Jess listened as Gerred talked about how to arrange the house these days, how to pack luggage, and how to prepare things to bring on the trip. After a while, he said, "I always feel like I've forgotten to bring something. I always feel like I might leave something here."
Gerred took a cut piece of toast, tore off half of it, dipped it in pumpkin sauce and put it in his mouth. He said, "Let me tell you. If you can't think of it now, it's not something important anymore. If you forget it, just forget it. Don't keep thinking about this and that. Otherwise, you won't be comfortable wherever you go."
"All right." Jess said, "Then shall we discuss how to arrange our journey when we arrive at Southshore? I must go to Dalaran around the 10th. How long does it take to get from Southshore to Dalaran?"
Jess remembered that the terrain of Lordaeron continent is not the same as in the game. The Alterac Mountains extends much longer than in the game and blocks in the middle between Lake Lordamere and Southshore. In fact, the entire Hillsbrad Foothills is the sloping field and plain from the Alterac Mountains all the way to the coast of Southshore.
The map of the game is simplified a lot. The key positions are flatter and there are not so many terrain obstructions.
In the real world, if you want to go to Dalaran from Southshore, you must take a big detour. You even have to enter the territory of the Kingdom of Gilneas. If you go directly towards the north in the direction of Dalaran as in the game where the shortest distance between two points is a straight line, you will definitely walk into the Alterac Mountains. When Jess went from the capital city to Southshore, he was by the coast on the westernmost side of Lordaeron continent. Of course, at that time this castle was still called Schwarlion Castle.
On the west side of Silverpine Forest, after crossing Schwarlion Castle along the Gilneas Bay, then heading southwest into the Burnwood Marsh. After passing the marsh and then passing through another large forest, you will come to Emberstone Village surrounded by forests.
Starting from Emberstone Village and crossing the vast Hillsbrad farmland to the east, you can finally reach the coast and come to Southshore.
From beginning to end, you can't see the shadow of Dalaran City in the east of Silverpine Forest. In the end, it is completely blocked by the Alterac Mountains.
Gerred roughly drew a location map with his finger, which also matched Jess's memory. He drew a large line with his thumb to separate Southshore and Dalaran as the Alterac Mountains, and then pointed at a place further north and said, "This is your home, the capital city of Lordaeron."
Then, the dwarf pointed at a place a little north of the Alterac Mountains and said, "Dalaran."
Then it was the southern coast. "Southshore."
The dwarf's finger drew a circle around the large mountain range line just now and said, "This road will take about three days, similar to the distance from Stormwind to Sentinel Hill. But the road is not so easy to walk. It's all hills and mountains. In the middle, you have to pass through several towns in the Kingdom of Gilneas."
Listening to Gerred say this, Jess was actually a bit worried about the situation in the Kingdom of Gilneas. For the "Alliance Accommodation Act", Gilneas is one of the kingdoms with the most intense reaction.
The national strength of the Kingdom of Lordaeron is far superior to that of Gilneas, and it has become the leader of the alliance. Gilneas already has some concerns about this powerful neighbor.
Coupled with fiscal austerity, due to the difficulty in making up for the losses of a series of naval battles and having to pay for the reconstruction of Stormwind and support the refugee camps, a series of pressures have brought the Kingdom of Gilneas to the verge of collapse. So soon after, it became the first human kingdom to withdraw from the alliance.
If the Kingdom of Gilneas has so many accumulated grievances against the alliance, I don't know if there will be trouble passing through that territory.
Not only that, in order to prevent retaliation from other kingdoms, he even built a huge high wall to block his own peninsula after withdrawing from the alliance. This high wall may have already started to be built. At least Jess hasn't heard any related rumors. At least on his way from the capital city to Southshore, he didn't see a wall blocking the way.
If that wall is built, I'm afraid this relatively safe road will be impassable. Only the small path in Silverpine Forest can be opened up. Probably the one shown to you in the game.
Actually, before the war started, that road could also be walked. But later, crossing Silverpine Forest undoubtedly entails the risk of being hunted by orcs.
Moreover, in addition to political reasons, there is also the werewolf problem.
According to Jess's impression of Gilneas in previous years, there are already some werewolf legends in Gilneas now, somewhat similar to those in Raven Hill.
But Jess knows that the legends in Gilneas are not something like werewolves, but real werewolves.
It can be confirmed that there are already mages in Gilneas who have discovered werewolves and have even used planar crossing magic to explore the Emerald Dream, the homeland of werewolves, which is also the source of those faint werewolf legends.
Gerred, of course, knows nothing about this. He continued, "Once you arrive at Dalaran, it will be much smoother for you to take a boat to the capital city of Lordaeron. Crossing Lake Lordamere probably takes less than a day. I suggest that when you come back, go from Dalaran to Alterac City and then east to Hinterlands. The journey will be at least three times shorter. And you don't have to cross the snow-capped mountains and forests where orcs have been found. It's also safer."
"Alterac City?" Jess asked, "I heard that Alterac has just been raided by black dragons and orcs. Is it okay to go there now?"
"Don't worry. After all, it is the capital of an ancient kingdom." Gerred said, "I have inquired about some news. Now Alterac City is under the代管 (temporary management) of the army of Thoribas. Thoribas even wants to take this city. If the place has become a ruin, what's the point of taking the risk of enraging the entire alliance to swallow the whole place?"
Jess has also heard related rumors. If the Kingdom of Stromgarde of Thoribas is bent on taking over Alterac City, then the complete decline of Alterac City may occur after the Scourge invasion, not caused by the orc war.
Of course, Stromgarde's annexation cannot be achieved so easily. If Thoribas takes over Alterac, it will soon become a powerful country that can rival the Kingdom of Lordaeron in strength.
Terenas II of Lordaeron will never allow this to happen. He will definitely push out the few children of the Perenolde family of the Alterac royal family and find one to inherit the crown.
"In this case, it's fine." Jess said, "So you mean that when I arrive in Lordaeron, I should go to the capital city to see my parents first, and then return to Dalaran to participate in the orc exchange meeting on the 10th?"
Gerred said, "Yes. It takes about a day and a night from Dalaran to Alterac City. By the time you finish your business and arrive at Alterac City, it may already be Winter Veil. Think about how tight it is."
Jess frowned. Thinking about the distance from the capital city to Southshore when he left home at that time, it really took a very long time. He roughly calculated Gerred's plan. In this way, he may only be able to stay at home for 34 days.
But what's the point of staying a few more days? Apart from making his parents more sad when parting and making himself more reluctant to leave, there is no other meaning.
As long as he can bring his parents to the Kingdom of Stormwind, there is no need to worry about these problems.
"How long does it take from Alterac City to Hinterlands?" Jess asked.
Gerred drew a line all the way to the east and said, "This road is very difficult to walk and there are not many merchant caravans. But you can walk with the patrolling troops. I have learned that there are many patrolling soldiers between Alterac City and Dunhold Castle. Because it's quite chaotic over there recently, it will take about two days to get there."
Jess took a deep breath. This is really a long journey. Crossing the Baladin Bay is just the beginning.
As long as you don't die on the way, it can be called a complete victory.