Annie being called the Dark Child was proof enough of how extraordinary she was.
Aside from the Dark Child, she had another title, the Daughter of Flame.
If Lux was a born light mage, then Annie was a born fire mage.
Both of them were peerless talents, the kind seen once in a million.
And when Luke saw her, he really did feel some compassion.
Not only because of Annie's background, but also because of her talent.
Right now, she was like an uncut gem still being shaped.
Without her parents' guidance, living in a place like Noxus, she would naturally end up completely influenced by Noxus in the future.
Luke believed that before this, no small number of people had already died at Tibbers's hands.
Annie's understanding of life and death was growing blurry, and so was her sense of good and evil.
This little girl had clearly already experienced far too many things no child her age should have gone through.
With her talent, leaving her in Noxus would be far too much of a waste.
Luke hoped that, at the very least, he could guide her toward the right path.
Night fell. The hazy darkness scattered a thin layer of moonlight over the earth, tinting it with a pale white glow.
The weather tonight was fairly cool. Perhaps because summer was already nearing its end, sitting in the woods, one could feel a breeze drifting in from every direction, refreshing and pleasant.
Luke brought Annie with him, planning to return and regroup with the Demacian army. But by now, it was already late, and Annie was still a child. As they walked into the night, she gradually began to grow sleepy.
They had been chatting just fine, but suddenly her replies came only now and then, and her head kept nodding, bobbing up and down.
"Then let's rest here for now. We'll keep going once you wake up."
Luke looked around at their surroundings and asked, "Annie, how do you usually get through nights like this?"
Annie's little face looked sleepy. She yawned and hugged her teddy bear. "When it snows, tree hollows are really warm. Annie can crawl inside and sleep. Sometimes nice grown-ups let Annie sleep in a clean bed, and after the sun comes up, Annie leaves by herself. When Annie is hungry, Tibbers catches yummy things for me."
Because of certain experiences, she did not really like "dealing" with people.
Most of the time, she went wherever she wanted, alone.
Though if she was with Tibbers, that did not really count as being alone.
At times like this, when she got sleepy, she would find a clean tree hollow to sleep in. When she got hungry, she would trade money for food. Naturally, she would not let herself starve.
As for the kind adults who took her in, after leaving at daybreak, she would leave them some money as thanks.
That was what her father had taught her. When others helped her, she should give them something in return.
As for those who had bad intentions, Tibbers would come out and eat them.
As Luke listened to Annie talk, he bent down and picked up firewood, planning to build a campfire. In his heart, he also gained some understanding of how she had been living all this time.
Basically, it was no different from wandering.
Unless he was mistaken, the clothes she was wearing were still the same set she had worn when she left her "home." So much time had passed. No wonder they looked like they no longer fit.
Seeing Luke start picking up firewood, Annie was no longer as sleepy. She stood up and helped him gather some too.
With the two of them working together, the wood was soon piled up, and Luke began building the structure.
Just as he crouched down and focused on it, Annie hugged her teddy bear and crouched beside him, her big eyes staring at Luke's face with curiosity and confusion.
She seemed not to understand why, as they walked, Luke's face had suddenly become even better-looking.
Right now, he looked just like the princes in stories.
She blinked, finding it very new.
But he looked even nicer like this, and she liked it especially much.
Luke finished setting up the frame and said to himself, "Next, all we need to do is light it."
Hearing that, Annie raised her little hand and eagerly volunteered. "Annie can help."
Luke looked at her and pretended not to know. "How?"
Annie immediately perked up. A smile appeared on her face, and with a wave of her small hand, a wave of flame flickered out.
The next second, the arranged campfire burst alight with a whoosh.
After doing all this, she looked toward Luke with an expression that was clearly waiting for praise.
"That was amazing."
Luke praised her without holding back and smiled. "You really helped me out."
In his heart, he did think that move was truly remarkable.
Luke could now be considered a half-beginner mage, so he still knew a bit about magic.
Generally speaking, casting magic required the guidance of mana.
There were many ways to guide mana. Some used incantations, some used runes, and some used hand signs. These were the standard methods for most mages.
But Annie could do it with a casual wave.
