Medivh gave King Terenas two choices.
First, kill all the Orcs. If any hypocritical person jumps out to accuse King Terenas of cruelty, Medivh is willing to take full responsibility.
Second, the Orcs internment camp will remain in place, with Medivh promising to address the Orcs' weakness.
King Terenas, driven by his own ambition, chose the latter.
Medivh was not surprised at all; he had long seen through the old King's ambition. He pointed at King Terenas's face and laughed loudly:
"Old King, what kind of ambition makes you think you can control a pack of ferocious beasts? Watch, Lordaeron will pay a heavy price for your decision today."
Terenas's choice plunged the neighboring kingdoms into a state of panic, all fearing Orcs invasion.
The High Elves of Quel'Thalas quickly made secret peace with Zul'Aman Trolls also feared the Orcs, and the two sides signed a secret agreement to jointly resist the Orcs.
After its protests proved ineffective, the Kingdom of Gilneas withdrew from the Alliance, voluntarily ceding territory in southern Silverpine Forest to build Greymane Wall to defend against Orcs attacks.
That wasn't enough. King Genn Greymane allowed Arugal to conduct his dangerous experiments, turning half his people into Worgen in the hope that their powerful physique would help Orcs fight off the Worgen.
Even Stormwind City, far from Lordaeron, was deeply affected. The Kingdom of Stormwind, once destroyed by the Orcs, feared Orcs return. The nobles refused to pay the Stonemasons' Guild their wages, using the money instead as military expenditure to defend against the Orcs invasion. The Black Dragon Princess secretly coordinated the handover of Westfall to the Brotherhood.
As it turns out, they were all overthinking it.
Medivh quickly fulfilled his promise. He mobilized the mages of Dalaran, and ultimately, through the accidental discovery of a Mage Apprentice, they solved the Orcs' weakness problem. The solution was simple: the Orcs needed to eat meat.
The Court Mages Kilwinter did a simple calculation: Orcs needed to eat meat required the support of thirty-seven human farmers.
In fact, Lordaeron is mainly agricultural, and meat is scarce. Even nobles find it difficult to eat meat for every meal.
This means that Lordaeron suddenly has tens of thousands more nobles to support.
This is simply impossible.
King Terenas intended for the Orcs to work and support themselves.
But this is also unrealistic. Take farming as an example: the Orcs eat too much. Even if they work for 24 hours straight without rest, it's not enough to feed them. Herding is also impossible. First, Lordaeron doesn't have enough pastures. Second, the Orcs are too imposing; any cattle, sheep, or horses would be frightened and run away in their presence.
Finally, the Court Mages Kilwinter came to a conclusion.
"Your Majesty King Terenas, you have raised a pack of true beasts. Their immense physical exertion has forced them to live solely by hunting. In Draenor, Orcs are scattered throughout the land in Clans. They hunt a boar in the morning, enough to feed their entire family for three days, then go hunt another boar—that is their daily life. We in Lordaeron don't have enough boars for them to kill; they would eat us all."
"Orcs are a war-loving race. Without war and plunder, they cannot survive. Orcs extermination of the Draenei and invasion of Azeroth were desperate choices, a natural instinct, and a necessity for survival. They wiped out most species on Draenor Planet. Without the opening of the Dark Portal, Orcs would have been left to fight amongst themselves or starve to death."
"Orcs are a ferocious race; they would rather die than live in war. King Terenas, your reckless actions have brought great disaster to Azeroth. It is foreseeable that Azeroth will soon be engulfed in war. There is still time; hurry and wipe out these Orcs. The poison I gave you last time can come in handy."
Unfortunately, King Terenas still did not want to give up his ambition. He wanted to shift the blame to other countries, deplete the Orcs' suffering, and weaken the neighboring countries in order to weaken the Orcs.
This was supposed to be a win-win solution, but unfortunately, a shocking revelation came.
The Orcs, whom King Terenas considered Invincible, were actually defeated by humans.
The one who defeated the Orcs was none other than Baron Rivendare, the legendary general of Stratholme.
Baron Rivendare was a seasoned general whose family had been stationed in Stratholme for generations. Through years of arduous battles against the Trolls, they had accumulated countless war experiences and developed excellent military skills.
The Trolls of Zul'Aman preferred to march north and attack Quel'Thalas rather than antagonize Baron Rivendare.
During the Second War, the commander of the human alliance was Lieutenant General Edlas Proudmoore. Baron Rivendare, who came from the rear to provide support, berated the general as an incompetent and cowardly coward who only sent brave Warriors to their deaths on the front lines. He said that if the general were in command, he would only need half the army to completely annihilate the Orcs.
Baron Rivendare had carefully studied the Orcs' tactics and discovered Orcs weakness: they had no logistical support and basically ate wherever they went, devouring all the meat they could find.
Baron Rivendare's plan was simple: lure the enemy deep into their territory, then fortify the walls and clear the fields. The Orcs had great explosive power, but they had little endurance and were not suitable for long-distance raids. Their overly strong bodies also made them slow in marching.
Uther raised the question, "The evacuation of civilians is not progressing quickly; won't the elderly and children become a burden?"
Baron Rivendare said calmly:
"This war is different from any other; it's a life-or-death struggle between races, requiring necessary sacrifices. If anyone can't keep up with the retreat, they must be killed and their bodies burned; no meat can be left for the Orcs."
"In just one week at most, the Orcs, unable to find meat, will inevitably suffer a significant decrease in fighting power due to hunger. They will be forced to kill each other to satisfy their hunger, leading to a drop in morale. At that point, annihilating them will be a piece of cake."
Everyone knows that this is the best strategy.
However, this strategy is inconsistent with the ideals of Paladins and will inevitably be condemned by future generations.
For the sake of their so-called Paladin beliefs, for the sake of so-called light and Justice, the Alliance generals rejected Baron Rivendare's proposal.
They would rather see their comrades killed and eaten by Orcs, and their people slaughtered, than kill the old, weak, sick, and disabled with their own hands and commit war crimes against their will.
As it turned out, Baron Rivendare was right. If it weren't for the Orcs' internal strife, Lordaeron would have ceased to exist long ago, and Edolas Proudmoore, this mediocre general, would have been forgotten because of the Alliance's tragic sacrifices.
After the war, the Warsong Clan, led by Grom Hellscream, continued to roam the Wilderness of Lordaeron, refusing to submit to the humans. Baron Rivendare was ordered to lead a campaign against them, and in the first year, he achieved a respectable kill-to-death ratio.
Starting from the second year, Baron Rivendare, having become familiar with the rhythm of the Orcs Wars, used a much smaller army than the Orcs, employing tactics of harassing the enemy when they were exhausted and advancing when they retreated, never engaging in direct combat with the Orcs. He swept through the land, causing the Warsong Clan to flee in terror.
No general had ever defeated Orcs in a one-on-one fight before, Baron Rivendare did.
Despite King Terenas's best efforts to conceal the news, it still spread like wildfire to the eastern countries.
The Mythic of the Orcs' Invincible has been shattered.
King Terenas's ambitions were utterly thwarted.
It was too late for him to back out now; Medivh, free from Deathwing's restraint, revealed his true nature.
Standing on the palace balcony, looking up at the gloomy sky of Lordaeron, memories of the past flashed before his eyes like smoke, and King Terenas was plunged into darkness.
No royal power lasts forever!
There is no hope left.
The King took a pot of black tulips and placed it on the balcony.
This was one of the old King's little habits.