Chapter 798

Chapter 798: Approaching from the Sky

From high above, centered around the valley where Karazhan stood, the area within sight looked like it was covered in shadow.

This shadow spread not only over Elwynn but also reached The Black Morass and a small part of Redridge, covering about four to five hundred kilometers. The shadow’s reach was much farther than it appeared. The gryphon flew for nearly two days, deep into the rainforests of Stranglethorn, before finally escaping its effect.

Greed carefully followed the advice of the gryphon administrators from Stormwind. After entering Stranglethorn, he flew over the coastal waters, staying away from the shore.

That was because Stranglethorn, including the coasts, was filled with troll villages and cities, with bat riders often patrolling.

After moving into the southern part of Stranglethorn, the cries of wild animals and seagulls in the sky grew louder. At the edge of sight, among thick forests, a big yellowish-brown troll building stood tall, hidden behind layers of trees. Cheers echoed from far away, still clear even at that distance.

If Jesse wasn’t mistaken, that was the rumored Gurubashi Arena, a place open to any creature willing to pay with gold or their life.

No matter if you were a troll, another humanoid race, or even something non-human, you could come here to test your strength or wealth.

Around the Gurubashi Arena lay broken walls and fallen troll buildings. At the peak of the Gurubashi Empire, this had been a busy troll city.

But as the empire fell and people dwindled, big cities outside Zul’Gurub were abandoned. Now, only this famous arena was still used by trolls. Everything else—walls, houses, and even temples for troll gods—was completely left behind.

Spotting the Gurubashi Arena meant they were close to Booty Bay.

By evening, Goergette flew over a high cliff, against the salty sea breeze, and Booty Bay suddenly appeared in full view.

No matter how many times he had ridden a gryphon to this spot in the game before, it couldn’t compare to seeing it for real at that moment.

The busy crescent-shaped town had buildings crammed together in all styles. Streets were packed with people pushing and shoving. Unlike Stormwind, where most were humans of similar size, here many different races and sizes lived together peacefully.

Lifting his gaze, the wide sea shone like a blue gem. Far off, a statue of a rich man stood with arms open, while ships with colorful flags moved slowly on the water, almost still compared to the gryphon’s speed.

These two very different places met in a curve, making a sharp contrast. Seen from high up, it looked nothing like approaching by sea.

"This gryphon can’t stay here overnight!"

A loud shout came from afar. A dwarf riding a small gryphon rose fast near Goergette.

Maybe because his voice was too sudden, or the small gryphon was too quick, Goergette seemed startled. She let out an annoyed grunt, scaring the little gryphon into wobbling in the air. The dwarf knight barely got it back under control.

"Why?!" Greed asked. "We heard there was a gryphon nest here!"

"The gryphon nest in Booty Bay is above The Salty Sailor Tavern, Thunderfist’s kid!" the dwarf stared at Greed and said. "And your gryphon was clearly too heavy. The rich folk here don’t allow Alterac Gryphons to land. Didn’t the one who told you about the nest warn you?"

"Not at all," Greed mumbled.

"Forget it, follow me!" The dwarf turned his gryphon and flew off. Greed had to follow.

"Did he know you?" Jesse asked curiously.

"No, but he was from Aerie Peak, so he could recognize my face," Greed replied.

"Could he really tell your surname just by looks?" Jesse asked, surprised.

"There were some clear signs, like the nose and eyes, Jesse," Greed glanced back and said. "After living in Aerie Peak a while, you could learn to spot those—hard to explain to an outsider like you."

"It wasn’t hard to tell at all; that dwarf was from the Wildhammer family," Vereesa said. Greed leaned over in surprise. "How did you know?"

"Simple," Vereesa replied. "That family was called Wildhammer for a reason. Their beards were red as fire, easy to spot."

"But you couldn’t just call him Wildhammer by his beard color," Greed waved his hands. "Like, Kurdran’s beard was red, and Furlbrow’s was redder! But they were Wildhammer Clan."

