Twin Cities: I am the man of many myths

Chapter 281 The Bad Woman Lissandra and the Good Man Rick
"Nunu! Where are you?!"

The snowstorm intensified, and Reika's anxiety grew. Holding a machete in one hand and raising the other to shield her from the wind and snow, she shouted frantically.

But in an instant, Reka felt the snowstorm subside. She opened her squinted eyes, trying to see her surroundings clearly. At the same time, Reka also heard a gentle voice.

"Hello, Reka."

Someone called her name in the common language of Valoran. As a member of the nomadic tribe and a bard, Reka naturally knew the common language of Valoran. She immediately looked towards the source of the voice and saw a clean-faced young man with black hair looking at her gently.

With just one glance, Reika felt an inexplicable fondness for the other person, but this also made her nervous. In the stories she knew, many gods had the ability to make humans feel favor and bewitch them. In addition, the other person's inexplicable appearance in this place naturally made Reika nervous.

"Don't be nervous, I mean no harm," the person said to Reka.

“I know your son is there. He is not in danger. I can take you to him. However, I have a request. I hope you can listen to what I have to say.”

“No, I don’t need your help. I’ll find my own son myself,” Reka said immediately.

Apart from Anivia, Ornn, and Sister Seal, the other gods of Freljord have no good reputations, so Reika naturally didn't want to believe what the person in front of her said.

Li Ke was taken aback and was about to explain to Reika when a cold voice rang out beside him.

“You have no right to refuse.” Lissandra stepped forward, her white hair flowing freely. Her cool and beautiful face was filled with indifference as she stared at Reka with her pale eyes.

In an instant, Reka felt her body stiffen from an even more piercing cold, as if her blood was about to freeze. Her breathing became rapid, and she suddenly looked up at Lissandra. In just one glance, Reka recognized her.

Although the other person's appearance differed from that depicted in the ballads, Reka recognized them from their eyes and the wounds around them.

The moment she saw him, an ancient ballad flashed through her mind—[Flesh and blood forged into thunder and fire, the wrath of the ancient path materialized, scars covered his face, taboos and secrets coexisted.]

Lissandra Recca's teeth chattered, and the machete in her hand trembled slightly uncontrollably, but she bit her tongue to keep herself calm and gripped the machete tightly in her hand again.

“You really are different.” Hearing the other person’s words, Lissandra raised an eyebrow, somewhat surprised.

Her appearance is no secret to those who know her, but it's impossible for strangers to recognize her because she's now using her true face, not the image of the witch she's known for in Freljord.

However, Reika was recognized.

This troubled Lissandra greatly. Indeed, there are no secrets that cannot be kept forever; no matter how deeply hidden a secret is, it will eventually be uncovered.

To paraphrase a quote from Li Ke, "If you don't want others to know, then don't do it in the first place."

"What do you want to do?" Reka tried her best to straighten her body, gripped the machete with both hands, raised it, and pointed it at Lissandra and Rick.

“Reka, we truly mean you no harm. Your son, Nunu, we have something we need him to do…”

Before Li Ke could finish speaking, Reika angrily interrupted him, her voice trembling slightly. She shouted, "Nunu? He's just a child. What can he understand? What can he do for you? Help you... to be honest, isn't it just exploitation?"

"You plan to use a child? Just as history has it, witch, you are truly wicked to the core! You betrayed your own sisters, and now you plan to use a child of only a few years old to satisfy your own desires?"

Reika shouted.

Lissandra didn't care about Reika's scolding. There were plenty of people who would curse her. In the past, when she appeared in someone's dream for one night, at least a third of the people in Freljord feared her, hated her, loathed her, and insulted her. But so what?
“Your son Nunu is not an ordinary child. We need his power, not to exploit him, but to guide and utilize it. A major event is about to happen in Freljord, one that will determine the fate of the entire nation. I know this may seem abrupt to you, but please believe me, we will not harm Nunu, nor will we put him in any danger. He can save the world.”

Li Ke was doing his best to unleash Ahri's innate skills and express his affection for Reika.

However, it's quite obvious that even with the affinity bestowed by Ahri, it's difficult to change a mother's mind when she asks to borrow her son.

