Tulayan vaguely heard the whispers of rain falling on the tent. When he heard Arelia whisper to him, at first he thought it was just his own auditory hallucinations.

"Tulayan?"

He looked up. In the dim orange-red glow of the brazier, Tulayan saw Arelia, who was standing at the mouth of the tent. "Arelia, you're soaking wet in the name of the Light!"

Tulayan, who was wearing nothing but a pair of linen breeches, leaped out of his canvas bed and ran towards Arelia. The elf trembled and stared at him silently. Her eyes were wide open, and her flowing blonde hair was now clinging to her head.

Tulayan had a whole bunch of questions to ask her. Where did she just come back? What had happened? And more importantly, why was she here, alone in Tulayan's tent, and so late?

We'll have to wait until we get to think about it. Arelia was soaking wet, almost frozen, and when he reached out to untie her cloak, he found it completely wet as if it had just fallen into the water. "Here," he said to her, tossing the damp cloak aside. "Stand next to the brazier. I'll go get you some dry clothes to wear. ”

She nodded, as if it was Tulayan's pure tone that encouraged her. Arelia opened her little hands and warmed herself above the still-glowing coal. Tulayan frantically searched through the box, eventually finding a shirt, a breeches, a sleeveless tunic and a cloak. Even though the clothes were big for her, at least they were dry.

Tulayan turned around and found that Arelia was still motionless. Something must be wrong.

"Come on. He whispered. Walked over with her. Let her sit on the box. Compared to her usual self-controlled, even somewhat arrogant image, Arelia now looks like a desperate child. Tulayan bit his lip and forced himself not to ask questions first. He knelt down and removed her shoes. There was almost an inch of water in those shoes, and her feet were as cold as ice. He rubbed Arelia's slender, pale feet vigorously until they warmed up a little. After that, Tulayan stood up. Help Arelia to her feet.

"I've got some dry clothes for you to wear. He said, turning her body lightly so that her back was facing the brazier. "Change into these clothes, and I'll get you something hot to drink. Then, we'll have to talk. ”

Tulayan put the clothes in her hands and turned away, his face slightly red. He heard a soft sound behind him, waiting for Arelia to tell him when he could turn around.

Tulayan took a quick breath as he felt a pair of small hands wrap around his wrists from behind, and a slender figure leaning against his back. At that moment. Tulayan didn't move. After that, Tulayan slowly grabbed the cold hands. Gently raised his hand and pressed it to his chest. His heart was beating violently.

Tulayan felt her kiss on his shoulder, and he shuddered and closed his eyes.

How long had he been waiting for a moment? Or had he dreamed of it? Earlier, he had found himself in love with Arelia, but he hadn't thought it would come back to him until recently. Over the past few weeks, it seems that Arelia has been trying to get close to herself, and will often make physical contact with her, though it is more akin to teasing. And now......

"I ...... I ...... cold," she whispered. "It's cold. ”

Tulayan couldn't take it anymore, and he turned and hugged her tightly. His rough, battle-hardened hands slid across her smooth back. Tulayan marveled, her pale skin was silky smooth.

In the dim light of the brazier, Tulayan could see a necklace hanging from her swan-like neck, which was faintly inlaid with three precious stones, and her skin was soft and golden from the firelight. Arelia looked up at him, the deep emotion in her eyes blurring Tulayan's vision.

"Arelia," he whispered as he leaned over the elf's long, pointed ears. Suddenly, his arms tensed, allowing the elf to cling to him. "Let me warm you. He gasped and said. "Whatever hurts you and makes you panic, let me take it away. I can't stand this feeling, I can't let you sink in pain. ”

He didn't do anything more, he didn't say anything more, for fear that she might come back at any moment, tell him that she was just playing around with him, and then take a few steps back and discuss tactics and stuff with him. If that's really what she wants to do, Tulayan won't complain. If that would help her recover, if that would fill her eyes with hope and life again, if that would dispel the terrible silence, he would not regret it.

