"I myself want to know the answer to that question."
Arthas had no intention of hiding how he entered the Twisting Nether. "I was with Jaina, but the teleportation magic seemed to have a slight problem."
Turalyon replied thoughtfully, "Under normal circumstances, teleportation magic shouldn't have such a large deviation... You were sent deep into the Twisting Nether, where ordinary magic simply cannot reach."
"I know that, but none of that matters now. What I need to consider is how to get back to Azeroth."
Arthas's request made Turalyon look troubled. He said to Arthas, "I really want to help you with this... but honestly, this matter is unusually difficult."
The Lightforged constantly travel deep within the Twisting Nether, and the Twisting Nether is like a constantly changing maze. Even Turalyon himself doesn't know what kind of environment they might be in tomorrow, let alone helping Arthas find Azeroth.
Turalyon knew he couldn't be of much help, but he still prepared to brainstorm solutions for Arthas. Even if Arthas wasn't a fellow countryman from Azeroth, given that he helped rescue a Lightforged soldier and recovered Alleria's bow, Turalyon would still offer his full support.
"I can't directly help you return to Azeroth, but someone in the Lightforged should be able to do it. You helped us rescue Kania, and we will help you too."
Turalyon's words revealed a certain determination, and at the same time, he gripped Thas'dorah tightly.
Arthas caught a glimpse of Turalyon's subtle movement and roughly understood what Turalyon had recently encountered—a High Exarch of the Lightforged shouldn't be in such a desolate, godforsaken outpost.
The closest demon world was Niskara, which Arthas had just escaped. Although it was a famous prison, the Lightforged didn't need to send a High Exarch to command the rescue operation there.
As Arthas had guessed, Turalyon had personally requested to command here. He was troubled by some matters and believed he was temporarily unsuitable for important frontline positions. He needed some time and space to overcome this distress.
He had originally thought he would return to Zenidar in a few more days, but Arthas's appearance unexpectedly disrupted his plans.
But perhaps it was the sudden turn of events that caused Turalyon, deep in thought, to suddenly feel a dizzying sensation. This tall, resolute man's steps became unsteady for a moment.
Quick-witted Arthas supported Turalyon's arm, summoning the Light to dispel the effects of his daze and steady his collapsing body.
At this moment, Turalyon, having recovered, looked somewhat pale. "Thank you."
"Your soul seems to be having some problems?" Arthas keenly noticed Turalyon's abnormality, having discovered it when he healed Turalyon with the Light.
After being enveloped by Arthas's Light, Turalyon found that the injury that had troubled him for a long time had miraculously and rapidly improved. The sense of detachment and dizziness he experienced during his episodes was quickly fading.
"A few days ago, I was ambushed by a Burning Legion assassin, and my soul was almost pulled from my body. It might be that the trauma from then never fully healed. Occasionally, I experience some after-effects, but the physician said it would recover in a few days. I didn't expect it to act up again today."
While Turalyon explained the reason to Arthas, he was also surprised that Arthas's Light had such a good effect on him. "Your mastery of the Light even surpasses that of the High Priests in the Lightforged. They were helpless against my symptoms, which is truly astonishing."
Following that, Turalyon added, "Zera should be very happy to meet a young man like you—she is the leader of the Lightforged, a kind and ancient Naru, who has led us to countless victories. If anyone knows how to get you back to Azeroth, it should be her."
Arthas's displayed abilities greatly eased Turalyon's mind, not only because of his healing but also because Arthas was so favored by the Light, which would save them a lot of effort in finding a way back to Azeroth.
Zera always answered everything for the Light's favored. As one of the most ancient Naru, her knowledge was as vast as the sea, making her the most likely person to help Arthas.
Turalyon stretched his body, which felt reborn. "Once Kania returns, she'll submit the report from the previous operation to me. We can take this opportunity to return to the Legion's headquarters together."
However, to Turalyon's surprise, Arthas did not show urgency. Instead, he pulled Turalyon and said, "Before that, there's something I want to ask you."
"I'll tell you everything I know."
"What exactly is Alleria's situation?"
This question made Turalyon's smile freeze on his face. His expression gradually darkened, and he sighed helplessly, "You still figured it out, didn't you?"
Arthas was noncommittal. "When I was in Niskara earlier, I captured an Eredar. From that guy, I heard they had captured Lady Alleria, but later she was rescued by the Lightforged. But after seeing you here, I felt something was off. If Lady Alleria was rescued by you, why isn't she with you?"
"This... this matter is very complicated to explain..."
Turalyon seemed pained and conflicted when he mentioned Alleria. He blamed himself; if he hadn't been in danger at the time, perhaps she wouldn't have touched that dangerous power.
"Please tell me the truth. Although my arrival was an accident, I do not wish for a hero of the Alliance to suffer unfair treatment in the Twisting Nether—just like you. Those Lightforged call you a High Exarch, but a High Exarch should not be in such a desolate area."
Arthas's words pierced Turalyon's heart like a bayonet. Didn't he know Alleria was innocent? If not for Alleria, he might have died at the hands of the Burning Legion long ago. How could Alleria have fallen into darkness as Zera claimed?
Yet, it was an undeniable fact that Alleria embraced the Void. When he personally witnessed that power entwined in his beloved's hands, when he held his beloved's hand but could not feel warmth, only a piercing pain, Turalyon's heart wavered for the first time.
It was precisely this wavering that led him to choose this self-exile-like method, withdrawing from the intense front lines to a relatively stable area, both to recuperate from his injuries and to cast off the thoughts that made him waver.
Turalyon had been holding onto his inner turmoil for a long time, but there was almost no one in the Lightforged with whom he could confide.
