sister came through the wind.
Duke scratched his head: "The Windrunners are indeed true to their name, going wherever they please."
Of course, Duke wasn't really going to settle the score with Sylvanas; he just wanted to tease her a bit. Naturally, after leaving Quel'Thalas, the ever-noble Alleria, who had always been a role model for the high elves, couldn't tolerate her sister's unrestrained behavior.
A few minutes later, Alleria dragged a pitiful-looking Queen Sylvanas back.
With her ear pinched, tears in her eyes, and a bowed head, the unexpectedly cute Queen Sylvanas was a stark contrast.
Duke almost wanted to give her a kiss.
"Uh, Duke, about the losses, I'll compensate for my sister's actions."
For a moment, Duke wanted to suggest that Queen Sylvanas sell herself to make up for the loss. That was Sylvanas, the incredibly powerful queen! Even without becoming a Dark Ranger, she was an incredibly powerful individual. But this was impossible; firstly, Duke couldn't bring himself to do it. Secondly, the Windrunner family was actually quite wealthy…
"No, a mere few hundred thousand gold coins don't matter to me. I've lost more in a single experiment."
"Hahaha! That's my good Duke! No wonder my sister doted on you so much!" Alleria patted Duke's shoulder, speaking like an elder.
Duke knew, however, that Alleria was also feeling uneasy. Stealing offerings could be a serious or trivial matter.
Of course, Duke was well aware that with a great enemy at hand, no human kingdom would take issue with Quel'Thalas, a place full of Archmages, over such matters.
Sylvanas stuck out her tongue in a place where Alleria couldn't see, but Windrunners perceived the world not only through their vision. The Banshee Queen, gripping Sylvanas' ear, couldn't help but apply a little more force.
"Ow, ow, ow! Sis, I know I messed up!" This time, the Queen was genuinely submissive.
"Alright! I know you two have been idle for so long and needed some excitement."
"We are always ready to fight for the righteous cause of the Alliance," Alleria said solemnly, puffing out her chest and sucking in her stomach.
Fighting for what? Your behavior is hardly in line with that claim.
"Now, there's a task that might be nothing, or it could be extremely dangerous…"
"Me! Me!" Both sisters raised their hands together.
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