Aiden cast all these messy thoughts to the back of his mind. He felt like he had arrived in a magical world, but suddenly the setting behind it turned into a science fiction world. This chaotic feeling made him feel very absurd.
It's better to get back to the point. He activated the summoning, choosing the Book of Medivh as the carrier, to see which heroes he could summon.
The silhouettes of several heroes gradually lit up:
Void Walker - Kassadin.
Explorer - Ezreal.
Dark Sovereign - Syndra.
Ancient Wizard - Xerath.
—But the "Rogue Mage" Ryze, whom he always wanted to summon, was still not within the selectable range.
Aiden sighed silently, it seemed that his connection with the bald man was too shallow, and the time was not yet right. Among the four heroes, he first eliminated the explorer Ezreal—too weak (handsome)!
Syndra... Thinking of this dominatrix with black stockings and long legs, Aiden felt that a certain attribute in his heart seemed to be awakening. He quickly suppressed this thought, after all, Syndra was still weaker than Xerath and Kassadin. Now that a great enemy is present, everything is for the purpose of increasing strength.
The remaining two were both powerful mages, and both looked very safe. In comparison, Xerath, the legendary magic artillery, could obviously provide more powerful firepower, but Kassadin's "Void Walk," the ability to travel through space at will, seemed very flexible.
Considering everything, Aiden finally chose Kassadin. Firepower could be compensated by other things, but this characteristic of traversing space was irreplaceable.
Aiden started the summoning. After sensing Kassadin's appearance in Azeroth, he prepared to end the summoning and return to the real world, but he found that the power of the Book of Medivh had not been exhausted. A small portion of energy remained, enough to summon the weakest hero.
"Karmic debt..."
Aiden sighed and summoned Ezreal as well.
In his perception, the Book of Medivh had completely lost its magical power, but it did not disappear like it did the last time he summoned Karthus, but instead turned into a real ordinary book.
When he returned to the real world, he found Kassadin chatting happily with the other two Archmages, while Ezreal, who had just arrived in this world, was touring the mysterious treasure room containing countless artifacts under the guidance of Archmage Modera, constantly asking about their origins, seemingly very interested in these things.
"Really is…" Aiden had to admit that Ezreal's narcissism was justified. This charm could even resist a woman as experienced as Modera?
However, seeing Antonidas and Drenden so easily accept Kassadin, who looked very abnormal, he felt relieved.
The experience of summoning the Lich Karthus last time should have given them enough psychological preparation. After all, although Kassadin looked ugly, he was actually a hero who maintained justice, unlike Karthus, who had absolutely nothing to do with justice.
Antonidas pulled Aiden over and said with a smile, "It seems that your Valoran Federation is really full of hidden dragons and crouching tigers!"
Aiden took out the Book of Medivh, which had lost its magic power, and handed it to the Archmage: "Now it no longer has the ability to break the space barrier."
"An unexpected surprise." Drenden laughed and said, "I was a little regretful that I wouldn't be able to obtain more in-depth magic from it in the future!"
"Summoner." Kassadin nodded to Aiden.
"Welcome to the new world, Kassadin!" Aiden welcomed with a smile.
The Void Walker's image was no different from what he knew. His body had been eroded by Void energy and possessed some of the characteristics of the Void. He simply stood there, but made people feel like he was standing in another dimension. His body was constantly surrounded by countless tiny purple space rifts. Perhaps this was the reason why he could traverse space almost without limit.
Aiden paid special attention and did not see Kassadin's Void Blade in his hand. Presumably, he only needed to summon the weapon when he fought.
Antonidas said: "Kassadin's understanding of spatial power has deeply inspired me. Your Valoran is really full of talent!"
Aiden smiled and shrugged: "This has nothing to do with me. Many years before I became their summoner, they were already heroes in the League of Legends."
"Haha, what I mean is that you are really lucky to have so many heroes and warriors willing to serve you." Antonidas laughed, with envy in his words—which leader wouldn't envy such a person?
Antonidas patted the Book of Medivh in his hand and said, "So now, this book has no magical power. Can you tell me about the future? In the timeline that the prophet Blizzard saw, what happened here?"
Aiden said: "Because of our arrival, many things have changed. You can just listen to it as a story!"
Now the location of the Scourge outbreak, and even the commanders, are no longer the same. Aiden felt that the things he knew before, especially the things that happened in this period of original history, were no longer meaningful. It wouldn't hurt to tell them.
So he started from the trial of Tirion Fordring in Stratholme, and talked about the real Scourge outbreak, the fall of Dalaran and Silvermoon City, and the arrival of Archimonde.
Several Archmages listened in shock. Although the history was different, the content still shocked them:
Arthas's massacre, fall, the pulling of Frostmourne, patricide, killing his teacher, the fall of Silvermoon City and Dalaran, the resurrection of Kel'Thuzad, and the summoning of Archimonde—this transformation made it almost impossible for them to connect with the deeply loved Prince Arthas of the present. Antonidas even heard the date of his own death—this feeling was truly terrible. Although he had realized, since Aiden mentioned the Book of Medivh could summon demons from other realms last time, that this book must have fallen into the hands of the Scourge in the original history, and that Dalaran must have suffered severe losses.
