Vanessa VanCleef, the daughter of Edwin VanCleef, is also his only remaining relative after the Orc War.
Since she had lost her mother since she was a child, little Vanessa was very attached to her father. During the time when Van Cleef was rebuilding the city wall of Stormwind, she lived in the Stonemason Brotherhood Association in Goldshire. That was little Vanessa.
The happiest time.
Her father had a decent status and occasionally met some big nobles, so he had a high reputation among the common people. Everyone respected Van Cleef, and even little Vanessa received preferential treatment in Goldshire. She occasionally
She would go to North County Abbey with her father, and picking grapes in Miss Milly's vineyard was her favorite entertainment. Miss Milly also liked her very much and would always give her many small cakes and other gifts.
However, all these beautiful stories came to an end not long ago.
First, there were rumors that Mr. Van Cleef was planning to fight against the nobles, and some timid commoners alienated little Vanessa. Later, when the news came that Mr. Van Cleef had assassinated Sir Soma, little Vanessa suddenly
Jin Zhen seemed to be isolated, and some drunkards even said bad words to her. This made little Vanessa very sad, but she was more worried about her father.
Until one day later, the entire Brotherhood of Masons was surrounded by soldiers. The masons who had received the news in advance hid little Vanessa. They were afraid that the nobles would use the child to coerce Van Cleef, but they thought wrong. The soldiers
There was no negotiation with the masons at all. Faced with the masons' obstruction, they drew their swords without hesitation. Seeing the uncles and uncles who were protecting them falling in a pool of blood, little Vanessa was surrounded by panic.
She covered her mouth and hid alone in the small attic. It wasn't until night fell that she escaped from Goldshire alone. But the question was, where could a 7-year-old daughter escape to?
But little Vanessa was very lucky. When she was surrounded by a group of kobolds, a beautiful short girl fell from the sky and rescued her from danger. Moreover, the sister also told her that she and Fannie
Sarah's father, Van Cleef, is an old friend.
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Bloodraven Inn is a tavern located in Night Town, southeast of Dusk Forest.
In the early years, this forest was called Sunshine Forest. When Van Cleef was a child, that forest was still covered in sunshine. It was the favorite hunting place of the nobles of Stormwind City. It was ruled by Duke Aberlock, but in the orcs
During the invasion, it was as if the power of darkness also enveloped that place, causing the sky in the Sunshine Forest to become hazy and terrifying.
Even in broad daylight, you need to carry a torch to enter this forest, and the beasts in the forest are infected by the power of darkness and become violent and terrifying. Especially in recent times, there have even been reports of undead beings.
.
Taking advantage of the vast darkness of night, on the road leading to the Dusk Forest in the Western Wilderness, a group of heavily armed guys rode on war horses and headed towards the Dusk Forest, which the civilians were afraid of.
The leading knight was Edwin Van Cleef, who was wearing black leather armor, carrying a musket on his back, and a row of sharp throwing knives on his chest. Behind him were the veterans who had participated in the Second Orc War with him.
.
"Boss, this is probably a trap!"
Willie in black was also among this group of people. He whispered to Van Cleef, who looked gloomy: "Maybe it was set up by MI7. They want to capture you, so why don't you let me go and take a look."
"No."
Van Cleef decisively refused. He looked at the strange and fear-filled forest around him. He said softly: "If Vanessa is really there, you will probably harm her if you go there. In addition, I can't let my brother do it again."
I took a chance."
The group of people held torches and lanterns and rushed on the dark road. After 2 hours, they finally crossed most of the forest and arrived at the outskirts of Night Town. The journey was surprisingly smooth and smooth.
To the point where Van Cleef couldn't believe it, none of the pestering wolves and weird monsters appeared along the way, as if they had never existed.
But when Van Cleef looked at the brightly lit night town, he had an inexplicable feeling.
It seemed, it seemed, that this smooth road was "cleared" specifically to welcome him. Those monsters did not disappear, they were just ordered not to intrude on them...
"Um."
Van Cleef gritted his teeth and looked back at the brothers behind him:
"If I don't come back in an hour, you go back to Moon Creek Town and tell Alex that I left a sum of money in Vanessa's name in the bank in Booty Bay. Although it's not much, it's
It may be enough for you to start a new life in Gilneas, and the seal will be placed in my journal."
