-223- She can be shy too

"So you can rest assured."

"Azir is a man of loyalty, and because of this, he was betrayed by Xerath, his trust was betrayed. But you helped him, and I think he will agree to a condition from you. I can guarantee that."

Nasus said seriously to Linwin, "You can ask Azir for Kha'Zhun, and he will grant it to you."

The few of them sat on the ground, with Taliyah kneeling obediently, but she stared fixedly at Nasus.

Obedience is just an act, within Taliyah's fragile body lies a heart unafraid of obstacles, with ambitions to move mountains and fill seas.

Concerning homeland, protecting one's people, Taliyah rudely interrupted Nasus and said loudly, "But this is different from the stories I've heard. There are stories all over Shurima criticizing Azir. According to what you said, Azir has been dead for thousands of years, Shurima has been gone for thousands of years, but people still fear Azir to this day. His story can even stop children from crying. Such a person, such a person...."

"How could such a person be a wise ruler? I don't believe what you're saying."

Taliyah pouted, filled with anger.

If it weren't for her master's request, she wouldn't even bother talking to these Ascended warriors.

She had heard their stories, she knew what they were about.

Looking at Nasus, Taliyah continued, "It's you, it's you and your emperor, it's you who brought suffering to Shurima, you made the oasis disappear, made water and shade even scarcer."

"I'm not making this up, the stones and sands of Shurima told me, they don't lie." Taliyah's hands rested on her thighs, leaning forward, and said seriously.

She could hear the voices of the stones.

She could see the stories the stones had witnessed.

Azir and his Ascended warriors brought suffering to this land, and now, this guy in front of her, with his dog-like appearance, dares to say Azir is a good person? 

What a joke!

Nasus looked at Taliyah, at this sparrow born of the yellow sands.

A "gentle" smile appeared on his canine face, and Nasus didn't dislike Taliyah.

On the contrary, he was amused by Taliyah's "acting."

This girl has the heart of a hero, despite her appearance of frailty, she possesses the magic to manipulate the hardest and strongest element in the world.

She is no less than those powerful warriors.

Nasus knew this.

She has abilities similar to Azir's, such a person could not be a cowardly weakling.

And when Taliyah saw Nasus's smile, she was frightened and immediately summoned a bunch of stones pointed toward Nasus.

Seeing this, Nasus withdrew his smile and explained helplessly to Taliyah, "Taliyah, Shurima is a vassal state. After Azir's death, the Ascended no longer had the suppression of the emperor's bloodline, and because of being contaminated by the Void, they magnified the evil within themselves. They each established their own power, and war engulfed the continent of Shurima."

"Ordinary people were forced to be involved in this struggle."

"Taliyah, I have to apologize to you. What you said all happened, the suffering of the people of Shurima was caused by us. But I promise you, as a warrior of the heavens, this is not what Azir wanted. On the contrary, Azir suppressed them."

Nasus said earnestly to Taliyah, his tone filled with regret and self-blame, which made the little sparrow dazed for a moment.

For the wandering millennia, Nasus has been blaming himself. He lost himself for too long, and now he can't let this land perish on its own.

"Taliyah, Nasus didn't lie to you, everything he said is true." Linwin also reached out and patted the back of the restless little sparrow's head, and Taliyah, who was sulking, calmed down a lot after receiving comfort from her master.

"And what you said about the ancient Shuriman slave system, Azir is indeed working to abolish it. He even prepared on the day of Ascension," in front of Linwin, Nasus suddenly turned to him, and Linwin immediately noticed his mistake.

"However... Azir was betrayed."

"Linwin, you know a lot of things." Nasus looked quietly at Linwin.

Facing Nasus's gaze, Linwin shrugged naturally and said, "These are all things Janna told me."

And an unnamed little bird eavesdropping on the conversation: "....."

Hey, I didn't even know about this!

That cruel emperor wants to abolish slavery and all that?

The invisible bluebird in the sky made a helpless sound.

After that emperor ordered her shrine to be destroyed, she almost disappeared. Where did she get the power to know these things?

Seeing Nasus nodding in sudden realization, the bluebird could only shake its head and sigh, "What a stupid dog."

Seeing the doubt in Nasus's eyes dissipate, Linwin immediately continued, "I don't have much time, Nasus, let's continue."

The wind spirit has existed for no less time than him, and she knows many secrets, so Nasus dispelled his suspicion of Linwin and nodded loudly, "Okay."

---

In the early hours of the morning, after bidding farewell to Nasus, Linwin returned home with the drowsy Taliyah, who was struggling with constant yawning and fighting against her eyelids, and the awake Kai'Sa.

First, he threw Taliyah into her room, then Linwin turned around.

"Say, even though I'm like Taliyah, we are both from Shurima, our ages are similar, but, but I don't know anything."

Just after putting down Taliyah, in the living room, Linwin heard Kai'Sa's voice.

Kai'Sa was feeling down.

