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Tanis turned off the mechanical assistant's screen and looked at Jaina, who seemed lost in thought.

"Yes, but I can't sleep. You said Arthas wasn't fit to be king. A few days ago I scoffed at that, but now... I'm starting to doubt my own judgment..."

"Because of Arthas?"

"Hmm... Arthas's actions during the day felt a bit unfamiliar to me..."

As she spoke, Jaina buried her head between her arms.

“I know those people have blood on their hands, and I know we don’t have time to put them to trial, but Arthas, as a paladin and the crown prince of Lordaeron, should at least let his people say their last words—even if they are truly wicked. Really, this is the first time I’ve seen him so frantic!”

"There's nothing we can do. The matter of Andorhal is a huge weight on his mind. He'll remain agitated until that's resolved. But speaking of which, Miss Jaina, is it really true that Dalaran has absolutely no idea about the source of this plague, which is clearly caused by magic?"

“My master, Master Antonidas, was completely unaware of this plague until recently. Upon learning of the outbreak, he immediately dispatched me.”

“No, Miss Jaina, I’m not asking whether your master knew about this, but whether Dalaran is related to this spreading magical plague. As everyone knows, apart from Quel’Thalas, which is basically a kingdom that never leaves its territory, Dalaran is the only place in the Eastern Kingdoms that produces a lot of mages. If you need to find something related to magic, Dalaran is usually the best place to go.”

Tannis shook her head and tapped her mechanical assistant.

"You see, if it were simply a matter of investigating the plague, given the number of high-level spellcasters in Dalaran, there would be no need for someone like you, who possesses the triple identities of a princess of Kul Tiras, the chief apprentice of Archmage Antonidas of Dalaran, and the lover of Crown Prince Arthas. While your strength is formidable, you are not among the top tier in Dalaran. Therefore, I have reason to believe that the Council of Six of Dalaran sent you out largely due to political factors, rather than simply because of your abilities. If I'm not mistaken, the six members of the Kirin Tor Council of Dalaran already have a candidate in mind for the culprit, and this candidate will seriously affect Dalaran's diplomatic relations with Lordaeron. You, a princess connected to three kingdoms, can minimize any potential diplomatic crisis Dalaran might face."

"...Now the Council of Six in Dalaran only has five members left."

After a moment of silence, Jaina spoke.

"Is the missing person related to this plague?"

Tanya understood the subtext in Jaina's words.

"Archmage Kel'Thuzad, a member of the Kirin Tor Council of Six, was reprimanded by Archmage Antonidas about three years ago for researching forbidden spells for orc warlocks. He was forced to destroy all his experimental results and disappeared after that. To this day, Dalaran has not found a single trace of this archmage. To avoid any untoward incidents, the Kirin Tor has been keeping this information under wraps."

"Forbidden magic, in which area?"

Tanis's heart skipped a beat. She realized that after hearing Kel'Thuzad's full name, the fragments of her memory began to loosen again.

Jaina looked up, gave her a deep look, and uttered a word that didn't surprise Tennys at all.

"Spiritual communication."

————————————————No words were spoken along the way—————————————————

After learning the suspect's name from Jaina, Tanyas began desperately trying to stimulate her memory fragments with the name Kel'Thuzad, sifting through various potentially useful information. The more she sifted through the information, the more alarmed she became.

First, Kel'Thuzad was indeed reprimanded by Antonidas for researching necromancy. Second, the experimental results Kel'Thuzad produced at that time were merely harmless zombie rats and the like. In other words, given Kel'Thuzad's level of expertise at the time, creating such an amazing undead plague would have been a pipe dream.

However, Tanis's fragmented memories clearly told her that Kel'Thuzad was the direct instigator of this plague outbreak. Yet, in less than four years, Kel'Thuzad had gone from a novice in necromancy to a master of it. Even if he was indeed an archmage, this speed was far too fast. Behind every systematic spell lies thousands of pieces of knowledge, and mastering all of this knowledge requires time in addition to talent.

'I don't believe there's no powerful entity pulling the strings behind this!'

Although the fragments of memory failed to reveal more, from the known information, Tannis deduced that Kel'Thuzad had definitely sided with some dark force possessing immeasurable power. However, Tannis was unable to extract the details of that dark force from her own memories.

However, one thing Tanis was certain of: the mastermind behind the devastating plague that instructed Archmage Kel'Thuzad to create this horrific plague wanted something far more than simply turning Lordaeron into a realm of the dead...