However, he never imagined that in the original history, Kel'Thuzad, relying on his understanding of Dalaran, would capture it, obtain the magic book, and summon Archimonde. Moreover, this current master of the Burning Legion could destroy Dalaran from an illusion made of sand—what kind of power was that? Was this the strength of the Burning Legion?
"Then, we must keep a close eye on Arthas and not let him follow the same path!" Antonidas said in a deep voice. This Prince of Lordaeron had studied in Dalaran for a period of time, and Antonidas, recalling what Aiden had said about Arthas in the original timeline, felt that the somewhat paranoid and arrogant Arthas could indeed embark on such a path.
"Also, Kael'thas should also be warned. Quel'Thalas did not join the Alliance, and for the Scourge, they are the easiest breakthrough point," Modera suggested.
Aiden sighed inwardly: It seems that in Azeroth, "Prince" is a cursed and dangerous profession.
In the original timeline, both Arthas and Kael'thas, these two outwardly perfect princes, failed to escape the fate of being overthrown.
Looking back, when Varian was still a prince, his country was destroyed by the orcs, and his own father was assassinated.
His son Anduin's fate was not much better either. His mother died in an accidental riot, and his father mysteriously disappeared. After being a puppet king for a few years, when he received fatherly love from Magni Bronzebeard in Ironforge, this old king turned into a diamond statue due to a dangerous summoning. However, compared to others, he could be considered barely acceptable.
Jaina's brother, Derek Proudmoore, was the Prince of Kul Tiras—he was burned to death by the red dragon enslaved by the orcs during the Second War.
The two princes of Stromgarde also had unfortunate fates: the eldest prince, Galen, lost his country and only led a group of refugees struggling in the Arathi Highlands; the second prince, Galin, turned into an undead during the Scourge invasion, becoming a member of the Forsaken.
Liam, the Prince of Gilneas, also took a bullet for his father, dying under the arrow of Sylvanas, the Queen of the Forsaken.
Truly, not a single prince had a good life. It's heartbreaking to think about.
Liam obviously didn't know that Aiden's mind was running wild, mourning for the princes of the original history. He was building a defense line at the King's Gate, resisting several waves of Scourge pursuers, but it was very difficult to sustain.
The Scourge even sent a few living people who had surrendered to them as lobbyists, persuading them to give up resistance and surrender to the Scourge. They presented themselves as living examples, saying that the Scourge was establishing a new order, not complete destruction; they said that the Lich King also needed the service of the living. Joining his command meant having two lives; they said that the Lich King would bring this new order to the entire Azeroth, and those who joined him would receive supreme glory!
Liam spat fiercely on the faces of these shameless people and shouted: "Go back and tell your new master that even if we die, we will be loyal to Gilneas!" Then his guards drove these cowards back.
Enraged, the Scourge commander immediately prepared to retaliate. They gathered a large number of Scourge soldiers, and also dispatched catapults and a dozen abominations, preparing to directly flatten the resistance forces at the King's Gate.
Just as the Scourge was preparing to attack, Vincent Godfrey finally arrived with a large number of Duskwood militiamen to provide support. After receiving the much-needed cannons and ammunition, their defense line was finally stabilized again.
And soon after, Lord Harford, a confidant of King Genn, brought even better news—the Alliance rescue forces would soon arrive. The King had already established a defense line at Stormglen, and as long as they held on, reinforcements would arrive soon!
Taking advantage of the Scourge's retreat, Liam stood on an earthen base and announced the news to everyone. It greatly encouraged the soldiers present. It was the first time since the outbreak of the Scourge that they felt the future was full of hope!
Liam enthusiastically began an impromptu speech, shouting loudly:
"Warriors of Gilneas! We have been driven out of our city by the Scourge and are struggling here. The Scourge thinks we are weak and incompetent, and disheartened. They think we will surrender like stray dogs and become members of the twisted monsters!"
"They are dead wrong. We will fight in the wilderness until the last trench collapses and the last cannon falls silent."
"When the reinforcements arrive, we will also begin the counterattack. We will fight in the cities until the last bullet is fired, and then we will dig up the paving stones and smash them on their heads!"
"We will fight in the alleys until we exhaust our last strength, and the swords in our hands shatter into pieces."
"Even if we are surrounded, lose our weapons, are seriously injured, and have no hope... we will still hold our heads high and spit on the faces of the enemy!"
"But we... will never surrender!"
"For Gilneas!"
Prince Liam raised his long sword high, and every soldier present shouted "For Gilneas!", the sound piercing the clouds. Even the Scourge felt their fighting spirit and postponed the planned attack time. This Gilnean army was now absolutely terrifying in combat power!