"Did you have to wait until I got beaten up to speak?"
Ziggs spoke with a wronged, tearful face. Heimerdinger stroked his beard and chuckled, "My mistake, I forgot to report back before returning!"
"Alright, Duke, let him go. He's just a child who cares deeply for his hometown!"
"How old are you?"
Duke put away his weapon and casually asked, Ziggs puffed out his chest, "I'm only one hundred and eighty-two years old, and still a spirited, handsome young man?!"
"Only one hundred and eighty-two years old, and 'only'?" Duke shook his head helplessly, "Long-lived species are truly unreasonable!"
"Alright, now that the misunderstanding is cleared, let's not all have long faces!" Heimerdinger carefully walked past the range of Ziggs' E ability and came to his side, looking at his neatly packed bag, "Young man, are you planning an adventure?"
"He was rejected!"
A clear and vibrant voice came from behind Ziggs. Tristana, with purple skin and large ears, arrived in front of everyone, panting. As soon as she appeared, she teased Heimerdinger, "You finally decided to come back, I thought you had forgotten your old home!"
"Scientific research is always so captivating, you understand, Tristana!"
Heimerdinger showed no offense at Tristana's teasing. He was also examining Ziggs' bag, which was full of explosion-related items.
"Hmm, what an ingenious design. Did you make this, young man?"
"That's right, this is part of my great research. Next, I'm going to find a new place, a place that can accept my ideas, and resume my research to show these short-sighted guys who is right!"
"The guy who blew up the public toilet has no right to say that!"
Lulu, wearing a Witch's pointed hat, holding a staff as tall as herself, and surrounded by pixies, spoke at the opportune moment. Ziggs' ears drooped, "I just thought those toilets needed redecorating!"
"That's no excuse for you to randomly destroy public facilities, Ziggs!"
Tristana patted Ziggs' shoulder. Duke observed the small figures with interest, while Jayce and Viktor stood far away, curiously observing the surrounding scenery.
"You said you wanted to find a new place to continue your research?" Heimerdinger clapped his hands, his eyes filled with astonishment. This was a creative young man; he hadn't seen such a young Yordle in a long time.
"That's right!"
Ziggs puffed out his chest, but quickly deflated, "But I didn't even know where to go before I got beaten up!"
"Come to Piltover!" Heimerdinger invited Ziggs, "Piltover is the City of Progress, capable of accommodating all sorts of novel ideas, no matter how absurd, we will accept them!"
"Heimerdinger, I advise you to reconsider!"
Tristana's eyes held a cautionary light, but Heimerdinger waved his hand, "No need to reconsider. What's your opinion, young man!"
"Can it really accommodate any idea?"
"Of course!"
"Then I'll go!"
Ziggs excitedly packed his bags, "Shall we leave now?"
"No, wait a moment. I'm taking these young people to the museum to show them the horror and danger of magic!"
"Oh wow, looks like someone's going to class!"
Lulu, leaning on her staff, sized up Duke and the other two. Duke noticed her gaze and smiled kindly.
"Since you're going to the museum, remember to report back later!"
"No problem, girls!"
After Heimerdinger readily agreed, he looked at Duke and the other two, "Alright, children, let's speed up. Time is limited; we must finish this lesson before Bandle City harms you!"
"Of course, Duke, you're an exception. Your magic talent needs to awaken, and you must be bathed in a place rich in arcane energy. This place is perfect for you!"
"I feel…" Duke swallowed, forcing a smile, "…great!"
"I know what magic awakening feels like, but it'll be fine once you get through it. I'm really looking forward to the substance of your magic talent!"
Heimerdinger, shaking his head, led the three away from the Bottom Path and began heading towards Bandle City. As for Ziggs, he chose not to follow; he had been disliked enough in Bandle City, so he might as well wait here. Anyway, time passes quickly.
As for Tristana and Lulu, they needed to keep an eye on Ziggs to prevent him from getting restless and causing trouble!
The group of four slowly descended along the tree trunk of the Bottom Path. Below, clouds were gathering, and the giant tree was rooted within the clouds.
Within the clouds, there were Water waves formed by arcane energy, separating the Bottom Path from Bandle City.
"Professor, why is this place called the Bottom Path?" Viktor leaned on his cane, looking at the giant tree behind him, and asked his question. Heimerdinger smiled, "Because it really is the bottom!"
Heimerdinger, taking the three curious youngsters into the clouds, disappeared into the Bottom Path. Duke and the other two felt as if they were rapidly surfacing from underwater. After a period of uncomfortable suffocation, the three of them came to their senses and found that the scenery before them was vastly different.
They were standing on a pool of Water, with the reflection of the Bottom Path beneath their feet. Viktor and Jayce cautiously took steps, observing this never-before-seen sight.
Duke, however, said thoughtfully, "Because of the different spatial location, that place is called the Bottom Path?"
"Exactly, what keen observation!"
Heimerdinger praised them highly and led the three to continue forward. Before the pool was a small forest path, paved with moss-covered stone slabs, and on both sides of the road were rare and exotic plants they had never seen.
With each breath Duke took, he felt as if his spirit was being enhanced, and certain qualities within him were being awakened.
His magical talent's awakening was being accelerated by Bandle City's unique environment!
After passing through the emerald green vines, Duke and the two others' vision suddenly cleared, revealing a marvelous city located on a plain.
This city was beyond the imagination and vocabulary of Duke, Jayce, and Viktor; they simply couldn't describe it. Behind the low city walls were endless residential buildings of various styles. Some were built on trees, some underground with only an entrance visible, and others were simply strange and wondrous plants.
A gentle breeze swept across the plain. As the plants swayed, specks of arcane energy also drifted with the wind.
There was a large empty space in the center of Bandle City that looked like a plaza, and some scattered houses outside Bandle City. As for the area behind Bandle City, it was Bandle's dense forest.
"Let's go, children, crossing the plain is very tiring!"
Heimerdinger bounced and skipped at the front, seemingly very happy to be back home. Duke and the two others followed closely behind him, taking some time to reach Bandle City's city gate.
After passing through the city gate, there was a wide avenue, disproportionate to the Bandle people's stature. Many Bandle people with strange features strolled or hawked their wares on the road.
Under the gaze of a group of Bandle people, Duke and Jayce followed closely behind Heimerdinger, who was constantly greeting people he knew.
"So many sources of magic!"
Duke felt the sourness in his mouth intensify, and he couldn't help but swallow, his face becoming strained, his eyes somewhat dazed. A Whisper seemed to echo in his ears, and at the same time, the surrounding Bandle people began to change their appearance in his eyes, looking exactly like floating spheres in the air.
"Duke, are you alright?"
Viktor noticed Duke's discomfort. Duke forced himself to pull himself together, and everything in front of him disappeared. He managed a strained smile: "I'm fine!"
"Don't push yourself too hard!"
"I know, it's just that my body is a bit tired from too much magical stimulation!"
Duke forced himself not to fall back into that strange state until Heimerdinger stopped in front of an even more peculiar building.
"We've arrived, our destination!"
"The Bandle City Museum, a place that holds countless records of the past!".