Malphegor
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Arcane: TTB: Ch. 41
🕑 Added 2025-02-08 21:38:14 +0000 UTCAfter Cipher delivered a barrage of words, he stood up and surveyed the half-finished plates of expensive food littering the nearby tables. His eyes lingered on a barely touched roast duck, garnished with exotic fruits he'd only seen in pictures.
"Such a waste," Sevika muttered beside him. "They throw away more in a day than most of our people see in a week."
Cipher nodded in agreement. He picked up his bags, waved his sleeve, and walked away with the other members of his group.
Mel sat alone, swirling her wine glass, watching his departing figure, lost in thought.
"Do you need me to notify... your mother?"
Mel's right-hand and assistant, Elora, stepped forward and bowed slightly as she asked. Her voice was careful, measured, she knew the weight of involving Ambessa.
"No, don't involve her. Anything that touches her turns dangerous, she could bring disaster upon the entire city-state."
Mel suddenly stood up, visibly agitated. She knew all too well her mother's nature, wherever she went, blood and death followed.
"The weapons equipped in Zaun are far too advanced. Compared to an assault rifle, the enforcers' guns are like toys. They even have explosive rounds that apparently rival magic."
"The armed forces of the Undercity have already surpassed those of the Upper City. If they choose to storm the bridge again..." Elora paused for a moment, giving Mel time to process the situation before continuing. "The enforcers won't be able to stop them. If those thugs push forward, they might head straight for the Council."
"Let me think."
Mel closed her eyes and pressed her fingers against her forehead, her head was suddenly pounding. How had things come to this?
The perfumed air of the dining room felt suffocating.
After a moment, she opened her eyes.
"Unless it's absolutely necessary, do not notify my mother. She will be our last resort. As for the weapons, I'll find a way."
"If Zaun can develop explosive rounds, then there's no reason why we, with our advanced technology, can't create even more powerful weapons."
As she spoke, Mel suddenly thought of Jayce.
Hextech was said to harness magic, if it could create Hexgates capable of controlling teleportation magic, then why couldn't it be used to develop weapons?
She was a woman of action, not one to hesitate.
Without wasting any time, she set off for Jayce's lab, determined to convince him to research Hextech weapons.
---
Meanwhile, as soon as Zaunite group stepped out of the meeting, the other three members could no longer hold back their frustration.
"I was just feeling happy when I heard that this Councilor Medarda planned to give Zaun a seat in the Council. I thought our efforts had finally paid off, that the Piltover councilors were starting to take us seriously."
"But in the end, it turns out this Medarda was just playing us for fools. Did she really think she could trick us with just a few words They think we're fools to be played with!"
"Stop weapons research? Halt trade with Noxus? Listen to what she's saying! She might as well be asking us to put our heads on the chopping block! How can she say that with a straight face? Without weapons, would those high-and-mighty councilors even look at us street rats?" Silco was so furious, completely dissatisfied with Mel's proposal.
"Were you expecting anything else?" Sevika asked while taking out a pack from her pocket.
"I expected basic respect!"
To Silco, Mel was treating them like primitive, uneducated monkeys, playing them however she pleased. It was nothing short of an insult to their intelligence due to their identity as Zaunites.
"The Piltovans, the councilors, they're all the same," Sevika scoffed coldly. "I finally get it now. There's no point in expecting anything from them."
She grabbed a crappy cigarette from the pack, lit up, and took a deep pull that made her cough, cheap tobacco always hit rough. But when she blew the smoke out her nose, some of that tension finally started to melt away.
"We should prepare for what is to come," Vander said grimly, biting down on his pipe. "The negotiations with the Upper City have failed. So, their next move will be to send people to deal with us."
Vander struck a match, and lit his pipe.
Having had countless dealings with Piltover, he knew all too well, once negotiations failed, the Piltover's next step was always force.
Though he had long opposed war, he had already prepared for the worst.
His past compromises with Piltover were never out of cowardice, nor out of fear for his own life.
