[Lowly Squire]

If Liam had been a fledgling mage or an inexperienced young noble, he might actually have been moved by the boy's performance. But the Liam of today wasn't so easily persuaded to take anyone in. What's more, the word "squire" from young Wilton's lips had sparked a rather daring idea. If it worked, it could greatly benefit his plans for the future.

"Since you say you want to be my squire, then show me your sincerity."

Liam's response caught the boy off guard. He gritted his teeth, then bowed to Liam, performing every rite expected of a knight's squire serving his master. His movements were impeccable and entirely natural.

Seeing that the boy had performed the proper gestures, Liam turned his gaze on him.

As Liam studied him intently, a panel appeared clearly in front of the boy, confirming his current identity—Liam's second follower so far.

[Name: Lowly Squire (Wilton)]

[Status: Creature, Loyalty 30]

[Origin: Caer Darrow Island]

[Type: Follower]

[Rarity: Common]

[Stats: Attack (1), Health (2), Mana Crystal Cost (1)]

Seeing the data on the panel, Liam narrowed his eyes. It was obvious that the boy's pledge of allegiance wasn't sincere. His loyalty score of just 30 made that perfectly clear.

Still, though his loyalty was low, it proved the boy did have some sincerity. As long as Liam didn't lose his composure, there was no risk of a treacherous servant turning on his master. Besides, the boy looked to be only eleven or twelve, a little younger than Liam, and was scrawny to boot. He posed no threat to Liam whatsoever.

Most importantly, Liam had already guessed who the boy was. Given how desperately he craved power, a few well-chosen measures would be enough to make him follow Liam "devotedly"—at least on the surface. His true feelings didn't matter at all.

"Wilton Barov... The infighting within the Barov Family has reached this point? Using an enemy's hand to kill your own younger brother... That's the Barov way, all right..."

Liam quickly searched through his other set of memories for relevant information.

The Barov Family, a noble house of the Alterac Kingdom, had once controlled vast, fertile lands east of the Alterac Mountains. Brill, Tarren Mill, Caer Darrow, Southshore... These places had all been their fiefs, and their wealth rivaled that of the Alterac royal family.

The sprawling family had Arathi ancestry. For generations, its members had lived in an ancient Arathi fortress on Caer Darrow Island, in the middle of Lake Darrowmere, preserving the bloodline of this ancient and noble house.

The Alterac Kingdom's rebellion four years ago had changed the family's fate completely. The rebels repeatedly harassed the Kingdom of Dalaran's forces around Hillsbrad, and even besieged Dalaran for a time. But their good fortune didn't last. The rebels entrenched in Dalaran were soon routed, and the remnants of the Alterac Kingdom's forces fled to the Barov Family's territory on Caer Darrow Island, in Lake Darrowmere.

At that point, the Barov Family made a decisive choice of sides, openly backing the Alliance of Lordaeron. With the help of the Silvermoon City elven fleet, they broke through the Orc forces' encirclement, which had been intended to blockade Lake Darrowmere, and handed the rebels over to the Alliance of Lordaeron.

Thanks to their political acumen, the Barov Family won Dalaran's forgiveness. At the same time, they became sworn enemies of the Alterac Kingdom's traitors—the Syndicate, a thieves' guild.

After the war, however, King Terenas Menethil of Lordaeron purged the Barov Family, remnants of Alterac. He stripped them of their rule over Brill, Tarren Mill, and Southshore, turning the region into a base for the construction of the Orc prison, Durnholde Keep.

The Barov Family had no choice but to accept the situation in silence. But driven by their greed for land and wealth, they turned entirely against the Kingdom of Lordaeron.

The Barov Family was now at this turning point in its decline, and its members were still consumed by infighting. Its eventual downfall was all but inevitable.

Looking at the boy before him, Liam felt a trace of sympathy. After all, they were both living under the shadow of the powerful Kingdom of Lordaeron. Gilneas could rely on its natural defenses to build a wall, then cut ties with the Alliance of Lordaeron for good. But the Barov Family's lands weren't so fortunate. They could only watch helplessly as vast stretches of their territory were taken away, while also struggling to weather the bitter storms of family infighting.

Politicians were good at weighing their options and making hard choices. When the Kingdom of Gilneas was invaded by the Forsaken, for instance, Genn, the Wolf King, had resolutely revealed that he was a Worgen in order to win over the people of Gilneas, most of whom had already been transformed into Worgen. Yet he had ignored the noble class represented by Godfrey, a radical "human supremacist."

But Liam couldn't understand what that senile, muddleheaded king of Lordaeron had been thinking. He had hundreds of thousands of prisoners of war living right beside him—didn't he understand that he was nurturing a future threat? Over this one matter, he had thoroughly alienated allies who had originally stood on his side, and ended up creating a mortal enemy besides! Other than showing off his iron fist, it was hard to see what good could come of such a decision...

At this point in time, the Kingdom of Lordaeron had indeed reached the height of its power, towering over the surrounding kingdoms. But such glory couldn't last. Once it began to decline, all sorts of factions would rise, seizing their chance to claim a place for themselves amid the chaos.

The Lich King's rampage through the northern lands had already become unstoppable, and he was hunting down the "little spiders" entrenched underground. Deathwing had also infiltrated the human Alliance, his influence deeply rooted and impossible to dislodge. The Orcs were building their strength, waiting for a great leader to appear and lead them in a counterattack.

For now, Liam had no desire to cross swords with these great powers, nor did he have the ability. He only wanted to build a strong foundation and protect the people of the Kingdom of Gilneas.

If he had strength to spare, he wouldn't mind helping the common people of other kingdoms living under the shadow of war. As for the nobles who did nothing but hold everyone back, well, Liam might have been born into their ranks, but he had no interest in them as people. Their territory and wealth, though... Those were worth considering. War made taking in refugees a huge drain on resources. Liam couldn't place that burden on Gilneas alone; he would have to find sources of wealth elsewhere.

And the hoarded wealth amassed over a thousand years by the greedy, insatiable Barov Family was the greatest source of wealth Liam could see.