Greymane Wall

Crack! A thunderous rumble slowly spread as the gates of the Greymane Wall opened.

The gates towered dozens of meters high. Though this was not Rex's first visit, watching them slowly open never failed to awe him. This world had no electricity, and the gates before him used neither magic nor goblin technology. They relied entirely on manpower. Two lines of burly men stood on either side, their faces flushed as they strained to haul the gates open. Rex's first thought was that once he had the money, he would hire goblins to overhaul them. Opening these gates was far too much work.

He had to admit that this was a flaw in the Greymane Wall. Perhaps when the father he had inherited built it, he had never intended these gates to open at all, leaving their construction incomplete. Now opening them required manpower and sheer strength.

Mounted on a tall, fine horse, Rex waved the caravan onward and took one last look at the Greymane Wall. Alongside his awe, fear stirred in his heart. Once built, this wall had been regarded by his inherited father as a defense that would never fall, yet even it had ultimately failed to escape destruction. Deathwing's spreading wings had changed the entire world. Before such power, the Greymane Wall seemed so insignificant.

"Prince Rex, which route are we taking to Dalaran?" In Pyrewood Village, Monroe bustled up to Rex, his round belly jutting out. He spread out the map in his hands, bent over with his ample backside sticking out, and pointed here and there with his chubby fingers. His plump face was alight with excitement. This was his first time leaving Gilneas.

"There are two roads to Dalaran. This one heads due east across the Hillsbrad Plains, passes the Lordanmere internment camp, and reaches Dalaran."

"The other goes through Ambermill. Dalaran lies beyond the mountains there, and a mountain road leads to it. Prince Rex, we should take this route. It's a little shorter."

"No." Rex shook his head gently. "We're traveling to trade. Though Dalaran is our main destination, we can't pass up the other prosperous towns. We'll go through the Hillsbrad Plains. Once we arrive, part of the caravan will head to Southshore. We can't miss out on its local specialties."

After replenishing their food and water in Pyrewood Village, the sizable company Rex had named the Violet Flower Caravan resumed its journey. He had clearly committed himself to this venture. The caravan was not the largest in Gilneas, but it represented the greatest force he could muster. To ensure its safety, the Knights of the Round Table, founded six months earlier, had dispatched three hundred men as guards. Under Rex's leadership, they left Gilneas and set out for Dalaran.

Time slipped by unnoticed. Half a year had passed since Arthas had received his initiation as a paladin, which meant Rex and Jaina had also known each other for six months.

The Knights of the Round Table had demanded the most time. Building everything from scratch in six months was simply not enough. Rex could see that many of the soldiers were still somewhat impetuous. Their reactions varied wildly: some were excited to leave Gilneas, while others were rather frightened.

These three hundred recruits would be useless in a fight, and Rex knew it. They were only there to make up the numbers. This journey to Dalaran posed little danger. Broad, well-built roads stretched along their route, laid before Gilneas had closed its borders. Though somewhat neglected now, they still saw traffic and had not fallen completely into ruin. Dalaran was not far from Gilneas, and this was the human heartland. Being so close to Dalaran, the area had been swept clean of anything threatening. The fighting power of Dalaran's mages was never something to doubt.

Rex glanced at Rona. Pyrewood Village had originally belonged to the Crowley family, but since the Greymane Wall's construction, Ambermill had been taken over by Lordaeron. Its greedy nobles would never let any territory slip away. Ambermill covered a considerable area, easily enough to form a barony if granted as a fief. Had Pyrewood Village not been so close to Gilneas, right outside the gates of the Greymane Wall and only a few hours' walk away, Lordaeron's nobles might have seized it as well.

For this expedition, Rex had brought Ulysses and Rona along with the Knights of the Round Table. He had left Cecil behind to train the remaining members. Cecil's original duty was to protect Rex, and only after some persuasion had he given up on accompanying him. Training would have to continue after Rex's departure, so one of the three guard captains had to stay behind. Of the three, Cecil was the only one Rex truly trusted, with Rona coming next. As for Ulysses, Rex had never trusted him at all.

Leaving Ulysses behind was out of the question, and Rona was still too young. Cecil was therefore the best choice.

Rex slowly stroked the ring on his finger. It was a Spatial Ring. Although space was a mysterious power in Azeroth, studying it was a field of magecraft. Over the years, an endless stream of mages had embarked on that path of no return, and their achievements had been impressive. The emergence of portals was one major breakthrough, and Spatial Rings were another. Unlike the rings in novels that routinely offered hundreds of square meters of space, however, those created in Azeroth could only hold a few simple things, such as weapons and assorted small items. Using a Spatial Ring to transport grain or equipment in bulk was impossible.

As the crown prince of Gilneas, Rex naturally possessed a top-quality Spatial Ring rather than some common model. It offered three square meters of space, enough to hold quite a few things, and he had already filled most of it. In particular, the Hearthstones inside were the centerpiece of his journey to Dalaran.

The sky had turned a dusky yellow, and night was fast approaching, ready to shroud the land in hazy darkness. Rex halted the caravan and chose to rest here for the night. They would continue their journey tomorrow.

(End of chapter)