Azeroth Shadow Trail

   Chapter 683 14. My big league is invincible

   Little is known about what happened in Alterac Valley these days.

   But after the news spread that Alterac's Lord Oridon Perenold, who had basically been identified as the future king, was assassinated by the brutal orcs, the army of the entire alliance camp was even more excited.

   This incident and the incident of Marshal Lothar are very delicately intertwined, causing the endless anger of the human soldiers. The lower commanders are asking for battle every day, but they have been suppressed by Oridon.

   This young future ruler showed an excellent "general's style". He didn't rush to send troops to sweep the damned Frostwolf orcs just because he almost died at the hands of the orcs.

   On the contrary, he patiently waited until five days later, when the forwards of the army commanded by General Turalyon had finished resting, before leading the army.

   Such waiting is very necessary.

   Locals know that the most dangerous moment in the valley is when the snowstorm that covers most of the mountains has just subsided.

   Not only is it extremely cold, but the wild beasts and mysterious and terrifying Yeti in the valley, as well as the Ice Axe trolls who also live in the Alterac Mountains, can be very violent.

   At this time, the march is vulnerable to external interference.

  General Turalyon is not a person who does not listen to opinions. After a deep discussion with Oredon, he agreed to this old-fashioned and prudent advance plan.

   But after a total of more than 10,000 people from the three parties entered the Alterac Mountains in a mighty manner, the rangers and military spies in the forward sent back an embarrassing and shocking news.

   "What? Orcs ran away?"

  General Turalyon looked at the military report just delivered in his hand. The paladin commander, wearing heavy armor and wearing a holy scripture on his waist, looked back at Oriden Perenold, who was also "shocked".

   The latter, as a native of the region, after hesitating for a few seconds, whispered to Turalyon:

   "It must have been a premeditated plan by the cunning orcs!

  The **** blizzard a week ago overshadowed their movement, and we marched five days late to be on the safe side, giving them plenty of time to flee.

   Ah, it's all my fault! "

  Oridon took off his helmet, covered his eyes with regret and said:

   "I shouldn't have hesitated, if we had ventured into the army, maybe we could have given them before they escaped."

   "It's not your fault, Lord Oredon."

  Turalyan shook his head. He carefully looked at the details of the military newspaper and said softly:

   "If we had set off five days ago, our march would never have been as smooth as it is today. Compared to the life and death of the orcs, I care more about the safety of our soldiers and people.

  If they just run away, it's actually a good thing.

   At least the kingdom of Alterac no longer has to worry about the direct threat from the orcs.

   I am more worried now, where have these orcs gone?

  The Frostwolf clan has four or five thousand people!

   They can't disappear without a trace overnight, so many orcs gathered together, and they are also a group of highly mobile wolf cavalry.

   Once they choose guerrilla warfare, people and towns throughout the East Weald and the Downs will be threatened. "

   "No, they wouldn't do that, General Turalyon."

Oridon sighed, and took out a map of Alterac from his saddle, and unfolded it in front of Turalyon. In a gesture of "planning and moving", he slid his fingers on the map, pointing at the paladins. Speaking of:

   "The terrain of the Alterac Mountains is long and narrow, with impenetrable mountains on both sides, no matter how powerful the Frostwolf Orcs are, it is impossible to cross them out of thin air.

   There are only three roads they can walk, either to the north through the mountain pass where the city of Steinblade is located, or to the south through the hilly mountain pass where the Royal City of Alterac is located.

  Or take the path of Icewind Post into the Eagle's Nest Mountains, bordering the Alterac Mountains, to the Hinterlands where Wildhammer dwarves and trolls rule! "

   "Well, your analysis is very correct."

  Turalyon looked at the map. With Oridon’s explanation, his thoughts suddenly became clear. He tapped the ground a few times with his gauntleted fingers and said:

   "We have left defensive lines on both sides of the north and south. If there is no news of the orcs attacking there, then their route is only to go to the Hinterlands.

   But I can't understand, why did they go to the Hinterlands?

   There are valiant Wildhammer dwarves sky knights, and there are brutal cannibal trolls, and although there are mountains and forests for them to hide, if they are to survive for a long time, they are bound to anger both dwarves and trolls.

   This is not a good place. "

  Turalyon said with a nostalgic tone:

   "Ms. Alleria and I were stationed there for a while during the war, I know the place very well, there is no way to escape, unless.