10. Ah, Andorhal

"We've arrived."

After the three leaders, each with their own thoughts, had been traveling for about half a month, the walls of Andorhal finally came into view. Seeing that the banners of Lordaeron were still flying on the walls and the guards at the gates were still standing guard diligently, Arthas couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

"It seems things haven't gotten too bad; there might still be a chance for things to turn around."

Checking the gate, entering, and setting up camp, Arthas handled these matters methodically. Since Jaina and Tanis were not members of the Lordaeron military organization, they were settled in the Lord of Andorhal's house.

What do you think, Jaina?

Upon entering Andorhal, Tannis deployed several reconnaissance drones. The results that came back surprised her, yet were also understandable. Although everything seemed normal in Andorhal, the grain caravans that used to flock there to buy grain had all disappeared—clearly, news of a grain problem in Lordaeron had spread.

"First, we need to find the traitor. The fact that the enemy did not use water or air to spread this plague means that the plague can only enter the human body by attaching to food. And the operation of contaminating food with the plague requires a lot of manpower."

“You’re right, but I don’t think they’ll give us that time. No, I should say, the moment we step into Andorhal, there won’t be any time left.”

As Tanya spoke, she intentionally or unintentionally led Jaina towards the outside of the courtyard.

"What do you mean?"

"The images my drones have recently sent back show that the military camps in Andorhal are in complete chaos. About half of the soldiers have turned into undead and are fighting against Arthas's uninfected soldiers. Some of Andorhal's residents are also showing symptoms."

"!!!"

Before Jaina could even ask Tanis for the pictures to confirm whether Tanis was lying, a group of monsters swaying towards them, with lifeless eyes, torn skin, and faintly emitting black gas, proved that what Tanis said was true.

“Clearly, that Mr. Kel'Thuzad has been watching our movements all along. And this plague can not only take effect slowly and upon death, but it can also be triggered manually. Andorhal is a trap he set for us. Tsk tsk tsk, judging by the numbers, I suspect he has been working on this place for at least three months—no, who knows how long!”

Tanis casually pulled out two grenades and threw them into the horde of zombies approaching them, turning these monsters, who had only recently lost their lives, into useless pieces of flesh. Then, she turned around and unleashed a burst of true energy behind her, which just happened to kill Mayor Andorhal, who had jumped down from the building with his gaping maw.

"You noticed it the moment you walked in?"

Jaina quickly summoned two water elementals to help Tannis, who was using the Pursuers to bombard and clear a path, and asked a question at the same time.

"Besides being a tinkerer, I also practiced as a monk. Although I can't compare to the druids' sensitivity to the environment, the monks, who emphasize harmony between man and nature, are quite accurate in recognizing things that are out of balance."

As she said this, Tannis had her mechanical assistant fly to her right arm and launch a strange barrel-shaped weapon, blasting another group of zombies to pieces. After doing this, she mercilessly wrapped the disposable weapon in her true energy and blasted it out as a throwing weapon. In the blink of an eye, another group of zombies was doomed.

"Why didn't you warn Arthas! If you had known sooner, things wouldn't have turned out this badly!"

Jaina's voice rose.

“I slipped him a note. Whether he read it or not is his business, but judging from how quickly he mobilized his troops, he must have read it.”

"...What I mean is..."

"These people might still be saved? Wake up, Miss Jaina. From the moment we set foot in Andorhal, these people were beyond saving."

————————————Barracks dividing line————————————————————

"Front line to rear line, set up your shields and try to avoid getting hurt! We don't know if this plague is contagious! If you get scratched or bitten, call a priest or me immediately! We will heal you with Holy Light!"

"Archers, replace all the arrowheads with iron balls! Piercing strikes aren't very effective against those guys; we have to break their body structure!"

"Spellcasters, conserve your mana! Your power must be used at crucial moments, don't waste it on these ordinary people turned into zombies!"

"Gunpowder? You have gunpowder? Bring it here! Miss Tanis mentioned a simple way to use gunpowder that doesn't require much to create a decent area-of-effect damage! I'll do it! You learn!"

In the barracks, the soldiers, uncontaminated by the plague-ridden food, used makeshift lines of fences, tents, and other materials to tenaciously resist the attacks of the undead. Although some of these undead were their comrades, and some might even be their family members, under Arthas's orders and the prince's leading by example, they temporarily forgot their pain and sorrow and transformed into the best fighting machines.

Finally, through their fearless fighting, the zombies at the gate of the defense line were temporarily driven back. Only then did the soldiers begin to grieve for their friends or relatives who could not return.