"Stop talking nonsense, Van Cleef!"
Veteran Hank rode on his horse and threw a rough cigar to Van Cleef. He shouted:
"We will wait for you outside the hotel. No one can take you away under our eyes, that's it! Go and bring little Vanessa back!"
On the other side, in the Blood Crow Tavern in Night Town, the lich Arugao was sitting on the bar of the pub. He was immersed in the magic book placed in front of him. Next to him was the restless dwarf vampire Ella.
The dwarf with blood-red eyes snapped his fingers impatiently, and the bartender in front of him immediately served him a glass of refreshing blood wine.
This is a new "business" developed by bartenders these days. The best ale, ice cubes, and one-third of blood have become the favorite drinks of vampires, although for living people,
Such a drink is somewhat "stimulating".
"Ella, can I try this?"
Next to Ella, there is a little girl lying on her tiptoes on the edge of the bar. She is wearing a suit of small leather armor that fits well, and two daggers like fruit knives hang on her waist. They are toys given to the little girl by Ella.
, and facing the little girl's request, the dwarf vampire crossed his legs, poured the blood wine into his mouth with a proud look on his face, pursed his lips, and then patted the little girl's head:
"No! Vanessa, you can't drink this because you are still a child. Hey, give this child a glass of milk. It needs to be hot!"
Ella looked at Vanessa and pouted her lips dissatisfied. The dwarf scratched his head and took out a pale skull wine glass from somewhere. This thing was carved very realistically and looked like an orc's skull, but in fact
, this is just a gadget that Ayla made when she was bored in Draenor. It is made from the skull of a huge clefthoof cow.
She winked at Vanessa, then poured the warm milk into the skull wine glass and handed it to little Vanessa:
"Here, little princess, your skull-heated milk, doesn't it look a lot cooler?"
"I love this! Ella, can you give it to me?"
Vanessa looked at the skull wine glass in her hand with curiosity, and couldn't put it down, sitting on the chair, holding the warm milk in her arms, while the dwarf vampire pursed her lips, turned to look at the door of the pub, and she let out a quack.
With a high-pitched laugh, he said:
"Of course, but it depends on whether your father, Mr. Van Cleef, is really that wise."
"Bang"
As soon as he finished speaking, the door of the tavern was violently pushed open. Van Cleef, holding a sharp knife in one hand and a musket in the other, rushed into the tavern, but the next moment, he froze on the spot.
, the imaginary scene of a heavily armed gangster transaction did not exist. There were only six people in the entire tavern, including him.
The dwarf vampire Ella, the lich Arugal, little Vanessa, the muddle-headed old bartender, and a man leaning in the corner, tasting ale alone... uh, the black birdman?
"dad!"
Seeing Van Cleef appear, little Vanessa screamed, grabbed the skull cup, and rushed forward with joy on her face. Van Cleef hurriedly threw away the weapon in his hand, held his daughter in his arms, and repeatedly confirmed that her daughter was not injured.
After that, his eyes fell on the skull wine glass in his daughter's hand. The evil exuded from the exquisite craftsmanship made him feel a little uncomfortable.
"When I found this little cutie, she was hunted by a pack of kobolds, cold, hungry, and most importantly, full of fear, a little girl running through the night, longing for someone to help her, longing for nothing inside her.
The father who can't help her... You are an irresponsible father, Van Cleef, you let your daughter down, you almost lost her."
The dwarf leaned on the bar, drinking blood wine while watching Van Cleef hug his daughter tightly. He said nothing, which made the dwarf a little dissatisfied. Her figure turned into a black bat and disappeared from the place. When she reappeared,
, stood in front of Van Cleef, which made the veteran take a step back subconsciously.
The dwarf stared at the middle-aged man in front of her with her blood-red eyes, and she said in a deep voice:
"This is the first mission I am responsible for alone. You don't want to see me fail, right? So let me tell you straight, Mr. Van Cleef, you underestimated what the powerful will do to stay in power... You
You underestimated the darkness and ugliness of human nature. You underestimated everything you faced! I thought you had to be smarter, at least smarter than the 10 people hanging on the noose, but you didn't. You were stupid. You showed
That kind of fool-like self-sacrifice makes me very disappointed."
