The soft rustling at his ear was Jinx murmuring in her sleep. When she slept, she was usually well-behaved, but tonight she was talking in her dreams.
Logan listened closely and realized Jinx's muttering was full of not-so-nice words…
"Like it… then eat it yourself!"
"Let me see…"
"Don't make me wait too long… Logan, I don't want secrets between us…"
"Hmph. Acting all mysterious… next time I see it, I'm going to bite it off."
Logan sucked in a sharp breath. "Hiss!"
What a vicious heart, Jinx!
Looking at her little face—fierce even while asleep—Logan saw her lips twitch as if she were chewing on something. She ground her teeth like she was readying herself, her sharp little canine teeth oddly pretty.
Logan watched for a moment, then turned over, put on the Hextech gemstone he'd prepared in advance, and closed his eyes.
Last time, seeing Ahri had cost him two energy points. But this time, with negotiations with Piltover, Zaun establishing itself as a city-state and facing so many people, Logan had harvested a huge amount of emotional energy. On top of that, Jinx had been steadily "feeding" him emotional output nonstop—so now he had two energy points and half a bar left.
Two energy points… enough to go see Ahri one more time.
He wanted to see if he could pluck a bit more "fox fur" to strengthen himself, and he also needed to ask Ahri whether she had any way to deal with Viktor's current condition.
If even Ahri had no solution, then Logan would have to consider having Viktor and Jayce bring Jinx, Ekko, Singed, Heimerdinger—this whole pack of geniuses—together to study the Hextech Core.
Because Viktor absolutely could not die.
A near-omniscient talent in science like Viktor… in all of Runeterra, you got one like that in ten thousand years. And come to think of it, it was strange—weren't the twin cities, in this era, truly the best age?
Without Logan, the problems between the two cities could never have thawed. Without absolute power to press down on the conflict, Zaunites wouldn't dare muster the courage to resist, and Piltovans wouldn't willingly back down and cooperate.
But you had to admit it—Jayce, Viktor, Ekko, Jinx, Singed. When all of those people were born in the same era, it was like these twin city-states were announcing to all of Runeterra: Piltover and Zaun might be small, but they would never be forgotten in some corner.
Logan stopped the pointless thoughts and chose to descend.
[Entering Spirit Blossom—]
[Descent successful!]
[Good luck, Mr. Summoner.]
——————
After choosing his landing point on the white curtain of light, Logan spent a full bar of energy to convert the Hextech gemstone into a "gift." Then, in the next moment, the stone appeared in his hand as he stood on the grass of Blossom Valley.
He toyed with the Hextech gemstone for a bit, then slipped it into his pocket and started looking for Ahri.
This time, though, he didn't need to spend much time searching.
Because the instant Logan arrived, a scruffy little gray fox appeared right in front of him, sprawled atop a big rock while licking her fur.
A good portion of her snow-white fur had turned pitch-black, making her look oddly mismatched as she stared at Logan with wide eyes.
"Logan, you're here again?" Ahri tilted her little head, stretched her front paws forward like a cat, then landed lightly on all fours and trotted over.
"What happened to you?" Logan asked, staring at her fur.
The gray-black patches clung to her coat like living things. Logan could even see the dark haze writhing like worms. It made him ask urgently, "Ahri?"
"I fought two guys. One of them you know too—Thresh," Ahri said.
Her little black nose twitched. A flash of grievance flickered in her lively eyes. "I can beat Thresh, but then Cassiopeia came out to help him, and then… then I ran."
"It's not fair! Two against one!"
"Cassiopeia?" Logan blurted, startled.
In the first wave of Spirit Blossom skins, Ahri led the lineup—then there was Thresh, Lillia, Kindred, and Cassiopeia.
As for Spirit Blossom Vayne and Riven… Logan thought about it and felt they probably weren't as strong as Ahri and Thresh. They might not even be at demigod level.
Ahri nodded and tilted her head toward her tail. She lifted it, and the black streaks on it squirmed like snakes. Pouting, she continued, "A powerful spirit in the Spirit Realm. My… sister? I don't even know if she counts as my sister. Anyway, she's really strong. And if her mirror hadn't gone missing, then if I'd tried to run that day, I really would've had to lose my temper."
"But I don't like losing my temper," Ahri said in a small voice, "because I don't look good like that."
Logan nodded. He didn't ask what she looked like when she got angry—because he'd already guessed.
Spirit Blossom Ahri had three forms: the little fox form; the gorgeous pink-haired woman; and then the white-haired, slit-eyed, fanged, clawed half-human, half-beast form.
Logan was a diehard Ahri one-trick in midlane—he knew exactly what Spirit Blossom Ahri looked like when she activated her ultimate.
