Because he did not know enough about the original Alterac nobles, including Duke Falkrest, Sarlayan did not notice the strangeness like Haas did.
After leaving Steinblade, Saray, who transformed into a sharp-tailed swift, quickly headed towards Ravenholdt Manor, arriving at his destination in just over an hour.
Ravenholdt Manor, as the name suggests, was once part of the Ravenholdt family's territory.
After the fall of the Kingdom of Alterac, except for those shameless people who knelt down and licked Terenas, all the territories of the original Alterac nobles were forcibly taken away by Lordaeron.
Even Duke Ravenholdt could only keep such a small manor, and his reputation was ruined by Terenas.
Among the original Alterac nobles and people who still wanted to restore their country, many regarded Duke Ravenholdt as a traitor who had defected to Lordaeron.
But is this really the case?
If Duke Ravenholdt really defected to Lordaeron, Terenas would definitely return all the Ravenholdt family's territories in order to win over this former one of the largest nobles in Alterac.
Sarlayan has no interest in dirty political struggles, but he has been exposed to so many things, and coupled with the barrage reminders, he can easily guess who is responsible for the dirty water poured on Duke Ravenholdt. .
Not Terenas, but Duke Falkrest, who hated the Ravenholdt family the most.
As the saying goes, one mountain cannot tolerate two tigers.
The two major ducal families of Alterac had a feud many years ago. Even though the Kingdom of Alterac has been destroyed, this hatred has not disappeared.
The thieves and syndicates cultivated by Ravenholdt Manor are at odds with each other, and the two sides often have endless bloody conflicts in Hillsbrad, the Hinterlands and Arathi Highlands.
Duke Falkrest holds the righteous card of Auriden Perenold. No matter how bad Auriden's reputation is, he will always be the legitimate heir to the throne of Alterac.
However, Duke Ravenholdt did not have an equivalent bargaining chip, so he was naturally at a disadvantage in the battle of public opinion.
In terms of elite level, the thieves trained by Ravenholdt Manor are far superior to those of the Syndicate, whose quality varies greatly.
But two fists cannot hold up to four hands. Backed by the people of the original Kingdom of Alterac, the number of Syndicate thieves is not comparable to that of Ravenholdt Manor, which takes the elite route.
Ravenholdt's thieves killed a group of thieves, and the Syndicate was able to quickly recruit a new group. It was clear that they wanted to play a war of attrition with Ravenholdt.
The population base is too small and Ravenholdt Manor cannot afford it.
Recently, the leader of the manor, Jorach Ravenholdt, ordered Ravenholdt's thieves to shrink their scope of activities, abandon the Hinterlands and Arathi Highlands, and focus on Hillsbrad.
The location of Ravenholdt Manor is very hidden, and it is difficult to find the entrance to the mountain by land.
Looking down from the air, there is no such concern. Sarlayan has already confirmed the location of the manor through the eagle eye technique.
"Uh-huh!"
When approaching the mountainous area where the manor was located, Sarlayan folded his wings and dived downward at full speed.
The thieves in Ravenholdt Manor are still conducting their daily morning training.
The profession of thief has high requirements for agility and dynamic vision.
A middle-aged man who was supervising morning exercises suddenly raised his head with a frown, and his sharp eyes quickly locked on the bird that was swooping at full speed.
"……suicide?"
Most people in the Eastern Kingdoms are unaware of the profession of Druin from across the sea, and Jorach Ravenholdt is no exception.
At first, he didn't take the bird that was suspected of seeking death to heart, but when he noticed the possible landing point of the bird, there was a slight change in Cholazzi's eyes.
Falling objects from high altitudes are very dangerous. Even if it is just a light bird, the person who is unfortunate enough to be hit by it is likely to be seriously injured due to the kinetic energy converted from the acceleration of gravity.
"Pause! Everyone, separate to both sides of the training ground and be careful of falling objects above your head."
Under Qiao Laqi's order, the thieves who were training in full swing left the training ground in confusion, and looked up at the sky with their hands on the awning.
"Falling object?"
"Where's the fall...wait, what is that?"
A gray stream of light streaked across the sky, and before the thieves could react, it hit the ground heavily. The ground of the entire manor shook for several seconds under the impact of the large mass object.
Qiao Laqi, who was watching from a distance, suddenly shrank violently. He subconsciously pulled out two dull-looking daggers from his waist and squatted down in a fighting posture.
"Everyone on alert!"
While the other thieves hurriedly replaced their training daggers with actual combat weapons, Jolaqi stared unblinkingly at the smoke rising area in the center of the training ground.
