Ghosts

A new quest?

Kael'thas froze. Then Kael'sala's voice sounded in his ear.

"Kael'thas, there should be a Troll command post up ahead. Find a way to locate it and place some of the other things I gave you there."

Other things?

Kael'thas felt the marble-sized blue balls tucked inside his clothes. These?

"That's right, those little balls. They can help us keep an eye on the Trolls. Once you've placed them, you can come back..."

I see...

Setting up surveillance was indeed a good idea.

Kael'thas nodded to himself, agreeing with the plan. It was safer than scouting himself, and in any case, he had reached level 20 and was already very satisfied with this trip.

He carefully made his way toward the square.

The two Troll guards looked in puzzlement at the visitor who wasn't a rogue. They were just about to stop him when a ripple invisible to the naked eye suddenly emanated from Kael'thas's orb and swept toward them.

The Troll guards' vision blurred for a moment. When they looked at Kael'thas again, they no longer saw anything strange about him.

Kael'thas entered the square without a hitch.

The square was enormous, roughly the size of a soccer field. All sorts of market stalls lined its edges, and quite a few Trolls bustled about, buying and selling goods or repairing equipment.

The Trolls here were no longer just rogues. Many other classes had appeared as well...

After passing a patrol of Troll guards without incident, Kael'thas relaxed. With so many people milling around, his identity was even better concealed.

"Waka xxx..."

Someone suddenly grabbed his sleeve. Startled, Kael'thas turned to see a Troll merchant wearing a professionally ingratiating smile and speaking to him in words he couldn't understand.

Trying to sell me something?

Kael'thas thought. Sure enough, a mage's voice soon came through the blue ball, translating for him.

"Your Highness, it says it has a good staff to sell you..."

It seemed this clever Troll had figured out his class from the orb in his hand.

Kael'thas shook his head, and the orb worked its magic. The Troll merchant grew confused for a moment, then walked away, scratching its head.

But those movements and mannerisms, so much like an elf's, stayed with Kael'thas. Trolls were a sentient race too, so why were they hated by every other race?

They followed ancient, bloody rituals and were strongly hostile toward others. Most Troll tribes had a habit of eating humanoid beings, and they even ate their own kind...

I really hope that one day they can develop an enlightened civilization and put an end to the hatred...

Kael'thas let his thoughts wander, but that was impossible. The High Elves' arrogance and prejudice toward the Trolls were also wrong, and the fighting between the two had gone on for far too long. Hatred had sunk deep into the people's hearts, leaving almost no hope of resolving it.

Kael'thas felt somewhat helpless about it, though he was only thinking about it. As he was now, he still had no real concept of equality. He remained firmly on the elves' side, and even... when he killed Trolls... he had never realized that he was taking a life.

He hadn't noticed that he still regarded his enemies in reality as monsters in a game.

Only through genuine sorrow could his mindset slowly change...

Speaking of the Troll command post, could it be that...

Kael'thas walked a circle around the square, but found nothing, to his disappointment. He suddenly remembered the Trolls' customs and turned to look at a raised altar in the middle of the square...

Could that altar be the place they use to direct their forces?

"That seems to be it..."

Kael'sala's voice was somewhat uncertain too, but there was no more suitable place here. In the end, they could only settle on that location.

But how was he supposed to get the balls over there?

It was in the center of the square, with some open space around it and several guards watching over it. Every Troll could easily spot anyone who approached, so how could he discreetly place them there?

Kael'thas stayed where he was, pondering the problem in frustration. He felt as though someone said a few words, then rummaged through his pockets and left, but strangely, Kael'thas paid it no attention and found nothing suspicious about it.

A little while later, before he had come up with a perfect solution, the system notification suddenly sounded again:

"Ding..."

"You have completed the quest 'Place the Eyes' and gained 4,000 experience!"

Huh!

Huh!!!

Startled, Kael'thas felt his pockets. Sure enough, all the blue balls inside were gone.

When did they disappear?

He looked up at the altar in the middle of the square. There was no one there, and even more incredible... all the Trolls in the square were still bustling about, going on with their business, without noticing anything amiss!

There really is a ghost!!!

Kael'thas's face turned deathly pale. In that instant, the supernatural incidents in Goldshire and the Darkmoon Faire's bizarre NPCs flashed through his mind...

Damn it! I knew this wasn't scientific!! This World of Warcraft already has Undead and aliens! How could it not have ghosts too!!!

In fact, Kael'thas had believed in ghosts in his previous life. Although he was an atheist, he believed there were many incredible things in the world.

After transmigrating, Kael'thas became even more certain of that belief. If transmigration was possible... what couldn't exist?

Remembering the woman's voice he had heard on the way, he couldn't help setting down the blue ball. He pressed his palms together and bowed three times toward the space in front of him.

"Ghost Sister, I'm really grateful for your help, but could you please stop haunting me..."

"I'm just passing through..."

Ghost Sister?

Lor'themar, who had returned with a happy look on her face, immediately teared up. She had always looked forward to Kael'thas calling her "sister," but she hadn't expected the first time to be the crushing "Ghost Sister"...

Was anyone more miserable than her?

"Pfft!"

A burst of irrepressible laughter came from the blue ball. Kael'thas picked it up and heard Kael'sala tell him to come back.

"All right, Kael'thas, there's no ghost there. It's magic. Stop imagining things and come back!"

Magic really was convenient. It could explain any phenomenon, just like science in his previous life:

As for what caused this phenomenon, we can be certain it was no mysterious force. Science can explain it... Our scientists have already begun studying it, and in a few years, they will surely be able to give you a satisfactory answer...

Kael'thas recalled something he had experienced in his previous life. That was what the expert had said back then. Only a fool would believe him... A ghost was a ghost! So Kael'thas flatly refused to believe Kael'sala.

But the quest was complete, and a female ghost was still haunting him...

Kael'thas wisely chose to head back.

There were no blind fortune-tellers here, nor any Maoshan Taoist priests. He felt he needed his teacher to take a look, and while he was at it... he could also learn some skills...

He wondered whether his teacher's eyes would pop out when he saw his current level.