"He should be dead... shouldn't he?"
The Pale Lady's wasn't sure whether Swain was actually dead or not.
"Should be?" Vladimir frowned. "LeBlanc, that kind of uncertainty isn't something creatures like us can afford to express."
For ancient immortals to orchestrate the downfall of a single mortal general should have been child's play, yet here they were, reduced to speculation and doubt.
So Swain now existed in some bizarre state between life and death? Alive? Dead? What kind of joke was this?
"My operatives only witnessed his left arm being severed, his right knee completely shattered, and his broken body thrown onto a pile of corpses before they lost contact," the Pale Lady explained.
"Why didn't they continue surveillance?"
"Because they're all dead now."
The Pale Lady shot Vladimir an irritated look. "That girl blessed by Ionia's spiritual essence isn't some ordinary resistance fighter. She's going to create serious complications for our plans to acquire magical artifacts throughout the region."
"Nothing we can't handle. Just deploy Sion and be done with it," Vladimir dismissed the concern with a casual wave.
The entire Ionian operation had been designed primarily to eliminate Swain, otherwise, once Noxus unleashed the unstoppable juggernaut that was Sion, rivers of blood would flow across the mystical islands.
What did some spiritual blessing matter when faced with an undead colossus fueled by pure rage and necromantic power?
"The real problem isn't some blessed girl..."
Vladimir's expression grew dark.
"Janna."
The Pale Lady finished his thought.
For the first time during their conversation, genuine gravity appeared on both their faces.
A short-lived mortal strategist, however brilliant, was never worth their attention. But a truly eternal and undying goddess? That was a different category of threat.
The Pale Lady's methods of immortality were known.
Vladimir had extended his lifespan using blood magic derived from ancient Darkin knowledge, but his mastery remained incomplete and flawed, every resurrection cost him fragments of memory.
But Janna's divinity operated on a level far above any ordinary Darkin lord or mortal practitioner.
A thousand years ago, during the catastrophic Darkin War that had engulfed the entire continent in chaos and bloodshed, even that conflict couldn't destroy Osha Va'Zaun under Janna's protection. That historical fact alone demonstrated the true scope of her power.
"Do you think this is just Zaun making empty threats, or has Janna actually manifested herself in the physical realm?" Vladimir raised an eyebrow.
"A few years ago, Janna personally appeared to save Zaun's current leader, Cipher, from Camille's assassination attempt."
The Pale Lady took another sip of her tea.
Even with all her vast knowledge and mastery of countless magical secrets, she could not definitively determine whether Janna had truly acted or not.
Was Zaun simply borrowing the reputation of a sleeping goddess to intimidate their enemies, or did they truly possess divine backing for their plans?
Hard to say.
Otherwise, who would believe that a goddess would suddenly descend just to rescue one mortal administrator? There had to be some deeper connection between them that wasn't immediately apparent.
"Can you confirm the current state of her power?"
From the Pale Lady's hesitation and growing concern, Vladimir already suspected what her answer would be.
In matters involving divine entities of unknown strength, it was always better to assume the worst-case scenario rather than risk overconfidence. The longer an immortal creature had survived, the more they valued their hard-won existence.
Compared to the abstract concept of Noxian imperial glory, he cared more about his own survival and comfort.
"A millennium ago, Janna could halt massive tsunamis with her wind magic alone. Two centuries ago, when she last manifested, the divine power she displayed seemed far weaker."
"As a deity whose strength is sustained by mortal faith and worship, her influence has been steadily declining for generations. She's remained completely silent for the past two centuries, most likely fallen into some form of hibernation."
"Her recent revival is clearly connected to Zaun's transformation, but as for her current capabilities..."
The Pale Lady could hear the implication in Vladimir's question. Gods were indeed powerful, but if someone could actually manage to kill a deity, the rewards would be beyond imagination.
After all, it had been by betraying and destroying his own Darkin master that he had secured the comfortable life he currently enjoyed.
If Janna was now merely a weakened goddess on the verge of fading from existence, there might be opportunities to scheme against her.
