I was practically vibrating with excitement. I'd recognize that blue hair anywhere. It was Jinx—well, the "Early Access" version of my main champion.
A second later, a spirited tomboy vaulted out of the chute. Pink hair styled back, bandaged hands, and that unmistakable "I-will-punch-a-building-down" energy.
"That's Vi..." I whispered, my brain frantically cataloging every frame of the Arcane series I'd binged back home.
If this was the heist at Jayce's penthouse, then the big guy was Claggor and the skinny, nervous one was Mylo. I stayed hidden, watching as Mylo plucked a soggy vegetable leaf from his head and started his usual grumbling.
"That's how we escaped last time," Mylo groaned. "I thought there wouldn't be a next time."
Vi, clutching a heavy bag of stolen Piltover tech, shot him a look that could melt steel. "After this, there really won't be a next time."
"What... what exactly happened back there?" Claggor asked, his voice shaking.
They all turned to the blue-haired girl. She looked small, helpless, and completely overwhelmed. She shrunk back, her hands fidgeting. "Why are you looking at me? I didn't do anything!"
"If you put all the things you didn't do together, how many books would that make?" Mylo snapped.
Vi stepped in, playing the big sister role. "Alright, leave her alone. We just emptied a Piltie mansion in front of a squad of Enforcers. If you're done yelling, grab your stuff. We're going home."
My blood ran cold. I knew what was in Powder's pocket. Those weren't just "shiny rocks"; they were unstable, unrefined hex-crystals. Those gems were the catalysts for the tragedy that would destroy this family and send Vi to Stillwater Prison.
I couldn't just stand there. I had to warn them.
"Jinx! Wait! There's something important—" I shouted, stumbling out from behind the boiler.
They didn't even flinch at the name. In fact, they didn't really look at me as a person. Vi saw a weird kid with a mechanical device in his hand—my shop tools—and her instincts kicked in. To her, "unknown person + mechanical object" equaled "Enforcer gadget" or "Thug weapon."
"Go!" Vi barked.
The four of them took off like a shot. I tried to give chase, but my 320 Movement Speed was a joke. These were street kids who grew up parkouring through the Sump. I was a gamer in a ten-year-old's body who had spent the last week fixing watches.
I leaned against a wall, wheezing like a broken bellows. "Why... are you... running?!"
Then it hit me. I slapped my forehead so hard it left a mark.
"She's not Jinx yet. She's Powder!"
Jinx was a persona born from trauma and Silco's manipulation. Right now, she was just a kid trying to fit in. Calling her Jinx was like calling a seedling a forest fire—it just didn't register.
The Loot: Keystone Unlocked
Even though I'd failed the "social" part of the quest, a golden notification pinged in my vision.
Quest Completed: Find Jinx. Reward: 1 Talent Point.
The Talents icon was glowing. I tapped it, and the familiar five paths of the League rune system unfolded before me: Precision, Domination, Sorcery, Resolve, and Inspiration.
"Finally. Time to break the game," I grinned. "One point... easy choice. Give me Kleptomancy."
I imagined it: Every time I poked someone, I'd get 5 gold or a random potion. I'd be the richest man in Zaun in a week. I navigated to the Inspiration tree, ready to click... and then I saw it. Or rather, I didn't see it.
"Are you kidding me?! They deleted Kleptomancy!"
I unleashed a string of Zaunite curses that would have made a chem-thug blush. I forgot that I'd crossed over post-Season 11. Klepto was long gone, replaced by First Strike or the niche, "nobody-uses-this-garbage" Omnistone.
I had to be surgical with this. I didn't have mana or magic, so the Sorcery tree (Aery, Comet) was out. I didn't have summoner spells, so Unsealed Spellbook was a brick.
I looked at my stats again. 40 AD. 0.4 Attack Speed. 19 Resistances.
I was too weak for Lethal Tempo and too squishy for Aftershock. Electrocute and Dark Harvest required burst damage I didn't have.
That left two real contenders for a guy who just wanted to survive long enough to build a gun:
Conqueror: Good for long fights, but let's be real—with 450 HP, a "long fight" for me is three seconds.
Grasp of the Undying: Every few seconds in combat, my next attack deals bonus damage based on my health, heals me, and permanently increases my health.
In a world where I was as fragile as a lightbulb, Grasp was my only hope of becoming a "tank" through sheer persistence. If I couldn't hit hard, I could at least learn to take a punch.
"Fine," I sighed, clicking the green icon. "Resolve it is. Let's start stacking."