At that moment, the atmosphere at the scene seemed frozen. No one dared make a rash move.
Faced with Luke's forceful attitude, Carroll wavered internally.
Things had already come this far. He was so close to success. Asking him to give up now was simply too hard to accept.
Besides, even if they laid down their weapons, there might not be any good ending waiting for them.
What he was still worried about was how many people Luke had actually brought.
If Luke had brought all the soldiers he had taken to Piltover, then there would be no suspense left in this fight.
Because the strength of an army and the strength of a gang were two entirely different concepts.
"My patience is limited. You have one final minute to think it over. After that, I will intervene by force."
At this moment, Luke's tone began to sound somewhat impatient.
When Carroll heard his words, his mood grew even more agitated. A drop of cold sweat slid down his forehead and along his cheek.
Just then, Darms quietly came behind Carroll and whispered in his ear, "No one else came with them outside."
Hearing this, coldness gradually surfaced in Carroll's eyes, and a bold idea rose in his heart.
He looked at Luke. So what if he was a prince?
If he had not brought his army, and only had these few people with him, what reason did Carroll have to fear him?
Judging from the current situation, surrendering would definitely not lead to a good result.
From the moment this prince appeared, it was already destined that their plan could no longer succeed.
Right now, not many people knew about them. If this prince died here, all they needed to do was flee the twin cities.
So Carroll no longer hesitated and said, "Your Highness, you don't seem to understand the current situation. I have absolutely no reason to give up a victory that is already within reach."
"So this is your choice?"
A smile appeared on Luke's face. It seemed some piece of information had somehow made this guy brave again.
Carroll wasted no more words and coldly ordered, "End this quickly. Kill them all. Don't let a single one escape!"
As his words fell, dangerous killing intent appeared in his subordinates' eyes. All the men behind him stopped hiding and moved out at once.
There were at least more than forty of them, and all of them had been injected with Shimmer, making their already formidable strength even stronger.
The moment those words were spoken, the atmosphere instantly grew tense again.
Only Luke's expression remained unchanged. He merely withdrew his smile, slowly stepped forward, and drew Snowglance.
In an instant, his entire aura underwent an earthshaking change. A terrifying sword intent erupted from him like a volcano and spread in every direction.
In just a breath, the scene was covered by his sword intent. Under that pressure, everyone's breathing became tight and hurried.
Three of Carroll's subordinates glanced at one another, then charged at Luke in tacit agreement.
They were all warriors who had walked out of deathmatches. They were already fugitives with nothing left to lose, so naturally they would not fear Luke's status as a prince.
The three of them charged very quickly. After injecting Shimmer, their speed had increased tremendously, to the point that the naked eye could almost no longer keep up.
Luke watched the three rushing toward him, his expression completely calm.
Although he had not fought in quite some time, he was not unfamiliar with this feeling. As he stepped forward, frost sword intent spread outward, and everyone felt as if the temperature had suddenly dropped several degrees.
The next second, Luke's figure flashed. His longsword cut out, and several sharp streaks of sword light flashed through the air. In the brief moment of a single exchange, three bodies appeared on the ground.
Looking at the three who had been killed instantly, the entire field froze again for a moment.
There was not a single trace of blood on Luke. He stood there, yet he brought with him an overwhelming sense of pressure.
Only then did people remember that this prince was someone who had led an army and slain hundreds of thousands of Noxian soldiers.
At the same time, Lux, Sona, Poppy, Quinn, and Yurna also moved.
Battle broke out once again, but this time, the situation was clearly different.
Magic surged over Lux's staff, and her powerful light magic made it impossible for the enemies to even get close.
As for Quinn and Yurna, there was even less to say. Both of them were extraordinarily skilled, and even opponents injected with Shimmer were completely outmatched.
Sona only played her Etwahl, and the notes transformed into powerful golden waves of light, knocking several people down in an instant.
Seraphine, watching from the side, was stunned. She had not known Sona could attack others through her playing.
Clearly, this was a form of magic. She could not help wondering whether she could do the same thing.
Right now, she and Orianna could only watch. They had no way to intervene in a battle like this.
As for the huge shark-man who had been fighting Vi earlier, he also gave up on continuing to fight Vi and instead turned his eyes toward Poppy.
