Heroic Past

Poppy naturally had no objections. She had been wandering for so long that where she went didn't matter to her.

We asked the locals for directions to Prexian and set off. On the way, Poppy told me stories about the Warhammer:

Yordles rarely met each other due to differences in birth times and individual variations, and it was difficult for them to become friends. They basically just knew each other.

Fortunately, everyone had their own hobbies, and their lives were fulfilling and interesting, except for Poppy.

From her birth, she never knew what she liked. She always wandered around alone, neither happy nor sad. Later, seeing that others had things they liked, she started to imitate them:

She learned to search for sprites like Lulu, to make inventions like Rumble, to fly planes like Corki, and to conduct experiments like Veigar...

She tried many things but eventually gave them up because she couldn't muster any interest. Later, at the suggestion of the chieftain, she left her hometown to go to places where other races lived, as many Yordles had found joy in the outside world, like Kled.

Poppy traveled Runeterra for many years, still alone, neither happy nor sad, as if everything was the same as before, until she met Oren.

This happened over three hundred years ago. At that time, the Demacia region was in chaos. Evil mages who wielded Dark Magic were everywhere. They captured civilians for cruel experiments, constantly creating one horrifying legend after another.

This is why Demacians hate magic, and it remains so to this day.

When Poppy traveled to Demacia, she happened to arrive during a festival called the "Fencings Festival." This was a gathering of evil mages, and the entire place was eerie.

People dared not go out on this day, for fear of encountering these dangerous mages. Yet, Poppy met them.

That night, as she was passing by a farm, she saw a group of people sitting around a campfire. The aroma told her they were roasting meat.

After walking all day without meeting anyone, Poppy was starving and went closer.

Upon approaching, she realized these people were different from ordinary folk. They wore black robes, and one of them wore a strange mask. On the ground lay a pile of bottles and jars filled with liquids of various colors.

When they saw Poppy, they were startled for a moment, then let out a sinister chuckle: "Hehehe, little girl, what are you doing here? Where are your adults?"

"I don't have parents. I'm looking for fun, and I'm hungry now. Can you give me something to eat?"

"Food? Of course, hahaha. Our roast meat is almost ready. We'll share some with you later."

As they roasted the meat, the men opened the bottles and jars on the ground and poured their contents onto it. Each time they poured, the flames would flare up, emitting different colored lights, which made the roast meat smell even more fragrant.

After all the liquids from the bottles were poured, one of them took out a knife, cut a piece of roast meat, and handed it to Poppy.

Hearing this, I felt a bit nervous. It was obvious these mages were not good people, and the roast meat was likely not good either...

Poppy felt nothing after eating the first piece, only that she was still hungry and asked for another. However, after eating the second piece, she felt dizzy, as if she were drunk. It took a long while for her to recover.

At this point, a mage stood up: "Did our concoction fail? Why is this little thing unaffected after eating? And eating two pieces!"

"It shouldn't have failed. Perhaps adding too much created a counter-reaction. Let the little ones over there try."

The masked man picked up a torch and left. Only then did Poppy notice several small children in the corner, tightly bound, their mouths gagged with cloth, their eyes filled with fear.

The masked man casually picked up a boy and untied him: "Don't be scared, child. You haven't eaten for two days, have you? Here, eat this piece of meat and go home."

The boy didn't believe the masked man's words, his eyes filled with fear. But he was indeed starving. He cautiously took the roast meat and began to eat.

Halfway through, the boy suddenly clutched his stomach and began scratching himself all over, looking extremely pained.

Poppy was terrified and quickly hugged him, asking what was wrong. But the boy couldn't answer. Soon after, he lay in Poppy's arms, dying:

"Big sister, why... why are you okay after eating it."

These were the boy's last words. After speaking, his skin quickly turned black, his body swelled several times, and his hideous face resembled a demon.

Poppy's tone became heavy as she spoke of this, her face etched with pain: "If I had known this would happen, I would have stopped him then."

The transformed monster boy stood up again and, obeying the masked man's command, came to his side. The masked man was ecstatic and turned his attention to Poppy:

"It seems the potion didn't fail, it's just that this little fellow is a bit unusual. Look, doesn't she resemble the legendary Yordle?"

"She does look a bit like one. We've never experimented on a Yordle before, let's try today!" replied the masked man's companion.

Poppy deeply hated their actions but didn't attack immediately because she thought these mages might still be able to save the boy.

But no matter how she pleaded, the masked man's response was always a sinister smile, which made Poppy furious. In her memory, that was the first time she had ever been angry.