And the only other person he knew who could do something like this was Lux.
Annie's little face filled with a proud smile as she showed off. "Annie is never afraid of the cold."
"Annie really is amazing."
Luke reached out and affectionately patted her head.
Annie was not a girl who feared strangers, and she did not seem to resist it. Her clean little face kept carrying a sweet smile.
At this moment, the campfire drove away the surrounding darkness. It seemed to negotiate with the night, carving out a small territory that covered the two people sitting nearby.
A child's mood could change just as quickly as that.
One second, Annie was still very happy. The next, she suddenly looked at Luke with a resentful little gaze.
Luke asked in confusion, "What's wrong?"
"Milk."
Annie puffed out her cheeks, a little unhappy.
After walking so far today, she had finally gotten to drink the milk she had been longing for and had even ordered two cups on purpose.
In the end, she had only drunk half a cup, and the rest was gone.
Luke had clearly promised to make it up to her, but now he had not reacted at all.
"Sorry, I really did forget." Luke laughed despite himself and stood up. After thinking for a moment, he said, "It won't be easy to find milk for you right now, but if you're hungry, I can make it up to you with something tasty."
Annie hesitated, then nodded. "Fine."
"Then wait here for a bit. Don't run off. I'll be right back."
After seeing Annie nod again, Luke turned, chose a direction, and quickly left.
Naturally, he was not worried about Annie's safety, because he knew the teddy bear she had been holding this entire time was really not to be trifled with.
After he left, only Annie remained.
She stared at the swaying campfire for a while. Once Luke had been gone for some time, that familiar loneliness returned again.
The surroundings were quiet. The campfire crackled and popped, and everything around it was wrapped in darkness.
Annie had no idea how many nights like this she had spent alone.
She looked in the direction Luke had left, lifted up her teddy bear, and stared into its eyes. "Do you think he'll come back?"
The teddy bear did not respond, like a dead object. Annie talked to herself. "If he doesn't come back, Annie will be alone again."
She had always been alone, so she did not think it was anything special.
It was just that it had not been easy to meet such an interesting person like Luke.
After thinking about it, she felt that Luke would definitely come back.
So she spoke to the teddy bear again. "Tibbers, what do you think of him?"
It seemed as if the teddy bear answered something, and Annie frowned slightly. "How can you say that? He has such a pretty smile. His eyes are like stars. Annie has never seen anyone with eyes that pretty."
Very soon, her frown deepened.
"Those three bad guys wanted Annie's money, so that's why he stepped in. You were supposed to eat them, so are you jealous of him?"
Annie put on a serious little face and looked sternly at the teddy bear. "Tibbers, you're a teddy bear. You can't be that jealous."
For some reason, the teddy bear's face looked a little speechless right then.
Then Annie showed a puzzled look again. "Why do you want Annie to leave?"
The teddy bear said nothing.
It was as if it were asking, "Do you trust him, or do you trust me?"
Seeing this, Annie lowered her head and sighed. "Fine. I'll listen to you."
Tibbers was the gift her mother had given her. There was only one thing in this world that would never hurt her, and that was Tibbers.
So in this world, Annie would only trust Tibbers.
Before long, Luke returned, bringing back the prey he had hunted.
Two Silverhorn Rabbits. Their special trait was that their silver feet could glow under the moonlight, making them easy to spot, though they were also difficult to catch.
But for Luke, that naturally was not a problem. These two rabbits were quite large, enough for the two of them to eat.
"Give me a moment. I'll prepare them, and they'll be ready soon."
Luke began making the preparations for roasting them. At a time like this, roast rabbit was clearly both delicious and convenient.
As he crouched down and started working, Annie lowered her head, then still spoke. "Mister, Annie is going to leave."
"Hm?" Luke was confused. He turned his head and asked, "Why?"
Annie hugged her teddy bear and could not give a reason. "Because… because…"
She could not exactly say that Tibbers had told her to leave. In her eyes, Luke was clearly a good person, but Tibbers wanted her to stay away from him.
So she could only do as Tibbers said.
"Anyway, Annie can't tag along with you anymore. Sorry."
Annie lowered her head, never daring to look up at Luke.
