"Heh. It can't be helped."
"Why help him at all? That guy clearly doesn't want to stay in the Undercity. He wants to run off to Piltover and live comfortably… If it were Silco, he would've thrown him out already."
"Don't say that, Powder. Troubadour has worked in the Lanes for years. You and I both remember that. He isn't the type to abandon everything."
"Hmph… You weren't exactly nice to him just now either."
"That's because he only thought of coming to me after the topside route failed, almost like he was trying to keep his distance from us. But I understand how hard he's trying as a father. And he's an honest man."
Jinx wrapped her long braid around Van's neck and used the end of it to lightly tickle his face.
That braid, long enough to reach Jinx's calves and almost drag along the floor, had taken six whole years to grow. Silco deserved some credit for having the patience to keep braiding the thing.
"Fine. So what number is this now? You always find excuses for them. You treat everyone like family, but look around. Other than real family, who actually stays behind you?"
"There's nothing wrong with thinking about the next generation. Isn't the whole reason I work this hard to give you brats a better life?"
"Heh. You're only a few years older than us, and you're already acting like everyone's father and mother."
"It was just a metaphor…"
"Sure, whatever. You really do live like a pair of underpants, same as Vander."
Jinx pinched Van's face in annoyance, squeezing his hard, lean cheeks without finding much flesh to grab.
"Anyway, why did you suddenly come here?"
"Ha. Silco spends all day buried in endless work. I was bored just watching him, so I came to find you… only to see you're not much better!"
"This only happens once in a while. You just happened to catch me."
Van picked up his pipe and was about to put it in his mouth when Jinx snatched it away.
"Smoke less. Silco's health keeps getting worse because he can't quit!"
"Trust me. Without cigarettes, Silco would've collapsed long ago."
Before Jinx could react, Van moved lightning-fast and snatched the pipe back from her hand. He took a satisfied drag, then mischievously blew all the smoke into Jinx's face.
"Ugh, it stinks! Smoke addict!"
Jinx hopped off him and wandered over to the side, idly rummaging through the bottles on the liquor cabinet.
Six years had passed. Jinx, the little dirty-faced Powder from back then, had grown up completely. She was a young woman now, with long, glossy braids and a face so pretty she counted among the beauties of Zaun.
That still surprised Van. When Powder was little, she had been a grubby little mess, not much better than her sister.
The thought made Van feel a little sad. If Vi were still alive, she would probably be just as beautiful.
"What are you zoning out for now?"
Powder looked at Van in confusion as his eyes gradually lost focus.
"Nothing…"
Van stood up and walked to the window.
This room sat on the top floor of the Last Drop.
Through the window, he could see the Lanes' main street. It had grown busier over the years, cleaner and more orderly than before. Vendors lined both sides of the road, crowds came and went, and every so often, children would run through the street, laughing and roughhousing.
For the past six years, Van had enforced an iron rule that Shimmer business was absolutely forbidden in the Lanes. Even so, thanks to the constant improvement and development of compound potions and other gray industries, the Lanes had prospered.
The Last Drop in particular had added two more floors. One became the tavern's second floor, large enough to hold more drinkers, while the top floor became Van's office.
Compared to Shimmer, compound potions were a proper, legitimate product. Even in Piltover, they could be sold openly.
That was exactly why the Lanes had not turned into the same mess as the rest of the Undercity.
But the difficulty of producing compound potions meant output had never been high enough to spread outward, much less drive all of Zaun into a new direction.
So as much as Van hated to admit it, Shimmer, cheap and easy to produce, had brought Zaun enormous profit over the years despite all its problems.
If things continued like this, Zaun might not catch up to Piltover, but the gap between the two cities would keep narrowing. At the very least, Zaun would no longer be like a lamb waiting for slaughter.
Recently, though, that had begun to change.
"Hexgates… Jayce Talis. I didn't expect him to become someone this important."
Van leaned against the window and murmured to himself as he smoked his pipe.
"He's just a rich boy with a bit of cleverness. If you had all those fancy things they do, you'd definitely make something even better."
"That's not the point…"
Van could not help grinning. He had definitely been coaxed.
"The Hexgates make it possible to connect the entire world, and Piltover will become the most important hub. If this goes on, an isolated Zaun will only fall further and further behind."
"Then… can't we just find a way to blow that thing up?"
Powder sat on Van's sofa and toyed with her pistol.
"They spent so many years building it. If we blow it up, that should give them plenty of trouble, right?"
"That would throw both cities into chaos… If I can avoid it, I don't want to use something that extreme."
Van emptied the pipe ash into the trash bin and casually tossed the pipe aside.
"So before that happens, you'd better behave yourself."
"Tch. I'm not that crazy."
"Who knows? I used to think Zeri had rubbed off on you, but now it looks more like you corrupted her."
"The two of us clearly just get along because we're the same kind of awful… What's that sound?"
Because Van had the window open, faint noise could be heard coming from downstairs.
"I'll go take a look."
Van moved quickly and steadily, leaving the room and heading downstairs.
…
…
"It's all right, Huck. It was only a shipment of liquor."
"I… I'm really sorry. I didn't even… I didn't even have the courage to fight back…"
"Relax, Huck. We'll handle a small thing like this."
Ekko, now grown into a young man, had clearly gained a steadier air. Whether he had learned it from someone else or simply been born that way, it suited him.
He kept wiping the glass in his hand and comforted Huck without stopping.
"What happened?"
"Huck's delivery got robbed by a pack of thieves who don't know their place."
"Are you all right, Huck?"
"I'm fine… I didn't dare fight back at all. They took the goods and left. I'm sorry…"
"You don't need to apologize, Huck. It was only a few bottles of liquor. What matters is that you're safe… I'll have Ekko take care of it."
"Me? For a few petty thieves?"
"If I tell you to go, then go. Find out what's going on before you come back."
Van lightly kicked Ekko in the backside. Ekko muttered a few unhappy words under his breath, but he obediently took a few people with him and left the tavern.
"I'm going too!"
"Get back here!"
A streak of green lightning shot past, but Van's eyes were quick and his hand was faster. He grabbed the little green-haired girl by the collar in one clean motion.
"Until I make something that can suppress your energy, you're staying in the tavern and behaving yourself."
"Huh?! That's so boring!"
"You nearly destroyed an entire street last time!"
"Fine…"
Zeri puffed out her cheeks, then stormed off to do odd jobs.
Over the years, she too had gradually grown into a pretty young woman, but her restless personality and careless behavior always made people ignore that fact.
"I really am sorry…"
"Don't worry about it, Huck. Come on, I'll buy you a couple of drinks. Trust me, the people who disrespected you are going to cry very, very hard."
[End of chapter]