After warning Sevika, Graves glanced over at Jinx. "You pull that trigger? I can still shoot her before you get a shot off."¹
Jinx immediately broke into a wide grin. "Oh, really? Then what are you waiting for? C'mon, show me if you can take her out~" As she spoke, she tilted her little head toward Sevika, whose face twitched in irritation.
Ren, having helped the unlucky goon Graves had thrown into the room back to his feet, quickly rushed into the middle of the standoff. "Whoa, hold on! This is all a big misunderstanding! I can explain."
Silco, chin resting in his left hand, watched the slightly awkward Ren with keen interest.
Behind Ren, Graves stood with his arms crossed, tapping his foot impatiently as he watched Jinx on the other side of the desk, who was busy examining his shotgun with intense curiosity.
Sevika walked over to Silco's side, looking at him for orders.
"It's fine," Silco said with a slight wave of his hand.
Sevika shot a glare at Ren before turning her attention to Graves. "Seven injured, one critically. The one you shot… he lost his left arm."
Graves didn't flinch, just stared her down. Then, as if remembering something, he glanced at Ren, turned his head to the side, and refused to look at any of them.
"The broken bar, the smashed phonograph…"
"I'll cover it," Ren cut in quickly. "I'm incredibly sorry about this. I'll pay for the medical expenses for the injured men and for all the damages to the tavern."
Silco nodded. The matter was settled. "Now, where were we? Continue."
"I'll get involved in Hextech research and improve the lives of the people of Zaun—"
"Wait," Silco interrupted. "Get involved in Hextech research? You think you can do that?"
"I'll find a way," Ren stated plainly. "Silco, there are some things you can try your hardest at and still fail. But if you don't even try, you'll never get anywhere."
Silco watched him, his gaze sharp and deep.
"I will improve the lives of Zaun's people, create jobs, and unite them. We will also continue to develop Shimmer and chem-tech," Ren continued, laying out his vision. "And most importantly, I will gather magical tomes and knowledge to increase my own power."
Silco's eye narrowed.
"I've had my magic for years, but I had no way to use it offensively. It wasn't until I was being hunted by Gangplank that I luckily discovered a mage's journal. The systematic knowledge inside allowed my power to skyrocket."
"One day! It took only one day for me to go from being Gangplank's prey to being his killer."
"Give me more magical knowledge, give me time, and who knows how strong I can become."
"Help me, Silco! You've worked for years to see Zaun rise. What's a few more years of waiting? Just give me some more time."
Everyone in the room had their eyes fixed on Ren.
"You can go," Silco said finally, waving a dismissive hand. "You want to be the boss? Fine. Show me what you can do."
"Then I'll take my leave. My companions are waiting for me. I look forward to our next meeting." Ren stood and turned to Jinx, inviting her to come meet his friends.
"Yay!" Jinx agreed cheerfully and started to follow Ren out.
"Jinx?" Silco was dumbfounded.
"I'm just going out to play! I'll be back in a couple of days," Jinx said, sticking her tongue out at him cheekily.
"Wait!" All three of them stopped. Jinx immediately put on a pitiful, pleading expression.
This only made Silco angrier. When had she ever looked at him with that expression? What has Ren done?
Taking a deep breath, Silco gave Jinx a reassuring nod before rising from his desk and walking over to Ren.
"As her uncle, let me have a few more words with you."
"Of course," Ren replied respectfully.
"If you want to lead Zaun, to help it rise, you must prove yourself. You must perform." Silco's voice was low and dangerous. "The wolf king must defeat all challengers to lead the pack. If he cannot, all that awaits him is howling and death."
Arriving at the Bridge-level plaza, Ren's group found an inn and booked a room for three days.
The three of them met in the room to strategize. Graves had already scouted several suitable locations for a base of operations, but they were all occupied by gangs or Chem-Barons. He provided all the intel he'd gathered on the nearby gangs, with Jinx chiming in to fill in the gaps—after all, she was the local expert.
In the end, Ren chose a location held by the "Black Hand" gang. His plan was to take it over first, then recruit some manpower before making his next move.
After their meeting, Graves left to gather more detailed intelligence on the Black Hand. Ren headed to Piltover to find Twisted Fate and Fizz, and to pay a visit to Mrs. Kiramman. Jinx was told to rest up and save her energy for an operation that night.
The three went their separate ways. Of course, Jinx, being Jinx, couldn't stay put for long and slipped out.
