Make Azeroth breathtaking

Izzy protested.

"It definitely has nothing to do with me, I'm just here to do business... Ah, locked on!"

After about half an hour, Tennys finally located the signal source and marked it on the map.

"The Land of Ghosts?"

Hadur immediately identified the location of the signal source, which puzzled him.

"The signal is right there."

Tanis spread her hands to indicate that she had not made a mistake.

"This place...I remember there were ruins of a troll city here..."

Romans paused for a few seconds, then remembered what was there.

"You mean there's an important figure from the Amani trolls lurking there?"

"I can't guarantee that, but I think it would be good to send someone to check it out."

"It's too far, Romans. It would take at least a month to get there from here. We don't have that much time to waste."

“I went to that area when I was young, and I can open a portal to a nearby magical node.”

"If you go, what will happen to the arcane mage forces?"

"The arcane mage force can be temporarily placed under the command of Archmage Jaina. I've spoken with her; her experience in commanding mage forces is no less than that of the best war mages..."

Romans gently brushed his hand across the map.

"Tannis the Great Tinker, Iggy the Magician, what do you think?"

8. Windrunner's Tower, where Sylvanas reappears.

"Om-"

With a soft hum, a portal surrounded by a silver aura suddenly opened at the top of an abandoned tower, and Archmage Romans, Grand Tinker Tannis, and Iggy filed out of the portal.

"This is the Land of Ghosts?"

Looking at the dark, lifeless forest before her, Tanis became extremely cautious, for it was noon!

"Yes, and the tower we're currently in has a famous name: the Windrunner's Tower."

Romans casually uttered a place name that made Iggy pale and Tanis astonished.

"Is this the place where every generation of Windrunner generals of the Windrunner family stationed their troops and trained?"

As Tennys descended the still-intact staircase, she turned on her searchlight to illuminate her path. In the light, a tattered flag, its crimson fading, fluttered gently in the breeze, silently recounting the tragic past that had unfolded within this tower.

"Yes, after the former Ranger-General Sylvanas succeeded her fallen mother as Ranger-General, she was stationed in this tower. Windrunner Village, the traditional fiefdom of the Windrunner family, was managed by her sister Vereesa—who could have imagined that in such a short time, the three Windrunner sisters would be separated forever, and that every generation of Ranger-General in Quel'Thalas would have to change for the sake of Windrunner traditions, and also due to the pressures of reality."

Romans followed behind Tennys, looking around with a tone full of emotion and reminiscence.

Because Romans' words were so heavy, Iggy and Tannis both fell silent. After a long while, Tannis finally spoke.

"Actually, Sylvanas, she..."

"Although Arthas turned him into an undead, he has regained his will by chance, right? Haduron has already reported this matter."

After saying this, Romans sighed.

"To be honest, upon hearing this news, our first reaction, including the Regent's, was the same as Talonnicus's: we all wanted her to return as Ranger-General, leading the Farstriders. Halduron wouldn't mind continuing as the Ranger-General's second-in-command. But as former General Sylvanas said, most blood elves—including the Farstriders themselves—are very likely to fear her now. The wounds the Scourge inflicted on the people of Quel'Thalas are like the death scar that stretches across our kingdom; it may take a thousand years to heal... Who is there?"

Without warning, Romans raised his staff and pointed it into the depths of darkness.

"You're still so perceptive, Romans..."

From the depths of darkness, a clear, sorrowful, and seemingly accusing female voice rang out, and a slender figure that was all too familiar to the three people present stepped out.

"Sylvanas... what happened?"

"I've discovered the traitor's trail."

A simple sentence made Romanus's expression change instantly. The only person that Sylvanas now calls a traitor is Darkan, who almost brought Quel'Thalas to ruin and was willing to be Arthas's lackey!

How did you find his trail? Where is he?

Romans took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down. He knew that a guy like Darkan would only become more composed and insane after betraying him.

"I reached a temporary agreement with some undead who had broken free from the Lich King's control and Garithos's legions still active in the wastelands of Lordaeron, to stand together until the Scourge was driven out of the ruins of Lordaeron. We launched several attacks on the Scourge still active in Lordaeron and achieved some results. Because Arthas retreated in a hurry, they left behind some documents, so I learned that Darkan was left behind by Arthas in the Eastern Kingdoms to carry out a plan."

"A plan? What plan?"

Sylvanas gently shook her head.

“It wasn’t written in the document, but based on the information in that document, I found where Darkan’s dog was hiding and secretly followed him for more than three months... Thanks to my current appearance, he didn’t realize I was following him at all during those three months.”

Although Sylvanas spoke in a calm tone, Romans, Tanis, and Iggy all understood how terrible the curse of 'blessing' the former Ranger-General spoke of was.

"Then, about a month ago, he suddenly left his lair and went alone to Hillsbrad Foothills to abduct a human girl."

"......"

Although he knew that Darkan definitely didn't kidnap the human girl for marriage or anything like that, Romans's lips still twitched.

"After he captured the human girl and burned her home to the ground, and desecrated the remains of her relatives, Darkan abandoned his lair, returned to Quel'Thalas with his elite troops, and established a new encampment on that land—at the tail end of the Death's Mark."

After quietly recounting the tragedy, Sylvanas leaned against the wall of Windrunner's Tower, remaining silent, while Romans took over her words and slowly began to speak.

“Undoubtedly, that girl is crucial to Darkan—or to the Scourge—and his return to Quel'Thalas territory means he may need some means to harness that girl’s power. Sylvanas, according to your estimate, how many people would be needed to destroy Darkan’s new lair?”

