Chapter 196: Chapter 196: Enticing Promise
With Anwina’s huge wings slowly spreading open behind her, a complex expression finally emerged on Sylvanas’s icy-featured face.
Shock, wariness, anxiety, and forced calm—all these expressions mixed together, making me marvel that even the lifeless face of an Undead creature could display such a rich range of emotions…
Facing an Angel who could be called a natural enemy (although Anwina wasn’t a true Angel, but merely an Angel Apprentice who had just started learning Holy Studies, Sylvanas had never seen a real Angel and naturally couldn’t tell the difference), Sylvanas didn’t do as I had anticipated by immediately calling in the guards from outside. Instead, she spoke with a still-composed tone, “I see… Ever since hearing the news of the Divine Envoy’s arrival, I’ve had an uneasy premonition. So today is the so-called Judgment Day? Have you come to purify the world of Undead creatures?”
You’re misunderstanding, right? You’ve definitely misunderstood something!
However, I must say I admired Sylvanas’s composure at that moment. As an Undead, she still maintained such calm in the presence of Anwina, who was in the guise of an Angel—it must be said that she is an exceptionally good leader; at the very least, this poise was not something I could match.
“I think you’ve misunderstood something,” Scaring Miss Xi a bit was quite a satisfying deed, but now business must come first, “If I saw you as enemies, what you’d be facing now wouldn’t be just two envoys, but an entire army. In fact, Anwina and I haven’t come here to spread the justice of the Holy Light, but to invite The Forgotten to join our army.”
At that moment, Sylvanas was truly shocked…
What? Invite The Forgotten to join the army of Angels?! Has the world gone mad?
Even crazier was that these words came from a Divine Envoy! This was lunacy! It was as absurd as a billionaire inviting some unknown beggar on the roadside to join them in creating a wonderful future!
Under the force of my explosive statement, Sylvanas remained in her dumbstruck stance for a long while without any movement, and Anwina, after playing the role of a giant spotlight with her Light Wings for several minutes, finally couldn’t hold on, dispersing her already limited Holy Power and curiously stepped forward, poking Miss Xi twice.
“Master, she’s turned to stone~~~”
The above scene is purely a figment of my imagination, please feel free to forget it…
After a good ten seconds or so, Sylvanas seemed to finally confirm what she had heard, her blood-red eyes filled with shock as she looked in my direction.
“Are you surprised?” I said with a smile.
“Shouldn’t I be?” Sylvanas said, and I noticed she used the respectful “you” in her address, suggesting she believed in our identities—facing Anwina, who radiated the surging Holy Light, an Earthling who received a scientific education from a young age might still slightly doubt, but for a standard Azeroth resident like Sylvanas, there was no question of doubting the identity of the other party.
“Do not measure our views with your common sense; to us, the Angel Envoys, Undead creatures are as equal as any other Race. Justice or evil applies only to individuals; it is ridiculous to brand an entire Race with labels of good or evil.”
To my words, Sylvanas showed a moment of stupor, then a huge surprise. The frosty mask she had been forced to maintain in front of others no longer existed—she revealed all her inner feelings openly on her face.
So in the eyes of God, the Undead are not synonymous with evil!
Since being sacrificed in the defense of Silver Moon City and turned into an Undead by Arthas, Sylvanas for the first time felt that there wasn’t truly an absence of light ahead. Leading The Forgotten, a race ostracized by all living creatures of the world, and struggling to survive in the cracks between ongoing fights against the Remnants of the Scourge and the Bloodthirsty Crusaders, Sylvanas had almost forgotten what the word “hope” meant. Although she never despaired, now she suddenly felt that she and the people she led weren’t condemned to face an endlessly dark future!
If Sylvanas had been an Earthling who felt indifferent about gods, perhaps my words would not have had much impact on her. But she was an elf who had grown up in a world of magic. Under this premise, when a “Divine Envoy” personally told her that the Dead Souls were not despised by the gods, such a simple statement would undoubtedly have a profound effect on her, magnified countless times!
More importantly, my following statement, “It is extremely foolish to label an entire Race as good or evil,” was what would affect her the most. The Forgotten had been branded by most of the world as wicked and filthy, regardless of their guilt. Those so-called envoys of Holy Light could kill an innocent Dead Soul without hesitation, justifying it as “Purification.” How could anyone accept such treatment?
If an ordinary person had made that statement, Sylvanas might have been only momentarily pleased. But coming from a “Divine Envoy,” the significance was entirely different. It was a form of recognition, the most precious recognition in the world!
