A Conversation Within the Ferros Clan

Sunset at the Ferros Clan.

Stevan, hunched over, sat in the Ferros Clan patriarch's chair, stroking the wooden armrest that had been passed down for nearly a century, a nostalgic look on his face.

"Sister, this position should have been yours. Now that you're back, it should be returned to you."

"Cut out your little games, Stevan. Decades have passed, and you're still so timid. For the Ferros Clan to be strong, it needs an iron fist."

Camille's expression was severe. She sat by the window, watching the sun set.

"Time hasn't left any mark on your face. I'm old, and my children and grandchildren are useless. Perhaps it was a mistake to let Hakim perform that surgery on you back then, otherwise your grandson would be as old as Miss Kiramman by now." Stevan rambled on, reminiscing.

Pulling her gaze away from the window, Camille frowned, staring at her brother. It wasn't because he mentioned Hakim; she had no feelings left for that name. Rather, she felt that due to his age, Stevan was indeed somewhat unsuited for the patriarch position.

Seeing Camille's gaze, Stevan's eyes grew even dimmer.

Although they hadn't seen each other in a few years, having spent decades together, no one knew his sister better than he did.

Ever since Hakim completed the Augmentation Technology on her, she had lost her human emotions.

She was now like a precise instrument, living only to execute pre-set programs.

And there were only two programs: protect Piltover, and ensure the eternal prosperity of the Ferros Clan.

"Stevan, you should let these children, who've lived in luxury, see the world. This incident is an excellent training ground."

"Evan and them are barely 15. Their father's generation already holds clerical positions in Piltover." Stevan's face was grim.

Camille frowned tightly and chastised, "Indulgence will lead to the Ferros Clan's decline!"

"Everything we do is so our descendants can enjoy life. If they still have to face dangers like we did, then what is the point of the family's strength?" Stevan looked up, for the first time directly contradicting his sister.

Camille had led the family to prominence for half a century, and the Ferros Clan had enjoyed immense glory. He deeply cherished the feeling of being patriarch.

But everything had changed during the years Camille was away; he was the one who had propped up the entire family again. The Ferros Clan had never retired to the background; The Council had at least two seats willing to follow his arrangements.

He was tired after all these years. Although he still couldn't let go of the patriarch's position, he even less wanted his children and grandchildren to bear this burden.

"I appreciate your attitude, but I will still enforce my will. Stevan, reality will show you that without strength, you will be at the mercy of others, just like your aging self now."

Camille didn't want to argue with her brother; she preferred to solve problems with action.

"Sister, I heard you went to see Mr. Meredith not long ago." Stevan didn't press the issue, changing the subject.

Camille had made a promise at The Council yesterday; he knew his sister, and she would certainly act tonight.

"I can pretty much confirm that Zaun has his backing," Camille said lightly.

Stevan's face slightly froze. "Didn't Noxus promise that as long as you served them, they wouldn't target Piltover?"

"He and the Noxian emperor are not of the same mind. Ever since he joined Noxus, he's been Swain's adjutant."

Seeing the confusion on Stevan's face, Camille sighed:

"Stevan, don't limit your vision to Piltover. Runeterra is vast. Only after I went out did I realize that Piltover's advancement and progress have always been compared to its own yesterday, not the entire world."

"Is Noxus really as strong as the rumors say? Dominating the center of the continent, marching north to Freljord, west to Demacia, south to Shurima, and east to Ionia?" Stevan's eyes showed disbelief.

Or perhaps, in his eyes, if Noxus was truly that strong, Piltover would at least not be weaker than those Noxus had conquered.

"Don't let narrow-mindedness blind you. Take Meredith, for example; you should have heard his moniker."

Camille's expression was serious; she felt it necessary to educate her brother.

"Blood Mist Adjutant?" Stevan said uncertainly. "The suffix is 'adjutant,' so he shouldn't be a particularly formidable person."

Camille raised an eyebrow, a half-smile playing on her lips:

"Adjutant? Do you know how many Noxian elites he's an adjutant to? He can command a corps of a hundred thousand, and those people only obey him and Swain."

"A hundred thousand?! Piltover and Zaun combined don't have that many people." Stevan's eyes widened.

He couldn't imagine the scene of so many people charging in iron armor. Even if Piltover's advanced turrets smoked from firing, they surely couldn't kill that many people.

"Heh, Stevan. Grand General Swain is the supreme commander of the eastern front, and Meredith is his adjutant. These past few years, they have led all of the Noxian Empire's wars against Ionia." Camille scoffed.

"Ionia has been able to resist a hundred thousand people's continuous attacks for several years, so it shouldn't be weak either."

Piltover was located within Noxus's encirclement. Even a top patriarch like Stevan rarely paid attention to outside news.

They only needed to know that their relationship with Noxus was good, and that other countries were being conquered by Noxus. Normally, they even felt a slight sense of superiority because of this.

"Ionia? There are countless people there stronger than me; they could easily destroy Piltover."

Hearing the nonchalance in Camille's tone, Stevan suppressed the shock in his heart, his gaze flickering as he began to re-evaluate the world.

After a moment of thought, Stevan frowned slightly, a question forming in his mind:

"What is Medarda's standing in Noxus?"

Camille glanced at him, clearly understanding what her brother wanted to ask:

"There are also internal struggles within Noxus. The elite army commanded by Swain and Meredith was betrayed and killed by their own people in Pilltover, which was the reason for that war's failure. After several months of being isolated and without aid, everyone thought they would die in Ionia."

"But in the end, they survived and became legends of Noxus," Stevan mused, this story having even reached Piltover.

Grand General Swain and Blood Mist Adjutant Meredith, the two of them, single-handedly fought their way back to the empire from Pilltover, a central city in Ionia.

"After they returned, they voluntarily relinquished command of Noxus's eastern front, and their successor was Medarda."

"It sounds like Medarda is weaker than the two of them, in terms of both strength and influence," Stevan analyzed.

"Medarda is second only to the power behind the four-star commanders. Stevan, don't forget, the young lady councilor from the Medarda family is only nominally an outcast of her family," Camille said with a mocking expression. She wasn't targeting Stevan, but rather looking down on all of Piltover.

To be toyed with by a young woman from Noxus, these people really ought to atone for their sins with death.

"I generally understand, but even if they have a disagreement, with the power of Meredith, we wouldn't be able to resist, would we?"

Stevan's face showed helplessness; he even added an honorific when referring to Ryan.

Ignorance is bliss. Now that he knew more, it was hard for him to look at the world with his old mindset.

"Noxus won't force us to kneel through military might. There are some things we, as Piltoverans, must do."

Camille watched the last rays of the setting sun fade outside, then stood up, turned, and warned Stevan, "Stevan, fulfill your duties as head of the family. You haven't done badly these past few years. Don't make me waver in my support for you."

With that, she climbed out the window, her grappling hook shooting out and latching onto a nearby tree trunk. Her body swung through the air, carrying her away into the distance.

Inside the room, Stevan sat in the head-of-family's chair, watching the dark figure disappear into the night through the window, his gaze complex as he murmured, "Camille, ever since you replaced your heart with the Heart of the Primal Crystal, you've always viewed me and the family through a programmatic lens. This world is never black and white; it's a refined shade of gray!"