In Piltover, Ren found his two companions at their designated meeting spot. He had Twisted Fate lead him to Mrs. Kiramman first, then gave them the inn's location and told them to head back.
The meeting was brief. Ren expressed his desire to open a casino in Piltover. The elder Kiramman gave him a symbolic warning to abide by Piltover's laws and suggested he hire a lawyer. Then, she provided him with the contact information for the official in charge of such matters, telling him to visit in a couple of days, after she'd had a chance to put in a good word.
That was exactly what Ren needed to hear. To run a casino, you needed the cooperation of the local powers and the Enforcers. Otherwise, you'd be drowning in inspections and investigations.
The Enforcers were the Kiramman family's personal domain. The former Sheriff, Grayson, had risen to power with Mrs. Kiramman's support. And the current Sheriff, Marcus, couldn't control Caitlyn for reasons that went far beyond her just being a "Councilor's daughter." The fact that Caitlyn was later able to take command of the Enforcers without objection from the other Councilors, even after her mother was gone, spoke volumes.
Since it was Progress Day, Ren didn't want to impose. After scheduling a formal visit with Mrs. Kiramman for when she was free, he returned to Zaun.
Back at the inn, Ren was surprised to find Jinx and a little girl playing together, gathered around Fizz. *Isha? Is this the butterfly effect?*³
Seeing Ren return, Jinx ran up to him, stood on her tiptoes, and patted his head. "Hey there, handsome~ You're back!"
Isha saw Jinx's happy greeting and grinned, letting out a little "Ooh, yah~" of her own toward Ren.
Ren smiled back happily, reaching out to gently brush Jinx's cheek before he couldn't resist ruffling little Isha's hair. He'd been so fond of this little girl when he'd watched the show in his past life, right up until the sixth episode…²
Ren's plan was to lead a team to acquire the Hextech research data right when Jayce's Progress Day speech began. The tentative team was Ren, Jinx (for her knowledge of the terrain), and Twisted Fate (as insurance).
"We swear to ceaselessly press forward, to be worthy of the name 'The City of Progress.' Our future is bright!"
As Jayce finished his speech with a triumphant punch in the air, a kaleidoscope of fireworks exploded across the sky.
The atmosphere was electric. The crowd roared, with many leaping to their feet to cheer, their faces beaming with pride. The only exceptions were a confused Viktor backstage and a furious Mel, who was already storming away.
On a quiet street, a few Enforcers were chatting idly.
"What are you doing slumming it with us, Kiramman? Don't you have some cocktail party to get to?"
The other Enforcers chuckled. Caitlyn offered a polite, weary smile and turned to look out into the distance, where nothing at all was happening.
Inside the Hextech laboratory, Jinx was rummaging through files while simultaneously pulling tools from her bag, preparing to leave her mark with some graffiti. Ren gently pressed her hand down to stop her.
Jinx pouted. "Hmph~ First you tell me I can't set off the bombs I prepped, then no setting fires, and now I can't even tag the place? This isn't the Jinx style at all!"
"Jinxie," Ren said soothingly, "let's try not to hurt anyone unless we absolutely have to. Not everyone in Piltover is a bad guy. There are a lot of good people here, too."
"What do you take me for, a psycho?"¹
Ren actually believed her. But given the mischievous little expression on her face right now, her words weren't very convincing.
"If I'm gonna blow anyone up, it'll be the Enforcers. I can't be bothered to mess with regular people."
Ren wisely changed the subject. "Let's focus on finding the files. The faster we do this, the less chance there is for something to go wrong."
"Ta-da! Hex-crystal fabrication data and the experimental logs for rune combinations! I found everything you mentioned~"
Jinx held up the files in each hand and spun around in an office chair, her long blue braids whipping around her arms.
After confirming they hadn't missed anything important, the two of them called for Twisted Fate, who was standing watch at the door, and returned to the inn.
Translator's Notes:
The dialogue between Graves and Jinx, and Jinx and Ren, is intentionally kept very in-character. Graves's bluff, Jinx's taunts, and her later ironic line, "What do you take me for, a psycho?" are key to her chaotic personality.
The mention of "the sixth episode" is a direct, meta-reference by the author to Isha's tragic fate in the Arcane animated series, confirming that her survival here is a major divergence from the original timeline.
The author uses the term "butterfly effect" to describe the change in the timeline where Isha is alive and well, highlighting Ren's awareness that his presence is altering the course of events.