Night arrived, and at 8:00 PM sharp, the images in the VR glasses all ceased.
Indeed, to relieve boredom, Wayne had brought the net cafe's glasses to the construction site. Consequently, Shadobreak and the others sat on felt mats inside the tents or leaned directly against trees, guarding the site while playing their games. Meanwhile, the two Dwarven riflemen and Amy's group—who had already played the day before—took turns keeping watch from high vantage points.
Mirror Lake Orchard was silent. The few remaining Defias rebels had gradually withdrawn. The town was peaceful. Though the number of traveling merchants had decreased, the number of adventurers arriving in town during the day was significantly higher than usual. This was likely because various professional guilds had posted bounty missions, drawing in powerful individuals like Oneria and Anasha, as well as those desperate for gold like Raymond.
Elsewhere, whether toward Stormwind to the north or Northshire to the northeast, nothing unusual occurred. Aside from the workers laboring fervently under Barons' command, everything seemed calm and ripple-free.
Wayne had specially ordered late-night snacks from the Lion's Pride Inn. Farley, the owner, had accepted this large order and personally delivered the meal by carriage. There were two large barrels of Dwarven ale and several crates of dried jerked meat.
Looking at the three-story house frame that had risen from the ground in just over two days, Farley felt both joy and a touch of envy. He was happy because once this large net cafe was completed, it would attract more people to Goldshire, benefiting his inn. But he was envious that in less than a month, Wayne had earned enough to fund such a massive project. It made a lifelong businessman like him sigh; compared to Wayne, he was just someone earning hard-earned money from dawn to dusk.
The workers chewed on the jerky, lined up to fill their cups with ale, and sat in small groups to chat and drink. Regardless of the choices these people had made during the riots eight years ago, sitting together now and looking at each other's aging faces brought only a deep sense of nostalgia.
Westfall had once been the granary of the Kingdom of Stormwind. It was first ravaged by the Orcs of the Old Horde during the Second War, then plagued by bandits and drought following the Defias rebellion, turning fertile fields into a wilderness. The Defias Brotherhood had failed to manage the lands they occupied; Moonbrook, once rebuilt into a prosperous town after the First War, had become a ghost town.
The workers who had escaped back to Goldshire had seen no sign of the vision VanCleef had once promised. To them, it was simply moving from being exploited by one group to being oppressed by another. Laboring day and night in mines and farms, they saw no end in sight, nor did they understand what VanCleef meant when he spoke of destroying Stormwind.
Younger members and the outlaws who joined for fame were typically reorganized into rogues, hunters, or even artillerymen. Those who were older and unskilled in combat remained as forced labor. Though they didn't know what the future held or if the ruling class of Stormwind remained as hypocritical as they were eight years ago, at least tonight, they raised their cups in respect whenever Wayne or Barons passed by.
And of course, there was Duke Shadobreak. Though he wasn't close to them, he didn't seem particularly disagreeable. They thought silently that if they had met employers and nobles like these after rebuilding Stormwind with their blood and sweat eight years ago, everything would have been different.
The three prisoners, starving until they saw stars, devoured the food provided to them. Once finished, they couldn't help but resume cursing Wayne and Barons, demanding their immediate release.
Just as the meal ended and the workers changed shifts to resume work, a low, muffled rumble of thunder echoed from afar.
"Oh, looks like it's going to rain," someone remarked.
But for Shadobreak and the adventurers, that sound was familiar. They had heard it several times recently! It was identical to the sound of the giant dragon descending from the sky as "they" knelt before the executioner's block in Helgen!
They stood up immediately, looking toward the sky where the sound originated, their hands instinctively gripping their weapons. Beneath the dark dome of the night, two joined stars flickering with a yellow glow seemed to be slowly approaching them.
Wayne shouted at Barons and the workers, "Drop your tools! Get into the cellar! Now!!!"
The workers were stunned for a moment, but within seconds, they dropped their shovels and hammers as instructed and ran toward the cellar.
Shadobreak shouted to the remaining combatants, "Form battle positions!!!"
Behind them stood four casters: Amy, Marlin, Raymond, and Zardimar. But they weren't alone. As the two golden-glowing eyes of the Black Dragon drew closer, Andromath and Ana teleported in together!
As some of the most powerful casters in Stormwind, the two blinked onto the building's platform, one hand preparing a spell and the other gripping a staff, staring at the massive creature looming in the distance.
Just ten minutes prior, a sea patrol stationed outside Stormwind Harbor had sent an alert. The mages guarding the harbor immediately teleported back to the Wizard's Sanctum to report a massive Black Dragon flying rapidly toward the southern region of Stormwind.
Although Andromath still found it hard to believe the dragon was coming for Goldshire, he suspected it was related to the plea for help Wayne had sent to Amy earlier. Thus, he chose to investigate personally. As an Archmage who could teleport to any friendly location, he wasn't like regular troops who couldn't leave their posts; even if the dragon turned back toward Stormwind, he could teleport back instantly.
Corrine entered stealth. She knew that as a mid-tier rogue, her primary role in this fight would be to protect the civilians as much as possible.
Thump! Shadobreak slammed his massive two-handed hammer onto the ground, chanting a holy spell to bless every combatant present.
Whoosh... whoosh... whoosh...
The dragon's eyes grew larger as it approached. The sound of its wings beating against the air served as a countdown, warning everyone that a battle for survival was about to begin!