Confrontation

Felix was taking a brief rest when he suddenly heard a tremendous explosion. He hurriedly looked west and saw a black cloud above the Mage Quarter, like a storm of hatred.

The prison beside the canal had descended into chaos, and many dangerous prisoners had escaped, including Edwin VanCleef;

The bridges had been built by the guild, and they knew exactly where to place explosives to destroy them most effectively-so the bridges over the canal had been blasted straight to the riverbed.

"Dudmore, Baros, and the others must have succeeded." Assessing the situation, Felix muttered to himself, "Then we should put some more pressure on these nobles in Old Town who cling to life and fear death. That way, the entire Valley of Heroes garrison will fall back to defend them, making it easier for our people to escape Stormwind City."

He returned to the corner from earlier, and someone immediately reported good news to him. "Felix, our shovels and wrenches really are useful in close-quarters fighting... We've taken several nearby houses. That bastard Wishock's lair is right in front of us!"

Felix nodded.

If the entire Valley of Heroes garrison rushed back now, Vladimir would take control of the Valley of Heroes without trouble, opening the guild's escape route to Westfall;

If they refused to give in until disaster stared them in the face, Felix did not mind occupying these luxurious mansions right now, publicly trying a few noble dukes, and hanging them.

Now, he turned his gaze toward Duke Wishock's mansion.

Just a few days earlier, he and VanCleef had come here, bowing and scraping as they begged Wishock for mercy. Now, however, he had led his brothers in the guild all the way to its lavish gates, fighting as they went. For a moment, it almost felt like a lifetime had passed.

"Workers of the Stonemasons' Guild, we can talk this over!" Duke Wishock and Duke Lescovar stood cautiously on high ground, both clad in full suits of armor, carefully keeping out of the stonemasons' lines of fire.

"You must understand that what you're doing is outright treason, and all traitors will be put to death!" shouted Wishock, a warrior of the ruling class seasoned by alcohol. "But if you stop immediately, I can still persuade the Council of Nobles not to hold you accountable for your crimes!"

"Fuck you!" A stonemason below immediately raised his musket and fired at him. Only after seeing that his black-powder shot had missed did the stonemason curse, "As of yesterday afternoon, we were no longer subjects of Stormwind City!"

Though the stonemason was hardly eloquent, his meaning was clear-the guild's members had no country, so there could be no question of treason.

They were rebels, and only rebels.

"Please remain calm, good stonemason." Compared with the panicking Wishock, Duke Lescovar could be called calm and courteous at that moment.

He glanced at Wishock, signaling for the impulsive, stupid, reckless drunk to shut his mouth.

"The Council of Nobles has deliberated and decided that we can pay everyone all their wages right now!" Lescovar's eyes darted. "We've already transported mountains of gold coins to Stormwind Keep. Everyone can go in and collect them now!"

"No fighting or pushing, there's enough for everyone! I hope all you workers will line up and enter Stormwind Keep in an orderly fashion to collect your wages. Please do not disturb Queen Tiffin or His Highness Prince Anduin!"

Paying us now? Where the fuck were you before? You withheld our wages for months 'in good faith,' and now you've lost your nerve after seeing us 'maliciously' demand our pay, is that it?

As Felix looked at Stormwind Keep, it looked more and more like the Stone Gate Drill Ground, and Duke Lescovar looked more and more like Wang Bao, a regional commander of Great Ming.

"Don't believe his bullshit, everyone! This is a conspiracy!" Felix shouted. In truth, however, they needed no reminder. Almost all the stonemasons had already lost every shred of trust in these nobles.

"Money? We don't need money anymore!" A voice familiar to everyone in the Stonemasons' Guild came from behind them.

Wearing filthy work clothes, Edwin VanCleef approached, surrounded by Bazil, Joseph, and the others. He gripped his Cruel Barb tightly, his face covered in black dust, reddish-brown bloodstains, and scars.

VanCleef's loyalty to Stormwind City had long since died along with countless brothers and their families. In the resplendent ducal mansions, he had cast aside his dignity. In Cathedral Square, where corpses lay piled like mountains, he had lost hope. In the pitch-black depths of the Stockade, he had forgotten fear-

All that remained of VanCleef now was an undying flame of hatred.

Even after Bazil and Joseph told him Felix's plan, he had refused to take a ship from the harbor and escape to the Gold Coast. Instead, he had come personally to the front lines of the uprising.

"We don't need your filthy money anymore! We just want you dead!" VanCleef shouted, drawing waves of cheers from the stonemasons. "Brothers of the Stonemasons' Guild, follow me! Kill them all!"

"Please wait, Mr. VanCleef!" A soft, lovely female voice came from far ahead. "Everyone, please calm down and hear me out!"

Carefully lifting her luxurious, floor-length gown with both hands, Tiffin Ellerian Wrynn ran toward them with short, quick steps, her face filled with anxiety.

Just moments earlier, her dear friend and close confidante Katrana Prestor had told her that the Stonemasons' Guild had rebelled over unpaid wages and violent suppression. Thus, without even stopping for breakfast, the queen had hurried to Old Town, hoping to quell everyone's anger.

Tiffin Ellerian's words immediately quieted the stonemasons. Everyone wanted to hear what the queen had to say. Only Felix was deeply anxious. Why had this woman come running here with no regard for her life? He knew perfectly well that Katrana would find a way to kill Tiffin in the chaos and pin the blame on the guild.

"This is a misunderstanding," Queen Tiffin hurriedly explained. "In fact, Grand Duke Bolvar has neither fled nor broken his promise. He has merely gone to Lordaeron to seek help from the esteemed King Terenas. Once he returns, we'll be able to pay you what you're owed. And I promise that Varian will absolutely not hold you accountable for what happened today."

Most of the stonemasons settled down considerably. After all, everyone knew that Tiffin and Katrana were the only two people on the Council of Nobles who advocated paying the Stonemasons' Guild their full wages. In other words, Her Majesty had a very good reputation among the stonemasons, and her words could be trusted.

It looked as though the incident was about to reach a perfect resolution, but-

"May I ask, Your Esteemed Majesty, what about our brothers who died in Cathedral Square yesterday? Did they all die for nothing?"