After leaving Jayce's weapons workshop, Luke and Vi said a brief goodbye.
Immediately afterward, he set out for Piltover's research building.
Once he arrived, someone quickly came out to receive him, and Luke was soon brought all the way to Navis's laboratory.
Ever since arranging for her to stay in this research building half a month ago, Luke had not asked much about matters here.
The main reason was that Navis was trustworthy. She would definitely handle everything properly.
"Your Highness."
After seeing Luke, Navis came forward to greet him.
Luke nodded slightly in acknowledgment and asked, "How is the development of the Secret Key going?"
"At present, we've made a breakthrough." Navis brought Luke to one area and picked up a mithril-colored substance. "We discovered a type of mineral. Although it doesn't have petricite's properties, it can carry magical energy very well."
"For now, this is our main research direction."
"Have you run into any trouble?" Luke asked.
"Not really." Navis shook her head.
"That's good." Luke noticed that the laboratory had already separated Dreamnet's base station with a wall of glass. After thinking for a moment, he asked, "How much longer do you estimate it will take?"
Navis thought for a bit, then answered, "If we want to reach the point where the Secret Key can be mass-produced, I estimate it will take at least more than a month."
Luke nodded.
A month was only the starting point. How long it would actually take still depended on the situation.
However, this matter was not especially urgent.
After briefly asking about the situation and confirming that Navis had not run into any problems, Luke said goodbye and left.
He walked slowly along the streets of Piltover, looking at the harmonious scenery around him, and realized that before he knew it, he had already been in Piltover for more than a month.
Thinking carefully about this past month, quite a lot had happened.
When he thought of how many things were still waiting to be done next, Luke could not help stretching his back. After letting out a long breath, he began strolling back at a leisurely pace.
When he returned to the training base, he happened to see Miss Crownguard taking out the photos she had prepared in the Secret Key for everyone to admire.
They were all pictures of Jinx crying.
"Look at this. Crying her eyes out."
"Her nose is all red."
"Even I feel bad seeing this."
She displayed the photos one after another in front of everyone, clicking her tongue as she spoke.
And of course, everyone else was curiously gathered around to watch.
At this moment, Jinx was already on the verge of breaking down. Her face was red, her eyes were full of anger, and her whole body was trembling with rage.
She knew it. This little blondie was up to no good!
Damn it!
Of all things, she had been caught on camera in her most helpless moment, creating the darkest piece of history imaginable.
"Delete them!"
Finally, Jinx could not hold back anymore. Like a tiger pouncing, she lunged straight at Lux.
Lux flashed away, dodging with remarkable agility, and said at the same time, "Deleting such good photos would be such a waste. You'd better not make any sudden moves. My hand might slip, and I might accidentally send them to everyone."
She stopped at an easy, unhurried pace.
Jinx froze in place as if someone had hit her off switch, glaring at Lux with both anger and frustration.
The corner of Lux's mouth curled up, and she said with deep meaning, "Jinx, you wouldn't want everyone to know about these photos, would you?"
Jinx remained silent.
Right now, she felt that even saying one more word might be a mistake.
Most importantly, half her heart had already gone cold.
Based on her understanding of this little blondie, Lux was absolutely the kind of person who would print the photos out and plaster them all over Piltover and Zaun.
She really was the worst!
Who had she learned such an obnoxious personality from?
"My back and waist are always sore these days, and I'm still missing someone to bring me drinks and snacks. It sure would be nice if someone could do that for me for free. Just three days would be enough."
Lux shut off the Secret Key with a flick and casually sat down on the sofa.
Hearing those words, Jinx's delicate body trembled faintly. Without saying a word, she came behind the sofa and stretched out her small hands to massage Lux.
From the look on her face as she bit her lower lip and endured humiliation for the greater good, Luke was certain that in three days, there would inevitably be a bloody storm.
However, it had nothing to do with him, so he stayed far away from the trouble.
He had absolutely no need to interfere in this dispute. It was not time for dinner yet, and he was too lazy to busy himself with anything.
So he lay down on a rocking chair, found a book, and began reading leisurely.
After dinner, Luke ran up to the rooftop to enjoy the night view for a while, until a cold wind finally blew him back inside.
As the sky gradually darkened, everyone also yawned and went to bed.
It felt like he had not been busy with anything, yet the day passed just like that.
In the blink of an eye, another half a month passed.
The time had already reached early December and was soon approaching the middle of the month. The weather was indeed becoming colder and colder.
Even in a place like Piltover, people on the streets had begun dressing more warmly.
