Arthas merely dodged, but the mage in front of him wasn't so lucky; with Fel magic suppressing arcane, the barrier didn't even have time to activate before the sulfur-scented flames consumed him.
"Ah!"
A scream echoed across the entire plaza as the rising flames completely enveloped him, his twisted face gradually becoming hideous and terrifying, eyes tightly shut, yet still able to feel that extreme malevolence.
It lasted less than two seconds, a time during which everyone could have rescued him, yet the Highborne, who prided themselves on their nobility, were stunned, watching helplessly as the other party burned in the Fel flames.
By the time they reacted and tried to save him with frost magic, it was already too late.
He suffered the same fate as Varian, exploding into fragments, not even his soul remaining, truly turning to ash.
"Ximen Chuixue, how dare you kill a nobleman!"
Ravencrest angrily accused him, not daring to blame the true culprit, but instead pinning the death on him, perhaps harboring the thought of using another's hand to kill.
For a moment, all the Highborne present, except for Jarod, began to accuse him. They had long been dissatisfied with Arthas; why should he be the queen's consort?
She was their beloved queen, and no one was worthy of the Light of Lights; it was best if she remained single, so as not to extinguish their hopes.
Looking at these Highborne, whose morals were twisted by personal desires, Arthas had initially felt some pity for them, but now it seemed unnecessary.
The arrival of the Burning Legion wasn't without its benefits, at least for purifying these idiots, arrogant, conceited, self-important, and utterly ignorant of their own limitations.
Didn't they know that when facing a Demigod, the weaker party should be more humble and submissive to avoid inviting disaster?
Sensing Arthas' killing intent, this was a Demigod who had gathered various primal forces, a powerful being who had fought his way through mountains of corpses and seas of blood.
Azshara's slender brows furrowed, and she put down her wine glass, coldly reprimanding him.
"When dealing with a Demigod, you should drop your ridiculous pretenses. Bettley wasn't killed by him. If he truly wanted to kill, all of you combined wouldn't be his match, nor would I be."
At these words, the noisy accusations and curses instantly died down, no different from a cackling goose having its neck squeezed.
Ridiculous, absurd.
"Continue, Xavius. You disappoint me. This Fel magic is not the pursuit of the Kaldorei. You have betrayed glory, descended into depravity, and are beyond redemption."
"Now, show me what you've got. Defeat my consort, and I will personally arrange for your departure."
"But if you are defeated, hehe, then leave your life behind."
Azshara showed no pity for her number one sycophant, not even giving him a direct glance.
Her ten violet toes subtly flexed, faint veins winding like tendrils, making them even more pleasing to the eye.
She truly wondered why some people liked feet, her own consort included. Was it fun to gnaw on them?
What disgusting barbarians!
Thinking this, Azshara's lips curved into a smile. Love?
No, no, no. She merely needed a powerful consort to bear children with greater potential. As for love, she didn't particularly need it.
"Your Majesty!"
Xavius felt heartbroken. He had once stayed up all night researching arcane secrets for her, and for one of her smiles, he had ventured into perilous lands to hunt powerful beasts second only to Demigods.
He had even willingly become a humble sycophant so that she could remain exalted. She was his goddess, the perfect and infinite Light of Lights.
Yet, despite all he had given for her, in the end, she had never even looked him in the eye.
That smile was so exquisitely beautiful that it made his withered heart stir once more. But that smile had nothing to do with him; it was only for that damned consort!
Why did the queen have a consort, and why wasn't he the consort?
In the entire Kaldorei Empire, only he was the strongest, the most capable, and the most hopeful to become the queen's consort!
"No, no, no, this isn't real, these are all illusions!"
Xavius roared in fury, the Fel magic surging at that moment, tearing through his disguised boots and court mage's robe.
Horns on his head grew to half a meter, his height surged again to three meters, his feet completely transformed into animal hooves, and his skin cracked due to the Fel, oozing a pungent sulfurous odor.
He became uglier, but also stronger.
His hands turned into demonic claws, no longer resembling a night elf. He clenched his claws slightly, and surging energy flowed within his body, a rampage that made him want to tear everything apart.
His eyes looked up at Azshara, thinking she should be his consort, and no one could take her away.
His gaze then fell upon Arthas, who still held his runeblade in one hand, pointing its tip at him.
"Ximen Chuixue, I will make you die!"
Due to the nature of time travel, he couldn't speak of what would happen in the future, nor could he use his original name; otherwise, a heavy hammer would strike his mind, a taste so painful it was unbearable.
Don't ask why Arthas knew; he had tried it, and it was truly exhilarating, like ten times a day, followed by complete exhaustion.
The enraged Xavius hadn't forgotten his past arcane knowledge, using Fel to conjure a massive fireball over ten meters in diameter. His unique understanding of spellcasting combined with Fel enhancement allowed him to cast without any visible action, almost instantaneously, throwing out two or three large fireballs per second.
The unfortunate mage who had just died miserably had already proven its power, and now a continuous barrage of fireballs came again.
Even as an enemy rival, Ravencrest couldn't help but inwardly sweat.
The queen had personally acknowledged the other party as her consort. No matter how unwilling, it was likely the queen had already been tasted once, from head to toe, without any place being spared.
At this point, he could only grit his teeth and accept it.
Be more confident; perhaps the queen would have not just one consort, but several, so they would still have a chance!
'Side Quest Updated: Block the Burning Legion.'
"Quest Content: The Burning Legion has arrived. Rescue the trapped night elves, unite with the Wild Demigods and other races to resist the invasion, and directly defeat Sargeras' physical avatar."
"Quest Reward: Reverse Time."
Hmm?
Was this side quest just serving the main quest?
Did this count as being tricked?
It seemed the responsibility for the War of the Ancients had fallen on his shoulders?
His thoughts raced in a flash of lightning, but his hand movements were not slow. The runeblade slashed through the sky, directly shattering the Fel fireball.
Pfft!
The fireballs burst, one after another. Before Arthas, these were all destructible spheres; the runeblade's unique properties could disrupt magic.
Fel magic was also a type of magic, and as long as it was magic, its structure could be destroyed, rendering the magic ineffective!