Gale looked at Savis suspiciously, wondering if he was trying to scheme against him. If it was just about power, he wouldn't need to intervene; the Royal Mages could easily handle it.
Sitting atop the Well of Eternity, Azshara possessed an endless source of energy. It was incredibly simple for the Kaldorei Mages to create anything they desired; they could just continuously infuse enchanted weapons with Arcane Energy to produce artifacts.
Savis had done this before. When Azshara ascended to power, Savis presented her with an enchanted scepter.
Shaladar, the tidal scepter—the artifact of the Restoration Shaman.
This scepter was embedded with a massive gem. It was said that Savis enchanted the gem with Water Elementals runes and then infused a large amount of Arcane Energy into it, transforming it into an artifact capable of controlling rivers, lakes, and seas.
It was precisely because of the tidal scepter that Azshara received such widespread adoration. Her first spell after receiving the scepter was a blessing upon herself; a magical radiance constantly surrounded her, which is why Azshara earned the title 'Light of Lights.'
The Elune Temple was built in LS Raza. Azshara used the power of the tidal scepter to guide the waters of rivers, lakes, and seas to the temple, circulating around it in an orderly fashion. Many aquatic and marine creatures were carried there by the waters, and under the influence of magic, they obeyed Azshara's commands.
A Sea Giant was swept there and also had no choice but to obey Azshara. Azshara made the Sea Giant perform tricks and display its strength for the entertainment of the nobles.
Each time it was used, the Kaldorei believed the dazzling magical effects were miracles. Over time, the Kaldorei came to believe that Azshara was Elune's spokesperson, willing to be ruled by Azshara and sing her praises. Even when Azshara later opened the portal, many Kaldorei still believed she had been deceived by demons.
If Savis could create the tidal scepter, then crafting a crown would certainly be no problem.
"Is it that simple?" Savis said with a half-smile. "You must understand, the crown is to be worn on Her Majesty's head. Any slight error could lead to severe consequences."
Gale understood. "You can't control the energy within the artifacts, can you?"
Savis's mouth twitched, but he didn't deny it. Creating artifacts was simple, but creating an absolutely safe artifact was beyond their capabilities.
The power of Arcane was too mysterious. Even after hundreds or thousands of years of studying the Well of Eternity, they still couldn't grasp all of its secrets. They revered Azshara, so they dared not place an artifact whose absolute safety they couldn't guarantee on Azshara's head.
Gale, however, didn't have this concern, because there was no such thing as absolute safety in this world. Everything carried inherent risks, and the more powerful an item, the greater the potential hazards.
Since Azshara wanted to use an artifact to display herself, she had to accept the inherent risks that came with it.
"I need a laboratory, and I'll need some of all metals rarer than mithril."
Savis agreed, "You will get what you want."
Watching Savis turn and leave, Gale's gaze fell upon the treasures in the vault.
Rare metals covered the floor, emitting a kaleidoscope of magical light. The vault was near the Well of Eternity, and these rare metals had passively absorbed a lot of Arcane Energy, their glow more enticing than gold.
Gale glanced lightly, then turned his attention to the items displayed on the pedestals. These were the true treasures; each one exuded a rich Arcane Energy. Clearly, nurtured by the Well of Eternity, these artifacts had reached a saturated state.
He could tell that all these artifacts were the works of the Royal Mages, created by forcibly infusing them with energy.
Their materials greatly interested Gale. From their luster, they appeared to be thorium.
In the very center of the vault, there was a pedestal larger than the others, upon which lay a scepter embedded with a massive gem.
"Is this the tidal scepter?" Gale was incredibly curious, and he carefully observed the Water Elementals energy on it.
Soon, he discovered that this Water Elementals energy was converted from the runes on the gem.
"That's right, it is the tidal scepter!"
A woman's voice came from behind him. Gale turned and saw Vaschi slowly walking over.
"You seem very curious about the tidal scepter!"
Gale: "Of course, this is the tidal scepter, the symbol of Her Majesty."
Vaschi chuckled, "You are not the first Kaldorei to be curious about it, nor will you be the last."
Gale shook his head, "I am different from others. Others are curious about it only for the status it represents. But I am curious about it because it can convert Arcane Energy into Water Elementals."
"You like Water Elementals Spells?" Vaschi asked curiously.
"I prefer to call them Frost Spells," Gale corrected Vaschi. "Although water, ice, and frost are the same substance, the power of water is clearly inferior to that of frost."
"An interesting term." Vaschi didn't care about the spell categories. She said seriously, "Her Majesty has ordered me to ask you if there are any difficulties in making the crown?"
"Of course there are!" Gale said, "After all, I have only just become a Mage and only have some talent in weapon creation. I still have many shortcomings in advanced magical theory, so I hope to read more magic books to improve my understanding of Arcane. And, I need some artifacts as reference."
Vaschi nodded, "These are not problems. I will find any books you want to read. Studying artifacts is also fine, but the artifacts cannot leave the vault; you can only study them here."
"Including the tidal scepter?"
"Of course, including it!"
Receiving an affirmative answer, Gale nodded in satisfaction. "In that case, for the next month, I will be resting here. I will read books and study the artifacts, and once I have mastered and understood them, I will begin crafting the crown."
"No problem, I will go prepare a bed and a table for you."
Vaschi left in a hurry, but Gale felt no joy.
Looking at these artifacts in the vault, he finally understood the difficulty of the task. There were no fewer than ten artifacts here, yet Azshara still said that the Kaldorei had no artifacts of their own to embody their culture, which was clearly problematic.
After examining the tidal scepter, Gale considered a possibility. That is, Azshara did not consider these artifacts, forcibly infused with Arcane, to be true Kaldorei artifacts, as they were all created using the energy of the Well of Eternity, not through Kaldorei wisdom.
Many people found Azshara to be overly sentimental, but Gale understood. When Kaldorei civilization developed to a certain extent, they would naturally consider their race superior and place more importance on their own culture. Although this theory was somewhat biased, it perfectly represented the sentiments of all Kaldorei.
And how to prove the superiority of one's race?
Being able to create artifacts without relying on the Well of Eternity would be an excellent way.