Chapter 73: Long Live the King

I don’t know when, the walls of the stone castle had been filled with golden lion flags on a blue background, which was the royal emblem of the Urien family and the insignia of the entire Stormwind Kingdom.

It was seen everywhere in Stormwind, the white bricks, the blue flags, and the gold emblems seemed to have blended together. But in this part of the Red Ridge Mountains, these unnatural deep blues contrasted extremely strongly with the red mountains in the distance, and the dark green forests and loess in the near distance.

Jace kept looking at the flags as he stood in the middle of the playground, at the far end of the line of warrior-soldiers in the midst of that previous garrison, when the trumpets blew from the walls, sharp and very festive, drowning out the sound of the waterfall’s crashing water.

“The King is coming!”

“The King is coming!”

“Hail to the King!”

“Long live the Union!”

Slogans rang out from the mouths of different heralds as a group of valiant cavalrymen galloped in through the gates of the stone fortress, and even the chestnut-colored horse that Maëlijs rode snorted in fear.

Clad in heavy armor, even their horses were wrapped in thick metal armor and hooded robes, these cavalrymen ran with the strain of an underpowered machine, but each step was heavy enough to kick up a large cloud of dust.

The leader was a tall young man with dark hair tied back, sturdy almost like a calf, with a broad chest and thighs so toned that they held up the tight pants dwarfing the sturdy date-red horse beneath him.

He wore no headdress, crown or hat or anything that would identify him, only a trimmed blue tunic that allowed one to see that he was not at least a commoner.

But after he dismounted and landed on the ground, his eyes swept over everyone in the entire stone fortress with an air as if these walls were built by his own hands.

This is Varian Urien, no doubt about it.

He was definitely older than the “Golden Prince”, Alsatian Menehild, and by a lot.

Jace thought his memory might be off, he remembered whether it was the official novel of the specimen, or the game, where Varian had said that Prince Alsatian Way of Lordaeron was his age.

Let’s just say that if a difference of 5 years is considered the same age, then let’s say he’s not wrong.

Based on appearance alone, this guy was willing to believe that he was almost thirty, not to mention anything less than twenty.

Varian was probably close to 5’9″ and so sturdy that it was hard to imagine how he normally worked himself out, walking like an ungrown orc even amongst a group of soldiers and squires.

He’d grown a bit of a beard, as if to make himself look more mature, but his age clearly limited the abundance of the scruff, and it was in that detail that Jace could still barely tell that he was an older boy who really wasn’t twenty.

For some reason, from the moment Varian Urien came into view, Jace couldn’t help but think one question.

What would happen to this guy if he ran into the orc shaman who had summoned the thunderbolt at the lake earlier?

The young king stepped into the midst of the crowd and was silent for a moment until the voices around him calling out his name fell silent.

“You have endured hardships I could never have imagined, warriors. Both I, and the residents of Stormwind are still basking in the joy of victory against the orcs, while almost ignoring our ancient enemies, those vile, shameless and cruel jackals still infesting our lands and homes, but you have proved that even after the atrocious ravages of the orcs, and even after Stormwind has been burned to the ground …… in the the name of Holy Light, the Stormwind Kingdom and her people still stand here and will never be crushed!”

“It’s because of heroes like you ……”

He looked over, a little twinkle in his eyes, and Jace observed a surprising hint of hesitation in his stoic and highly angular statuesque countenance as well.

Varian was silent for a few more moments, and all the soldiers in the room stared at him as if waiting for him to brew his emotions.

Jace knew that the man had forgotten the words.

“It is because of you guys. It is because of you that this is possible.”

Varian turned, striding toward the side, and Jace noticed a deep sigh of relief from Baron Grey-Aryan, who stood in the distance.

It was then that Jace finally noticed those who had followed the king here.

Varian Urien was so bright that he overshadowed all of his entourage, and Jace caught sight of Grey Aryan constantly talking to a slightly older, stronger man next to him.

The man had brown hair and a thick beard, making him look perhaps a bit older than his true age. He was dressed in extremely expensive attire, with an ornate cloak and a silver tiara, probably the highest ranking person in the place excluding the king.

That would be Burwal Vortagan.

When Varian disappeared a dozen years later under Onyxia’s manipulation and his young son, Anduin Urien, succeeded him, Bovar became Regent of Stormwind, and is now also the highest-ranking lord and general in all of Stormwind, as well as serving as the king’s advisor to aid him in his post-war endeavors to become a competent ruler.

The aristocratic woman standing beside Lord Berwal with a long figure of Gu, wearing a long silver dress with a blue pendant on her neck that was still clearly visible even from this distance, and long light blonde hair, would be Varian’s wife, Tiffin Urien.

Jace searched the crowd diligently for a woman with black hair and a red dress, but came up empty, just as he thought, the Black Dragon Princess Onyxia hadn’t been here yet.

“Ahem.”

Jace snapped his eyes back; Varian was already standing in front of him, and he seemed to be standing a little too close.

It was then that Jace noticed that it seemed as if he was standing a little further forward than the soldiers next to him.

Had the other soldiers finished talking in that moment just now? Is it your turn so soon?

“You’re …… Jess Sesso?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

He suddenly remembered all the etiquette and whatnot that the Baron had explained to him and bowed violently.

Boom.

Hit my head on something slate like, or hit …… the damn thing.

Looking up again, a few nobles in the distance had covered their eyes.

A strange odor of sweat mixed with the smell of cologne hit his face, the king in front of him sweat had seeped out of his black hair and flowed onto his forehead, it was hard to say who was more nervous between the two at the moment.

But Varian seemed to have relaxed quite a bit more than the stiff face he’d been wearing a moment ago; after all, he’d already discovered that he wasn’t the most flabbergasted one in the entire arena.

He whispered, “You are the hero of the stone fortress, I learned of your feat from Colonel Todman’s letter, guarding a sentry tower all by yourself, saving the warriors of the stone fortress from being attacked by the jackals with rocks and crossbow bolts from the walls in all directions, without you our deaths and injuries would have been multiplied by a few times, and even this fortress would have fallen into the hands of the jackals. “

The king’s voice, though still a bit strained and stiff, had become extremely magnetic and infectious in its own right, and when he was finished, Jace clearly heard him breathe a sigh of relief before saying, “If you have any wishes, make them now, and I will fulfill them to the best of my ability.”

“To do my duty for the kingdom is my greatest desire, Your Majesty.” Jace said as the Baron had taught him.

Varian said, “Those who do their duty for the kingdom must also be rewarded practically, Mr. Jace Sesso. You are not a member of the army, I cannot reward you for your service as I see fit, you could have just said what you wanted.”

“I ……” Jace said after a moment of feigned hesitation, “I wish to become a full apprentice at the Sorcerer’s Sanctuary, Your Majesty.”

“What an upwardly mobile young man.” A nobleman chattered in the distance.

“I am humbled by your studious spirit.” Varian Urien said, “As you wish, I will personally travel to the Wizard’s Sanctuary and ask the mages and elders there to qualify you as a full apprentice to learn magic. If they are willing to do so, I hope that you will also cherish this opportunity and work hard to forge ahead, so that you can eventually become a royal mage like the respected Nerath Elam, a pillar of magic in the kingdom, and make even more outstanding contributions to the people of the kingdom and the entire alliance!”

“I’ll be waiting for you at Fort Storm, Mr. Sesso.”

Somehow, Jace hadn t thought this far ahead, but after Varian said it like that, he suddenly felt his heart surge a little. The king s family mage …… is a cake, but it is fragrant.