“Farek, go and check on the soldiers’ morale. I’ll talk to them if necessary. Maven, come with me. We need to further strengthen our defenses and wait for Lord Uther’s reinforcements.”

Ignoring his rest and grief, Arthas immediately issued the second round of orders.

"Yes, Your Highness, but what about Miss Jaina and Miss Tanya? Do we need someone to meet them?"

Arthas did not answer, but instead handed a note to Mavion. Mavion took the note, looked at it, and was dumbfounded.

"Did Miss Tanis sense something was amiss when she entered the city?"

"Hmm, so we don't need to worry about their safety for now... Wait, is that the sound of an engine?"

Arthas's ears picked up a sound that shouldn't have been there. He looked up in that direction and, unsurprisingly, saw billowing smoke and dust, along with icy blue flakes that drifted down from time to time.

"It seems our ladies have already arrived."

Arthas let out a soft breath, a slight smile on his face, and walked towards the door, carrying his warhammer.

"Mavin, I'll leave the inspection to you for now."

11. Andohal Line

"Was the food in the camp not contaminated?"

Jaina jumped out of the car, greeted Arthas, and gave him a big hug.

"Yes, we've discovered that holy light can dispel the evil energy within the food and can also restore those with mild infections who haven't been turned into zombies, so the barracks are safe for now..."

As Arthas spoke, he led Tanis and Jaina to the tent that served as a temporary command post.

"How's the situation outside?"

After leading Jaina and Tanyas to the tent that had been used as a temporary command post, Arthas couldn't wait to ask questions.

Jaina gently shook her head, and Arthas, understanding his girlfriend's meaning, turned pale.

"...How is that possible? Andohar has tens of thousands of permanent residents, and a similar number of transient residents..."

"Your opponents have been planning for a longer and more deadly timeframe. I highly suspect that your lowest-ranking citizens have already been thoroughly infiltrated."

As Tannis spoke, she pulled some documents from the mechanical assistant's stomach and handed them to Arthas.

"These are the documents I found along the way while I was eliminating those things. Take a look."

Arthas took the document and quickly flipped through it. In less than thirty seconds, his hands began to tremble violently.

"Outrageous! Outrageous! These words that slander the royal family and defame the Holy Light!!! Why would my people believe this!!!"

"According to the goblins, people are inherently driven by self-interest. Well, while I think that statement only applies to 99% of intelligent beings, it's clear that your people aren't that 1%."

"What benefit do they get from this? We protect them from wild animals and bandits, give them land to live on, and even provide them with food and clothing before winter to prevent them from freezing or starving to death! What benefit do they gain from doing this?"

Arthas's voice was hoarse and filled with grief and indignation. In his hands, the documents had been crumpled into pieces by the still-present Holy Light power emanating from him.

"Higher social status, power, immortality—these are far more attractive than what you're offering them. Once people are well-fed and clothed, they'll inevitably try to climb the social ladder. But Lordaeron hasn't left any relatively easy paths for ordinary people to ascend. For commoners in the human kingdoms to escape their status as ordinary citizens, they either need the favor of nobles, achieve great feats, or become priests or mages. These paths are incredibly difficult for the lower classes—so it's understandable that they've joined this strange organization. Ironically, the guy who founded this organization wasn't lying. Social status? It's all become equal for the undead. Power? The undead are certainly a little stronger than the living. Immortality? Anyway, these propaganda documents never promised them immortality with their brains."

Tanya's answer made Arthas's eyes widen, while Jaina gripped her staff tightly. Clearly, neither of these two, both of whom were of royal lineage, agreed with Tanya's words.

"Well, I know you probably don't agree with my point of view, but I'm just expressing my opinion."

After speaking, Tannis snapped her fingers, projecting the map collected by her drone onto the table, large areas of which were painted red.

"This is the current situation in Andorhal. The areas marked in red are the hardest-hit areas, the situation in the white areas is unknown, and the green areas are your controlled areas."

After saying that, Tennys leaned against the pillar supporting the tent and said nothing more.

Looking at Andorhal, which was mostly stained red, Arthas's expression darkened. He whispered to Jaina, and a few seconds later, Arthas walked up to Tannis.

“Miss Tanis, Professor Uther will not be able to arrive with the main force for at least 7 days. Although your contract with Professor Uther has been completed, I hope to continue to receive your help.”

"No problem, renew the contract, pay up, Your Highness."

————————————————That evening——————————————————