Although to me, that statement was merely telling the truth and had no special significance…
“Have you calmed down?” Seeing that her eyes had finally settled, I smiled and asked, “Can we discuss official matters now?”
A hint of imperceptible embarrassment flashed across Sylvanas’s face before she nodded.
“The truth is, we’ve come to this remote world to eradicate a particularly dangerous force. This force has already destroyed countless worlds more powerful than Azeroth. If not stopped, I fear one day all creatures will be annihilated by it. Your world is also under the erosion of this force—the Burning Legion. These demons are the twisted Race born from this power’s influence, and right now, as their power grows stronger, the demon Race is undergoing transformations beyond your imagination…”
I roughly explained the recent appearances of mutated demon squads around the world and the reasons for their mutations influenced by Abyss Power. Of course, I kept some details to myself, such as the true extent of the horror of Abyss Power. Such matters were simply beyond the reckoning of Azeroth’s natives, and revealing them would only add to Sylvanas’s worries.
Faced with such a grave situation, Sylvanas was even calmer than I expected. Perhaps she was accustomed to similar plights in this war-torn world. She wasn’t startled by the fact that the Burning Legion had grown stronger and might return at any time. Instead, she asked with composure, “So, you and your army have come to this world to exterminate the Burning Legion and the Abyss Power that is behind the demons’ transformation?”
“Exactly, eradicating Abyss Power is indeed our mission, but the Abyss in this world turned out to be stronger than we anticipated. Without additional reinforcements, even the army of the Angel Envoy cannot stand against those increasingly powerful demons. Therefore, we need to organize an even mightier legion, an Alliance Army that unites all of Azeroth to fight the Burning Legion. We have already dispatched Envoys to every Wisdom Race in Azeroth that meets the standard, just like how we came before you—the Angel Feather you saw earlier is our token. It is not only proof of our identity, but also evidence of joining the Salvation Army. If you agree to join, I will remove the Sealing on the feather.”
I took the large feather from Anwina’s hand, the feather from the inner part of Alaya’s wings, and once again, the image of the tearful Angel Sister crossed my mind. Little Baobao might be small, but her strength was certainly not insignificant. That eager little girl grabbed handful after handful, and then the Angel Sister had to carve Arrays on her own feathers with tears in her eyes… Yes, a tremendous effort, indeed…
“I am willing to join,” Sylvanas agreed more readily than I expected, saving me much effort, “We have much to settle with the Burning Legion, but I must seek the consent of my people. After all, joining the Salvation Army means we would have to fight alongside those Holy Knight types—Even for me, making such a decision is difficult. I hope you can understand.”
“Of course, I understand. Your insight and magnanimity truly surprise me. It took me quite an effort to persuade a Holy Knight to accept alliance with Dead Souls. I didn’t expect you to agree so readily.”
“Hatred and strife… I have long grown tired of them. The Forgotten are Dead Souls, not Resentful Spirits. If it weren’t for the blind hatred of humans, we would not wish for so many battles…”
Sylvanas said this with deep resignation in her heart. No one likes war, especially after being coerced into serving as war machines under the iron rule of the Witch Demon King for many years. Although there were Dead Souls with extreme hatred towards the living, many of the Forgotten simply wished to live quietly and freely. Even in their quest for revenge, they only viewed the Witch Demon King and the Burning Legion behind him as their targets for vengeance. However, the blind oppression from humans and other Races forced these Forgotten, who could have been allies, to rise in rebellion…
And that was just the beginning of the Forgotten’s independence. If such conflict continued, the entire Race of the Forgotten might become avengers who resent all life. That was certainly not Sylvanas’s original intention.
I had considered this point myself. Prolonged conflict can alter the collective mentality of a Race. For the time being, the Forgotten’s resentment towards living creatures didn’t seem as severe as I had imagined, at least much milder than the resentment humans had towards them. But it would likely not take long for the discord between the Forgotten and humans to become completely irreconcilable, just like in the game…
“We will correct this mistake,” I said, looking at Sylvanas who appeared contemplative, “Joining the Salvation Army is also an opportunity. Perhaps in the united fight against the Burning Legion, the Forgotten might gradually be accepted by other Races. And if there are still some Races who persist in their folly… Then perhaps we truly must exercise some divine powers!”
I believed that was an enticing assurance. Unless one were a madman, no one would wish to be forever considered an enemy by the entire world. An opportunity to coexist equally with all Races was not something Sylvanas would have any reason to give up.