Azeroth Monster Manual

Krasus' Landing.

This was Dalaran's flight transfer station, but the dozen or so griffons that were originally raised here have long since disappeared.

The usually bustling platform was now empty, with an ornate long wooden table and 12 chairs placed in the very center.

It was still early, but the entire platform was already filled with onlookers and adventurers.

A dwarf wearing a brown high-crowned hat squeezed out of the crowd with large and small packages on his back, anxiously looking left and right, as if searching for something.

"Hey, Tommy, why don't I see any flight managers, and those lovely griffons have disappeared too.

I'm waiting to go back to Ironforge to replenish my stock. You know those blacksmith shop idiots are all picky cheapskates. If I can't get these thorium ingots back in time..."

The old dwarf walked up to a gnome and complained loudly.

"Good heavens, don't tell me you don't know what day it is today. Stop worrying about those damn thorium ingots, Amore!"

The gnome waved his hands excitedly, his shrill voice attracting the attention of a large group of adventurers.

"Shh! Keep your voice down, Tommy. I have 20 gold coins worth of strange dust on my back. Are you trying to kill me?"

The dwarf clutched the bag on his back in horror and covered the gnome's mouth with one hand.

"Mmph, let me go, ha... ha, you idiot with only gold coins in your brain, today is the first competition of the Great Magical Invention."

The gnome broke free from the dwarf's rough palm, gasping for breath as he shouted loudly.

"I don't care about you mages' boring tricks. Just tell me where the griffon manager and those little darlings are."

The dwarf hugged the bag in his arms and, after realizing that no one was paying attention to him, whispered to the gnome.

The gnome shook his head helplessly, then, as if thinking of something, his two big eyes rolled around. He tiptoed and leaned close to his friend's ear, chattering away.

The dwarf, who had been irritable, suddenly froze in place. His mouth was wide open, his eyes filled with the shape of gold coins.

"Are you saying that if we get those newly invented spells..."

"Shut up, you idiot. Don't you want to get rich?"

This time, the gnome hurriedly covered the dwarf's mouth.

"But... will those mages really...?"

The dwarf said hesitantly.

"Don't worry, Amore. The Archmage said before the competition started that all the new spells entered will be published free of charge.

Now is not the time to dwell on this. You should hurry to Lor'danel to rent a griffon, and I will use my intelligence to record those new spells.

After the competition, we will set off immediately. The money bags of those Ironforge and Gnomeregan mages are waiting for us."

...

Leaving aside the gnome and dwarf's get-rich-quick scheme, time slowly passed, and the sun finally peeked out.

"Buzz"

With a flash of purple light, Aier and his party stepped out of the portal.

As if telepathically, Antonidas and his party also stepped out of another portal.

The two's gazes met, and the air seemed to freeze. The surrounding audience also stopped whispering.

"Aier Saronas, the final victor will definitely be Dalaran."

"Didn't Antonidas sleep well yesterday? He has dark circles under his eyes."

The two thought at the same time.

The two walked towards the long wooden table and sat neatly in the main seats. The remaining 10 seats were also filled by humans and elves one by one.

→

Some curious onlookers counted and realized that the number of elves and human mages was neither more nor less, exactly six on each side.

The host, Edman, crept out of the crowd furtively and stood beside the long table, so that he would not appear abrupt and would not block the judges' view.

Edman was very nervous. Although that 3V3 match was not a crime of war, he had learned from some inside information that the Archmage had been bedridden for two days before recovering.

So today he behaved very cautiously, without the enthusiasm and recklessness before the start of the championship.

At Antonidas' nod, Edman carefully released an amplification spell, cleared his throat twice, and said:

"Dear judges and audience, today we welcome the first Great Magical Invention Competition held by the twin cities, and this competition can be called unprecedented.

Without further ado, let us look forward to the performance of the contestants, let us wait and see what kind of visual feast these talented contestants can bring us..."

The audience applauded very politely. If the 12 judges were not all big shots from Dalaran and Silvermoon City, those enthusiastic adventurers might have thrown the flowers and personal belongings in their hands at them.

"The first contestant is from..."

...

"Archmage Aier, how much chance of winning do you have in today's competition?"

Taking advantage of the host's introduction of the contestants, the Grand Magister leisurely chatted with the young man beside him.

"Perhaps we should look at this competition from a different perspective."

The young man rested his chin on one hand, intently observing today's contestants, while answering irrelevantly.

"Oh? I wonder what your opinion is."

The Grand Magister seemed to be interested and asked curiously.

"No matter who wins the final victory, won't these new spells greatly promote the enthusiasm and initiative of the mages?

If this continues to develop in a positive direction, we pioneers may really set a new milestone in the path of arcane magic, and those diligent apprentices will have more time to think and create, instead of feeling their way across the river, or blindly pursuing the improvement of their realm."

The young man finished speaking with lingering interest, but after a long time, he did not receive a response from the Grand Magister.

Antonidas' face was complicated, and he hesitated to speak.

The young man's words made him feel a long-lost excitement, but when he thought of the burdens on his shoulders and the Sword of Damocles above his head, he became a little depressed again.

"Aier Saronas, do you know what I admire most about you?"

"Oh? I thought Archmage had a very bad impression of me."

The young man smiled self-deprecatingly.

"No, I don't have a negative impression of you. On the contrary, I admire you very much. If you were a human, maybe I... forget it, let's not talk about this."

Antonidas shook his head regretfully and continued:

"You only see that we have caught up with the elves in just over a thousand years, but you will never understand what kind of fate and curse we bear."

After saying this, the Grand Magister paused as if thinking, and continued:

"We don't have to stand on opposite sides."

The young man looked at the Grand Magister, who was revealing his heart, with some surprise. He was silent for a moment and said seriously:

"Magic is not a curse, and your destiny is not on the elves and human kingdoms. Changing your inherent thinking may be the only way to find the real answer."

Listening to the young man's seemingly enigmatic answer, the Grand Magister sighed and said no more.