Neither King Varian nor Jaina had ever seen someone shamelessly demand a reward in public with such complete confidence, then ask to keep it in reserve until he decided what he wanted. Even Shandris and Aegwynn, with all their years of life, had never encountered anything like it.
Shawn had left King Varian utterly speechless. He simply did not know whether to lose his temper or burst out laughing.
Shawn was good at reading people. He had anticipated this situation long ago and knew that now was the time to soften his stance and offer something in return. That would give King Varian a graceful way out and let Shawn secure some real benefits.
Why else had Shawn insisted on getting Treebole? He was a mage and could not use it himself. He had acquired it precisely to prepare for this moment.
So Shawn shook Treebole out of his Spatial Pouch and looked at King Varian with a beaming smile. With utmost sincerity, he said, "Your esteemed Majesty, King Varian, you don't seem to have a suitable weapon right now. What do you think of this Two-Handed Axe? So massive, so sturdy, so sharp-and such a perfect match for your bearing!"
King Varian was a man who had seen the world. His usual weapons were a pair of epic-grade longswords, and the royal collection in Stormwind City held several more epic-grade longswords as spares. King Varian was a master swordsman.
But ever since becoming a gladiator under Regar, he had not touched another epic-grade weapon. The weapon he currently used was still the rare-grade longsword he had obtained after killing one of Regar's gladiators.
Although he rarely used axes, a Two-Handed Axe would do nicely when there was no alternative. It was epic-grade, after all, and far better than a