You could call it… a feral, yokai-like form.
"Forget it. I don't want to talk about annoying things," Ahri said. "Tell me—why are you here this time?"
"Are you okay? Your injury?" Logan asked instead.
"Giggle—" Ahri froze, then burst into laughter, clear and bright like little silver bells. Her big tail swished happily too.
"Thank you for worrying about me. I'm fine, Logan. What could happen to me? This world protects me. Even if all those bad guys swarm me at once, I'll be fine."
"At worst…" Ahri paused, then said lightly, "…I might get sealed away for a few thousand years?"
"…" Logan went stiff.
A few thousand years?!
No!
Ahri, you absolutely cannot get sealed for a few thousand years—what am I supposed to do if you do?!
In the Spirit Blossom world, Logan was counting on Ahri to help him. If she got locked up, then Thresh… wouldn't he come sniffing around every day?
Logan had zero doubt about that. And that wasn't him gossiping behind Thresh's back because he'd gotten screwed over by him before—
Thresh really was a freak. A total freak.
Sometimes when Logan was bored with nothing to do, he'd check the "friend status" panel.
Ahri's status always said she was entertaining herself, finding fun in Spirit Blossom.
Before Logan gave her books, her daily routine was catching butterflies, chasing rabbits, teasing the turtles by the river, or sleeping like a rock. Sometimes her status would read that Ahri was in high spirits and itching for a fight—in which case she'd probably go pick a fight with Thresh.
And Thresh's status?
[The deity of Purple Prison Mountain is gloomy, longing to see his fated person again.]
[The deity of Purple Prison Mountain tormented souls, but found no pleasure, and grew even more depressed.]
[The deity of Purple Prison Mountain cradles a clod of dirt marked with a certain soul's footprint, studies it closely… and slowly falls into a daze.]
What the hell?!
See? Terrifying, right?
So if Ahri weren't here, Logan genuinely wouldn't dare come to Spirit Blossom.
"I'm just saying it," Ahri said, amused by Logan's stunned expression. "You really think I'd get sealed away? I won't. This world would collapse without me."
"They know that too, so usually they don't interfere with me. It's just that Cassiopeia doesn't know what's wrong with her lately—her temper's gotten worse and worse. She said I woke her up, so she came to beat me up."
"I'm not a troublemaker!" Ahri huffed, lifting one paw and slapping it down with a pat. Then she tilted her head at Logan. "So? What do you want me to help you with this time?"
"Think of it as repaying your gift from last time—I'll seriously help you this time. But, Logan… do I get a gift?"
Ahri lifted her head, looking at him pitifully.
She'd flipped through that book nearly two hundred times. After she finished staring at all the pictures, she started staring at the doodles—and now she could draw them from memory with her paw in the dirt.
So Ahri wanted new books!
Of course, other things would work too—something tasty, something good to drink…
She wanted to eat, she really did. But the things in Spirit Blossom… couldn't be eaten. If she ate them, she'd be no different from Cassiopeia or Thresh.
So every time she hunted and caught a little animal, she'd swallow her drool and let it go.
They weren't just animals—they were fragments of some existence's soul, each carrying a past and memories. As a spirit of salvation… she couldn't eat them.
Logan looked at the pitiful Ahri and awkwardly shook his head. "Sorry, Ahri. This time I only brought this. Next time—next time I'll definitely bring something you like. When I'm leaving later, tell me what you want."
Ahri looked a little wronged at first, but the moment Logan said he'd bring her things she liked next time, she brightened immediately, tail wagging like a puppy as she nodded.
Then she looked at Logan's outstretched hand—the round, blue gemstone.
"This stone is really pretty," Ahri said instinctively… then made a small sound of surprise.
She raised a paw toward it. The Hextech gemstone floated from Logan's hand into hers. Ahri lowered her head to examine it, and her expression gradually turned grave.
"Where did this come from?" she asked, looking up.
Seeing her seriousness, Logan immediately answered, "Piltover—the city-state above Zaun, the one you saw in my memories. They're mass-producing these now."
"Mass-producing? Are they insane?!" Ahri shouted.
She planted her back feet on the gemstone and stood upright, anger on the little fox's face.
"You're catalyzing runes! This is extremely dangerous! Humans can't control this kind of power!"
She spoke fast and loud. Seeing Logan's confusion, Ahri bared her teeth and snapped in frustration before stepping closer and looking up at him.
"You know Spirit Blossom. You know me. Then you definitely know Ionia too."
"Do you know why we were born—why this world was born?"
"It's because Ionia's natural magic was too powerful. It nurtured the Spirit of Ionia."
