Compromise

The conditions weren't right yet?

The knight, who had just breathed a sigh of relief at the boy's promise that he "wouldn't accept the beasts' allegiance," felt his heart sink again. Was the prince really considering taking this pack of Gnolls as his servants?

The young knight furrowed his brow, wanting to continue persuading his master, but Alvin gave him no chance. He abruptly changed the subject. "Abberton, what do you think our advantage is over the other races in this world?"

The boy slowed his pace and tilted his head toward the royal guard beside him. His innocent profile made him look like a little kid asking his big brother why there was always a huge sun in the sky.

"An advantage?"

The young warrior was dumbfounded by the prince's sudden question.

Abberton was an orphan who had grown up in an orphanage established by the royal family. From the time he was old enough to understand, he had known only to train hard in swordsmanship and build up his physique, striving to become an honorable royal guard.

As for his cultural education, the nobles of the various kingdoms kept such knowledge firmly in their grasp. So, under the orphanage director's instruction, he and his childhood companions had learned only to read and write. They could hardly be called literate.

Normally, he would have received group training after joining the royal guard, but because his background was "clean," he had been assigned as Prince Alvin's personal guard. As a result, he had never had much time to properly study, and he couldn't answer a question like this at all.

Fortunately, Alvin hadn't expected him to answer. He had only asked to change the subject. Seeing that the young warrior's thoughts had been led elsewhere, the boy slowly shared his own understanding.

"In sheer strength, we can't match the Dwarves. In physical toughness, we can't match the Trolls. We can't keep up with the High Elves in the arcane arts, and the vast numbers of greedy Goblins leave us far behind in commerce. Then there are the Tauren and Night Elves from other continents—and even the mighty Dragons."

That string of sharp observations struck the young man to the heart. Like stone after stone tossed into a lake, they stirred up enormous waves within him.

Paying no heed to the increasingly grim look on the other man's face, the boy continued. "Have you ever wondered why we humans have managed to carve out a place for ourselves in a world like this—and even become, in a way, masters of this continent?"

"I... don't know."

Though he had become a high-ranking warrior, the young man's knowledge and experience were far inferior to those of the prince beside him, who stood only as tall as his waist. Social class and the circumstances of their lives had seen to that.

"Because of the power of learning and the courage to change."

The boy emphasized those two phrases before continuing. "We learned the art of forging from the Dwarves and improved our armor and weapons. We inherited the arcane arts from the High Elves, and have now developed a kingdom of magic. We know how to learn from the experience and lessons of powerful races. That is the power of learning."

"More than two thousand years ago, we humans slowly moved away from tribal life and formed an empire. We joined forces with the High Elves, who had been driven to the brink, and fought a desperate battle against the powerful Troll Empire. After the Troll Wars, our ancestors dared to leave the increasingly barren Arathi Highlands, cross the Wall of Thoradin, and build new homes. It was the courage of those pioneers that made the lands of Lordaeron almost our own backyard. Yet the High Elves, who were stronger fighters than us at the time, can now only eke out an existence in a corner of the world."

"We conquered this land and adapted to it, but at the same time, it bound us. Do the people of Lordaeron still have the courage to cross the Wall of Thoradin, open up new lands, and embrace new things?"

Alvin spoke with a wistful air. Then he stopped, turned around, and looked up at the tall warrior, his expression earnest.

"Abberton, my brother Arthas and I know some of the reasons Father took us to Dalaran a while ago. If the Kingdom of Stormwind falls, Lordaeron will face an unavoidable war. Can you imagine the chaos if the Trolls who are at odds with us, along with these humanoid monsters, started causing trouble behind our backs?"

That was why Terenas was mobilizing the entire kingdom to purge the humanoid beasts within Lordaeron after the Harvest Festival. It would secure the rear and provide the army with a chance to train—a double benefit. In a brutal war, a veteran who had seen battle could make a greater contribution and was far more likely to survive than a recruit hastily sent to the front. That was the king's final act of mercy.

Such preparations were necessary. In the few memories Alvin still retained from his previous life, after the Orcs landed in the Hillsbrad Foothills and reached an agreement with Zul'jin, leader of the Amani Trolls, to form the Horde, large numbers of Gnolls and Kobolds in Lordaeron's forests had indeed joined their ranks and attacked humanity.

Since he already knew what would happen in the future, even if he weren't the prince of Lordaeron, he would still do everything he could to reduce the enemy's potential strength, simply because he was human.

Before anything had actually happened, who could say whether history would follow the course he remembered? And that didn't even account for the unpredictable butterfly effect. If he did nothing, and the war ultimately unfolded differently from how he remembered it, with Lordaeron falling to the Orcs, that would be a true disaster.

"My father is already preparing to move against the beasts scattered throughout the mountains and forests. A Gnoll Shaman who speaks Common is the best gift Lordaeron could ask for. At the very least, he can give us a general idea of how the monsters hidden in the wilderness are distributed. That meteor that streaked across the sky that night really did bring us good luck!"

"Of course, it would be even better if we could use this pack of Gnolls as a breakthrough and bring all the humanoids hiding beyond the reach of human settlements under our protection. Then, whether war breaks out in Lordaeron or we send troops to aid the Kingdom of Stormwind, we could have these beasts charge into battle for Lordaeron's soldiers and greatly reduce the kingdom's losses."

The boy stopped and studied the royal guard's conflicted expression. Then he spoke gravely. "Abberton, I know this approach may be at odds with the way you and most people in Lordaeron have always thought. But for the good of the kingdom and the needs of its people, we must learn to compromise and selectively accept different ideas. If this plan is viable, I believe my teacher will support my decision too."