Sunon Temple

Sunon Temple stood in western Ionia. It was the home of the Western Harbinger and an important stronghold during the last resistance war.

The landscape here was vastly different from the east. Ten years had passed, yet the scars of war remained.

I had visited Sunon Temple in a dream. Back then, the magnificent murals inside had left me awestruck. Later, the temple had crumbled beneath the Harbinger's power. Now that I had come here in person, I saw that it had indeed been rebuilt. Both dreams had been real.

A crowd had gathered near the temple. They had come of their own accord, without the discipline of an army, and so they seemed rather disorganized.

People in all kinds of clothes wandered about. Some even greeted me when they saw me. "Hey, Yasuo, you're here."

I didn't know them, so I simply nodded in reply. As I looked at the solemn temple gates, a sense of awe welled up inside me.

I didn't hurry inside. Instead, I turned and left, intending to visit Swain at the Noxian camp first and see if we could settle the dispute peacefully.

I knew that his and Darius's long-held ambition was to unite the land. The people of Ionia wanted peace, too. Though war was an effective way to achieve unification, it wasn't the only way.

Ever since the last invasion, Noxus had continued to occupy a piece of land in western Ionia as a stronghold.

There were no locals living nearby, so the Ionian people hadn't fought fiercely to reclaim it. That was where the Noxians had landed this time.

By the time I reached the stronghold, most of the army had already settled in. Quite a few soldiers recognized me.

"Get him! His name's Yasuo. He gave us plenty of trouble back in the day!"

"I can't believe this guy's still alive. Take him to see Lord Swain!"

At their captain's order, the soldiers tied me up and took me straight there, saving me the trouble of finding the place myself.

The Noxian camp was as imposing as ever. The soldiers were well-trained, and every one of them had a black wing insignia engraved on their shoulder armor: the Black Feather Legion's emblem.

Swain's tent stood in the very center of the camp, heavily guarded on all sides. Several crows perched on its roof, letting out shrill cries now and then.

I'd expected to find a crowd inside, but Swain was alone. He wasn't wearing a uniform, just a casually draped overcoat. His hair was streaked with gray, and he held a book in his hands.

The soldiers escorting me briefly explained the situation to him, then left. Only the two of us remained in the vast tent. It was spacious, yet I still felt stifled.

Swain slowly raised his head. His hair was gray, and his face was lined with many more wrinkles. He had aged considerably over the past few years.

"You don't look like you've come to assassinate me. What brings you here?"

"General Swain, we may not know each other well, but you should remember me. I once served under General Darius and helped him stage a coup."

Swain looked at me for a moment, seeming not to recognize me. "You served under Darius?"

"That's right. Zhao Xin. Do you remember me, General?"

At my words, Swain gave me a cryptic smile.

"Of course I remember. On the day the coup failed, only seven people fought to the end. Six escaped, while the one left behind was Zhao Xin. Six years is enough to change a person's appearance, but it can't change who they are. You don't resemble Zhao Xin in the slightest, apart from the fact that you're both Ionian."

I didn't know how to explain. Aside from my memories, I had indeed changed a great deal. If I couldn't convince him I was Zhao Xin, then there was no point in saying anything else.

It was a shame Darius wasn't here. I could have recounted any number of shared experiences to prove it to him. Just as I was at a loss, I suddenly thought of something.

"I have a way to convince you, because I know exactly what happened. We fought until only seven of us were left: you, Darius, Kled, Draven, Talon, Katarina, and Zhao Xin. General Kled covered your escape. Isn't that right?"

"That's no secret. Everyone outside the execution grounds saw us."

"No, I'm not talking about those seven. I mean two others: Darkwill and a mysterious witch. We failed because that witch was too powerful, and I was left behind because I knew who she was."

Swain's expression suddenly stiffened. Then he limped toward me, intrigued, and leaned his ear close to my mouth, evidently wanting me to lower my voice.

"She was LeBlanc."

The answer exploded in his ear like a cannonball. Swain, who was usually so composed, suddenly staggered backward several steps. I hadn't even seen him so flustered when his life was in danger that day.

"I don't know whether what you're saying is true. I don't know her real identity, either. The fact that you know that name means you're no ordinary person. Whether you're Zhao Xin no longer matters. Tell me why you came here."

"I want to settle this dispute peacefully. I know of your great ambition: to unite all the power of Runeterra against the challenges that may come. But war isn't the only path to unity. A conversation can solve problems, too."

"Your idea is a good one, but such seemingly beautiful approaches often don't work. Though I never intended to invade this place last time, war still broke out. Hatred has already taken root, and it's impossible to resolve things peacefully now. Besides, persuading the scattered people of Ionia would be even harder than conquering them."

"Do you think war will solve anything? Beyond Ionia, there's Demacia, growing ever stronger; the mysterious Freljord; dangerous Shurima and Bilgewater; the Shadow Isles; and many other places. Noxus may be powerful, but uniting all these lands would take a very long time."

"Hardship tempers a person into something great. Now that I've resolved to overthrow Noxus, how could I retreat in the face of difficulties? Since you understand my ambition and the cruelty of war, I hope you'll go back and persuade them to surrender. I guarantee that anyone who submits will be spared."

"I'll go back and try to persuade them, even if it means bearing the blame. I also hope you'll consider what I've said, General. War only breeds hatred. It will never bring true unity."

I wasn't a persuasive speaker. I even felt that Swain had a point, so that was as far as I could go. The people who escorted me out were the same soldiers who'd brought me in. In the end, they couldn't believe that an enemy could leave unharmed at the commander-in-chief's orders.

Swain's resolve clearly couldn't be shaken. That left me with no choice but to go back and sound out the Ionians.

To be honest, I didn't have much hope. Who would willingly hand over their homeland for no reason? No one would believe Swain's promise to spare those who submitted, either.