"After it was born, it heard people's longing for those who came before. Thousands of years of emotional power strengthened the Spirit of Ionia and Ionia's natural magic, until it chose to lift the veil between worlds for humanity."
"It gave birth to Spirit Blossom, so that when those who lived on Ionian land died, they would have a place to return to—so that those who came before and those who came after could meet again."
"But even the Spirit of Ionia couldn't fully control this world. So, for self-preservation, powerful spirits were born—spirits like me, and creatures like Thresh."
"This world went from being something that existed purely to serve the living—helping them reunite with the dead—into what it is now. Human spiritual power influenced some of the strong spirits… and even influenced parts of us."
"That's how the Kanmei and Akana factions were born. Kanmei and Akana believe in different things, and their conflicts never end."
"Even we keep our distance from natural magic and rune power," Ahri went on, voice urgent. "I saw your place in your memories. You don't have any powerful existence that can protect you if natural runes go out of control."
"Are you planning to rely on that little bird? She's too weak! She can't do it!"
Ahri rattled it all off in one long rush.
She loved human souls and admired the stories inside them, and that was exactly why she didn't want a place to suffer a magical catastrophe that killed a massive number of people—especially when those people were outside Ionia.
In Runeterra, only those who died in Ionia—only those whose souls were tied to the remembrance of Ionians—could enter Spirit Blossom.
Logan listened, then glanced at the Hextech gemstone Ahri had tossed aside.
He'd originally wanted to tell her the gemstone could help Viktor and ask if she had any way to assist, but now…
Was the Hextech gemstone a disaster waiting to happen?
But in the story of the twin cities, there hadn't been much buildup about this—
No, there had been!
Logan remembered: the Hextech Core Viktor created had swallowed Sky—Viktor's assistant—and it had also changed Viktor's physical state. Was that the "out of control" Ahri was talking about?
"Natural magic is conscious," Ahri said. "It splits into countless magical elements that drift throughout Runeterra. Rune power is the same—but it's greater than magic. It's the source of all magic."
"So, Logan… you're playing with fire!"
"At least for now, this gemstone doesn't seem capable of breaking past its limits—its energy is finite, the restrictions are well-made. But accidents happen. Do you understand?"
"You humans, when it comes to playing with fire… you're just—just unbelievable!"
"Then, Ahri—"
"Hah." Ahri crossed her little arms. "Logan, I want good storybooks. No—three. Bring me three really good storybooks, and then I'll work harder and help you with this. This will be exhausting, you know!"
The fox stood upright with her arms crossed—her fluffy white belly fur thick, and the little glimpse of pink skin hidden within it ridiculously cute.
"Okay," Logan breathed out. "Next time I'll bring you two books, and the time after that I'll bring you one more. And Zaun pastries."
Ahri had a way—good.
Ahri immediately lit up. Three books and pastries—amazing!
She nodded, reached a paw toward Logan, and said, "Come here. Let me take a good look at how you made this thing. Otherwise I won't be able to find a solution."
Logan stepped forward and crouched. Ahri climbed onto his thigh and pressed her small paw against his forehead.
This time, Ahri saw more.
Logan could even see Ahri's figure inside his mind.
In her human form—without clothes—her pink hair draped across her front, and soft white light obscured her body. She wandered through Logan's mental world, exploring.
"Whew… okay." Ahri pulled back. "There really is a solution."
"That human named Talis is incredible—really incredible. For a human, he actually carved all kinds of runes into a gemstone, absorbed magic, and created this thing you call a Hextech gemstone."
"But right now, the only thing that's out of control is the human you want to save, Logan. That guy has touched an out-of-control Hextech gemstone."
"You need to make him stop researching it. In the best case, you personally would go and des—no." Ahri shook her head. "You can't. You're too weak. And even if you somehow did, it would cause a massive explosion."
"Forget it. Find a place and hide it. Don't let any other human touch it. It's already developed consciousness—it will actively lure humans."
"That human named Viktor… mm. His will is very strong. The aura on him is chaotic and violent. He must be the human who's had the longest contact with that thing… but he hasn't been changed?"
"And here—take this. Have him wear it. It can repair the damage in his body. Over time, he'll be fine."
"Oh, and don't forget my books…"
"And pastries!"
Logan took the jade pendant—a fox face carved into it—and slipped it into his pocket. He looked at Ahri, smiling, and said seriously, "I won't forget."
"Thank you for always helping me. If you ever need anything from me in the future, tell me. I'll do everything I can."
"A great spirit doesn't need human help—" Ahri began, then paused, and giggled. "Mm. Just bring me good stuff, and that's enough."
//Check out my P@tre0n for 10 extra free chapters //[email protected]/Razeil0810.