"It's all right." Luke glanced at the teddy bear, smiled, and did not mind. "In that case, let's part after filling our stomachs. I still haven't made it up to you, after all."
"Okay."
Annie nodded, but she did not look happy.
However, very soon, she was drawn in by a wave of aroma drifting into her nose.
She looked up and saw Luke setting two cleaned rabbits over the campfire to roast. Golden oil bubbled on the meat, and the fragrance kept drifting over.
This immediately stirred Annie's appetite. It had been a long time since she had smelled anything this good.
After a while, the two roasted rabbits were nearly done.
Luke removed them from the fire, checked them, and after making sure there were no problems, handed one skewer to Annie. "It's still hot. You can wait for it to cool down a little before eating."
"Mm-hm."
Annie took it eagerly, her big, shining eyes already fixed on the roasted rabbit in her hands without blinking.
But she listened to Luke and patiently waited.
Only after she saw him take the first bite and then say, "You can eat now," did she impatiently open her mouth and take a big bite.
In an instant, the rich aroma of meat burst through her mouth, and Annie immediately understood what happiness was.
It was too delicious. At her age, she could not use many words to describe just how good it was, but in any case, it was especially delicious.
Annie had never eaten anything this tasty before. She ate with total focus, completely absorbed.
Although Annie looked tiny, once she started eating, she made Luke think of a certain little blonde.
One of them was in Demacia, and the other was in Noxus, yet their eating habits could be this similar.
Most importantly, their appetites!
One Silverhorn Rabbit was enough for Luke, but in Annie's hands, it actually failed to last fifteen minutes.
One had to remember how young she was. She was as small as a little figurine, yet she could somehow eat that much.
Very soon, one roasted rabbit had been eaten down to only bones by her little mouth. After eating her fill, Annie held her round, bulging belly and happily burped.
Luke handed her some water and smiled. "Is this enough to make up for your milk?"
"Enough!" Annie nodded repeatedly, blinking her big eyes curiously. "The food Annie ate before was also roasted with fire. Why wasn't it this tasty?"
Most of the time, when she solved the problem of hunger, Tibbers would catch prey for her, and then she would roast it with fire until it was cooked.
Luke had done the same thing.
But the difference in flavor between the two was like heaven and earth.
After eating this roasted rabbit, she had completely forgotten what the meat she had eaten before even tasted like.
"Because this is what I'm good at. I won't brag about anything else, but when it comes to tasty food, I'm pretty skilled. So? I wasn't lying, was I? Stick with me, and I guarantee you'll eat well. Want to reconsider?"
Right now, Luke looked like an angler who had cast out his hook, waiting for the greedy little fish to bite.
A child's resistance to good food was basically zero.
Especially after tasting it once, Annie basically believed Luke's words completely.
Because even if she ate roasted rabbit like this every day, Annie would be willing.
She immediately wanted to follow Luke again. Her little eyes sparkled, and she was clearly very tempted.
But after thinking it over, she still lowered her head. "Still no… sorry."
"You haven't done anything wrong to me, so why apologize?"
Luke smiled and said, "The fact that we met is a kind of fate. Sit here for a while before you go."
"Fate?"
Annie gave him a confused look, somewhat puzzled.
"It means that in this huge world, there are all kinds of people, and every person has their own story. We're the same. And among the countless stories in this world, the fact that the two of us could meet is a kind of fate."
Luke explained with a smile.
Annie seemed to understand, yet not quite. But after listening to Luke, she felt that meeting him really had been something wonderfully strange.
She asked, "Annie has seen lots of people before. Was that fate too?"
"Why wouldn't it be? That kind is called a chance encounter."
Luke still wore a gentle smile as he said, "Do you know how big this world is?"
Annie shook her head, her big eyes filled with curiosity.
"Very, very big. If we tried to walk across it with our own two feet, we might not finish even in our whole lives."
Luke spread his hands to describe it, then said, "And in this world, some people will never meet each other even once in their entire lives. As for your past, your present, and your future, you'll meet all kinds of people. Some will only be chance encounters, and after that, you'll never be fated to see them again. But some people will have a longer fate waiting for you. So when Annie meets certain fates in the future, she needs to know how to cherish them."
