"You!"

At the moment when his hidden identity was revealed, Arthas's finger subconsciously rested on the shotgun behind his back, but old Satin turned his head and smiled at him, the smile was very peaceful, not hostile, and even had a kind of cunning peculiar to old men, as if he was playing a prank.

"Don't worry, Sas, your disguise is perfect, and the reason I know your identity is because I received a letter from an old friend who asked me to take care of his brother and sister."

As he spoke, Old Sardin pointed to the badge on his chest, a quaint badge with swords and shields intertwined, the insignia of the Federation's "Veterans Federation", and Old Sardin was obviously a member of this huge organization.

"It's... Varian? ”

The vigilance in Arthas's eyes did not relax in the slightest, and he asked in a low voice:

"Why didn't he tell me in advance?"

"Because Varian wants you to see the Federation civilization with your own eyes, he thinks that as long as he deliberately intervenes, then you will feel that everything you see, maybe it is arranged."

Old Satin jumped off his horse, held his shotgun in his hand, beckoned to Artace, and gestured to the local sheriffs behind him who were protecting him not to approach:

"It's a common problem of all smart people... But now that we're talking, let's come, young man, and let's talk openly and honestly. ”

Arthas hesitated for a moment, considering that Anna, who was still a guest on Old Satina's farm, he chose to obey, and he also followed Old Satin with a shotgun, in that open wilderness, an old man and a young man wore cowboy hats and hunting clothes, just like orthodox Western Wilderness people, under the rough attitude to life, there was a touch of delicate feelings.

"I wasn't going to get involved in this, Arthas, oh, I won't call you Your Majesty... In this land, "Your Majesty" is a curse word. ”

Old Satin smiled at Arthas, and said calmly:

"But the "grand debut" you and Lady Gianna had to intervene the night before, and anyone with a discerning eye could see at a glance the habits and traditions of the ancient nobility in you, and that night so many merchants would bring your stories to all parts of the Federation, and the Darkblade Intelligence Service would not pass up this great opportunity... That intelligence organization is so pervasive that there may be agents lurking on my farm right now. ”

"But that's okay, Arthas, don't worry too much about them, the separation of the federal and Darkblade governments has come to an end, and the Darkblade Intelligence Service doesn't have the authority to enforce the law on federal soil unless it's authorized, so as long as you don't get into trouble, they'll only spy on you, and won't threaten your travels... On this, I can make assurances as a federal parliamentarian. ”

"So, is this a warning?"

Alsace's face was a little ugly, and he looked at old Sartin:

"Warn me and Anna to leave the Federation as fast as possible?"

"No, no, no, kid, no."

Old Satin shook his head, and he looked at Artace:

"I can sense your hostility to the Federation from your attitude... This is not good, Arthas, I know that in the hearts of the Imperial, the Federation and the Darkblade Legion are often equated, but in fact, this is not the case, the Federation civilization did rely on the Darkblade Legion to get through the most dangerous period, the Darkblade Legion is equivalent to the warm cradle of the Federation, but every civilization needs to get out of the cradle in order to continue to develop and truly grow. ”

"The Dark Blade is pushing us out of the cradle right now, you know? Arthas, they are actively disconnecting from the Federation, they don't want to see the Federation protected by them so well that this civilization has completely lost the ability to develop itself, Varian sees this trend, and what he wants me to tell you is exactly this. ”

The old councillor looked at Alsace solemnly, and he said in a deep voice:

"The Federation is the Federation, the Dark Blade is the Dark Blade, Arthas, I am a Federation, I am loyal to my country, so I will not hypocritically tell you that I am willing to help the Empire, but in fact, I would prefer a young ruler like you to distinguish the difference between the two forces, otherwise in the future, once you go to war against the Dark Blade, and you don't know the goal of the battle, the Empire will provoke two enemies at the same time..."

Old Satin looked at Artace:

"So here, as a member of the Commonwealth, I would like to ask you, Arthas, tell me honestly, do you hate the Federation? If the nobles of the empire swore to take back their lands from the Confederation and continue to exercise their so-called "aristocratic" power on the land, would you support them? ”

"I... I do not know. ”

Arthas hesitated, he raised his head, looked old Satin in the eyes, and answered honestly:

"I'm sure I'll have absolute hatred for the Darkblade, but the Federation, if the Federation is completely separated from the Darkblade, my attitude towards you will be very vague, because I know that if I or any king rule the land, we won't necessarily do better, no... With the Empire's current bloated system, we would never have been able to do it that well. ”

"But if there is really a war between the two in the future..."

Arthas spread his hands and said calmly:

"Then I'll definitely be on my side!"

Old Satin squinted his eyes and looked at Artace, and after a dozen seconds of silence, he suddenly shrugged his shoulders:

"That's enough, it shows that Varian's advice is useful, and you do see the merits of the Federation, and you are not on the side of the nobility, so I can tell you honestly, Mr. Arthas... There is no need to send agents to the Commonwealth to send them to their deaths, to spy on the purpose of our army. ”

"The independent army of the Federation is not to help the Dark Blade unify the world, nor will it follow the Dark Blade to start a new war, Arthas, the purpose of our army is very simple, there is only one!"

Old Sardin put his cherished black shotgun in front of his eyes, aimed it hundreds of meters away, and under the shade of the trees, a black boar was basking happily in the sun, and he whispered:

"As long as those nobles dare to come back..."

