The Princess and the Knight (Part One)

The beautiful and bountiful Fuguang Island once truly existed in a remote corner of Runeterra, a place that nurtured many wonderful things, but all of these wonderful things shared a common fate:

Death. 69ֆɦʊӼ.ƈօʍ

Yorick was born in a small village in the eastern part of the Fuguang Island. He was raised by his maternal grandparents because his mother died when he was born. His father's identity remains unknown, with the most plausible explanation being that he was a soldier from Ironhold.

Yorick's unique background made him the village's fighting king from a young age. Any child who dared to mess with him would get a severe beating, and even those who didn't provoke him might suffer the consequences.

If someone's house is burglarized or vandalized, it's almost certainly Yorick who did it.

Of course, this doesn't mean Yorick wouldn't get hurt; on the contrary, he was often beaten black and blue, mainly by older children and adults.

Without his parents' protection, he had to bear all the pain alone.

Thus, Yorick was beaten severely every time he was caught, and once his wounds healed, he would continue to commit evil deeds until he was twelve years old when all four of his limbs were broken.

A group of soldiers passed through the village, and many children mocked Yorick, telling him to go find his father. Yorick picked up a stone from the ground and threw it, but he missed the people who were mocking him and almost hit a soldier.

The soldiers were escorting an important figure and, thinking Yorick intended to assassinate him, immediately surrounded him. But before they could capture him, the real assassin arrived!

The soldiers turned their spears and began to fight the assassins. Yorick had no time to meddle and took off running. As he ran, he suddenly heard cries for help behind him.

Yorick turned around and saw two assassins chasing a girl about his age. Judging from her fancy clothes, she must be one of the people the soldiers were escorting.

What should we do? Yorick thought quickly:

If the girl is caught soon, he, as a witness, will most likely be killed to silence her. Even if the assassin spares him, he will not let the matter rest once more soldiers arrive.

After some deliberation, Yorick decided to help!

He beckoned the girl to follow him, using the terrain to their advantage, while simultaneously shouting for help.

Unfortunately, no one was willing to help him. The villagers were hoping this crazy boy would be killed, and some even opened their windows to watch the spectacle.

Only his maternal grandparents were home, and they obviously couldn't help. Yorick didn't go home; instead, he led the girl through the village, turning left and right.

Soon the girl collapsed from exhaustion, Yorick had no other choice but to take the plunge!

Since there are only two of them, I might not be outmatched!

Of course, you can't just act recklessly, since the opponent is an assassin. At this point, experience in fighting is very important!

Yorick was small in stature but quite strong and very agile, which caused some trouble for the two assassins. He picked up a shovel from the wall and almost hit one of them.

However, no matter how good Yorick was at fighting, he was no match for two adults. Soon, the shovel in his hand was snatched away, and he was kicked to the ground.

"You run pretty fast, kid! I was going to kill you, but I'll leave you with some pleasant memories!"

After the assassin finished speaking, he unleashed another flurry of punches and kicks, leaving Yorick completely disoriented. However, Yorick was already used to it, and simply clutched his head tightly to avoid being beaten to death.

After an unknown amount of time, the assassin finally stopped, but he had no intention of letting Yorick by the hair, lifted him up, and kicked him hard in the knee.

With two sharp cracks, Yorick's legs bent backward, followed by two more cracks as his arms broke.

Yorick had long since become numb to the pain of being hit, and upon hearing a few sharp cracking sounds, he had no idea what had happened.

Later, the girl's crying gradually faded away, Yorick fainted.

The two assassins, looking at Yorick, who was covered in blood and had his limbs bent, were satisfied and prepared to leave with the girl in their arms.

At this moment, the general from Ironhold arrived, his spear gleaming with a silvery light, and easily killed the two men.

As the general prepared to leave, the girl grabbed her. "Sister Kalista, please save this child!"

He is dead.

"No, he must still be alive!"

The girl cried and refused to leave, so Kalista had no choice but to take Yorick with her, and at the same time she could feel that he still had a heartbeat.

When they returned to Ironhold, Kalista had Yorick treated by a doctor. He survived, but his limbs were completely broken and could not be restored.

Thus, Yorick spent a peaceful time in the capital, but his temper worsened due to his inability to move freely.

He blamed everything on the girl, Princess Ironhold, saying that if she hadn't suddenly appeared, he wouldn't have ended up like this.

He never accepted the Princess's kindness, and he wouldn't even tell her his name.

The king initially sympathized with Yorick, but seeing him becoming increasingly erratic, he sent him back and, in return, gave his grandparents a large sum of money.

After returning to the village, people stopped mocking Yorick for being a bastard and started calling him a good-for-nothing—a fitting title.

Yorick had assumed his grandparents would abandon him and embezzle his property, since they didn't have a good impression of him.

Surprisingly, instead of doing that, his grandfather cured his limbs!

It was then that he learned that his grandfather was a powerful sorcerer!

From then on, Yorick became interested in magic and wanted his grandfather to teach him, but his grandfather's attitude remained unchanged: indifferent and unresponsive.

After Yorick recovered, his temper improved a lot. He no longer caused trouble or lost his temper, but this change did not attract his grandfather's attention at all.

Finally, when he was fourteen, his grandfather kicked him out, giving him a purse and a necklace, with only one simple reason:

"You're all grown up now; it's time to learn to survive on your own."

Yorick didn't ask why; he knew his grandfather wouldn't answer even if he did. He took the money bag and necklace and left.

In fact, even if his grandfather hadn't driven him away, he had already planned to leave the village and venture out into the world. Under the guidance of the famous Sacred Spring Keeper Thresh, the outside world was full of wonders.

At this time, a commercial boom was sweeping across Fuguang Island, attracting countless young people to join in. Yorick also wanted to go to a big city to make a name for himself.

He touched the necklace his grandfather had given him, knowing it was no ordinary piece of jewelry and might save his life in a critical moment.

But when he touched the empty money pouch, he felt somewhat dejected. The king had given him so much money, why did his grandfather only give him so little?

Yorick was somewhat puzzled, but he didn't stop.

He was deeply impressed by the prosperity of the capital city on his last visit, but he kept going crazy because of his health. This time he should really appreciate it!

If he could, he would like to see the Princess one more time and apologize to her.