Warcraft: When NPCs Have Player Panels

Chapter 40 Making Money is Hard

William then spent a long time talking with the two members of the Church of the Light from Stormwind.

This was the first time he had talked for so long with someone outside the Lordaeron church. The other person's kindness and gentleness made him subconsciously realize that the people at their Lordaeron monastery were indeed driven by a burning desire for revenge fueled by deep-seated hatred, a state of abnormal emotion affecting everyone.

It's no wonder that the demon Balnazzar, killed by the outsiders, corrupted the High Crusaders, causing the Scarlet Crusade to fall into depravity. There's a fundamental problem at play here.

However, it cannot be denied that the existence of the Holy Light served as a bond that kept them calm. Even when facing the most terrifying dangers, they were able to suppress their fear and charge towards those seemingly invincible enemies with their swords drawn.

This is why the Holy Light remains the most widespread and deeply rooted faith among believers on this land.

The three talked a lot along the way, and later, after they got to know each other better, even Elena, the half-elf, joined in the discussion.

"King Varian has been invited to Theramore to attend the Alliance and Horde summit. If all goes well, a degree of peace will soon be restored between the Alliance and the Horde," the paladin said with emotion. "Who would have thought that we would be fighting alongside our former enemies, launching an attack on the mortal foe of all the living?"

"Then...the old royal city occupied by those undead who act on free will...those undead they call Undercity. What does the Alliance plan to do with them?" William asked. "If this problem isn't handled properly, there will never be peace between the Alliance and the Horde."

The paladin turned to look at William, his eyes filled with sympathy. He reached out and patted William on the shoulder, bypassing the priest, saying, "Young man, while I sympathize with you, it's also difficult for me to accept the fact that our former capital has been conquered. But the problem is, neither the Alliance nor Stormwind is prepared for a full-scale war with the Horde."

"Each member state of the alliance has many urgent matters to attend to. This is why, after the remnants of the alliance withdrew to the south, they were no longer able to organize a large-scale, well-organized army to help you."

"Although there are many people like us, the problems here are ultimately something you Lordaeronians have to face yourselves."

William remained silent. Even a mere paladin knew this; clearly, the Alliance, in preparing to negotiate with the Horde, had already been somewhat prepared to abandon Lordaeron. If this news reached the Cathedral, it would be devastating.

"Don't think so much, kid. Nobody knows what tomorrow will bring," the middle-aged paladin said, stroking his beard. "Perhaps things will eventually take a turn for the better."

Time flew by, and before we knew it, it was afternoon. After everyone had finished their prepared lunch, the carriage arrived at the ferry crossing on the western shore of Lake Lordaeronmill.

There was no one around, and it was very quiet.

"Thank you for your help."

"Ha, don't mention it. It's just on my way."

After exchanging a few pleasantries, William addressed the paladin and priest who had disembarked from the carriage. "To the west lies the largest cemetery in Silverpine Forest. This entire area is controlled by those free-willed undead... I've heard they're not very friendly towards humans."

Choosing his words carefully, William continued, "I don't really know their attitude towards the living. But if you cross the pass on the main road between Silverpine Forest and Tirisfalgar, and travel west for over an hour, you'll come across a fortified camp guarded by kingdom soldiers."

"You can rest there for a while. I served in that camp for a time. It's different from the camps guarded by other kingdom soldiers. They will guide you safely through the territory controlled by the free undead."

"I have another letter here, and I hope you can help me deliver it to the commander there."

William pulled a letter from his pocket and handed it to the paladin in front of him. He had been writing this letter for several days, originally intending to have the Thieves' Guild cross the forest and deliver it there. Now it seemed unnecessary.

"Oh, what unexpected news," the paladin said, taking William's letter with surprise. He vaguely understood William's identity and patted him on the shoulder with a smile. "I will take the letter with me."

The paladins and priests in the church wagons continued westward along the main road, preparing to cut into the avenue that ran through the entire Silverpine Forest, and they were to reach the camp William had mentioned that night.

William thought it would be difficult; it would take at least a day to get from here to the outpost.

But upon closer reflection, the vehicle was filled with paladins and priests; the Scourge undead and werewolves here might not dare to fight them. And those unfamiliar, dead Lordaeronians were even less likely to attack.

"Boss, what do we do now? There's no one here, and no boats either." Elena circled the empty dock several times, gazing at the boundless Lake Lordamir, where she could vaguely see the outline of the lake at the end of her vision.

"You're not going to make us swim there, are you?"

"Let's look around again and see if there are any boats nearby." William was somewhat unwilling to give up. He had come all this way, but he didn't expect that there really were no boats here. It seemed that the people on the island had taken all the boats with them. Not only that, all the houses along the way were empty and deserted.

"Hey, you never believe me. You have to come over and meet me before you'll believe I'm not lying," Elaine said angrily. "Work is work, I keep that very clear. How could I lie to you at such a crucial time?"

"If you were one of those people on the island, wouldn't you take control of all the boats at every dock along this lake?!"

"That makes sense, let's go back then."

That night, the two rushed back to Ambermill.

William was also quite tired from the long journey, so he suggested that Elaine stop cooking and that the two of them go to a tavern for a meal instead. Elaine readily agreed to this idea, and so, at the tavern, the two of them encountered that group of adventurers again.

The group spent several days in the woods but failed to find Arugao's son, so they returned dejectedly to resupply.

"Let's find a guide. If we just wander around in this area, who knows when we'll even encounter one?"

"How about we go to that castle?" a burly woman carrying a triangular shield asked the bald, muscular man. "This isn't working; it's taking too long."

The woman was quite tall; William felt she was about the same height as him, who was almost 1.9 meters. Her hair was shaved down to a very thin layer, and at first, William thought she was a man.

"No, we can't go. That evil dark mage used to be a mage in the Kirin Tor Council of Dalaran. We can't afford to mess with him." The bald man crossed his arms and thought quietly. "Find some locals and have them lead us to lone werewolves. They'll definitely know where we'll encounter them."

"Then we'll have to give them more silver coins. The people here are afraid of those werewolves and don't want to go deeper into the forest."

"Anything that money can solve isn't a problem."

...

“That bald guy is right,” Elena said, quickly shoveling the venison from her mouth while sipping her plum juice. “There will always be people willing to take them there; the people here are so poor their eyes practically glow.”

"So you want to go too?" William asked, his thoughts returning to Vicara's question about Elena's tuition.

Learn to master shadows, one gold coin. Learn potion-making, fifty silver coins. Learn various one-handed weapons and combat techniques, two silver coins per weapon per month. Some common rogue techniques and skills, ranging from ten silver coins to one gold coin each.

It's quite difficult to raise Elena without spending at least ten gold coins.

But since William had already made those boastful remarks in front of Vicara and Karen, he couldn't very well go back on his word.

If the price offered by these outsiders was right, he wouldn't mind working as a bounty hunter for a while.

"I'm not going to entrust my life to a bunch of strangers," Elena pouted. "Boss, you shouldn't even think about going."

"These adventurers are no good. If they hesitate when it's time to sell to you, it's disrespectful to the gold!"