If you want to know what a city is really like, you cannot judge it only by its bright and glamorous side.
You also have to look at how its people behave when danger comes.
Piltover had made progress, but many people were reluctant to leave their businesses behind, so civilian cooperation there was poor.
Zaun looked backward by comparison, yet the moment Caleb's orders went out, almost everyone returned home and started preparing weapons.
On Piltover's side, Heimerdinger was desperately manufacturing turrets and weapons.
Compared to Zaun, where talent seemed to spring up everywhere, Piltover was lacking a bit when it came to top-tier fighters.
In the end, they still had to rely mainly on the well-equipped Enforcers.
That was also why Caleb had assigned Vi over there.
"Zeri, you're moving with me later."
Caleb looked at the confused Zeri and added that much at least.
She was still new, so he needed to look out for her a little.
"When the time comes, stay calm. I'll protect you."
Caleb added one more sentence.
Truthfully, almost none of this group had any real experience dealing with the Harrowing, aside from Heimerdinger.
So even though everyone was nervous, the only choice was to be brave and face it.
The reason for setting everyone up in pairs was not just so they could support each other, but also so they could move quickly to rescue civilians the moment anyone was in danger.
"Thresh, Hecarim, Yorick, Kalista, Karthus..."
Caleb was probably the most nervous person there besides Heimerdinger.
After all, he knew a lot of the Shadow Isles champions, and every one of them looked pretty terrifying.
If even one of them showed up, Caleb had no idea whether his stitched-together mess of a skill set would actually be enough to beat them.
If it came down to it, he would just grab that living weapon.
Kayn was still fine, after all. At least for now.
Caleb understood just how much responsibility rested on him. Sitting in this position, he had to do everything he could to protect Zaun.
Even though the system told him to just take it easy and wait for the main quest to refresh, Caleb had already developed real feelings for this land.
"By the way, system, something this huge is happening and you're not giving me any kind of reward?"
Unable to hold it in, Caleb asked while taking a bathroom break.
[A ten-pull is possible.]
The system did not waste words and answered directly.
"Yes!"
Caleb got so excited he gave an involuntary shake, then quietly washed his hands.
...
Out on the sea, the endless Black Mist seemed almost alive. Drawn onward by a ghostly green radiance, it pressed toward the twin cities.
From far away, the advance of the Black Mist looked painfully slow.
But if you were standing inside it, you would only marvel at how fast it truly moved.
The sun slowly sank lower. Once night fell, the monsters within the Black Mist would have the perfect battlefield.
"Normally, the Harrowing should only strike Bilgewater."
Jayce sympathized with the people there, but at least they had survived it year after year.
He, on the other hand, was sweating cold.
"I heard the assault this time is especially fierce. Swain personally went to the front where the Black Mist is spreading."
Mel spoke softly.
Jayce had strongly opposed her coming, but Mel had insisted that she was Noxian, then picked up a chem-flame gun.
Jayce wiped the sweat from his forehead and pulled Mel into his arms.
"When tonight is over..."
He had not even finished speaking before Mel cut him off.
"In Noxus, the people who say things like that usually end up dying on the battlefield."
"Right." Jayce awkwardly tightened his grip on the Mercury Hammer in his hands.
The last time he had taken a life, it had filled him with unease. But this time was different.
This time he was truly defending the city, fighting for a better tomorrow.
Ekko and Jinx found themselves at a loss for words around each other.
No one knew what Caleb had been thinking when he put the two of them together.
Jinx had killed Firelights in front of Ekko before, and that was one hurdle he still could not get over in his heart.
It was also why Ekko believed Powder was truly gone.
Caleb's thinking had been simple. One of them excelled in close combat, the other at range. Ekko just needed to keep Jinx safe.
As the second weakest fighter among them, Jinx had powerful ranged damage and a wildly effective attack style.
But she was also the one closest to being a normal person.
Ekko just happened to have a completely broken ability that could rewind time, which made him perfect for protecting Jinx.
Of course, with the situation so urgent, Caleb had not explained all that. He had just bluntly assigned them to the same team.
...
"Nervous?"
Camille looked at the girl in front of her.
Even though she had replaced her body with a mechanical one and now carried a Hextech heart that pulsed within her chest, Orianna was still taking steady deep breaths.
"This actually feels pretty scary," Orianna said with a bitter smile.
"Tension that tight will reduce your precision."
Camille's voice was as calm and composed as ever, like a teacher patiently passing life lessons on to a younger student.
"My back is in your hands later."
She gently stroked Orianna's head, showing a rare softness in her expression.
The Ferros family had always been good at hiding its strength. Without making a sound, they had already discovered a way to alter the human body using Hextech as an energy source.
They had even mastered the technology for mass-producing lower-output Hextech crystals.
But the craftsman of hearts had already gone far away and vanished without a trace.
Her disappointing younger brother would probably never fulfill his dream of immortality.
...
"You seem like something's bothering you," Zac said as he looked at Warwick beside him.
After spending these past few days with people, he no longer needed physical contact to sense how someone was feeling.
"Yes."
Warwick did not deny it.
After fighting together these last few days, he had grown rather fond of the big green guy too.
Even though Zac had a body like living gel, his mind was more like that of a child who had barely entered the world.
Add Blitzcrank, who had only just been born recently, and Warwick ended up being the most mature of the three.
Because of that, during the pursuit of the Chem-Barons, he had been the one doing most of the directing.
"Looking like this... do you think I'll scare people I used to know?"
After hesitating again and again, he finally spoke the truth in his heart.
Time after time, as he drove the Chem-Barons out from underground, he had only dared to slash with his claws instead of using his fists to put them down.
It was because he was afraid someone might notice the signs and force him to reveal who he really was.
"I don't think so. My parents would always teach me to be a good person."
Zac thought about it for a moment. Strictly speaking, those two were really only workers under a Chem-Baron.
"So I don't think the person you know would judge you based on how you look."
...
"This time, don't dump me on some Pim and turn me into Matilda."
Caitlyn assembled the rifle in her hands as she joked.
"Don't worry, this time I'm aiming right at their faces."
Vi rolled her neck and loosened up a little.
The massive gauntlets on her hands slowly flexed, each finger curling shut one by one.
She looked like a boxer warming up before a match.
She and Caitlyn had already gone through life-and-death situations together, so they were able to trust each other completely.
...
"Nervous?"
Looking at Zeri, whose face looked like she might throw up at any second, Caleb asked with concern.
"My first mission and it has to be this huge? Man, what a rush..."
Zeri gave him a thumbs-up, though that did nothing to stop her legs from shaking.
She had gone up earlier and taken one look at the Black Mist, and wow.
Thankfully, Zaun's people had stocked enough weapons that even if they did run into monsters, they would at least have a chance to escape.
The Piltover people up above were still busy putting their gear together.
Caleb moved his body a little, loosening up so he would not pull something later.
Then he pulled out that Noxian shield-axe from his bag.
Good enough.
After all, his strength had been enhanced so much that he might as well give the better weapons to the people who actually needed them.
Zeri had only just turned her head when she saw that Caleb now had two weapons in his hands, and she stared in surprise.
"Where did you even pull those out from?"
"Heh." Caleb snorted. "Want to learn? Too bad, I'm not teaching you."
As the sun finally sank below the horizon, the entire sky suddenly dimmed.
Then the Black Mist descended with a rush.
//Check out my P@tre0n for 30 extra chapters on all my fanfics //[email protected]/Razeil0810.