The Kingdom of Stormwind's Warm Welcome (Part Two)
Jaina loved balls. Dressed in gorgeous attire, she basked in the admiring gazes of the crowd and danced and sang with elegant young nobles. A former star of the Dalaran Balls, she accepted the invitation without hesitation.
In Theramore, the dark and damp Castle, the rainy weather, the muddy roads, and the constant presence of sweaty, smelly soldiers made life unbearable, with little opportunity for social interaction.
Jaina longed for the lavish balls of Kingdom of Stormwind's high society.
Jaina is no longer young. She was born three years before the Dark Portal, and now it is twenty-four years Dark Portal. At this age, she has long since left behind the naive and innocent girl. She should be a sophisticated and elegant noblewoman, moving among the nobles at the ball with her superb skills and the charm of a mature woman.
But Jaina still looks very young and can easily be mistaken for an eighteen or nineteen-year-old girl. As an Archmage, Jaina has mastered many secret methods of preserving youth and can help them delay the onset of aging.
A luxurious carriage awaited outside the inn, drawn by four tall, strong horses with coats as fine as silk, clearly exceeding the usual specifications. With the help of attendants, Jaina boarded the carriage, her girlish heart already soaring towards the ball.
Robbie hid in the shadows at the street corner, carefully observing Jaina, noticing her changing expressions, her behavior, and the subtle glint in her eyes. Some things must be witnessed firsthand to see the truth.
Robbie never underestimated Jaina. A young woman who could support Theramore and navigate between the Alliance and the Horde with ease was no ordinary person. Dealing with such an enemy required extreme caution.
Seeing that Jaina's expression and demeanor were normal, Robbie was relieved.
The ball was held at the Earl Agramande Estate. After the old Earl's death, his eldest son, who inherited the title, did not have any outstanding talents. Fortunately, the old Earl left behind a considerable Wealth, enough for him to indulge in nightly revelry.
The buildings once belonging to the Orcs Cult have long been demolished. Now, Stormwind City and the Night Elf race are on good terms, and the popular style is the simple, understated, and nature-friendly style of the Elves, mainly consisting of Elf wooden houses and wooden archways, with green vines climbing the walls, giving it a fresh, natural feel.
When a large group of heavily made-up noblewomen and fresh-faced young girls came out to greet her, their colorful skirts fluttering, it was as if she were in a beautiful flower garden. Jaina immediately fell in love with the place.
Noblewomen praised Jaina's beauty in various ways, deliberately flattering and ingratiating her. She seemed to have returned to the time of Dalaran, rightfully becoming the queen of the ball and the focus of everyone's attention.
As for the noblemen, they were all captivated by Jaina's outstanding charm and went to great lengths to get close to Jaina. Many noblemen expressed their admiration for her, either subtly or directly.
More than a dozen suitors proposed to Jaina on the spot, leaving Jaina exhausted but also enjoying it.
This is the life a noblewoman should have.
Although she rejected the men's ardent advances, she politely accepted some invitations, such as hunting trips, outings, horse races, or interesting themed salon gatherings, all of which attracted Jaina.
Among the elegantly dressed noblemen were many handsome and dashing figures. A young Lord with High Elf blood, handsome yet spirited, caught Jaina's attention. It was common for noblemen to occasionally spark a romance and experience a brief passion, and Jaina was not averse to it.
The next day, when Jaina woke up from her hangover at the ball, she found her schedule packed with activities. For a moment, she regretted the promise she had made so easily at the ball, but she quickly relented to reality, dressed up beautifully, and enjoyed her rare moment of leisure.
Jaina was completely captivated by Stormwind City's high society, and things went surprisingly smoothly.
Black Dragon Princess, Robbie, and Vanessa reunited.
"Don't expect this extravagant lifestyle to last long. Jaina will eventually come to her senses and realize what she should be doing." Robbie looked at the eager Black Dragon Princess and the unsteady, distracted Vanessa. "We need to seize this rare opportunity and carry out our plan."
"Drug her to get Jaina pregnant, at least delaying her return to Theramore by ten months. Would she really go back with such a big belly?" The Black Dragon Princess eagerly revealed her plan. "I have a very effective special medicine, guaranteed to work on the first try. Hmm, not bad. Jaina should start thinking about the heir to Theramore."
Robbie rubbed his forehead and shook his head. What an insidious and terrifying scheme! It was audacious, reckless, and unreliable.
After much deliberation, Robbie decided to stick to the original course of history.
"We need to seize the initiative. Since Jaina wants to see King Varian, we'll grant her wish. Right here in Stormwind City, we'll tear King Varian into two separate individuals. We'll hand one over to Jaina. If we successfully meet with Thrall and reach an agreement, we'll immediately bring up Varian of Stormwind City and accuse the agreement of being illegal. We'll ensure everything goes smoothly."
After listening, the Black Dragon Princess nodded as if she understood, "It's a good idea, but how do you do it?"
"How do you do that?" Robbie asked curiously.
"What I mean is, how to tear Varian apart into two people," the Black Dragon Princess explained.
Robbie and Vanessa exchanged glances, sensing each other's unease.
"Countess, don't you know that magic?" Vanessa asked anxiously.
"What kind of magic? Magic that can tear a person apart?" The Black Dragon Princess scratched her head, somewhat puzzled. "Tearing a person apart is easy, but I can't guarantee they'll be alive."
"This is how the magic turns one person into two," Robbie explained in detail, describing how Varian split into two people: King Varian and the Gladiator Lo'Gosh.
Upon hearing Robbie's description, the Black Dragon Princess scoffed:
"How could such magic exist? Although the House Wrynn possesses the talent of having two souls in one body, these two souls are fused together, interdependent. Extracting one soul isn't difficult; the real challenge is creating a body, which magic cannot accomplish. Perhaps illusions could be used, but they would only last a few days. Or one could find a corpse, disguise it as Varian, and use Undead magic to bring it back to life. Of course, Jaina could easily see through that."
Robbie and Vanessa realized they had been deceived by history once again.
Black Dragon Princess had never heard of magic that could turn one person into two.
What to do? How could they possibly fool Jaina without two King Varian? Robbie also thought about what would happen next: what about Shadow Anduin whose soul was hidden within the Life Crystal?
"Has Jaina met King Varian?" Vanessa suddenly asked.
Upon hearing Robbie, Robbie had a sudden inspiration. The current King Varian was indulging in wine and women, and even among the nobles of Stormwind City, few people, let alone the outsider Jaina, knew what King Varian looked like.
"We can find someone to dress up as King Varian and meet with Jaina to appease her for now," Robbie devised the next plan.