Zaun, the parliament building.
Wei was standing at the door. Logically speaking, given that Wei had already reached this level in Zaun, standing guard shouldn't be something she was doing, but she did anyway.
However, Vi wasn't actually there to stand guard; she was there to keep Caitlyn.
Tall and strikingly large in Zaun, Caitlyn wore the Zaun Enforcer uniform. The Zaun grey-red Enforcer uniform suited Caitlyn better than the blue Piltover Enforcer uniform, and the bold design made Caitlyn look sexy and hot.
She smiled at Wei and pointed to the door.
"Is Silco in a meeting?" Vi raised an eyebrow and asked in a low voice.
Caitlyn understood what she meant; she was being told to watch her volume.
Caitlyn shook her head and whispered, "Only Silco and Renata are here, but Silco looks very unhappy."
"When has he ever had a good expression on that sour face lately? Ever since Jinx left Zaun, he's always wearing that grumpy look, like everyone owes him money," Vi complained irritably.
Ever since Li Ke left Zaun with Jinx, Silco has been acting like he's going through menopause, but he's a man, so how can he be going through menopause?
But his temper had indeed worsened; he always had a gloomy face and stopped putting on makeup, looking exactly like a left-behind father.
Wei laughed when she saw it.
When Caitlyn saw Vi teasing Silco, she simply shook her head, neither stopping Vi nor agreeing with her.
In the office, Silco stared coldly at the manuscript in his hand, pulled out one of the pages, and laid it flat on the table. Renata, who was next to him, reached out and picked it up, then looked down at it.
After a moment, she spoke up, "This girl is quite sensible; she knows she can't ask us for people at a time like this. Instead, she only asked us for supplies, and a large amount of medical supplies at that."
Renata placed the paper back on the table, crossed her arms, looked at Silco, and asked, "So, what do you plan to do?"
"What do I plan to do?" Upon hearing this, Silco looked up at Renata, but instead of answering the question, he asked in return, "What do you think?"
"We shouldn't get involved in this, but we've invested a lot in her. If she dies like this, we'll suffer a huge loss." Renata thought for a moment and then said, "As a businesswoman, I can't allow investment failures to happen to me."
"Especially investments that result in total loss."
"And from a politician's perspective?" Silco asked.
Renata replied, "On the one hand, we got involved and helped her take Bilgewater, so Bilgewater will become Zaun's backyard in the future. Many of Zaun's dirty deeds can be done by Bilgewater, which is beneficial to Zaun's development. But on the other hand, a country that intervenes in another nation's war without authorization will not be welcome."
"There are pros and cons, but the biggest problem is that if we get involved and fail, we will lose even more than if we give up on her altogether," Renata said calmly.
Bilgewater is currently embroiled in internal strife, instigated by Sarah and Gangplank.
After receiving funding from Zaun, Sarah went all out and quickly began to expand her power, suppressing Gangplank's people on the Isle of Pi and starting a war.
This brought Gangplank, who had been detached from Bilgewater, back to the Isle of Bilgewater, and thus, the two sides went to war.
Sarah was resourceful, brave, and decisive, and because she seized the initiative, Sarah initially held the advantage in the battle on the island.
She even conspired with Gangplank's men one night to sow discord among them and set Gangplank's ship ablaze, officially letting the entire Isle of Pirates know that the Pirate King was a thing of the past.
The new Queen of the Seas is Miss Fortune Sarah; she is the true new master of Bilgewater.
Gangplank also escaped Bilgewater in the chaos, and Sarah sent men to hunt him down, but they could not find him on the sea in the night.
Just when Sarah thought the matter was over, Gangplank suddenly returned a week later.
Accompanying him back was the priestess of the Serpent Isles, Buhru. Suddenly, the various gangs on the island changed their tune, from neutral observers to those who began to help Gangplank. Led by Ao Kao, the gang bosses supported Gangplank and helped him make a comeback.
Zaun only received the news in the last few days. As soon as he got the news, Silco asked Janna to deliver it to Li Ke.
"So, do you think we should help, or not?" Silco tapped his fingers on the table, asking impatiently.
