Freljord, the land of harsh winter. January and February are the coldest months in Freljord. When the wind blows against your face, it feels like thorns piercing your skin, causing pain mixed with a burning sensation and an unbearable itching after your skin cracks open.
In Freljord, people absolutely do not go out during January and Freljord. Even nomadic clans will choose to stop during this season and find a safe place to spend the winter.
Otherwise, Freljord would teach those who underestimate the weather a painful lesson. However, in recent years, few people have frozen to death in Freljord's winters. The locals naturally possess the Iceborn, it's just a matter of degree. As long as resources are plentiful and the diet provides sufficient calories, even the elderly and children will not perish due to the weather.
The reason for this situation was naturally the emergence of the largest clan, which reduced warfare. At the same time, Avarosa also engaged in trade, selling food at cheap prices, which helped many tribes.
Meanwhile, on the Dragonspine Mountains of Freljord, a young girl carrying ancient implements breathed on her palms. Seeing the white mist condense into water vapor, she shook herself, brushing the large snowflakes off her shoulders, and said, "It's so cold."
"Is this kind of place really suitable for living?"
"Why not?" A voice rang out behind the girl. The black-haired youth walked up to the higher ground, stood beside her, looked around, and then turned his gaze back to the girl, saying, "Also, with your abilities, how can you be afraid of the cold?"
Nilah smiled, puffed out her chest, and stood up straight. She was dressed in only thin clothing—in Freljord, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say she wasn't wearing anything at all. She stubbornly said, "I was just remarking. This temperature—yes, this kind of temperature is nothing to me."
Hateful
She is indeed very powerful. Although she was severely taught a lesson by Lissandra earlier, Nilah would not underestimate herself because of that! It wasn't because she was too weak, but because Lissandra was too monstrous!
A person who has lived for ten thousand years—no, even a pig that has lived for ten thousand years—would become an incredibly terrifying monster, let alone a human with such extraordinary magical talent as Lissandra.
Therefore, it's not that I'm weak!
If anyone says Nilah is too weak, Nilah will definitely fly into a rage and kill them!
"Where do we go now?" Nilah asked.
From Bilgewater to Freljord, Lissandra kept opening ice portals for the three of them to travel through, so it only took them less than ten minutes to travel from the south to the other side of the world.
"Find someone first."
"How do we find it?" Lissandra asked, pressing, "Who are we looking for?"
Since it concerns the Void, Lissandra naturally takes it seriously. Under normal circumstances, she doesn't react much to external matters and is the kind of person who doesn't care about things that don't concern her. But if it's related to her, Lissandra's temperament can become very impatient.
Otherwise, she wouldn't have made that decision back then. To put it bluntly, Lissandra is a sophisticated egoist who will do anything to achieve her goals.
It might not sound like much, but for Li Ke, there are just too many people like that around him.
Silco and Renata are the most typical examples.
"The Notai Tribe, do you know that name?" Li Ke turned around and looked at Lissandra, who was floating in the air behind him.
"The Notai Tribe," Lissandra murmured, then frowned. "I seem to recall them, but I remember the Notte were just a very small tribe, a nomadic clan known for their singing and familiarity with ancient legends."
Lissandra did know, and she Dreamwalking the Notai Tribe once, for no other reason than that the Notai Tribe, though small, was a tribe in Freljord that produced many storytellers and bards.
This clan has produced many people that Lissandra dislikes, and it is precisely because of their word-of-mouth and generational transmission that the bad things Lissandra did have left their mark, leading people to believe that witches are not good people.
"Why are you looking for them?" Lissandra asked.
"Because the people who can help us find the Yeti are in that clan," Li Ke said after thinking for a moment.
To find Willump and gain Willump trust, Nunu must step in.
Although this may seem shameless, after all, Nunu is just a little kid, only Nunu can awaken Willump's conscience.
In the lore of League of Legends, the Yeti is a magical creature, a being of dreams and fantasies.
Willump is also a snowman who has lived for tens of thousands of years. He has lived for so long and been lonely for so long that he has forgotten who he is and many things. But Willump still remembers that he must protect something and let that thing wait for its true master - the Heart of Anivia, or the Frost Heart.
According to what Li Ke knew, the Frost Heart could reflect a person's inner world. In other words, you couldn't deceive Willump, who held the Frost Heart, with words and expressions, and thus gain its trust.
Even if what Li Ke thought and did was indeed for Willump's good, Li Ke also had selfish motives, which would then manifest in the Frost Heart. Willump would then go mad as a result, using the power of the Frost Heart to create True Ice to protect himself when escaping or to kill enemies.
After all, do you really expect a single-celled organism with the same level of intelligence and cognition as a child to understand the complexities of adult interactions?
Now that he thinks about it, Li Ke suddenly realizes that in the Freljord storyline, the main perspective seems to be focused on Ashe and Sejuani, with the story unfolding through the sisterly rivalry between them.
However, the underlying storyline is actually about Lissandra and Nunu.