"I suspect she may have already restored herself, possibly even stronger than a millennium ago. The Winds of Change are still winds, after all, and change itself is her domain."
The Pale Lady withdrew a leather-bound tome from within her robes.
It was only after Zaun had begun broadcasting across the entire continent that she realized she had seriously underestimated her opponents, and revealed far too much of her own hand in the process.
"From studying this book, Zaun's intentions aren't difficult to discern. Sooner or later they'll expand their war beyond Piltover to target Noxus directly, to target us specifically. This war is unavoidable."
Any keen mind could read Zaun's revolutionary ambitions from the bold language of their declaration.
"War, huh?" Vladimir gave a cold laugh. "If Janna has truly restored herself, freed from the corrupting influence of faith, then her capabilities could rival the greatest demigods of the Freljord."
"Unless the Empire releases that tyrant imprisoned beneath the capital, we have no chance of facing her."
"But if they actually unleash that monster, you and I might as well surrender immediately. On Janna's ship, I'm confident she would find positions for the two of us."
To wage war against a fully restored Janna would be a battle to the death. Even if the Empire used every secret weapon and hidden asset, they would have to risk their very existence, and still might not achieve victory.
Vladimir had no intention of being buried alongside a collapsing empire. If circumstances became impossible, he would simply change sides, offer his services to the winning faction, and negotiate a comfortable position for himself.
With his power and knowledge, he would be welcomed anywhere he chose to go. Wisdom meant adapting to changing circumstances rather than clinging to failing causes.
And he felt certain that the Pale Lady shared his approach to survival over ideology.
Only complete fools would constantly gamble with their lives. Ancient creatures like themselves had the luxury of time, they could afford to play longer games.
If Janna could somehow rid the world of that armored nightmare lurking beneath Noxus, then not only would he surrender gladly, he'd even consider warming the goddess' bed if that's what she desired.
"These are all just speculations. Perhaps the situation isn't nearly as dire as we're imagining. Regardless, someone needs to test Zaun's capabilities."
The Pale Lady neither agreed nor disagreed with his assessment.
"You want to test her?"
Vladimir twirled his fingers dismissively.
That was a goddess they were discussing. To "test" her directly meant certain death for whoever was foolish enough to attempt it.
Shameless self-preservation was standard operating procedure for ancient monsters like themselves, but sacrificing other people to protect oneself was nothing unusual in their circles.
When faced with a goddess whose true power remained unknown, he had zero intention of becoming expendable cannon fodder. He would not volunteer for that suicide mission.
"Camille is still operating in Piltover. We'll send her a full battle regiment and let them probe Zaun's defenses for us."
The Pale Lady shot Vladimir a look, fully aware of his fears.
She herself would never directly confront the goddess, far better to send expendable pawns forward to gather intelligence through their inevitable deaths.
"Agreed completely."
Vladimir smiled. As long as the testing didn't threaten his safety, the Pale Lady could arrange military operations however she pleased.
But suddenly, a troubling thought occurred to him as he remembered a certain axe-wielding brute still clashing with barbarian tribes in the frozen wastes of Freljord. His expression grew concerned as he asked, "The Hand of Noxus... his wife is still stationed in Piltover and Zaun, isn't she? Shouldn't we withdraw her first?"
Darius was currently Noxus' most effective and reliable general. He sought no political power for himself, built no personal factions, followed orders without question, and was either actively campaigning or marching toward his next assignment.
The Empire had already wasted Swain. If they managed to drive Darius into rebellion through carelessness, the resulting chaos would be catastrophic.
"I'll arrange for her reassignment. The regional governorship can be transferred to the regimental commander."
The Pale Lady's eyes narrowed slightly, agreeing with Vladimir's proposal.
With the Empire currently fighting desperate campaigns on four separate fronts simultaneously, they could not afford to lose another great general.
The Black Rose controlled the imperial government solely to exploit its military and economic resources for their own agenda.
They had no intention of allowing the Empire to collapse into complete ruin, and then being forced to clean up the resulting mess.