Seeing this, Renata rolled her eyes, her chest heaving beneath her suit jacket. She said, "From a politician's perspective, I don't think we should help. Even without Bilgewater as our black glove, Zaun's development won't fall behind. Adding icing on the cake isn't worth the risk."
"And also, does my word carry any weight? Hmm?"
"It really doesn't work. I was just asking." Silco raised his hand and said.
Renata snorted coldly, a curse stuck in her throat, but she swallowed it back and chose to stand obediently beside Silco.
Once that bastard Silco steps down, then I might as well take his place!
When the roles are reversed, she will show Silco what cruelty truly means.
But now is not the time.
So she respectfully asked, "And what are your thoughts?"
"What use is my opinion? Am I the Lord of Zaun?" Silco looked at Renata suspiciously and said, "Of course, this depends on what Li Ke thinks. If he says he'll help, then we'll help. If he says he'll fight, then we'll muster our troops, call Piltover, and head to Bilgewater today."
"It all depends on what he thinks, not what we think."
Hearing this, Renata took a deep breath and managed a weak smile, "You're right."
"Are you insulting me?" Silco suddenly asked.
How could I dare?
"It's okay, we're from Zaunite. We'll curse when we need to. It's really nothing." Silco looked at Renata, put his hands together on his chin, and said with a smile.
Renata shook her head. "I really didn't. I respect you very much."
"That would be best, Renata. Don't let me find any dirt on you. Zaun won't be your toy, nor will it be a stepping stone to your goals. Remember that."
Renata remained silent on this.
Singed already set off?
"They've already set off. Weila's small team is protecting Singed. They're expected to arrive in Navori this afternoon, and we should see Li Ke this evening," Renata replied.
Silco nodded.
Singed had worked for him for many years, and now, Silco's wishes had all come true, and Singed's wish was about to be fulfilled as well.
The thought of the usually stern-faced Doctor becoming so excited he couldn't speak made Silco feel much better.
But then he thought of his daughter, who had been away for over a month and hadn't even sent a letter back, and Silco's face darkened again.
Seeing this, Renata lowered her head, walked backwards towards the door, then turned around, pushed the door open, and went out.
As she stepped outside, she saw Caitlyn and Vie.
Renata wasn't surprised; she saw this kind of scene every day. So, she simply nodded to Vi and Caitlyn.
Vi shrugged, and after Renata had walked away, she whispered to Caitlyn:
"Jinx is right, this woman is perfect for Silco, they're like a match made in heaven."
"Really?" Caitlyn smiled, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear as she looked at Vi. "And what about us?"
As she spoke, Caitlyn took a step forward. She was much taller than Vi, and looked down at Vi, a glimpse of white skin swaying in front of Vi.
"Uh," Wei turned her head with difficulty and coughed, "Well, I just remembered I have something to do, Caitlyn. I'll pick you up after work this evening."
After saying that, Wei ran away in a flash.
Caitlyn tugged at her collar, watched Vi's departing figure, and shook her head.
"You talk a good game, but when it comes to actually doing it, you don't dare."
"In this respect, Vi, you really aren't as good as Jinx."
Caitlyn kicked away a pebble in front of her and muttered to herself.
Boom!!!
The shell destroyed the stone house. Sarah, carrying two pistols, leaned against the cover. Rafen, standing some distance below her, was looking at a strange object.
"Are you done yet! Damn it, Rafen, I told you to start working on it sooner, but you wouldn't listen to me!" Sarah yelled.
"Now they're blaming me for this?" Rafen held a small notebook in his dusty hands, staring intently at the words on it, occasionally fiddling with something nearby as he read.
It was a square device containing three Hextech Gem, and its body was covered with various small buttons, numbering in the dozens, making it look extremely complex. At the very top center was a pure crystal screen.
"Who knew the Buhru would help Gangplank! Isn't everyone on the island saying that Illaoi and Gangplank broke up a long time ago?" Rafen yelled, gritted his teeth, and pressed a button hard.
Then the central screen on the device split open, and two cute and pretty blue butterflies flew out, disappearing in the blink of an eye before Rafen's eyes.
When the device's screen closes, an image appears on it.
