The Assassin's Tenderness

To live by the blade, to die by the blade.

These are the words that Talon's Teacher said to him.

Talon was born in western Ionia and later joined the local Raiders cult through his father's introduction.

The Raiders Cult was formed after the Noxus invasion to specifically deal with skirmishers harassing villagers.

Talon honed his assassination skills in the cult, and when he felt powerful enough, he chose to travel to Noxus to assassinate Swain and eliminate any future threat.

However, before setting off, he needed to settle his parents, who were in poor health and lived within the Noxus soldiers' operational range, making them vulnerable to attack.

His childhood friend Yuan Feng took on this important task, promising to take care of his parents. As a rising star of the Wood Sword Sect, Yuan Feng's strength was reliable.

Upon arriving in Noxus, Talon's first feeling was one of confusion.

Because this place is bustling with people, with countless large towns, it's completely different from the original Ionia.

It took him a long time to adjust, and then he began to inquire about Swain's existence, intentionally or unintentionally.

At this moment, a mysterious person suddenly appeared, not only teaching him many Way of Assassination but also providing some clues.

Following various clues, he found Doco and then located Swain.

To his utter surprise, the assassination target he had painstakingly found turned out to be a powerful mage!

Talon failed and was imprisoned. Just as he was waiting to die, he was told that someone had ransomed him.

The person who ransomed Talon was Tam Tahm Kench, the owner of the Doco Arena.

He was a shrewd businessman who had connections with prison wardens all over the country, and he bought up almost everyone with some influence.

This is no losing proposition; after being trained in the arena, the equipment can often be sold for several times the price.

He would sell the weaker ones to nobles, big and small, as bodyguards at a lower price, while he would usually keep the stronger ones for Darius, because he was willing to pay more.

Just a few days ago, Tam Kench sold a player Zhao Xin, Ionia, for a whopping two thousand gold coins from Darius.

Seeing Talon's strength, Tam felt he was worth the price.

Darius never haggles, especially when he meets a warrior he likes. He agrees without hesitation, but since he just bought Zhao Xin and doesn't have much money on hand, he buys him on credit.

Talon initially hated Darius and Swain, these Noxus generals, but later, after hearing Tam recount many stories about the two in the arena, he changed his mind.

In particular, the invasion of Ionia was not Swain's original intention, but rather something he was forced to do under duress from the Emperor.

In short, Darius redeemed him, Talon planned to repay his kindness before returning to Ionia.

Shortly afterward, he participated in Darius's coup, which failed, but Zhao Xin, also Ionia, was spared.

They fled all the way north and hid in Rappor's army, where they also had an enemy: Katarina, who accused Darius and Swain of their crimes.

Although Kled saved everyone, Katarina was ungrateful until Darius recounted what happened back then, revealing that her father had been controlled by the Black Rose.

Katarina left a very good impression on Talon; this kind of cold, cunning female assassin is rarely seen in Ionia.

A few days later, when the rumors had died down, Talon decided to go back.

Darius was certainly reluctant to see him go, but he didn't stop him; he simply welcomed Darius to return anytime.

"If you want to become a true assassin, Noxus is your best choice."

"Um."

Talon didn't want to stay there, so he didn't say much, but not long after returning to Ionia, a huge change occurred there.

His village was attacked by a murderer, Talon single-handedly held him off, allowing Yuan Feng to escape with his parents.

But the killer had no intention of letting anyone live, and soon he shot everyone and set off explosions everywhere.

In the end Talon and Yuan Feng escaped. They hated their own weakness, especially Yuan Feng, who could have blocked the two magic bullets if he had been a little more agile.

This had happened many times before, and people always blamed the Noxus until the Second World War, when Jhin appeared, and people learned the real culprit behind the series of explosions. But that's another story.

Talon wanted revenge, but he didn't know where to find the killer; he knew he couldn't do it alone.

At this moment, he recalled Darius's words and decided to return to Noxus to find out the truth about the serial killer.

He already knew Swain and knew he wasn't the kind of person who committed murders aimlessly.

After receiving a negative answer, Talon decided to stay and learn the ways of an assassin from Darius:

"Please teach me how to become a true assassin."

"I can't teach you that, but you can learn from Katarina; her father is a master assassin."

And so, Talon and Katarina began to discuss the art of assassination. It was during this process that he learned that the mysterious man who had guided him in the Way of Assassination was Katarina's father.

The two mentored and helped each other, and occasionally even completed tasks assigned to them by Darius together, constantly improving their strength.

As time passed, their progress was remarkable, becoming Darius's two sharpest weapons.

Talon gradually changed his opinion of Swain and the others; he used to think they were just simple invaders, but now he realized that was not the case.

The Ionia way of life is indeed inadequate for coping with disasters; only by learning from and collaborating with other regions can they succeed.

Guided by this ideology, Talon participated in the Second War against Ionia, and he proved to be right.

Without the help of the Noxus, the entire Ionia would likely have become Jhin's hunting ground.

After the war, Darius and the others returned home, but Katarina stayed behind with Talon.

They both have a cold personality, and even if they develop feelings for each other, they won't tell each other.

However, once an assassin loses his master's orders, he will slowly revert to his true nature, and over time both of them will change.

Talon was the first to change. Reflecting on his years as an assassin, he longed for a stable life; the days of walking on the edge of a knife were not easy.

Katarina gradually softened and began to wholeheartedly help Talon deal with the various events happening in Ionia.

This First Lands has been destroyed and is destined never to return to its former state. The peaceful days did not last long before the Vastaya appeared, and in response, Yasuo, the Harbinger of the North, established the Light Organization.

Talon responded enthusiastically and joined the Light. He knew it wasn't time for him to lay down his blade yet; his personality could change, but his methods couldn't!

"I'll confess my feelings to Katarina after this war is over; I'm sure she won't refuse."