United at Last

Ryze claims to be completely unaware, but the disaster he faces also originates from the void:

"I don't know what you mean by 'void.' If it's a place where monsters appear, then our goals might be aligned." (Book 69, new)

"This is where the monsters appear! They don't belong to this world, but now they've appeared!"

"Remember! Everything that appears has its purpose! Don't arbitrarily deny the existence of anything, especially such a powerful force!"

Ryze's attitude suddenly changed, and he seemed very angry. I don't know what he's been through or what his understanding of things is.

Since you've angered him, you should apologize. Maybe you'll realize your shortcomings later. "I'm sorry..."

"I'm sorry, I got too excited. You know nothing about them, so I don't need to blame you."

Before I could finish apologizing, Ryze preemptively apologized to me.

He said I knew nothing about the Void Creatures. Did he know something inside? Or did he know Evelynn's purpose?

But when I asked him about these things, he didn't answer, "The truth will come out in the future. It's better for you not to know now, do you understand what I mean?"

"Am I not strong enough to face the truth?"

"Alright, I should get going."

"Please allow me to ask one last question."

How many World Rune are there? How many have you collected?

"There are seven World Rune: Light, Darkness, Life, Death, Fire, and Wind. I've only collected the Flame Rune, the one the Ara people possess."

"You said there are seven, but aren't there six kinds?"

"There's another one I don't know what it is either; we're still exploring it."

"Alright, then I won't bother you any longer. Until we meet again!"

Riven and I jumped off the giant beast and watched Ryze leave.

The reason I asked him how many World Rune he had was to find out his collection progress.

If he's almost finished collecting them, then disaster is not far off. Since he's only collected one so far, the disaster shouldn't happen anytime soon.

Of course, this is just my speculation. If the disaster comes earlier than expected, we can only deal with it head-on.

Light, darkness, life, death, fire, wind— Ryze spoke in great detail. Although he didn't say it directly, he probably wanted my help. It seems there are new tasks ahead on the journey.

Of all these runes, the one that interests me most is the wind rune. If I could find the Wind Rune, it would undoubtedly enhance my power in an unimaginable way!

Back in the crowd, they all relaxed, and Kled patted me on the back:

"You actually know such a terrifying person? It's best to avoid contact with him in the future. If you do something to upset him, the consequences could be severe!"

"He is our helper, a very responsible person, and a partner of justice!"

Perhaps Kled and his ilk fear Ryze's power, but I know him, and I know he's working tirelessly for the peace of Runeterra.

"He might not be as good as you think."

Azir added a comment from the side, without explaining why or continuing the conversation, and set off first.

Until we reached Darius's camp, we encountered nothing else of note.

We haven't reached the eastern coast because Darius's army has already advanced inland, but their progress is slow because they haven't received any follow-up letters from Kled.

Seeing Kled arrive with us, Darius guessed the general situation.

He was genuinely surprised to hear that the man in golden armor before him was the Shurima emperor from over a thousand years ago.

Besides Darius, Jarvan and Shvana are also here. After returning to Demacia with us, they only met Garen once before leaving in a hurry. Darius said they helped a lot during the march.

The war officially ended with our meeting, and as I expected, Darius and Azir got along very well.

One was an ancient emperor, and the other a modern general. They shared many common ground in terms of military leadership and governance, a result of their continuous self-criticism and self-improvement.

They were once ambitious leaders; Azir disregarded the common people and considered everything from the perspective of nobles and Ascended.

Later, in his thousand years of solitude, he saw that everything would perish, except for the common people who silently lived and multiplied. At that moment, he finally understood that this was the most powerful force.

Darius was constantly on the move, conquering east and west for the unification of Noxus, but the dream of the Mutated Eye changed him.

People will not submit to force; they will only unite when faced with a common disaster. At that point, he changed the purpose of war from conquest to unity.

Ultimately, they both witnessed the power of ordinary people, and their mindset changed as a result.

Jarvan listened attentively. As an emperor with no experience in governing a country, he benefited greatly from their conversation.

"If you were a Shurima general, I would certainly hold Ascension Ritual for you!" Azir said, becoming more and more excited, even wanting to help Darius ascend.

"Ascension? Is that the legendary Celestial Warrior of Shurima?"

"Not just a legend, we're standing right in front of you now!" Azir pointed to himself, then to Sivir.

Darius had just recovered from the shock of the resurrection of the Ancient Shurima emperor, and now, upon hearing that both of them were Ascended, he was once again incredulous, especially since there was also a little girl among them.

"I did sense a tremendous power, but I never expected you to be Ascended! Have you all lived for over a thousand years?"

"I didn't! I'm still very young!" Sivir quickly retorted when she saw that Darius was talking to her.

We all laughed, except for Kled, who had left sometime earlier. He had never liked lively atmospheres except during wartime, and now the war was about to end.

By now, the Noxus army's conquest has essentially come to an end, and thanks to the efforts of our group, the entire Runeterra has achieved a united front.

It started with Ionia, then Demacia, then Freljord, and now it's Shurima.

Places like Piltover and Bilgewater, while possessing considerable strength, cannot be considered nations, and with Camille and Gangplank present, there's no need to worry about unification.

After many ups and downs, people finally came together, much faster than Darius had imagined. In his words, Riven and I deserve half the credit for this.

I accepted the praise without hesitation. Since I descended the mountain as Yasuo over a year ago, my footprints have covered Runeterra, and I've basically never had a moment to rest.

Seeing the results now, I am naturally very gratified.

The alliance has been reached; now it's time to face the enormous disaster together!