Cyberzaun, Machinarium

The road to Xiongdu was much shorter than Enoch had imagined, especially when he met a tall warrior holding a huge sword halfway.

"Nice to meet you, Sir Galen Crownguard." Enoch squinted his eyes and looked at the armor and the huge two-handed sword shining in the sun.

"Thank you for taking care of my sister." Garen nodded and saluted. "Please allow me to express my gratitude later."

Lux said hello softly, said goodbye to Enoch and Jinx, and jumped on the other horse that Garen brought.

"We will hold a banquet in a few days. The invitation will be sent to you later. Please be sure to visit."

"It's my honor." Enoch nodded and accepted a badge handed over by Garen. It seemed that he would be busy after arriving at the base. He didn't know how Benso and the others were doing now.

Should I hold a wine tasting event? Gather the Demacia knights and promote my products.

"Hold on tight, Jinx, we have to speed up. You can go find your new friends when we reach the Demacia capital." Enoch held the girl who was jumping up and down and waving goodbye to Lux, and waved the whip.

"I hope Benso has arranged that."

Chapter 33 Loslien Company

The carriage followed the flow of traffic into the majestic gate of Demacia's capital, passed through a square, and came across a large number of sculptures, most of which recorded the heroes from the founding emperor Jarvan I to the present.

If the first impression of Zaun is the countless pipes and the ever-flowing chemicals, then Mysore City is like an Athenian palace complex. This land is holier than anywhere else, and perhaps only the snow-capped mountains can compare with it.

The Demacians seem to be particularly fond of statues, and epic reliefs can be seen everywhere. In addition to recording the stories of pioneering, half of them are about Demacia's battle against Noxus, and the rest are about the fight against Freljord.

Following the address obtained earlier, Enoch took Jinx across most of the city and came to the base of Lothrian Technology. Compared with the armor decorations chosen at the gates of nearby courtyards, this place seemed a little different. There were a large number of mechanical pipes at the gate, which controlled the opening and closing of the gate every day - this used the design of Piltover Sun Gate.

Seeing Benso again was beyond Enoch's imagination. The slightly fat middle-aged man in his memory was now wearing a suit of armor, especially the deerskin gloves he was wearing.

"Long time no see, you seem to be doing well." Enoch walked forward to say hello and knocked on Benso's armor. As expected, the sound sounded hollow. This thing was just a tin decoration. Enoch doubted that it could be chopped in half with a kitchen knife.

"Who was that? It turned out to be a little rat that escaped from Zaun." Benso patted Enoch's shoulder fiercely. "How was the journey? I heard from Hafen that you got into some trouble?"

"It's been taken care of." Enoch took Jinx's hand and followed Benso to the back. Since meeting Benso, Jinx has been very quiet and hasn't said a word.

Seeing the awkward atmosphere, Enoch thought for a moment and whispered to Jinx, "Go check if there's anything wrong with the things we brought. If you want to go find your new friend, go ahead."

Seeing the girl running towards the warehouse, Benso turned around and said, "Is this the little one from the Vander family? I didn't recognize her."

"Yes, time flies, and everyone changes." Enoch handed a bag of Zaun tobacco to Benso. "Zuan goods, you used to like them very much. I have been looking for them for a long time."

Benso rolled himself a stick skillfully and took a deep breath. "Ha, it's still so choking... Are the others okay?"

"Oh no! Violet and Ike are missing and we haven't found them yet. However, trade between the upper city and the lower city is very frequent now. Hilco has done a lot in this regard, but... his potion is a bit scary. I'm worried about its spread."

"Humph, Hilco is a poisonous snake. If you are not careful, he will slip into some gutter and then suddenly jump out to bite you. You have to be careful of him, especially when you have Vander's child with you." Benso curled his lips, as if he hated to mention him.

"I know him. He has always been very radical, especially after he fell out with Vander. He disappeared for a while and was a completely different person when he reappeared. He is the most dangerous gambler. He doesn't care what cards he holds. As long as he is given the opportunity, he will make the craziest choice."

Enoch nodded. "I know, that's why I ran away... No one knows what Hilco is doing now, and he doesn't believe me. If it weren't for Jinx, I wouldn't know that Hilco secretly prepared a ship of alchemical gas bombs. He hid it very well, and no one knew where to transport it. But he didn't use the Hextech flying door to teleport, so it's hard to find any traces."

"Those bombs are most likely sent to Noxus. Just wait and see. It will blow up in no time. After all, if you have a hammer in your hand, you have to find some nails to hit." 3

"Noxus is going to go to war with Demacia again? So you want to arm the army here in advance? In my opinion, Demacia prefers to hone itself." Benso frowned and put out his cigarette. This is not good news.

