Swain's so-called offer to redeem Katarina and Talon was nothing but nonsense. From what Li Lin knew about the legendary Noxian assassin general, Du Couteau, there was no way he would make such an offer. Du Couteau was someone who could not tolerate failure. Katarina, his own daughter, had been cast aside without a second chance after her first failure. As for Talon, despite his great talent and formidable skills as an assassin, he too had failed. It had been months since Noxus had sent anyone to spy on or retrieve them, which clearly indicated that Du Couteau had completely abandoned both of them. For assassins, there was no room for failure—once you were discarded, you stayed discarded.
Despite the scarcity of resources in Noxus after the Rune Wars, with such vast territory at their disposal, finding another assassin with Talon's potential wasn't difficult. Li Lin understood Du Couteau's mindset all too well. However, for Swain, things were different. With the power of Raum, he understood the future potential that Katarina and Talon could offer him. While Du Couteau could afford to discard his disciples without a second thought, Swain had more personal investment in them.
Heimerdinger, of course, was clueless about what was being discussed. Li Lin hadn't shared the details of Katarina and Talon's situation with him. Even if he did, the Yordle scientist would probably not care much, as his focus was entirely on his scientific pursuits.
Caitlyn, Cassandra, and Mel all exchanged looks, their attention on Li Lin as he read the note, his surprise barely hidden. Swain wasn't just throwing out a generous offer—he was offering a lot. Not only was there the equivalent of two-for-one Noxian gold swords, but the Grand General had also offered 200,000 Noxian gold coins, along with dozens of tons of various minerals, primarily iron and coal, plus several lucrative trade policies.
Li Lin had initially thought that Swain would only offer a few thousand Golden Hexes, with him pretending to be put in a difficult position, ultimately releasing Katarina and Talon as a favor. But now, looking at the situation, it was clear that Swain wasn't giving Li Lin any opportunity to manipulate him. Swain wasn't just trying to salvage his prized assassins—he was doing whatever it took to prevent them from being lost in Piltover. He couldn't let his two future legends in Noxian assassination slip through his fingers.
Li Lin stared at the paper for a moment, then passed it on to Caitlyn, Cassandra, and Mel, who all seemed momentarily stunned before quickly suppressing their surprise. The offer of 200,000 gold coins might seem insignificant to the top families, and the minerals weren't anything special. But what was truly valuable were the trade policies that no amount of money could buy.
Cassandra quickly gave Li Lin a knowing look. Recently, the financial situation of Piltover had been tight, especially after the reforms that affected the large families. Public revenues had dropped by several percentage points. But with Swain's generous trade policies, it was a no-brainer. The cost of exchanging two relatively insignificant assassins for such a deal was a win for Piltover. Even Caitlyn, Mel, and the usually unconcerned Heimerdinger thought Li Lin should accept.
Swain couldn't fully see through Li Lin, but he could tell the others' thoughts. He smiled slightly, feeling the situation was almost in the bag. Despite the price he paid, it seemed like it was paying off—his future "Dagger of Doom" and "Blade of Shadows" would undoubtedly bring value to his cause. Yet, a fleeting moment of regret stirred within him. Had he not underestimated Li Lin's potential from the beginning, perhaps he would have acted differently.
"Grand General Swain, your offer is indeed generous," Li Lin said, his voice trailing off as he glanced up. Swain and Darius both furrowed their brows. They both felt that the young man before them had an unexpectedly high appetite.
"Chairman Li," Swain said, his tone turning slightly sharp. "I remember a saying from Ionia: 'Greed can't swallow an elephant.'"
Li Lin chuckled softly, shaking his head. "You misunderstand me, Swain."
"Oh?" Swain paused for a moment, casting a glance at Darius before continuing, "Please, go on."
"I assume you have the power of Raum," Li Lin said without hesitation. "You must know about the Void, yes?"
At the mention of the Void, Swain felt an involuntary shiver run through him. His left hand trembled slightly—not due to his own emotions, but because of Raum, now part of his body, reacting in fear. The demon itself was afraid... Swain froze. Even the Ironclad Soul, which had ravaged Valoran in the past and imprisoned Raum, hadn't elicited such a reaction. What was it about this "Void," something Swain had never truly acknowledged, that had such an effect on Raum?
"I regret to say that I only know about the Void War that once raged in Shurima," Swain replied, shaking his head. He instinctively pressed his left arm against his side to hide it from view, trying to conceal his discomfort. Only Li Lin and Caitlyn, who had caught a glimpse of something strange, noticed. The others remained oblivious to the subtle shift.
Noxus had existed for nearly a thousand years. Despite the Darkin once occupying the eastern lands of Valoran, most of them had been affected by the Void and had forgotten what had happened long ago.
With the fall of the Sun City and the massive astral magic generated by the Sun Disc, alongside the destruction of the Grand Imperial Library, records concerning the Void have become even more scarce. Noxus has primarily faced threats like the Rune Wars and Mordekaiser, so it is quite understandable that they have little knowledge of the Void.
