CHAPTER 724: INFLUENCE

At that moment, Duke also smiled.

If Sylvanas were still a high elf, she would undoubtedly follow her convictions. But Jaina was too clever, adept at assessing situations. She was the type who conceded defeat even before a victory was secured. Her relentless ambition fueled her restlessness, yet she was also crippled by a fear of failure.

In a way, this meant she could never truly become a leader. Who had ever seen a cautious leader achieve greatness? According to the tropes of horror animations and TV series from before Duke’s transmigration, characters like her rarely survived past the second episode.

Duke smiled. He knew Jaina needed encouragement, but feeling a touch of annoyance, he decided to tease her instead: "Dalaran will certainly be rebuilt. The Kirin Tor councillors will hold great importance in the future."

Jaina, not one to show weakness, smiled slyly. "I’m already a member of the Kirin Tor!"

Duke realized he couldn’t impress Jaina with something she already possessed, so he feigned ignorance: "Then there’s no problem at all."

He was being deliberately provocative, and Jaina was no fool.

Suddenly, Jaina opened her arms and embraced him. Her movements were incredibly slow; even if Duke were an ordinary man, he could have dodged her a hundred times over. Yet, her eyes conveyed a clear message: If you don’t hug me, I’ll regret it.

Duke gritted his teeth and allowed Jaina to have her way.

It would be a lie to say he wasn’t excited to be embraced by such a beautiful woman. Duke could distinctly feel the roundness and softness of her "magical peaks." Unlike the Windrunner sisters, this was an entirely different extreme. The Windrunner sisters’ long-trained resilience was something ordinary women simply couldn’t possess. Conversely, the Windrunner sisters couldn’t replicate Jaina’s soft, "cake-like" touch, which seemed to yield and deform at will! Even through her clothes, he could feel the delicate and smooth texture.

This... this was undeniably another form of delightful depravity!

Jaina Proudmoore! Was she, perhaps, a succubus spy sent by the Burning Legion!?

At that moment, Jaina suddenly leaned in close, blowing softly into Duke’s ear and whispering in a sweet, seductive voice: "I... I possess a treasure, carefully guarded for twenty-seven years. No one has ever touched it. Regardless of what has happened, what is happening, or what will happen, I will keep this treasure solely for you. However, this treasure has a shelf life. I fear it might deteriorate after thirty years and be scorned by others. So, could you please come and claim it when you’re in a good mood or have some time within the next two years?"

Oh, my gods!

Such a mysterious treasure existed in the world!?

And it was a treasure belonging exclusively to him, Duke?

Damn it, no way!

If he were to approach a mountain of treasures and return empty-handed, he wouldn’t be Duke!

An honest and reliable young man!

Gentleman Duke!

How could one not accept such a treasure with a smile?

Duke understood Jaina’s unspoken thoughts. If she couldn’t be his wife, perhaps she could be his lover? With Duke as her powerful backer, she would undoubtedly feel more at ease. This wasn’t Jaina playing games; as long as Duke was willing, the treasure would be his immediately. And it was the kind of magical treasure that, once acquired, no one could ever take away!

After considering it, Duke felt utterly intoxicated.

Unfortunately, Duke’s reverie was shattered the next moment. He had been tricked by Sylvanas just minutes earlier, prompting him to specifically modify the system AI’s reconnaissance mode. Then, at that precise moment, the system AI’s red-highlighted prompt flashed: A female human is detected, and a high elf is near you, in Listening mode.

Damn it!

Eavesdropping! Vanessa, outside the door, might tell Calia, and then Sylvanas would erupt, potentially sparking a civil war within the Alliance in mere minutes!

Duke’s lustful thoughts and primitive impulses vanished instantly. His arms, which had been awkwardly unsure of where to go moments before, finally embraced Jaina in a perfectly proper manner: "I am not such a heartless person. If someone treats me with sincerity, I will repay them in kind. The territory of the Edmund family is quite vast. Not to mention an Archmage Tower, even an additional Dawn Mage Tower is not a big deal."

Of course, Jaina would have been thrilled to "take away her treasure" then and there. But first, the timing wasn’t right, and second, Duke would have been put in an inferior position had he done so.

The atmosphere, without either of them realizing it, shifted into a light and warm feeling. In a sense, this was beyond both Duke’s and Jaina’s expectations. Neither had anticipated the atmosphere becoming so subtle.