"What do you want from me?"
Van Cleef held his daughter vigilantly, his eyes moving back and forth between the strange dwarf and the silent mage, and he asked in a low voice:
"Why me? Did you arrange all this?"
"Pointless vigilance!"
Ella's figure returned to the bar again. She drained the blood wine in the glass in one sip, savoring the wonderful taste and waggling her fingers:
"You, your experience, everything you have experienced are just part of a great plan. I did not play an important role in your disaster. To be honest, even if I don't show up, in one year, maybe two
Years later, you will face the same situation, or even worse. I just gave you a push and made you see the true face of the country and system you serve."
The dwarf stopped talking, but her strange voice sounded in Van Cleef's heart:
"I know you want to make it better, but this rotten system in which the aristocracy is in power is not a caterpillar. It is now declining, pale, and backward. The rulers are more willing to spend money on supplies to prepare for war, and
Instead of using it to make the citizens live a happier life, this system will not form a cocoon on its own, nor will it turn into a butterfly, becoming more beautiful and more dynamic. Someone must push it! It must die first, and then it can be reborn under the fire we ignited.
Reborn in the flames..."
"Sorry, I'm not interested."
Van Cleef flatly rejected the dwarf's solicitation. He hugged Vanessa and turned to leave. But the next moment, the lich who had been immersed in the book suddenly raised his head and said in a low and cold voice:
"People want to see the truth, no matter in what way, even if it is violence, even if it is destruction, you are more thirsty for the truth in the whirlpool... You can't hide it from me, human being, there is darkness brewing in your heart."
"What does life mean to you? The experience of each life is only the words you have said and the things you have done. Your name will not be hung on the building, and you will not leave luxury property, only those
... Someone close to you, your daughter, tells the story that keeps you going, even if it only lives in her memory, then here's the problem... Little Vanessa will always tell your story.
It ends with my father bearing a crime he shouldn't have."
"If you just turn around and leave today and take your brother across the ocean, then you will personally destroy your daughter's inner persistence for justice and hope. Think about it, for her, what is the role of a father?
Is it really important? What’s more, don’t you want the truth? After going through so much, are you willing to become a rebel in other people’s mouths...Those who should really repent will laugh at you!”
Lich Arugao's eyes were shining, and he seemed to see through Van Cleef's heart. He said softly:
"You have a sense of guilt, or sin, in your heart, which means that you still have an unfinished mission! You have understood the feeling of being lost. Maybe you want to find something to hate. Hate can guide you in the direction.
To find a way forward for you, what our leader often says is: The last thing I want to see is someone trying to hurt the people who follow me because they have different beliefs from me!"
"Tonight, it's time for you to tell them they've crossed a line... Think about it, Van Cleef, and if you make the decision, Crow Ridge Necropolis, you can get help there, and you'll get your justice, and
We, we will enjoy the process of helping you get justice."
A moment later, Van Cleef walked out of the Blood Crow Tavern with Vanessa in his arms. Vanessa lay on her father's shoulders, holding the skull wine glass in one hand and waving goodbye to the dwarf with the other hand. Her face was full of happiness.
The expression on her face, while her father's face was deep and solemn. He had reached the crossroads of fate.
"Boss, you are finally back."
Willy in black saw Van Cleef and the girl in his arms from a distance. He waved excitedly to the boss: "Come on, we caught a spy outside the town. He is serving MI7.
!”
Van Cleef stepped forward and looked at the tied up guy. He was dressed the same as a civilian, but his flexible eyes revealed his identity.
"What shall we do with him, Van Cleef?"
Veteran Hank took a sip of wine and asked in a low voice. Van Cleef pursed his lips, reached out to cover his daughter's eyes, and said in a calm tone:
"Cut off one hand and send it back to Shaw."
"The Brotherhood of Masons has been destroyed by them, but we will rebuild it. We are not going there, we are here... fighting for our hometown! Good people should not be forced to shut up under duress. Our Brotherhood
We will continue to fight in the darkness, and we must rise again with justice and justice..."