"Our world is not made up of only what we see before us," Li Lin explained, trying to make it easier for Swain to understand. "Just like Runeterra has the Material and Spiritual realms, the Celestial realm has its corresponding dimensions."
Without delving into subspace or antimatter planes, Li Lin continued, "With the birth of the Celestial realm, the Void realm came into being at the same time. It represents an unknowable nothingness on the other side of existence."
"They've tried to invade Runeterra more than once, attempting to consume this vibrant world and turn everything into nothingness. But they've failed every time."
Li Lin took a deep breath before continuing, "However, after thousands of years of slumber and patient waiting, the Void beneath Runeterra is stirring. It will soon return."
Swain's brow furrowed as his red eyes glimmered with intensity. He stared unblinkingly at Li Lin, who remained equally solemn. It seemed Li Lin wasn't lying.
Swain then used the power of Raum to probe into the secrets of the others, and his mood grew even graver. In addition to the inevitable return of the Iron Revenant , Mordekaiser, Noxus... no, the entire Runeterra would soon face a world-threatening crisis.
Swain had never been fond of war. To him, fighting was merely a means of survival. But he had never publicly stated such beliefs, because without fighting to seize resources from other nations, the Noxian Empire would crumble and collapse. This ran contrary to the current ideology of Noxus, and Swain, who had given everything to the empire, would never allow such a fate to unfold. Besides, the Black Rose would seize upon any such weakness to denounce him, turning the people and nobility against him.
If those short-sighted, self-serving fools listened to Lady Pale, Noxus would be finished.
Swain exhaled sharply, feeling the weight in his chest.
He had thought he had prepared as best as he could, bracing Noxus for the return of the Undying Legion from the Immortal Bastion into the realm of the living. But now, another crisis—one even more dire than Mordekaiser's return—loomed on the horizon.
The war council fell silent. After an indeterminate amount of time, Swain finally cleared his scattered thoughts and raised his gaze to Li Lin. "What do you propose we do?"
"First," Li Lin began, "according to legend, a former Darkin named Rhaast was sealed in one of the Noxian coastal city-states. I would like to request your permission to send my mechanical engineers into Noxus to search for the Darkin's living weapon."
"Azir has already learned how to break the Darkin seal and reshape their divine form. We can handle the Void Empress."
"First?" Swain thought, but decided not to dwell on it. Instead, he shifted his focus to the rising threat of the Ascendant Empire. With Raum finally stabilizing, Swain sighed inwardly.
"I agree," he said. "Then what's next?"
Li Lin quickly gathered his thoughts. "There's also the matter of creating humanity's last line of defense—the League of Legends. Think of it as the United Nations of humanity."
Swain raised an eyebrow in confusion, prompting Li Lin to add, "Belveth is just one part of the Void. Her threat is not the greatest. The true danger to all of Runeterra is the master of the Void, which I usually refer to as the Void Watchers."
"When the Void Watchers descends upon Runeterra, it will be the end of time, space, and all things. We must unite all living forces to stop it."
Swain's lips twitched slightly. He had started with the Void Empress, but now the situation seemed far more severe. After a moment of reflection, Swain spoke.
"You wish to form the League of Legends," he said. "I have no objection to that, but I would advise caution."
He smoothed the wrinkles in his clothes with a hand. "You see, a few years ago, Noxus invaded Ionia. It wasn't under my direct orders, but the people of your homeland aren't likely to care about that."
"As for Shurima, let's leave that aside for now. Azir wants to reclaim the northern ports—three of them. I'll give them back to him, no need for war."
"But Demacia..." Swain lifted his chin and gave a knowing glance toward Li Lin.
Noxus and Demacia had been enemies for centuries, and the hatred between the two nations ran far deeper than that between Noxus and Ionia. To unite these two nations would not be simple. Even if the rulers agreed, the common people would never accept it. This was a thorny issue.
"I'll handle this," Li Lin reassured him. "I just need your stance on the matter, Grand General."
He glanced over at Darius, who had been watching idly from beside Swain. Noticing Li Lin's gaze, Darius gave a half-hearted shrug. "Don't look at me. This is all up to the Grand General."
Swain chuckled, standing from his chair as Li Lin and the others followed suit.
"As I said before, I have no objection, as long as you can solve the Demacia issue."
Swain's eyes glinted mischievously. "Without Demacia, having Noxus join the League would be just fine with me."
Li Lin shook his head in resignation, brushing aside Swain's follow-up comment. "Since you agree, that's one hurdle crossed. But the creation of the League is still just an idea for now. There are many issues to consider before it can be realized."
"Time is running short, though. Once we handle Belveth, I'll visit the Immortal Bastion in person to discuss the matter in detail."
Li Lin approached Swain and extended his right hand.
With a hearty laugh, Swain reached out, shaking it firmly. "I look forward to your visit."
(End of Chapter)
=========================================================
DROP THEM POWER STONES PLEASE
SUPPORT ME ON P@TREON IF YOU'D LIKE ACCESS ON ADVANCED CHAPTERS
PAT REON . COM / TurdTranslations (Just remove the space).