Qiao Laqi's dynamic vision was far superior to that of ordinary people. The moment before the bird landed, he could clearly see a huge beast disappearing in the blink of an eye.
After the smoke and dust dissipated, Jorazi unexpectedly saw a high elf dusting himself off.
In other words, half-elf.
"Good day, Lord Ravenholdt."
This handsome man, whose ears were slightly shorter than those of a pure-blood elf, politely touched his chest and saluted Jorah, who had a wary look on his face.
"My name is Thalayan Deepshadow, from Quel'Thalas. On behalf of the Sun King Kael'thas Sunstrider, I would like to send my sincere greetings to Duke Ravenholdt."
…
There is a saying, if Sarlayan visits in a normal way, there is a high probability that the Ravenholdt thief will be turned away by the Ravenholdt thief who has been in a bad mood recently.
Sarlayan's unexpected appearance made Jorazi pay more attention to him and personally welcomed Sarlayan into Ravenholdt Castle.
"Earl Deep Shadow is indeed a young hero. He became the confidant of His Majesty the Sun King at a young age."
After taking a seat in the living room on the third floor of the castle, Jorazi patiently entertained Sarlayan in accordance with the common etiquette of nobles.
Sarlayan waved his hand with a smile and said straight to the point: "Duke Ravenholdt, I am a rough man. I don't like those meaningless and complicated etiquette. Let's skip the unnecessary pleasantries and let's get to the point."
Qiao Laqi was a little stunned by Sarlayan's vigorous and resolute behavior, but he quickly adjusted his mentality and solemnly asked Sarlayan: "As expected, Earl of Deep Shadow came here this time for the sake of the Backlight Blade. What happened?"
Saryan said seriously: "Yes, before coming here, I had already gone to Steinblade and talked with Duke Faculest, Alex Barov, and General Haas. field."
"Old Haas?"
The light in Jorazzi's eyes flashed away: "He is actually still alive? Wouldn't he also accept Faculest's tactics?"
Sarlayan shook his head and explained: "General Haas is very dissatisfied with Duke Faculest's actions. He has been living in seclusion in Keldaron these years and has a similar position to the Barov family."
"Halfway through the meeting, the hot-tempered General Haas got into a physical conflict with Duke Faculest and punched him to the ground. The meeting had to be suspended."
"etc!"
When Choraci heard that his old enemy Faculest was defeated, there was no joy on his face. Instead, he frowned and raised questions.
"Faculest was knocked down by Old Haas with one punch? Are you sure?"
Saryan was a little surprised by his attitude: "Is there any problem? I saw that scene with my own eyes."
"Hmm..." Qiao Laqi stroked his beard thoughtfully: "Earl of Deep Shadow, please describe the scene in detail. I always feel that something is fishy."
Although he didn't understand why Choraci was so solemn, Saryan still told him all the scenes during the meeting.
"Ha~"
Hearing Sarlayan describe Faculest as a bloated, arrogant and rude fat man, Jolazi showed a look of realization on his face, and then sneered.
"Earl of Deep Shadow, you and Barov were all deceived."
Sarlayan was stunned: "How do you say this?"
Jorazi withdrew his sneer and said seriously to Sarlayan: "I just fought against Faculest outside Icewind Post not long ago. The fat man was just a substitute for him to hide from others."
"Although their appearance and way of speaking are very similar, and can even be fake, there is a huge difference in their combat capabilities."
"The real Faculest is an out-and-out legendary thief. How could he be knocked down by Old Haas with just one punch?"
Suddenly receiving this unexpected news, Sarlayan's expression suddenly changed.
"broken."
Qiao Laqi asked in confusion: "What's wrong?"
Sarlayan frowned: "If the real Duke Faculest is still hiding behind the scenes, he will probably doubt my whereabouts."
"Duke Ravenholdt, time is urgent, so I will keep the story short."
Sarlayan looked at Jorazi with bright eyes: "In view of Duke Faculest's inflated ambitions and the Syndicate's unrestrained oppression of Alterac nobles and people, the Barov family decided to support Yin Seton. Prince Perenolde succeeds to the throne.”
"Once Duke Falkrest finds out that I am not staying in Stannbrade, they will definitely doubt Quel'Thalas' sincerity in cooperating with the Syndicate."
"We don't have much time left to act. We ask Duke Ravenholdt to make a decision as soon as possible."
"Should we cooperate with the Barov family and General Haas to push Prince Yinseton to the throne? Or should we just watch Duke Faculest use the puppet Auriden as a stepping stone and step on the afterglow of the Perenold family to reach the top? "
