The year 1068 of the Lordan Lun calendar, the end of the 19th year of the Black Gate calendar.

At the behest of the Lich King, the Cult of the Damned, thwarted by Dalaran and the Knights of the Silver Hand, launched a new attack in the last month of the year.

Kel'thugad's elite men, along with powerful servants sent by the Lich King, infiltrated the capital of Lordaeron, secretly controlling key functions such as the capital's City Hall, the City Guard, the Praetorian Guard Headquarters, and the Royal Guard.

In the middle of the twilight, Saint Oryx arrives in the capital to receive the knighthood, and in order to encompass the new Acting Light, the royal family hosts a dinner attended by many of the top dignitaries, including princes and princesses.

That night, the Cult of the Damned launched an all-out attack. The fire engulfed the palace and the city, killing thousands of innocent people. The dinner was also attacked by Assassins, killing dozens of Lordaeron's upper nobles, and the princess and prince were spared thanks to the protection of Count Oryx.

However, the Supreme Guardian of the Alliance and the Lord of the North, Terenus Minethir II of the Kingdom of Lordaeron and his Empress, were killed at the hands of an elite group of Assassins led by Kel'thugad.

This long-planned assassination shook the Eastern Kingdom continent.

……

"Terenus Minahir II, Lord of Lordaeron, who was instrumental in the formation of the Alliance and made great contributions to the fight against the Orcs......"

Walking down the royal avenue leading to the throne room, the lengthy eulogy still echoes in Aurex's mind.

The Lich King's assassination of Terenus was not unexpected.

It's not that he didn't expect the Cursed Sect's backhand, but he didn't expect it to come so quickly, so urgently, and as soon as he made a move, it was Wang Bang, so that people didn't have time to react at all.

Kel'thugad actually assassinated the Tyrenas himself, and in the face of this legendary mage who had gained a lot of necromantic knowledge, the royal guard, who had no experience in dealing with it, was no match at all, and several royal mages failed to protect the king.

Afterwards, Kel'thugad also left behind his own tokens, blatantly provoking Lordaeron and Dalaran, as if intent on provoking Arthas, or someone else.

Orix knew that the real target of the assassination was the couple of Galia and Terenus - since the plan to spread the plague had been dashed and the path of depravity that had been laid out was useless, it was a different way to put Arthas on the point of no return.

Anyone who suffers the pain of losing a loved one has to be deeply stimulated. Perhaps this is just the beginning of another trick concocted by the Lich King, in order to lead Arthas astray......

At least it looks like it's working.

Oryx looked at Arthas worriedly.

The procession that returned from the funeral was huge, including princes and nobles, important ministers, and high-ranking officials of the Church of the Light and the Order of the Silver Hand. Dalaran, Gilneth, the Kingdom of Stormwind, and even the Kingdom of Stormgard, which was preoccupied with domestic affairs, also sent envoys to attend the funeral, after all, Terenus was the leader of the Alliance no matter what.

However, most of the outsiders have already left at the end of the funeral, or have gone to other parts of the palace to wait for the coronation to follow.

Now the people who followed the procession towards the throne hall were basically the princes and nobles of Lordaeron, as well as the great nobles who came from all over the world. It is worth mentioning that Tyran Ferdin, who had inherited the Valley of the Hearth due to Tirio Fordin's exile, also came to the capital with his mother.

Arthas was at the head of the line, dressed in a pure black gown. Half a step behind followed by Jialia, whose eyes were red and swollen. And next to Galia is Oryx, who made a great contribution last night.

The prince—nay, the king, though he had not yet been crowned—pursed his lips, his brow furrowed, and his face was covered with a haze so thick that it could not be dissolved, and the shadow between his brows gave the illusion that blackening was imminent.

Entering the throne room, Arthas stopped at the door, looked around, and stayed on the throne for a long time, as if recalling the scene when his father was still sitting on it, and then he slowly walked up to the throne, but did not sit down, but turned to look at the nobles who were close to him.

The big men of Lordaeron walked into the throne room one by one, and Oryx wanted to stand in the back, but was signaled by Arthas to stand at the front of the first row.

Arthas nodded with satisfaction, and seeing that everyone had arrived, he spoke loudly: "You all already know what happened last night. The Lich King sent his despicable lackeys to kill my father and assassinate dozens of kingdom dignitaries and nobles. ”

Everyone looked solemn and thoughtful.

The consensus was that King Terenus's death had come so suddenly that power had come to an end, and that even the most loyal supporters of the Minethir royal family had died in the past few days. The center of power in the kingdom is about to usher in earth-shaking changes, and a reshuffle and change are bound to come.

The prince of Alsace, who suddenly became the king of a country, was not prepared at all.

There is a moment of silence for the grief experienced by the victims' families, and perhaps there are careerists who see an opportunity to rise in this reshuffle of power......

"If it weren't for Count Oryx's protection, Galia and I would have died at the hands of the Assassins." Arthas said again.

The nobles couldn't help but look at Oryx, who was standing at the forefront.

Of course, they had heard of this prophet who was in the limelight, and had just been awarded the title of Earl for Life, and the royal family wanted to envelop him in every possible way, but no one expected that yesterday it was he who saved His Royal Highnesses Alsace and Princess Galia, who had become the de facto kings of Lordaeron.

But they also heard the sound of the voice, which was to introduce the youngest earl of Lordaeron as a cronie in front of everyone.