As he spoke, he smiled and reached out to pat Annie's head.
Annie still seemed to half understand, but as she listened to Luke, her eyes filled with yearning.
She thought it was very magical, but then she said a little unhappily, "Will you and Annie only be a chance encounter too?"
"For now, I suppose so. But the fate between us might be a little more than that, because we met, got to know each other, and talked."
Luke said softly, "Maybe one day in the future, we'll meet again. But that will be a matter for the future. Only the present is always held in your own hands."
Annie nodded and said nothing more.
She suddenly thought that her fate with Luke might end here. In the future, she might never see him again, and she might never eat meat this tasty again. For no reason, a wave of loss rose in her heart.
Tibbers had told her to leave, so she could only leave.
Since she was about to go, Annie's mood became even more dejected.
Before she knew it, another wave of sleepiness swept over her, as if continuing from the drowsiness earlier, causing her to yawn again and again.
Seeing this, Luke said, "If you're sleepy, sleep first. It won't be too late to part after you wake up."
Annie thought that made sense. Maybe this way, she could stay here a little longer.
For some reason, the warmth given off by tonight's campfire felt especially comforting.
She really was extremely sleepy, so she mumbled, "Then Annie will sleep for a little while…"
As she spoke, her body toppled over.
Luke gently caught her, spread out a blanket with one hand, and then placed Annie on it. Afterward, he looked at her peaceful little face as she slept.
She slept very sweetly, as if she had quickly entered a beautiful dream. Her breathing was even, and the corners of her mouth were lifted. She was incredibly adorable.
In her arms, she still held the teddy bear tightly, as if she did not want to be separated from it even while sleeping.
For Annie, Tibbers was a taboo.
Those who wanted to take Tibbers away from her always met bad ends.
It had nothing to do with whether they were good or bad.
However, for Luke, he had to separate her from this teddy bear for a while.
Seeing that Annie was fast asleep, Luke did not wait. He directly reached out and placed his hand on the teddy bear.
In an instant, he felt a tremendous heat surge into his hand. He narrowed his eyes slightly, and the look in them turned a little colder.
The heat quickly dispersed. The teddy bear returned to normal, while Annie remained asleep, showing no sign of waking.
Luke applied force and removed the teddy bear from her arms.
Then he calmly sat to the side, looked at the teddy bear, and smiled. "Are you wondering why you couldn't wake Annie?"
Sure enough, the teddy bear's button-like eyes showed a hint of surprise.
"Don't worry. I only gave her a bit of sleep aid. It's harmless to the body. You've protected her very well, but you don't seem to care much about whether she's exhausted, or whether she's ever had a good night's sleep."
Luke talked to a speechless teddy bear as if speaking to himself. After finishing, he waited for its response.
Tibbers still did not react, looking truly like a dead object.
Seeing this, Luke put away his smile and said, "I'll give you one last chance. Come out and talk to me now."
The next second, the teddy bear suddenly moved, and another wave of heat poured out.
Luke placed it on the ground. The teddy bear suddenly sat up from the ground, and countless flames burst from its entire body. Immediately after, it projected a much larger bear-shaped figure of fire.
The flames burned into the outline of a giant bear, its shoulders broad and thick. But its center was transparent, and only the raging flames burning across its body could be seen.
With its appearance, the surrounding heat instantly increased considerably.
Tibbers's eyes revealed vigilance as he stared at Luke. "What exactly are you?"
Seeing Tibbers reveal his true form, Luke did not panic. He said very calmly, "Answer my question first. Were you the one who interfered and made Annie leave?"
"Is this the attitude you use when speaking to me? You're only a human brat. Don't get too arrogant!"
The flames around Tibbers suddenly surged even more violently. His body abruptly doubled in size, burning with roaring waves of fire like some terrifying existence. His face became savage as he let out a furious roar at Luke.
Even with all that commotion, Annie still did not wake. She only turned over, then continued sleeping sweetly.
Tibbers maintained that form, but he did not attack Luke. Suddenly, there was a hint of awkwardness.
