My Feet Don't Stink!

At the Fugen Tavern, Li Ke sat across from Silco, savoring the fine liquor Silco had smuggled in from Bilgewater. He downed a mouthful.

Finn was dead. His men found his body the next morning, his head severed and lying by the wall. He'd died horribly.

Li Ke looked at the man across from him, whose gaze was elsewhere, and smiled as he spoke.

"Uncle, did you know from the start that Finn would run?"

Silco drew his wistful gaze back and looked at Li Ke, a faint smile on his lips. "I know him better than you do, Li Ke. After all, we worked together for so many years."

"Back in the mines, he was just like this: arrogant, conceited, always thinking he was the cleverest person around. But really, he only had a little cunning, and he never knew how to use it properly."

Sevika stood silently behind Silco. She felt nothing about having killed Finn with her own hands.

Though she and Finn hadn't had a bad relationship back when they were in the mines Silco had mentioned,

Finn had crossed the line. Silco had given him chances—not just one—but he'd still made the same mistake.

Replace Silco?

What had he been thinking?

If it hadn't been for Silco and Vander, they'd still be digging coal in the mines. How could they have reached their current positions otherwise?

Though Sevika had "betrayed" Vander, it wasn't for power or status. It was because Vander had made her lose hope. When a hound put away its claws, it became a house dog. That wasn't the kind of leader Sevika wanted.

Besides, she hadn't betrayed him. She'd simply parted ways with Vander and joined Silco.

"So he's dead. You really don't feel anything?"

"Hmm. How do I explain this?" Silco placed his hands gracefully on the table and looked calmly at Li Ke. His eyes fixed on Li Ke's as he spoke. "He made a mistake, Li Ke."

"Everyone makes mistakes. It's not a big deal. No matter how serious the mistake, a person can be forgiven as long as they regret it. No one is perfect. But we can't keep making the same mistakes, can we?"

"Uncle, are you trying to make a point about me?" Li Ke asked, narrowing his eyes.

Silco's gaze shifted to the girl sleeping soundly on the sofa. The corners of his mouth lifted, and his eyes softened. "What do you think?"

"Then you really are making a point about me."

"If she doesn't want to come back to me, I won't force her. She seems happier with you. She's put on a little weight, and she looks healthier." Silco suddenly spoke up.

Then he continued:

"And just as you said, Li Ke, whether I succeed or you do, Zaun is the one that benefits. There's no need for us to fight to the death. We want the same thing; we just have different ways of going about it. And you were right about one thing: with Piltover putting pressure on us, Zaun really has become far too chaotic."

Silco tapped his index finger against the table in a steady rhythm. "But that's about to change."

Li Ke followed Silco's gaze to Jinx, who was sprawled across the sofa. Her little mouth hung open, drool trickling from the corner. One foot rested on the back of the sofa, one hand dangled off the side, and the other lay on her stomach. She was fast asleep.

Jinx suddenly shifted her head. Both men looked over as it tipped to the side, leaving her whole head hanging off the sofa. If she slept like that, she'd wake up with a stiff neck.

Silco started to get up and adjust Jinx's position.

But Li Ke was quicker. He was seated at the end of the table nearest the sofa. Silco paused when he saw Li Ke rise, then narrowed his eyes.

Then Silco stood too. He took off his impeccably clean suit, pressed smooth without a single wrinkle, folded it by hand, and handed it to Li Ke.

"Use this," he said.

Behind Silco, Sevika couldn't help rolling her eyes.

Damn it.

Until now, Silco had been the only one doting on the crazy girl.

But now? Silco, Li Ke, and that crazy girl's sister.

There seemed to be more and more people doting on and looking after her.

Sevika couldn't help wondering what was so special about this girl that all these people would do so much for her.

Silco and Li Ke were one thing. One was the Zaun Godfather, and the other was, in Sevika's opinion, the strongest man in Zaun. As for Vi, she was a woman Sevika respected.

Even when Vi was young, Sevika had thought she was no ordinary girl. Now she was grown, and that fight had proved Sevika right.

