-67- It feels familiar...

Symbolically tying Twisted Fate and Graves together with a rope, Linwin brought the two guys back to Zevi.

Seeing Linwin resolving the situation and even bringing the people back within just an hour, Zevi and the group of Zaunites were not surprised at all. In their eyes, it was perfectly normal for Linwin to achieve such things.

After all, he was a monster!

"We meet again."

Inside the tent, Graves and Twisted Fate were bound back to back on the ground. Not far away, Zevi sat on a stool, casually enjoying afternoon tea and snacks. She waved to Graves with a playful demeanor.

"Hmph!"

Graves responded with a cold snort, turning his head away, refusing to look at Zevi.

"Hello, ma'am. I'm truly delighted to see you again," Twisted Fate, on the other hand, grinned while sitting on the ground, turning his head to greet Zevi.

"Are you really that delighted?"

"Yes, it's indeed a pleasure to meet such a beautiful lady like you. Naturally, it makes people happy," Twisted Fate nodded vigorously.

Zevi set down her cake, asking Twisted Fate seriously, "How happy are you?"

"Uh..."

Twisted Fate fell silent, caught off guard by the question.

On the side, Graves started shouting, "You woman, I advise you to release me quickly. Otherwise, when I escape, I'll make sure to blow your damn guts out!"

"Do you think you can actually escape?" Zevi looked at Graves strangely.

"Go ahead, give him a smack." Zevi casually commanded with just a sentence. Behind her, a Zaunite, larger than Graves by a full circle, walked up.

"Smack!"

A heavy slap landed on Graves' face. He snorted through his nose and returned to stand behind Zevi, glaring fiercely at Graves.

Meanwhile, Zevi remained seated, calmly savoring her afternoon tea.

After years of mingling with the Zaunites that Linwin brought along, Zevi naturally picked up some bad habits. As the second-in-command in the organization, she had managed some of Zaun's most ruthless gangsters under her command, either Silco's or Vander's henchmen, each powerful in their own right.

Therefore, Zevi was utterly dismissive of Graves' threats.

Trying to intimidate her?

"Damn it! If you have the guts, release me and let me have a go at him!"

"You dare to hit my face! Release me, and I'll show you what a real fist feels like!" Graves' face instantly swelled up, shaking his head as he roared.

Twisted Fate remained silent on the side.

"Alright, Graves, stop making a fuss," Linwin intervened. "I told you, your tricks with Twisted Fate won't work on me."

It's not difficult to guess what Graves is trying to do – he's just trying to attract attention, hoping to give Twisted Fate time to use magic. But how could Linwin not know?

Linwin told Zevi, "The one wearing the hat is Twisted Fate. Pay special attention to him. Make sure to have someone put shackles on him later, so he doesn't use magic to escape."

Zevi was puzzled, immediately turning to look at Twisted Fate. She then asked Linwin, "You mean he can use magic?"

"Yes."

"Impressive, magic," Zevi said, suddenly interested in Twisted Fate. She walked a few steps to him, squatting down to look him in the eye, and asked, "What kind of magic do you know, Mr. Mage?"

"I can't perform for you right now, beautiful lady."

Twisted Fate replied helplessly.

"Unless you're willing to release me first. My partner is still in your hands, don't worry, I won't run away."

Zevi didn't immediately agree to Twisted Fate's request. Instead, she turned to Linwin, and upon seeing him shake his head, saying, "You mustn't listen to him. If you release him, he'll vanish immediately."

Graves snorted.

But what he didn't notice was that Twisted Fate lowered his head, his eyes showing a hint of helplessness.

Seeing Graves fuming, Linwin thought this guy was truly foolish. Did he really think Twisted Fate would stay for him? If Linwin hadn't detected it early and used wind magic to keep Twisted Fate in check, he might have already escaped.

Graves was just wishful thinking.

Speaking of their background story, why was Graves chasing Twisted Fate? Wasn't it because Twisted Fate betrayed his teammate? Linwin remembered that very clearly from Graves' background story.

Twisted Fate had indeed betrayed Graves once and even sent him to prison. Selling Graves wasn't an impossible thing; it was a definite event!

So Linwin wouldn't take that risk. Although he was preventing Twisted Fate from using magic by being present, he had other matters to attend to. Therefore, he left Twisted Fate under Zevi's supervision. To avoid any chance of Twisted Fate escaping, Linwin naturally had to make Zevi more vigilant.

But Linwin wasn't particularly concerned about the combat abilities of Twisted Fate and Graves. He cared about the attributes they could bring to him.

