Chapter 486: That Makes Things Easier

Duke, in the clutches of Deathwing, discerned why the latter didn't employ his left claw for attack. Vereesa loudly pointed this out.

"Alas, it's unfortunate. Perhaps we should prepare a memorial for the highest-ranking leader we've lost since the Alliance and Horde went to war," Falstad sighed. "Maybe Deathwing doesn't like dragon meat and just wants to keep a human for a snack."

"Damn it, if you say something like that again, I'll strangle you right here!" Vereesa, uncharacteristically fierce, frightened the dwarf into retracting his neck.

"No, wait. Deathwing didn't kill Duke on the spot, which means Duke is of use to it. Yes, it must be so!" At that moment, Vereesa nearly cheered for her own intelligence.

The dwarf then threw cold water on her: "Speaking of which, didn't Lord Marcus give you two colored things before you took off? Something about opening the second pouch when in danger?"

"Silk pouch."

Vereesa didn't know why Duke, a grown man, would create such a fancy thing. When she asked Duke about it, the damned fellow mentioned something about Pig Brother Bright, something about sentiment, something about forced grid – none of which Vereesa understood.

But that didn't prevent Vereesa from blushing.

Yes, she should have opened that silk pouch when danger presented itself earlier.

She couldn't believe she had forgotten everything in her anxiety.

There, atop the gryphon, braving the wild wind, Vereesa opened the silk pouch made of white gauze, revealing a line of text:

"If I am taken by Deathwing, do not worry. There's a small chance Rhonin was taken instead. Of course, in that case, you probably wouldn't open this pouch."

Seeing the smiley face, awkwardly drawn at the end of the sentence, Vereesa unexpectedly chuckled.

"What happened?" Falstad was utterly baffled.

"How does it look like this elven woman is beautiful, as beautiful as a goddess, but is she actually not a goddess but a neurotic woman?"

Without answering the dwarf's question, Vereesa fell into contemplation:

"Could it be that Duke understood the truth about the Red Dragon Queen being captured all along? Did Duke anticipate that he would be taken by Deathwing? But what does that have to do with Rhonin?"

The chaotic threads of thought almost drove Vereesa mad.

If it weren't for a significant period of interaction; if Duke weren't her lord; if he weren't her sister's lover; if he hadn't also saved her life, perhaps Vereesa would suspect that the person she had been trying so hard to rescue had long sold his soul to the evil Deathwing.

"What does it want you to do, Duke?" Vereesa murmured. "Or rather, what does it want to get from you?"

Recalling Duke's status and importance in the Alliance, Vereesa felt a chilling sensation.

What's worse than the Alliance Deputy Commander dying due to a curse?

That would be the Alliance Deputy Commander becoming an undead, defecting, and falling into depravity.

Each of the five ancient guardian dragons possesses its own unique supreme power. In the eyes of mortals, that is already divine power. Who knows whether Deathwing possesses the power to resurrect the dead.

Actually, Vereesa thought too much. Neltharion was never of that ilk.

As the saying goes, worry leads to chaos. The more concern, the more likely one is to overthink.

Time passed unknowingly, and Duke woke up.

His back ached, not from injury, but from the discomfort of being propped against tree roots and small stones.

Thinking back, ever since he was screwed over by Gul'dan and forced into a countdown of life, he hadn't had a peaceful sleep. Camping and the like were commonplace. Since entering the Wetlands, he had only had two stable days with the dwarves.

There were some perks, like waking up every morning to see Vereesa's curious and clear face. Even knowing she's his aunt, it didn't prevent Duke from using her to reminisce about Alleria.

He knew Alleria's temperament; this kind of strong female hero doesn't easily fall in love. Once she does, even if he dies, Alleria, even if she doesn't die for love, will guard his memory for a lifetime.

Sensing Vereesa's recent changes, Duke realized he was also entangled.

It was enough to deal with the elder sister, but how did he get involved with the aunt as well?

Opening his eyes, of course, nothing good would be seen.

In his field of vision, it was still night.

The rolling clouds in the sky added a few shades of darkness to this world.

Even though it was situated in a forest, it was deathly silent everywhere.

No animals were moving in the forest, there were no summer frog croaks, no, not even insect chirps. Apart from the eerie cold wind howling, there was nothing.

Even with mental preparation, that oppressive ominous feeling still made Duke breathless.

"Oh, you're awake. I was thinking if there was any magic that could wake you up in advance without causing too much harm. Unfortunately, all I know are large-scale destructive spells, nothing suitable for this situation, which annoys me."

Deathwing.

Duke turned his head to look not far ahead – actually, the moment he opened his eyes, he had already checked.

Where there was nothing just now, a shadow quickly emerged out of thin air. In just three short seconds, it formed a human figure.

The dark figure in front of him, somewhat like a poor mirror image created by an incompetent mage, only no mirror image in the world would possess such high-purity dark power, nor would a mirror image have a proud temperament of a standard edition dragon.

Regardless of appearance, just that leaked out, substantial dark energy was enough to serve as clear evidence.

The seemingly human thing in front of him continued to change, like a high-speed 3D printer working, the shadow outlined a more complete human figure.

A face emerged from the hood, a deep, handsome, and confident man, a face that looked no different from the inherently noble nobles of Lordaeron – at least on the surface.

"Duke Marcus, are you okay? I have basically confirmed that you have not suffered any serious injuries. After all, it's not easy to control the strength of my huge claw."

"Still intact, but speaking of which, if I find any injuries when I check later, where should I send my medical bill, Mr. Deathwing?" Duke responded to Deathwing with a skin-smiling meat-not-smiling expression.

The thin corner of his mouth lifted slightly, forming a stiff and sarcastic smile. This human-shaped Deathwing asked with a smile: "Since you know who I am, that makes things easier." To be continued.