This Is an Illusion! What Are You Hiding!

Aegwynn began her apprenticeship. Every time she saw her teacher, she couldn't help but marvel.

It was the legendary Merith Winterwind! Hadn't he died in battle and been buried? Now he stood before her as an Undead.

As they grew familiar, Aegwynn found this legendary figure to be very approachable. He never put on airs of superiority due to his status. He was professional and personal; in private conversations, Merith shed his teacher persona, chatting and laughing with Aegwynn. He would often take her to play in Lordaeron City, always concealing himself beneath his hood.

However, when it came to training, Merith was exceptionally strict. Aegwynn often complained about the harsh, even cruel, training. Whenever Aegwynn returned from the forest, dragging her exhausted, scarred body, she would secretly complain to Alodi.

Alodi would always smile and comfort Aegwynn, "Your teacher has already lessened the training intensity because you are a young girl."

"This is lessened? If it wasn't, people would die!"

Alodi's expression turned serious. He looked at Aegwynn and said softly, "No, back then, your teacher's teacher trained him in the same way. Also... whatever you do, don't let Lord Merith know you have any disrespect for your grand-teacher, or you'll truly be finished."

Aegwynn blinked, "Merith's teacher? I've read about him in books, was he the Divine Emissary of the legendary God of Magic? I thought that was just a legend."

"No, it's real," Alodi became serious. "The Divine Emissary Hu Feng is real. His magical power is unmatched, and Lord Merith was personally taught by him."

"Then why doesn't he come to help us? We've suffered so much, and we have so many enemies."

"Because my teacher also has greater threats to deal with, Aegwynn. I hope this is the last time you question my mentor." Merith slowly walked over, his expression stern.

Aegwynn's face turned pale with fright. She lowered her head, remaining silent, her heart filled with immense fear and curiosity towards this grand-teacher she had never met.

And so, the future Guardian Aegwynn continued her cruel, torturous training. Merith replicated Hu Feng's training methods on his own disciple. Even Alodi, who assisted Merith as a teaching assistant, found it hard to bear at times, but Merith would always shut him down with a barrage of reasons: "Alodi! Do you want a qualified and competent Guardian, or a pampered mage lord! If it's the former, then do as I say!"

Although Aegwynn complained often and would occasionally throw small tantrums at Merith, over time, she gradually understood Merith's good intentions and the benefits of such rigorous training. Their master-disciple relationship began to improve.

******

Suramar City.

The huntress Saelin felt incredibly bored. She hadn't been assigned any tasks recently, and with nothing to do, she wandered around Suramar City. Saelin possessed exceptional skills in both ranger and magic disciplines. She excelled at attacking enemies from a distance and enjoyed trapping them with countless control skills, then slowly killing them like a game of cat and mouse. Coupled with her elusive stealth abilities, she had killed no less than eight hundred beasts and various spies.

Saelin had a rather casual personality. She never planned her routes, going wherever she pleased, or often changing her destination mid-journey. It was this casual nature that led her to fail to complete missions on time several times. Archmage Elisande was very troubled by this fierce girl, who was highly capable but also had equally obvious flaws. She finally decided to temporarily cancel all her missions, letting her learn discipline first.

The Divine Emissary also learned of her situation. After some consideration, with a grand wave of his hand, he reassigned her to patrol Suramar City and the nearby Darkshore. This made Saelin very happy; at least she finally had something to do.

Saelin, along with her agile panther pet, weaved through the streets and alleys of Suramar. However, no one noticed them, as both she and her pet were cloaked in stealth, sticking to rooftops and hidden paths.

Hmm... Suramar is too peaceful. There are no enemies. Tomorrow, I'll go to Darkshore or Ashenvale to slaughter some Naga and elementals for fun...

"This is an illusion! What are you hiding!?"

A loud shout suddenly drew Saelin's attention. She quickly ran towards the source of the sound.

A Nightborne was warily staring at an ordinary Highborne mage, adopting an aggressive stance, while the latter looked somewhat at a loss.

Saelin quickly noticed something was amiss. This Highborne mage seemed to have the aura of illusion. Although his behavior wasn't obvious, there were very subtle flaws.

The Highborne mage took a step forward, seemingly about to explain something. His hand suddenly twitched, and a puff of black smoke emerged. As the smoke cleared, the mage had vanished. The Nightborne furiously unleashed an Arcane Explosion and a Frost Nova, but still found nothing.

However, this didn't stump the huntress Saelin. Her Eagle Eye had already locked onto the High Elf rogue who had used Vanish and was rapidly escaping in stealth. Saelin suddenly accelerated, closing the distance with the rogue. She shot a Binding Arrow, which directly hit the rogue, instantly breaking his stealth and immobilizing him. Saelin's panther rushed forward, biting the rogue's arm and savagely tearing at it.

The rogue was on the verge of tears. Where did this fierce woman come from! She just came out of nowhere with a stun and a beating... Stealth was useless, was there any fairness!

Gritting his teeth, the High Elf rogue activated Vanish again. Using Vanish twice in a row placed immense demands on the rogue's skill and physical endurance. The moment he entered stealth, the rogue activated Sprint and Evasion, heading towards Suramar's sewers, the Magic Corridor. The terrain there was narrow and winding; he was sure he could shake off this crazy woman.

The entrance to the Magic Corridor was just ahead! Closer! Even closer! Victory was within...

Snap!

Another Binding Arrow hit him in the back...

Damn it! She chased me halfway across Suramar! Will this crazy woman ever give up!

Gritting his teeth, he activated Shadow Cloak! A trickle of blood flowed from the corner of the rogue's mouth. He gathered his spirits and continued his escape.

The Magic Corridor was still bustling. The High Elf rogue blended into the crowd, continuing deeper. In his haste, he didn't notice the giant Arcane Spiders crawling slowly on the rooftops from time to time...

The crowd grew thinner and thinner, until there was almost no one left. The rogue looked back; the crazy woman's flare had arrived before she did.

Dodging two guards who were complaining about something, the rogue entered the deepest hall. It was a world of pure white.

Huh? Why did the style suddenly change?

Suddenly, the rogue felt his feet go numb. He looked down and saw a mass of white spider silk had somehow entangled his feet, injecting venom into his body.

A sound of mandibles rubbing together reached him. The rogue looked ahead. A giant spider, holding its two crystalline purple forelegs, stared at him with eight malicious eyes.

"Crazy woman! I'm here! Save me! I'd rather die by your hand!!"

I never want to come to Suramar again!!!

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