"What happens after we make a deal? Do I become his strongest enforcer?"
Chen Ce shook his head, then stopped and looked at Sett seriously.
"Remember, I'm helping you become the 'Emperor' of the Underground Fighting Pit, not a 'General' who answers to one man but commands everyone else."
According to the original course of history, Sett was supposed to rise through the ranks one punch at a time.
Going from a gladiator to the boss of the fighting pit took help from others, but it depended even more on his own fists.
If he relied on someone else too much, he'd end up as nothing but their enforcer.
He had to beat everyone who refused to submit, then bring all the gladiators under his banner. That was how he'd become the true "Emperor of the Underground Fighting Pit."
Just as he had in the original timeline.
Chen Ce needed to help Sett grow quickly, but he couldn't rush the process.
Everything had to build on Sett's own abilities.
"I've only helped you get started. The rest is up to you—but this will shorten the tedious process considerably. At the very least, you won't have every nobody challenging you anymore." Chen Ce continued:
"You need to stay mysterious to the people behind the Underground Fighting Pit, then gradually take their gladiators for yourself. Take tonight, for example. Those ten gladiators will respect you from now on, and they won't challenge you on a whim."
"They might even turn away pointless low-level challengers for you. And you'll be able to place bets on their matches."
"You need to keep this up, then climb your way to the top."
Chen Ce had basically laid out Sett's rise to power from the original timeline. His current plan was the speedrun version, but the principle was the same. That was how Sett had done it back then.
Sett was still young, though, and hadn't thought of any of this yet. Telling him now was a kind of "enlightenment" that would help him avoid a few unnecessary detours.
"Mm..." After listening to Chen Ce's explanation, Sett nodded, only half understanding. Suddenly, his head started to itch.
A moment later, he asked another crucial question. "You said earlier that you'd help me find my... father. How are we going to do that?"
"I know where he is."
"Hm?"
"He earned enough money to buy his freedom at this Underground Fighting Pit, then was sent to a higher-level arena to keep fighting—in the arena in Noxus's capital."
Sett clenched his fists without thinking.
"In that case... I'll go to Noxus and find him! Then I'll beat him until he's crawling!"
"Suit yourself. It's your choice." Chen Ce wasn't the slightest bit interested in the conflict between father and son. There was only one thing on his mind right now: the deal he'd made with Sett.
"Anyway, I need you to recruit as many gladiators as you can into your ranks. Later, I'll need you all to do something for me."
Under normal circumstances, Sett would have considered that slightly commanding tone absolutely unacceptable. He thought the world of himself and would never let anyone walk all over him.
But now, facing this young man who was about his age, he felt no displeasure at all. He didn't even notice the subtle change in himself.
He simply laughed and held out his fist.
"Pleasure doing business with you!"
Chapter 52: The Turtle Takes the Fox on a Wild Ride!
Sett's deal with him had come to a temporary close.
By the time Chen Ce returned to the room, it was already late at night. Tired, he was about to lie down early when he found that a certain fox girl had taken up the entire double bed by herself. All nine of her tails were spread out, covering the bed like a blanket.
Her amber eyes were fixed intently on the Imero Stones in her hands—the gemstones that might hold clues to the mystery of her origins.
She'd been holding this pose for a very, very long time.
She'd been doing it when Chen Ce left, and she was still doing it now, a whole day later.
"Have you gone into some kind of trance...?" he asked in surprise, squeezing onto a little space on the bed amid her tails. "You haven't slept all day again, have you?"
"Mm..." Ahri made a faint sound, which counted as a reply. She wasn't even listening to what he was saying.
"So, after all that studying, have you figured anything out?"
"Mm..."
"Hey, hey, hey? Can you hear me?"
"Mm..."
"Calling Ahri, calling Ahri. There's a full bottle of Corrupting Potion up ahead."
"Oh..."
Ahri remained completely absorbed. Even her favorite Corrupting Potion couldn't get her attention.
Seeing this, Chen Ce grabbed her tail and gave it a shake.
Still no response.
He gave it a good rub... still nothing.
Her "symptoms" seemed much worse than before. Last time, he'd been able to get a normal conversation out of her after calling her a few times. Now she wasn't reacting like a normal person at all.
"You really have gone into a trance..." Chen Ce waved a hand in front of her face. "You haven't rested in ages, and you haven't had anything to eat or drink. Keep this up and you'll make yourself sick."
"..." Ahri silently tilted her head to avoid the hand blocking her view.
"Hey, hey, hey?" Chen Ce moved his hand in front of her again and kept waving it.
This time, Ahri didn't dodge.
She just...
Bit down on it.
"Hey...!" Chen Ce quickly pulled his hand away.
At the same time, he noticed the bloodshot veins in her eyes. She really had gone off the deep end. She looked like a net café regular who'd spent ten straight nights trying to climb from Iron to Bronze.
How could Ahri get bloodthirsty, too?
"You're really out of it..." Chen Ce rubbed his bitten palm, already thinking about what kind of measures he might have to take. "Let me ask you something. What's your name?"
"Mm..." Ahri glared at him, a low, threatening growl rumbling in her throat. She seemed to have guessed that he might try to take her Imero Stones.
She looked just like a dog guarding its food.
And guarding food was a very, very bad habit.