The difference in their physiques was obvious. To Poppy, the shark-man was like a giant.
"Big guy, your opponent is me."
Vi was a little worried about Poppy, so she ignored the pain in her body and stepped forward to stop the shark-man.
But the shark-man ignored her and charged straight toward Poppy.
"Come on! Hammer time!" Poppy looked at the big man charging at her, but she showed not the slightest fear. Instead, she took the initiative and rushed forward.
On the way, she raised her massive hammer. When she was about to close the distance, she smashed it out.
Contempt appeared in the shark-man's eyes. He tried to seize the hammer directly. He had taken a liking to this weapon. With this hammer, he could sweep across the entire field.
But as he watched the hammer come crashing down and had just decided to compare strength with her, he instantly felt an enormous force erupt from the hammer. His resistance did not even last for a moment before he lost consciousness amid intense pain.
Vi and the others only saw that the instant the hammer fell toward the shark-man, he flew backward like a kite with its string cut.
He did not stop until he smashed into a section of steel framework and warped it. By then, his head was hanging down, and he had lost consciousness.
Vi froze where she stood. She felt that this scene was absurdly exaggerated, yet it had happened right before her eyes.
The shark-man whom even she could not beat had actually been one-shot by Poppy, who was this small?
Turbulent waves rose in her heart. For the first time, she realized that the world was vast, and within it were powerful people whose strength far surpassed hers.
She looked around and suddenly discovered that the situation was already very clear.
From the start of the battle until now, only a few minutes had passed. Carroll's subordinates, who had previously displayed overwhelming pressure, now only had a handful still standing.
And only a few people had taken action, as if this were a strike from a higher dimension.
Was this the strength of Demacia?
Carroll looked at the situation before him. His forehead was already covered in cold sweat, and his heartbeat began to accelerate because of fear.
Only now did he realize just how wrong his decision had been.
The other party was a prince who commanded hundreds of thousands of soldiers, someone who had beaten Noxus so badly it could not even raise its head. How could his own strength possibly be weak?
He had been absurdly wrong. He had only thought that even if the prince was strong, he still could not fight so many of his subordinates.
And yet to this prince, fighting his subordinates was as simple as chopping vegetables.
That crushing posture filled Carroll with utter despair and regret.
Looking at Luke slowly walking toward him, his throat moved, and he struggled to speak. "Your Highness, I…"
"No. It's already too late."
Luke swung his sword. Blood splashed everywhere, and Carroll's body fell backward.
No matter what he had wanted to say, Luke no longer planned to listen, because he had already given him one chance.
Even now, his emotions did not fluctuate in the slightest.
However, there was still one thing he cared about.
Looking at Darms, who had fallen to the ground in fright beside Carroll's corpse and did not even dare to run, Luke casually said, "Talk. Who does this symbol, C, represent?"
This question immediately drew Caitlyn's attention. She remembered that this was exactly why she had come here.
Now she no longer needed to do anything else. Everyone capable of posing a threat had already been dealt with. She moved closer to Luke, her eyes filled with the desire to know the answer.
"We… we've never met C either. He… he never shows his face. He only gives us orders through letters."
Darms did not dare lie and told them everything he knew. "These subordinates of ours, and the Shimmer, were all obtained by C."
Caitlyn could not help asking, "Do you know how to find him?"
"I don't know. Even Carroll had no way to contact C on his own." Darms hurriedly shook his head.
"Is that so? I'll leave how to deal with him to you."
Luke did not pay too much attention to it and said this to Caitlyn beside him.
As for this mysterious C, he did have some guesses.
But precisely because of that, he felt that even if he guessed correctly, it would not help much.
The other party had wanted to control the undercity through Carroll, clearly because they had seen the undercity's potential for development.
Either that, or they simply found it interesting.
And being able to secretly gather such a force, along with these prisoners who seemed to be from the Noxian arenas, showed that this C had no small amount of ability.
In Runeterra, those who liked pretending to be mysterious and stirring up trouble could be counted on one hand.
Of course, for now, Luke was only guessing.
At present, he could only let Caitlyn continue investigating.
As for what to do with Darms, she naturally had him detained, because there were still many questions to ask.
Darms felt somewhat fortunate that he had been able to survive. Carroll's corpse was right beside him, and he could not help giving it a sympathetic look.
