Onyxia no longer had any sway over the army, and even the dragonkin troops she dispatched were placed under the jurisdiction of Lordaeron.
The army had only one object of loyalty, only one sun, and that was prince Arthas, the future King Terenas Arthas Menethil.
The actual administration was handled by the queen, Sylvanas Windrunner. She had experience managing troops and, as his wife, her position was very suitable.
Ability was important, but loyalty was even more important.
Even with similar loyalty, Highlords like Uther, Fordring, and Mograine were far inferior to Sylvanas.
She was his wife, his closest confidant, while they were merely subjects.
Due to the destruction of Dalaran and the rise of the mysterious holy land, it was convenient to take in the exiled mages and troops from Dalaran.
Besides the refugees from Dalaran, there were also some refugees from Stromgarde; their nobles, however, were kept under strict supervision.
Commoners were welcome, but nobles, in essence, were also vampires.
The vassals of most nobles were not directly governed by the king. A vassal's vassal is not my vassal, and a daughter's daughter is not my own daughter – this was very reasonable.
Taking advantage of this disaster, it was now justifiable to annex them.
Did they expect the Alliance to help them restore their kingdom?
Perhaps when Terenas was alive, the Alliance, maintained by political maneuvering, lacked high-end combat power, making its voice less firm.
Now, Arthas was different. If they didn't comply, he would act. Would they join Lordaeron?
If not, he would make them!
Despite the chaos within, Arthas had established the general framework.
He alone would be the Headmaster of the mysterious holy land, while Jaina and Archmage Modera would serve as Vice Headmasters, occupying two positions. This would subtly cultivate a sense of belonging to Lordaeron among the mages who came to study.
This would cut off any thoughts of Dalaran restoring its kingdom from the source. After all, the Alliance would eventually become a mere designation, a tool for Arthas to unify the various human kingdoms and form a new empire.
Now, the slogans had changed to 'For Azeroth, for Lordaeron,' and only then 'for the Alliance.'
Sylvanas managed the army, ensuring vertical management, and with the help of the blindly loyal paladin Uther, many difficult problems could be resolved.
Onyxia managed the finances, using the dragon's Hoard and years of cultivated connections to earn money for Lordaeron.
His sister, Calia, served as the administrator, responsible for handling internal affairs, freeing up Arthas and Jaina's time so they wouldn't be bogged down by tedious government matters and could focus on improving their strength.
The stronger their power, the greater their deterrent, and the more they could support Lordaeron's actions to annex other kingdoms and form an empire.
Although the entire City of Hope still seemed somewhat rudimentary, it was changing day by day, exuding a sense of prosperity.
After two days of rest and giving some further instructions, Arthas prepared to depart with Krasus, the red dragon representative, for the Twilight Highlands on a rescue mission.
Sylvanas was to command the army, proceeding first to the continent of Kalimdor to establish a garrison and scout, and also to make contact with the night elf race.
Therefore, the Green dragon sister, Emmarel, whose original duty was to guard the entrance to the Emerald Dream, became the best guide. Her relationship with the night elves was very good, which would prevent misunderstandings between the two sides. If the Burning Legion hadn't arrived yet and their own people started fighting, it would truly be a laughingstock.
Furthermore, Sylvanas had another mission: to establish outposts along the way.
From the City of Hope to Kul Tiras, then to the Zandalar Islands, followed by the Broken Isles, and finally reaching the port of Theramore in Kalimdor.
Outposts needed to be established at each location, expanding a small area based on watchtowers.
These watchtowers would allow Arthas to mark the map, enabling him to set anchor points when using teleportation magic.
Even the ultimate skill granted by the system required coordinates for teleportation.
Even if the anchor point disappeared during the teleportation process, he could still teleport there.
The most important reason for establishing outposts, besides future expansion and development, was to mark coordinates for convenient teleportation; everything else was secondary.
Since she couldn't go herself, Sylvanas pondered, and then her third sister volunteered.
After careful consideration, she decided to send her sister Vereesa to participate in the rescue mission. This way, she wouldn't have to worry about any 'vixens' appearing.
What?
The 'vixen' was her own sister?
Well, that's better than someone else, isn't it?
Keep the wealth within the family; it's always easier to talk to one's own sisters.
Tarecgosa did not go along; she was to supervise the black dragon princess.
The ancient hatred for the black dragonflight clearly took precedence over the rescue mission. In any case, dragons couldn't go to that place, and even if they did, it wouldn't be of much help.
It was better to keep an eye on Onyxia here to prevent her from playing any tricks.
Even with Arthas' guarantee, it only gave the black dragonflight a chance to clear its name; it was not the final word.
If they did well this time and satisfied the dragon Aspects, then they would truly be absolved.
Otherwise, they would still be severely purged!
No matter what, if they weren't one of his own, he would just deal with them!
As for Chromie, the bronze dragon, she absolutely had to go along. Her ability to control the flow of time would be very helpful in breaking through the barrier, making her truly indispensable.
Besides them, Arthas didn't bring anyone else. They either stayed behind to clear the undead near the City of Hope or assisted in opening the road to Hearthglen.
There was a lot of land, and waste was shameful.
Riding a dragon, departing from Tirisfal Glades, it would still take two days to fly to the Twilight Highlands at full speed.
The howling cold wind, combined with the first experience as a dragon Rider, was indeed quite exhilarating.
It was just that the dragon beneath him was not a female dragon, and how could a dragon Rider ride a dragon of the same gender!
It must be said that this was a great pity. If there was a chance, he would still try Onyxia; if not, Sinestra would also do, as they were both black dragons.
However, he just had to be careful if the future Deathwing, Neltharion, found out and felt uncomfortable, after all, who had hidden away from the light for so long.
After coming out, he discovered his wife had cheated on him. How could a normal man endure that?
He must fight him! If he didn't, he would truly become a cuckold, laughed to death, and the wronged party would be himself!
Wait a minute, black dragons aren't people, are they?
They're not men, so it's fine then.
As they approached the Twilight Highlands, a strange energy washed over them.
"Careful, this is a time barrier. Step back a bit, I'm going to start casting."
Chromie warned them in advance. As a bronze dragon, she was extremely sensitive to temporal abilities.
The sudden appearance of temporal energy felt off. She took out a Time Sandglass and began to cast.
Krasus also transformed into his human form to stand guard. The backlash from having a spell interrupted was absolutely unbearable.
Don't ask him why he knew; just ask if he had ever experienced that feeling of wanting to die but being unable to.