Three days later, they landed at the Farstrider Harbor in the north.
As soon as they disembarked, they saw many corpses of high elf rangers, and many ghouls gnawing on them, a scene that was once bloody and nauseating.
Sylvanas, full of hatred, shot an arrow, not hesitating to use necromantic power to unleash a black arrow, killing those ghouls with a single strike.
From the remains of the ghouls, several Skeleton Soldiers shakily rose again, this time not attacking the living, but turning their blades on the undead.
Arthas' eyelids twitched, not out of worry, but because he found it very interesting.
In the campaign, Sylvanas had two forms: one as a high elf ranger-general, and the other as a Dark ranger, a resurrected banshee.
Three brand new basic skills and one ultimate skill were all very interesting.
Silence, Dark Arrow, Life Drain, and Charm!
Silence could confine an area, preventing spellcasting for its duration, which was extremely fatal for mages.
A mage who couldn't cast spells was not much stronger than a farmer.
The Dark Arrow she just used, after killing an enemy, consumed the enemy's corpse to summon a Skeleton Warrior to fight for her.
Sylvanas looked at Arthas, saying nothing, only worried that he would be disgusted by her actions.
Arthas stepped forward and gave her a hug, openly, almost like public displays of affection.
"Power is neither good nor evil. If the enemy can use it, why can't we? Don't worry, I will always support you."
With that, he casually released a Foul Swarm to strike at the approaching undead.
The smell of Fel always carried a sulfurous stench, which was also unpleasant and unsettling.
Watching Arthas' actions, Sylvanas smiled; he was supporting her with his actions.
Perhaps after repelling the undead, she could consider entrusting her precious things to Arthas, her future husband.
"Form ranks to meet the enemy. Falric, you lead one squad to hold the dock. Ma'an, you lead the second squad to advance with me."
Arthas drew Frostmourne; with its aura, he only needed to act as the arrowhead to break through the Scourge's defenses, and the soldiers behind him could easily cut down the undead.
"Yes, Prince Arthas."
"Sylvanas, Jaina, pay attention to the enemy's Necromancers. Once found, eliminate them immediately. If you need to get close, just say so, and the army will cover you."
Command after command was issued. This time, compared to his earlier, more naive military tactics, it was clearly a step up, showing more maturity.
Not activating Divine Form was a way to train the troops and observe what these undead were truly up to.
Without him as a death knight to support the attack, who was commanding then?
Kel'Thuzad had long been pulverized; it shouldn't be about resurrecting him.
Questions flashed through his mind, but this did not affect him wielding Frostmourne to harvest Anima.
Even if the undead were cut down, as long as their heads remained, they could be raised by necromancy.
After the living died, without special primal energy protecting them, they could also be raised by necromancy to become undead, controlled by the Lich King.
However, all of this required a Necromancer casting spells nearby. Without a Necromancer's on-site casting, even the Lich King could only watch helplessly.
The guard advanced in an orderly fashion, rescuing many isolated ranger elves along the way, both male and female.
A pair of eyes watched Arthas from afar, observing the human prince wielding Frostmourne, unaffected in the slightest. This was indeed a strange thing!
The further they advanced, the more they discovered that besides elf undead, there were also forest trolls undead.
"It seems the forest trolls haven't allied with the undead Scourge. That's good news, I suppose."
Arthas cut down the Flesh Giant blocking his path, while the dwarf Riflemen behind him pulled their triggers, shattering the distant Skeleton archers.
"To the right, three o'clock, five hundred meters from here, there are ten Necromancers!"
Several veins popped up near Sylvanas' blue gem-like eyes. Using arcane detection, she pinpointed the Necromancers' location and reported it immediately.
Jaina had been ready for a long time. Her chanted spell, amplified, unleashed a sweeping Ice Storm in the distance.
As hailstones crashed down, solid, sharp ice spears pierced through the Necromancers.
No precise aiming was needed; the sheer volume was enough to impale these Necromancers into a hornet's nest, killing them beyond any possibility of reanimation.
Bodies torn by magic would be incredibly difficult to resurrect, even if one wished to.
There were many undead in Silvermoon Woods, but it was clear that the main force was not here.
The magic barrier prevented teleportation, making it unlikely to enter Silvermoon City.
In fact, Arthas' judgment was not far off; the undead Scourge, led by the dreadlord Banehollow, was fiercely assaulting Silvermoon City.
There was originally a magic barrier outside Silvermoon City that could block invaders, but it broke in less than an hour, leading to the deaths of the three elf Archmages who led the defense.
Now, Silvermoon City was fighting the undead Scourge using the inner barrier. The elf civilians outside could no longer be attended to; at this moment, only the defense of Silvermoon City was paramount.
The undead Scourge tirelessly felled trees day and night, constructing a large number of Meat Wagons and catapults to hurl stones at the magic barrier.
Banehollow, as the commander, understood the nature of magic; even the strongest barrier would eventually run out of energy.
The undead did not need sleep or food, and there were also the graves where high elves buried their relatives, which could be pulled up to serve as troops.
Kael'thas personally stood on the front line. The Archmage's face was covered in soot and char, having lost his former diplomatic elegance, his eyes filled with weariness.
"Prince Arthas, please rest. You haven't closed your eyes in three days."
"No, I cannot rest yet. Have the Alliance reinforcements arrived? Tell me if there's any news."
Kael'thas couldn't sleep now. The human mages of Dalaran were busy with the northern plague.
As high elves, they naturally looked down on humans, a short-lived race; even with good talent, they were but a fleeting phenomenon.
By the time a high elf slept, a mortal's life would be halfway over. With a lifespan of at least five thousand years, it was no wonder the elves were so arrogant.
This arrogance, however, ultimately became a boomerang that struck them.
If not for Sylvanas' aid and Liadrin's support, it wouldn't be the prince who arrived at this moment, but Grand Marshal Garithos, who would have made Kael'thas' campaign a living hell.
"Report! The ranger-general has sent intelligence: Alliance forces have reached Silverpine Forest and are advancing towards Silvermoon City."
Finally, good news. But what could such a small force do?
It was good that they came at all, at least the undead outside wouldn't wantonly slaughter his people.
"Understood. Maintain contact."
Kael'thas looked gravely at the several death knights outside the city; they were clearly transformed humans.
Those were the mid-level commanders of the undead Scourge. A way must be found to eliminate them to slow down the intensity of the attack!