Shadow Trails in Azeroth

General Blackmore has always paid attention to training. After becoming a general, he did not give up his martial arts practice.

He is in good health, and according to Black's perception, he has the vitality that a high-level warrior should have.

So the ugly look on his face right now was definitely not because he was feeling unwell.

It was because the pirate's request was like hitting a snake seven inches away, hitting something that General Blackmore couldn't let go of the most.

He has always been a man with a plan.

His background was very bad. His father was a traitor to Lordaeron. He came to the Kingdom of Stromgard when he was young. It took him more than twenty years to start from scratch to reach his current identity and status.

His pursuit of power was fraught with danger, and he almost died on the battlefield several times.

His past efforts are fully worthy of his current position of power.

But the problem is that Blackmore's ambition is not to be a general. What he desires is to go further.

To reach his current status with his stained background is almost the limit of his struggle.

No matter how high-level the circle is, he will not be accepted.

If he wants to become a real big man who can stir up troubles, he must find another way.

When he adopted the little orc Thrall, all he wanted in his mind was to use the orc to discover the weaknesses of his compatriots in exchange for military glory.

Then he discovered Sal's natural intelligence and changed his mind.

The General is a very far-sighted man. When the war was going on, he foresaw that if the Alliance won, how to place a huge number of orcs would be a big problem.

He began to train Thrall in his own way, to train him into a strange guy with an orc appearance and a human soul.

He planned to use Thrall as a "new orc template" to prove to the alliance's top leaders that there was another way to rationally utilize orcs besides slaughter and hard labor.

He knew this would give him a brighter future.

But people's thoughts will change.

Especially after seeing Thrall's amazing potential, the general had an idea in his mind that he shouldn't have. He had fought in orc wars, and he had seen scenes of violent orcs defeating human elites under the leadership of their respective chiefs.

He was very clear about the destructive power of the orcs. In his opinion, the reason why the orcs failed was because they had strategic problems, not tactical problems.

So, what if I was manipulating Thrall behind the scenes and commanding this group of orcs with astonishing destructive power?

With his own strategic level, he may not be able to reach the level of the orc army overthrowing the alliance, but he can seize a large area of ​​land in the southern part of the continent to build his own country, and then recuperate before launching another major invasion.

As long as you are careful enough! Don't follow the old path of the Horde. With the alliance's weakening power after the war, you are confident that you can push the battle line to Khaz Modan.

In that case, he can have a territory three times larger than the Kingdom of Stormwind, and he is qualified to wear a king's crown, or even an emperor's crown!

Once this taboo thought appears, it is unstoppable.

General Blackmore used his outstanding military skills to conduct repeated deductions. His plan seems outrageous, but as long as he seizes the time and waits for the fragile alliance to fall apart, his probability of success is at least 70%!

He began to train Thrall more carefully, imparting his military experience to him, and using his position, he brought six large shelters in the Hillsbrad Hills area under his management.

He doesn't abuse these orc captives like others, he needs them to maintain a certain fighting capacity.

At the same time, he wants to eliminate those factors that threaten his plan.

The most important one among them, the one who must be eliminated, is Anduin Lothar!

The old marshal led the alliance to defeat the Horde orcs commanded by Orgrim Doomhammer head-on.

No matter how confident Blackmoore is, he doesn't think he can match Orgrim. If Orgrim loses to Lothar, he will never succeed in any case.

From this point of view, Your Majesty the General is indeed very self-aware, and he knows how to be forbearing and assess the situation. He is infinitely higher than those arrogant careerists.

So when he received some "secret instructions" from the country, the General was ecstatic. He accepted the order without hesitation and began to secretly contact Ravenholdt's master assassin.

For your own big plan.

Lothar must die!

Now, Blake Shaw suddenly appeared and made two demands on him as an old friend.

Give up participating in the conspiracy against Lothar.

And hand over all the orcs in his hands.

Can the general agree?

Of course not!

What Black wants is not the orc captives in his hands, what he wants is the "Great Expectations" Blackmore has planned for himself! What he wants is General Blackmore's ambition and dream!

What the pirates want is a future that is more cruel than taking his life.

And he actually claimed that he came in the name of "rescue", how shameless!

"I cannot grant you this terrible request, my friend."

Even though he was furious in his heart, General Blackmore still maintained his appearance of dignity. He said in a very calm and business-like tone:

"It is a decision made by the kings of the alliance to establish a shelter and imprison the greenskin prisoners. It is an alliance regulation that spans a single country. Not to mention me, not even His Majesty Solas has the authority to hand over the orcs. captive.

As the general of the Kingdom of Stromgard, I cannot make decisions privately.

If you want those prisoners, you have to show me orders signed by at least four kings and His Majesty the Pope. "

"Well, so when I discuss relationships with you, you want to discuss laws with me?"

The pirate curled his lips, not too disappointed.

He shook the wine glass in his hand and said to General Blackmore sitting opposite him:

"Don't think about it again, my friend.

The Gilneans are very 'open-minded'. Their Northern Lord Darius, who is in charge of managing the shelter, readily agreed to my mentor's trade request.

You know, the Gilneans have long been extremely dissatisfied with the wealth consumed by the long war.

They were unwilling to use their precious land to imprison a group of greenskin captives who had nothing to contribute other than eating dry food.

I think that if you take the initiative to apply to His Majesty Thoras Trollbane, His Majesty the King of Stromgarde and his ministers will acquiesce in your action. "

"maybe."