Rafen's eyes widened. "Damn, Zaun really gave us a good thing!"
Sarah stood up first, pointed in a direction, and pulled the trigger. The pistol spat out blue smoke and created an area of shot that attacked the pirates who were charging up from below.
"Ah!"
With a single burst of fire, Sarah took down at least a dozen of Gangplank's men.
Is it a lot? Yes, it is, but it's not enough!
Because of Illaoi's involvement, the gangsters on the island who adhere to the Buhru culture have joined Gangplank's side, and now Sarah's team is fighting against the entire Bilgewater gangster world.
She glanced down at the device in front of Rafen, her beautiful eyes filled with surprise, and asked, "What the hell is that?"
"It's that bastard Ke Aoge! He used to acknowledge you as his queen, but after one word from the Buhru, he happily joined Gangplank."
"Kill him."
"The Zaunite say this is their newest weapon. Since it's a weapon, it must be lethal. You should take a look at how to operate it," Sarah said.
"Don't rush me, I'm working on it," Rafen said irritably. Then, he quickly looked at the instruction manual and tried to start operating it.
Pressing the button above, Rafen suddenly discovered that the two largest buttons in the middle of the device were not pressed down, but rather pressed and moved. After trying to move the buttons, Rafen found that these two buttons could control the viewing angle of the image on the device's screen.
After trying it out, Rafen guessed that the image was captured from the butterflies that had just flown away, so this was for controlling those two butterflies that were only the size of a fingertip?
"This isn't right, this isn't right either. What does this evil smiley face mean?" Rafen looked at the instruction manual, found the corresponding buttons on the device, and then he discovered the button that represented the evil smiley face.
Can't Zaunite just use icons directly?
Why do they have such a twisted sense of humor?!
What's with that smiley face?
Never mind, I'll just press it first!
Rafen pressed the button that represented the evil smiley face in the instruction manual. The device suddenly vibrated, and then a smiley face appeared briefly on the screen in the middle—a blue smiley face.
The screen then returned to normal.
Sarah glanced at it and frowned. "Nothing happened!"
Rafen looked down at the screen and saw that nothing had happened. But just as he was about to look at the manual to see if he had made a mistake, he saw Ke Aoge's obese body suddenly collapse on the screen.
Rafen was taken aback. He moved his hips to zoom in and maneuvered the butterfly closer to Ke Aoge's body. Then, he noticed a bloody hole the size of a fingertip on Ke Aoge's neck, which was covered in oil stains.
It really was just a hole, with no blood splattered at the entrance, but it was emitting terrifying heat, and the outermost layer had been scorched red marks.
Seeing this, Rafen trembled.
Just as he was about to speak, a voice came from Gangplank's camp.
Ke Aoge is dead!
"Damn it, they shot us from behind!"
Sarah was startled and turned to look at Rafen, only to see his large face filled with fear as he stared at her.
"Boss, the Zaunite really gave us an amazing thing. I'm going to recognize Silco as my godfather from now on. He's even letting us use something like this; he treats me better than my own father!"
"This thing can snipe targets on the screen!" Rafen exclaimed in shock, gasping for breath.
Sarah's eyes lit up. She reached up and pulled her captain's hat down, quickly slid down the slope, and stood in front of Rafen. She pushed him aside, sat down in front of the device, and said, "You tell me, I'll do it. Let me see how it works."
"Okay, do it this way first, and then..."
Next, in Gangplank's camp—
"Ma Wen, you fucking fell down by yourself? Hey, Ma Wen? Ma Wen, what's wrong with you Ma Wen!"
"Kang Sang, Kang Sang? Damn it, how come Boss Kang Sang is dead too? Who, who did it?!"
"It's just a few deaths. That girl Sarah got weapons from Zaun, it must be him, hmm."
"Lang De'er, who was speaking, is also dead!"
Back with Sarah, she trembled as she operated the device. She was clever, and under Rafen's guidance, she quickly mastered its operation. Watching as she simply pressed a button, then repeated the press, and aimed at her target on the screen, the person would fall. Sarah felt a surge of fear.
If this thing were mass-produced, wouldn't the Zaunite be invincible in this area?
