Mage

Early morning on Cross Island, in the middle of Lake Lordamere. The Violet Citadel was shrouded in mist, and its towering spires glowed faint purple beneath the newly risen sun.

In the council chamber commonly used by the Council of Six, a young mage with dark circles under his eyes lounged comfortably in an exquisite armchair from Quel'Thalas, waiting for his teacher. After declining the coffee offered by a magical servant, he pulled a small bottle of stimulant from an inner pocket of his robe and took a sip.

Kel'Thuzad was growing restless. His research into improving the Evocation School spell Frostbolt had reached a critical point, and he had gone several nights without sleep. Yet at this crucial moment, his teacher had insisted he come to the Violet Citadel for a meeting, leaving the young research fanatic thoroughly uncomfortable.

"Kel'Thuzad, I believe I told you long ago to stop taking this stuff for extended periods. You should take better care of yourself."

A flash of magical light appeared, and Antonidas, his hair and beard white as snow, materialized in the chamber. As he spoke reproachfully, he casually extended a withered hand. With a spell, the glass bottle slipped from the young mage's grasp without warning and flew into the old mage's hand.

It was only a simple, zero-rank Mage Hand spell, but in the hands of Antonidas, who had already reached legendary status, it was effortless. Kel'Thuzad had barely registered what happened before the potion bottle vanished from his hand.

"I know you're devoted to exploring the secrets of the Arcane, but sometimes we have to know when to make sacrifices. A healthy body is the price of pursuing the Arcane arts. I hope that when you're my age, you'll still be able to study the Arcane freely."

The old mage smiled as if scolding a child who would never grow up, then gave his diligent apprentice a final warning. "If I catch you using this little trinket to stay up in the laboratory again, don't blame me for using the Kirin Tor's authority to shut your lab down for a while."

"I promise," the young mage said earnestly, though his gaze never left the crystal-clear bottle in his teacher's hand.

The young man's intentions were all too obvious to an old man with plenty of life experience. Still, it was precisely this lack of interest in anything beyond magic that had made him a high-ranking mage capable of casting Seventh-Circle Spells at such a young age.

"I know what you're thinking, my apprentice." The old man shook his head with a wry smile. "Do you remember what I told you about the agreement between Dalaran and Lordaeron?"

"I remember you said there was something you needed me to do."

Kel'Thuzad held his mentor in great esteem. The man had looked after him ever since his days as an apprentice, and he inclined his head respectfully.

"More precisely, someone."

"Someone?" A trace of confusion appeared on the young mage's face.

"That's right. I need you to protect Prince Alvin," the old mage said, nodding. He raised a hand to stop the young man from speaking. "Don't rush to refuse. His Majesty Terenas has offered an extraordinary reward for his son's sake."

The old mage deliberately left him in suspense. After a brief pause, he continued, "The collection of books belonging to generations of royal court mages. I told you that you'd like it. Of course, while you're on guard duty for the prince, the Kingdom of Lordaeron will provide funding for your own research."

"All right, I accept." Under his teacher's gaze, Kel'Thuzad finally gave in. "Once I finish my current project, I'll go to Lordaeron."

"No, you leave at once." The old mage's expression grew unusually serious. "Your destination is Andorhal. Once you arrive, remember to do everything you can to support Prince Alvin's plans."

"I'm supposed to do everything I can to support Prince Alvin? A child who isn't even eight?"

His teacher's words left Kel'Thuzad stunned. He was a high-ranking mage, yet he was supposed to take orders from a child? Even he, with his almost nonexistent social awareness, found it unbelievable.

"Don't underestimate that child. He's a true genius." The old man narrowed his eyes, a faint smile on his lips. "Even I have to take his unusual ideas seriously. I imagine the same is true of the person in the palace at Lordaeron."

Meanwhile, at Andorhal City Hall, Alvin looked astonished after Archbishop Faol informed him of the message from the royal palace in Lordaeron.

"A mage from Dalaran?"

"That's right. His Majesty the King wants you to 'cooperate' with the mage in researching the gnolls. This is the greatest concession you'll get, so you know what to do?"

The archbishop's peculiar tone made the boy understand the meaning behind this suspicious-sounding order: putting the blame on the mage would give him plausible deniability. If things went wrong, he wouldn't be the one to take the fall. It was his father's way of giving him a safety net.

"I understand." Alvin nodded, taking the hint. "But may I ask who the mage coming to assist us is?"

"He is... Oh, he's already here."

The archbishop had barely begun when a young male mage appeared in the hall alongside a Runic Circle shimmering with magical light.

The old man narrowed his eyes at the magical glow that had suddenly appeared and the young man standing within the circle. He murmured in admiration, "It's been so many years, yet Master Antonidas's teleportation spell is still as precise and punctual as ever."

"Your Excellency, the high-ranking mage Kel'Thuzad greets you."

The young mage gave the old man a formal mage's salute, then turned to glance at the boy, who was staring in a daze after witnessing a teleportation spell for the first time. His voice was rather cool as he said, "My teacher sent me to protect Prince Alvin and assist with his gnoll project."

"I trust Master Antonidas's judgment. His apprentice must be a mage of considerable ability. Your presence will be a great help to our plans."

Archbishop Faol nodded to the male mage, whose expression was less than pleasant, then turned to the prince, still frozen in place. "Alvin, His Majesty can give you only six months. I hope those gnolls bring us good news before the Harvest Festival. Otherwise, you know what the consequences will be."

"Of course." Alvin came back to himself, his envy of the mysterious magic still lingering, and assured the archbishop, "But before we put the plan into action, I'd like to ask Master Kel'Thuzad one more question."

"Master, do you know anything about Alchemy?"

The boy tilted his head toward the mage beside him. His innocent, adorable smile was at odds with the two icy glints in his eyes, which made the young man—who often worked with ice in his experiments—feel a chill run down his spine for no apparent reason.