"I only know about Kahleek, I only know about the goats grazing in the Vekura."

Kai'Sa continued, "I know the most prosperous place is the Tasaerku market."

"About the emperor, about the Ascended, about the sufferings I didn't know any of it."

Linwin looked at Kai'Sa strangely.

"And yet you were sitting there nodding as if you understood everything?" 

"Do you think I'm stupid?" Kai'Sa turned her head to look at Linwin, asking him softly.

"You spent nearly ten years in that underground world, and besides, you live in such a remote place, it's normal for you not to know these things."

"Taliyah is a nomad, she has been to many places, her entire tribe follows the river, you're different."

Seeing that Kai'Sa was still feeling a bit down, Linwin spoke up, "It's nothing, Kai'Sa."

"Linwin, actually, it's not that I feel embarrassed, I don't care. I just, I just feel sad for my homeland."

"Even the Ascended, such powerful beings, couldn't defeat them, what was I thinking before? Why did I think I could intercept them alone?" Kai'Sa recalled Nasus's words, about those truly terrifying monsters. She had only faced the weakest of the Void creatures, yet even so, Kai'Sa had suffered many injuries from them. Thinking about this, Kai'Sa's mood visibly worsened.

She said softly, "I think what you said before was right, I'm just a frog at the bottom of the well, I'm a idiot."

"I said this kind of thing before?" Linwin muttered quietly after hearing it.

Of course, Kai'Sa heard it, her hearing was excellent, so she immediately said, "You said I'm easily decieved, just like a frog in the well, without any knowledge, without understanding anything."

Thinking about it, this was what he said when he was sailing from Shurima back to Zaun.

Seeing Kai'Sa's gloomy face, Linwin immediately stepped forward and began to speak in her ear.

He was teasing Kai'Sa.

And also reassuring Kai'Sa.

Basically, he reiterated what he had said before, that one person couldn't stop them, but she still had him, and so on.

After Linwin comforted her for a while, Kai'Sa, who was eating the food Linwin gave her, finally felt much better.

But just as Linwin returned with a glass of water because he was thirsty, Kai'Sa suddenly said to him, "By the way, when you told Nasus that I'm your people, what exactly do you mean by that?"

The glass of water was placed on the table, and Linwin was stunned.

Kai'Sa stared at him and continued, "Are you protecting me?"

"Um, of course, you can certainly think that way," Linwin nodded in response.

At the same time, feeling a bit guilty, someone quickly picked up the glass again, intending to drink some water to calm down.

That sentence, it really just blurted out in a moment of impulse.

"But in the southern part of Shurima, in my hometown, when people say that kind of stuff, it can only mean one thing," Kai'Sa blinked at Linwin and added, "Do you want to know what it is? Do you want to know why Nasus looked at you like that after you said that?"

"What?" Linwin recalled Nasus's expression, which seemed somewhat shocked and puzzled, right?

Nasus has fought against the Void, and he has biases and misunderstandings towards Kai'Sa, so that's normal.

But soon, what Kai'Sa said next let Linwin know why Nasus looked at him like that.

Kai'Sa isn't an easily embarrassed girl, the ten years of life and death in the underground world have made Kai'Sa a cold Void hunter.

Although, the happy life during this period has allowed her to rediscover her humanity, but she still doesn't know how to be shy.

Of course, it's not that Kai'Sa is shameless!

Kai'Sa also has her pride, but most of the time, she prefers a straightforward way.

Dragging things out is a big taboo, in the face of the Void, people who hesitate and don't act decisively are not worth pitying even if they die a hundred times.

Those nearly ten years of underground life, while tempering Kai'Sa's will and strength, also cultivated her straightforward personality.

So Kai'Sa endured some thoughts that arose in her heart, those unfair thoughts about Linwin, and spoke to him, "Wife."

"In Shurima, when people say that, it means that woman is that man's lover, his wife. Those were the words my father said, he said my mother was his people, and so am I."

Kai'Sa looked down at herself, reached out and touched the carapace on her shoulder, "So, I know my appearance may seem strange, but Linwin, I am still a woman."

"So, do you now understand why Nasus looked at you like that?" 

Linwin has always been good to her.

But Kai'Sa thinks that's kindness to a friend, to a comrade.

Linwin put down the glass of water and turned to Kai'Sa.

"So it's not surprising that he looked at you like that."

Kai'Sa laughed at herself, "I live symbiotically with the shell on my body, because of it, I am no longer human. Even though I think I am like them, most people still can't accept me."

"It's okay, I forgive those who call me a monster because it's not their fault. Even when I see myself in the mirror, I'm often startled."

"Nasus probably can't understand why you would consider such a creature as your wife."

Linwin put down the glass of water, took a deep breath, and looked at Kai'Sa.

It's supposed to be drinking water, but Linwin didn't drink a drop.

Because of this moment!

Here it comes, it's here!

