"Marry Tess?!" Wayne couldn't believe his ears.
He let the girl calm down gradually and then asked her to spell her name. The girl sobbed intermittently.
Wayne's first reaction was that these were some bizarre names. Just then, someone rushed over, knocking on the door and shouting loudly, "Teacher! Teacher!"
He knew it was Raymond from the inn across the street. He quickly opened the door to find Raymond, Farley, Lyria, and several others running over, armed with whatever they could grab.
"We heard something explode! At first, we thought it was a boiler in the kitchen, but then we heard a huge crash and realized something was wrong. When we ran out, we saw a scorched crater on the ground. Teacher, you..."
Raymond originally wanted to ask, "Teacher, are you alright?" but seeing Wayne standing there with a delicate little girl crying beside him, it was obvious he was fine while she was the one in trouble. So he changed his tune: "How many people did you fight off?"
Farley couldn't help but squint at Raymond. He thought to himself that before this guy was exposed as a Warlock, he had paid him wages for over six years, yet he had never seen him flatter him like this.
Alas, the heart is hidden behind layers of skin...
It was now 3:00 AM. It truly wasn't easy for these people to hear a strange noise, quickly dress, grab weapons, and rush over. Seeing them made Wayne feel much more at ease.
He briefly explained the process but omitted the details of why the two men in black had fled. However, even without him saying it, everyone else assumed they were repelled by his profound combat strength and magical prowess.
In their hearts, Wayne had long since become the invincible Archmage of Goldshire.
To his surprise, as he spoke, "Tess" cried even harder and clung to Wayne's waist, sobbing uncontrollably.
The onlookers didn't know the full story, but seeing how cute and pitiable Tess looked, they couldn't help but feel a surge of compassion. Seeing her clothes torn, they wanted to ask questions but felt it was inappropriate.
They believed in Wayne's character. Although he had seemingly changed into a different person recently—becoming smarter and incredibly powerful—he certainly wouldn't lock a little girl inside to commit such a cruel act.
Jyssetta cast a "Lesser Heal" on Tess to stop the bleeding from her wounds, followed by a "Renew." The shallow scrapes and bruises from her falls slowly began to mend.
Seeing that Tess was too traumatized to speak coherently, Jyssetta cast a spell called "Soothe Mind," which calmed her emotions enough for her to tell everyone what had happened.
Many refugees from Lordaeron had fled their homes due to the Scourge. Those who couldn't escape either died at the hands of the undead or were raised as walking corpses after death.
As more refugees flooded into Southshore, the town—which was much smaller than Goldshire—couldn't provide enough housing or food. Furthermore, Regent Bolvar had ordered a ban on troop reinforcements. The soldiers stationed in Southshore had no support or supplies and were already overwhelmed just maintaining order, let alone dealing with the recently joined Forsaken of the Horde or the undead army that could attack at any time.
Thus, Tess and her parents decided to take a ship south. However, the ship was shipwrecked near the Stormwind harbor. She clung to the wreckage and, surviving against all odds, washed ashore in the northwestern part of Elwynn Forest.
Later, she spent her time dodging wild beasts while trying to reach Stormwind for help, only to encounter the Defias bandits gathered at Mirror Lake.
That group wanted to capture her and send her to the Deadmines in Westfall as a slave. Unwilling to submit, she fled through the dense forest, which led to her accidentally stumbling upon Wayne in Goldshire in the middle of the night.
Tess spoke emotionally. Despite the calming buff, she couldn't help but shed tears again when mentioning her sorrows. The kind-hearted Jyssetta and the stable master Emma, along with several other women, also had reddened eyes.
Lyria's expression shifted slightly as if she wanted to say something, but seeing Wayne's eyes briefly sweep over her, she held her tongue.
Instead, Farley asked: "From here to Stormwind is several days' walk. Come to my inn for the night, change into clean clothes, and tomorrow I'll see if there's a trustworthy caravan or soldiers going into the city for business who can take you."
Hearing this, Wayne couldn't help but give Farley a thumbs-up in his mind. This was the difference between a human profiteer and a goblin profiteer. It was also the fundamental reason why Farley's Lion's Pride Inn had remained popular for decades despite his stinginess.
However, Tess shook her head with a look of terror, refusing to leave for anything. She cried, "I don't know where my parents were washed away to, and it's too dangerous here. I don't want to leave, wahhh!"
This made the surrounding crowd even more soft-hearted.
She was only twelve years old and had suffered separation from her parents, been chased by beasts, and attacked by bandits. Everyone felt truly embarrassed to ask her to leave again.
Emma looked at Farley: "Old man, if you're taking her in, give her a job. How much food could a little girl possibly eat?"
She and Farley were husband and wife, but as a descendant of ranchers, she was much stronger than Farley. When they inherited the inn in their youth, she was responsible for greeting guests at the door and later managed the large stables next to the inn.
Hearing her say this, Farley showed a clear look of distaste: "What do you know, old woman? Stop talking nonsense."
Raymond immediately chimed in: "That's right, Mr. Farley." He used to call Farley "Boss," but since becoming Wayne's apprentice and quitting his job at the inn, he had switched to "Mr."
"A shipwreck... I fear this girl's parents are likely... uh... probably... sigh..." He wanted to say "mostly drowned," but seeing Tess start crying again, he quickly shut his mouth. "Just take her in."
Farley was hesitant. He knew in his heart that doing such a good deed for one day was a blessing from the Light, but if he actually agreed, it would be a commitment for a lifetime.
He also felt that the girl's parents had likely perished. She was only twelve; even as a young apprentice, he would have to arrange housing and meals for her day after day, year after year. That wasn't just charity; it was a burden.
Unexpectedly, while he was hesitating, Tess suddenly grabbed Wayne: "Big brother, protect me."
Wayne's eyes widened in shock, completely unprepared for this turn of events.
Raymond chimed in again: "Teacher, look, you saved her tonight, her parents are gone, and she's truly terrified. Why don't you..."
Wayne looked at the apprentice he was forced to accept, thinking to himself: You're a blockhead who gets every prediction wrong, and you still have the nerve to give advice?
Farley quickly added his flattery: "Yes, yes, Little Wayne. You're the richest man in Goldshire now. Even that thick-skinned goblin Noggenfogger is trying to suck up to you. I see you're lacking an assistant here. I'll take her tonight and let my wife and my daughter Milly help her wash up and change. She can rest for a night and be sent back to you tomorrow."
Wayne swallowed hard. This time, not only were his eyes wide with shock, but his mouth was hanging open. He thought: Farley, you old fox, you certainly know how to follow the wind and kick a man while he's down!
Jyssetta, Emma, Raymond, Zaldimar, and even the butcher Toddrick, who had rushed out with a meat cleaver he never let go of, all cast expectant and pleading looks at Wayne.
Only Lyria frowned, but as Wayne gave her another look, she once again hesitated to speak.
Tess cried out once more: "Big brother, protect me..."
Wayne shook his head helplessly and said, "Fine, fine. I'll do as you all say. But let's be clear: the day we get news of your parents, we will send someone to take you back."
"Oh..." "Great..." "Yes, yes, Wayne is always so thoughtful." "So moving..." "My admiration for Teacher has increased even more!"
Except for Lyria, everyone present—whether they spoke aloud or thought it in their hearts—felt that this was the most perfect conclusion.
Thus, Emma took little Tess by the hand, and the crowd accompanied them into the inn. Lyria, trailing at the very back, turned to look at Wayne. Wayne shrugged and nodded at her.
It was another silent exchange, and this time, Lyria also nodded back at Wayne.