Make Azeroth breathtaking

16. Unexpected Business

"Are you leaving?"

After Arthas burned the remains of the undead and the cultists of the curse, and sealed away Kel'Thuzad's remains, he received news that Tannis was leaving.

"Well... I came to the Eastern Kingdom to solve the food problem. Now that the Andorhal problem is solved, it's time for me to take my leave."

Tanis uttered the excuse she had prepared long ago—"Are you kidding me? Even a great mage like Kel'Thuzad was willing to be a pawn and sacrifice himself. What good would it do if I continued to interfere?"

"I see..."

Arthas sighed regretfully. After experiencing Tannis's mobile logistics warehouse service, he found himself somewhat addicted.

"So, Prince Arthas, shall we settle the bill now, or wait until High Knight Uther arrives?"

Tanis extended a hand, smiling sweetly.

----------------the next day---------------------

"Ah... a normal bed is definitely more comfortable..."

At the temporary outpost in Ratchet in Southshore, Tanyas threw herself onto the soft bed, admiring herself for her timely decision to withdraw from the plague in Lordaeron.

Yesterday, when she asked Arthas for payment, she learned that Arthas had decided to leave a small force to guard Andorhal without waiting for Uther to join her, while he and Jaina led their elite troops, now accustomed to fighting the undead, to continue the pursuit of Kel'Thuzad's so-called 'master.' This nearly gave her a heart attack—how arrogant must you two be to think you could eliminate someone who could make a great mage like Kel'Thuzad bow down and willingly die? Are you sure you're not just going to your deaths?

So, after collecting her payment and giving away the last bit of nearly expired ammunition to Arthas for free, Tannis decisively activated her single-person teleportation device and fled back to Southshore to begin dealing with the food refund issue.

With the double guarantee of High Knight Uther and Prince Arthas, the return of the goods went very smoothly, and in less than a week, the cargo ship in Ratchet was empty.

However, Tanis began to worry again. The reason was simple: an empty cargo ship crossing the endless sea... would inevitably result in a loss, therefore, she needed to find some large quantities of goods to transport back.

'What large quantities of goods can we bring back? Food? Impossible. With Andorhal destroyed, Lordaeron itself has a food shortage, let alone who knows if they'll sell us contaminated food again. Herbs? Not much at all. Ore? Lordaeron's ore reserves are a disaster compared to Stormwind's. Timber... maybe that's all we have... but Lordaeron's logging industry seems underdeveloped...'

Just as Tanis was rubbing her forehead in worry, a goblin who was mainly responsible for the area near Stromgarde knocked on her door.

"Miss Tanya, there's a big deal! The kind that can fill a cargo ship!"

What kind of goods are they?

Tanis became interested, believing that the goblins of Ratchet wouldn't joke about something like this.

"Um...maybe it's not so much goods, anyway, there's a bit of risk involved. You'll see when you come and take a look..."

————————————————Viewing the Goods Divider——————————————————

Tennyson's brow twitched.

She felt very depressed, extremely depressed, and also had a slight headache because fragments of memory were starting to throb again.

Because the goblin who told him he had a big business deal was talking about orcs—orcs who were originally led by Orgrim and now had Thrall as their chieftain!

"You are Miss Tanis, the princess of Ratchet? I am Thrall, the chieftain of the Horde, and this is my advisor, Grom Hellscream."

At the secret meeting place, Thrall, who was meeting with Tanis, spoke. To Tanis's surprise, this orc, with blue eyes unlike other orcs, was very gentle and spoke fluent Common. However, Grom Hellscream, the tall orc standing next to Thrall, carrying a strangely shaped two-handed axe, seemed to be constantly scrutinizing her neck...

"Nice to meet you, Warchief Thrall. There is no such title as princess in Ratchet. Just call me Tanis. I heard from my staff that you wish to hire our cargo ships to go to Kalimdor?"

Following her business acumen, Tanya tried her best to ignore Grom, whose eyes were filled with murderous intent, and greeted him with a smile.

"Hmm, how many people can your ship carry?"

"We currently have fifteen ships docked at Nanhai Town, all of them large cargo ships. If we convert all the cargo holds into passenger cabins, and you don't mind the accommodation conditions, a single ship can easily accommodate 200 to 300 people. Of course, if you require better accommodation, the cargo holds can be slightly modified to accommodate 100 to 150 people."

"What about food and water?"

"Assuming you hire us to transport your people, we in Ratchet City are obligated to get you to your destination safely as far as possible, barring unforeseen circumstances. Therefore, your drinking water and food will be at least on par with those of sailors, and you will also receive medical care."

Sal nodded again, indicating his understanding.

"Then, could you sail the ship to the area we designate? You know, if we orcs are discovered by the human kingdoms, the consequences will be dire."

“If there is a suitable anchorage there, that’s fine, but Chief Sarr, we have a limited number of small boats that we can provide. Your people may have to swim to board the boats. Are you sure that’s alright?”

"I will ask the water elementals for help so that they can temporarily support the feet of my people, and then the problem of the dock will be solved."

Sal's words startled Tannis slightly, and then a flood of memories rushed into her mind.

"Chief Thrall, are you a shaman?"

"You know shamans?"

A hint of surprise appeared on Sal's face.

“I understand a little. Since Chieftain Thrall is a shaman, I feel reassured about many things.”

Tannis produced a blank contract as if by magic and handed it to Sal.

"Write down your requirements on it, and I will review it with my staff and give you a response within a day—rest assured, we will not change your core requirements."

Thank you.

Knowing that Tennys's statement meant she was accepting the business, Sal thanked her and took the contract from her.

