Round of Persuasion

What I said was ostensibly an explanation to Draven, but it was actually meant for Sivir.

It's been so long, I've always owed her a promise, and now it's time to face it properly.

Sivir didn't seem particularly happy; perhaps she felt that Riven still held a place in my heart, and this was just a slip of the tongue.

"I never agreed to marry you. The war is still going on, let's not talk about that."

Darius quickly smoothed things over. "Sivir is right, the war should be the priority right now. By the way, I was just about to talk to you about the Black Rose these past few days."

"LeBlanc?"

"Yes, the Black Rose disappeared after the defenses were established and people from all over gathered together, but recently Swain discovered something unusual..."

Although the Black Rose are mysterious, they are still human beings, and in theory they should live among everyone else, but they are nowhere to be found in the settlement.

At first, Swain was too busy to pay attention to their movements, but not long ago his magic Black Ravens spotted members of the Black Rose outside the defensive line.

They mingled among the monsters and escaped unscathed. Just as Swain was about to continue his surveillance, LeBlanc noticed his movements and dispelled the Black Ravens.

Based on this, it's not hard to conclude that the Black Rose is not afraid of the Void, and may even be in a cooperative relationship.

LeBlanc has always been a mystery to us. She initially appeared as an enemy, but later abandoned Darkwill and turned to support Swain.

She even helped us when Vladimir wreaked havoc on Noxus, and she revealed some past events, namely her feud with Mordekaiser.

At the final moment of purifying the Shadow Isles, it was she who helped break the Cycle of Despair and saved us all.

At that time, I thought she had fulfilled her wish and would help us fight the Vastaya, but she never appeared again.

What does it mean that members of the Black Rose have now appeared in the territory of the Void Creatures?

If she would still help us, that would be best, but she never made any such offer.

"Is anyone still in the Immortal Fortress?" I asked Darius.

"They've all been evacuated. The entire Immortal Fortress is now a ghost town. However, the fortifications in the northeast have become part of the Heart of the Land. You should know that."

"I'll go take a look; maybe I'll see LeBlanc."

What about your defense?

"Leave Yasuo to me. My old stronghold is defended by the warriors of Shurima, and there haven't been any problems even after I've been gone for more than half a year." Sivir took over my task.

"Alright, then you hold out for me for two days. I'll head to the Immortal Fortress now."

Be careful!

"Don't worry, we're not going outside the defensive line."

I've been wandering around the base for a while now, and it's getting a bit boring for someone like me who can't stay still. Time to get out and about.

Moreover, past experience tells me that as long as I delve into the mystery, I'll always find out something.

I even felt LeBlanc was waiting for me; I can't explain why, it's just a feeling.

Following the defensive line eastward, I arrived at the stronghold near the Immortal Fortress the next morning.

This area is defended by Rappor, who was responsible for guarding the north before the various regions were united, and he is very experienced.

I didn't greet him and headed straight south to my destination, where, just as Darius had said, the Immortal Fortress had become a ghost town.

The architecture here is very old. It was better when there were more people, but now that everyone has left, only a few birds perch on the rooftops and occasionally chirp. Combined with the dark color scheme, it looks quite eerie.

People left a lot of trash on the road when they left, such as broken benches, old clothes, and shattered cans, adding to the gloomy atmosphere with a sense of disorder.

Following the route I remembered, I arrived at the parliamentary hall Swain once worked, and found that the candle on his seat was still lit.

As soon as I got closer, I sensed a familiar presence; LeBlanc was nearby!

"You still love playing hide-and-seek so much. There's no one here, just come out."

"You're a bit late, Yasuo. I've been waiting for you for days." LeBlanc slowly appeared in her seat.

"I just heard about you from Darius yesterday. You're not too late, are you? Is there something you want to tell me?"

"That's clever! It's not anything important; I wouldn't have mentioned it if you hadn't come."

"But I came."

"Don't get your hopes up. I'm not helping this time, and you should have heard that I've already moved the Black Rose to the north."

"Yes, I've heard. I'm curious why you're not afraid of those Void Creatures?"

"Should I be afraid of them? In fact, they are all products of negative human emotions, nothing to be afraid of."

"I feel like I've heard something similar before, so what you're trying to tell me is the birth of the void?"

"Pretty much. I just wanted to tell you that the void isn't that scary. Give up the resistance, or rather, you'll fall sooner or later."

"If you lured me here just to say this, then I'm sorry, I have to go back."

"Sigh, why can't you listen?"

"Ryze, Aatrox, Gu Yang, Shetaka have all said similar things. You're all in cahoots, aren't you?"

"We just share the same stance, but that makes us practically in cahoots, haha..."

I had this question before coming to the Immortal Fortress, because all these strange people ended up being involved with Ryze. I didn't expect LeBlanc to be so open about it, but now there's nothing left to hide.

Whether it's the people I mentioned, or herself, and of course Evelynn, they are arguably the most powerful beings in Runeterra, their strength even surpassing that of the gods.

Fighting such a force is definitely not a wise choice, but a wise choice won't save everyone.

No matter what truth Ryze finds, as long as my friends are still fighting, I will not give up.

And the reason these people keep trying to make me give up must be because my persistence has some special significance!

"Perhaps you are right, but we are merely short-sighted mortals. If the invasion of the void is truly a purification, then let us prove it with our strength!"

"Strength? Haha, if strength could prove anything, how many of you would have survived until now?"

"Fine, I really don't want to talk about this anymore. No one can change my mind. So now, are you going to kill me?"

"Why would I kill you? Don't always have such strange ideas, Yasuo. I'm not your enemy, didn't I? Besides, I can't kill you anyway, hehe..."

"Uh, I think I mentioned that before..."

"Sigh, since you're willing to stick with it, then stick with it. I didn't have much hope to begin with, which is why I said from the start that if you didn't want to come, then forget it."

"I always felt that in this situation, it was either friend or foe. I'm sorry, I misunderstood you."

When I finished apologizing, I found that LeBlanc had already left, and the surrounding atmosphere had also disappeared. It was truly Phantom Trail.