Finally free from the persistent nobles, Arthas came alone and sat on a marble bench in the corridor outside the garden.
When he was in Lordaeron, he had little interest in banquets attended by almost all of the country's upper-class elite. If not for his princely status requiring his attendance most of the time, Arthas would rather hone his swordsmanship on the training ground.
"With Vancleef, I can choose a foothold in Kalimdor."
Arthas enjoyed the gentle evening breeze while contemplating his next moves. He had already decided on this foothold: the original location of Theramore, southeast of Dustwallow Marsh.
Although the climate of Dustwallow Marsh was much worse than other parts of Kalimdor, there were almost no indigenous Kalimdor forces involved, only some wild beasts and Elemental Creatures.
Once he drove the orcs to Kalimdor, Theramore could serve as an outpost, and the orcs could also be used as a buffer for contact with other forces in Kalimdor.
Although Kalimdor was much wilder than the Eastern Kingdoms, it concealed the oldest and most powerful race in this world, the glorious remnants of an ancient elven empire, children of the stars, Night Elves—the Kaldorei.
Blackwater Trading Company's ships had long since sailed to Kalimdor, but they still rarely encountered Night Elves. They were now almost all on Mount Hyjal, occasionally venturing into Ashenvale and Felwood Forest below the mountain, but outside the forest, the Kaldorei were rarely seen.
Arthas also sent people to search for the Tauren living in the area. They were a peace-loving and nature-loving race, but currently, they should be under threat from the Centaur tribes. As long as Arthas provided help, he should easily gain their trust.
In fact, the most difficult to ally with were the distant relatives of the High Elf. Although they did not use magic like the High Elf, their arrogance was ingrained in their bones.
Even when Azeroth again faced the threat of the Burning Legion, the Kaldorei stubbornly believed that they were the only power capable of protecting this world, disdaining interaction with other mortal races.
Blessed by the World Tree and the Guardian Dragons, the Night Elves possessed eternal life and perpetual youth. Many powerful heroes from the War of the Ancients survived among them, and they had deep connections with the Wild God.
But the long passage of time made some of them forget the Legion's terror.
If not for the overwhelming power of Archimonde, The Polluter of the Burning Legion, which utterly crushed the elves' arrogance later, they might have continued to isolate themselves on Mount Hyjal, refusing to interact with the outside world.
Arthas deeply understood that the true threats facing Azeroth, whether the Ancient Gods or the Burning Legion, were not entities that any single race could contend with. He had to unite all possible forces.
This was not a game world where infinitely resurrecting foot soldiers served as million-strong Highlords, but a real planet, where even one misstep could lead to eternal damnation.
"What are you thinking about?"
"Jaina?"
Arthas awoke from his contemplation and turned to meet Jaina's smiling face. The female Archmage raised a slender finger and tapped Arthas's forehead, smiling, "Long time no see, my Prince."
"Long time no see, Jaina."
Arthas gave Jaina a deep hug. He looked at Jaina, dressed in her Archmage robe, and asked, "I didn't see you when the guests were introduced at noon, and I was disappointed for quite a while. Please forgive me for not visiting you in Dalaran this past year."
"Hmph, our Prince Arthas is a very busy man," Jaina teased with a playful expression, "How could he even notice a small Archmage like me?"
"Then you are mistaken, I can only notice you in a crowd."
Kissing his fiancée's smooth forehead, Arthas smoothed the strands of hair by her ear, "Did something happen?"
"Nothing, it's just that one of my magic circles suddenly malfunctioned just as I was about to leave. I was delayed a bit trying to salvage it."
Jaina left her lover's embrace, complaining, "That damned magic circle, it chose to malfunction at the worst possible time, just as I was about to set off!"
"Master Antonidas didn't scold you, did he?"
"No, not at all. That magic circle was inherently unstable; it's quite impressive that I managed to keep it running steadily for over two months."
Jaina tugged at the hem of her Archmage robe, "But I didn't have time to change."
"Actually, this Archmage robe suits you very well. I quite like it."
Dalaran's Archmage robes were usually custom-made, and Jaina's attire was more expensive than ordinary formal wear. Moreover, the soft and comfortable Archmage robe was much more comfortable to wear than those corseted evening gowns.
