Chapter 22 Chapter Twenty Two

"The black dragon has escaped! Although it can't completely eliminate the harm he caused, it can finally reduce some losses!" Cleostrasz looked up to the sky, his voice full of longing. "My queen..." "I thought you were dead then," Alexstrasza whispered. "I once felt sad for you..." Xionglong showed a trace of guilt. "I had to run away that time... just to keep the only chance of saving you. I apologize for the pain I caused you, and for my thoughtlessness in using these mortals. I know what you think about these mortal races ..." She nodded. "If they're willing to forgive you, then I will." She lowered her tail, entangled with the dragon's. "They're still chasing Deathwing, and before I can join them, we have to gather the surviving kin to rebuild our homeland. I think that's the number one priority."

"I am your servant," he replied, bowing his head. "From now on, and forever." Looking at the mage and his companions, the queen said again, "In order to thank you for your sacrifice, please at least let us fly you home - if you will wait a little longer." Falstad's griffins might be able to send them back with a little effort, but Rhonin gratefully accepted the Queen's offer.He felt that he and the two dragons hit it off, even though Cleostrasz had tricked him in the past.If it was Luo Ning, he would probably make the same decision in that situation.

"These copperbeard dwarves will provide you with food and lodging. After all the eggs are found and settled, we will come back to you tomorrow." There was a forced smile on her face. "I hope our eggs are all intact, otherwise, although Deathwing lost, it still dealt us a heavy blow." "Don't think too much," Xionglong urged, "Come on! The sooner we move, the better!" "Hmm..." Alexstrasza nodded slightly to the three of them. "Humans, elves, and dwarves! I thank you for everything you have done in this incident. Remember, as long as I am the queen of the dragon clan, the dragon clan will always be your friend..."

After saying this, both dragons leaped into the air, and quickly flew in the direction where Deathwing flew with the first batch of eggs.Those eggs left on the cart will be protected by the Bronzebeard dwarves, and now they have finally regained the entire territory of Grim Batol. "Look at them! How spectacular!" Falstad praised after watching the dragon fly away.Then he turned to face his companions. "Dear elf lady, you will always be a part of my dream!" He grabbed the dazed ranger's hand, shook it, and said to Rhonin, "Mage, I haven't seen many of your races. , but I still have to say, at least one of them has the heart of a warrior! Take back Grim Batol! I will definitely go back and tell this story! When I hear dwarves talking about your deeds in the tavern in the future , don't be surprised!"

"Are you leaving us?" Ronin asked in bewilderment.They had just won the battle, and Rhonin hadn't recovered from the whole thing. "You have to wait until tomorrow morning at least!" Vereesa insisted to stay. The dwarf shrugged his shoulders, as if to say that he would very much like to stay, given the choice. "I'm so sorry, but this news must be sent to the Eagle's Nest Mountains as soon as possible! Those dragons are flying fast, but I'm sure I'll be home before they reach Lordaeron! Let those guys know that I am not dead..." Rhonin shook Falstad's hand excitedly, but luckily he didn't use the injured hand.Although he was already very tired, Griffin Rider's terrifying grip could still pinch his hands numbly. "Thank you!"

"No, I'm the one to thank you! Now I'd have a hard time seeing a Gryphon Rider with more heroics than me! I'm going to sing, and Bao'll turn the ladies back, Do you believe it?" Uncharacteristically reserved, Vereesa bent down and gently placed a kiss on the dwarf's face.Falstad's face, concealed by his thick beard, turned red, making Ronin jealous. "Take care of yourself," she urged. "I will!" Falstad jumped on the back of the griffin with a skillful leap.After waving goodbye to them both, he lightly bumped the sides of the beast with his heels.

"Hopefully we'll see each other again when the war is really over!" The griffin leapt into the air and circled once more above them, allowing Falstad to bid them a final farewell.Then it flew westward and disappeared into the distance with the dwarf. Luo Ning waved at the figure that was fading away, but he remembered his first impression of the dwarf with some guilt in his heart.In the end, though, Falstad proved himself to be a solid companion in many ways. A gentle hand took his injured hand and slowly lifted it up. "This hand is badly hurt," Vereesa reproached in a low voice. "I swore to keep you safe. It's not good for me..."

"Didn't your oath expire long before we reached the shores of Khaz Modan?" he retorted, smiling. "Maybe. But you seem to need someone to protect you every moment! I don't know how you will hurt yourself next time!" Although the tone was harsh, the elf also showed a brief smile. Rhonin ignored her whining about his injured finger and wondered if there was a good way to stay with Vereesa after the dragons sent them both back to Lordaeron.Those commanders might have wanted the two of them to debrief together to better understand the situation.He had to make a suggestion to Vereesa to see what she thought.

Suddenly, he had a sudden thought, how could a person like him who was determined to die at the beginning, after going through a sea of ​​swords, almost beheaded, and even almost swallowed by a dragon, finally focus on saving his life?Maybe he'll forever feel guilty about what happened on those previous missions, but he won't lose sleep over it anymore. "Your hand," Vereesa said again. "Bring it on for now until I find some better fabric. It'll be all right soon." It turned out that she had just torn a small piece of fabric from her cloak, and used a piece of a broken ax handle to whittle it into something like a splint.Luo Ning looked at her handicraft, it was really good.

He didn't bother to tell her that as long as he regained his strength, he could heal his injured hand by himself.She was always happy to help Ronin. "Thank you." He wished the dragons hadn't been so quick to settle the eggs.Now that the concerns of the orcs were gone, Luo Ning found that he was not in a hurry to go home at all. When news of the recovery of Grim Batol finally spread throughout the Alliance, the common people rejoiced.The war can finally end, and peace is just around the corner. The head of state of every great state insisted on receiving mages and elf-rangers in order to question them in detail about their circumstances at the time.From the Eagle's Nest also came a message from "Famous Hero" Falstad that he was safe.

