Chapter 207: The True Hero

"A 30% markup!? That Barov bastard! I'll slaughter him!" Lothar's anger nearly pierced the sky.

"Calm down, Anduin! Calm down! The people stranded in Southshore are citizens of Stormwind, not Alterac. No kingdom, including Lordaeron, can afford to shelter hundreds of thousands of refugees that don't belong to their own nation without charge!" After Llane poured another bucket of cold water on Lothar, he finally calmed down.

"What's the situation in Southshore now?" This time, Lothar didn't ask the Morningstar mage, but another attendant.

Just then, a letter delivered by a gryphon rider arrived.

Llane and Anduin opened the letter, discovering that it was a message from Duke Bolvar Fordragon, who was responsible for defending Southshore:

"Your Majesty, I know you've been concerned about the condition of the citizens stranded in Southshore. I am here to report the latest news. In fact, the situation of the refugees is improving rapidly."

"More than half of the refugees have settled into wooden houses. The man responsible for building these houses, Edwin VanCleef, seems to have adopted a technique called 'modularization' from Duke Marcus. Although the houses all look the same, they provide shelter from the elements in the shortest time possible."

"The new temporary palace has been built on a hill overlooking the sea, just outside Southshore. Prince Varian is quite fond of this new two-story stone palace."

"Duke Marcus's naga under his direct command have begun driving large amounts of fish to the shore. I've witnessed that nets cast on the shore are guaranteed to catch fish. It's nothing short of a miracle, and it would be even better if we could get food from the Barov family. The food collected from Westfall and Lordaeron beforehand will only last for another two weeks at most."

"Much to my chagrin, I have no room to intervene in civil affairs. Duke's arrangements are perfect, and my involvement would only make things worse. The only issue now is that the citizens are quite pessimistic about the future of the kingdom. Lord Benedictus has done his best to reassure them, but unfortunately, his efforts have not been very effective."

"The worst part is that due to a lack of food, necessary equipment, and a clear military objective, the morale of the army has hit rock bottom."

After reading Bolvar's letter, Llane heaved a sigh of relief.

"Bolvar and Benedictus have done their best; I can't blame them for anything," Llane put down the letter.

"Indeed, Benedictus is a good man, but not a very capable one," Lothar said. In fact, Archbishop Benedictus of Stormwind City had been his friend for over twenty years.

"On the contrary, our young Duke always manages to surprise us! I almost forgot that he's actually a mage, not my chief advisor," Llane said with a rare smile, "I wonder if we should give the young Duke more authority and responsibility?"

"Don't be fooled by his appearance; he is indeed a genius, but he is only fifteen years old," Lothar revealed the graying at his temples to Llane, a testament to the damage inflicted by Sargeras's final curse.

"I know, but we're running out of options, aren't we? Even you, I think, should find a deputy."

"Alright, I'll consider it."

Llane thought for a moment, then wrote a letter instructing Bolvar to give more autonomy to Duke.

Five days later, Southshore.

Duke returned, weary from his journey.

He had visited Alterac, paying his respects to the king of Alterac. However, as Duke had anticipated, he did not meet King Aiden Perenolde.

Firstly, King Aiden was displeased that Duke had gone to the Barov family first instead of the closer Alterac Royal Family. Secondly, Aiden had received a secret report about King Terenas of Lordaeron, who seemed to be planning a major conference involving all human kingdoms, as well as their dwarf and elf allies.

With King Aiden's mind troubled, he had no time to entertain Duke, who was obviously promoted as a messenger in a hurry. A decree allowing the Kingdom of Stormwind to establish a refugee camp in Southshore, along with a meal provided by the royal family of Alterac, was enough to dismiss Duke like a beggar.

Marco was naturally indignant, but Duke merely laughed it off. Knowing the direction of 'history,' he was well aware of what kind of character the king of Alterac was.

Duke, not caring about anything else, took the decree and returned to Southshore without waiting for the food supply to arrive.

From the north to the south, coming out of the Alterac Mountains region and entering the Hillsbrad Foothills, past Tarren Mill and before reaching Southshore:

Marco was astonished by the rows of neat wooden houses that looked like grids along the main road. Those unaware of the situation might think a huge new city had sprung up instead of a refugee camp housing nearly 500,000 people.

Upon seeing Duke's banner, adorned with symbols of death and terror, the children playing by the houses, the women knitting or cooking, and the men building more houses, everyone in the camp and the surrounding woods raised their heads.

"Ah! It's Lord Marcus's banner!"

"Is that Lord Marcus himself?"

"Quick! Bow your heads! He is our great benefactor, Duke Marcus."

The children and men knelt in reverence, and the women curtsied with unfamiliar grace. Without any organization or coercion, they all spontaneously bowed to Duke.

Not only the civilians, but also the city guards, sheriffs, and passing legion soldiers all knelt on one knee, placing their left hand on their chest, showing heartfelt respect to the owner of the banner.

For the common people, the idea of retaking Stormwind City was too distant.

Perhaps the people were ignorant, not understanding the many complexities and focusing only on the simplest and most unpretentious aspects of life - food, clothing, shelter, and transportation.

Rescuing them from the brutal orcs naturally earned their gratitude for a moment.

But to truly gain the people's approval and recognition, long-term efforts were needed, at least meeting their basic living needs.

Duke accomplished this.

Not only did he save hundreds of thousands of Stormwind citizens with his fleet, but he also transformed Southshore into a sanctuary for the people, free from hunger and suffering.

On the way here, not a single refugee had perished, and no one showed a look of despair.

Duke managed to save the crumbling house with his miraculous means.

In the eyes of the people, compared to King Varian who lost the kingdom and the constantly defeated Lothar, Duke was the true hero.

"Salute to our hero, Duke Marcus!" shouted an officer.

A second later, a hundred thousand soldiers and civilians roared in unison.

"Long live Lord Marcus!"