Hearing Li Ke's words, Reika's expression grew even angrier, and she also wore a hint of mockery towards Li Ke as she loudly proclaimed:

"Save the world? Nunu can save the world? I believe my child will be outstanding in the future; he will become a great bard or a great hero, but not now!"

"What kind of world would stoop to the point where it needs a child under five years old to save it?"

“She’s right.” Before Li Ke could speak, Nila muttered, her eyes bright. She added, “I also think your plan is outrageous. If you ask me, we should just go up and fight the Void. I’m good at fighting. I really don’t know what’s the point of you wasting your time on a kid.”

Li Ke: "."

Lissandra looked at Nera in silence, her pale eyes flashing with a bright blue light as she looked around.

"I was wrong." In an instant, Nera raised her hands and admitted defeat to Lissandra.

Li Ke stood to the side, speechless.
Actually, Nera's thoughts are not surprising, and it's even less surprising that Reka, as a mother, would react this way.

Nunu is indeed a child, but the problem is, Nunu is really not an ordinary child.

What kind of child could interact with beings like Ornn, Volibear, the ice sculpture demigod, and Lissandra before the age of ten?

What's more, Nunu can inherit Anivia's power, and that's Anivia! She's a demigod in Runeterra, second only to Ornn and Volibear!

Li Ke looked at Lissandra, hesitated for a moment, and said, "Why don't you go and pick up Ashe? I think it was a mistake for you to come out."

"What do you mean by that?" Lissandra narrowed her eyes.

Li Ke shrugged.

Lissandra sensed Reika's direction, and this realization made her even more annoyed.

Upon hearing the name Aisha, Reika actually put down the machete in her hand.
Nila, a bystander who didn't understand what was going on, was like: "?"

A few minutes later--

Reika lowered the wood-chopping knife she had raised, looking with respect at the beautiful woman with white hair, wearing a long dress, carrying an ice crystal longbow, who was looking puzzled.

Nera, who was initially unaware of the truth, looked at Lissandra and then at Ashe, and even she understood what was going on.

"Are you that unpopular?" she muttered unconsciously. The next moment, Nera suddenly started to whimper, ice crystals appearing on her upturned lips. Nera's eyes were filled with panic, and Lissandra's cold voice echoed in her mind.

"If you want to never be able to speak for the rest of your life, then try saying one more sentence?"

Nera shook her head vigorously.

Meanwhile, Li Ke explained the current situation to Aisha, who had been invited over. After listening, Aisha looked at Reika with a hint of hesitation in her eyes.

To be honest, she trusted Li Ke. After all, Ashe had witnessed the demigod war in Freljord firsthand, and now that Avarosa was an ally of the Twin Cities, Ashe would naturally side with Li Ke.

However, as a woman, and especially as the war mother of her tribe, Ashe had some reservations about Rick's actions.
He asked a mother if he needed her child, who was under five years old, claiming that the child could save the world.
Isn't this funny?
If it weren't for Li Ke saying those words, and if someone else had said them, Ashe would have already shot an arrow at him.

What kind of mentally challenged human trafficker could say such a thing?
But seeing Rick's serious expression, Aisha sighed. Rick had no reason to joke about something like this, so Aisha could only say that anything could happen in this world.

She knew that her knowledge and experience were inferior to Li Ke's, so she would never do anything to doubt Li Ke.

So, Aisha looked at Reika and said, "I can vouch for you."

“In the name of Avarosa, I vouch for him,” Ashe said solemnly to Reika, raising her ice crystal longbow.

As for Reika, upon seeing Aisha appear, her hostility visibly dissipated by more than half.

“Even so, I can’t hand Nunu over to them,” Reka said seriously.

"How about this, we can take you with us. You'll see and witness everything that happens to Nunu during this time. Is that okay? You can stay with Nunu the whole time. Besides, Reika, we don't really want Nunu to face any danger. The dangers Nunu will encounter along the way are all created by us. It's all just an act."

"acting?"

"Yes, Lissandra, Ashe, the Frostguard clan, Avaros, and Winter's Claw will all play roles in this play, and everything he experiences is something we created."

Reika instantly understood what Rick meant; if that were the case...
Thinking about it, Reika glanced at Aisha.

This is guaranteed by Avarossa. Rather than gods, Reka prefers to believe in mortal leaders. Avarossa is the universally recognized beacon of hope for all tribes in Freljord. Ashe's personal guarantee, in the name of Avarossa, is the most solemn and dignified oath.

