What is most important to a King, a ruler?
Jaina's eyes shone brightly as she gazed at the peaceful night sky and the ancient trees growing on the hillside, their bark mottled and covered in knots. She already knew the answer in her heart.
All Kings face an irresistible temptation, and Varian, still young and not yet in control of Kingdom of Stormwind, is unaware of its allure.
Jaina must awaken him ahead of schedule.
Now that Prince Anduin's travels are under tight protection, Jaina, though an Archmage, is not yet capable of fighting a city alone. With the Prince's path blocked, Jaina has set her sights on Varian's many lovers.
Varian has many lovers, most of whom do not live in Stormwind City, but rather in nearby Elwynn Forest.
For the sake of the King's reputation, these lovers could not be made public, or at least had to maintain basic secrecy, so there were not many guards protecting them.
That evening, Varian went to see a lover living in Goldshire. She was a fallen noblewoman, sexy and slender, multi-talented, and especially skilled in cooking, which successfully captured Varian's heart.
Strangely, the noblewoman refused to see him, hiding her face and refusing to open the door or explain why. Varian's face immediately darkened; he suspected that another man was hiding in the house, and he suddenly felt a green light shining above his head.
When he forced his way in, he discovered that the girl had a gray stain on her face that she couldn't wash off or cover with makeup. The area covered by the stain made her skin look exceptionally old, covered with wrinkles, like old tree bark.
Clearly, this is the power of some kind of magic.
The woman he loved was crying her heart out, and he felt a deep pity for her. Varian quickly comforted her and summoned Mofeile, a herbalist from Dalaran, as well as a senior Priest from the Cathedral of Light.
Unfortunately, neither of them could do anything about it.
The Priest of the Cathedral of Light was quite old, but extremely experienced and knowledgeable. He carefully called the King aside and whispered:
"King Majesty, this is a deliberate spell, a very vicious form of black magic. Even cutting off the flesh won't help; it will gradually spread over time, eventually aging the person completely. No one can undo it except the caster."
Who did it?
Varian was furious, gritting his teeth. Who dared to oppose the King?
The old Priest's pupils contracted, his expression turned serious, and he lowered his voice again:
"This is a vicious spell from the Demons. I've heard that the Guardian Medivh collected similar spells. King Majesty, do you remember what happened to Khadgar?"
"Jaina!"
Varian immediately guessed the Blackhand behind it all. He suddenly realized something was wrong; if Jaina was behind it, there were probably many more victims than just this one.
Varian sensed something was wrong and hurriedly sent his trusted men to investigate.
Just as he expected, apart from the few who lived in Stormwind City and were unharmed, those who lived outside all fell victim to Jaina's cruelty.
Whether on their faces, chests, or thighs, there was a patch of gray stain that couldn't be wiped away and gradually spread. The delicate skin of these beautiful lovers was ravaged.
Enraged, Varian first searched for Jaina in Kingdom of Stormwind, but unfortunately, he couldn't find a trace of the Archmage.
Varian felt powerless and hated his own weakness, but a King would not easily give in.
"Jaina, do you think you can make me submit like this?"
Next, Varian thought of revenge, eliminating Jaina's henchmen in Stormwind City, and then negotiating with Jaina once he had enough leverage.
He regretted not having real power; otherwise, simply cutting off trade with Theramore and severing the allies' food supplies to Theramore would have been enough to give Jaina a hard time.
Varian infiltrated SI:7 and quickly found the intelligence he needed.
The King personally led his troops into the home of Lady Cassandra, Anduin's etiquette tutor.
Lady Cassandra remained remarkably calm, her hair perfectly combed, a delicate teacup in her hand. The King barged into her home, and she didn't even bother to look up.
Varian strode forward, drew his sword, and pointed it at the Lady.
"Cassandra, leader of the Twilight's Hammer in Stormwind City, you see, we've known your background for a long time. We didn't touch you because you hadn't done anything to harm Stormwind City, but you shouldn't have helped Jaina. You and your followers will be sent to Stormwind Prison to await trial. This is the price you pay."
"King Varian, I have been waiting for you for a long time."
Cassandra slowly raised her head and said calmly:
"I admit I've had contact with Jaina. She only asked me to give you two things: a formula to remove signs of aging, and an item that you'll definitely be interested in, though to be honest, I don't know what it is."
Varian was finally relieved. He quickly took the herbal recipe and Jaina's letter.
A handwritten letter to Varian.
Varian hurriedly opened Jaina's letter. After reading it carefully, he was first suspicious, then conflicted, and finally frowned deeply, falling silent.
He was moved.
Varian returned to Stormwind Keep with a troubled mind. He kept thinking about the contents of the letter and seemed somewhat absent-minded. He didn't even notice Countess Katrana Prestor, dressed in her finest clothes, walking towards him.
The elegant woman beckoned to Varian and said with a grin, "Little Lion, bring it here!"
"What would you like?"
Inside the corridor, illuminated by bright torches, Varian's face shifted between light and shadow.
"Jaina's letter to you, I know you too well, Your King."
Katrana smiled mockingly, "You absolutely cannot resist that temptation. To prevent you from dragging the Alliance into the mire, to prevent you from making an irreparable mistake, you must hand over that letter."
"Black Dragon Princess, you're following me!" Varian took a step back warily. Jaina's situation was giving him a headache, and he had no time to pay attention to the Black Dragon Princess's actions.
"This is a necessary action to prevent an immature King from making a foolish mistake."
Suddenly!
Black dragon wings appeared behind Countess Katrana, and deep purple Flames surrounded her body. The Countess extended her right hand, revealing a sharp black dragon claw, its metallic nails gleaming with a terrifyingly cold light.
"Your King, please do not provoke my anger; you cannot withstand the power of a fully grown Black Dragon."
"You damned Black Dragon, I swear I will not let you get away with this!" Varian cursed angrily, but he had no choice but to take out Jaina's letter and throw it at her.
"Oh! Oh! So your time training in Karazhan wasn't wasted after all. The Goldrinn's aura surrounds you; you are blessed by Demigod. With just a simple ritual, you can inherit the power of the Wild God."
"Do you really want this power, King Varian?" the Black Dragon Princess asked seductively, her dangerous eyes flashing a half-smile. "If this can buy you off, our Black Dragonflight can do it too. You know my brother has a laboratory in Blackrock Mountain, with a powerful, Chromatic Dragon Person body that's definitely no less than Wild God."
Varian simply looked to the side and remained silent.
The Black Dragon Princess raised her voice, pointing to the end of the letter and shrilly, "But no one can achieve this, immortality, eternal life—it's a lie, a complete and utter lie. Jaina is a liar."
Immortality is an irresistible temptation for almost any king.