This guy had been a smart man. But after being smart his whole life, he had made the stupidest decision at the final moment.
"Silco!"
At this moment, following Sevika's cry of alarm, everyone's eyes turned in one direction.
Then, within the shadows, they saw Silco tied to a chair.
She took a step forward, but then stopped. Her gaze turned toward Luke, and in the end, she did not dare move rashly.
This prince was someone neither she nor Silco could afford to provoke in the first place.
And after witnessing the crushing strength he had just displayed, she knew even more clearly that she had to watch his expression before doing anything.
Because in truth, their identities were not much better than Carroll's people.
Although she did not dare move, Jinx did not think that much. After seeing Silco, she subconsciously rushed over and untied the ropes for him.
Silco's body tipped to the left, and Jinx hurriedly supported him. "Silco? How are you? Are you okay?"
Looking at the heavily wounded Silco, Jinx knew in that moment that she still cared about him.
Silco had been injected with Shimmer, so his condition could not be called especially critical. Seeing the worry in Jinx's eyes, he smiled. "I'm fine…"
His voice was somewhat hoarse, and he looked utterly wretched. His hair was messy, and his clothes and face were covered in blood.
Jinx opened her mouth, still wanting to say something.
Vi had already walked over. Looking at the heavily wounded Silco, the anger in her eyes still burned. Suppressing that anger, she said coldly, "Powder, get away from him."
Jinx raised her head. Her face looked helpless, and she did not know what to do.
This moment had finally come.
She had no choice but to face it.
On one side was the sister she loved most. On the other was Silco, who had cared for her like a father.
She had no idea what to do. She only felt that her mind was in chaos, countless voices sounding noisily inside it, making it impossible for her to find peace.
At this moment, the others only watched from the side.
Luke also had no intention of interfering. How things developed would depend on what they decided themselves.
"Did you forget what he did to us? Vander, Benzo, Mylo, Claggor. If it weren't for him, how would they have died? If it weren't for him, how would we have been separated for so long?"
Looking at the hesitant Jinx, Vi brought up the grudges from back then again, her voice rising unconsciously.
Each sentence fell into Jinx's ears, making the voices in her head even more chaotic.
"I… I… it's too much. I don't know what to do…"
Two lines of tears spilled from her eyes. Her gaze was as helpless as a lost deer's, and the tears slid past her lips.
Seeing this, Vi felt as if her heart had been stabbed.
She knew that if it had not been for Silco, Powder might have died on the streets of Zaun.
Doing this was no different from forcing her sister to make a choice. But no matter what, she could not forgive Silco.
She could not act like a saint and easily let go of the grudges of the past.
At this moment, Silco suddenly struggled to raise his hand and wiped away the tears on Jinx's face. He said softly, "Don't cry. You are the Jinx I am most proud of. You look best when you keep smiling."
As he spoke, he struggled to sit up, then separated himself from Jinx and leaned back against the chair.
"All these years, I don't think I ever gave you any kind of gift."
As he spoke, he reached toward his right pocket, then took out a gift box that had been crushed out of shape. He handed it to Jinx and said, "I originally wanted to surprise you with it later, but it seems I won't have that chance."
Jinx took it and opened the gift box.
Inside was a cartoon doll. It had clearly been sewn in her image, and the doll was laughing cheerfully.
There was also a small sign on the doll's right side. Written on the sign were the words:
"May you be happy every day, Silco."
Jinx's eyes filled with tears again. She tilted her head back and clenched her teeth, trying hard not to let the tears fall.
Watching all of this, Vi also fell silent.
After doing all that, Silco somehow found strength from somewhere and actually stood up, his body swaying unsteadily.
At this moment, he knew in his heart that the tide was lost.
He straightened his hair, as if he wanted to maintain his elegance even at the final moment. He looked at Vi and said calmly, "What happened back then was indeed my fault. Over the years, I gradually came to understand Vander's difficulties. I actually didn't want to kill him back then."
What he had truly wanted was to convince Vander to raise the banner against the upper city with him.
Looking at Vi's cold eyes, Silco laughed self-mockingly. "But there are too many things a person cannot control. Some things simply have to be done. So I never expected forgiveness. Do it."