Your Excellency, the general, picked up his wine glass with some disappointment and replied in a formulaic way:

"But I am a soldier, Lord Black. I can't promise you anything until I get an order. As for little Taresha, you can take it with you.

This girl is very smart. If her background was better, she might be able to enter Dalaran and become a mage.

If she stays with me, I can't give her better treatment. "

As he spoke, the General stood up, took out a silver card from his drawer, and handed it to Taresha, who was at a loss. In an elder's tone, he spoke to the person in front of him who had just been given a "gift" by him a few days ago. "The little girl who sent him out said:

"This little money should be regarded as a reward for the Folkston family's service to me for so many years. Take it with you and remember to buy yourself some more clothes after following Mr. Black to a new place.

Don't wear those old clothes, lest you embarrass Master Black.

If you still miss your hometown, remember to send a few letters back. "

After hearing this, the little girl Taresha felt a surge of anger in her heart. Her parents were both servants of the general. Her father died in an attack, and her mother also contracted an illness and died a few years ago.

Her own biological brother even died of illness due to lack of nutrition after birth.

Why didn't the general give their family money at that time?

And when I was sent out a few days ago, I didn't see so many dramas on the general's face!

Now what does this mean?

Buy yourself off?

She deliberately threw back the card that could be exchanged for gold coins at the Goblin Bank, but in the end she did not do so. She just lowered her head, glanced at Black quietly, and whispered to General Blackmoore:

"General, I can't go see it before I leave."

"Okay, it's time to go!"

Before Taresha could finish her words, the pirate interrupted her.

Blake stood up and said goodbye to his "old friend" in a very gentle tone:

"Everything comes down to one standard. Since the general has given my little servant freedom, I will help you ease your current embarrassing situation. As for the orcs, we will talk about it when we have the opportunity in the future."

He stretched out his hand towards Blackmoore and said to the General:

“The last request, old friend, in your name, send a message to ‘Cutter’ Macros, asking him to take his elite to the farthest sentry barracks in the forest outside Durnholde Castle.

Then pull back the soldiers you have there.

The Cleaver has rebelled against Ravenholdt and has become a pathetic bastard. His head will once again prove your loyalty to the Alliance, and Lothar will see you as a trustworthy person again.

When the dust settles, no one will know what happened in this castle. "

The eyes on Black's shoulder glanced at the ugly-looking general in front of him. The pirate was waiting for his answer. The general was silent for a few seconds and asked softly:

"So, Lord Black is now serving Lothar?"

"No, I serve my ideals, just like you, General."

The pirate smiled and said:

"Coincidentally, Lothar's current trends are consistent with my ideals, and I don't mind earning some 'pocket money' from his generous followers."

"If I don't express my attitude, will my head become your 'pocket money'?"

The general asked in a very straightforward tone.

The pirate shrugged and made no reply.

But this action said it all.

"I will deliver the letter after daybreak."

Blackmore was worthy of being a hero, and he made a decision immediately. He took out a golden card from his drawer, handed it to Black, and said:

"Buy your tight-lippedness."

"Ah, it's true that he's like a soldier. He's so poor and petty even when he's stuffing red envelopes."

The pirate did not take the card and said in a strange tone:

"If you really want to buy the secrets of a master assassin, this amount of money is far from enough. I heard that you are very famous locally. Although you have some bad habits, you have never done anything to exploit local civilians.

You are not a rich man, my friend.

Don't follow the example of those rubbish aristocrats who are poor and have only money. Keep your money and don't spend it randomly. It will definitely be useful in the future.

I'm willing to keep my friends' secrets secret.

It won't do me any good to spread the word about what's going on here.

What is my cleaning maid doing standing there?

gone. "

After saying that, he walked out of the general's room with Taresha, who had her head lowered, leaving behind Edras Blackmoore, who had a strange expression on his face. He had just been despised by a pirate in terms of wealth.

But what they said is correct.

He was indeed not a rich man. Didn't General Blackmoore, who was very self-aware, not even mention hiring Black to rebel against Lothar?

He knew he couldn't afford the price.

After watching the pirates leave, the general closed the door with a gloomy expression. He sat alone in front of the burning candle, staring at the flames in front of him and thinking constantly.

Thinking about it, my head started to hurt at the end, so I wrote a private letter.

Ambitious people generally cherish their lives.

Now for the sake of your own life, let's put aside the master cutter, the powerful master, and the meritorious status gained after assassinating Lothar.

——

"Why don't you speak?"

On the way out of Durnholde Castle under the night, Blake felt the silence of the little maid behind him, and he asked:

"Before leaving, do you want to pay homage to your parents?"

"No need."

Taresha hugged her old clothes and the magic broom in her arms. She whispered:

"Their graveyard is not in the castle. It's quite far away and will delay your business. I'm just worried about Sal. Do you still remember him?"

"You are really qualified as a sister."

pirate said:

"I just escaped from the tiger's mouth, and now I have time to worry about your 'orc brother'."

"The General will make Thrall do terrible things."

Taresha whispered:

"Although I don't know what he wants to do, Thrall will definitely become a tool of his ambition, just like me. Captain, can you"

"cannot!"

Blake refused:

"I won't save a little green skin, but don't worry, there are many people who want to save him."

Under the night, the pirate looked back at Durnholde Castle behind him. The lights were still on in General Blackmoore's room, and a sneer appeared on the corner of Black's mouth under his helmet.

He said:

"Blackmoore rejected my kindness, but I rarely show kindness. If he is so ignorant, let him get the end he deserves!"