Was this more than friendship, yet less than love?

Jaina departed, seemingly content.

Duke, however, was in trouble.

He had initially been irritated by Jaina, but who would have thought that shortly after her departure, a distinctly jealous female voice would carry on the wind?

"Hey, Duke," the voice said, "I also possess a magical treasure. But unlike human treasures, ours, as high elves, have an exceptionally long shelf life. I don’t mind keeping mine for a thousand or even eight hundred years. You can just go look for treasures with a short shelf life and don’t worry about me." With that, the owner of the voice vanished without a trace, leaving Duke no chance to argue.

Duke was utterly speechless!

Feeling utterly miserable, Duke sought out Daelin that very night. Initially, King Daelin’s angry roars could be heard from his private cabin, but they soon fell silent.

At dawn, a joint announcement from Duke and King Daelin circulated among the Alliance’s top leaders. It roughly stated that Duke’s engagement to Jaina had never been personally approved by him, and such a marriage was no longer appropriate. Therefore, both parties had amicably agreed to cancel the engagement.

Duke compensated Kul Tiras with a 36-page gift. In peacetime, this would undoubtedly have been an astronomical amount of compensation. However, during the war against the Scourge—known as the Third War at the Dark Gate—many material possessions were, in fact, useless. Money and luxury goods were not as practical as a team of fully armed elite soldiers or a truck of uncontaminated food.

As for the other news—that Princess Jaina Proudmoore was organizing a transoceanic expedition to establish a new safe haven on the continent of Kalimdor, across the Endless Sea—it garnered no response among the Alliance’s top leaders. Instead, as Duke had anticipated, it sparked a warm reception among the refugees in Gilneas and Stromgarde.

At this point, Duke immediately found himself with a headache due to the fallout from the engagement’s cancellation. Duke was, in theory, a single man once more. However, what Duke found most intolerable was that scoundrel Mograine, who had actually sent Abendis back to Silvermoon City via portal, only to then arrive here himself to gain the upper hand. Ostensibly, they were inquiring about purifying the Eastern Plaguelands and dealing with a potential Scourge attack. In reality, they were merely here to promote their own queen!

Duke felt utterly overwhelmed.

Fortunately, an event unfolded that saved Duke from his predicament.

The Sunwell could finally hold on no longer!

Initially, the high elves had sought external aid from individuals like Liadrin and Jaina Goldsword, hoping to either modify the Sunwell’s internal circulation or activate its self-purification system to cleanse the plague. After all, in their imagination, the Sunwell’s waters—representing immense heat, sacred energy, and purification—had to be capable of cleansing the plague accompanying the resurrection of a mere great lich.

Unfortunately, the situation proved far beyond their wildest imaginings. The contaminated area within the Sunwell was constantly expanding. Not only was purification impossible, but even isolating the corruption proved futile. In this moment, with the Sun King’s betrayal and the near annihilation of their high-level mages, relying solely on the power of the high elves was simply impossible.

Even though they regarded the Sunwell as a national treasure, sacrosanct and untouchable by outsiders, they had no choice but to humble themselves and seek aid from Duke, the Alliance’s sole Archmage of the Sun.

Well, Duke enjoyed a good relationship with the Windrunner sisters. Duke might even become the husband of a potential queen of Quel’Thalas. This was how the high elves rationalized their plea.

The one who came was Lor’themar Theron, approaching Duke with the utmost humility to ask for help. His subservient demeanor almost made Abendis, standing beside Duke, wonder if Lor’themar was a mere human peasant who had never encountered a high noble.

"Let’s go!" Duke replied, noncommittally.

The blame wasn’t his, so he didn’t have to shoulder it. If his memory served him correctly, he should be able to leverage this Sunwell incident to his utmost advantage...

The tall and majestic Sunwell stood on the highest peak of the Sunwell Plateau. Because of Kel’Thuzad’s resurrection, the Sunwell’s towering walls resembled a steep cliff, and standing at the well’s edge, one could overlook the entire island of Quel’Danas.

6,800 years ago, when the high elf exiles, led by Dath’Remar Sunstrider, crossed to the east and used stolen water from the Well of Eternity to construct this colossal well, they employed magic to seamlessly merge stone and tree. Even from the perspective of modern people, in an era where magic civilization was exceedingly prosperous, this would still be considered a miracle.

