As the main body of the Allied Forces set off on the road back to the city, some of the Kingdom of Stormwind's troops remained in Westfall to establish preliminary control over the region.
Some elite troops from the various nations boarded warships of the Kul Tiras fleet and headed south.
The fleet would sail around the jungle-covered Stranglethorn Vale to the south, then head north to the Blasted Lands.
Geographically, Stranglethorn Vale, the only territory south of the Kingdom of Stormwind outside its control, was an undeniable eyesore.
Successive kings of the Kingdom of Stormwind had all wanted to conquer that land.
Even simply stationing some troops there to assert the Kingdom of Stormwind's sovereignty would have been good.
However, that was Jungle Troll territory.
If the Jungle Trolls had not enjoyed infighting and living in the jungle, the Kingdom of Stormwind might have ceased to exist long ago!
Stranglethorn Vale covered a vast area of several hundred thousand square kilometers.
Many human kingdoms in the north of the continent were not even that large.
In fact, even the powerful Jungle Trolls had not brought the entire region under their control.
That was also one reason the Jungle Trolls had not launched a large-scale invasion of the Kingdom of Stormwind.
They had no need for more territory, and the tribes fought one another year after year, leaving them no time to attack anyone else.
The Kul Tiras fleet sailed south along Stranglethorn Vale's lengthy coastline.
From time to time, massive stone structures built by the Jungle Trolls came into view along the way.
Trolls were an ancient race with an extraordinarily long history of civilization.
However, they were extremely conservative, and neither their architectural style nor anything else had evolved.
Their civilization had remained in a primitive, savage, backward