Make Azeroth breathtaking

"Then... could you introduce me to either of them, Mr. Firebeard?"

After thinking for a while, Inkhuh weighed the pros and cons.

"This is not a big problem. I will convey your Ratchet's intentions to King Wrynn. However, the king's decision is beyond my control. After all, the project you want to participate in is not an ordinary project, but a major project that can prove that Stormwind, Ironforge, and Gnomeregan are steadfast allies."

"Ah, I know, Ratchet's eagerness to get a piece of the pie in this matter seems presumptuous... However, Mr. Firebeard, I have some... IOUs from not long ago. Could you please pass them on to His Majesty King Wrynn?"

Tanis's words made Inkfire instinctively wary.

"I'm sorry, but I don't do debt collection."

"No, no, no, it's not about collecting debts. Those things have become unmanageable debts. I just want King Vryen to know that these bills exist."

"is it?"

Looking into Tanis's sincere eyes, Inkfire finally nodded.

"Okay, I'll help you."

————————————————Stormwind, Royal Court District————————————————

"Why........."

This was the third time Varian Wrynn had sighed at his desk today.

"Honey, what's wrong?"

Queen Tiffany Elrian sat beside her, looking at her husband, the King of Stormwind, with a hint of unease in her eyes. She knew very well that for a tough man like Varian to utter such a sigh, it must be something very bad.

"A small thing, a small thing that's giving me a bit of a headache."

As he spoke, Varian handed a piece of paper to Queen Tiffany. The queen took it and looked at it, and the Lothar family seal immediately caught her eye.

"This is?"

Realizing something, she quickly grabbed the other papers and looked at them. Sure enough, they all bore the Lothar family mark, and the items purchased were all military supplies.

"During the war three years ago, Grand Marshal Lothar actually purchased so many military supplies from the Hot Sands Consortium through smuggling channels?"

"Yeah, I was wondering back then how Lothar managed to maintain such a high armor rate for his troops, considering the Alliance's situation at the time... Judging by the timeline, these might only be a small portion of the military supplies Lothar purchased; there are probably many more bills we haven't seen."

"Could it be that the Gadgetzan Consortium is planning to shift Lothar's debts onto the Stormwind Kingdom?"

When Queen Tiffany said this, her face clearly showed her distress. She knew very well what Stormwind Kingdom's finances were like. If all these debts were piled up on Stormwind Kingdom at once, Stormwind City could declare bankruptcy today, not even tomorrow.

“No, Lothar was the Grand Marshal of the seven kingdoms of the Alliance at the time, and these debts should be borne by the seven kingdoms together. What I’m having trouble with now is not these debts. These debts are what that little princess of Ratchet wanted to remind me that our Alliance owes the Gadgetzan Consortium an unpaid favor.”

"The little princess of Ratchet? Miss Tennys?"

"Yes, these bonds were delivered by Inkfirebeard on her behalf. She wants to participate in a major project in the Storm Kingdom."

"What kind of big project is it? She wouldn't want to participate in the construction of Stormwind, would she?"

Queen Tiffany, relieved to know it had nothing to do with money, realized that Stormwind Kingdom was truly broke.

"It's not about building Stormwind..."

Varian's lips twitched.

"She wanted to participate in the construction of the mine tunnel subway."

“,,,,,,,,,”

Queen Teiffen fell silent again. As the queen of a nation, she was well aware of the messy things that had happened between gnomes and goblins in the field of engineering. Letting a goblin engineer participate in the construction of the mine tunnels and subways, which were mainly the responsibility of gnomes? If not handled properly, the subway would blow up!

"Our alliance owes the Sunfire Cape Consortium—especially Ratchet—a huge favor. During the war, the goblin trade princes directly banned us from doing business with them on military supplies. Gazlowe smuggled military goods to us, taking considerable risks. You and I both know what it means for a goblin to sell goods and not receive payment."

"..."

Queen Tiffany was completely at a loss for words. The alliance had suffered a complete moral defeat, and given her husband's personality, it was inevitable that she would be caught in a dilemma.

Finally, the queen gritted her teeth and made a suggestion.

"How about we let Countess Presto handle this?"

—————————————————Ratchet City Merchant Guild in Stormwind——————————————

"Hmph hmph hmph hmph~~~"

Tennys was lying on the table, drawing a blueprint with various drawing tools, and she was clearly in a good mood.

"Will Stormwind Kingdom really agree to let us join the Mineway Subway project?"

Compared to the very optimistic Tennyson, Explosion was skeptical.

“Varian is a resolute and responsible king. His relationship with Lothar is far superior to that of other human kings. Anyway, that mess is already a tangled mess, so whether I agree or not, I won’t lose anything.”

Before the burst bolt could reply, a well-dressed man knocked on their door.

"May I ask who you are?"

The man performed impeccable etiquette.

“I am Earl Presto’s servant. Earl Presto wishes to discuss with Miss Tanis the matter of Ratchet’s involvement in the mining and subway project.”

8. Goblins and Dwarves

Repression, luxury, silence.

This was Tennys' first impression upon entering Countess Presto's mansion. Although the mansion's exterior was ordinary, its interior, from its layout to its decorations, was imbued with the Countess's taste. The dark decorations and the windows that deliberately reduced the amount of light made one unconsciously slow down, afraid of disturbing the tranquility.

