The commander was getting more and more outrageous. She was hardly ever around.
On the rare occasions she came back, she was exhausted and went straight to sleep, treating the garrison like an inn. No one knew what kept her so busy, and she had even left Robbie in charge of issuing missions.
In fact, counting Robbie himself, the garrison had only three followers.
Vanessa lacked neither money nor garrison supplies, and she certainly didn't lack equipment. Robbie and the other followers, on the other hand, had terrible equipment and were sorely lacking in adventuring experience.
So Robbie issued patrol missions specifically for them. Whenever they had time, the three of them went out together to earn extra money, improve their equipment, and gain experience. Everyone was happy, so why not?
After seven or eight days of this, Hogger finally saved enough to buy the Imitation Molten Fury Fist Weapons. The result was that he owed Robbie and Dwal Ironfist a great deal of money.
Late one night, Robbie was half-asleep when his door was suddenly kicked open.
Vanessa was the only person in the garrison who would dare do that.
"Robbie, get up! We're going on an outing."
"Commander, it's the middle of the night. What kind of outing?"
"Then how about we admire the moon together?" Vanessa rephrased.
"I don't think there's a moon tonight... All right, I get it. Put the dagger away. I'll get up right now."
The night was dim and pitch-black.
Robbie followed the commander, barely daring to breathe.
Vanessa wore tight black leather armor. Like a nimble leopard, she leaped silently through the woods, her slender body full of vitality. Viewed from the side, her shapely curves were extremely alluring.
Her only flaw was that her breasts were a little small. Robbie suspected she usually wore fake ones.
Just as Robbie's thoughts were wandering, Vanessa drew her weapons and carefully approached a clearing in the woods. She looked back and signaled for Robbie to stay quiet.
To keep a low profile and avoid ending up in Med'an's awkward situation, she wasn't using the Fangs of the Father. She held Throat Cutter's Fang in her main hand and the Imitation Molten Canine in her off hand.
Animals of all sizes had gathered in a circle in the clearing. There were rabbits, monkeys, squirrels, fawns, groundhogs, and even a large black bear.
The animals sat upright with their necks stretched out, exceptionally quiet, like students paying close attention in class.
On a high branch nearby crouched a large brown raccoon, plump and blue-eyed. Looking down at the little animals with an endearingly clumsy air, she was telling them something.
Robbie couldn't understand a word of the animals' language.
He followed Vanessa, approaching cautiously.
The large raccoon's ears suddenly pricked up. She raised her head alertly and sniffed the air. Her ears twitched, her pupils abruptly contracted, and she waved a paw vigorously.
The animals listening to her scattered.
They had already been discovered, so there was no need to hide. Robbie and Vanessa stepped out in front of the raccoon.
"I never expected you to find me, even though I hid myself so well. You truly live up to your name as the leader of the Defias Brotherhood," the raccoon said in a human voice.
No wonder Vanessa had been nowhere to be seen these past few days. She had been secretly tracking someone all along.
Vanessa said coldly, "Qiyana Moonshadow, you know my methods. You won't escape this time. Talk. Who was that person?"
This large raccoon was actually a Druid.
A thought stirred in Robbie's mind. Qiyana Moonshadow was one of the fifty warriors who had raided the Dark Portal, one of the ten survivors, and the Alliance's first follower in the game.
Druids could turn into raccoons.
Of course, that was nothing special. In this world, there were plenty of animals Druids could turn into. Luobo'an's garrison had a female Night Elf Druid whose strength was somewhere between whiteboard and excellent. The only animal she could turn into was a rabbit, and she had no combat ability whatsoever.
Yet Luobo'an had kept her and even given her a raise. First, the female Druid was beautiful and had a great figure, making her particularly easy on the eyes. Second, she could grind medicine in rabbit form and was highly skilled in alchemy. Followers with professional skills were very popular at Moonchaser Camp.
"I don't know what you're talking about, and I don't know who you're looking for," the raccoon said, licking her paw and refusing to admit it.
"Don't try to hide it. I've been following you for days, and I've seen everything you've done. You turned into a different animal every time, but you had my Death Mark on you. There's no mistake."
"Death Mark. No wonder I couldn't shake you off my trail."
The large raccoon put on a look of realization.
"I admit I let a few sisters use my name, but I was only helping them find a way to make a living. Besides, the people who hired them were all nobodies. None of them was the person you're looking for."
Qiyana Moonshadow had taken part in the raid on the Dark Portal. She was a true warrior who had fought the Iron Horde directly, unlike those commanders of the Fallen Moon who had paid to "ding" their way up.
As a result, many adventurers followed suit and impersonated her.
Female elf Druids were one thing. After all, they were of the same race and class, so it was hard to tell them apart.
But among them were even humans, Worgen, Murlocs, and others, both male and female, with all sorts of classes. They all called themselves Qiyana Moonshadow.
"Tch!"
Vanessa looked disdainful. "Now that I've found you, do you think I'll leave empty-handed?"
The raccoon tilted her head and thought for a moment. "Since ancient times, when people's senses of justice have clashed, they've settled it in combat. That's a tradition among adventurers."
"That's right. Our Brotherhood often settles things that way too," Vanessa agreed.
The raccoon narrowed her eyes and rubbed her belly. "Leader of the Brotherhood, before our duel, you wouldn't mind if I had a little late-night snack, would you?"
She lifted a front paw slightly, revealing a little mouse trembling beneath it.
Vanessa nodded and gestured for her to go ahead.
The raccoon carried herself with remarkable poise and quite a noble air. First, she tucked a napkin around her chest, then took out a silver plate and laid out a knife, fork, spoon, and so on.
Next, she brought out all kinds of liquor and arranged the colorful bottles in a row before beginning to mix a drink.
Something felt wrong to Robbie. He asked Vanessa in a low voice,
"What's Qiyana Moonshadow's background?"
Vanessa said, "Qiyana Moonshadow is over eight thousand years old. She studied under the most powerful Druid among the Night Elf race, and her strength is extraordinary."
"The most powerful Druid? Malfurion Stormrage?"
Vanessa shook her head.
"Then it must be the demigod Cenarius," Robbie said confidently.
The demigod Cenarius had the upper body of a Night Elf and the lower body of a stag. He was one of Azeroth's Wild Gods. Legend said he was the trueborn son of the moon goddess Elune and the mentor of Archdruid Malfurion Stormrage.
"No, it was Illidan Stormrage." Vanessa was deadly serious, leaving no room for doubt.
"Illidan?" Robbie was puzzled.
Vanessa snorted and said quietly, "Qiyana Moonshadow knows every animal in the forest. She's an all-around shapeshifting Druid. She's escaped me seven times, so I specifically asked you to help this time. We absolutely can't let her get away again."
"I'm afraid I'm not strong enough to help," Robbie said, lacking confidence.
"You don't need to fight. I can handle her." Vanessa was brimming with confidence. "Qiyana Moonshadow is especially cunning. She's used tricks to escape several times."
So she needs me to come up with a plan. She should have said so earlier.
Robbie coughed and whispered in Vanessa's ear, "That raccoon definitely isn't Qiyana Moonshadow. She's an impostor."