Without personal experience, it was impossible to truly grasp its awe-inspiring scale. Even Duke, a time traveler who had witnessed such "magical" modern buildings as the Capital’s "Big Underpants," the Bird’s Nest, and the Sydney Opera House (the "Banana Leaf"), couldn’t help but be moved.

The shaft wall was constructed from rectangular volcanic stones, each weighing at least a thousand tons, polished and cut to fit together perfectly. This alone was enough to shame any crane company on Earth from before his transmigration, forcing them into bankruptcy. Huge evergreen vines tightly wrapped around the well wall, and more than a hundred massive ancient trees were mysteriously intertwined.

The top of the Sunwell was crowned by a group of magnificent rock-reinforced buildings, featuring high towers and spires in the luxurious High Elven style. From the floor to the walls to the ceiling, gorgeous and complex patterns filled Duke’s entire vision. It was not difficult to imagine how many elves had been moved by this miracle when the palace complex built upon the Sunwell was first constructed.

Unfortunately, the Sunwell Plateau was now a terrifying sight. The Scourge had destroyed everything. Although a warm sun shone in the sky, the dilapidated and horrifying scene easily evoked the image of a stormy night, just before a tempest breaks.

Even though the remaining high elves had removed the corpses of all the elven dead and undead, and even used additional puppets to drag away the broken arcane golems, a mysterious atmosphere of decay shrouded the entire Sunwell. The dark green aura caused anyone staring at it to quickly avert their gaze.

Every elf entering or leaving wore at least a mask. The closer they were to the Sunwell, the more tightly they wrapped their bodies, and they also wore mask-type filters produced by the Edmund family on their faces. Indeed, the "Duke filter," made of seven layers of gauze and activated carbon—they deserved it! If it weren’t for the Sunwell, so sacred in their hearts, these "long-eared people" would likely rather die than wear such ugly gas masks.

Duke wanted to laugh, but he managed to suppress it.

Led by Lor’themar, Duke finally passed through the ruined palace and arrived at the Sunwell itself. It was a vast pool of constantly churning black water. It resembled a mixture of pig manure, or ink blended with vegetable juice and leftovers, emitting a disgusting stench and an evil aura.

Lor’themar started to hand Duke a filter mask, but his hand stopped halfway, and he suddenly smiled bitterly. It was truly embarrassing. Duke was the inventor of this rare item, the "gas mask"! He would certainly know whether to use it or not.

Moreover, although a foul wind blew all around, the black and green stench in the air—clearly visible to the naked eye—was dispelled by the faint golden light emanating from Duke’s body as it drifted before him. This was simply a model of immunity to all poisons!

"Please follow me!" Lor’themar found himself bending even lower at the waist, almost unconsciously.

Following Lor’themar and the new team of Sunwell Guardians, Duke did not take the path leading to a certain "egg-like" boss from his memories, but instead went to the other side. A road built on a stone dam led directly to the center of the Sunwell.

One didn’t need to look far to feel that the well water was no longer calm. The water at the edge still held a hint of green, but here it was pure black. The lake water, contrary to its usual state, was more turbulent than the well itself. Near "Jingxin Island," huge waves were created, so high that even battleships might not be able to withstand them.

The roaring black waves crashed against the small island in the center of the well, which was wrapped in volcanic rock covered with magical runes.

No, it wasn’t just well water anymore.

There was a sudden flash of lightning near the center of the well, with golden and crimson flashes within the rolling waves on the water, but in the end, they all faded to black. Thunder rumbled, like a thousand giant dragons erupting from the well.

On the Well Island, Duke finally saw Sylvanas, as well as Lirath, Halduron, Jaina Goldsword, Liadrin, and other remaining elven leaders. Sadness etched every elf’s face, and Sylvanas still had tears clinging to the corners of her eyes.

Seeing Duke approach, Sylvanas forced a bitter smile that conveyed little hope: "Duke, although I truly want to say that the Sunwell is counting on you, I still cannot utter such irresponsible words! If only I had allowed you to come from the beginning, perhaps the situation would be better."

As she spoke, several high-level elven mages lowered their heads in shame.

With the Sunwell, the High Elves still possessed a deep foundation. Three Grand Magisters still stood here. The other two, like Jaina Goldsword, were royal mages revered in various kingdoms. One was from Lordaeron, and the other had served as a magic consultant for Stromgarde.