Therefore, the scales in Reka's heart began to tip.

“Let me see how you do it first,” Reka said seriously, taking a deep breath.

Nunu is a kind-hearted child. If he knew he could help others, he would definitely agree. As his mother, as Ash said, she shouldn't hinder Nunu's growth.

Seeing Reika breathe a sigh of relief, Rick smiled and said, "Alright, let's set off now."

Lissandra watched Li Ke's retreating figure. If it were the old Lissandra, she would have simply hidden Reka and the entire Notte clan, or even killed them outright.

Why do we need to do so much tedious work?

Without adults around, Nunu, a little kid, is being manipulated. How can he possibly decide what to do?
Lissandra shook her head, her head lowered, and a slight smile appeared on her lips.

Yes, that was her in the past.

She doesn't need to do anything so extreme now.

A difficult, pivotal event that can determine the course of a decision often involves more than just two options; there is often a third option. However, we need to carefully observe and discover this third option, as Li Ke once said.

Lissandra thought that statement was very true.

The heavy snow stopped, but the wind was still blowing. Under a huge rock, the little creature, sheltering from the wind and snow, suddenly poked its head out, first opening its small mouth to reveal a toothless smile, its bright green eyes darting around cleverly, and then it loudly proclaimed:

"It's time to go!"

"Little hero Nunu is about to embark on a journey to find the greatest hero of Freljord! I will definitely find Braum!"

The little guy was talking to himself; he was saying these things entirely to himself.

Shaking off the snow and putting on his thick felt hat, the little guy, oblivious to the fact that his actions were making his mother extremely anxious, continued walking deeper into the forest.

Behind him, several figures were hidden in the wind and snow.

Reka's eyes were filled with shock as she looked at the small black dot below. She recognized it as her child, but how... how could she hear Nunu's voice from this distance?

They must be at least two or three hundred meters apart!
Turning to the side, Reika looked at Rick, who was speaking.

Rick noticed Reika's gaze, thought for a moment, raised his hand, and magic flowed, creating a mirror made of wind.

Reika looked over and saw Nunu's little face.

What kind of magic is this?
"Let's get started. First, let me tell you about the story that's going to happen next. We need to create a scene where the Notte clan is wiped out. But that would be too cruel. So let's create a scene where the Notte clan members have all left this place and Nunu and Reka are separated."

Li Ke continued:
“Therefore, we must let Nunu get lost in the forest. So, Lissandra, it’s time for you to step in.”

"Why should I do this?" Lissandra took a deep breath and said coldly.

"Because you're a professional bad guy!" Li Ke blurted out.

Lisan Zhuo stared blankly at Li Ke with her lifeless, pale eyes.

"Are we still going to deal with the Frost Watchers? This is cleaning up your mess, understand?" Rick said, rolling his eyes at Lissandra.

"."

"Hoo—" Lissandra closed her eyes, and dark ice blocks appeared on her body, enveloping her face, while flowing black ice floated beneath her.

"No, no, no, I'm not asking you to show up now. You're the final boss. You should create some ice creatures to chase Nunu, then pull Nunu into your domain, making him forget the flow of time. Then, create the illusion of the Notte clan leaving your domain to confuse Nunu."

Reika listened from the side, completely unable to understand what these words meant.

Li Ke reached out and patted Lissandra on the shoulder, saying, "Go ahead."

Lissandra's body vanished in an instant, and when she reappeared, she was already beside Reika, far away from Rick, preventing Rick from patting her shoulder.

But in response to Li Ke's command, she raised her hands and gently pointed downwards.

Suddenly, countless wolves made of ice appeared around Lissandra. Although the wolves were made of ice, they were lifelike, with expressive faces and fierce eyes.

The next moment, the wolf pack flew to the ground and appeared in the forest.

When Reka saw this, her heart seemed to clench, and she instantly became tense.

Li Ke, who was watching from the side, clapped his hands and said loudly:

"Nera, you just stay here and watch quietly, don't cause any trouble. You'll have your turn to appear later. So, Act One, the bad woman Lissandra and the good man Rick, let's officially begin!"

Upon hearing Li Ke's voice, the ice flowing through Lissandra's body grew even colder.

(End of this chapter)