   Unless they were looking down the sea cliffs, the orcs had no ships at all. "

   "What if someone answers?"

  Oridon felt that the "heat" was almost there.

   rubbed his chin, used his poor acting skills to pretend to be a whim, and whispered to Turalyon:

   "What if the other orcs prepared a fleet in advance to pick them up?

I learned from previous battle reports that in the Blackrock Spire, far north of Stormwind City, on the Burning Steppes, where the Alliance and the Horde fought, there was another group of orcs gathered together, calling themselves what the hell' Orthodox tribes'?

   I also think this is unlikely.

   But if they do, they never know where to get their ships, like renting them from mercenary goblins. "

   Seeing the hesitation on Turalyon's face, Oridon said again:

   "Goblins have a track record in this area, General. Don't forget they got a big fleet for the Horde in the wetlands two years ago.

   Those little green-skinned guys are shameless, and they are absolutely willing to do anything that can make money. "

   "You're right!"

  Turalyon took a deep breath. The cold air in the Alterac Valley made his mind run fast. He looked at the endless snow-capped plain in front of him. He turned his head and said to the messenger behind him:

   "Soldier, go and invite Archmage Ansrem, I have important matters to discuss with Your Excellency Oridon."

  The messenger accepted the order, turned the horses and galloped away to the rear of the troops.

   "If, as you guessed, the orcs plan to flee the northern border by land and sea, then we can only rely on the communication between the mages, and ask the Wildhammer dwarves to help intercept them."

  Turalyan clenched the reins, and he said regretfully:

   "It has been five days, and they must have entered the jungles of the Hinterlands, which are not suitable for cavalry charges, and it is too late for us to go after them.

   It was an embarrassing failure. "

   "Failure? No no no, great knight, this is not a failure!"

  Oridon laughed, and he whispered to the great knight:

   "Wherever the Alliance army went, the frightened green-skinned orcs fled. They did not dare to fight against the powerful Alliance warriors, and could only choose to flee like wild dogs.

  Trust me, our people would prefer this story of winning without a fight to a tragic victory after a battle with injuries.

  We only need to go to the stronghold of the orcs and bring back those things that the orcs cannot take as evidence, and then we can publicize this magnificent victory to the entire northern Xinjiang and even the human world.

   This is a victory bestowed by the Holy Light.

   O, Praise the Light. "

   He said this, making Turalyon a little uncomfortable.

   He is a sincere paladin. Although he comes from a noble family and is also involved in political affairs, he does not like this current method of playing with public opinion.

   However, if you don’t like it, you don’t like it, and Oridan’s statement is strictly calculated, and there is actually no problem.

   The orcs did run away.

   They were so terrified that they needed to summon a big storm to hinder the attack of the Alliance Warriors and buy time for their escape. They really won without a fight.

   But now this situation is more embarrassing.

   Their army has already entered the Alterac Mountains, so they can't leave without a fight, right?

  It's too bad to waste people and money, and it's not good news for ambitious soldiers who want to be promoted by military exploits.

   For this worry of the Great Knight, Oridon seemed even more confident.

   He marked a few red dots on his map of Alterac, and handed it to General Turalyon, saying:

   "Our Alterac enemies in the valley are not just the Frostwolf orcs, General. Long before the orcs arrived, our people have been harassed by the ice axe trolls swarming the valley.

  These savage trolls are scattered in three strongholds. They add up to more than 4,000 people, and they are the tyrants of Alterac Valley.

  Although we can't fight the orcs in this war, we are all here, right?

   Might as well kill these ice axe trolls.

  Trust me, General, the entire people of Alterac will praise your bravery and kindness as we return with the head of a savage troll.

  We locals have been tortured by these trolls for years.

  If the trolls weren't enough to fill the warriors' quest for glory and victory, I also know there are places for the Yeti and the Ogre Bandit, the hated ones. "

  Oridon snapped his fingers and said to the strange-looking great knight:

   "There are so many battles that can be fought, and so much military merit that can be earned."

   "Why do I feel like it's all arranged?"

  Turalyon looked at the map in his hand and whispered to Oreiden jokingly:

   "I feel that your original purpose was to take us to exterminate trolls and snow monsters, not to fight orcs? Did you already know that orcs would run away? Your Excellency Oridon.

  Look, there are only the two of us here, I am a Paladin, I have a creed of keeping promises, you don't have to worry about me revealing secrets.