Alleria had touched forbidden and ominous power; based on that alone, if not for Turalyon's intercession, she likely would have been eliminated as an evil heretic by Zera on the spot.
Even with Turalyon's pleas and guarantees, and even though Alleria herself had once fought selflessly as a member of the Lightforged, her ultimate fate could only be house arrest aboard the Lightforged flagship, Zenidar.
This was already the bottom line that the Lightforged, or rather, Zera, could tolerate.
Gently caressing the wooden bow of Thas'dorah, a faint smile appeared on Turalyon's face, softening his already serious and upright features considerably, but soon, the smile was tinged with bitterness and sorrow.
"Under my persuasion, Alleria gave up the idea of resisting and chose to accept her fate of house arrest."
But it was precisely Alleria's choice to trust Turalyon's decision and accept house arrest that made it even harder for Turalyon to face himself, because from that moment on, Turalyon suddenly felt as if he were an "accomplice."
But shouldn't the Light be righteous? He was supposed to be helping Alleria; the Void was too dangerous, an existence even more bizarre and perilous than the Burning Legion.
To this day, Turalyon cannot forget Alleria's expression at that time; there was no anger or resentment on her face, only a hint of disappointment and melancholy.
It was in that instant that Turalyon realized he had, for the first time, developed… doubt about the Light.
Are the revelations of the Light always correct? Is the will of the Light always benevolent?
Turalyon dared not think deeply, fearing that everything he had once believed in would crumble in an instant, just as he dared not meet Alleria's gaze at that time.
At this moment, he suddenly gripped his longbow, as firmly as if he were holding his lover's hand.
After listening to Turalyon's confession, Arthas said, "The Void is indeed a very dangerous power."
This answer, which Turalyon had expected, did not lift his spirits—until Arthas's next sentence.
"But when did you get the illusion that the Light is not dangerous?"
Arthas, with burning eyes, stared at Turalyon; in that instant, Turalyon almost thought his hearing was failing him, confusing the words "Light" and "Void."
But when he was certain that neither Arthas nor he had made a mistake, a strange feeling suddenly surged within him, making Turalyon's eyelids twitch; he realized that Arthas might be about to say something beyond his cognition and understanding.
"Do you think that when the Light burns your enemies to ashes, this power isn't dangerous to them? Turalyon, don't let so-called faith blind your eyes. Archbishop Faol taught us to think with our hearts, to see with our hearts."
If anyone else had uttered such rebellious words, Turalyon would have scoffed. If the other party persisted in promoting such views, the former Turalyon might even have used force to stop them.
But when the person speaking was Arthas, whose mastery of the Light far surpassed that of any archbishop Turalyon had ever met, Turalyon began to wonder if he was truly mistaken.
However, Arthas's astonishing words almost overturned the worldview he had built throughout his life. Even as Turalyon constantly reminded himself to think rationally, it was difficult to break free from the shackles he had imposed on himself.
He felt as if he had returned to the monastery in Lordaeron; he was no longer an Archbishop of the Lightforged, and he seemed to have reverted to the novice priest who first encountered the profound mysteries of the Light.
"When we stand on the ground and look up at the sky, we feel that the sun is the embodiment of light and warmth. But when we get too close to the sun, its scorching brilliance will burn everything to nothing—you are too far from the ground, Turalyon."
Arthas's words hummed like the bell in a monastery, making Turalyon suddenly realize something. He looked down at his hands; the energy of the Light surged in the veins beneath his skin. This power freed him from the shackles of life and death and granted him strength unattainable by ordinary people.
But it was also this power that caused him to lose his way. When did he start to believe in the revelations of the Light instead of trusting his own judgment?
Or rather, did he mistake the revelations of the Light for his own judgment?
The blessing of the Light had transformed him from an ordinary paladin, but just as Arthas said, he was too far from the ground, too close to the "sun."
"I—"
Turalyon's lips mumbled, wanting to say something, but unable to speak.
"It seems you've understood? Some things don't need to be said aloud; it's enough to understand them in your heart," Arthas also stopped Turalyon's urge to speak. "The Lightforged are certainly not an evil existence, but that doesn't mean all their choices are correct. The Light is not special; it is merely a form of energy in the vast universe. What is truly special are the people who imbue the Light with meaning, such as justice and nobility."
"Just like Sir Lothar."
Arthas's gaze fell upon the sword at Turalyon's hip—the blade of this longsword was broken, the tip missing, with only half the blade connected to the hilt. The hilt's sides were adorned with golden lion insignias, symbols of the Stormwind royalty.
Lothar's relic had always been carried by Turalyon, accompanying him from Azeroth to Draenor, and then through campaigns into the depths of the Twisting Nether.
Turalyon instinctively stroked the hilt of the longsword. The moment he grasped the hilt, the man seemed to make a certain resolution. "I understand."
-----------------
At the distant end of the Twisting Nether, within the core domain of Zenidar, a Naru, shining with radiance, whose mere presence made the surrounding space seem to sing, withdrew its scattered thoughts.
The next moment, the Naaru's thoughts seemed to connect with another being, and the response from the person touched by the Naaru's telepathy was not very friendly.
"What do you want to do?"
"You will soon be free, Alleria."
The elven ranger in her prison scoffed at the Naaru's words. "Do you also lie now? This isn't quite the Zera I know."
"I never lie, just as I did not deceive you; the Void is indeed an uncontrollable, incomprehensible, terrifying power."
Zera's words were like a gentle mother comforting her child; she harbored no ill will, seemingly only warning Alleria of the dangers of the Void.
But Alleria no longer trusted Zera—at that time, when the Naru saw her manipulating Void energy, her first reaction was to kill her without asking why.
Zera was not surprised by Alleria's reaction; she simply said calmly, "Alleria, the day will come when you understand."