Oath

"You are the first Orcs to enter Silvermoon City, Ambassador Braggon," Alleria said, sitting on her Hawkstrider. The walls of Silvermoon City were considerably higher than those of Orgrimmar, casting a large shadow over the land below.

"This city is even more magnificent than Orgrimmar." Braggon's answer caught the Regent somewhat off guard, but Alleria could understand; Silvermoon City had a long history, and the reconstruction was progressing smoothly. "But living in such a large city, why are your Warrior so short-handed, Regent?"

Not only Alleria, but all the Elf followers were stumped by this question. Only after passing through the Shepherd's Gate did Alleria finally answer, "Is this a question from Thrall, Your Excellency Ambassador?"

"This is my personal question, Regent." Braggon patted the head of the wolf beneath him, reminding the beast not to keep focusing on the Elf Hawkstrider, even though the birds looked delicious. "But as the Hand of the Chief, I have a duty to ask on behalf of the Great Chief, otherwise he may not be able to properly recognize the value of the Sin'dorei, nor accurately assign you tasks within his capabilities."

Vareesa gripped the Hawkstrider's reins. Before coming here, Alleria had instructed her to simply handle security and not to criticize her conversation with the Orcs envoy. However, Braggon's words were far too demanding. Vareesa knew Orcs were generally rude, and she knew Bloodfist had tried his best to be polite, but it still sounded unpleasant.

The Ranger-General wanted to say something, but Alleria seemed to have sensed her little move, and a stern look from the Regent made Vareesa retreat.

"Your Excellency, as you say, our Warrior are indeed few, and most of them perished in the fight against the Scourge," Alleria said with a somber expression. "However, I believe the strength of a kingdom is never measured by the number of its soldiers."

"Oh?" Braggon looked at Alleria curiously. "What's that?"

"I dare not draw a conclusion on that." The Female Elf shook her head. "Every kingdom has its own strengths. Stormwind City relies on its natural geographical advantages, Orgrimmar is united internally, and even though Quel'Thalas' military capabilities are not what they used to be, we can still penetrate deep into the Scourge's territory and eliminate the traitor Dath'Remar. I think this can prove the Blood Elf's capabilities to Great Chief Thrall."

"On this matter, the Chieftain has a question for you, Regent," Braggon suddenly said, giving Alleria a bad feeling. "Chieftain Thrall, I've heard that when you were planning to join the Horde, some Elf chose to leave Quel'Thalas. Is that true?"

"A leader's decisions sometimes cannot be made for everyone, Your Excellency." Alleria closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She still hadn't recovered from Sylvanas's departure. At first, she was angry at her sister's actions, but after a few days, the anger gradually turned into guilt, Alleria herself didn't know why. "But only a minority of Elf have left, and that does not prevent the Blood Elf from being loyal to the Horde."

"I'm afraid not." Braggon said this as they arrived at Murder Row, where the streets were lined with Sin'dorei who bowed to Alleria in respect, but the Regent's attention was focused on the Orcs beside him.

"What do you mean by that, Your Excellency?"

"Among those Elf who left, one seems to be your sister."

"This..." Alleria was embarrassed and looked slightly ashamed. "How did you know?"

"You want to hide it from the chief?"

"No, it's just... curiosity."

Braggon glanced at Alleria and said slowly, "Your sister Sylvanas went to Theramore and joined Proudmoore's forces."

"What? You mean Sylvanas ..." Alleria said in surprise, quickly realizing she had been too agitated. "I'm sorry, that was really rude of me. Please forgive my difficulty as her older sister. Sylvanas is my family, and I'm worried about her."

"I don't concern myself with your family affairs, nor are they any of the Horde, Regent. But the Warchief has instructed me to tell you that your sister has entered an Alliance city. If one day she openly attacks the Horde behalf of the Alliance, then she will be an enemy of the Horde, and Thrall will show her no mercy. Of course..." Braggon's tone suddenly lowered, "The Warchief hates the enemies within the Horde even more than external threats. He will not tolerate betrayal, nor does he want to see any member harm the interests of the entire Horde for the sake of so-called 'family matters.' You should understand what I mean."

"Yes, I understand." Alleria nodded.

"Swear an oath, Regent." The Orcs's demand made Alleria pale, Vareesa behind her couldn't help but want to draw her sword and slit the Orcs's throat.

"I swear." Alleria spoke faster than Vareesa, and at the same time, all pretense crumbled on the Ranger-General's face. She looked sadly at her sister's retreating figure, struggling to hold back her tears. Cruelly, she had to listen to her sister finish speaking, word by word. Vareesa dared not imagine what Alleria was feeling at that moment; her sister must be suffering even more than she was. "Blood Elf will never betray the Horde. If our brethren appear on the enemy's side of the battlefield, then they are the enemy, until death."

"I hope you remember your oath, Regent." Braggon looked ahead. "When your sister dons the Alliance's robes, she is destined to die."

Everything has a life.

This sentence had become a mantra in his mind, continuously helping him acquire new knowledge. More importantly, it was an epiphany, a key to unlocking new knowledge about the entire universe.

As the years passed in Outland, these words brought Khadgar great comfort. In the very heart of Shattrath City, he stood before the naaru A'dal. The light emanating from the naaru calmed his heart. Many years had passed since the end of the Second War, and he had learned much from A'dal, evident in his beard. Yet, the archmage's mind had never grown old, though Medivh's magic had stolen all his youth. Unlike other mages, Khadgar was not rigid; he was witty, approachable, and disliked conducting magical experiments alone in a corner. In his eyes, social interaction and knowledge were equally important.

"Khadgar?"

A melodious, musical sound came to mind.

"Adal?" Khadgar didn't speak; he always communicated with Adal through a mental link.

Do you miss home?

The Archmage sighed, "I think about it all the time."

"Don't worry, soon... the gate to the Azeroth will open."