Chapter 246: Revealing Identity

"Information?"

"Yes, information."

Jaina suddenly asked, "What kind of information do you want?"

Ethan looked at Jaina. The female mage was full of caution toward him. Compared to ordinary people, mages were more wary of beings from other worlds, because they knew there were many terrible existences surrounding the world of Azeroth, all with various means of 'infiltrating' and threatening it.

A person like Ethan, who claimed to be a traveling mage yet sought information, inevitably triggered suspicion. Jaina couldn't help but think he might be a 'scout,' collecting intelligence on Azeroth.

"Information that does not involve any military or geographical aspects."

Ethan glanced at Jaina Proudmoore.

"As for the specific content, I believe this is something to be discussed between His Majesty Wrynn and myself, Lady Jaina Proudmoore. It seems this matter does not directly concern you."

Jaina frowned, unsure whether it was Ethan's tone or his use of "Lady" that displeased her.

"I apologize, Mr. Ethan. I'm simply very curious what kind of information would be worth facing a black dragon for."

"If you have suspicions, why not ask directly? This kind of roundabout probing seems..." Ethan didn't finish his sentence. He simply didn't know the best word to use, but his expression and demeanor made his meaning perfectly clear to everyone present.

Jaina, of course, understood. The powerful female mage felt that she had never experienced such humiliation in her life. She wished she could blast Ethan's face with an Arcane Missile.

Varian sat there quietly, watching the two of them without understanding why these mages had suddenly begun clashing.

He knew that mages had their own positions, and even within Dalaran and the Kirin Tor, there was no true unity. It seemed that Ethan and Jaina were not aligned. He just didn't know whether this was related to factional struggles in Dalaran.

Varian had no way of knowing that Ethan wasn't from Dalaran at all. Jaina suspected Ethan was a scout from another world, and although Ethan didn't want to clash with her, it didn't mean he would tolerate her constant interference.

"Alright, since Mr. Ethan wishes to clarify matters, I'm very curious to know which master guided Mage Ethan on the path of magic?"

Not all mages in Azeroth came from Dalaran, of course. However, most wandering mages could be traced back to Dalaran. As long as they stated their magical lineage, it was easy to determine their identity and background.

Where could Ethan produce such a connection? He could only shake his head helplessly.

"I am not a Dalaran mage."

He could essentially conclude that their status as beings from another world could no longer be hidden.

"Actually, I am not a mage from this world at all."

Not only did arcane energy surge around Jaina, but the two elves—who had previously stood motionless like statues—also reacted.

The night elf was a druid. The energy on him was full of vibrant nature force, likely nature magic. The blood elf radiated strong arcane fluctuations—a racial trait. Even if they weren't mages, blood elves possessed a deep affinity with arcane energy.

Windsor and Varian both had their hands on the hilts of their weapons, prepared to draw them at any moment. The only reason they didn't act was because they had yet to determine Ethan's true motives and didn't want to rashly provoke a mage from another world.

"What is your purpose in coming to our world?"

"To learn."

Since he had already spoken openly, Ethan had no reason to hide anything. Over the years, he had traveled to several different worlds. Aside from the Diablo world, where he hadn't fully disclosed his origins, he generally revealed his identity everywhere else.

He had become accustomed to his status as an "outsider." Hiding it here felt unnatural.

"To learn?"

"As a mage yourself, you should know that traveling to gain experience and insight is a common way to further one's training."

Not all mages followed this path. Many preferred to remain in their workshops, endlessly researching. The ultimate form of seclusion for this type of mage was to build a mage tower and never leave it.

Of course, mages who traveled to improve their strength weren't uncommon. Jaina herself had traveled extensively when she was younger, though the memories from those journeys weren't all positive.

"Traveling to other worlds?"

Although Jaina did not dispel the arcane energy surrounding her, her expression showed she was taking Ethan's words seriously, even if she found them hard to believe.

