Arcane: Winds of Change

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Vi hurried back to the bar, and as soon as she opened the door, Powder hugged her tightly. Vi's body trembled slightly, then she gently pushed Powder away and picked up the gauntlets. "Hey, those belong to Vander," Mylo objected. 

"Benzo is injured, the enforcer from Topside is dead, and Vander has been captured," Vi calmly recounted what had happened. "What? Vander has been taken? By whom?" Mylo became anxious as well. 

"I don't know. Wait a minute, Powder, the person who gave you the gun, do you know who he is?" Vi suddenly remembered something and turned to Powder. "Are you talking about Phil? I only know his name, and we got along quite well in our conversations. But other than that, I don't know," Powder hurriedly answered her sister.

Vi looked at Powder intently. "That person had a monster with him, something I've never seen before. It tore that enforcer to shreds in an instant. If Phil hadn't stopped it, Benzo might have died too." 

"You can't do this alone, Vi," Claggor spoke up. "Do you know where they went?" Mylo asked, leaning forward. 

"Ekko followed them to the old canning factory," Vi replied. "This time, you should stay back, Powder." "I can do it, I'm not afraid." "But it's too dangerous! Listen." "I'm not afraid of danger, I can fight! Besides, I know Phil, he's a good person, I could persuade him." The sisters erupted into a heated argument, but in the end, Vi refused Powder.

After they left, Powder was left alone in the room, sobbing and venting her frustration. Suddenly, she realized that the gem in her hand was the key to triggering the explosion last time. "I can help," Powder whispered to herself.

Inside the factory, Phil said, "Some rats have followed us, Silco." "You see, as I told you, just some rats, nothing to worry about. Maybe this is the breakthrough we need," Silco replied slowly. "Indeed, I think Vi would be better than that Vander, if not for her age. I'd much prefer her to replace Vander," Phil continued. Hearing this, Silco looked at Phil and said slowly, "You're about the same age as Vi." "Is that so? Hahaha," Phil scratched his head awkwardly, a gesture that occasionally made Silco forget his age. "They've regrouped with Vander, so it's time for us to make our appearance," Phil continued.

Vi saw Vander tied to a chair, his left eye bruised but fortunately not severely injured. She hugged Vander tightly. "Vi, go quickly. You shouldn't have come here," Vander urged. "I'm not leaving! Mylo, break the lock now!" Vi refused and directed Mylo to start picking the lock. "Stay calm, stay calm," Mylo's hands trembled as he tried to focus, given his lack of lock-picking skill. Clapping echoed from the end of the corridor, "What a touching father-daughter scene, Vander." Phil clapped and teased.

Seeing someone approaching, Vi moved to the door, using her slender body to shield the others. She looked at the man, about her age and somewhat familiar, "I thought you were one of us." "Of course I am. We share the same dream. But while you're pulling petty heists for revenge, we are readying Piltover's resistance for Zaun," Phil said as he walked forward. 

As Vi watched Phil approach, she moved towards him, seemingly gearing up for an inevitable confrontation. As they got closer, Vi raised her fists, preparing to accelerate, and Phil quickly raised a shotgun aimed at her, "Times have changed, kid." Seeing the gun in his hand, Vi's expression shifted multiple times.

"We pursue cooperation, not internal conflict," Phil said softly, noticing that Vi had stopped. "You must know, if I wanted, I could easily kill Vander outright instead of letting him await your rescue. I wouldn't have saved Benzo either. Our purpose is essentially the same—to revive Zaun."

Hearing this, Vi was slightly shaken. "Zaun has suffered from Topside's oppression long enough. It's time the people above felt Zaun's pain."

"Vander, didn't you say you wanted to be a good man? Didn't you want to protect everyone's safety? Didn't you say we're just a plague on the Lanes? In that case, how about we hand over these four little ones so you can keep on just barely getting by? We can't let the Topsiders do whatever they want in Zaun," Phil added further, seeing Vi waver.

"Ha, it seems you've gotten used to being a dog and can't stand up to be a man anymore," Phil remarked, noticing Vander's silence. "In that case, we should contact the enforcers from Topside, as I'd also like to be a righteous hero."

"Shut up, it was me who caused the explosion up there. Let them take me," Vi couldn't help but speak up, seeing Phil belittle Vander. But Phil said nothing, still fixated on Vander. Time and again, Vander had disappointed Silco, yet Silco had given him chance after chance. This was the final one.

Suddenly, Vander opened his eyes, an old resolve returning to them. "If that's the case, then let's fight. Zaun does indeed need change. However, the experiments on the people of the Lanes must stop."

Vander was backed into a corner, maybe fearing the four youngsters would be in danger if he died, or fearing the Lanes would be lost to Silco's influence without his protection. In any case, he relented.

Phil turned back to Silco with a smile upon hearing this. He put away his weapon and reached out to Vi, saying, "Pleasure working with you. Where's your sister?"

At this moment, Silco also unlocked Vander's restraints. "Pleasure working with you, my brother."

"Pleasure working together," Vander responded. It was as if they had returned to those days, where trust meant they could watch each other's backs. While grievances couldn't be erased, years of camaraderie and understanding couldn't just disappear.

No one noticed Powder by the window at that moment, seeing the handshakes of reconciliation, but the monkey trap had already been set and couldn't be withdrawn. She shouted loudly, "Watch out."

Everyone heard Powder's warning. Vi was taken aback by Powder's shout. The others reacted with expressions of surprise or curiosity. Only Phil realized the potential danger.

Others were unaware of Powder's potential, but Phil knew she was once Jinx. Even if she hadn't gone wild, she still had immense potential.

Then, he saw a monkey toy and a blue gem, which at this moment emitted dazzling light, illuminating the entire room.

"Boom!"