"Should I be thankful Jaina didn't come?" Deren muttered to himself in despair, feeling like he could hardly breathe.
As if to slap him in the face, a soft knock came from outside the bedroom door, the rhythm so precise it sounded like some kind of music.
"Mistress?" came the voices of the three Dragon Maid, followed by Luna's sweet voice coming through the door, "Would you like our services? A bedtime massage? Or a sleep aid package?"
Just as Onyxia was about to refuse, a suspicious noise came from the floor under the bed. Three red Dragon Maid had already pushed open the door and entered, their exquisite silk nightgowns outlining their stunning figures in the moonlight.
"What are you guys playing? Want to join us?" Aella cheered, and the three Dragon Maid pounced on the already overburdened Cantonese-style wooden furniture.
"No! Wait—" Deren's warning came too late.
With a deafening "crack," the wooden frame finally gave up. In the instant it collapsed, the sharp-eyed Onyxia saw a flash of Arcane Light under the bed—someone had used Teleportation Spell to escape.
" Jaina?!" The Black Dragon Princess's roar mingled with the screams of the crowd, shaking the portrait on the wall until it tilted slightly.
The wooden frame broke, the cushions collapsed, and a group of people rolled around like drowned rats. When the dust settled, Deren struggled to crawl out of the crowd, a piece of broken wooden frame hanging from his hair, and the belt of his bathrobe had come undone at some point.
"I'm going to sleep on the sofa in the living room," he announced, turning and walking downstairs without looking back, his back etched with exhaustion. He was finally convinced that being Lord Wei was no easy task!
A Onyxia came from behind. "My little dwarf, your elbow is hitting me!"
"It wasn't me! It was Jaina's hand!" Chromie's voice was muffled, as if something was pressing down on it.
"Sister Liya, your foot is on my face," Anveena muttered, feeling wronged.
"Sorry! I can't find a foothold—" Jaina's voice came from a pile of bedding.
"Who touched my back?!" This was Sylvanas's roar.
"It's me! It's me!" Luna replied cheerfully, "I'll give you a massage!"
Deren slammed the living room door shut, shutting the chaos out of his mind. He slumped onto the sofa, staring at a crack in the ceiling, pondering where his life had gone wrong.
A slight noise suddenly came from the kitchen. Deren looked up alertly and saw Jaina sneaking out, her usually impeccable mage robes covered in dust, and a few spider webs hanging from her hair.
The two looked at each other, and an awkward silence ensued.
"What are you doing so late?" Deren finally asked, his voice dry.
Jaina's face flushed as red as her robes. "I just came to get some water." She tried to maintain the dignity of Archmage, but the constant patting of her robes betrayed her panic.
Deren pointed to the spiderweb in her hair. Jaina brushed it off in annoyance, then sighed, "Well, I'm curious what they're up to." She paused, her voice lowering, "I didn't expect the scaffolding to collapse."
Deren shifted to the side of the sofa, gesturing for her to sit down. Jaina hesitated for a moment, then carefully sat on the edge of the sofa, her back ramrod straight, as if attending the Mage Council of Dalaran.
"No way?" Deren looked at the Archmage, who should theoretically be the most rational, "You've joined the 'Night Raid' operation too?"
Jaina's ears turned bright red. She cleared her throat and instantly reverted to her aloof and noble ruler demeanor. "No! I just—" She hesitated for a moment, but her explanation was interrupted by another argument coming from the bedroom upstairs.
After a while, she stretched out her left hand, revealing a clump of some kind of grass in her palm. " Dreamgrass, I found it in the kitchen. Some maid probably accidentally put it in the tea. Then everyone listened to Chromie's story and drank some wine. So everyone's in a bit of a relaxed mood tonight."
"No wonder, I felt everyone was acting strangely. I'm well aware of my own charm; it's impossible for me to attract so many female dragons, female spirits, female wells, and women to be together," Deren said with a wry smile.
"You are special!" Jaina whispered as she approached Deren.
Deren shook his head. "I'm just a mortal, nothing special. You are the Goddess that every man in Azeroth longs for! They could line up from Theramore to Stormwind City."
"Pfft!" Jaina laughed. "Am I that good? Don't let my status as a Princess, an Archmage, and the port city of Theramore fool you. Theramore used to be a wasteland, though it looks nice now. Back then, I was just a pretty Princess."
Speaking of Theramore, Deren asked curiously, " Jaina, what made you decide to develop your career in Theramore? Why didn't you give up being the Princess of Kul Tiras or the Archmage of Dalaran? Why are you spending all your time in Theramore building things up?"
Upon hearing Deren's question, Jaina paused for a moment before letting out a long sigh, "Because I don't want to be a decorative Princess waiting for a political marriage."
"So that's why you gave up everything to make a name for yourself in Theramore. At least you'd be a Princess with your own city, and no one's forcing you to marry someone you don't like?" Deren asked.
Jaina nodded and began to recount the past. "The area of Theramore was discovered by Kul Tiras's scout ships a long time ago; it possessed the potential to be developed into an excellent port. However, construction on it has remained stagnant for a long time."
"Why?"
"Ports serve two main purposes: trade and transshipment. But Theramore is surrounded by Swamp of Sorrows and the Barrens, so what need is there for trade? At that time, the races of Kalimdor —whether Tauren, Troll, Night Elf, or Centaur —did not trust Kul Tiras, let alone have any need for transshipment trade. Therefore, Kul Tiras never considered building a port here," Jaina explained.
What happened next?
"And then?" Jaina fell into deep thought, seemingly recalling events from a long past. After a moment of silence, she said, "As for what happened afterward, that's a very long story."
"Oh, it's okay if you don't want to talk about it." Deren, afraid of triggering some bad memories for Jaina, quickly indicated that it was fine if she didn't want to hear it.
Jaina, instead, looked intently at Deren: "Although you said you received the Apocalypse of Azeroth and know many things in the past and future, you are not omniscient or omnipotent, are you?"
"Of course, even Titan have their limitations. I'm just a mortal, and my knowledge is limited." Deren didn't deny his shortcomings.
Jaina nodded, her expression turning serious. "You must be curious about my relationship with Arthas, right?"
Deren wanted to say he wasn't curious, but under Jaina's gaze, he felt embarrassed to lie and could only nod slightly.
"It's a secret. Even if the Bronze Dragon have the ability to observe time, they can't discover the real secret behind this." Jaina thought for a moment and decided to tell Deren the truth.
"If it's some important secret, you don't have to tell me." Deren decided it was best not to hear other people's secrets. Otherwise, he wouldn't be able to sleep well.
Jaina shook her head. "This secret has been buried in my heart for many years, and I hope you can hear me tell it. It's about my relationship with Arthas, about me leading the refugees from Lordaeron across the sea to Kalimdor, about the founding of Theramore, and Chromie saying that I was on another Timeline, coldly watching my father being killed by the orcs. These are all just the consequences of this secret."
Deren: Is this something I can hear? Is it too late to pretend to be asleep?
First update.