  Tell me, where did you find out about it? "

   "Please don't make such a joke! Great knight."

  Oridon's face became stiff at this moment, and he said:

   "How could I possibly collude with the orcs? I swear it was all an accident, or luck, um, maybe the goddesses of luck were giving us.

  Let's go, great knight, in the valley not far ahead, there is a group of ogre robbers, we can use their heads to boost morale.

   Ah, our alliance warriors are indeed invincible, and the brutal orcs have been scared away by us. "

—

  It was getting late, deep in the jungles of the Hinterlands, on the shore of the largest Lake Warowen in the region, the Frostwolf orcs who were camping here were ready to rest.

   They have been galloping almost all the way for the past five days, with little rest.

The shamans of the    tribe set off the wind to accelerate them, and used the power of running water to soothe the exhaustion of the wolves and the warriors, allowing them to complete an almost impossible "great turn of thousands of miles".

   But not everyone is lucky enough to avoid war.

   "I guess those humans must be celebrating their great victory now, oh, this kind of fleeing without a fight, no matter when, is really annoying!"

   By the lakeside, a pot on a bonfire was cooking the plump fish just caught from the lake.

   And the upper body was bare and the captain Galvan, who was carrying a battle axe, was roasting the meat of a deer that the wolves killed just now, while complaining to the soldiers around him:

   "Actually, if we really fight, those humans will not be our opponents. Our shaman has summoned the powerful Frost King, and we have enough materials to fight a protracted war."

   "But what's the point of such a war? Captain."

   Next to Captain Galvan, the young orc Thrall, who was sitting there, sprinkled the fish soup with seasoning, and said softly:

   "This is not a matter of life and death, and the Frostwolf clan has nowhere to go. There will be no gain in a deadly battle with the Alliance, except for the sacrifice of our clansmen in vain.

   There is the hinterland of the Alliance, surrounded by four kingdoms and a magic city-state. We have no support at all. No matter how much we fight, we will only be consumed by the soldiers of the Alliance.

   Getting out of that mortal place is the right choice.

   As for the pursuit of the warriors, I once read a sentence in the history books of mankind. They said that the will of the greatest warriors is not to win every victory, but to use their own strength to end wars and maintain peace. "

   "Hey, we orcs don't say that."

  Captain Galvan pouted in disdain, and the other orcs also laughed.

   But after a few seconds, the captain whispered again:

   "However, there is some truth to this sentence. Since the orcs drank the blood of the devil, we first destroyed our own world, and then came to Azeroth to fight for six years.

  How many soldiers died in these bad wars?

  They shouldn't have died, and there is no warrior's glory in such a war at all. Our glory has been thrown away by our own hands with the dying of Draenor.

   But without those lunatics eager to conquer, we should now live our lives in peace in our own world.

  I don't know if you have played enough.

   But I really don't want to fight anymore, I'm tired of decades of non-stop wars. If I could, I'd rather go back to Frostfire Ridge and be a pig herd.

  Thrall, have you heard of the scenery of Frostfire Ridge? "

   "No, but Lord Ner'zhul and Elder Drek'Thar told me."

   A gleam of light flashed in Thrall's eyes. He stirred the fish soup and said to Captain Galvan next to him:

   "Captain, were you also born there?"

   "Well, I was born in a small village next to Bladespire Fortress."

   The orc captain smiled, he touched the rough stone pendant on his neck, and said in a nostalgic tone:

   "Our village was harassed by ogres all the year round. When I was a child, I followed the soldiers in the village to steal ogres' supplies.

  Every time the storm in Frostfire Ridge blows, and everyone's life is difficult, they will steal ogres.

  Those idiots don't even notice our actions.

   But they store a lot of jerky, but it's hard to eat, probably only eaten by ogres and hungry orcs. I hated that taste when I was a kid.

   That taste represents the days of barrenness and starvation, and every taste of them means that the village has entered a situation where food may run out at any time, and no one likes them.

   But I don't know why, but now I'm starting to miss those jerky that can grind people's teeth. "

  The brave captain looked at the sparkling lake in front of him. He and the circle of orcs around him fell silent. After a few seconds, the captain sighed and said softly:

   "Alas, Alterac Valley is very good, but it is not the Frostfire Ridge in my memory. Unfortunately, we have all been changed, and we can't go back."

   (end of this chapter)