After Jan'ahrem held three consecutive concerts in Zaun, the pace of their performances finally slowed down completely.
From now on, they would hold a concert once every half a month to a little over a month. Even so, the band's popularity had not decreased in the slightest.
They were still the hot topic of the twin cities, and also a good medicine for improving relations between the two cities.
At the very least, during this past half month, the divide between the two cities had become less obvious.
Although the estrangement still existed, that was unavoidable. After all, the two cities had been at odds for far too long. Now, time was needed to slowly resolve it.
Something worth mentioning was that under Jan'ahrem's influence, more and more bands appeared in the twin cities.
Many people with musical dreams formed bands and began street performances.
It was as though the wind stirred up by Jan'ahrem would continue blowing on.
At Luke's home.
The sunlight was quite nice today, so he was currently lying on a chair on the rooftop, basking in the sun.
A message came through the Secret Key in his hand. He glanced at it, replied with a couple of lines, then shut it off and lay there in peace.
The person who sent the message was Jarvan IV.
He said he had successfully met with the people from Piltover.
Today, the team that Piltover had sent to Demacia more than a month ago had successfully arrived at Demacia's capital.
This was indeed good news, because the alliance between the two sides had made new progress.
Next, they would begin establishing Hexgate base stations in Demacia.
The base station on Piltover's side had already been completed. All that remained were some follow-up tasks, which were not troublesome.
Once the base station in Demacia was completed, the Hexgates could officially be activated.
"Sigh."
At this moment, a soft sigh sounded beside Luke.
The elf goddess sat nearby with an unhappy expression, not standing on ceremony at all as she picked up the snacks Luke had placed on the table and started eating.
Luke opened his eyes and glanced at her, then said, "Where did that sigh come from?"
"Sigh."
Janna did not answer. She only sighed again, and even her pointed ears drooped a little.
"You're not expecting me to guess, are you?" Luke yawned, thought for a moment, and said, "My guess is that something is on your mind."
"Isn't that obvious?" Janna glanced at him. What else did you think I came here to sigh about?
Seeing that this guy was only humoring her and had no intention of actually guessing, she took the initiative and spoke.
"My number of believers hasn't been rising much lately. It feels like I've hit a threshold."
When she said this, she looked worried.
After listening, Luke could not help saying, "There's a threshold for this kind of thing?"
"Of course there is." Janna nodded and said, "Even gods have different levels. Some gods spend their whole lives with only that handful of believers, and in the end, when their believers disappear, they fade away with them."
Hearing this, Luke asked curiously, "Have you ever seen a god like that?"
Janna shook her head. "No."
Luke said, "Then where did that logic come from?"
Janna glanced at him. "I analyzed it myself. Got a problem with that?"
"No problem." Luke gave her a look that said, "please continue," and kept quiet.
"In short, that's the general idea. But I'm different from those minor gods, so why would I run into this problem too?"
Janna sounded troubled.
Luke thought for a moment, then asked, "Is it possible that the number of people in Piltover and Zaun has already reached its limit?"
"That's impossible," Janna said. "Although my number of fans… believers has indeed risen quite a bit during this period, never mind anything else, it's still a little worse than Va-Zaun back then."
This woman had nearly called her believers fans, but Luke did not cling to that detail.
He considered it and said, "Maybe you haven't hit a threshold. Maybe using the band as a marketing method just isn't effective anymore."
Jan'ahrem had indeed become wildly popular in Piltover and Zaun, and the band's name was also Janna's former name.
But in the end, they were not Janna herself. They were a band made up of five girls.
Naturally, most fans came for the band. Even if they learned through the band's promotion that such a deity existed, compared to the band, they were clearly more likely to ignore the latter.
"Sigh."
At this point, Janna sighed again, looking downcast as she ate snacks.
Although she looked like she was in a bad mood, her speed at eating snacks had not slowed down in the slightest.
Luke said, "I think you should be content. After all, you have a decent number of fans now, and it's not like you'll fade away on the spot."
Janna emphasized, "Believers."
"You almost blurted out fans yourself just now."
"…"
Janna could not refute him. She had not expected this guy to hear it. She said, "It's not that I'm not content. You're right. The band has already solved my predicament. At least I no longer have to worry about going to sleep and not seeing tomorrow's sun."
She perked up a little. Her pointed ears also stood up again, as though she had regained her spirits.
And so, her eating speed became even faster.
Chips, cookies, sunflower seeds, nuts, it did not matter what they were. She opened her little mouth and tossed them in, eating with great enjoyment.
As for this foodie elf occasionally running over to mooch snacks, Luke had long since gotten used to it.
