Ael'tharion shook his head, ignoring the gossipy bullet comments, and started chatting with the relatively serious person named "Frank the Ogre."
Frank the Ogre : If the orcs are already pushing into Quel'Thalas, that puts us in the late Second War timeline, right?
How far have their main forces advanced? Can you still get any signal from Silvermoon?
Hearing the name Silvermoon City, Ael'tharion subconsciously frowned, displeased.
"It's difficult. The Orc army is blocking the main road that connects the north and south of the forest."
"If we can first repel the Amani trolls' invasion, perhaps we can bypass the eastern side of Lake Elrendar and enter the northern part of the forest, but..."
Frank the Ogre: Amani trolls… yeah, that's rough.
Look, Ael'tharion—we've got future knowledge here. That's our advantage.
If the timeline stays intact, this invasion doesn't end well for the orcs anyway.
By now, Orgrim should already be thinking about pulling back.
And Gul'dan? He's definitely plotting something on the side.
Your best move right now is defense. Hold ground. Don't overextend.
Wait until Orgrim redirects south toward Lordaeron.
Wait until Gul'dan breaks off for the Broken Isles.
Once that happens, the pressure on Quel'Thalas drops hard.
The Amani will be manageable after that.
And Turalyon and Alleria should be inbound soon.
If you can last a little longer, this crisis resolves itself.
Just survive. That's the win condition.
Ael'tharion's brows furrowed at the words, which sounded as if they knew the future.
If it were just one person saying this, it would be one thing, but the bullet comments floating by were all offering their suggestions, talking over each other.
Although there were slight differences in everyone's ideas, the general premise was consistent.
This war, the Horde's invasion of Quel'Thalas, was destined to end without result, leaving only the persistent Amani trolls to continue attacking Silvermoon City.
The high elves and the Amani trolls had been fighting intermittently for several millennia, and they knew each other inside and out.
If it were the forest trolls at their peak, the high elves would still be wary.
After the Troll Wars more than two thousand years ago, the forest trolls had long since fallen into decline.
Even with the powerful military might of the current Horde, they were helpless against the sturdy Silvermoon City. With only the Amani tribe's forces, it was even more out of the question.
Once the orcs withdrew, the outcome of this battle was self-evident.
"Holding the line, huh..."
Ael'tharion was a warrior, and he never liked to think about overly complex things. Fearlessness in the face of danger and forging ahead were the tenets of a warrior.
With a large number of bullet comments revealing the outcome of the Quel'Thalas defense, Ael'tharion was already 80% convinced.
Regardless of how these people could foresee the future, the most important thing now was to inform his superior—Halduron Brightwing, the acting leader of the Farstrider Enclave—about the orcs' movements.
Even without deep thought, Ael'tharion could guess what would happen after the orcs left.
At this moment, the Amani trolls still had the patience to slowly encroach on Eversong Woods, but once the orcs withdrew, Zul'jin, infuriated, would surely gather all his forces and forcibly attack Silvermoon City.
"Here comes the problem."
Ael'tharion rubbed his messy beard, his head aching: "How can I convince Halduron to believe me?"
Ael'tharion's question quickly drew a flood of answers from the bullet comments.
BRO JUST SAY ELUNE TOLD YOU 😭🙏 "IT CAME TO ME IN A DREAM"
YEAH YEAH HIT 'EM WITH THE DIVINE PATCH NOTES
CATCH THE CLOUD PLAYER ☁️💀 THIS MAN LAGGING IRL
NAH WAIT—ELUNE IS NIGHT ELF GOD 😭 YOU'D GET CANCELLED IN QUEL'THALAS
SAY THAT OUT LOUD AND THE WATER METER GUY SHOWS UP AT 3AM
OKAY THEN—WHAT ABOUT "DATH'REMAR VISITED ME IN A DREAM"
BRO THINKS HE'S THE CHOSEN ONE
ONLY WORKS IF YOU'RE A SUNSTRIDER 😭 THIS MAN AIN'T ROYALTY
HALDURON GONNA BE LIKE: "SIR WHO ARE YOU"
"ANCESTOR CAME TO ME" — FROM WISH.COM 💀
SO WHAT'S THE PLAN THEN CHAT
EASY. LIE.