For so long, Annie had never had a good night's sleep, and Luke had given her some medicine to help her sleep. Once she slept like this, she naturally would not wake easily.
Looking at Tibbers pretending to be furious, Luke showed no reaction. He raised his head and revealed a cold smile. "Stop trying to scare me with bluffs. Without her as your medium, I'd actually like to see just how much strength you can use, Tybaulk."
The moment those words fell, Tibbers's eyes instantly released unbelievable terror.
At this moment, he really panicked a little.
Who the hell was this guy?
He had actually revealed his true name at once. One had to know that, nowadays, the people who knew his true name could be counted on one hand.
And Tibbers could guarantee that this human in front of him was absolutely not one of them.
From the very beginning, when he sensed Luke, Tibbers had already realized that this human was far from simple.
Because Tibbers discovered that two sources of great demon power were actually lodged within his body. Great demons were existences at least on the same level as him, and might even be a bit stronger than him.
Yet inside this human's body, there were two of them.
And they were sources!
One had to know that a demon's power was also divided into source power and non-source power.
It was like a vessel. Source power was the vessel itself, and it determined how much non-source power could be held.
The power inside the vessel could be consumed freely, and naturally, it could also recover.
But source power was different. That was something a demon accumulated through long years of hard work. Losing even a little was a huge loss.
After all, once the vessel became smaller, how easy could it be to make it larger again?
And inside the body of this brat before him, there were two sources!
This was enough to prove that he had taken part of the source power from each of those two demons.
Aside from that, Tibbers could also sense an extremely dangerous energy. This energy felt very familiar to him, a little like a World Rune.
Inside a human body, there bizarrely existed three kinds of power like this.
These reasons alone were enough for him to judge that he should not get close to this guy.
It was precisely because of this that he had kept urging Annie to leave Luke as soon as possible.
The bigger reason was that he was afraid this man would discover what made him special.
However, judging from how Luke looked now, not only had he discovered it, it seemed more like he had known from the start.
Only now, after Annie fell asleep, had he laid his cards on the table.
With his true name exposed by a single sentence, Tibbers was panicking.
And what Luke said was indeed correct. If he could not act through Annie, then he could not use much of his power at all.
What he did earlier had indeed just been a bluff.
Most importantly, even if it had not been, he would not actually attack the moment they disagreed.
After all, the Luke before him was far too mysterious.
If he attacked rashly and turned out not to be Luke's match, would that not be extremely awkward?
"As you can see, I am a demon hunter. My hobby is taking source power from demons of your level."
As Luke spoke, he released the powers of Evelynn and Nocturne within his body.
When the auras of two great demons surged out and Tibbers personally felt them, he had no more doubts.
There was no question that both demon auras were extremely powerful.
That meant their true bodies were absolutely no weaker than he had been at his peak.
So now, he was even more panicked.
Because was he not exactly Luke's target?
"My duty has always been to protect her. I haven't deliberately harmed humans in a very long time. Besides, there's no grudge between us. There's no need for this, is there?"
He stared at Luke, fully on guard.
But his tone was indeed an indirect admission of defeat.
Seeing that the other party had already been frightened quite badly before he had even done much, Luke thought that people did say some bears were timid. It seemed that was true after all.
Luke withdrew the demon power and smiled. "I already said it was a hobby. Just because you have no grudge against humans, does that mean you won't hurt them? But don't worry. For now, I don't intend to take your share."
He really did not want another demon's power inside him.
Everything he was saying and doing now was based on certain things he knew and certain deductions he had made. Half of it was bluffing, and half of it was intimidation.
Now, he had basically gotten the truth out.
The Tibbers before him had not recovered his strength.
As for Tibbers, Luke still knew some information about him.
He was known as a fire demon, and his true name was Tybaulk.
He was likewise a powerful demon who had survived for centuries, and in Noxus, he had once served that name regarded as taboo by countless people.
Only later, that taboo existence had been sealed, and Tybaulk had been sealed along with him.
Afterward, through a twist of fate, he encountered Annie's mother.
Now it could be seen that Tybaulk's power had been damaged and had not yet recovered.
Otherwise, he would not be this wary of Luke, and this was exactly the effect Luke wanted.
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