Just as Sarah killed another bastard who claimed he would capture her, rape her, kill her, rape her again, and kill her again, the device in front of her suddenly beeped. Then, a pitiful-looking face appeared on the screen. The screen then turned transparent, the image disappeared, and split into two halves.
Two butterflies flew past Sarah's eyes and landed inside the device, after which the screen closed again.
Sarah looked at Rafen: "What does this mean?"
"Let me see." Rafen quickly looked down at the instruction manual.
After a moment, he said seriously, "This expression means it's out of energy and needs to be replaced with Hextech Gem. Also, the butterfly needs to be charged, which will take about three hours."
"We've only used it for less than twenty minutes! And why can't we just write 'out of energy'?" Sarah exclaimed.
"How should I know!" Rafen protested.
This isn't a normal weapon instruction manual at all! It's covered in weird smiley faces and all sorts of animal icons. Does Sarah know how uncomfortable he is looking at it?
Sarah certainly didn't know!
But as she cursed, Sarah felt much more at ease.
It takes twenty minutes to use and three hours to charge, the battery life is terrible, making it impossible to use at long distances. This greatly reduces the weapon's assassination capability.
Otherwise, with a butterfly the size of a finger, its flight speed is astonishing. If its endurance were strong, Zaun could even assassinate Noxians while still in Zaun, right?
Even so, this device opened up a new world for Sarah.
Sarah stood up, raised her gun, and said loudly, "Not bad. Times have changed, but we've boarded the Zaun ship."
"But in the end, we still have to rely on the guns in our hands."
"Charge with me! Drive them all back!"
Sarah took the lead, climbed to a high place, and shouted.
"What's with all those weird weapons they have?"
In a tavern in Bilgewater, a tall woman with muscles like bronze spoke in a deep voice.
Her eyes were bright and clear, like copper bells, as she looked at the "little old man" who was missing an arm and looked as disheveled as a beggar.
"How the hell am I supposed to know?" Gangplank cursed.
"Gangplank, I'm here to help you."
"When I asked you for help, you wouldn't help me, you even insulted me. Now that I don't need your help anymore and I'm planning to get revenge myself, you're helping me. Illaoi, you're fucking weird!" Gangplank said, looking at Illaoi.
He looked dirty and reeked of stench. He was missing an arm and wore tattered clothes, resembling a disheveled, down-on-his-luck old man. However, his eyes were incredibly bright, radiating confidence and vigor through his hair.
Illaoi came to help him, not because he begged for it, or rather, that's not quite right.
At first, he did beg Illaoi, pleading and almost kneeling before Illaoi, but Illaoi ignored him and even brought up the fact that God had hurt him.
But after those cycles of dreamlike rebirths Gangplank changed.
He transformed into the spirited pirate he once was, into the fearless Gangplank who had first set sail.
Therefore, he really didn't ask Illaoi for help.
However, Gangplank would naturally not refuse Illaoi was willing to help him.
Seeing Illaoi's gaze turn cold, Gangplank snorted and said, "Those weirdos are all from Zaunite. That little wench Sarah somehow got in cahoots with Zaun and got money and weapons from them. Otherwise, do you think I would have lost so badly?"
"I admit that girl was very capable, and I regret not searching under the bed more thoroughly when I killed his mother, and dragging her out and hanging her too, but it's too late to say anything now, isn't it?"
"Now, it's your turn, you Buhru. With the weapons of the Zaunite, the Isles can't break through," Gangplank said seriously. He looked at Illaoi and continued, "This is sending the Isles to their deaths."
Illaoi closed her eyes, and when she opened them, she looked at the Buhru beside her.
"Send the snake summoner to the seaside."
"Truly, this is against the rules."
Illaoi picked up her glass, took a big gulp, and shouted, "Rules? This is the Blue Flame Isles. Just because she uses Zaun's weapons doesn't mean the rules are right?"
"Enough with the nonsense. My word is law."
Priestess Buhru was taken aback. She glanced at Gangplank, and remembering that he had withstood the Nagakabouros's test, she said no more and nodded, "Yes, I understand."
"You should have done this a long time ago," Gangplank said heartily, taking a large gulp of his drink.