Vi was a fighting prodigy, a born brawler. Without Shimmer and her Alchemical Limb, Sevika didn't think she could beat Vi.

Li Ke looked at the suit Silco offered and nodded as he took it.

He pressed the suit down, then walked over to Jinx and crouched beside her. Carefully and slowly, he lifted her head, gently tucked Silco's suit beneath it, and looked her over. Seeing how blissfully she slept, Li Ke couldn't resist pinching her little nose.

"Mm." Jinx frowned and swatted at the air in front of her, muttering under her breath.

"You damn snot, how dare you plug my nose! You wanna fight?!"

"I'll tell my dad!"

"Silco, teach it a lesson!"

Listening to Jinx's dream, Li Ke felt a little jealous.

Damn, if only she'd called my name!

Then I could've rubbed it in Silco's face!

But I shouldn't be greedy.

When he'd first met Jinx, the name she mumbled most often in her sleep was naturally Vi's. Silco came second, then Vander, and finally, Li Ke.

But in recent days, she'd been calling his name in her sleep more and more often. That was already enough to make Li Ke happy.

It meant his place in Jinx's heart was growing.

Li Ke stood and returned to his seat across from Silco.

Jinx's antics had been a brief interruption, but thanks to her, two men whose paths differed and who should have been enemies could sit down and talk peacefully.

Back in his seat, Li Ke looked at Silco. The Zaun Godfather, famous throughout Zaun for his cruelty and lack of humanity, was gazing at Jinx with such gooey affection that it was almost ridiculous. Honestly, it looked like Silco's eyes might start dripping.

This was a side of Silco no one else had ever seen.

"You were right. She really does call my name in her sleep." Silco looked at Li Ke and asked, "Did you hear what she called me just now?"

"..."

"Silco, if you wanna laugh, just laugh. I won't make fun of you," Li Ke sighed.

Silco smiled. It was probably the first genuine smile he'd ever shown Li Ke. Looking at Li Ke in front of Sevika, he said, "You guessed right. She is my weakness."

Damn it, the old bastard had really shown off!

Li Ke looked at Silco, remembering what he'd just said, then spoke up.

"You said our ways of doing things are different, but we want the same thing. Uncle, what if you'd understood that while Daddy Vander was still alive?"

Li Ke spoke with complete sincerity.

It was only after taking charge of the Lian Hua Gang that he understood what Vander had done. He also understood how hard he'd worked and how great he'd been.

If Vander and Silco had joined forces against Piltover and worked together, Zaun would never have ended up the way it was now.

Zaun needed Silco, but it also needed Vander.

Silco fell silent. After a moment, he said, "I've come to understand him, but I still don't believe his path was the right one. Your paths are similar, but not the same."

"You're more capable and more daring than he was. Like him, you're kind to ordinary people in Zaun, but he groveled to Piltover and became a house dog. You're different, Li Ke. I can tell you never intended to be Piltover's dog."

"If he were still alive, I'd sincerely apologize to him. I'd tell him that having a daughter really can be a handful. I understand how he felt back then now. But without independence, it's all empty talk. His weakness would only bring his daughter more trouble. His compromises wouldn't let Jinx or Vi stand in the sunlight," Silco said calmly.

"I won't let the past hold me back, because all I care about is the present."

"The dead live in memories. The living have to look ahead."

"What I want is for Jinx to stand in the sunlight and live a normal life."

The mood turned chilly.

But just as Li Ke and Silco sat facing each other in silence, a dazed voice rang out.

"That's not food, Li Ke. You picked up the wrong thing. That's my foot."

"It doesn't stink! Say my feet stink again, and I'll kill you!"

"I wash my feet,"

"My shoes are breathable!"

"Don't touch my feet. It tickles!"

"Mmm, Muddy Frog is so tasty. Hehe..."

The mood warmed right back up. Silco looked at Li Ke with growing menace.

Li Ke, meanwhile, was utterly embarrassed.

He even noticed the strange look Sevika was giving him.

"Uncle, I—I was just helping Jinx wash her feet. I didn't do anything else. Do you believe me?"

"Take a guess," Silco said with a cold laugh.