Only Oryx understands that even if he didn't have him yesterday, Arthas and Galia would never be fine, after all, Arthas's strength is not bad at all.

In front of the nobles, Arthas did not hesitate to show him a lot of affection, which was of course a good thing, and he was indeed quite touched in his heart, but he also knew that there must be a heavy responsibility waiting for him after the foreshadowing.

"The country is in the midst of an eventful season, and the Cursed Sect has brought disaster to Dohar, and has almost set off a wave of plague that has swept across the country; Later, there was an assassination incident, and the father, the queen mother, and many important ministers of the kingdom died at the hands of treacherous and wicked people. In the name of King Lordaeron, I have decided to declare war on the Scourge and launch a comprehensive purge to rid the kingdom of the Lich King's minions! Arthas said in a sonorous voice.

The nobles began to whisper.

It is normal for Alsace to make such a decision, but not only has the coronation ceremony not yet been held, but important positions such as Chancellor of the Exchequer, Minister of War, and even Commander-in-Chief of the Standing Army are also vacant, and the operation of the country has not yet returned to stability.

"Lord Uther," Arthas said, looking at his teacher in the crowd, but in formal terms, "I beseech you, in the name of my father, to lead the Knights of the Silver Hand in their duties. ”

The two are masters and apprentices, but in this case, they still have to divide the monarch and the minister.

Uther bowed, "The silver hand obeys the command, Your Majesty. ”

This is the business of the Knights of the Silver Hand. This armed organization of faith formed by the Church of the Light and the Seven Kingdoms is affiliated with the All-Union and is under the direct control of the Alliance's Supreme Council.

Although Arthas only inherited the kingdom and not his father's position as the leader of the Supreme Council of the Alliance, he was also the monarch of the heavyweight members of the Alliance, and had the right to command the Knights of the Silver Hand.

"Count Oryx," Arthas said, looking at Oryx again, "I have appointed you as the Hand of the King, to cooperate with the actions of the Knights of the Silver Hand. During this special period, you have the right to mobilize local second-line garrisons and militia organizations at will, and if necessary, you can mobilize regular army units in my name. In my name, you will purge the remnants of the Cursed Sect. ”

Oryx frowned.

Not only was he shocked, but the nobles present were also frightened.

The Hand of the King is not a specific position, and none of the Seven Kingdoms has such a position. In the literal sense of the word, as Arthas said, it is only a person who has been given a special position of special power in a special time, acting in accordance with the will of the king.

But that's scary enough.

The young man in front of him, who was only nineteen years old and had not even grown up, was the prophet chosen by the Holy Light, no matter how great his contribution was, he didn't have the ability to fulfill such a heavy responsibility, right? This is child's play! Again...... Could it be that His Majesty is trying to pull this little-known family into the core of the kingdom's power, which has been vacated with great difficulty?

No one wants that to happen.

"Your Majesty, I do not disagree with Count Oryx's abilities, but I think it is best to leave this matter to Marshal Tordmont. Field Marshal Todmont commanded well in the Second War and was an experienced general......"

Immediately, a minister stepped forward to suggest that it was none other than a survivor of the assassination at the dinner yesterday, who was originally a courtier and one of the loyal supporters of the royal family of Minethir.

"Your Majesty, I recommend Marshal Garithars."

"I think ......"

As soon as everyone said a word, there was chaos in the throne hall.

The supporters of the royal family of Minethil want to take this opportunity to consolidate their position, and the families who are outside the core of the kingdom's power also want to squeeze in to gain advantage in the event of a change of power. It's not that the twenty-three-year-old king of Alsace is just a child.

As if he had anticipated this, Arthas grimly looked at Oryx again until the end of the discussion, and turned a deaf ear to the opinions of the nobles, and asked again: "Count Oryx, do you accept this appointment?" ”

Oryx sighed secretly, and there was no joy in his heart that he had been entrusted with a heavy task. I thought that Alsace was quite a bit bent on going his own way, which seemed to be a little abnormal.

Although Arthas's move was tantamount to roasting him on a fire, he was also incredulous that Arthas trusted him so much. But he didn't care whether His Majesty was vengeful, or wanted to do something big when he came to the throne, or whether he had no one at hand and had to push him to the stage.

Those nobles were unaware of the seriousness of the situation, or rather, they did not expect it to be more serious than ever before, but he was different.

With the official history to draw on, he knew that the Scourge Legion would never return with a feather because of the setback of the plague plan, and that the northern countries of the future would inevitably set off a terrible bloody storm, and last night's assassination was just the beginning.

If you don't turn down on this appointment, you will inevitably incur resentment for touching the interests that some big families are eager to strive for, but that doesn't matter at all. When the natural disaster really strikes, I am afraid that not many of these people will survive.

All he knew was that his role as the so-called "Hand of the King" would indeed help curb the Scourge Legion's operations in Lordaeron. It also helps to seize power before the catastrophe erupts on a large scale, and accelerate the growth of an existence that can have an impact on the tide of history.

Alsace's motives, he doesn't care. He didn't care whether the aristocracy would see him as an enemy of profit.

He just wants to grow up as quickly as possible, and nothing else is a big deal.

Yesterday's assassination had already made him feel the danger - if Kel'thugad hadn't assassinated Tenrenas, but instead infiltrated the dinner party disguised as some nobleman and attacked him, would he really have escaped?

He took a deep breath, stepped forward and knelt on one knee, clenched his right hand into a fist on his chest, and bowed his chin and said, "Obey Your Majesty's orders." ”