[Ding. The Void creatures in front of the underground Void passage beneath Zuretta, Shurima, have left.]
That notification genuinely gave Caleb a huge boost.
It also eased some of his worries about the road ahead.
If a war with Noxus was inevitable, then Caleb would rather it happen sooner than later.
The longer things dragged on, the stronger he would become, and the more confident he would be in a fight.
But by then, Noxus would probably have already started taking this city, once dismissed as nothing more than a trade port, far more seriously.
War was not a one-on-one death match like the ones Caleb had fought against Ascended while Yaanogel possessed him.
Facing Noxus, a nation that constantly expanded its territory through war, Caleb honestly did not have much confidence deep down.
But if the twin cities did not become independent, then when Shurima rose again, what were they supposed to do, play both sides and help whoever happened to be winning?
At that point, would Azir still remember Caleb's contributions?
Or would Noxus remember the benefits the twin cities had once given them?
No.
In their eyes, the twin cities would only become the sort of petty opportunists who bent with the wind and would sell themselves for profit.
Caleb would never allow that to happen.
[Passive obtained: True Ice Mastery.]
The system prompt pulled Caleb back to reality, and he laughed at himself.
It was true, whether in territory or manpower, Noxus was simply not something the twin cities could compare to.
[Physical attributes enhanced to Lv25.]
That counted as good news too. At that rate, Caleb would still have serious fighting power even barehanded.
[Magical learning ability slightly increased.]
[Equipment obtained: Abyssal Mask.]
[One ten-pull obtained.]
Seeing the system panel pop up again after so long, Caleb let out a slight sigh.
As for the rune compendium, he had only just gotten to about the level of Sasuke's Fire Release.
[Equipment obtained: Doran's Blade.]
[Equipment obtained: Doran's Ring.]
[Blueprint obtained: Mecha Malphite.]
[Skill obtained: Last Breath.]
[Skill obtained: Mortal Steel.]
[Item obtained: Advanced Hextech Tome.]
[Data storage device obtained: PROJECT.]
[Weapon obtained: Serylda's Grudge.]
[Weapon obtained: Youmuu's Ghostblade.]
"These first nine are ridiculously good…"
Caleb had imagined what he might get, but all nine of these were far beyond anything he had expected.
And other skin lines had appeared too, which meant the rewards were not limited to Runeterra itself.
That bold idea of collecting the whole K/DA set immediately popped back into his head.
And when he looked at Youmuu's Ghostblade and Serylda's Grudge, his grin nearly twisted off his face.
What kind of luck did it take to pull two divine weapons like these?
But then the tenth reward nearly blinded him.
[World Rune, Blue obtained!]
"No way!!!!"
More than joy, what Caleb felt was disbelief.
A World Rune.
And it had actually landed in his hands.
After making sure no one was around, Caleb celebrated hard.
Like a guy who had just hit the jackpot on an upgrade screen.
"Hah… calm down…"
Knowing the system's usual habits, Caleb forced himself to settle down first.
"The first nine pulls were already absurd, and then the last one drops a World Rune."
"There's a catch in this. There has to be a catch. Right, System?"
The only answer was silence.
A long, prolonged silence.
"I knew it!"
Caleb fumed for about a second, then immediately broke into a smile again.
Still, no matter what, this was a divine artifact. It was bound to be useful.
And if all else failed, he could always go find Ryze and use it to boost their relationship.
"Isn't this basically the Sorcery tree?"
Looking at the blue rune floating quietly in his system inventory, Caleb could not help muttering.
Phase Rush, Summon Aery, and Arcane Comet.
You could call those the three signature keystones of Sorcery.
Of course, this kind of Arcane Comet was definitely not going to be some tiny little magic orb.
It was very likely a real comet in the truest sense of the word.
How could Caleb not be excited?
With Youmuu's Ghostblade at his waist and Serylda's bow slung across his back…
No, PROJECT and the Mecha Project had to be put into motion too.
Caleb's smile instantly settled back into its usual cool expression.
No matter what happened, he had to keep his poker face and stay focused.
He made up his mind in silence. Since the twin cities had been founded to avoid war, then the path of technology was absolutely the right road forward.
When the time came, Mecha Malphite's drill would be justice.
As for Mecha Zero, the one that could go berserk, even if a fully built one were parked right in front of him, Caleb would still tear it apart and use the parts to build Mecha Malphite instead.
So now, Caleb's top priority was not just negotiating independence from Noxus.
He also needed to spark a technological explosion across the twin cities and build computers and mechs.
The former would be used to carry out PROJECT, while the latter would form part of the Mecha Project.
Caleb was confident that with Heimerdinger as an experienced mentor, plus Jayce and Viktor helping him…
"Hey, Caleb."
A voice cut off Caleb's grand vision mid-thought.
"Hm?"
The moment he heard it, Caleb turned instinctively.
It was Kai'Sa, whom he had not seen for the past two days, and she looked genuinely worried.
"Where did you go?"
Her eyes were a little red, like she had been seriously anxious.
"Ah, well… I was busy with government work…"
Kai'Sa lightly punched him in the chest. She had not really put any force into it.
"Do you know how worried I was when I saw the mess your office was in?"
"I'll take you to the Lytton Restaurant for something to eat."
"Then this time you're paying for yourself."
Kai'Sa wiped at her eyes and switched to a smiling face.
"No way, how many dishes am I going to have to wash for that…"
"You're the Governor, put a little more work ethic into it. You could always help carry food to the tables."
The two of them headed toward the upper city laughing and talking, like people who had already known each other for a very long time.
After spending all these days here, Kai'Sa's once withdrawn personality had brightened a lot in everyday life.
Maybe that cat deserved some credit too, Caleb thought.
Tonight he should take Yuumi to that fish stall both Vi and Jinx liked.
Assuming she promised not to eat the stall owner, that fish guy.
…
"This humiliation will be repaid in full someday."
Talon ground his teeth as he climbed into one of his safehouses.
This mission had failed, without question. It was the greatest disgrace of his career as an assassin.
If he had truly started killing, then these residents whose heads were full of nothing but business would have been no harder to cut down than grass.
"When you fail, anything you say sounds like an excuse."
Du Couteau's voice seemed to echo in his ears again, and Talon slammed a fist against the ground.
The skills he had always taken pride in had been defeated just like that by Caleb's arcane power.
No matter what, Talon could not accept it.
"Perhaps when Miss Katarina arrives in Piltover, we'll get that chance."
Talon's expression shifted unpredictably. The eldest daughter of the Du Couteau family was also an exceptionally talented assassin.
When the time came, if the two of them joined forces, Caleb's escape route from today might well be sealed shut.
But for now, what Talon needed to do was send a letter to Grand General Swain, in his capacity as General Du Couteau's shadow.
He only hoped Miss Katarina could arrive here before the Grand General did.
That was what Talon hoped for.
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