Enoch chuckled. "When has Noxus ever made peace with Demacia? But those alchemical bombs will not be used here. The strongest thing about Demacia is not the city walls, but the forbidden magic stones all over the ground. As long as Noxus can't solve this problem, the Trilifar troops can only watch helplessly."

"During this time, please help me register a company in Demacia. Once Noxus starts fighting, we will go to the Alliance as Demacia and fund the armed forces. It would be best if we can bleed Noxus a little so that they don't have time to do other things."

Only by taking advantage of this time can Zaun have a chance to compete with Piltover. Otherwise, if the Midalda family of Piltover intervenes and gives them a reason to take action, both Piltover and Zaun will have to stay where they are.

"Do you think Noxus will attack Piltover?" Benso was puzzled. Isn't it the style of Noxus to attack you if they want to? Why do they need so many excuses?

"It's just a precaution. The two cities are too weak right now to be a problem, so giving Piltover autonomy can actually speed up logistics efficiency. But when the two sides fight and shipping becomes a complete mess, it's hard to say whether Noxus will intervene."

Enoch sighed, "We have no strategic depth, and our manpower is too poor in both quantity and quality. It's useless to give us the best weapons."

Benso brushed off the cigarette ash on his body, stood up, and placed the account book in front of Enoch. "I'm too far away. I don't know the situation in Zaun. I can't give you any advice, but I still remind you to be careful of Xierko. If there is anything I can help, let me know."

"In fact, there is one thing. I hope you can hold an event in the name of Loslien Technology to attract all the nobles or knights you know. We have to leave a deep impression on everyone and can't be so tepid."

As a sponsor, hold a knight competition of unprecedented scale, with extremely generous prizes, and try to invite some nobles to participate and watch, to increase the value.

Pick some popular knights and find a way to get them together to create topics. This will attract attention. It would be even better if their supporters fought over this.

Find a few who are most likely to win in advance, and sponsor a full set of equipment, from horse spikes to saddles, from armor to lances, all with the Loslien label

I hope that every kid who follows the game will go to the store next door and get a complete set of championship equipment at a very low price.

I need all the knights in Demacia to come to Lothrian without hesitation when they want to buy equipment.

I want every Demacian to be dependent on Losrien's products from birth to death.

I don't think we will lose to the local handicraft workshops in a price war with our production level. When the run-off is almost over, we will find those craftsmen who have some skills and give them an investment that they cannot refuse.

Benso looked at Enoch in surprise. "This will cost a lot of money, and I don't have any connections with the nobles, so I can't bring them over."

"Money is not a problem. As for the nobles," Enoch waved the badge he got from Galen, "I will try to invite the swordsman leader of the Fearless Vanguard to participate."

PS:

Thanks to the lovely Yang Baru!! Blade 3

Chapter 34: The Two Meet Again

"Don't you want to meet Benso and have a chat?"

Enoch walked around the warehouse and saw Jinx huddled in a corner. It was obvious that the girl was in a period of self-doubt again. This was rare. Usually, she would only be like this when she made a big mess.

"No, forget it. I don't have anything to say. I just came over to help you check if everything is okay." Jinx's voice was even hoarser than usual. "Anyway, no one wants me, so I won't go up and cause trouble."

"You really make me sad." Enoch sat behind Jinx and let Jinx lean back on his back, resting her little head on his shoulder.

"No matter what Jinx does, Littlefinger will never leave Jinx. Do you remember what you said?" A hoarse voice came from behind, and Enoch had to spend more energy to catch the girl's whisper.

"Let me think about it. I remember what I said seemed to be more subjective, something like 'You are mine, no matter where you go, you must come back to me'. Doesn't this sound too strange?" Enoch smiled.

"No, I just like to hear you say that." Jinx turned around and hugged Enoch for a while before getting up. "I'm going to play with Sparkle. Remember not to lock the door. I'll be back in the evening."

"Have fun." Enoch watched Jinx jump out the door, then stood up and continued to count the inventory. "Who is Sparkle?"

........................

Jinx, carrying a bunch of Demacia's specialties, followed the instructions of the enthusiastic shopkeeper and came to Laxana's mansion. She showed the guard the badge she had taken from Little Finger and was easily allowed to pass.

Passing by numerous sculptures and tin cans standing guard, Jinx looked at the completely different scene with curiosity. This place was more like a castle with both offensive and defensive capabilities than a residence. In the slightly larger squares, people were fighting with swords and shields.