As her owner—no, her boss—Chen Ce had to correct it. The old folks back home always said that dogs who guarded their food needed discipline.
If he didn't stop her, she'd starve to death in bed clutching those Imero Stones.
"Give me the Imero Stones," Chen Ce ordered.
Ahri still didn't answer. She only kept making warning sounds, even baring her little fangs.
Seeing this, Chen Ce didn't hesitate any longer. He reached over and snatched them.
With the wind at his back, he was far faster than her.
In the blink of an eye, the Imero Stones were in his hands.
Ahri froze for a moment, then lunged at him with a ferocious snarl.
Fortunately, Chen Ce had been ready. His other hand had been inside his coat the whole time, waiting for this silly fox to pounce.
Pop~
A large, hard object went straight into Ahri's open mouth.
Then the liquid inside gushed out.
The fox girl's eyes flew wide. She tried to resist, but that strong hand held her wrist in an iron grip.
All she could do was make muffled "mmph, mmph" sounds as she was forced to swallow the rich-tasting liquid.
A moment later, the bottle was empty, and Chen Ce gradually let go.
"Cough, cough, cough..." Ahri choked and coughed several times.
But... she wasn't as angry anymore.
Or rather, she hadn't been angry to begin with. She'd simply been out of her mind, because her magic had been overloaded—and because of some... strange factors.
"You drank the whole bottle. I'm counting that as an advance on the next two days' wages, all right?" Chen Ce waved the empty bottle. He wasn't sure whether he felt worse for Ahri, who'd gone out of her mind, or for the Corrupting Potion.
"I... What was I doing just now...?" As she slowly came around, Ahri realized how wrong her behavior had been.
"You seemed to have gone a little crazy." Chen Ce showed her the Imero Stones, then immediately put them away in his pouch. "I'll hold onto these for now and give them back when you've fully recovered. Speaking of which, what did you see in those Imero Stones that made you act so strangely?"
"I... I..." Ahri stared into space for a while, then shook her head in pain. "I think I saw... a fox pack... Icefield Snow Foxes... the foxes that took me hunting... Then, before that... the person who left me alone in the icefields... that figure... was so blurry..."
As she spoke, Ahri squeezed her eyes shut and curled into a ball, as if she'd seen something terrifying.
"I want to see that figure clearly... but... I can't... Something is stopping me... It won't let me reach the truth, even though it's right in front of me... My head hurts..."
"If you can't remember, don't force it for now." Seeing how much pain she was in, Chen Ce hurriedly changed the subject. "Let's talk about what we're doing in the next few days... Things here are pretty much settled, and I've already sent the information to the Resistance Army. I'm planning to get back on the road."
"Travel... all right..." Ahri stayed curled up, leaning against the headboard like she was sick. "But... I feel so awful right now..."
"I can wait until you've rested before we leave. There's no rush yet, so don't worry."
"Th... thank you..."
Ahri slowly tucked her head into the crook of her arms, looking miserable.
Chen Ce wasn't in a hurry to plan their route just yet. He took a little time to straighten out the messy bed, then, as usual, drew an invisible line down the middle to mark their sides.
Ahri didn't tease him about "borrowing her tails as a blanket" tonight. She was in bad shape, and her mood was low.
Chen Ce said nothing more. He quietly blew out the candle on the table and lay down on his side of the bed.
"Get some rest."
"Mm..." Ahri replied weakly in the dark.
A moment later, she slowly lay down too.
"Um... Chen Ce, could you sleep a little closer to me tonight...? Like the fox pack does when it sleeps... Back then, we'd huddle together in the icefields to keep warm... It makes us feel safe..."
For once, she didn't call him "Boss." Her voice was tentative, with a hint of pleading in it, like a poor little snow fox abandoned by its pack and left to long for warmth in the icefields.
"Sure." Chen Ce didn't refuse. He moved half a body's width closer to the fox girl. Half his body was now over the dividing line.
"Is this okay?"
"Not quite..." Ahri still sounded meek, but now there was a hint of "greed" in her voice.
"All right." Chen Ce moved a little closer to her.
Before he could ask if that was enough, several fluffy tails suddenly wrapped around him.
Then his body began to slide sideways.
He didn't stop until he felt the girl's warm body.
After that, her other tails draped over them, wrapping them together like a soft blanket. They were all tucked in together.
A large part of their bodies was pressed against each other.
"Now... that's enough..."
Chapter 53: Irelia: He Must Be Thinking About Me, Right?
"Good morning, Boss~!"
The next morning, the moment Chen Ce opened his eyes, he found himself face-to-face with a flawless, beautiful face.
"Did you sleep well last night? Are you hungry? Do you want breakfast?" Ahri smiled, cheerful and sweet. She looked like a completely different person from the gloomy girl she'd been the night before.
"Mm... There are so many questions, I don't know which one to answer first..."
Chen Ce slowly pushed himself up and sat upright, then stretched comfortably.
"Then let's start with how you slept!" Ahri looked expectant.
"As for sleeping... it was really comfortable," Chen Ce replied honestly.
Ahri's tails were soft and fluffy. They kept him warm without making him overheat. No matter how expensive the bedding was, it couldn't compare to that.
Besides... since they'd slept pressed together the night before, he could smell Ahri's faint body fragrance, alluring without being vulgar. Its gentle sweetness had made it easy to sleep.
Before you continue