Not to mention, Dalaran's robe designers were top-notch. The violet base color, noble gold and silver trim, and luxurious fabric meant that, if not for the lack of an exaggerated corset, this Archmage robe and a formal gown were practically indistinguishable.
Arthas also noticed that the purple fabric of Jaina's robe was embroidered with the Kirin Tor Council's Eye of Magic emblem.
"You've joined the Kirin Tor Council?"
The Kirin Tor was a council comprised of Dalaran's elite Archmages, aimed at combating all threats to Azeroth's existence. Joining this council itself was a symbol of great power.
"Yes, it was last week. Now I'm also one of the Kirin Tor's council members."
Jaina didn't feel this was anything to be proud of, after all, in Dalaran, there were many Archmages more powerful than her. The reason she could join the Kirin Tor Council so early, besides her own excellent strength, was more importantly because her father was the ruler of Kul Tiras, and her Uther was the leader of Dalaran's Council of Six.
"Congratulations, but I still hope that the Archmages' eccentricities won't affect you." Arthas congratulated her.
"Haha, how could that be? And not every Archmage is as you imagine." Jaina, upon hearing Arthas say he liked her attire, and already not fond of formal dresses, simply abandoned the idea of changing.
However, Arthas was right; there were indeed some old Archmages in Dalaran who were a bit eccentric. It wasn't that they were saying anything mysterious, but rather that they became nagging purely because their apprentices often messed things up.
Archmage apprentices were definitely one of the most unstable factors in a laboratory. Some lazy, inattentive apprentices might accidentally misuse their mentor's wand and turn themselves or their classmates into a frog.
And these were minor incidents compared to the very few apprentices who could even blow up a Archmage tower's laboratory.
After chatting with Arthas about some interesting anecdotes, Jaina no longer cared that Arthas hadn't visited her. Suddenly, Jaina thought of something Arthas might care about.
"Oh, by the way, Arthas, do you know about Archmage Kel'Thuzad, one of Dalaran's Council of Six, being expelled?"
Arthas nodded. Of course, he knew. The Secret Intelligence Agency's spies in Dalaran were closely monitoring the Archmage's movements.
"I've heard a little. What exactly happened? You should know more than I do in Dalaran. Can you tell me?"
"This happened early last month. Kel'Thuzad was stripped of all his titles and expelled from Dalaran for privately studying necromancy." Jaina recalled the situation at the time; her Uther Antonidas had even gotten angry about it. "Uther was very angry back then, saying how Dalaran could produce such a disgrace."
Arthas coughed—if Kel'Thuzad's current rudimentary necromancy was considered a disgrace, then what was he, Arthas, now?
However, now was certainly not the time to bring necromancy into the open. The Death Knight created by Gul'dan the Warlock during the Second Orcish Wars had left too much psychological trauma on humanity.
"So, does anyone know where this former Archmage is now?"
"I'm not sure about that, but I occasionally overheard someone in my Uther's Archmage tower say that Kel'Thuzad didn't return to his hometown, but instead traveled south after leaving Dalaran. The last time he was seen was at the port of Southshore."
This was consistent with the information Arthas's spies had obtained: after being expelled from Dalaran, Kel'Thuzad immediately packed his bags and hurried to the docks of Southshore, boarding a ship bound for the far north of Northrend.
Arthas thought, it seems this Archmage has already received the Lich King's summons, and the Lich King has already turned his attention to the Human Kingdom. He wondered if he and the Dreadlords monitoring him had noticed him.
His network of informants had begun to spread in Northrend. Although it was difficult to directly obtain news from the Lich King's core territory—Icecrown Glacier—Arthas could generally tell how far the Lich King's plan had progressed based on his forces' movements in Northrend.
Arthas took Jaina's hand, "Let's not talk about this Archmage who dabbles in forbidden arts for now. The banquet should be starting soon, and Varian is waiting for us."
"Oh no! I was so busy chatting with you, I forgot to put on my makeup!"
"It's alright, tonight isn't a formal social occasion. I had Varian ask the chef to prepare many Kul Tiras specialties. Are you sure you still want to go put on makeup?"
"Really? Is there Kul Tiras Tiramisu?"
"Of course, let's go!"