JUST SAY "REFUGEES TOLD ME" AND DIP 😤
BLAME IT ON NPCS
REFUGEE META OP 🔥
HALDURON TOO BUSY TO FACT-CHECK RN
WAR GOING ON, NO TIME FOR GOOGLE
AS LONG AS IT WORKS, HISTORY WON'T CARE
WIN FIRST. EXPLAIN NEVER.
STRATEGY: GASLIGHT, GATEKEEP, SURVIVE
The straightforward Ael'tharion was too lazy to think too much and simply decided to adopt the suggestion from that bullet comment.
However, Halduron, who had been busy all day, had finally rested and was leaning against the wall, lightly asleep.
Ael'tharion considered it for a moment and decided to inform him after he woke up.
"Speaking of which, Halduron has it tough too."
Because his father, Julian Deepshadow, had joined the Farstriders, Ael'tharion had known Halduron since he was very young.
In his impression, this second-in-command of the Farstriders was very accustomed to the high elves' slow-paced life, often appearing lazy, always slacking off if possible, and thus frequently reprimanded by Alleria.
That being said, compared to those noble lords in Silvermoon City who indulged in pleasure, Halduron was already considered diligent.
One could see hints of Silvermoon City's aristocratic customs from Liadrin.
Years of peace had made them accustomed to a life of debauchery.
If it weren't for the Orc army at their gates this time, those nobles, whose bodies and wills had long been corrupted by wine, women, and political intrigue, would not have united so wholeheartedly to assist the Sun King in resisting the enemy with all their might.
Seeing someone in the bullet comments mention his unkempt appearance again, Ael'tharion's heart stirred.
As a half-elf, Ael'tharion had been discriminated against by the pure-blood elves around him since childhood. Some individuals with stronger desires for self-expression would even lead in ostracizing and bullying him.
In his childhood, Ael'tharion even thought he had done something wrong and once tearfully asked his father why.
To this day, Ael'tharion still remembers his father's expression at that time, a mix of stubbornness and guilt.
In the end, Julian said nothing, only held Ael'tharion with earnest words, telling him to learn to be strong and not to always yield.
As time passed, Ael'tharion realized that yielding would not dispel the malice in those people's hearts. With his father's encouragement, he began to try to fight back.
Anyone who dared to provoke him was beaten soundly by Ael'tharion's fists.
One reason Julian moved to the estate in the southern Eversong Woods was that Ael'tharion had offended too many children of powerful nobles, and the Deepshadow family could no longer cover for him.
The high elves of Silvermoon City prided themselves on being noble and elegant, and they greatly despised fellow citizens who behaved impolitely.
Growing into his rebellious phase, Ael'tharion scoffed at their so-called elegance and nobility, seeing it as nothing more than pretentious posturing born of too comfortable living and boredom.
You like to act refined?
Fine, I'll do the opposite. I'll be as crude as possible, just to make you uncomfortable, but you can't do anything about me.
Based on this idea, Ael'tharion chose the warrior profession, which high elves looked down upon the most, as his main combat specialization.
Julian didn't say much about his choice and even used his connections to find a renowned teacher, also from the royalist faction, to instruct his son.
It was also from that time that Ael'tharion began to grow a beard and deliberately neglected to groom it, making him look unkempt and slovenly.
Years passed, and Ael'tharion had long grown accustomed to the hairy sensation on his face. If the bullet comments hadn't mentioned it, he would have almost forgotten that he still had a messy full beard.
As he grew older, under the guidance of his father and mentor, and the counsel of his friends, Ael'tharion's mindset gradually matured, no longer as extreme as in his earlier years.
Looking back now, his naive ideas during his rebellious phase were indeed somewhat laughable.
"To earn others' respect, simply being unconventional is useless..."
There was still some time before Halduron woke up. Ael'tharion stroked the thick hair on his face, making a decision in his heart.
"Since I've officially come of age, it's time to make some changes."
________________________
MC appearance is elf Askeladd