She didn't get out of it. Instead, she raised her hands, touched Tulayan's face, and whispered, "Tulayan," before saying in her native language, "Help me to forget." ”

In response, Tulayan cupped Arelia's cheek with his palm, feeling her slender cheekbones. He realizes that in addition to her skill, energy, and passion, she is also vulnerable. In the past, she had never shown Tulayan a glimpse of her vulnerability. Drops of water ran down her cheeks. At that moment, Tulayan thought she was crying. After a moment, he realized that it was nothing more than a drop of rain dripping from her soaked hair. Tulayan slowly bent down and tentatively kissed her. Arelia immediately responded passionately, wrapping her arms around Tulayan's neck. Arelia whispered, "Cold, so cold...... Tulayan took a step back, feeling a wave of vertigo in her head.

Tulayan hugged her with both hands, once again shocked by the lightness of her body. He placed Arelia on the cot and pulled her fur up to cover the two of them.

They warmed each other.

Tulayan rubbed his tired eyes, stopping the tears that swirled in his sockets, which he still insisted were due to exertion.

After that night. Arelia was gone the next morning. When he came out of his tent. Arelia and her rangers have completed their reconnaissance mission. On that dim morning. Tulayan's eyes were full of sympathy and pain. He learns that the orcs have invaded Quel'Thalas, and that Arelia alone has lost at least eighteen relatives.

And those who died also included her brother.

He hurried to Arelia, but when his hand touched her shoulder, she twisted him away. He tried to talk to her, but she ignored every word he said. It's as if they were never lovers...... It's even as if they were never friends. In that moment, Tulayan felt that he had been trying to ignore it. and let its own healing wounds crack open once more. He is the general of the Alliance, he is a leader, and he cannot allow himself to sink into personal misery.

But that day, in Stormwind, he saw Reelia soaking wet again—something he had even expected at the time...... Well, he's really stupid to do that. But Tulayan thought that maybe he would go on like this for the rest of his life. No matter what happens, he will always love Arelia Windranger, and that night will be the most beautiful and moving memory of the first half of his short life.

"Here they are. ”――

Lexa's deep voice was as calm as ever. Grom looked in the direction he was pointing. Nodding.

"The girls are really here. Hellroar gripped the blood roar in his hand, his eyes full of anticipation of killing. The orcs' army left behind in Azeroth was definitely not a decoration. Today. The Alliance will go head-to-head with these terrible enemies.

He saw many Confederate soldiers flock through the land of death and toward the valley. His glowing red eyes narrowed. The alliance is almost out of the nest. But where was the leader, the man who had abandoned his soldiers just to warn the Union troops? Grom seemed very interested in killing him with his own hands.

Next to Lexa, Harasha was also howling excitedly. Lexa smiled back at his pet wolf.

"Come on, small alliance. Grom whispered. "It's been a long time since Bloodroar tasted human blood. ”――

Tulayan turayan pulled the reins. Their soldiers had cleared the ring of hills that surrounded the basin, facing the Dark Gate. If the orcs were really retreating, there were plenty of them left behind in Azeroth. The road to the Dark Gate is not easy. They need to fight their way through the vicious greenskinned orcs and the tall, pale creatures that are on the same side as them.

There were two fighters who caught Tulayan's attention. He wasn't even entirely sure if one of them was an orc or not. He looks alike, but his skin is tawny instead of green, and he is much taller than the other orcs. At the same time, his physique looks different from the others. A wolf stood beside him. Tulayan thought it should be as intimidating as its owner. He is indeed a very strong fighter, but he is not a leader.

There. That one orc. He was taller than most orcs, with black hair in a bun on his head, a black chin, and glowing red eyes. He wears heavy bracers on his hands, adorned with some strange symbol. He looked at the large number of Union troops, but was unmoved.

The two met their eyes. Tulayan saw that the orc had raised a shockingly large battle axe in salute.

"You shit, this time we're prepared. Danas muttered. His eyes were bright, and he could tell that he was looking forward to the battle, just like every soldier present.

"Son of Lothar!" Tulayan shouted. Each soldier shouted his own slogan and charged down from all directions. The drums of war were beaten. (To be continued......)