But now, after seeing Zaun improving day by day, if Piltover tried to destroy that progress, his retaliation would be more ruthless than anyone else's.
On the Day of Ashes, he had killed the most enforcers.
"A storm is brewing... The councilors caught on too quickly," Cipher sighed before continuing.
"But Piltover is nothing more than a flock of sheep raised by Noxus, they wouldn't dare bare their fangs in front of a Noxian general."
"They won't send troops, at least not while Lester is still in Zaun."
Sevika spat on the ground. "I don't mind if they try. We've survived worse."
"Survival isn't enough anymore," Cipher sighed. "The Zaunites deserve more than just scraping by. That's exactly why her offer was such an insult, she was asking us to choose between dignity and comfort."
"As if we could trust them to deliver either," Silco growled. "But they'll try other tricks too." He rubbed his temples, feeling a headache coming on. We need to move fast. They won't wait for us to be ready.
"What kind of tricks? Our enforcers are already stronger than theirs. If they dare try anything, aren't they afraid of getting themselves killed?" Sevika frowned, unable to figure out what Piltover might attempt.
"There's no need for them to resort to violence; there are plenty of ways to deal with us. If we didn't have Swain from Noxus backing us..."
"They could restrict industrial raw materials, ban exports, and leave our factories unable to operate or transport goods. In less than a month, we'd be forced to either start a war or submit."
Silco quickly analyzed all the possible scenarios.
"But Zaun is no longer what it used to be. We'll see how this plays out, sooner or later, they'll regret it!"
"We're not at that point yet. Right now, whoever initiates the war first will be at a disadvantage." Cipher shook his head. The power balance between Zaun and Piltover was unique, everything depended on a handful of top scientists, especially Professor Heimerdinger.
Whoever started the war first would immediately lose the support of most of the top scientists. That's why they needed to remain patient and react accordingly.
"Piltover still has plenty of dirty tricks up its sleeve, the Gray is one of them."
"If they flood the Lanes with it, even if Lester helps us lodge a formal protest against the Council, they can simply brush it off as a ventilation system failure."
"We need to immediately modify the ventilation system designed by the House Kiramman. If they dare release the Gray, we'll make sure the poison gas flows right up into the Upper City."
Cipher narrowed his eyes. With Lester around, Piltover's tactics were actually quite limited. After careful thought, he figured the most likely move they'd make was using the Gray, a highly unstable chemical weapon in aerosol form developed by Piltover scientists.
It was the easiest thing to dismiss with excuses.
"Singed can modify the system."
"If he stays sober long enough."
"He will. This affects his lab too."
"I'll send someone to ask him for help with the modifications right away." Silco nodded and agreed without hesitation.
Overhauling the massive ventilation system spanning the entire Undercity required the expertise of a brilliant scientist, and the only one they had was Singed.
Just as they were about to continue discussing their plans, Lester suddenly appeared out of nowhere.
"Why so serious?"
Vander, Silco, and Sevika immediately fell silent.
"Judging by your faces, I assume negotiations with Councilor Medarda fell through?"
Lester casually walked alongside Cipher. Compared to his previously formal and distant demeanor, today's Lester seemed much more familiar and approachable.
"Failed implies we considered accepting. And with the conditions Councilor Medarda offered, was there ever any other possible outcome besides this?" Cipher shrugged.
Only a fool would willingly cripple their own power.
"Haha, when she first approached me about this, I seriously wondered if she had lost her mind. But she was completely serious. So, I reached out to my mentor. Do you know how he responded?"
Lester's face carried an amused smile, as if he had just heard the funniest joke of his life.
"What did the Grand General say?" Cipher asked curiously. He expected that someone like Swain wouldn't even bother acknowledging Mel, there was no way that cunning raven would waste his time on such trivial matters.
"My mentor neither agreed nor refused. He simply said, 'Let her be. It's just a child's game of make-believe.'"
Lester smirked. "A perfect response, wouldn't you say?"
Cipher raised an eyebrow, wearing an expression that said, I knew it.
As expected, Swain had just kicked the ball back to them.
