Once his identity was exposed, Thrall's first instinct was to flee.
Herkula's lips curled into a slight, ambiguous smile, and Thrall felt a chill run down his spine.
Herkula of Southshore is an extremely vicious man.
Thrall clearly remembered that in his early years, Kel'Thuzad opposed Medivh and persuaded King Terenas to exterminate the Orcs.
Herkula, as a disciple, vehemently opposed it, but Kel'Thuzad was powerless to stop him.
Herkula sided with Medivh, hoping to gain favor.
Unfortunately, Medivh was jealous of his talent and treacherously plotted to use his body to cultivate Spellstealer Wyrm and steal his talent.
Surprisingly, Herkula managed to escape from Medivh's grasp.
Filled with hatred for the entire world, Herkula hid in the ruins of the Kingdom of Alterac, attempting to transform himself into Lich by exploiting the resentment of the Alterac kingdom.
Unfortunately, his plot failed. A group of adventurers broke in, interrupted the ritual at the most crucial moment, and killed the weakened Herkula.
According to Eitrigg's intelligence analysis, it was Medivh who commanded this group of adventurers.
After Herkula's death, he was buried in the Southshore cemetery, which was another of Medivh's schemes.
Medivh used greedy adventurers to resurrect Herkula's remains, causing massive casualties in Southshore.
It could be said that even after Herkula's death, Medivh did not let him go.
Thrall speculated that Herkula of the Timeways had accidentally completed the Lich ritual, but instead of seeking revenge against Medivh and Kel'Thuzad, he hid in Southshore.
"I am Thrall, what do you want? You know my bounty is five million." Thrall almost knelt down and begged for mercy; he was gambling.
Herkula smiled slightly:
"I have become Lich, and worldly pleasures are of no use to me. I am determined to pursue the truth of magic, and precious magical artifacts cannot be bought with money. Five million gold coins are useless to me. I'm just a little angry."
Thrall was glad he made the right gamble. If Herkula had really coveted the five million gold coins, she would never have revealed her identity and would have killed Thrall directly.
Herkula said angrily, "You killed hundreds of thousands of Orcs, solving a major problem for Azeroth. If left unchecked, the Orcs would have been wiped out by you sooner or later. You've made so many contributions to the Eastern Kingdoms; the foolish King Terenas wouldn't have even dared to dream of such a thing, yet they've put a huge bounty on your head."
Thrall shrugged helplessly. "This is probably the folly of wise men. King Terenas was like that, and Velen was the same in his early years."
Herkula chuckled wickedly, "What's interesting is that those wandering Orcs still think you're their Savior and are indignant on your behalf. If you return to Lordaeron, they will still support you."
"It's a pity the wandering Orcs can't compare to Antonidas's magic," Thrall said regretfully.
Upon hearing the name of this legendary High Archmage, Herkula frowned slightly:
"Antonidas is nothing, it's just that Dalaran harbors a terrible secret. Thrall, your Orb of Deception is running low on mana. If you trust me, come with me."
Thrall was truly at his wit's end and had no choice but to trust Herkula.
Herkula brought Thrall to a secret manor near Southshore, where he was treated to fine wine and meat. After many days, Thrall was finally able to get a good night's sleep.
When Thrall woke up, he felt refreshed and his mind was much clearer.
Thrall is inherently suspicious, so it's unlikely that Herkula had any good intentions in taking him in.
Judging from his own experience, Thrall made a reasonable judgment: Herkula wanted to obtain more than five million gold coins from Thrall.
To know what is truly important, listen to what is said behind one's back.
Thrall transformed into a Ghost Wolf and silently infiltrated Herkula's dwelling.
Inside the room, Herkula was chewing tobacco, and sitting opposite him was a tall, thin Black-Robed Man.
"Thrall in your hands?" the Black-Robed Man opposite asked.
Herkula raised an eyebrow, his crimson eyes flashing with greed:
"My dear mentor, you've come so quickly! Yes, Thrall is in my hands. What will you give me in exchange?"
Thrall was terrified; his heart nearly stopped beating.
Herkula's mentor was Kel'Thuzad, and Thrall's fear of him was second only to that of the Lich King Arthas.
Kel'Thuzad said hoarsely:
"Your Lich ascension ritual was disrupted. The Lich's body is imperfect, preventing the formation of Phylactery. Only I in Azeroth can help you."
Herkula chuckled, "Mentor, you know me best. As long as you're willing to help me, Thrall is yours."
Kel'Thuzad shook his head. "I hate Orcs, I was just using Thrall. Thrall is still yours, you know what I want."
Having said that, Kel'Thuzad went out the door and disappeared.
Thrall remained motionless, holding his breath, not believing he could evade the senses of the two Archmages.
Herkula exhaled the tobacco from his mouth and said loudly, "Thrall, you heard everything, come in."
Thrall hurriedly transformed back into human form, nervously entered the room, and sat opposite Herkula, sweating profusely and feeling extremely uncomfortable.
After a long while, Herkula slowly said:
"My mentor despises Orcs, and your turning Orcs into Tough Jerky is exactly what he wants. As long as you return to Lordaeron and continue doing what you did before, my mentor is willing to help you stop Antonidas. You can rest assured; even Medivh couldn't do anything to my mentor."
Thrall asked anxiously, "I believe in Kel'Thuzad's power, but what will happen to me after all the Orcs are dead?"
Herkula smiled mysteriously, "I'll arrange a perfect marriage for you, Doras, the richest man in Kalimdor."
Didn't Doras hate male Orcs? Thrall was baffled.
Herkula said with great enthusiasm, "Doras was once hurt by a scumbag Orcs. Her love turned to hatred, but unfortunately, people don't know that Doras loved him deeply. If that Orcs would just come back to her, she would even be willing to become an unparalleled Orcs beauty for him."
"What does this have to do with me?" Thrall asked curiously.
Herkula laughed heartily, "That scumbag Orcs is none other than you, the great Savior Thrall!"
"How could it be me?" Thrall retorted, realizing the answer in an instant.
Herkula said unhurriedly, "After the last Orcs in the Eastern Kingdoms dies, I will send you to the Caverns of Time to complete this match made in heaven."
Thrall thought about it for a while and felt that the matter was reasonable.
Besides Thrall himself, no one else could win Doras's heart.
"I do!"
Thrall didn't care about the lives of the Orcs, all for his own future.
Herkula breathed a sigh of relief and was about to say something when his expression suddenly changed.
The sound of galloping hooves approached, followed by a great deal of noise.
"The Destroyer Thrall here, charge!"
"No need to capture them alive, you can get the full bounty even if it's just a corpse."
"I'll risk my life to raise enough money for the dowry to marry Lisa."
Herkula grabbed Thrall's hand. "Someone has betrayed us! Come with me quickly!"
Thrall followed Herkula out the door. The manor was already ablaze with fire, and in the darkness were several gigantic Water Elementals the size of Castles.
"The Dalaran Mages have arrived too." Herkula tried to use teleportation magic, but as expected, it failed.
"Fortunately, I had anticipated this day would come."
Herkula dragged Thrall into a Secret Passage that had been prepared beforehand.