Linwin learned from TV dramas, romance novels, and cheesy Korean dramas.

This is definitely not the time to stay silent.

This is when the female lead opens her heart, and the foolish male lead in TV dramas and romance novels often makes stupid moves, then the female lead starts imagining things, and finally, a sad love story begins, after a lot of blabbering, everything is explained clearly.

Linwin doesn't want that.

But without looking into Linwin's eyes, Kai'Sa kept talking to herself.

"But I can also understand his hostility."

"After all, no one knows when this skin will devour me too, and when that time comes, will I still be me?"

"But don't worry, for now, there's no need to worry about this issue, because when it's full, it's very quiet. My skin has one good point, it only causes trouble when it's hungry."

"Oh, right, Taliyah calls me 'mistress,' also because of your habit of talking nonsense."

Kai'Sa rambled on:

"But it seems that Zaun isn't like that, even if the relationship between husband and wife is good, the wife is still independent, I really like this."

Kai'Sa kept talking to herself endlessly.

When it quieted down, she looked at Linwin.

Linwin immediately moved his chair closer to Kai'Sa and asked aloud, "So do you agree?"

"Agree with what?" Kai'Sa looked at the approaching Linwin blankly.

Why does it feel like...

I said a lot earlier, but this guy doesn't seem to have listened to any of it?

Yes, Linwin definitely didn't listen.

"You didn't refute my words at that time, you agreed when Taliyah called you, so... can I assume you're willing?"

"Do you want to be my...?"

"!"

Linwin scratched his head, "Ah" for a moment, then immediately continued, "To be my wife."

Someone has to take the first step, so it might as well be me.

Linwin likes Kai'Sa.

But he's always been secretive about it because he's afraid Kai'Sa won't understand what the word "love" represents.

After all, she entered the underground world at the age of ten, she's been out of touch with society for too long.

But now, upon closer inspection, Kai'Sa has indeed been disconnected from human society for a long time, but she entered the underground world at the age of ten, and children from poor families mature early. At the age of ten, Kai'Sa could already help her family with chores like herding sheep, so naturally, she knows what it means to like someone, and what it means to be a wife.

Thinking arrogantly that Kai'Sa was only devoted to Shurima.

In fact, it's just Linwin finding various excuses for fear of rejection.

He's afraid that if he speaks up and fails, Kai'Sa will run away.

But now...

Linwin suddenly realized that it wasn't just him running forward unilaterally, the other party was slowly approaching too.

When did it start?

Linwin didn't know.

Is this dependence or love?

I don't give a damn which one it is!

"I like you, Kai'Sa."

"Not as friends, not as comrades, but as a man liking a woman."

"I have to admit, at first, I did bring you to Zaun because I admired your power, I wanted you to be my strength. But as I got to know you slowly, I realized I fell in love with you."

Linwin looked at Kai'Sa seriously, and felt his heart beating fast.

How do you say sweet words?

Despite watching so many TV dramas and knowing so many famous lines, why can't I say a word now?

Isn't it useless to watch those TV dramas?

"You like me? Wait, I, I'm not human." Kai'Sa moved her stool backward.

You like me, but isn't it Powder you like?

Several times when Powder came, you made me hide.

Linwin also moved his stool forward, getting closer to Kai'Sa, and said, "It's okay, I don't care about that. I like your soul."

"I like the person who always follows me silently, from morning till night."

"I like the person who waits for me at home, then helps me with the food."

"I like the person who stays by my bedside and watches me quietly fall asleep."

"I like the person who hugs me, whose heartbeat synchronizes with mine."

Kai'Sa kept moving backward.

With both hands moving the stool, she was extremely agile.

When Void power was used, every time Linwin was about to get close, Kai'Sa appeared at the other end with the stool.

Until someone couldn't help but raise their hand, enveloping Kai'Sa in a breeze, and then lifted her up.

Linwin gestured with his finger, and Kai'Sa flew towards him.

With no stool, Kai'Sa swung her arms and legs, looking fierce.

"Y-You're cheating." Kai'Sa, who failed to move the stool, shouted loudly.

"."

The emotions Linwin had finally mustered up disappeared in an instant because of Kai'Sa's words.

He could only look at the woman who flew in front of him with a wry smile.

"So, do you agree?"

"I... I... I"

Kai'Sa hesitated, not knowing how to speak, she didn't even know why things suddenly developed into what they are now.

What exactly happened?

Why did Linwin suddenly confess his love to her?

He didn't make any moves when they were sleeping together in the same bed.

Thinking about it, her cheeks turned red.

Two blushes appeared on her cheeks, and the purple skin patterns couldn't hide them.

Seeing this, Linwin was stunned for a moment.

Aside from this strange carapace.

She is a beautiful girl.

No matter how strong, how unyielding.

No matter how much she looks like a fighter, she is still a woman.

In the face of someone she likes.

Turns out, she can be shy too.

That blush on her face, she's so beautiful.