Suddenly, Tanis was drawn to a painting on the wall. The painting, less than half a meter in length and width, depicted a red dragon breathing fire, with a swaggering orc holding a long spear riding on its back. Opposite the dragon was a dwarf holding a warhammer and riding a griffin, his beard and hair flowing, his mouth wide open as if emitting a deafening roar.

"This painting depicts a scene from that war, where a dragon rider unit from the Dragonmaw tribe attacked a refugee caravan. Despite being outnumbered, dwarven griffon riders from Eagle's Nest took to the skies to meet them, and in the end, they all perished in the battle. However, the dragon rider unit was subsequently annihilated by the Allied forces that arrived later."

Countess Presto appeared in the second-floor corridor, leaning on the railing, and softly recounted that history.

"Countess."

Suppressing a vague sense of unease, Tennys bowed to the elegant and glamorous countess, who responded demurely, then descended the stairs, sat on a soft chair, and gestured for Tennys to sit down as well.

"His Majesty has already told me your thoughts, so what I want to know is, what price are you willing to pay to gain this opportunity?"

'As expected, Countess Presto is a complete pragmatist...'

Tannis opened the trunk she was carrying, took out a stack of land deeds, and handed them to Countess Presto.

"It seems you came prepared."

Countess Presto took the land deeds, flipped through them, and a cryptic smile appeared on her lips.

"The owners or families of these land deeds no longer exist in Stormwind Kingdom, right?"

“That’s right, but legally, their land is still bound by this land deed—as long as His Majesty the King has not declared these land deed invalid, they are valid.”

"To be precise, it's effective in my hands, but it's just waste paper in yours."

Countess Presto patted the land deeds and put them away. Seeing her action, Tennys felt somewhat relieved.

"I can help you contact the dwarfs and put in a good word for you, but I can't help with what happens after that. Whether you can get involved is up to you."

———————————————Stormwind, Dwarf Quarter————————————————————

"What??? Someone in Ratchet wants to get involved in the construction of the mine tunnel subway?"

After hearing the human's 'request', Edfitz Vise jumped three feet high in his laboratory—a somewhat comical action for a dwarf.

"Yes."

Looking at Edfitz, who was clearly furious, the messenger had a matter-of-fact expression on his face.

"Damn it! Damn it! Don't you know that the things those goblin bastards make only explode? Do you want the mine subway to become a murder train that could 'bang' at any moment and spill its contents all over the place? Our dwarf technology can totally..."

"Can you create a world amplifier that prevents people from reverting to their original form, a brainwashing cap that drives users insane, or a net-casting device that traps you in its web?"

Tennys strolled into Edfitz's laboratory with an air of nonchalance, surveying the various gadgets around her with a very unceremonious gaze.

"Where did this little kid come from? The greatness of dwarf engineering is beyond your comprehension!"

Edfitz was furious at Tannis's words, but he was also secretly shocked that Tannis knew so much about dwarf engineering—you should know that even dwarves themselves would not be able to access what Tannis was talking about unless they had a certain level of engineering expertise.

"You must be the engineer from Gnomeregan who was sent to Stormwind to work on the mine tunnel and subway construction project. Let me introduce myself. My name is Tanis, and I am the adopted daughter of Baron Gazlowe of Ratchet. As for engineering skills... I have barely obtained the certification of a senior goblin engineer."

"impossible!!"

Tannis's self-introduction prompted Edfitz to exclaim out loud. Although gnomes and goblins are not compatible in engineering, their engineering skill levels are universal. Edfitz was well aware of the difficulty of becoming a certified senior engineer.

"This is my certificate."

Tannis didn't bother to talk to the dwarf in front of her, and simply shoved her certificate in his face. Edfitz grumbled a couple of times and glanced at Tannis's certificate.

"My goodness... you really are something. No wonder you wanted to get involved in the mine tunnel and subway project. For an engineer, it's hard to refuse the opportunity to leave your mark on such an engineering marvel. But please allow me to refuse your request!"

"Why? Do you dwarfs really want to eat alone?"

"Are you sure you're not a goblin in human skin? Wait, you're Gazlowe's adopted daughter, so calling you a goblin in human skin isn't wrong... Safety! Understand?! What else can you goblin engineers do besides explosions?"

"It seems the dwarves of Gnomeregan have started working in isolation, how sad."

Tannis's words made Edfitz frown.

"You mean we've fallen behind?"

"of course."

Tannis flicked her finger, and her mechanical assistant popped out of her bag and flew beside her, its small eyes blinking.

"What...what???"

The moment Edfitz saw the mechanical assistant, he was completely stunned. As an engineering expert in gnome engineering, he could obviously tell that the little thing next to Tannis had nothing to do with gnome engineering. At the same time, he could also see how exquisite the mechanical assistant was—even the guys in Gnomeregan who were best at making small mechanical golems might not be able to make such an exquisite thing!

'Has the engineering of the goblins really made progress beyond our imagination?'

The thought flashed through Edfitz's mind.

"I believe you understand now that goblin engineering has made progress in the area where gnome engineering excels, therefore..."

Tannis snapped her fingers again, and the mechanical assistant transmitted a contract to her, which landed in her hand.

Can Ratchet join the construction of the Mineway Metro?

9. Mekkatorque's Doubts