While Rhonin and Vereesa were traveling through various countries, and the two were getting closer, the mage who had been aliased as Krasus also made a report in the sky chamber.At first there was obvious hostility from the MPs, especially those who knew he had completely lied to them.However, no one disputed this result, because mages are usually the most pragmatic when it comes to results. Delindan shook his gloomy face at the mage who couldn't see clearly. "If you do this, it's likely that our previous efforts will be wasted!" He said suddenly, and his excited voice resonated with the occasional whirlwind passing through the hall. "All previous efforts are wasted!" "I know my mistake. I can submit my resignation to Parliament if you see fit; I will also accept penance, or even expulsion, if that is what you want." “There are also proposals for harsher penalties than expulsion,” Modra said, “much harsher than expulsion…” "But after we discussed, we thought that Rhonin's success brought Dalaran a good reputation, and even the guys in the allied countries who protested because we didn't notify them in advance also shut up. The elves are especially satisfied, because they also have People are involved." Delindan shrugged. "There seems to be no reason to continue discussing this matter. Considering that you have conducted your review, Krasus, now please accept my personal congratulations on your success." "Delindan!" Modra interrupted. "There's no one else here, so I'll say whatever comes to mind." He folded his fingers together and pinched them into a tower shape. "Now, if no one has anything to say, then I want to discuss the topic of the Lord Prestor, who was once the quasi-king of Alterac, but now he seems to have evaporated!" "There is no one in that castle, and all his servants have run away..." Modra echoed, she was still a little unconvinced by Delindan's comment about Krasus just now. One of the tall mages finally spoke. "The magic ward around that place is gone too. Also, there is evidence of goblins working for this rogue mage!" The whole council was watching Cleostrasz. He spread his hands to show that he was as ignorant as the others. The "Lord of Prestor" clearly had the upper hand, and everything went smoothly in all areas; why, they obviously wondered, had he suddenly dropped everything? "It's a mystery to me, actually. Maybe he realizes that in the end we're going to beat him together. I'm just guessing. There's really no other reason why he gave up so suddenly." These words satisfied the other mages.Cleostrasz knew that, like all living things, they had an egotistical side. "His influence has faded," he continued. "You have also heard, no doubt, that Genn Graymane has renewed his protest against Lord Prestor as king, and that Admiral Proudmoore is on his side. King Terenas even declared, A second background check on the nobleman has uncovered many unanswered questions. The rumors of the young princess's imminent engagement to Prestor have died down on their own..." "You checked his background, didn't you?" Modra interrupted him. "Perhaps His Majesty the King has also heard about this incident, eh." Delindan nodded, seemingly very satisfied. "Ronin's success made Terenas and several others favor us. We must seize this opportunity. Within half a month, we will make Lord 'Prestor' the most unpopular in the entire alliance." Welcome people!" Cleostrasz raised his hand in warning. "It's better to keep a low profile. We've got plenty of time. It won't be long before they forget this man ever existed." "Maybe you're right." The mage with the long beard looked at the others, and they all nodded in agreement. "Then, let's pass unanimously. How wonderful." He held out his hand, ready to dissolve the meeting. "Then, if there is no other proposal—" "Actually, I still have it." Red Dragon Mage interrupted.A cloud drifted away from the gust of wind just now and passed through his body. "What is it?" "While you have forgiven me for my questionable actions, I will say that I must be out of Parliament for a while." They all looked shocked.As far as they could remember, he had never missed a meeting, let alone left Parliament altogether. "How long?" Modra asked. "I can't say. She and I have been separated for so long that I'm afraid it will be a long time before our relationship is back to what it used to be." Cleostraz could almost see Delindan winking at him from the shadows. "You have a wife, don't you?" "That's right. I'm sorry I never mentioned it to you. Like I said, we've been separated for a long time..." He smiled, but they couldn't possibly see it. "...but she's back with me now." Several people exchanged glances quickly.Finally, Delindan spoke. "Then... anyway, we shouldn't stop you. Of course you have the right to do it..." He bowed to everyone.In fact, the red dragon mage also hopes that he can return to the council, after all, this has become an important part of his life for hundreds of years.However, that pales in comparison to the reunion with Alexstrasza. "Thank you. I promise, I will always pay attention to those important news..." He held out his hand to bid farewell to everyone, and at the same time, the spell he cast sent him away from the Sky Chamber.Those mages may not have realized that Kleostraz's farewell words actually came from the heart.As a member of the Kirin Tor - although out of the council - he will certainly keep an eye on political changes.Despite the disappearance of the "Lord of Prestor", debate within the Alliance continues, and Alterac remains a hot topic among several nations.His responsibilities to Dalaran made it impossible for him not to keep his attention on these matters. For his queen, for his ancient race, he and other dragons like him will always watch over...and intervene when necessary.Alexstrasza has always trusted those young races, and she is even more so after what happened to Rhonin and the others.For this reason, Cleostraz is willing to use her own actions to strengthen her belief.Whether it's for her or for those mortals who have helped him, this is what he should do. And since Deathwing fled that time, no one has seen the black dragon again.Under the continuous defense of other dragons, it is unlikely that he will do evil again for a period of time.However, because of him, these dragons also regained their concern for life and the future. The age of the dragons is over, but that doesn't mean they won't continue to leave their mark on the world...no one ever doubted that.