Forty: The Noxians

To keep Irelia from getting bored, Li Ke kept telling her stories as the carriage raced along.

Irelia was captivated by the Journey to the West story he told her, while Shen showed little interest.

Li Ke didn't know what to say. The Journey to the West he'd told Irelia was the original, not that version with Saitama.

But Shen wasn't interested in the slightest.

"What a boring story! Stories that deliberately test people's hearts are the most boring kind."

That was Shen's assessment.

Irelia didn't mind. At this point, even if Li Ke merely said the clouds were pretty, she'd find it interesting.

And so he wouldn't fall behind the fighting like he had in his other simulations, Li Ke had reluctantly fed one Kinkou Secret Medicine pill to each of the two horses pulling the carriage. It gave them enough energy to run all day.

Shen didn't know what to say when he saw that.

The ingredients for the pills were common, though a few were expensive. But he knew Li Ke's financial situation.

One word.

Poor.

Two words.

Hard up.

Three words.

Broke as hell.

Four words.

Dirt poor.

So he couldn't help being surprised by Li Ke's generosity. After all, once he ran out of pills, if he wanted to get more, Li Ke would have to either work to earn money for the ingredients or go gather them himself.

And as for the money Meimu had promised?

It still hadn't come through!

That made him believe Li Ke all the more when he said there were Noxians in the town ahead.

As for food for Irelia and Shen, Li Ke had prepared some before they set off: osmanthus cakes, choice cooked beef, and pancakes.

Irelia wasn't picky, and Shen was the sort who could keep going on dirt and water alone while carrying out a mission. They could manage if they just held out.

But that left Lito, who was following behind, in a tough spot.

When he rode after them, all he had was half a fried dough stick in his mouth. His horse was a fine one, but he couldn't afford to feed it Secret Medicine. In truth, he'd just left in such a hurry that he hadn't brought any.

So all he could do was keep riding and stopping along the way. When he finally caught up, his horse was out of strength. He could only listen helplessly to his daughter's laughter and let the horse stop to rest.

And he wasn't in quite such a hurry anymore, either. Since his daughter could laugh, that proved she hadn't been hurt. So it was probably something else, and he could relax...

Like hell he could!

Lito's blood pressure kept climbing.

His daughter had been abducted by some strange man!!

And the girl wasn't resisting at all. She even looked kind of happy?

If he'd had another horse with him—instead of bringing just one—and hadn't left his money behind, he would've made that fellow up ahead, who didn't know the first thing about caring for a horse, understand a father's fury!

You (Ionian curse) dare lay a hand on my daughter?!

I (Ionian curse)!

You hear me? I (Ionian curse)!!

If I don't (Ionian curse) you today, then I'll (Ionian curse)!!!

Lito's thirst for blood was growing!

The journey passed without incident. Li Ke and Irelia hurried onward for the whole day, stopping only to get out of the carriage to relieve themselves and to restock their food. Otherwise, Li Ke kept pushing ahead as quickly as he could to make sure he arrived in time.

To his relief, he arrived in time.

In a chilly village, smoke curled from the chimneys, but there was no sound of children playing in the streets or old folks chatting.

There was only deathly silence, and a chill that seemed to seep into the skin.

A young man in a linen cloak carried a bowl of meat soup into the village's largest and most luxurious house. There, he saw an Ionian woman standing nervously to one side, serving her superior. She was the daughter of the village chief.

And the village chief?

The young man glanced at the corpse on the ground and couldn't help baring a savage grin.

They'd done a decent job. They'd used themselves as bait, hoping to poison them all.

But unfortunately, the chief hadn't wanted to see his grandson poisoned, and that had given them away.

He set the meat soup on the table, saluted the scarred captain, then smiled as he reported to him.

"Sir, I watched them make this soup myself, and I had their children taste it, too."

The captain nodded. He picked up the bowl, served himself some meat soup, and drank while enjoying the woman's attentions.

Perhaps he was savoring the soup, or perhaps the woman's attentions. He closed his eyes in contentment and let out a long sigh.

"Ah, Ionia. The people here are so much easier to conquer than the people of Shurima. You only have to use a few little tricks, and they'll obey like dogs."

He gently stroked the woman's hair. As she trembled despite herself, the scarred captain burst out laughing.

He'd killed her husband and her father, but for her son's sake, she still had to kneel on the ground and serve him like a bitch.

That feeling was exactly what drove him to keep climbing the ranks in Noxus.

There was nothing quite like having control over someone else's fate.

"Exactly, Captain. Compared with those arrogant but hopelessly divided Shurimans, these Ionians were born to be disciplined by us. They're not even worthy of being Noxians."

He played along with his captain, but deep down, he agreed.

If they were Shurimans, after you killed their husband and father, the women would step forward and fight you to the death.

If you killed one of her children, she'd come for you herself and cut off your head—or bear ten children who would kill you.

Compared with those desert folk who lived in the sands, the Ionians were as gentle as sheep.

"You're wrong. They're sheep, not people."

As he stroked the woman's hair and felt her hatred, trembling, and fear, he grew even more satisfied.

It was a satisfaction of the mind, something nothing else could give him.

"Does this village have enough meat for us to make it back?"

He opened his eyes and looked at his subordinate. They'd come to steal a relic, gather intelligence, and draw a map. Now that they'd completed all their tasks, it was time to return.

Of course, on their way back, they'd be gentle and kind Noxians. So they couldn't do anything like what they'd done today.

"Not quite. This village is known for its crops, so..."

The deputy looked troubled, and the captain scoffed.

"Then do what we did in Shurima! Didn't I tell you?"

The captain grabbed the woman by the hair. Seeing the terror in her eyes, he spoke with satisfaction.

"They're not people. They're sheep."