It was almost dusk now, and the sunlight was no longer as strong as in the afternoon.
So he simply turned over, faced the other side, yawned, and closed his eyes, planning to take a short nap.
A cool breeze blew over. Janna casually waved her hand, and the cool breeze turned a corner and went elsewhere.
She continued eating snacks by herself, seemingly enjoying this leisurely moment.
Late at night.
Zaun.
In the Gray Lanes of the Undercity, compared to the bustle and noise of the Promenade, the alleys entrenched throughout the city seemed very quiet.
During the day, it was still all right, but at night, not many people walked into these alleys.
For some unknown reason, fog usually lingered here, and once night arrived, it became even hazier. Sometimes it was difficult to even make out the path.
The people of Zaun called this fog the gray haze, and they had long since become used to it.
Unlike usual, at this moment, a young girl had stepped into the alley.
She held something in her arms, walking hurriedly while looking left and right with great caution. Every movement seemed especially tense.
In her heart, she kept repeating words to encourage herself while praying that she would not run into anyone she should not.
However, things often went against one's wishes.
Not long after she entered the alley, two figures suddenly walked out from the gray haze.
They blocked the girl's path. The girl was frightened into stopping.
They were clearly two gang members. They looked as if they had just taken something, with expressions both pleased and blissful, and their steps were incredibly unsteady.
Clearly, they had taken some drugs.
"Well, well. Look what we ran into in the Gray Lanes."
One of them, a man with dyed yellow hair, spoke while lifting the dagger in his hand and approaching the girl.
The girl was so frightened that she backed away step by step, until she had nowhere left to go and leaned against the wall.
"A new face. Looks like a nice girl from a decent home." The yellow-haired man sized the girl up, then raised his dagger and slowly slid it from her shoulder down to her chest. "What treasure are you holding there? Mind letting me take a look?"
As he spoke, he did not wait for the girl's agreement. He directly hooked open the cloth bag in her hands, and when he saw several bottles of purple medicine inside, his eyes turned dangerous.
"Shimmer?"
Hearing that word, his black-haired companion also walked over.
The yellow-haired man smiled happily, but quickly withdrew his smile. "Don't tell me you don't know Shimmer is contraband now. If you're secretly selling it, the price you pay won't be small."
Tears spilled from the girl's eyes, and she sobbed, "I didn't know… Someone… told me to deliver this bag somewhere, and then I'd get some money. I really didn't know this was Shimmer. Please let me go."
"Letting you go is easy. We're not bad people." The yellow-haired man smiled again and took the Shimmer from the girl's hands. "But this will have to come with us."
The girl did not dare resist at all. She nodded weakly, two lines of tears hanging on her delicate face.
That fragile, pitiful appearance made the black-haired man beside them stare.
He nudged his companion beside him and said with a lewd grin, "A girl like this doesn't usually walk into a place like this. Isn't it a little too much of a waste to just let her go?"
"Are you crazy? You still want to cause trouble right now?" The yellow-haired man frowned. Although he had taken too much, his mind was still fairly clear.
But the black-haired man was already having a hard time holding himself back. He said again, "How long has it been since you got any? This is the Gray Lanes. We'll find somewhere hidden, and nobody will know. I'll let you go first this time."
Hearing this, the yellow-haired man fell into hesitation. His gaze landed on the girl's face again. Seeing her startled and terrified eyes, like a frightened deer, he felt his lower body begin to stir as well.
Then his gaze gradually turned dangerous too.
"Sweetheart, smuggling Shimmer is no small problem. You made such a big mistake, and we're helping you cover it up. So giving us a simple thank-you shouldn't be a problem, right?"
He reached out and grabbed the girl's arm, ignoring her resistance.
"The Gray Lanes aren't somewhere someone like you should come. After today, I hope you understand that."
He roughly restrained the girl, and together with his black-haired companion, he prepared to take her away.
At this moment, the girl's eyes were already filled with despair, and tears kept spilling from them.
If she had known this would happen, she would never have taken this risk for her mother's medical bills.
In front of these two men, she had no room to resist at all.
She was being dragged step by step toward the abyss of despair.
"We agreed, I get to go first."
"Don't worry. I'll keep watch for you. Once you're done, we'll switch."
"Fine. She's struggling so much. Should we feed her some drugs?"
"That works too. There usually aren't many people in that alley up ahead. Let's do it there."
The yellow-haired man and black-haired man were already exchanging words in anticipation.
Just then.
In the gray haze, a pair of scarlet eyes suddenly lit up.
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