A Bizarre Dream

Nathanos searched Southshore for two hours but still couldn't find Larein; it seemed he hadn't arrived yet.

"Even Paladin can be late?" He chuckled, glancing at the Southshore coastline. There was no fog today; otherwise, he would have been reminded of when Lothar brought the Stormwind City refugees here. However, someone on the harbor did catch his attention. A human and an Elf were leisurely fishing. He walked over, wanting to chat with them. He remembered that Larein's hobby was fishing. If possible, meeting in Southshore this time, perhaps the two of them could enjoy this activity together.

In the distance, the Elf and the human, being watched by Nathanos, were conversing, completely unaware of someone slowly approaching. But when the human fishing called out the Elf's name, Nathanos stopped in his tracks...

"Rilas?"

"What is it, Nat?" The Elf's voice was melodious and gentle, sounding like the tone of a gentleman.

"I had that dream again yesterday!"

"Which one?" the Elf chuckled.

"I dreamt of a tree taller than a mountain, with a group of Elf running around on it. Then, out of nowhere, a 300-foot-tall demon or something appeared and started climbing the tree." The human paused, thinking for a moment, "I know this sounds crazy, but the craziness comes later. The giant demon was blown up by a group of small orbs of light floating in the air. And in the dream, I was a Female Elf."

"You may really be tired, Nat." The Elf chuckled twice. "You should probably go see Quel'Thalas, so you'll know just how absurd your dreams are."

"And another thing... I also had a dream yesterday."

"What... did you dream about again?" The Elf seemed to be trying to accept his companion's ramblings.

"I dreamt of Durnholde, Blackmoore, that Orcs slave escaped..." The human called Nat paused, then recalled for a few seconds before continuing, "He eventually destroyed the entire castle and rescued the Orcs we had imprisoned in the camp. He became the Orcs King ... chieftain or something like that."

"That will never happen, Nat." The Elf found the dream hilarious, unaware that his laughter had scared away the fish that was about to bite the bait. "Durnholde Keep is the most fortified of all the prisoner-of-war camps."

"It's not over yet, Rilas."

"What other funny dreams are there?" Rilas asked, intrigued.

"A...a very terrible dream..." Nat's throat tightened. "The King's son, Arthas ...he fought against evil alongside Uther ..." He wiped his forehead. "Unfortunately, Arthas was consumed by evil and eventually became evil itself...then he pretended to be kind and went back to the King, drew his sword, ran to King, and just...you know...snap!"

Rilas frowned. "This is not a good thing, Nat."

"And another thing, Arthas also captured the mother of one of his servants and forced his servant to kill his own relative, which the latter did."

"Stop, Nat." Rilas shook his head quickly. "I mean, don't say things like that. We're on Lordaeron's soil."

He's absolutely right!

A voice suddenly sounded behind Rilas and Nat, and the fishing rods in their hands almost slipped.

"Who?"

Nathanos finally saw the Elf's true form: long, golden hair that reached his shoulders, and a meticulously trimmed white beard. Seeing this face, a smile spread across Nathanos's face, and he nodded thoughtfully. Then he looked at the rambling Nat.

"In Lordaeron, the punishment for defamation is very severe, especially since you have defamed Prince Arthas."

"You heard that?" Nat was very surprised and confused.

"Wait a minute." Rilas stepped forward and walked between Nat and Nathanos. "Nat was just joking, and if I remember correctly, the punishment for wiretapping is just as severe!"

Nathanos sneered, "Indeed, but the laws of Quel'Thalas don't apply to Southshore!"

"This..." Rilas's face showed embarrassment, only then realizing how foolish he had been to defend his friend.

Seeing the Elf speechless, Nathanos knew victory was within reach. "But if you complete the task I've given you, I might consider not reporting your friend's crime."

"You want my help?" Rilas scrutinized the man, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't recall any connection between them. "Who exactly are you?"

"You know who I am, so you know what I want you to do."

"Really?" Rilas smiled slightly. "And your name is..."

"Nathanos Marius!"

The Elf's smile froze; aside from his eyes slowly widening, he remained completely still. Nat's gaze darted back and forth between Nathanos and Rilas, utterly bewildered by the situation.

It took a long time for Rilas to come to his senses.

"You... you are Nathanos?"

"It seems you know. I ask you, why did you leave your family, and without saying goodbye? Do you know how worried your sister was? They searched almost everywhere to find you. Do you know that, Windrunner?" Nathanos questioned, meeting the youngest member of the Windrunner family here was an unexpected surprise.

This was a disaster for Rilas. "How... how did you recognize me? I mean, Nat just called me by my first name, without mentioning my last name. You know... there might be people with the same name... you know what I mean."

"Names can be repeated, but everyone's face is unique. I've seen your portrait; your sister painted it herself," Nathanos explained.

"Really... alright!" Rilas's face paled slightly. "You and Alleria must have a very good relationship, I've heard about it..."

"Don't change the subject!" Nathanos interrupted him. "Answer my question: Why did you leave your family? Was it because of him?" He glared at the bewildered Nat.

"Of course not, don't misunderstand!" Rilas hurriedly explained, his emotions somewhat unstable, as if he were caught in a dilemma. "Can we talk somewhere else? At the Southshore Inn, the seafood and drinks there are quite good, it's on me." He tried to force a smile, but Nathanos's gaze made him unable to control his facial muscles, as if any other movement was impossible in front of him.

The other person stared at him for a while, seemingly lost in thought. A few minutes later, Nathanos nodded in agreement, pointing at Nat, "Take him along too."

The author will describe Southshore extensively, possibly even dedicating a whole chapter to it. There's so much to explore in this area: the Ashbringer storyline, the Scarlet Southshore storyline (already covered in the previous chapter), Captain Sanders's storyline, and the hidden characters from the previous chapter: Kel'Thuzad and Herkular. Also, there's Nat Pagle, a key character in this chapter, whom the author will focus on developing.