Razor Hill and Frostwolf Howl

Goldshire had the famous Lion's Pride Inn, and Rend insisted on building a comparable inn in Razor Hill.

Thinking about it carefully, the lion represented Stormwind's royal family. As for something representing the Horde, the current Warchief was Thrall, and Thrall was from the Frostwolf Clan. The frostwolf represented his clan, so it would be the Frostwolf Howl Inn. What a perfect combination.

This time, the Horde could not fall so far behind the Alliance just because they were poor. If you had it, we had to have it too, and it absolutely could not be worse than yours. Rend's demands suited Gazlowe perfectly. Gazlowe had long wanted to build a city that surpassed Stormwind, which had been built by the Stonemasons' Brotherhood and whose humans had mocked him. I'll show you that my construction skills, Gazlowe's, are far superior to Edwin VanCleef's.

It was hard to say who was more skilled, Gazlowe or Edwin VanCleef, but at least Gazlowe had not suffered as miserably as Edwin VanCleef. Thrall and Rend would never withhold the Goblins' wages.

After discussing Orgrimmar in broad terms, Rend began talking about the outside. Razor Hill was to build a trade hub no weaker than Goldshire. The Valley of Trials was to establish a better recruit training ground than Northshire. The training grounds had to be luxurious, with everything that could be used, dedicated training areas for every class, and luxurious resting quarters to balance work and rest.

As an important transit hub controlling Orgrimmar's supply lifeline, Crossroads also had to undergo extensive reconstruction. It could not remain a simple large encampment like in Rend's previous life. It had to become a massive fortress with sturdy walls.

In the future, the Warsong Clan would supply the Horde with lumber and stand alone against the attacks of the entire Night Elf race. Warsong Lumber Camp also had to be built into a fortress. A whole clan that gave so much for the Horde could not be left with only a simple fort.

And then there were the Stonetalon Mountains. Rend decided to lead the Blackrock Clan in seizing that land for the Horde. The Warsong had settled in Ashenvale for lumber; as the second clan, the Blackrock naturally could not lag behind. He would go to the Stonetalon Mountains to mine its abundant mineral resources and provide weapons for the Horde.

In Rend's vision of the future, the Blackrock would occupy the Stonetalon Mountains through Blackrock Stronghold, Warsong Lumber Camp would occupy Ashenvale, and Orgrimmar would guard all of Kalimdor, turning everything south of that line into Horde territory. Rend was rather greedy and vain, but he wanted to be greedy, vain, and competitive. He wanted the Horde to one day crush the Alliance. The Horde and Alliance had always been the two great opposing powers, but everyone knew the Alliance was stronger. What was Rend's goal? To save the entire Horde and surpass the Alliance. For now, he had only saved the Blackrock Clan. He still had a long road ahead of him.

Gazlowe was stunned by Rend's grand ambition. By Rend's requirements, it would cost nearly the treasury of an entire kingdom. What he did not know was that Rend possessed the wealth of the human nobles in the shelter, the Black Dragon Prince, and the Blackrock Dwarves. Combined, it was more abundant than the treasuries of two kingdoms. Moreover, not all raw materials needed to be imported, and there was no need to hire Goblins for labor. The Warsong had lumber, along with ships already too damaged to use. The Blackrock Clan had stone and steel. The Orcs' enthusiasm for building a new homeland would naturally drive them to put their greatest effort into its construction.

The only expenses would be hiring Gazlowe and his professional team, as well as purchasing materials that could not be acquired otherwise.

Building the new homeland would have to wait until after the Battle of Mount Hyjal. For now, Rend first signed contracts with Gazlowe for the food, water, and medicine the Orcs needed, as well as the maintenance and modification of the equipment Rend had brought from the Blackrock Clan and the Black Dragonflight. Until Blackrock Foundry was built, those matters would be left to the Goblins.

Naturally, for his own indulgence, Rend ordered a large batch of Night Elf and High Elf fruit wine from Gazlowe in his own name.

After several days together, the two men who regretted not meeting sooner became friends. Unlike other Goblins, Gazlowe did not seek to squeeze profits from his Zhong Ziqi, instead settling for several times the usual profit. He clearly could have gouged Rend for a fortune and might even have become a new Trade Prince through cooperation with the New Horde. But compared with being a Trade Prince, Gazlowe wanted more to become the Horde's architect and work for those who appreciated his talent.

After staying for several days, Rend and Gazlowe decided to head north to join Thrall. To obtain Ratchet's large supply of goods, they had to open up the Barrens. But the Barrens were the territory of the centaurs and Quilboar. If the Orcs wanted to truly occupy this land, they would still have to fight a decisive battle against the Quilboar and centaurs. Only by beating them badly enough to make them submit and acknowledge the Horde's authority over the Barrens could it be done.

Rend rode Nais, his guards rode wyverns, and Gazlowe and his advisory team rode the Goblins' distinctive small aircraft as they flew together toward Razor Hill to join Thrall.

The return trip was clearly much faster than the journey there. On the way over, they had been unable to determine the exact direction, but on the way back, they could already confirm the shortest route.

In just a few days, Razor Hill had become a crude encampment built atop the ruins of the Quilboar fortress. From the sky, a vast army could be seen densely packed there, including Orcs, Trolls, and a small number of ogre warriors.

"The wind brought me word that you had returned. Welcome back, Rend, and welcome our new friend, Lord Gazlowe." Thrall had been waiting at Razor Hill's entrance early on. The wind elements had informed him that Rend would be returning.

"I hope I haven't delayed us, Warchief." Thrall had clearly settled the Horde's members ahead of time and returned first. By comparison, Rend's task had been much simpler, yet he had returned later.

"You must be Warchief Thrall. I am Gazlowe, ruler of Ratchet. I am impressed by your strength, and I believe Ratchet and the Horde would make excellent partners." Gazlowe was far more courteous toward Thrall because he knew this man was the true leader of the massive entity that was the Horde. Moreover, by instinct, he could sense the elements surrounding Thrall and protecting him. What formidable power it was, to be so supported by the elements.

"We only arrived shortly before you did, Rend. More importantly, it seems that Lord Gazlowe has arrived with you, so you have clearly reached an agreement. This is truly good news for the Horde." Thrall was just like that: generous, kind, and possessed of leadership. Under Thrall's guidance, Gazlowe soon joined the Horde as an adviser as well. If he had initially come for business and friendship, he now deeply felt the Horde's strength. He believed that under Thrall's leadership, the Horde would become Ratchet's finest partner. They would have countless deals to discuss in the future, and his talents as a master architect would finally have a chance to shine.