He was prepared to face death calmly. From the very beginning, he had only wanted to win development for the undercity.
He had wanted to lead all the people of the undercity in resistance. He did not want them to be fish on a chopping board, helplessly waiting to be slaughtered.
Only after he overthrew Vander and truly became the boss of the undercity did he gradually realize that this matter was not so simple.
The gap between the upper city and the undercity was too vast. Only later did he understand that Vander had simply chosen another path for the undercity's development.
It was only that back then, he had not seen any of this.
He had believed that as long as the people of the undercity united and dared to stand up in resistance, they would definitely be able to fight their way to equality.
He had been confident he could achieve all of that. So in order to make it happen, he had no regrets even if he used the dirtiest means.
Vi looked at the calm Silco. Without hesitation, she stepped forward and punched him directly.
Her fist landed solidly on Silco's face, carrying all of Vi's hatred and anger from over the years.
Silco's entire body flew backward and crashed heavily to the ground.
Vi quickly stepped forward, grabbed Silco's collar with her left hand, and clenched her right fist, ready to bring it down again.
But as she looked at Silco, whose consciousness was already fading, her fist trembled in midair. She, who never shed tears easily, now had eyes full of them.
"Why? Why can you talk about what happened back then so easily?"
She roared, no longer hesitating, and brought down another punch. Her fist was already stained with blood. "This punch is for Vander!"
"This punch is for Benzo!"
"This punch is for Mylo!"
"This punch is for Claggor!"
She punched again and again, ignoring the fact that Silco had already lost consciousness. That once-strong figure now looked terribly desolate.
Jinx watched all of this helplessly, tears once again sliding down her cheeks. Along with Vi's roars, she remembered Vander, Benzo, Mylo, and Claggor.
She remembered the happy times they once had.
But mixed in among those memories were many moments spent with Silco. She had no right to forgive Silco on Vi's behalf, but in this moment, her heart hurt as if it were being cut apart.
"This punch…"
Vi's tears dripped onto Silco's face. This punch was raised in midair, but it did not fall again.
She let go with her left hand, collapsed to the ground, then tilted her head back and looked at the ceiling lights, as if doing that could hide the tears in her eyes.
Who could understand her?
She, too, was only barely an adult. She had always carried everything on her back, but who had ever come to care about her feelings?
She had once enjoyed the care of a family too.
Standing up from the ground, Vi shook the blood from her hand and did not look back at Silco, who lay unmoving on the floor.
Her gaze turned toward Sevika, and she said coldly, "Take this guy and get out of Zaun forever. If he dies, find a place and bury him. If he doesn't, remember, this life is one I gave you. If you ever dare come back…"
From this moment on, she no longer cared whether Silco lived or died.
If this guy could survive those punches she had just thrown, then he could cling to life.
After saying all this, she looked at Jinx, and her voice softened. "Let's go, Powder."
Jinx stood up, holding the doll in her hand. She looked back at Silco one last time, and the tears in her eyes flickered and vanished.
She knew Vi had chosen her, and her own choice had only ever been Vi from the beginning.
Silco was merely someone important who had briefly appeared in her life.
Even though her heart still ached, she knew that her bond with Silco ended here.
Only then did Sevika dare step forward. She came to Silco's side and looked at him, who seemed to have no breath left. With her only remaining arm, she helped him up and held him in her arms.
She knew that from this moment on, she and Silco were both people abandoned by the world.
Some of the blood on his body had already dried, while some was fresh. Even after being lifted into her arms, he did not move at all.
Sevika's eyes grew wet, full of despair.
Back then, she had not betrayed Vander. She had actively chosen Silco.
Because long ago, she had seen this man's resolve and determination, as well as the charm that flowed from his confidence.
It was precisely because she had been infected by that resolve and confidence that she had loyally worked for Silco for so many years without wavering.
But all of that would come to an end today.
Everything she and Silco had built in the undercity would be reduced to nothing.
But if she could choose, she would rather lose everything, as long as Silco could live.
She had never been the kind of person to betray others easily. Since she had chosen Silco back then, she would keep choosing him without hesitation.
Sevika helplessly buried her head against Silco's chest, and her tears soaked the collar of his shirt.
She, too, was a woman who never cried easily.
Thump.
A faint heartbeat sounded.
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