A Road Apart

Lux had no idea how she'd made it back to her room. She'd wandered along the carved corridors, through the gardens where spring was beginning to bloom, like a soulless walking corpse.

By the time she came to her senses, Lux was already lying in bed.

The velvet sheets were impossibly soft, but at that moment, Lux felt as if thorns were pricking her back.

The dragon-bird down comforter was warm, but at that moment, Lux felt frozen to the bone.

She stared blankly at the ceiling, her mind completely empty.

"Why did this happen?" Lux murmured. "Why would my aunt ruin Eno?"

"Because Eno isn't a noble," Karya replied. "In Silvermine City, your decision to promote the disaster-response knights made her realize there was a problem with your attitude. She needs to bring you back to your senses."

"Eno is innocent."

"She knows that, of course." Karya pointed out another icy truth. "Otherwise, how could she possibly feel safe letting Eno spend time with you?"

"...Eno is harmless, too." Lux's voice grew colder. She wrapped herself in the thick blankets, trembling helplessly. "Eno wouldn't say anything."

"Only the dead keep silent." Karya sighed. "Do you remember what you realized in Silvermine City? You were willing to use the power of the nobility to improve Demacia as much as you could."

"I remember." Lux's voice was muffled. "I've always remembered."

"But have you ever stopped to think about where the nobility's power comes from?"

This time, Lux fell silent.

"..."

Yes. Where did the nobility's power come from?

Was the injustice she hated the very thing that upheld this power?

Didn't those who wielded this power become part of that order?

Every time she used this power, wasn't she also helping to uphold that order?

If she eased the conflict, would she only make that cold order more firmly entrenched?

Lux's thoughts began to scatter. She'd only just found her ideal, yet now she looked around and found no path beneath her feet.

Even her advantages seemed meaningless in the face of cold reality.

At the thought, Lux trembled even harder. She felt as if she'd returned to the morning she discovered she was becoming a mage, helplessness filling her bright blue eyes.

"It's time to make your choice, my dear student," Karya said again. "Will you stay among the nobles and slowly ease this conflict, or will you bravely take a step forward and change its very nature?"

"Of course I'll choose the latter—but, Karya..." Lux cautiously poked her head out from under the blankets. "Can I really do it?"

"Of course." Karya didn't hesitate. "A thinker I deeply respect once said something, Lux. I can share it with you now."

"?"

"Hope is like a path on the ground: there is no path there to begin with, but when enough people walk it, one appears."

"When enough people walk it, a path appears—thank you, Karya!" Lux threw off the blankets and gripped the hilt of her sword as if she were holding a warm torch, driving away the bone-deep cold she'd felt before. "But... it's such a shame that my aunt and I are walking different paths."

With Karya's help, Lux finally got herself back together.

Her aunt's ruthlessness was hard for Lux to accept, but luckily, there was still room to maneuver.

At least Tiana didn't know that Lux had already adopted the mindset of a "rebel." In this situation, Lux's noble privileges were limited, but she could still use them for now!

If she used that power well, perhaps she could still get Eno out!

Even if she had to take more drastic measures!

Then, just as Lux had calmed down, taken a bath, and was about to plan her next move with Karya, someone knocked on her bedroom door.

It was Ogesha.

After hearing that Lux seemed to be in a poor mood, Ogesha had decided to come and comfort her daughter.

In her view, Tiana's choice had been a little too extreme. Lux was simply kindhearted; there was no need to treat her so harshly.

Still, she hadn't opposed Tiana in the end, because on the matter of nobles and commoners, at least, she and Tiana were on the same side.

So Ogesha didn't bring up Eno. She simply chatted with Lux.

Compared to the composed Tiana, Ogesha helped Lux relax considerably.

Lux seemed to visibly brighten.

Seeing that it was nearly time for dinner, Ogesha brought their conversation to an end.