Getting cards was a challenging task, considering the difficulty of increasing favorability. However, Linwin already had experience in activating champions. Activating champions wasn't too challenging; as long as you matched preferences and developed some relationship, it was achievable.

And Twisted Fate and Graves should be three-star cards, which, once activated, could add a whopping forty attribute points to Linwin. Remember, crossing the threshold of 500 in a single attribute brought significant improvements to Linwin.

Therefore, Linwin needed to figure out a way to get these two on his ship.

Linwin didn't fantasize about the combat abilities of Twisted Fate and Graves. Twisted Fate might know magic, given that many people on the land of runeterra were capable magic users. However, what about Graves? In essence, he was just a street thug.

Letting Vander's henchmen loose, Graves would be no match at all. In the game, he might be impressive, but in reality, did he think he could still be impressive?

Nonsense!

Absolutely nonsense!

Zevi quickly left; she had plenty of things to attend to and wasn't as free as these two. In the tent, only a few people remained.

Linwin, wrapped in a small woolen blanket, was preparing to take a short nap. After a while, Twisted Fate suddenly looked up and asked Linwin, who was closing his eyes, "How did you figure out that I can use magic?"

He was genuinely curious. Only Graves should be aware of this fact, but Linwin seemed to be cautious about him using magic from the very beginning.

This obviously didn't make sense.

"How did you know I can use magic?"

Twisted Fate had realized by now that the other party didn't intend to take his and Graves' lives. So why not engage in a conversation? After all, he was quite confident in his eloquence.

The man, however, didn't even open his eyes. Still, the good news was that he answered the question.

"I could tell."

"Tell?"

"Sir, I believe I haven't used magic in front of you."

Twisted Fate stared at Linwin on the reclining chair, asking again.

"Just like I said, I'm different from the people you've met."

"I'm very strong."

When Linwin said this, Twisted Fate opened his mouth to make a sarcastic remark, but in the end, he couldn't say anything.

Linwin's tone was very calm, as if stating a simple fact or something that was only natural to him.

He was very strong – that was just a matter of fact.

Twisted Fate: "."

"So I can see the magical power in you," Linwin replied without opening his eyes.

He wasn't exaggerating because he genuinely saw it. After surpassing the intelligence threshold of 500, Linwin's eyes could perceive things that normal people couldn't.

Now, he could see colors around people, representing different natural magical energies. Twisted Fate had three faint lights: noble gold, dazzling blue, and dark red. These colors hinted at the potential to control three different natural elements. However, it was evident that he was currently too weak to manipulate these elements.

The visible difference between him and Linwin was that while Linwin could summon wind with a simple gesture, Twisted Fate required a medium. The cards he used were magical props nurtured with his magical power. They amplified his abilities and facilitated the release of unique spells.

Twisted Fate crafted these cards himself; otherwise, why would there be so many magical items for him to consume? Most mages on Runeterra engaged in similar practices, especially those dealing with arcane magic. This type of magic required a medium, like stones infused with energy or ancient relics.

Arcane magic seemed to have little connection with the natural elements on Runeterra. Linwin speculated that it might be related to the runic power of the continent. The strength might not always be overwhelming, but it undoubtedly carried a sense of mystery.

Ryze was a primary example, but unlike him, Ryze didn't need a medium.

Ryze, having been accompanied by runes for years, now embodied the most significant medium himself. He could effortlessly unleash large-scale teleportation magic like Arcane Shift, with a mere lift of his hand, traversing to the other side of the world. It wasn't surprising, given that he was a top figure in this world—an ancient mage who had lived for a thousand years, exuding a certain level of sophistication.

Linwin, too, could cast spells without incantation and without requiring a medium, not because he caught up with Ryze but because of the source of his powers—a certain beautiful wind lady.

Now, Linwin understood the role of intelligence. Previously considered the most negligible attribute, intelligence had become a valuable tool for Linwin to discern powerful beings. Yet, for someone familiar with the background story like Linwin, its impact wasn't as significant.

Another aspect of intelligence was its ability to enhance communication with elements, increase the speed of spellcasting, and expedite the condensation and recovery of magical power.

In summary, the three attributes—strength, agility, and intelligence—were all crucial.

Linwin engaged in casual conversation with Twisted Fate, who soon found himself silenced by Linwin's words. After a brief silence, the sound of snores emanated from Twisted Fate's side.

That wasn't Linwin's snore; it was Graves.

He had already fallen asleep.

Twisted Fate sighed and spoke, "I still can't understand."

"It's okay, you'll understand in time."

"When do you plan to let us go?"

"Why don't you guess."

Twisted Fate:

It feels familiar....