Arthas and Anasterian's first clash as the leaders of their respective sides ended in a draw, with neither able to gain the upper hand.
The result surprised the Sun King.
As a descendant of the former king Dath'Remar Sunstrider, Anasterian Sunstrider had ruled the High Elves for at least three thousand years. From the Troll Wars to the present day, Anasterian had witnessed the continent's turbulent changes: the decline of the Trolls, the rise of humanity, the division of the dwarves... Though the years had turned this great king into a white-haired old man, they had not stripped him of everything.
Even though Anasterian had weakened considerably compared to his younger days, he was still among the continent's foremost powers—a legendary mage and warrior.
Setting aside the Dragons who stood above all others, the artificially created superpower Aegwynn of the Guardians of Tirisfal, and the demigods and demigod-level freaks on Kalimdor, Anasterian, whose strength nearly rivaled that of a demigod, had always been a strong contender for the title of the Eastern Kingdoms' strongest—though, of course, the nations of the Eastern Kingdoms had no tacky ranking list that existed only in novels.
It could be said that Anasterian was not only the ruler of Quel'Thalas, but also the kingdom's ultimate weapon and final trump card.
Though time's magic had caused Anasterian's strength to decline from its former heights, he was still quite astonished that Arthas, a young prince barely in his twenties, had so easily blocked his attack.
At last, the Sun King realized that this fallen prince had not stood before him without something to rely on.
The proud king finally began taking his opponent seriously, and quickly noticed something amiss.
"How dark, how fallen... I see now. That power is not yours. It comes from that sword."
"As