Light of Demacia

Lux's confession brought Eno a sense of relief.

But it wasn't enough.

Lux still had more to say.

"Mages are not shameful, Eno," Lux whispered, releasing her grip. "And nobility is not something to be proud of—no one can be defined by one or two labels."

"If anything, I believe the nobility receives far more than they give, taking too much and contributing too little."

"..."

To affirm mages while being one, and to criticize nobles while being one.

To Eno, these words were profoundly impactful. Compared to Sylas's half-truths and veiled insinuations that stirred endless speculation, Lux's words were direct and frank, leaving Eno somewhat at a loss.

Meanwhile, Sylas, who had been anticipating Eno's despair and conversion to his side, was utterly stunned by Lux's reaction.

He could never have imagined that the esteemed eldest daughter of the Crown Guard family would be so... well, so shameless.

That's right. Unlike Eno's perception of Lux as "frank and open," Sylas, who couldn't hear Lux's inner thoughts, saw Lux as a complete liar!

How could these words possibly be the true thoughts of a noble lady?

She couldn't possibly think that!

Saying one thing and doing another—this was the noble's most practiced art. In Sylas's eyes, Lux was simply deceiving Eno. She might even just be trying to placate Eno before settling scores later!

He clearly couldn't fathom a noble lady genuinely believing that nobles exploited commoners. He preferred to believe that Lux, as a beneficiary of the system, would be accustomed to hypocrisy and lies.

"In fact, as soon as you told me you could create ice, I started thinking about this," Lux said, patting Eno's shoulder. "Everyone loves cold drinks in the summer. Wouldn't it be wonderful if you could open a cold drink shop?"

"I—that's impossible," Eno instinctively shook her head. "I can't control my Magic Power. If I opened a shop like that, I'd only end up hurting the customers around me."

"That's a separate issue," Lux replied, as if she had anticipated this. "For natural mages, the best approach shouldn't be imprisonment or exile, but education. Teaching them to use this extraordinary power, and to use it for more positive things..."

As she spoke, Lux blinked again and pointed to her sword hilt.

"...Is it really possible?" Lux's words seemed to open a new world for Eno. "Magic isn't wrong?"

"Magic is never wrong; the people who use it are!" At this moment, Lux finally made up her mind and revealed her true feelings. "Magic can be controlled!"

"But I've heard about the Rune Wars..." Eno clearly couldn't accept this. "Terrifying magic almost destroyed this world!"

"Then have you heard of the Ascended?" Lux asked with a smile. "Ancient Shurima had even more astonishing magic, but they used that power to protect Runeterra!"

"But how can magic be learned..."

"Magic can absolutely be mastered..."

"..."

"..."

With Lux presenting facts and evidence repeatedly, Eno was finally completely convinced.

From beginning to end, Lux's arguments were logical and well-supported, and she didn't hesitate at all. This wasn't a hastily concocted lie; it was her genuine belief.

The part about magic being controllable was based on Lux's own personal experience!

Eno was willing to believe in her light!

As the two little girls poured out their hearts, all misunderstandings and barriers seemed to melt away.

However, Sylas, who had been eavesdropping next door, could not accept this outcome.

He had languished in prison for ten years!

After ten years, he finally had a fellow inmate he could look forward to. Sylas had hoped she would give up on Lux and become his comrade. Yet, in just a few words, she had sided with Lux—what kind of twisted development was this?

At this moment, he desperately wanted to grab Eno and make her see reason.

Fairness, justice, magic isn't wrong, nobles are shameful...

These were all lies to placate you from that woman. She merely sees you as a harmless pet, a tool to be exploited!

She is a noble lady, born of high status!

She would never abandon her own advantages for the sake of fairness!

Unfortunately, Sylas couldn't speak at this time. He could only watch as Eno and Lux chatted more and more congenially, their thoughts becoming increasingly aligned...

Sylas was filled with despair.

This was not part of his plan!

Eno, upon learning the truth, should have been completely disappointed in Lux!

Then he could have persuaded Eno to help him gather as much information about Nullstone as possible, allowing him to escape. Sylas could naturally see Magic Power, so from the very beginning, he had discovered that Nullstone stored vast amounts of Magic Power. If he could harness this Magic Power, no one in all of Demacia could stop him!

However... the first step of his plan had already failed.

Eno had indeed realized the injustice between Demacian nobles and commoners, and the inherent discrimination faced by mages.

But with Lux's guidance, she was about to embark on a completely different path!

Why did it have to be like this?

Why would this little girl with boundless potential believe the words of a noble?

Why would this little girl, trapped in a predicament, believe the bewitching of a lady?

It made no sense at all!

She was nobility, and you were a commoner!

Sylas didn't know Eno's story.

So he also didn't know that Lux had once stepped forward and stood up for Eno when Eno was at their most desperate.

He knew even less that before that moment of stepping forward, Lux had visited Eno's home, stayed in her room, chatted with her father, and heard stories about her brother.

He had no idea that Eno and Lux shared countless similarities, possessing souls that were equally kind and resilient.

Sylas believed that nobles and commoners, mages and non-mages, were naturally divided by status and naturally belonged to separate factions.

But what he didn't know was that when it came down to individuals, what made people connect with each other was never the labels of status themselves, but shared experiences, shared thoughts, and shared desires.

Lux's noble status was real.

However, her ideals of eliminating Demacia's discrimination against mages and its oppression of commoners were also real.

Her openness towards Eno stemmed from her inner conviction, not from a guise of eloquent deception.

Returning from Silvermine City, Lux was no longer that naive little girl who only craved her family's approval.

She was Demacia's first person to truly open its eyes and survey Runeterra from a vantage point high above the clouds!

Even though Eno still couldn't shake off the constraints of status, and even though there were many things she couldn't understand at this moment, Lux spoke freely and was happy to share.

As Lux spoke animatedly, Karya, who had been on edge, finally let out a long sigh of relief.

His teachings over the years had not been in vain. Although Lux was still a bit green, she had at least found her own path.

Keep going, Lux.

Keep moving forward!

You will become Demacia's... light!