Next to a fountain, Jinx ran into the tall man she met on the road. He seemed to ask Garen to come here? It was rare to see him without that dazzling armor.

Jinx waved her hand holding the candy as a greeting, ignoring the serious-looking old lady next to her, and skipped to the tower and knocked on Lux's door.

After staring at the nameplate on the door for a while, but still no movement, Jinx felt a little impatient. She had waited patiently for 5 minutes. After looking around, Jinx jumped to the window beside her, ready to find a way to get in.

Lux was standing in front of the mirror, staring at the flash of her fingertips in a daze. She was thinking about this thrilling accident. Fortunately, the girl who saw her secret was crazy, but fortunately she was not a Demacia and did not have such a big opinion on the mage.

Lux recalled the girl's self-introduction. She said she was from Zaun. What place is that? Even if she looked up the information in the book, the content was pitifully little. Most of it was only mentioned when introducing Piltover. Would Zaun have developed shipping like Piltover? Just like the Hexgate that was started a few years ago, it is said that it is powered by magic, so it is not allowed to be built near Mithril City.

Magic... Lux shook his head, and thought of the uncomfortable things that happened to him. No, he had to change his mind and stop thinking about it. Zaun... Zaun. He remembered that there seemed to be a store that sold Zaun alchemical items. What was it called? Lux turned his head and looked at the water heater beside him. It was called Losrian. Some noble knights liked this store very much. Their alchemical mechanical armor could help them run faster, jump higher, and swing with greater force to a great extent... But his aunt didn't like it very much. She felt that relying too much on external forces would make the warriors cowardly and dull, which would hurt their courage.

But my aunt really likes those household appliances, and she will always buy them as soon as possible when there are new products. Thinking of this, Lux smiled.

"What are you doing here, grinning like an idiot? Are you meditating?"

Lux almost jumped up in fright when she heard the voice behind her. She turned around quickly and immediately put away the light on her fingertips.

"I've been waiting for you outside, knocking on the door, and you're just naked and grinning?" Jinx sat on the edge of the bathtub, biting on a piece of candy she bought on the street, looking the girl up and down.

"Is this some kind of hobby of yours? Seriously you should see a doctor."

"I'm fine, very healthy. But you, breaking into someone else's room suddenly is very unladylike, and wantonly invading other people's privacy is even more bad behavior." Lux grabbed the bath towel beside her and wrapped herself tightly.

"I was just washing up, so it's reasonable that I didn't hear you knocking on the door. This doesn't mean you can break in, so get out now, immediately." Lux complained to herself, why didn't she learn some dirty words before? At this time, Lux wanted to curse but couldn't find any bad words. This kind of light words sounded even more inappropriate, like flirting.

"I think what you want to say is 'get out, bitch', but I like the tone of your voice. I'm going to go out first and wait for you outside. You better hurry up and stop grinning." Jinx smiled at the blonde girl and ran out with a big bag of snacks. She even remembered to close the bathroom door when she left.

"Damn it," Lux cursed under her breath, quickly changed her clothes and walked out. She felt that she was extremely unlucky in the past two days.

After taking a deep breath to calm herself down, Lux pushed open the door. She had to face it anyway. Could it be more troublesome than magic?

"You finally came out. These snacks are my gifts for you. And did you draw this? To be honest, it's really ugly." Jinx was leaning on the back of the study chair with her feet on the armrest. On the desk, she spread out all kinds of candies she brought. In her hand, she was waving a doodle of a little golden-haired man destroying a monster with a beam of light.

"This is my personal property, you shouldn't rummage through it." Lux was almost going crazy. Take it back. There are things in this world that are more troublesome than magic.

"I didn't rummage around. This thing is right on the table. You can't let me throw all the candies on the floor." Jinx started to act pitiful. This trick always works for people who don't know her.

"What on earth are you doing here? You are not welcome here"1

"I was just joking, okay? I apologize. Don't be angry." Jinx picked up the fruit on the side and handed it to Lux. "I came here to ask you, this place doesn't like your magic, and you can't keep hiding it. Have you considered going somewhere else?"

"If you have nowhere to go, you can come to Zaun. I'll ask Littlefinger for help. He will definitely find a way to get you out."

Chapter 35 Knightly Tournaments

"What... No, I'm not going anywhere. I'm the daughter of the Crown Guard family, and I won't shirk my responsibilities." Lux suddenly panicked. She had never thought of leaving Demacia one day, and the sudden choice made her subconsciously refuse.