Indeed, after careful consideration, Li Ke realized that Nunu was the true protagonist of Freljord, just like Lux in Demacia and Irelia in Ionia, a true "main protagonist".
Because Nunu also possesses Deity power. Don't underestimate him just because he's only a few years old. In fact, after gaining Willump's approval, Nunu obtained the power of the Frost Heart, which is also the power of Anivia. And due to the evolutionary ability of the Frost Heart, Nunu gained the ability to make dreams come true.
He can materialize imagination into reality, something even Demigod like Ornn cannot do.
Therefore, from this perspective, he's a small man with a great hero.
If it weren't for Li Ke's appearance and the resulting plot changes, Nunu would be the most crucial character in the Void storyline, at least no less important than Kai'Sa.
Nunu's story is a typical male protagonist's script: he is separated from his mother at the beginning, then gains the protection of the Yeti (the old man), and obtains supreme power (Anivia's legacy), embarking on the path of saving the world.
Isn't this just typical plot twists for a male protagonist in a wish-fulfillment novel?
Therefore, if we want to truly unseal True Ice and confront the Void, then Nunu is a necessary element.
Thinking of this, Li Ke couldn't help but recall an RPG game released by Riot Games called Nunu & Manga. Although Li Ke had never played it, he had virtually played it once.
That's one of the few single-player games Riot Games has ever released that features a standalone character, which shows that Nunu plays a crucial role in Riot Games's universe, and in that game...
Lissandra was also defeated by Nunu and Willump. Although the official setting is that the battle between Nunu, Willump, and Lissandra took place above the Watcher's seal, Lissandra was unable to use her true strength in that environment. She was worried that the magical fluctuations caused by the battle would weaken the seal, so she held back and was defeated by Nunu's ability to make dreams come true.
But this is really outrageous.
No, damn it, now that I think about it, Nunu has negotiated with every big shot in Freljord!
In Nunu's Song, Nunu possesses the power of Anivia, makes a deal with Ornn, is tested by Volibear, saves a Demigod from ice, and finally faces Lissandra.
Damn, if these guys stood together, they could make a hole in Runeterra, let alone Runeterra!
Shaking off the distracting thoughts in his mind, Li Ke began to get down to business.
He looked at Lissandra and asked with a smile, "Lissandra, do you know about role-playing?"
Lissandra's pale eyes met Li Ke's. She couldn't see anything, but she could sense that Li Ke's smile was disgusting.
"What's the meaning?"
"What I mean is, we'll have to make a game, and we'll have to play different characters. I'll play a hero who helps the little protagonist in his adventure, while you'll be the final boss the little protagonist faces, responsible for awakening the little protagonist's potential. You'll have to play a bad guy—no, you're a bad guy to begin with."
"..." Lissandra's lips twitched slightly upon hearing Li Ke's words. She rarely made such an expression; this vivid mix of anger and speechlessness made her no longer look like a beautiful ice sculpture.
"Li Ke, have I been too good to you all this time? Do I seem easy to talk to? Is that it?" Lissandra said coldly.
"Alright, alright." Despite Lissandra's cold tone, Li Ke didn't care at all and jokingly comforted Lissandra.
Having spent quite some time with Lissandra, Li Ke is no longer afraid of Lissandra at all.
It's not that I'm trying to whitewash Lissandra, but Lissandra is indeed a complex person. She is indeed bad; she sacrificed countless lives for her own selfish desires, and in order to fight the Demigod, she was seduced by the Void and committed wrongdoings.
However, Lissandra's fundamental reason for welcoming the Void was because Lissandra wanted to protect humanity from the clutches of the Demigod.
From beginning to end, even those who knew what Lissandra had done had to admit that she was indeed a hero of humanity.
Without the Three Sisters, human history would likely have taken a very different turn.
"In short, in the coming period, we need to prepare to play our roles and create a stage play," Li Ke said, stroking his chin.
Hearing this, Nilah couldn't help but speak up, "Didn't we agree that I came here to fight that Void thing you guys were talking about? Why are we suddenly playing games now? And what about me? What role am I supposed to play here?"
"That depends on how the story unfolds," Li Ke said with a smile.
"Let's go, to the Notai Tribe. You know the way, don't you?"
With a cold snort, Lissandra reached out and opened an ice door.
Then, she went in first.
Li Ke is right; she does indeed know where the Notai Tribe is.
Or rather, in Freljord, there are few things Lissandra doesn't know; after all, she's a diligent dream watcher.
Deep in the northern part of Freljord, nestled between mountains and two fjords, lies a tribe that has taken root there.
With the arrival of harsh winter, the Notai Tribe had already chosen a place to settle their tribe.
As a nomadic clan, the Nottey tribe knows best how harsh the winters of Freljord are. Therefore, they will never be careless in dealing with the winters of Freljord just because they are experienced. On the contrary, they are extremely vigilant about the winters.
Just like now, the Notai Tribe has long since prepared firewood for winter heating, as well as food and water resources for the winter.
