"What? You mean the Ancient One sealed C'Thun, and then made the Qiraji fight the night elves?" Through the dimensional trading system, Josh listened to Abbendis' report, and his expression turned quite complicated.
Seal C'Thun? Thinking back to Ancient One's usual way of doing things, Josh suspected she probably treated C'Thun as a battery by now.
This didn't really surprise him—after all, Ancient One had done things like that before. What surprised him more was that she would actually drive the Qiraji to war against the night elves. That didn't sound like her at all.
"The Ancient One said the Qiraji are like innocent children, and they shouldn't bear the sins of the Old God. She told me she can use this war to force the night elves into my camp. Then, southern Kalimdor will belong to the Qiraji, and the north to me. After the matter of the World-Soul is finished, she'll move the Qiraji to a new world." Abbendis explained with a strange look on his face.
This idea of forcing the night elves to side with Abbendis through war was something he and Josh had actually talked about long ago. But back then, their imagined enemies were the orcs and the Burning Legion, not the Qiraji of Ahn'Qiraj. He never thought Ancient One would go ahead and put the plan into action ahead of schedule.
"If that's the case, then there's no problem. Ancient One's word can be trusted." Josh nodded.
Yet the moment he said that, he felt a faint sting in his chest. Hmm… must be because he missed Margaret. It had been almost half a month, and she still hadn't returned.
"So then… we just follow Ancient One's plan?" Abbendis asked, relieved. Although things had taken a strange turn, from the looks of it, everything Ancient One had done so far was working in his favor.
"Do it." Josh nodded again. The two ended the call.
"Ancient One… what exactly are you planning?" Josh narrowed his eyes.
C'Thun was not part of their original plan at all.
The more power Ancient One "borrowed," the stronger she became—Josh knew that well.
That was why he had advised her to take Sargeras' avatar body in the Tomb of Sargeras before Medivh realized what was going on.
In Josh's view, the Old Gods were strong, yes, but they were not on the same level as the Titans. Back then, even Y'Shaarj, the strongest Old God, was torn apart by Aman'Thul himself. And Sargeras was the mightiest of the Titans.
The avatar inside the tomb, even as just a body without the true soul of Sargeras, had once held terrifying power—not weaker than a single Old God, perhaps even stronger. But without Sargeras' true spirit guiding it, that husk was still only a husk.
Compared to a sealed Old God with both power and will intact, the empty avatar body was clearly much easier to control.
Not to mention, the Tomb of Sargeras still held the artifacts—the Scepter of Sargeras and the Eye of Sargeras.
That, to Josh, was the best path.
If Ancient One had those things, Josh honestly couldn't see her losing—at least not unless someone on the level of a Titan or Elune herself got involved.
As for Gul'dan's downfall in the real timeline? Josh didn't worry about that at all.
In truth, Gul'dan had never been as dominant as many thought. During the Second War, he only fell into a short coma, and Orgrim had already taken over completely, forcing him into the background. That fact alone showed just how weak Gul'dan's grip on power really was.
And when Gul'dan landed on the Broken Isles, he barely had any troops left at his side.
Facing the countless raging demons inside the Tomb of Sargeras, he naturally had little power to resist.
In comparison, Abbendis' forces—without even counting his hidden reserves—were no weaker than the great armies of either the Alliance or the Horde in later years. And his firepower and equipment were on a completely different level.
On top of that, the powerful fighters Josh had sent were no mere showpieces. His younger son Ben, for example, could be considered a peak demigod even by Azeroth's standards.
Even the weakest of them, Loki, was not much worse than the most famous heroes among the races of Azeroth.
With this lineup, if they couldn't "clear the dungeon" of the Tomb of Sargeras, Josh might as well swallow the Time Stone on the spot! But Ancient One had simply ignored the plan.
Forget it… one step at a time. Trying to fully control the actions of someone on her level was never realistic anyway.
——
Meanwhile on Azeroth, Abbendis' fleet had already been at sea for three days. They were halfway through their journey, surrounded by endless ocean, with not even the shadow of an island in sight.
Back in her cabin aboard the King's Glory, Maiev Shadowsong locked the door tight the moment she returned from dinner, then began rummaging through her things to arm herself.
As the leader of the Watchers, her sense for danger was unusually sharp. For the first three days at sea, she felt nothing strange, and everyone aboard the King's Glory seemed normal.
But starting this morning, she sensed a change in the atmosphere of the ship.
A faint unease stirred in her chest.
Could this human lord be planning something against us? But it made no sense.
From the very first reports she had received about him, and through every direct meeting since, Lord Abbendis had always seemed wise and far-sighted. Someone like that shouldn't do something so reckless.
Yet during dinner just now, the unease spiked sharply. On the King's Glory, aside from Abbendis himself, nearly everyone ate together in the mess hall—including their guests, the night elves.
The night elves were not fully used to such arrangements, but none of them had complained. Despite their long lives, they were close to nature, not spoiled, and quite adaptable.
Even so, the sudden rise of unease made Maiev leave the hall without touching her food. Who knew if the meals had been tampered with? No matter where the danger came from, she needed to be ready. This instinct, honed since the War of the Ancients, had saved her life many times.
She had just finished preparing—only her Watcher's outer armor and cloak remained—when there came a knock on the door.
"Who is it?" Maiev called sharply.
"It's me, Lady Shadowsong. I wanted to consult you about some matters we should keep in mind after landing." Abbendis' voice sounded from outside.
"Very well, my lord. Please wait a moment." Hearing his voice, Maiev relaxed slightly, but not completely.
She walked carefully to the door, pressing her ear against it to listen. There was only Abbendis' breathing outside, no one else.
At last, she slowly opened the door.
But instead of a friendly lord, what greeted her was a shadowed dagger lunging straight at her!
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