"Speak."
In the underground arena, Sett first instructed his men to collect the ticket money, then turned to the nervous Mouse.
"Boss," Mouse swallowed hard and nervously said, "We've found out what those pirates are up to."
"Oh?" Sett leaned forward, raising an eyebrow with interest as he looked at the Mouse.
"Far across the other end of Ionia, a place called Twin Cities has invited nations from all over the world to participate in a competition, and the new black board erected near Mount Wuju is for watching the Twin Cities competition."
After hesitating for a moment, Mouse added, "Boss, it seems like Noxus is also participating."
"Crack!"
The armrest was crushed, splinters flying, Sett's eyes chilled. "Noxus?"
"Yes," Mouse replied.
Everyone knew the boss had a quick temper, but at the same time, Sett wasn't unreasonable.
Mouse knew that Sett wasn't fond of using violence; it's just that in this world, if you don't use violence, others will use it against you.
Just like when Noxus invaded Ionia.
Meek sheep never hold sway in this world. The Ionians realized, after being invaded by Noxus, that deep down, even they, who valued peace, harbored a desire for violence and blood.
The prosperity of Sett's underground kingdom across Ionia, from arenas to gambling dens to bloody assassination organizations, was evidence of that.
Because there's a market, Sett became the undisputed underground king of Ionia.
"A competition?"
Sett rubbed his chin, a fierce glint in his eyes.
Sett was contemplating.
Finally, Sett spoke, "Tell Kagu and Lida that while I'm not in the arena, I hope they'll behave."
Standing up, Sett cracked his neck, saying calmly, "Lid isn't my last cash cow, and they're certainly not either. I don't think they'll want to cross paths with me in the arena."
Mouse, short and surprised, looked up at the tall Sett and instinctively asked, "Boss, are you going to...?"
"Heh," Sett nodded.
He had always dreamed of meeting that man.
The man who deceived his mother and him, the man who left them for money and power.
Sett had always hoped that one day, he would meet him in the arena and tell him all the wrongs he had done.
Perhaps he had long forgotten about having a wife and son, but it didn't matter. Sett would make him remember with his fists.
His only family was his mother.
That man?
He would pay for it.
Two days later, Sett arranged everything, instructing his loyal men to protect the village where his mother lived, and then, Sett took Mouse to see his mother.
"Momma, look, this is my boss this time."
Her ears twitched, the woman with white hair turned her head, the Vastaya's lifespan was extremely long, so when Sett stood next to her, they looked more like siblings.
Sett looked even older.
"Hello." She nodded gently at Mouse, her beautiful appearance stunning him.
Boss's mom is so beautiful!
"Cough!"
Sett coughed, and Mouse immediately averted his gaze, loudly saying, "Hello, ma'am, I want to hire Sett to go with me to Piltover."
"You're leaving Ionia?" She was surprised, her worried gaze turning to Sett.
And what she got was Sett's smiling reply, "Don't worry, momma, Piltover has invited the whole world to participate in the competition. Even Noxus has signed a peace treaty with them, so it's safe for me to do business in Piltover."
"Yes, ma'am, you can rest assured, I'll take good care of this kid...," Mouse patted his chest and said.
Smiling calmly on the surface, in fact, the Mouse's heart was pounding.
He actually called the boss a kid.
Well, that's the script Sett arranged. But even so, the Mouse was afraid Sett would suddenly turn on him.
He wouldn't be able to withstand his single punch...
"Please take good care of Sett," she said hesitantly, thinking that Sett had grown up, and finally spoke.
"I won't let you worry," Sett said earnestly.
Mouse quickly took out a bag of gold coins and placed it on the table, then said to Sett's mother, "Ma'am, this is a deposit, please take it."
Shaking her head, she grabbed Sett's hand and then put the money bag into Sett's hand, looking at him seriously and saying, "You've grown up and become a man. You can take care of yourself, so I'll agree to let you go out. But son, promise me, when you're outside, you must take care of yourself, don't resort to violence when things happen, and talk things out peacefully with others."
"I won't do that, why would I ever fight?" Sett rubbed his head and said obediently on the side.
When he talked to his mom, he lowered his head and stood obediently.
Mouse looked at Sett in this manner, feeling extremely complicated inside: "."
If the fighters in the underground arena saw the boss like this, their jaws would probably drop, right?
Is this really the underground king, Sett?
"Time is tight, Momma, I'll leave with the boss first. Remember to take care of yourself and eat on time."
Sett reached out his hands and hugged the gentle woman tightly. "Don't worry about me, I'll be fine."
"Mm."
———
Sitting on a small boat heading to Bilgewater Island, Sett and Mouse planned to take a large ship from Bilgewater to Twin Cities.
On the boat, Mouse shrank to the side, fearing that the boss would kill him to keep him quiet. He had seen the side of the boss that no one else knew.
The underground king of Ionia, who controlled several arenas and gambling dens, actually had such a side in front of his mother?
"."
Biting on a piece of grass, Sett lay down at the bow of the boat and noticed Mouse's fear.
He had half of his mother's blood, being half Vastayan, and his mother was a member of the wolf-badger tribe of the Vastaya.
Although his mother was gentle now, Sett knew very well that when his mother really got angry, she was more terrifying than anyone else, and that was one of the reasons why Sett listened to his mother?
Of course, the biggest reason was because Sett loved her.
Therefore, Sett had excellent hearing, and his big ears picked up the sound of Mouse's heartbeat.
It was beating so fast.
"Relax."
Sett sighed and then spit out the grass from his mouth.
"I won't do anything to you. I'll bring you back just the way I brought you out," Sett said.
Mouse nodded vigorously.
"However, you have to promise me one thing."
"Boss, you name it!" Mouse immediately replied loudly.
"Help me put on a good show in front of my mom, just like you saw just now. My mother still doesn't know about my situation. She has always thought that her son is a simple and honest person." Sett's eyes showed some reminiscence.
For various reasons, he had been ostracized since he was a child, and after that man abandoned Sett and his mother, Sett's situation became even worse. From ostracism to harassment, they threw stones at Sett, pointed fingers at Sett, and cursed at him.
Sett's heart had long become numb when he was young, and only in front of his mom did his heart feel warm.
"Don't let the cat out of the bag, I don't want her to know that I'm some gang boss."
Sett closed his eyes, leaving a sentence for Mouse,
"I'm afraid she'll worry."