Compensation

First of all, by Orendo's standards of beauty, Kael'thas was handsome—a total hunk. There was no question about it.

His Uncle Kael was currently dressed in a long gold-and-red robe. His face had resolute, angular contours and masculine features, without the slightest trace of the effeminacy the male blood elves had in the game.

His ice-blue eyes seemed wreathed in mist, carrying maturity without making him seem old. He was composed, noble, and mysterious.

And in Kael'thas's advisors' eyes, this grandnephew of their prince was far better-looking than those humans. Perhaps because of his half-human bloodline, he possessed a temperament distinct from the Quel'dorei.

The prince's underage grandnephew was currently no taller than the prince's shoulder. Yet his face, which still faintly revealed his elven heritage, was in no way inferior even when compared to Kael'thas.

His sharply sculpted features and angular face were exceptionally handsome. Even after being mixed-blooded, his eyes remained dark blue, and the spark of intelligence that occasionally shone through them kept the advisors from underestimating him—this was a genius among magical geniuses who had won the Kirin Tor High Wisdom Ribbon three times in a row.

Unlike proper members of the Sunstrider family, Orendo did not have golden hair. Instead, he had a thick head of jet-black hair, a high nose bridge, and lips of just the right fullness.

Even by high elf standards of beauty, they had to admit that this half-elf before them was outstanding.

More importantly...

From an angle unnoticed by the prince and Orendo, several advisors exchanged glances and saw the same confusion and shock in each other's eyes—why was the arcane aura around him so remarkable? It made elves instinctively want to draw close to him!

They had already sensed something at the entrance. Now that they were in this enclosed indoor space, the arcane aura Orendo made no effort to conceal left the advisors unable to comprehend it.

While the advisors were still confused and shocked, Kael'thas spoke first. "A year after you were born, your mother returned to Silvermoon City once. That was when I learned of your existence. Good child, how have you been living among humans?"

"Um..." Orendo answered vaguely, because he did not know what he should call Kael'thas.

His original plan had been to casually deal with the elves if their attitude was poor, thereby giving his mentor Solarian an explanation.

But now that he was here, he found that the elves' attitude toward him was unbelievably good. Especially Kael'thas, who had been manic and violent in his impression of the "original plot," yet was so gentle and composed in reality that it surprised him greatly.

Even more surprising was that Kael'thas treated him far too well, didn't he? So well that Orendo felt as though he were receiving the same doting affection his uncles had given him in his previous life.

The problem was that his uncles had all been his actual maternal uncles, men who had watched him grow up since childhood. This bargain-bin cousin-uncle Kael before him had never interacted with him before, yet was now so gentle and affectionate.

Orendo was very uncomfortable with it.

He felt that Kael'thas was either putting on an act, or that Uncle Kael's personality had always been like this...

Whether it was an act or simply Kael'thas's natural personality, Orendo still had to respond. "Not bad. Although my parents died early, I was still a noble among humans. At the very least, I never lacked food or clothes, and I was able to study magic."

"Your father did indeed pass away. Silvermoon City even sent elves to attend his funeral. But your mother, Lianda, should still be alive. We simply do not know where she went, and we have been unable to find her," Kael'thas said.

Elves had attended his father's funeral? Orendo frowned. The original Orendo's memories contained little related to it, because he had not yet reached the age where he could remember things when his father died.

"Your Highness." After thinking it over, Orendo still could not bring himself to call Uncle Kael that, and could only use the ordinary form of address a mage would use for Kael'thas. "You summoned me to your mage tower. You probably did not do so merely to reminisce with me, did you? If you wanted to reminisce, you should have come looking for me when I was still a child."

They had not interacted for over a decade, yet they began reaching out to him once he had made a name for himself in Dalaran. Naturally, Orendo was resistant to such relatives, even if being connected to the Sunstrider family would make his life in Dalaran easier.

His impolite words immediately displeased the advisors, who had already formed a favorable impression of him because of his arcane aura.

But before even the most hot-tempered Passarane could speak, Kael'thas, whose gentleness remained unchanged, spoke first.

"I know explanations are useless. Nor will I explain. Orendo, may I call you that?"

"You can." Orendo was not truly angry. He was merely somewhat resistant. Perhaps if he had still been the original Orendo, he might have been furious.

"Orendo, no matter how much I say now about the past, it would be useless." Kael'thas Sunstrider spoke softly, his voice incomparably gentle. "What is past is past. Now that I know you are Lianda's child... Back in Silvermoon City, Lianda and I had the closest relationship. As Lianda's cousin, I want to compensate you."

"My dear Orendo, Lianda's child. Are you willing to accept this belated familial affection?"

Uncle Kael's voice was truly too gentle, so gentle that it seemed almost magical, making it difficult for Orendo to feel any hostility toward him.

If the Eye of Truth had not already confirmed that Kael'thas had not used even a trace of magic, and was not influencing him with mental magic, Orendo would have suspected that Uncle Kael had cast some kind of charm spell on him.

"How will you compensate me?" Orendo deliberately acted very pragmatic.

The advisors' expressions darkened with displeasure.

Yet Kael'thas merely waved a hand lightly and said, "Rommath, Passarane, you should leave first. I wish to speak with Orendo alone for a while."

Since the prince had spoken, the advisors bowed and nodded despite their dissatisfaction, then left one after another.

Soon, only Kael'thas and Orendo, this pair of cousin-uncle and nephew, remained in the spacious library on the first floor of the mage tower.

"All right, there are no outsiders now." Kael'thas spoke first, the gentle expression on his face never changing.

"Um..." Orendo nodded vaguely again.

Kael'thas looked at him and said, "Before discussing the specific form of compensation, I would like to ask you something, dear Orendo. Do you know the story of how Quel'Thalas and the Sunstrider family came to be founded?"

Orendo had read the chronicles in his previous life, and with the help of the Eye of Truth, he could now recite their contents backward and forward. Naturally, he knew some of what Kael'thas was referring to.

But in this real world, the secrets of Quel'Thalas and the Sunstrider family might not even be known by some among the elven upper ranks. If he claimed to know them, that would be truly absurd.

So Orendo shook his head.

Kael'thas began telling the story.