In her experience, mages capable of crossing worlds were all extraordinarily powerful. Such mages rarely traveled to gain strength. Most did so to pursue goals or simply to explore.

Among all the human mages in Azeroth, there were only a few capable of this. At present, she herself did not possess such ability.

"You might be misunderstanding something."

"What?"

"Crossing a planar barrier doesn't necessarily require immense magical power. It could also be that the magic system used is particularly suited to this type of travel."

Jaina was, after all, a top-tier mage. With just a little guidance from Ethan, she grasped the key point. At the same time, she recalled what Ethan had said earlier about being able to trap Onyxia.

"Your magic specializes in inter-planar teleportation and spatial containment."

"Yes."

Ethan waved his hand slightly. The seemingly ordinary meeting room was suddenly enclosed by layers of glass-like walls. Only then did Jaina realize that aside from the arcane energy within her own body, the energy level in the surrounding space was extremely low—or rather, this area had been isolated, and the vast external magic could not enter.

"When did you do that?"

Jaina was a mage who truly understood the craft. She immediately recognized the effect of this unusual spell. What she wanted to know was when Ethan had trapped them all in this space.

"From the moment you first tried to use magic to attack me."

Although Jaina did her best to remain calm, her slightly narrowed pupils and quickened breathing revealed her inner thoughts.

She had first activated her magic quite some time ago, yet she had been trapped in this space without detecting any abnormality? Clearly, Ethan was not exaggerating when he said he was proficient in this type of magic. He truly had the power to back it up.

Jaina wasn't the only one who was surprised. The two elves were also tense. Even after Ethan dispelled the magical space, they still didn't lower their weapons (or staves).

Only Varian remained composed. He showed no sign of anxiety. He simply watched Ethan quietly. Ethan happened to look back and met the king's calm gaze.

"As I said before, I came here simply out of curiosity about this world's knowledge, hoping to broaden my understanding and learn things useful to me."

Varian nodded. "So, what exactly do you want?"

"Some training materials and writings from druids, hunters, paladins, and mages. I don't need original manuscripts, just the recorded content."

Information on mages was understandable. Information on druids and hunters seemed a bit unusual to Varian, but it wasn't a big issue. What truly caught his attention was that Ethan was interested in the Holy Light.

"You want information on the Holy Light as well?"

"The energy I used just now is very close to this world's Holy Light, so I'd like to compare and see the differences." When Ethan treated Varian earlier, the energy he used had caused some to mistake it for Holy Light. Given his identity as a mage, Varian had even wondered whether he might be a blood elf using transformation magic.

Only blood elves had previously manipulated the Holy Light using arcane methods by imprisoning a naaru. Outside of that, no other mage had been known to wield Holy Light.

At this point, many questions had been answered. Only Jaina, after frowning in thought for a while, asked again, "How can I be sure you're not an invader from another world?"

Ethan spread his hands. "I've already told you my situation. Whether you believe it or not is up to you. I can't control that. If you believe I can't be trusted, then please have His Majesty Wrynn settle the payment for the treatment."

"You're avoiding the main point."

"No. I'm simply stating the facts."

Ethan knew exactly what Jaina wanted to ask. But understanding her intent didn't mean he had to cooperate.

He felt he had already made his position clear. He had explained his situation. If they didn't believe him, there was nothing he could do. He wasn't about to meet any unreasonable demands just to prove himself.

If Jaina wanted to shout "eliminate the interdimensional invader!" and start a fight, Ethan would welcome it. There were many powerful beings in this world Ethan was wary of, but Jaina was definitely not one of them.

"Alright, Jaina. I believe Mage Ethan truly has no ill intentions toward our world."

After a brief silence, Varian finally spoke, immediately expressing his trust in Ethan. Whether it was sincere or not, Ethan was satisfied with the goodwill Varian had shown.

It wasn't a waste of the effort he had spent on him.

(To be continued.)

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