Lordaeron, the royal hall, Terenas is sitting on the throne, his body is much thinner and hunched than when he was young, wearing simple but luxurious robes. As the king of Lordaeron, he has accumulated power over the years. Reached the top.
But these are not what the old king wants. His wrinkled face has developed age spots and his hair has turned gray. Even the king cannot get rid of his mortal identity. He has experienced too much in his life. From the kingdom The intrigues between him and the fierce resistance during the orc invasion, but none of these can change the fact that he is already old and frail.
What is gratifying is that the kingdom is now prosperous, and he has a perfect heir, which allows him to not worry about his own affairs. His son is getting stronger day by day, and his influence in the alliance is also becoming stronger and stronger. Under his leadership, Next, the alliance gradually grew, and they defeated terrifying enemies that they had never dared to imagine.
"Father, are you looking for me?"
The crisp and gentle voice rang out, waking Terenas out of his meditation. The majesty of the old king disappeared in an instant. He looked at his daughter with kind eyes. For this daughter of his, Terenas now always thinks It’s with a sense of guilt and debt.
He was once blinded by power and desire, and wanted to expand the influence of Lordaeron in a "traditional" way. Now it seems that the results would be disastrous. At that time, he even regarded his daughter as a sacrifice and She is betrothed to a monster.
Now looking back at his former self, Terenas felt a sense of fear and fear. He could not imagine what would happen to the kingdom if he continued to be greedy for power.
"Calia," Terenas called his daughter's name, and then asked a question that shocked Calia so much that she didn't know how to answer for a moment, "What do you think of your brother?"
"Alsace?! This... I, I only know that I love him very much. He is my dearest brother." Calia did not expect that her father summoned her to ask her what she thought of Alsace. The brain was unable to respond for a moment.
Terenas smiled and shook his head, "Of course I know you care about him and love him, and so do your mother and I. He is the pride of the Menethil family and our closest relative - but you know, I I didn’t mean to ask you this.”
"Alsace is very outstanding. He is the most outstanding person I have ever seen. No other noble or royal family member can compare to him." With some buffering time, Calia answered decisively this time, "He is a powerful person." The paladin, the wise commander, is like...like a perfect person - much like the former Marshal Lothar."
Terenas nodded this time. No alliance member in the Eastern Kingdom could deny Lothar's nobility and greatness, but that was exactly the problem. "Callia, do you know why Lothar is so perfect and noble?" ?”
The old king did not wait for Calia's answer, but asked himself and continued, "Because he shouldered a heavy responsibility, the fall of Stormwind City, the death of his friends, and everything familiar was wiped out, so he was able to refine steel. With the same will and character, if I had to evaluate Lothar, I would definitely say that he is the best person I have ever met in my life."
"But Arthas... his power is getting stronger day by day, and he has become the embodiment of justice and courage. Even Uther said that Arthas' power has far surpassed him, but I have never seen it from this child. Even if there is even a trace of pride and complacency," Terenas recalled every detail of his son's growth, "His calm face always has a trace of sadness - he has been worried about something, even if it is to repel the orcs and defeat the orcs, After becoming a demon, his expression never changed.”
This is not the posture that a young man should have, nor is it the posture that Alsace, who has shown himself to be almost perfect since childhood, should have. As the crown prince of Lordaeron, Arthas was born to be the center of attention of the entire kingdom, Terry Nass was once worried that this would make Alsace indulge in cheers and compliments, but the result was just the opposite. Alsace was more steady and calm than anyone else.
"I don't know what Arthas is worried about, but I know that he must bear a huge responsibility on himself, a responsibility far heavier than being a prince and future king."
Terenas sighed. Since the invasion of the orcs, the world they knew has gone far away. The cruel facts of the universe are before their eyes. Monsters and gods from myths and legends have appeared one after another, turning the originally chaotic world into chaos. It was even more of a mess. The alliance looked strong, but in the face of these crises, they were actually in the same situation as the tribe. They were just a group of poor people hugging each other for warmth.
The old king stood up tremblingly. Seeing this, Calia quickly stepped forward to hold Terenas' arm. Terenas glanced at his daughter, put his hand on his daughter's hand, and slowly He said, "My child, my life is about to come to an end. Your brother will be crowned king. This will undoubtedly add another heavy burden to his shoulders... Please forgive me as a selfish father. I once He is a cold-blooded and stubborn dictator, but now I just hope that you can look after your brother for me and don't let him be overwhelmed by responsibility..."
As the words went on, the voice of the old king became weaker and weaker. Calia quickly wanted to help her father back to the throne, but Terenas waved his hand and motioned Calia to take her for a walk in the garden.
After coming to the garden, under the sunlight, the old king gradually felt that his body's strength had recovered. He smiled half helplessly and half gratifiedly, "I am indeed old, but this also means that you have grown up, my child." , the road from now on is up to you."
The sun shines on the shady ground, and new buds are growing on the twigs of grass and trees. The morning mist has not completely dissipated, and the leaves and stems hanging with dew look particularly fresh.
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Three days later, the king of Lordaeron, Terenas Menethil, passed away, and the leaders of the Alliance gathered in Lordaeron to bid the king his last journey.
After the heavy funeral, in the catacombs of the Royal Garden of Lordaeron, Arthas stood in front of his father's sarcophagus and solemnly embedded the long sword his father had used during his lifetime on the sarcophagus.
Calia and Jaina stood behind him on both sides. The eyes of the two distinguished ladies showed sorrow at this moment. For Calia, she lost her father, even though she once didn't like her father's arrangements. And she wanted to rebel against her father's decision, but for Jaina, Terenas was like a father to her. When she was young, the royal garden of Lordaeron was also her playground.
"Alsace...I, I'm sorry." Calia's tone was soft. Everything happened too suddenly. Terenas's physical condition had deteriorated rapidly in the past few years. She blamed herself for not taking good care of her father.
"Everyone will face this moment, sister, you don't need to apologize." Alsace's tone was calm, but his eyes still showed some emotion, "He was a true king until the last second of his life."
He knows the meaning of death better than anyone else. His father Terenas died without obsession. His soul has already left Azeroth and gone to the other side. This is not a tragedy, but the most normal ending.
It's just that there is no more time left for Arthas to grieve. He has a more important thing now, which is to inherit the throne.
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