→

Just as she was about to act, the masked man chanted a spell and manipulated the monster boy to attack her. She couldn't bear to harm the boy and hesitated even as he was choking her.

At this moment, Poppy's peripheral vision caught sight of the other children in the corner. They had all been brought over and were about to be fed the roast meat.

She couldn't bear to watch all the children turn into monsters. Mustering her strength, she broke free and rescued the two children closest to her, but the other two were still fed roast meat by the mages.

"No!"

Poppy roared, but it was too late. Those two children transformed into monsters just like the boy earlier and, under the mages' command, attacked.

This time, Poppy showed no mercy. She tore the monster in half and then furiously charged at the mages. This move clearly caught them by surprise; they hadn't expected a Yordle to be so powerful!

However, these mages were not weak either, especially skilled in offensive Dark Magic. Their attacks on Poppy caused intense burning sensations.

Just then, a dark shadow suddenly appeared. He wielded a great hammer, looking majestic, and began to fight while the mages were distracted!

Each of his hammer blows took a life, significantly weakening their assault. Poppy also seized the opportunity to crush the skulls of two of them, but unfortunately, the masked man managed to escape.

"This person must be Oren, right?" I guessed.

"Yes, this is how Oren and I met. He didn't despise me for being a Yordle, nor did he show any fear."

Oren brought Poppy and the two surviving children to a temple filled with a large amount of Nullstone. Evil mages dared not approach, and then he explained the situation in Demacia to Poppy, just as she had said at the beginning.

Later, the two lived together for a long time. Poppy found that Oren was very similar to her: always a loner, without many friends, and disliking new things. His favorite activity was hunting down mages who committed evil deeds.

Because of what happened on the farm, Poppy also deeply hated those mages, so the two often acted together. At that time, Poppy felt she had found the meaning of life...

Soon, the two gained a reputation in the area, and all mages feared seeing them. But gradually, Poppy realized Oren was a bit extreme.

Not only did he hate evil mages, but he also rejected even those who only knew simple magic. Fortunately, Poppy often advised him, and he was happy to listen to her words.

"Thank you, Poppy. Without you, I would have fallen into darkness long ago."

"Thank you too, Oren. Without you, I wouldn't have found my direction in life."

The two looked out for each other and became very good friends. Since her birth, Poppy had finally found happiness.

When people are particularly focused on something, they feel time is never enough. Poppy had no concept of time, but Oren was different.

In one battle, Oren injured his shoulder. Unlike before, the wound took a long time to heal.

Poppy thought it was some unique magic, but Oren said it was because he was too old—he was already over seventy.

"That's when I noticed many wrinkles had appeared on his face and his hair had turned white. That's when I truly understood that your lives are so short."

In years of fighting dark mages, Oren's body had been significantly affected. The once strong and robust man became bone-thin and almost unrecognizable as he lay dying.

Poppy tried many methods, but none could save him. It was likely as he had said: this was an end that no one could escape.

Oren handed his Warhammer to Poppy and told her its origin:

"This Warhammer was forged by three master craftsmen working together. It incorporates unique Nullstone craftsmanship. If given to a true hero, it will surely bring peace to this region. Sadly, I couldn't achieve that."

"No, you are a great hero. Look at the newly founded Kingdom of Demacia; it will surely be a world without Dark Magic in the future."

"This path is still difficult. I hope this hammer can continue to serve its purpose, and I hope it can be given to a true hero, a true hero..."

Oren repeated "true hero" several times before he breathed his last. He died peacefully; perhaps death was a release for his physical condition.

After Oren's death, Poppy inherited his dying wish and began searching for a true hero.

She first searched in Demacia, then left there to travel to more places, from the Immortal Fortress in the east to the Silver City in the west, the Deep Forest in the south, and the Frozen North in the north. Poppy had almost visited every famous place on the continent of Valoran.

During this time, she met many brave people, but every time she entrusted Oren's Warhammer to them, the outcome was tragic, until she met Ryze in the far north.

Ryze was a bald mage, still bare-chested in the icy snow. His rough skin was deep blue and purple, and runes covered his entire body, including his head, making him look weathered and powerful.

Ryze learned of Poppy's purpose and advised her to go to Demacia to find Sage Tabor and search for a great hero through divination.

So Poppy traveled thousands of miles back. She found Demacia prosperous and stable, with no trace of Dark Magic anywhere. She couldn't even sense the aura of ordinary magic.

"I don't know if Oren's wish has been fulfilled, nor do I know if I should continue searching for a true hero. In any case, I found the elder of the Tabor family. You know what happened next."