Knights of the Round Table

Beneath the blazing sun, sunlight flowed brilliantly like musical notes rippling through water, soaking a different kind of lovely sorrow.

In the Hillsbrad Foothills, two parties reluctantly bid each other farewell.

"If you need help, you can come find me in Gilneas," Rex said, gazing calmly at the blonde woman before him.

"All right." The woman waved to Rex and departed.

"A very pretty girl." A gentle voice sounded beside Rex. Genn Greymane had come to stand beside him without his noticing and spoke calmly.

There was no denying that Jaina was the most captivating woman Rex had met since coming to Azeroth, without exception. Perhaps that was because he had spent all his time holed up in Gilneas. Since meeting that morning, the two had gotten to know each other and could now be considered friends. After witnessing Arthas's initiation as a Paladin of the Silver Hand, their two parties had joined up for the journey back to Gilneas. Dalaran and Gilneas were not too far apart, and their routes conveniently overlapped. Rex had deliberately arranged this as well. Jaina's party was led by Antonidas, an Archmage Rex wanted to befriend.

Gilneas had shut itself away for years. The towering Greymane Wall had severed all contact with the outside world, and Gilneas's influence was rapidly fading.

Among the seven human kingdoms, Gilneas had ranked behind only Lordaeron and the Kingdom of Azeroth. No, that had been the situation before the Orc invasion. Now only six human kingdoms remained. Alterac had been destroyed after betraying the Alliance and had never been rebuilt. The once-mighty Kingdom of Azeroth no longer existed. In its place stood only the Kingdom of Stormwind, its influence greatly diminished.

Arthas had a good father. King Terenas was a great figure no one could overlook. He was the king of Lordaeron and the leader of the Alliance. Stormwind City, the future heart of the Alliance, was currently no more than King Terenas's lackey. Arthas's initiation as a Paladin had been held at the Cathedral of Light in Stormwind City. Upon receiving invitations, renowned heroes from far and wide had set aside their affairs and traveled to Stormwind City to witness that great moment.

Had it been Rex instead, Gilneas certainly would not have had that kind of influence. The kings of all six kingdoms had attended the initiation ceremony. Such an illustrious gathering could only be matched by the founding of the Alliance.

"Father, which would you say is more prosperous, Stormwind City or our Gilneas?" Rex spoke softly. He had held his thoughts in throughout the journey, but now that they were about to return to Gilneas, he finally voiced them. Rather than directly saying that Gilneas's isolation was wrong, he posed a question.

Seeing Genn Greymane's silent face, Rex continued, "It's Stormwind City. Gilneas may be prosperous, but it still falls somewhat short of Stormwind City."

As his son, Rex could hardly deliberately embarrass his father by making him admit that Stormwind City was more prosperous than Gilneas. So when Genn Greymane remained silent, Rex supplied the answer himself.

"Our Gilneas ought to make some changes. If even Stormwind City is this prosperous, I can hardly imagine what Lordaeron must be like, standing above it. If we keep shutting ourselves away like this, how will we respond if Lordaeron one day develops the ambition to unite humanity and restore the glory of the ancient Arathor Empire?"

"Our Greymane Wall can keep every enemy out of Gilneas." Genn Greymane had tremendous confidence in the wall he had built, believing it could never fall.

Rex sighed inwardly. The Greymane Wall might be tall, but no city in the world could stand forever. Worse still, the wall was even less useful than one might imagine. The Forsaken had broken through, and the Scourge army before them had nearly done so as well. Without summoning the slumbering worgen, the Greymane Wall would have fallen then, too. What chilled Rex was that it might have been understandable had the Scourge's main army attacked Gilneas. But Arthas had been leading the main force against Silvermoon City at the time. The troops attacking Gilneas had been only a splinter force.

"The Greymane Wall can hold back enemy attacks, but there's no need for us to keep cutting off all contact with the outside world. Opening the wall and trading with Dalaran and Lordaeron would make our people in Gilneas wealthier. Isn't that a good thing?"

Looking at the silent Genn Greymane, Rex felt his heart grow cold. After all that talking, his father had not been swayed in the slightest. Isolationism had seeped into his very bones, and changing him would be difficult indeed. Perhaps it would take what happened more than a decade later, when Gilneas endured the worgen curse, internal rebellion, and then a Forsaken siege in succession. Those outside forces would tear at it, just as they had at the Qing dynasty in Rex's previous life. Only after being beaten hard enough would it recognize the need for reform and change.

"Father, didn't you notice along the way? Among those mages from Dalaran, only Archmage Antonidas still showed Gilneas some respect. The others showed far more respect to Jaina, a princess, than to you, a king."

"In less than ten years, our Gilneas's influence has already plummeted. The older generation is still all right, but the younger generation no longer knows us. If this continues, I fear that one day the outside world won't even know that the kingdom of Gilneas exists." Rex watched Genn Greymane's expression. His face remained unchanged, but an unusual gleam flashed in his eyes. Rex knew those words had caught his father's attention.

Even someone committed to isolationism could not disregard the world's ignorance of his existence. Otherwise, Rex and his father would not have come here for King Terenas this time.

"Even if the world forgets us, all that matters is that we remain self-sufficient," Genn Greymane said after a long silence.

Seeing his father cling so stubbornly to old ways, Rex felt deeply disappointed. Persuasion alone was clearly useless. He had already prepared for this, however, and moved straight to his second plan. "Then, Father, allow me to take command of the Greymane Wall."

Genn Greymane saw through Rex's intentions at once. Taking command of the Greymane Wall would allow him to come and go freely.

"No one would agree to sending the crown prince to guard the Greymane Wall," Genn Greymane said.

"Then please allow my caravan to pass freely through the Greymane Wall." Rex retreated in order to advance. After rejecting one request, his father would probably not refuse the next.

"Very well." After a moment's consideration, Genn Greymane nodded.

"A caravan needs protection. I hope to establish the Knights of the Round Table!"

"Very well, but the kingdom will give you no support."

(End of chapter)