"A standard mage regiment and more than one dozen ordinary mages, each squad equipped with a mid-level or higher priest, three regiments of elite rangers and their supporting troops and logistics, and then hiring some heavy soldiers or heavy cavalry willing to charge into battle—at least half a regiment—should give us a 40% chance of winning. Moreover, since the opponent is the Scourge, delaying will undoubtedly further increase the difficulty for us to annihilate Darkan and his henchmen."

Sylvanas quickly reported her estimated troop strength.

"This number is almost half of Quel'Thalas's remaining fighting force, former Ranger-General Sylvanas."

Romans's words elicited a soft chuckle from Sylvanas, a glint of unreadable light flashing deep within her red pupils.

"You don't trust my judgment, Romans?"

“I naturally trust your judgment, former Ranger-General Sylvanas, but Quel'Thalas is currently fighting on two fronts, and in addition, the Kingdom of Quel'Thalas has lost all its strongholds in the Ghostlands. Therefore, it is very difficult to mobilize enough soldiers from Eversong Woods to fight here.”

"As for strongholds, my men have already occupied one."

Sylvanas turned and walked towards the outside of the tower. Romans quickly followed her and walked alongside her. Iggy wanted to speak, but was pulled by Tannis and unconsciously followed the two of them.

Sensing that the three people present had followed her almost without hesitation, Sylvanas smiled faintly. She put her fingers in her mouth and let out a sharp whistling sound. A few seconds later, four bats landed in front of them.

"Get on, these bats were hard to tame, they can take us to that camp."

9. Zul'Aman - Team Assembles

"Cold, cold, cold..."

The moment the bat landed, Iggy, whose hands and feet were already freezing from the cold wind blowing over the Ghost Land, jumped to the ground, pulled out a bottle of potion, and gulped it down—although she had rested several times along the way, the nearly one-and-a-half-day journey had left her exhausted.

"Is this Taquilin?"

Romans, who had landed on the ground with Iggy, glanced around and identified their location.

"That's right."

Sylvanas slid down from the bat's back and walked to Romans' side, her voice devoid of joy or sorrow.

"Before Quel'Thalas is destroyed, you can train the garrison troops in Taquilins to a pulp."

"I now regret that I didn't double their training volume back then."

Sylvanas answered coldly, and at the same time aimed an arrow at a dark corner and shot it. Immediately, a clear bell rang, and several undead whose bodies were rotting but whose human shapes could still be roughly seen, along with a banshee, stepped out from the ruins of Tarquerin and paid their respects to Sylvanas in various poses.

"Dark Queen, you are back. We have completed the basic preparations for Tarquelin."

“Very well, everyone else continue with your work. Mrs. Oliphilosophy, come with me, there is something important to discuss.”

Sylvanas flicked her cloak and walked toward the town center. The banshee, whose name was called, bowed slightly and followed behind the Dark Queen, taking a half-step back.

"Let's follow them."

Romans paused his staff slightly, momentarily stunned by Sylvanas's sudden burst of queenly aura, and looked at Iggy, who was rolling on the ground beside him, burning from drinking too much potion. His eyebrows twitched.

"Ahem... Okay... Miss Tennys... Do you have any drinks that can relieve the spiciness?"

"Here you go, remember to pay."

————————————————Tarquelin Centre————————————————

Sylvanas sat in the central seat, exuding an aura that kept strangers at bay. Lady Oliphilos floated beside her like a maid. Archmage Romans sat upright. Iggy was still trying to get rid of the last bit of spiciness in his mouth with his panting, while Tannis... was rapidly typing on the virtual keyboard of her mechanical assistant, analyzing the images sent back by the drone she had launched.

"This is Lady Olivierus, one of the banshees who helped me break free from the Lich King's control. She is the former Baroness of the Kingdom of Quel'Thalas, and her former fiefdom was near Tarquerin."

After briefly introducing the banshees beside her to those present, Sylvanas got straight to the point.

"If the threat of the Amani trolls is eliminated, will Quel'Thalas send troops to destroy Darkan?"

“Of course, General Sylvanas.”

Regent Lor'themar's voice rang out in the town center without warning, and Sylvanas, who had already anticipated that Romans had made contact with Lor'themar, raised an eyebrow.

“I am no longer a ranger general; I am now the Dark Queen of the Forsaken.”

“We have not forgotten you, Dark Queen Sylvanas.”

Lorthema changed the way she addressed him very naturally.

“Thank you very much, but those things are in the past. Now, I only have anger in my heart—the anger to avenge the Lich King, and I can’t wait to take Darkan’s dog’s life, to let its blood adorn my sweet revenge.”

"Dark Queen, Archmage Romans has a plan to decapitate the Amani trolls. Once completed, we can spare a significant number of men to come to the Ghostlands and begin the first step in our revenge."

Lor'themar's answer brought a cold, cruel smile to Sylvanas's lips.

"very good."

————————————Zu'aman————————————————————

On the magnificent Eagle Altar, Ekilson sat cross-legged with his eyes closed at the top of the highest altar, letting the gale and thunder swirl and roar around him. His heart, like the wind and thunder, was turbulent.

Having recently learned of the pact between Bwonsamdi and Malacas, Ekilson remained vigilant towards this troll god of death, whose history was said to predate even the trolls themselves. While the pact between Loa gods might seem sacred to ordinary trolls, Ekilson knew full well that, given sufficient benefit, a Loa pact was no easier to break than a piece of paper…