————————————————A few minutes later————————————————————

"I don't understand, Chief, why don't we just go to Southsea Town and rob a ship? Why waste precious resources hiring these money-grubbing bastards, not to mention their leader is human!"

After Tennys left, Grom Hellscream finally spoke in his family’s distinctive, ever-roaring voice, asking a question.

"Grom, although seizing ships seems cost-free, firstly, we can't guarantee we can take Southshore before the main human force can react; secondly, we can't guarantee we can seize enough ships; thirdly, even if we succeed in the first two steps, the Horde isn't just made up of brave warriors, but also includes the elderly, weak, and disabled. What if something happens during the boarding period? Also, aside from my request for elemental guidance, does anyone among us know a route to Kalimdor? Oh, and we also have to consider how many of us are capable of sailing. Therefore, seizing ships is an option, but definitely the worst option under extreme circumstances."

Grom's expression twitched. He admitted that he hadn't considered Thrall's perspective at all when he thought the axe could solve everything. Perhaps that was why Thrall could be the Warchief while he could only be an advisor?

"Let's get the tribesmen packing and getting ready. We'll have to set off in two days at most."

Realizing that Grom was almost convinced, Sal picked up the contract Tannis had given him and began to write down the requirements.

17. Boarding

Hillsbrad Foothills, a narrow coastline connecting the Arathi Highlands.

This is a remote and uninhabited area, surrounded by towering mountains. The human empire's kingdom of Arathor sits atop those mountains, and despite the passage of time, the legend of Arathor continues to resonate throughout the kingdoms.

"Those orcs really chose a good spot. With so many merfolk, of course no human patrols would come here to check."

Tanis stood at the bow of the makeshift flagship, her legs firmly planted on the deck, looking at the beach through binoculars. On the beach, groups of merfolk were enjoying the morning sun, completely unaware of the impending disaster.

"And they can also use this opportunity to show us that although they made a deal with us, they don't trust us, Miss Tanis."

Tanis's temporary second-in-command, a goblin with one eye blind and graying hair, spoke in a hoarse voice.

"That's why I don't dare to use a single-person teleporter to run back directly, Mr. Hall."

“Speaking of teleportation, Miss Tanis, why did you go to the trouble of having several supply teleporters in Southshore crash due to overload, just to send supplies over from Ratchet as much as possible? This almost means that we have given up our business here in Lordaeron. Relying solely on sea freight, we cannot compete with Booty Bay, whose foundation is right here.”

"Because... I have a feeling that we won't be able to do business in Lordaeron for a long time to come... Just take it as my intuition."

Tanis let out a soft breath. Just then, the banner of the Warsong Clan appeared in the distance.

———————————————Ten minutes later——————————————————

“I’m so glad you came as promised, Miss Tanis.”

Thrall, who had pleaded with the water elementals to give his people a way, was the first to board the flagship and bowed to Tannis with a very ancient ceremony. On the shore, the corpses of the murlocs had already stained the sea red.

“Once the money is received, the contract must be honored; this is the rule of the Hot Sands Consortium.”

Tannis returned the greeting gracefully, and at that moment, Grom Hellscream, carrying a battle axe still dripping with blood, boarded the ship.

“To remain standing on such a rocking ship, you are no weakling, Miss Tanis.”

Hellscream looked Tanis up and down, then suddenly spoke.

"I've also practiced some skills; after all, you can't survive in this chaotic world without some self-defense abilities."

As she said this, Tannis made a 'please' gesture.

“I have arranged for someone to introduce the details and precautions of the journey to you on each boat, and on this boat, I will be the guide for the two of you.”

——————————————Entering the cabin - dividing line——————————————————————

"This is the first deck, where the swaying is relatively more intense, but the lighting and air quality are the best."

"This is the second deck. Although the lighting and air quality are relatively poor here, it is stable."

"This is the third floor, although it should be the most stable... but even with the added ventilation holes on the ship's sides, the lighting and air quality are very poor. Also, because it's closer to the sea, the humidity is quite high. Since we're on a long voyage, those staying on this floor are at risk of contracting illnesses if they're not careful. This is roughly the living area; you're free to arrange your own accommodations. The hammocks and straw mats we've provided should be sufficient."

Sal nodded, indicating that he understood.

"Then, this is the supplies storage area... You've probably never handled these things before, so let me show you."

Tennys opened the hatch, revealing neatly stacked boxes of different colors behind it.

"Mr. Grom, could you please take down one box of each color and pry them open?"

Grom strode forward, easily grabbing a box painted green, blue, and white, and then prying it open with his battle axe.

"What are these?"

Looking at the cubes and small bottles inside the box, Grom raised his head and looked at Tannis.

"This is compressed dry rations. One piece is equivalent to the food requirement of a strong adult male for one meal. It comes in three flavors. The downside is that it's a bit hard and doesn't need to be soaked in water... um..."

"It tastes good, is small in size, and is filling; it's a great military ration."

Grom, who had already devoured the compressed biscuits like spinach, wiped his mouth, looking like he wanted more.

Tanis twitched her lips, realizing she had misjudged the orc's chewing power.

"Okay... next... this is bottled water... as long as it's unopened, a bottle of water can be stored for about 12 months..."

While Tennys was explaining, Grom had already rudely ripped off the bottle cap and poured the water down his throat.

"These are also good military supplies, so you don't have to worry about running out of water during a march. And the last one?"

"The medical kits are few in number, so don't waste them."

Tannis took out the herbal bandages, oral pills and other items from the box and explained their general usage. Grom and Thrall's eyes widened. For the first time since they began their escape, they were not worried about supplies!

"Can we use these things as we please?"