Then, as she stood up, she seemed to remember something and asked a servant to bring Lux a formal gown. In a few days, Lux would represent the family at a wedding.

"Do you remember Dili, the man who left Silvermine City with you?" Ogesha seemed unaware of the history between Dili and Lux. "His son, Gao Kan, is getting married soon—to a daughter of the Laurent family. You'll represent the Crown Guard family at the engagement ceremony."

"A daughter of the Laurent family... the eldest daughter?" Lux paused, answering with some surprise. "Fiora Laurent? I've heard she's very skilled with a sword!"

"That's right, it's her!" Ogesha nodded, looking delighted. "I heard that Gao Kan impressed Mr. Sebastian, so when Dili asked for her hand, he agreed without hesitation!"

"She's the Laurent family's eldest daughter." Lux blinked. "I've heard of her."

"Dili is a member of the Crown Guard family, too. It's not as if he's beneath them." Ogesha raised her chin proudly. "The Laurent family has fallen on hard times, after all. When I was a girl, the name Sword Dance Waltz was famous everywhere. But now, there isn't a single noteworthy person in the whole family..."

"..."

Lux's mood, which had only just begun to improve, soured once more.

Lux had met Miss Fiora a few times.

Among Demacia's nobles, Fiora was an absolute oddity. But Lux respected her greatly. Fiora was an incredible swordswoman, and she always dared to fight, took responsibility for her actions, and spoke her mind. This didn't win her many friends or a good reputation among the nobility, but Lux admired her all the more for it.

Sometimes Lux even wondered: if she hadn't become a mage and hadn't met Karya, would becoming someone like Fiora have been the best outcome she could hope for?

But now she'd suddenly learned that Fiora was going to marry that Gao Kan...

Just thinking about Dili made Lux feel as if she'd swallowed a fly—no, as if she'd swallowed a mouthful of them. She was disgusted.

At that moment, she suddenly remembered a question she'd once asked Karya.

"Are the choices in life always this difficult? Or is it only when we're young, with our naive wishes?"

"I want to save Eno, and I don't want Gao Kan marrying into a prestigious family!" After Ogesha left the room, Lux gripped her sword. "You were right. We can use the power of the nobility, but we can't rely on it!"

"Have you made up your mind?" Karya asked one last time. "This will be an incredibly difficult path."

"This is the path I choose." Lux's voice was firm. "At least I already have you and Sona by my side, don't I?"

"Well said, Comrade Lux." Karya was rarely so excited. "I have a grand plan that can solve everything!"

"A grand plan?" Lux, who had just sounded so resolute, couldn't help staring at him in surprise. "Wait, you've already got a plan? When did you come up with it?"

"Just now, when I found out Gao Kan was marrying Fiora." Karya chuckled, clearly in high spirits. "My plan had one little problem: there was no one to light the crucial fuse. Now that there's a wedding, everything's taken care of!"

"Wait! A fuse?" Lux quickly interrupted him. "What are you planning? I only disagree with my aunt. I don't want to destroy the whole family!"

"The fuse is just a metaphor—a metaphor for a... well, a major event. Don't worry, it's not a bad thing!" Karya reassured her. "If the plan goes smoothly, even your aunt will be proud of you. She'll help cover up what happened to Eno and let her come with you!"

"How could that be possible? You know how she feels!" Lux said in disbelief. "She has to think about the family, and she wants me to be just like her. How could she do that?"

"That's the ancient wisdom of Shurima! Even if you ran away from home and left Demacia, they'd help make excuses for you." Karya was brimming with confidence. "As long as you check in regularly, even Ogesha won't be too worried—"

"I can run away from home? Leave Demacia?" Lux stared at him in disbelief. "They'd never let me leave Demacia!"

"They won't let you leave now." Karya gave a mischievous chuckle. "But who can say what the future holds? And, by the way, that annoying Dili will get what's coming to him, too..."

"...Really? You're not lying to me?" Lux blinked. "Can you tell me more about the details?"