The Prince's Wish

A warm spring breeze blew across the surface of Lordamere Lake. In the ancient wishing well, a thick layer of gold, silver, and copper coins shimmered, refracting points of light through the clear water.

In the center of the pool, a statue that looked like an elf held an ancient water jar. A murmuring stream of water flowed continuously from the jar, striking the calm surface and splashing into tiny droplets and ripples.

This wasn't the Lordaeron Royal Palace; he was in Dalaran!

Still shaken, Alwin struggled to calm the fear in his heart, looking down at the shining Lordaeron gold coin in his hand. The side that should have been imprinted with the blue double-headed eagle emblem had become smooth and polished, as if a sentence had been branded onto it with fire—

"I hope my brother Arthas can make the right choices and become a benevolent and wise king."

His greatest fear stemmed from the Lich King Arthas he knew so well, so the wish deep in his heart was also related to Arthas: he did not want his brother to walk the path of patricide he remembered.

Everything happened in a flash, over the course of just a few breaths.

After steadying his emotions, Alwin looked at Arthas, who still had his eyes tightly closed beside him. Compared to the terrified Alwin, this brother seemed to have encountered something pleasant; his cheeks were slightly flushed, and a faint smile played on his lips.

Not long after, Arthas opened his eyes, his gaze meeting Alwin's as the boy observed him. In that instant, Alwin clearly noticed a flicker in his brother's eyes. Although he didn't know what the other had encountered in the vision, Alwin had no interest in prying into others' privacy.

"Shall we toss them in together?" The boy weighed the gold coin in his hand, intending to end the game.

"No, let me see your wish first!"

Although he always carried himself as the older brother, compared to the precocious Alwin, the eldest prince of Lordaeron was still just an eight-year-old child. Arthas snatched the gold coin from the boy's hand unexpectedly, wanting to see what kind of wish his "genius" younger brother wanted to realize.

Unfortunately, the lively prince forgot one thing: gossip is a universal human trait. While he was curious about his brother's wish, the little girl standing behind him was also raring to go. Taking advantage of Arthas's move toward Alwin, Jaina launched her own action—

The little girl, who had been a full two steps away from Arthas, leaped lightly and arrived at the prince's side, making one wonder if this mage apprentice possessed the agility of a rogue.

In the blink of an eye, Jaina's fair, delicate hand slammed onto Arthas's arm. However, the prince, who had been training for over a year, wouldn't let her succeed so easily. He nimbly dodged the girl's surprise attack and, as if teasing a kitten, tossed the gold coin toward his younger brother.

Just as the girl was about to continue the entanglement, Kel'Thuzad, who had been standing silently to the side, stepped forward to end the farce. The young mage pointed toward a carriage slowly approaching from the distance and said softly, "Children, I'm afraid you must end this excursion. King Terenas and Archmage Antonidas are already here."

"You're lucky!" The girl puffed out her cheeks, shook her fists forcefully at the brothers, then turned around and assumed a ladylike demeanor, following the young mage toward the old mage by the carriage.

"Shall we continue?" Seeing the carriage drawing closer, Alwin nudged Arthas, who had fallen into a daze at some point.

"So cute... ah, no!"

Arthas was pulled from his stupor by the boy, his expression changing abruptly: "Father hates us touching these ethereal things. If he finds out, we'll likely be grounded for a month."

The young prince hid the coin engraved with the wish inside his tunic and leaned over to whisper, "Don't let Father know I dragged you into this, or we'll both be in big trouble."

Before he could finish, Arthas put on a smiling face and trotted toward the carriage in the distance. Alwin followed closely behind him. In the glow of the setting sun, the boy's happy silhouette was deeply imprinted in his mind.

In his own palm lay a gold coin imprinted with the small wish in Arthas's heart—"I hope to live happily forever with Mom, Dad, and my little brother. Oh, and my new friend Jaina."

Night fell, and brilliant stars filled the entire silent sky. The evening breeze brushed across the surface of Lordamere Lake, stirring ripples, and the black water reflected the entire night sky. The shimmering starlight in the lake and the stars hanging high in the firmament echoed each other, creating a mysterious and tranquil atmosphere.

To welcome Terenas and the two princes, Violet Citadel was exceptionally lively today. Most of the mages who usually holed up in their laboratories tinkering were participating in the banquet to welcome the distinguished guests.

Of course, one should never assume that this group of social-deficit shut-ins was showing their faces out of respect for the Kingdom of Lordaeron or Terenas. The real reason was that Antonidas had used this meeting to reach a series of cooperative plans with Terenas. With a benefactor present, even mages with only one string in their brains had to hold their noses and come out to create a harmonious atmosphere.

Throughout the evening, Prince Arthas, the future heir to Lordaeron, stayed by Terenas's side, paying respects to one stranger after another dressed in mage robes with kindly expressions.

The lively prince had long since grown weary of this dull and tedious social interaction—maintaining a smile, bowing repeatedly, not being allowed to speak loudly, not being allowed to eat heartily—but this was what an heir to the throne had to experience and endure. In the future, he would encounter even more hypocritical and cunning figures, and these current drills were all in preparation for what was to come.

Having forgotten how many times he had bowed to a mage approaching his father, Arthas twisted his stiff back and waist inconspicuously. Now, he felt a bit envious of his "carefree" younger brother.

"At least Alwin doesn't have to be forced to do such troublesome things, and Father and Mother are always so indulgent toward him."

The young prince glanced sideways at the group of refined-looking mages in the hall, feeling somewhat frustrated. However, another thought immediately crossed his mind—if it were Alwin, would he do better than himself?

His younger brother had stepped onto the path of the Light under the guidance of Archbishop Alonsus Faol years ago, becoming a well-known genius in Lordaeron. Not only that, as far as he knew, Alwin spent almost every day studying, aside from the training arranged by the master-at-arms; he had already finished nearly half the books in the royal library.

Compared to him, he, the older brother who hadn't even finished learning the history of the human kingdoms, was truly a blockhead. Perhaps this was the reason Father was so indulgent toward him; after all, Alwin was a one-of-a-kind genius.

Thinking of this, a scene from an hour ago flashed through the prince's mind—his younger brother had excused himself on the grounds of prayer, and his usually strict father had allowed it without a word. Perhaps this was the different treatment afforded to a genius versus a mortal?

Arthas stood there blankly, lost in his thoughts, completely unaware that, besides his reticent brother, a lively little someone was also missing from the banquet hall.