CHAPTER 48: DELUSIONS OF DAR'KHAN

Today, King Anasterian invited the four of them under the guise of a private banquet, with the intention of rallying these young and talented individuals of Quel'Thalas.

The intentions of King Anasterian were clear to all four of them. Lirandra, a member of the royal family, was simply there to accompany them, as she frequently spent time with the king.

What's more interesting is that three of the four individuals invited decided not to stay in Silvermoon City for employment.

As for Sylvanas, it was a given. As the future Ranger-General, she needed to be by her mother's side to receive further education.

Charliman's choice of seeking artifacts was somewhat unexpected, yet not entirely unreasonable in the eyes of King Anasterian.

However, the most surprising transformation came from Sean, the young scion of the Dawnstrider family.

As the King of Quel'Thalas, he paid special attention to the upper families. Sean's previous performances might not have qualified as remarkable, but he was far from being considered a prodigy.

Yet, upon hearing of Sean's exceptional display of heroism during a critical moment, relayed by Lirandra, he saw a spark of potential. King Anasterian felt as though he witnessed the gallant combat prowess that was reminiscent of Sean's father, Phoebus Dawnstrider, who had once been an illustrious warrior on the battlefield.

In recent years, Phoebus had been bedridden, suffering from the injuries he incurred during his youth. Despite the Priests' efforts to sustain his life with the Holy Light, it was unlikely he'd ever make a complete recovery.

Now, with Phoebus's son experiencing a profound transformation after participating in a recent battle, King Anasterian was genuinely pleased.

It's worth noting that Phoebus, the head of the Dawnstrider family, had once been a loyal member of the King's party. Though the Dawnstrider family generally leaned towards the royal family, their cunning leader, Osiris, ensured that the family didn't become isolated from the other members of the Silvermoon Council. Osiris's nephew's close friendship with King Anasterian had also contributed to bridging the gap between the two families.

In recent years, with Dal'khan's ascension in the council, Osiris had stepped down to enjoy retirement.

Dal'khan, a rising star of the middle generation, was well aware of Osiris's alignment with the Sunstriders. He made every effort to win Osiris over to his side but had failed in his attempts.

However, considering that Dal'khan's own time was running out, and he would soon reach the age of twilight, this was one of his motivations for seeking the power of the Sunwell. As intelligent beings, the fear of death was intrinsic even in elves, even those with thousands of years of life. Dal'khan was eager to gain eternal life through the Sunwell's power.

In fact, he had delusions of threatening the Sunstriders to step down in favor of himself, making him the eternal ruler of all the high elves.

Unfortunately, this ambitious elf never understood the distinction between becoming a half-god and achieving true transcendence.

Entering the realm of a half-god, indeed, could grant one an everlasting life, but it didn't grant them true immortality. Ordinary half-gods, despite their prolonged lifespans, would still face their inevitable demise once they met death.

Absorbing the Sunwell's energy was also far from simple. Otherwise, King Anasterian himself would have done it, but it would only result in an explosion.

Of course, if someone desired not to die, they could become a Lich. However, given that the study of necromancy had been strictly prohibited by Dalaran, it was not a well-known field of study.

The first Lich was one of the members of the Kirin Tor, Meri Winterwind, who would later change her name to Meri Wrathwind. She led the reorganization of the defunct Council of Tirisfal when the Burning Legion invaded Azeroth again.

Speaking of the Council of Tirisfal, it was originally established as a secret society by the high elves after their migration to the east. Its purpose was to protect Azeroth from demon corruption and to prevent the misuse of arcane magic, to avoid repeating the mistakes of the War of the Ancients.

The society, named after the region where the inaugural meeting was held, included the most powerful mortal mages and appointed them as guardians. These guardians were imbued with tremendous magical abilities through an artifact.

When the previous guardian grew too old or weary of their duty, the council carefully selected a new candidate and transferred the former guardian's powers to the successor, thus creating a new guardian.

However, this system had been stagnant for many years, since the last guardian, Aegwynn, had refused to relinquish her powers after serving her term. Consequently, the council no longer had control over the choice of guardians.

Thinking of his ambitious plan, Dal'khan, full of unfounded confidence, was destined to fail. His ambitions were higher than the heavens, but his destiny was thinner than paper.

Perhaps, among the high elves, Dal'khan, an eighth-rank mage, was indeed considered a remarkable talent. However, when compared to humans, like Antonidas, who achieved the ninth-rank of a mage in just a few decades, Dal'khan was merely a frog at the bottom of a well.

Though Dal'khan had dreams of eternal life, he never grasped the fundamental difference between half-gods and the truly immortal Wild Gods.

For Wild Gods, their souls were connected to the entirety of Azeroth. For them, death was just part of the cycle of life, and they would inevitably be reborn.

In contrast, regular half-gods, despite their extended lifespans, still met their end when they died.

Yet, Dal'khan had faith in his plans, considering he'd achieve an everlasting life by controlling the Sunwell's power. His ultimate ambition was to force the Sunstrider family to step down and make himself the eternal ruler of all high elves.

Sadly, he never realized that, without becoming a Wild God, he could never truly attain eternal life.

As Dal'khan fixated on his dreams of immortality, he remained oblivious to the harsh reality of his futile ambitions.