A Warm Farewell

Aatrox stared intently at me, then, after speaking each word clearly, released the Celestial Chain. ⑥⑨ⓢⓗⓤⓧ.⃝ⓒⓞⓜ

He wasn't uninjured; on the contrary, he was seriously injured, but he still let me go without any hesitation.

Watching his departing figure, my urge to kill him never subsided, but in the end I didn't make a move.

I will avenge this defeat, and I will win in a glorious and honorable way!

"Why didn't you take that chance to kill him? You definitely could have done it in that situation!" Karma's voice went straight into my mind.

"Only the victor has the right to kill; I have already lost."

"Is this your glory? Your common language with the Vastaya?"

"You can hate me, and in fact I hate myself too, but the outcome won't change, and neither will my thoughts."

"Have you ever thought about what God of Wind Aeolus means to Ionia?"

"From this day forward, you should no longer Ionia. The fate of all Runeterra is now intertwined. Besides, my feelings for Janna are no less than yours."

After saying that, I shut down my inner thoughts and stopped listening to Karma's words. There was nothing more to say between us.

I carried Janna's body away from here and found an undisturbed place to bury her. At that moment, many butterflies gathered and hovered in the air, which was very beautiful.

These weren't real butterflies, but rather butterfly shapes formed from Wind Element. Soon after, these butterflies coalesced into the likeness of Janna!

"You're still alive?!"

"No, I am already dead. These butterflies are spirits formed from the remnants of my Wind Force. I feel I should say goodbye to everyone."

"How long can you hold out? I'll take you to Prexian!"

"No need, by the time you take me there, I'll probably have vanished into thin air. You can take everyone's place, haha..."

Janna's tone was very gentle, unlike how I remembered her. Does death change one's temperament?

"Turns out you're quite gentle. I always thought you were so fierce."

"Haha, the God of Wind has his God of Wind majesty. Now that I'm dead, there's no need for me to maintain that image anymore."

"You know what? If you were a little harsher, I might feel better. After all, I'm the one who caused your death by not telling you about the Celestial Chain in time."

"Then I'm even less likely to let you have an easy time. You killed me, and you still expect me to take care of you?"

"Don't worry, I will definitely avenge you!"

"Just like Karma said, you had the chance just now, why didn't you kill him?"

"I cannot do this, not because of right or wrong, nor because of honor, but simply because of my inner thoughts."

"I like your answer. If it were me, I would have made the same choice. He is our enemy, but also a righteous warrior."

"Sorry."

Tears finally streamed down my face; I wasn't as strong as I thought I was.

"Hey? Why are you crying? Don't be sad. I've lived for too long. Death isn't painful for me. It's just that I can no longer protect the people here. This important responsibility will have to be passed on to you!"

Janna reached out to wipe away my tears, but her hands vanished before they could even touch me. Then her body disintegrated into butterflies again, her lips parted as if she wanted to say something, but there was no chance anymore.

A few words of farewell made me feel much better.

Janna didn't blame me; she approved of my actions. I can be even more despicable against a despicable enemy, but against Aatrox, I want to defeat him!

Karma didn't come back to Prexian with me; she said she was going to the Zhiyun Temple to find Miyue and help the people there with their defense.

Aatrox has left, but enemies are still attacking from three other directions, so I rushed back immediately, only to run into trouble on the way.

A stranger blocked my way. He was similar in build and appearance to Ionia, and although he was middle-aged, he had a full head of white hair.

I sensed a familiar aura emanating from him— Wind Element Strength!

Why are you blocking my way?

Are you Yasuo?

"That's right, you're here to cause trouble?"

Why do you say that?

"My friends are all fighting the Vastaya, yet you're here blocking my way. You must have ill intentions."

"Haha, I just wanted to see if you suited my taste."

"And then? I hope we can keep this conversation short if you don't want to fight."

"Not bad, your mastery of Wind Riding Technique is quite good, but it's a pity you're standing in the wrong position."

"Heh, are you a lobbyist sent by the Vastaya faction?"

"No, I'm on good terms with Aatrox, but he didn't send me. I want to talk to you about the Vastaya. Would you like to hear it?"

Don't you think it would be better to state your name first?

"My name is Gu Yang, I was born in Ionia, and I have traveled all over the world..."

Without waiting for my response, the middle-aged man named Gu Yang introduced himself and began talking about the Vastaya.

I was in a hurry to get back and help, but his topic really interested me because it concerned the background of the disaster.

Gu Yang not only knew Aatrox, but also Ryze. He had been friends with both of them for many years, so he knew quite a bit about them.

Ryze was born on an island in the southern Ionia archipelago, which is closer to Bilgewater than the Ionia mainland.

Influenced by the local culture, Ryze developed a love for magic from a young age and enjoyed helping others.

As he grew up, he became an apprentice of the famous local Archmage Tyrus, and became an outstanding mage, mastering many magical skills.

Gu Yang and Ryze first met on that island. They hit it off immediately, and Ryze even had a long talk with Gu Yang about his ideals. He aspired to become Archmage like his Teacher and bring happiness to people.

Ryze's magical society is a group dedicated to the study of astronomical and geographical knowledge. Using the results of these studies, the islanders rarely encounter danger when they go out to sea.

When the two met again, Ryze had changed somewhat. He still cared about the people, but he was less inclined to help and had begun researching various highly destructive spells.

Gu Yang asked him why, Ryze's explanation was simple: fight fire with fire.

Then something shocking happened: Ryze killed his most respected Teacher, Tyrus, and fled his homeland to the continent of Ionia.

It was around that time that the two began to see each other frequently and exchange ideas on the knowledge they each possessed.

At the same time, Gu Yang told Ryze something that greatly influenced him: outside of Ionia, there are many continents besides the vast ocean.

At that time, people knew very little about ships, let alone how to sail. Only powerful mages could undertake relatively long voyages.

Ryze's former magical society specialized in astronomy and geography, so this naturally shocked him!