"Bang"

A thunderous gunshot, the head of the wild boar hundreds of meters away suddenly burst into a bloody spill, the special bullet pierced the boar's skull, so that the savage creature let out a low roar, old Satinate carried a shotgun that still emitted gunsmoke, he held a cigar, and looked back at Alsace:

"We're going to blow their heads... Please relay my words to the nobles of the empire as they are, any nobleman and their dog-legged people, as long as they dare to set foot on the land of the federation with a bad heart, that wild boar will be their fate! ”

Arthas felt a touch of murderous aura from the farmer old councillor in front of him, it is hard to imagine that this murderous aura actually emanates from an old man who was just an ordinary farmer 10 years ago, it is obvious that these 10 years of federal life have given old Sardin new faith and new sustenance, although he still has good intentions towards Arian like the Empire, but once the Empire is ready to take away what he and his people have, he will not hesitate to pick up the gun and fight them to the end.

It wasn't until this moment, looking at old Sardinian with a gun in the sun, that Arthas really understood what Varian told him before leaving...

The Empire's future adversary will never be the Dark Blade... It's the Federation.

In the shadow of the Dark Blade, the civilization of this eastern continent already has its own beliefs and minions, and their minions are sharper and more deadly than the empire that has always focused on the Dark Blade.

The nobles of the Human Empire are still discussing with great interest how they will rule those "rebels" after returning to their ancestral land in the future, but they will never know that the former rebels have begun to sharpen their knives and are ready to take the former rulers.

It is foreseeable that as long as the future empire dares to propose any laws and policies related to the land of the eastern continent, it will definitely anger the Federation that is ready to start, and maybe the next war between the two sides will be provoked by the Federation on its own initiative, with only one purpose... That is to destroy the nobles of the empire who have bad intentions towards them.

"Of course, little Arthas, we welcome you and enlightened Empires like Varian to the Federation."

Old Satin watched as the local magistrates rode forward to dispose of the carcass of the prey, and he stepped forward and patted Arthas on the shoulder like a kind old man:

"You're more welcome to come and invest, oh yes, there are 3 farms for sale in the Western Wilderness this year, little Alsace, aren't you going to invest? The return on income is very impressive. ”

"Thank you."

Arthas grimaced, it was obvious that the young man was still dissatisfied with the threat that old Satin had just made, although old Satin had told him something he had to know, but in this way, it was too direct.

"But I'm not going to invest in the assets of people who have enemies against me... And I'm also an imperial nobleman, and I'm still a king, so maybe you want to cut off my head. ”

Old Satin laughed at Arthas's irony, and he turned on his horse, motioning for Arthas to follow him, and the two came to a hill, where Old Satin pointed to a prismatic farm in the distance, and whispered to Arthas:

"It was the farm that Varian bought for his son, and it would be his first asset after the younger Anduin turned 18."

"Oh, the big farm next to it was purchased by Mr. Dai Lin for Ms. Gianna three years ago, and before you leave tonight, I, as the custodian of the Proudmoore family farm, also need Miss Gianna to sign the title agreement, since she just married you, so maybe you need to sign it, and it will be your husband and wife's joint property in the future."

"On the edge of the North County there's a large but remote but abundant farmstead with a luxurious villa, and guess who it belongs to?"

Old Satin smiled and shrugged at Artace:

"It was bought by Mr. Terenus for a huge sum of money a year ago, but it doesn't belong to you, the place is still managed by the Satin family, but Mr. Terenus bought it for his grandson or granddaughter, you know what I mean? Arthas, here, the western wilderness, this is your retreat, if your reforms fail..."

"You can at least be a decent Federan, so don't complain, little Arthas, this time I am talking to you not out of my own will, your father, and your fathers, are watching you."

————————————————————————

That evening, in the villa of the Sardinia farm, the old Satin and Alsace enjoyed a delicious meal of Wild West, especially the Wild West stew with its unique style, which was appreciated by all.

However, after dinner, when she saw the "Prodmore Family Farm Transfer Agreement" that Old Satin took out, Gianna's face became not very good-looking, of course the archmage knew that his and Arthas's whereabouts were exposed, but considering that it was her elusive father who signed this agreement, Gianna still signed the agreement after a few minutes of hesitation.

This means that from now on, Gianna will have the right to travel freely between the Federation and the Empire, and have a set of property rights in her own name in the Western Wilderness, which means that Gianna will also have a temporary citizenship in the Federation, as long as she wants, after a week of review, she will become a real Federation person.

"I'll use some personal connections to arrange for you to go to Stormwind and the Black Iron District for an official tour."

Old Sardinia said to the Alsates:

"With your disguised identity, you can't go to many places, of course, it's not that I'm selling confidential information of the Federation, I remind you in advance that when you visit, there will be agents of the Dark Blade Intelligence Bureau to monitor and "protect", I just hope that the two of you can have a deeper understanding of the institutional advantages of the Federation, if you want to carry out a reform like Varian in the future, then this visit will become your precious treasure. ”

"Also, if you want, you can have a federal-style group wedding on the Grand Council Square in Stormwind~ Considering you're on your honeymoon, this is an event that couples have been very keen on lately."

"Of course, you can also say... No! ”

Gianna and Arthas glanced at each other, their honeymoon trip was completely ruined, and it became a semi-official visit, of course, this visit is confidential and will not be known by the Empire, but once the Federation uses these materials as bargaining chips, it will cause Alsace's prestige to suffer a great blow, after all, on the Empire's side, the Federation civilization appears as an enemy country.

Eventually, however, they agreed to old Satina's help, and since Varian felt that Arthas needed to take a look, Arthas was willing to trust his brother's advice.

"Before I go, I'm going to make a trip to North County."

Gianna said to old Sardinia:

"I'm going to meet my childhood friend Lucille, and I've heard that her baby is about to be born."

"Oh, Alexander and his wife? No problem, that good boy and my son are good friends, I can arrange it. ”

The old councillor smiled at the newlyweds and placed a key in front of them:

"Also, this is the key to the manor that Mr. Terenus bought in North County, a nice villa and a wedding gift for his son and daughter-in-law... Now, the thing is returned to its rightful owner. ”