What Is Nothing Becomes Something, and Something Returns to Nothing

Things had reached this point, and even Garen, slow on the uptake as he was, had realized there was something subtle in the way Katarina and Lux were treating each other.

Then, just as Garen was racking his brains for something to say to smooth things over, Lux and Katarina both broke into smiles. As if nothing had happened, they changed the subject without warning.

Garen was left completely bewildered.

In the end, after the family dinner was over and Katarina had left, she immediately reported the entire conversation between herself and Lux to the Noxian delegation.

After analyzing this "informal meeting," the Noxian delegation made a highly aggressive decision.

Right there and then, the delegation pulled off a sort of "Three Pure Ones from One Breath," splitting into three groups.

One group simply settled down in Demacia City and applied for a plot of land on which to build an embassy.

One group continued to maintain the appearance of dialogue, though in truth, it was only an appearance.

The third group promptly left Demacia and sent word back to Noxus, seeking to gain the initiative for the actions to come.

Based on Lux's attitude, the Noxian delegation believed Demacia truly had no intention of entering the conflict—or at least, not in the short term. Even though the two sides had failed to sign a written non-aggression pact, the delegation's assessment was that Demacians did not need to be factored into the war, at least during its initial stages.

Based on that assessment, and their observations of the joint delegation after arriving in Demacia City, the Noxian delegation believed Noxus should choose the Black Forest Federation as its primary target in the coming "War of Unification."

The Black Forest Federation was weak, and its location was not particularly sensitive. More