"But only the Wildhammer family braided their beards so neatly, you could see…" Vereesa started to point. Greed cut her off, grumbling, "Fine, fine, you got it right! You weren’t wrong!"

"I couldn’t see what was on his beard," Jesse said.

“It was nothing because you weren’t a Farstrider,” Vereesa whispered in Jesse’s ear.

Goergette landed on a hilltop with the dwarf Gryphon Rider, where some dwarves and goblins were practicing riding. Upon seeing the large Goergette suddenly descend, the gryphons there became restless.

Greed first soothed his mount in the Language Dwarven, and Jesse could even tell he was advising Goergette not to bully these creatures.

After that journey to the Thorium Brotherhood’s outpost, Jesse’s proficiency in the Language Dwarven had greatly improved.

The upcoming maritime journey to Kalimdor was also a great chance to learn both the Language Dwarven and the language of Kalimdor; he couldn’t afford to waste it.

The caretaker of this small training ground, a Dwarf Wildhammer, seemed to be an old acquaintance of Greed. They recognized each other from afar and started chatting in a language Jesse couldn’t understand at all. They talked for a long time, and just when it seemed they were about to head to the tavern for a night of drinking, Greed pulled out the scroll from Stormwind and handed it to him.

The dwarf caretaker looked over the scroll, then glanced at Goergette, nodded, and patted Greed on the back, saying in the Language Dwarven, “No problem at all, just relax.”

This relieved Jesse; he had initially thought there would be more issues with the gryphon.

This small valley had a path leading to Booty Bay, passing through gaps between palm trees to quickly reach a main street in the town.

The three of them chatted and laughed all the way down the road. However, when Vereesa glanced out at the street, her relaxed expression suddenly turned cold.

Jesse followed her gaze and saw three trolls—two males and one female—squatting nervously on the steps by the roadside, watching them closely, especially Vereesa.

They were bare-chested, including the female troll, with their bodies covered in dense beast totems and unclear symbols. Though they didn’t hold weapons, they had daggers, carving knives, and even axes strapped to their waists and legs.

Yet, they never dared to reach for those weapons, especially since the ranger didn’t shy away from their stare. Finally, the female troll said something, and all three trolls cautiously stepped down from the steps and moved away.

“Amani Forest Trolls,” Vereesa said to Jesse, “Those totems mean they are followers of the Dragonhawk Spirit and Ayal. Why are the elites from Zul’Aman here?”

Jesse explained, “They might not belong to Zul’Aman anymore. During the Orc War, the Amani sided with the Horde, and some trolls who refused to join the Orcs fled here. After all, there was nowhere else on the continent for them to settle.”

“How did you know this so well?” Greed asked, “I’d never spoken a word to these trolls during my earlier visits to Booty Bay.”

Jesse replied, “I was a warlock, and I had to deal with dark magic often, so I naturally picked up some information about it.”

“Whether enemies or friends, my good mood for the day was ruined by those green-haired monsters. Just the wildcat-like stench made me sick.” As she spoke, Vereesa shook her hood hard, as if trying to blow away the air.

Jesse cleared his throat nervously. Vereesa glanced at him, sensing something off, but she couldn’t pin it down.

Molofeel smiled at him, eyeing Vereesa provocatively, her lips twitching as if holding back words. Jesse shot her a warning look, telling her to behave and not cause trouble.

At that moment, he felt his ability to hide his feelings was on the edge of collapse.

“I’ll go to the Reliquary’s outpost to get them to arrange a ship for us to Kalimdor and save some coin.” Vereesa turned to the two and asked, “So, are you coming with me?”

“I wanted to head to the goblin Alchemy Room to ask about the Ghost Glasses,” Jesse said.

“Then go alone, Elven Wisp. I’m off to the tavern for axe-throwing.” Greed gestured at her, adding, “But you can’t join.”

“Ha, I’m worried playing with you amateurs will drag down my skill,” Vereesa teased, leaning in to give Jesse a light kiss on the neck. “See you later, Jesse.”

After that, she shot a glance at Molofeel, who was watching her, and as their eyes met, they both quickly looked away.