"Layka!"
A shout shook the snow off the branches, and large flakes of snow fell into the forest. A woman with black hair and blue eyes turned around in the forest. In front of her was a basket containing a pile of firewood.
Wearing a thick coat with wide-open sleeves to cover her hands, and with the sleeves not letting in any wind, but rather with a fitted section inside, only widening at the cuffs, and long fur to enhance warmth, Layka looked at the woman running towards her with a puzzled expression.
"Lora, why are you in such a hurry? Did something happen?"
"Nunu, it's Nunu!" The woman named Lora had some freckles on her face; judging by her age, she was still a young girl.
Panting, Lora arrived in front of Layka and exclaimed, "Nunu is gone again!"
Upon hearing this, Layka didn't panic. Instead, she calmly asked, "What happened?"
"It's all because he heard Barta's story; that little guy said he wanted to find the legendary heroes of Freljord."
"Braum?" Of course Layka knew who the legendary hero of Freljord was.
It is Braum, and it can only be Braum.
That tall, muscular man with a beard and no hair, who always wore a hearty smile, was truly a hero of the Freljord, for most tribes had received Braum help.
Compared to those lofty Deity, people are naturally more willing to admire heroes who are close to them, who help them, and who are approachable.
Layka gave the order, saying to Lora, "Go back to the tribe first and tell the elders about this, asking them to send someone to find Nunu. I'll go find Nunu first."
"Okay, okay, you be careful too. There have been traces of snow wolves in the forest." Lora nodded vigorously.
Layka hummed in agreement, then picked up the machete beside her and walked towards where Lora had come from.
As she walked, Layka sang a song.
Just like Lora's earlier comment about "again," it's no longer surprising that Nunu disappears from the tribe from time to time.
His son was naturally curious, very brave, and adventurous. In the elder's words, "Nunu is a born bard. He has a simple and honest character, an angelic voice, and a heart that is not afraid of difficulties and dangers."
Standing in the forest, Layka sang ancient songs passed down through generations of the Notai Tribe. It wasn't the common language of Freljord, but an ancient language, and the content of Layka's songs were stories about Deity like Ornn and Anivia.
"Nunu, where are you!"
"Nunu! Respond to me when you hear your mother's voice!" Layka raised her voice, quickened her pace, gripped the machete tightly in her hand, and scanned the snow. But apart from the trail of footprints she had left behind, there were only some animal footprints, which made Layka a little nervous.
These animal footprints are most likely those of a pack of snow wolves.
But this time, no matter whether she played beautiful melodies on her flute or sang ancient songs, Nunu did not emerge from the snow, which naturally made Layka anxious.
The place chosen by the tribe was certainly safe, but safety has its limits. That kid was bold and might run away from the tribe. Therefore, even though Layka was used to Nunu "running away from home" from time to time, as a mother, she was still worried about her son's safety.
At the same time, above Layka, a look of surprise appeared on Lissandra's face.
"What is she singing? Why do you look like that?" Li Ke noticed Lissandra's expression and asked.
Lissandra remained silent for a long while, then said softly:
"The third verse she just sang was in the language of the snowmen; it was a song that belonged to the snowmen."
"She shouldn't know this, and besides, I've never heard of this kind of song before," Lissandra said seriously.
There is only one Yeti left in this world, and it has lived alone for ten thousand years. Therefore, let alone seeing it, most people in Freljord have no idea that Yetis exist. Thus, the Yeti's language should have been lost to the river of time long ago.
Even Lissandra doesn't speak the language of the snowmen.
However, she could make out the gist of it. After all, she had interacted with the Yeti before. Therefore, Lissandra was naturally shocked to hear Layka singing the Yeti's song. If she had known this beforehand, then the Yeti would have had a real chance to catch it.
She could easily use this woman named Layka to lure the Yeti out with her songs and then capture it, but Lissandra doesn't think that way now.
She now understood why Li Ke had brought her to the Notai Tribe and was looking for this woman named Layka.
"So, what we need is her help?" Nilah sniffed, her nose turning red, and asked.
"No." Li Ke shook his head.
"What we need is the help of a young boy."
Yes, in the story that is about to unfold, the protagonist is not the mother, but the son.
Li Ke said with a smile:
"This is a story about a kid who saves the world."
"Let's go, I can already sense his presence. His soul is incredibly pure. Although he's clearly panicked and sorrowful right now, I don't sense any negative emotions within that sorrow—no gloom or hatred, but rather a radiance of sunshine and hope, even though he's crying his heart out."
Li Ke didn't realize that his smile was a little strange; in Nilah's words, Li Ke's smile was more disgusting than hers.
However, Li Ke's feelings were genuine. As the Lotus Guardian, Li Ke could sense the soul form of people. As for Nunu's soul, let's just say that if Thresh saw it, Thresh would probably give up chasing Li Ke and instead crave Nunu's soul.
Yes, reject Thresh, understand Thresh, become Thresh.
This is probably Li Ke's current state of mind?