"It's okay, I just said that, and it seems like you really believe it?" Jinx looked nonchalant, just blew her bangs and skipped the topic.

"If I had this beautiful big house, I wouldn't want to leave it either"

Lux looked unhappy when she heard this. "It has nothing to do with where I am. I just have to respond...to the expectations placed on me."

After a brief silence, Lux remembered that the girl had broken into her home without permission. "What are you doing here? You almost confused me."

"I just came to see you and send an invitation to your house. Little Finger is preparing a big party. If you feel bored, you are welcome to come to the venue at any time. It would be even better if you can help."

Lux frowned as she looked at an invitation that Jinx had pulled out from somewhere. It was obviously a half-finished product. There was no speech, no signature, and it wasn't even in a beautiful envelope.

"What is this? It doesn't even have the venue and time of the event written on it. How come I didn't hear any mention of any knight activities?" Lux read it over and over again. She couldn't stand this crude thing.

"Because Little Finger just came up with this idea yesterday. It seems like finding a group of tin cans to fight each other in the arena, leaving the strongest one. I remember the prizes were quite generous." Jinx jumped up from her chair. "Anyway, your little secret is not suitable to be revealed. If you feel tired, you are welcome to come to my territory."

"Where is the arena you mentioned?" Lux asked the girl who was about to leave.

"I don't know. We've just started selecting a site. You can just come to Losrien Technology." Jinx looked at Garen and the woman walking towards the room. "But I have a suggestion for you. Just watch the fun from the side. It's best not to sign up for the competition, otherwise you will most likely lose miserably."

"Lothrian will also have sponsored knights appearing. I've seen Little Finger's design. It's not something that a tin can can solve with courage."

Watching the girl leave, Tiana asked Lux, "Is this your friend?"

"I met her on the way back. She helped me a few times." Lux replied cautiously.

"A very lively little girl, but she's really arrogant. She said knights are useless in the house of the leader of the Demacia Fearless Vanguard?" Tiana Crownguard joked with a smile. As the commander of the most elite legion in Demacia, she was very confident in the fighting power of her subordinates.

"She is from abroad and has never seen a real knight, so... I will talk to her another day," Lux quickly explained to her aunt.

Garen picked up the half-finished invitation on the table and looked at it over and over again. "Go if you want to. It's not a bad thing to have more friends. If you don't have official business, we can go to... the so-called Knights' Tournament to see where these people get their confidence from."

........................

"I sent the invitations for you." Jinx returned to Enoch's residence, jumped onto the bed, and excitedly asked Enoch for credit.

"Take off your shoes before getting into bed," Enoch sorted out the documents on the desk, "What invitation? Who did you give it to?"

"It's the knight competition you mentioned. I gave Little Sparks her brother, the one called Garen, who said he would show up." After struggling to kick off one of her boots, Jinx looked at Enoch beside her and acted coquettishly.

"I ran so far and I'm too tired to move. Can you help me take off the other one?"

"No," Enoch remained unmoved. "You should take a rest first. I need to talk to Benso about something. We need to prepare some decent prizes. They are not easy to choose."

"Don't worry, I'll help you with some advice. If it doesn't work, I'll ask Sparkle to come over and give you some suggestions." Jinx lifted her legs and swung them. "Can you help me take them off now?"

"Don't do it again." Enoch dragged the girl off the ground and put her boots neatly in place, then threw the blanket over to her. "Go to bed early, you'll be busy in the next few days."

........................

"So what are you going to keep me busy with?" Benso leaned against the table and poured himself and Enoch a full cup of hot tea.

Starting from the basics, I need a large enough venue that can't be too far away from Miyin City. It would be best if citizens can just walk around and see our game.

Then contact several major ace troops in Demacia and ask them if they are interested in serving as referees... If anyone agrees, sponsor some funds and at the same time spread the word that the legion commanders are watching their fight, giving the contestants some sweet treats.

We also need to send a few people over here, and show up near the finals to have a big melee, which will serve as a platform for displaying our weapons.

"I have to remind you that our people are good at maintaining order, but if we let them go to the stadium to participate in the competition, they will only be chopped up like vegetables." Benso wrote down the requirements in his notebook, but he had to interrupt Enoch immediately when he heard his whimsical design.

"My products can ignore the opponent's skills and experience, so I just need to find some thugs and teach them to stop at the right time. By the way, contact Hafen and ask him to teach the basic way of greeting, so that Demacia won't laugh at us for being amateur idiots."

"I don't think there's any need to worry about the Demacians' ridicule," Benso shrugged. "We are just amateur fools, there's no doubt about that."