I, Folyago, am the most devoted lover in Runeterra.

.............

For Riven, everything seemed so strange.

As a warrior, Riven isn't good at overthinking.

Most of the time, Riven only needs to know how to obey and where to aim her sword.

But now, as the military commander of a warband, Riven has to force herself to think.

Even so, the results were minimal.

This made Riven miss that man, even though she hadn't fought alongside him for very long.

But my lord was indeed the commander who left the deepest impression on her.

Several days ago, Riven's team was ordered to carry out seven escort missions independently.

Furthermore, the commander emphasized that this was a top-secret mission and the secret must not be revealed!

At the same time, Dukur also sent a magician as an "overseer".

Riven, having received the mission, set out to escort these mysterious items to the designated location.

Because these items were all extremely fragile ceramic jars, Riven's escort process was extremely slow.

The mage "overseer" showed no intention of interfering and seemed to have no objection to Riven's slow pace.

Finally, Riven is about to arrive at the destination where she needs to be transported.

—In a forest.

Throughout patch 3.4, Riven has mostly walked behind the battlefields of combat, witnessing countless ruins and devastations.

Therefore, it is unclear where the Noxian army has reached at this moment.

Even so, Riven still sensed something was amiss after entering the forest.

With Riven's keen sense of combat, she noticed from the traces of battle on the ground that a fight seemed to have taken place here not long ago.

This made Riven frown.

This means that she was not far from the front line at this time.

Combined with the items she was escorting—some extremely fragile pottery jars.

Many questions arose in Riven's mind.

What exactly does "Dukur" mean?

Why was she made to escort these fragile items to the dangerous front lines?

Wasn't he afraid that an enemy might suddenly appear and destroy all these pottery jars?

Gradually, Riven began to feel uneasy.

But upon closer reflection, she couldn't quite put her finger on what was wrong.

Ultimately, Riven had no choice but to order the entire army to be on high alert, facing the possibility of an attack.

As Riven ventured deeper into the forest, she grew increasingly uneasy.

Her intuition told her that something bad was about to happen.

Chapter 236, Those Who Bear the Cost of War

Coastal campsite.

The elders are making a final pep talk.

On the coast, tens of thousands of people stood silently on the shore, each holding a torch.

These people included both men and women, and most of them were in their prime.

Due to the lack of weapons and armor, most of them were only carrying a wooden stick.

At the very front of the formation stood a group of about a hundred people.

This group of one hundred people consisted of martial artists from martial arts schools in various villages and monks and priests from temples.

Among them were seven or eight Gold-rank experts, while the rest were Silver-rank warriors.

Everyone knows that with the seas now blockaded, the only remaining chance of survival has been completely extinguished.

The only way to survive is to fight your way out from the Noxians!

"Fellow countrymen, I won't say much more."

"Time is of the essence."

"For Ionia, for Galin, for your parents and children, and for ourselves..."

"Everyone, follow me to the battlefield and kill the enemy!"

The elder drew his sword from his waist and spoke with a firm tone.

Even though the elder was old, he still intended to draw his sword and fight.

Not for any other reason than to seize that sliver of hope.

At this moment, a resolute look flashed in the eyes of all 80,000 young and strong men of the Garin.

None of them uttered a sound, only responding to the Grand Elder with resolute gazes.

"Gentlemen, I'm here..."

Thank you so much!!!

The elder bowed deeply, then stood up.

27

"Follow me... and kill!!"

The elder shouted, then took the lead, carrying his sword and saber.

A resolute glint also flashed in the Grand Elder's eyes.

When people are in dire straits, they often do crazy things in order to survive.

At this very moment, the people of Galin were in the same boat.

Having made up their minds to rebel, the elders surprisingly reached a consensus.

That means abandoning the defense of the coast and taking the initiative!

Because the coastline was not only indefensible, but also the last refuge for the remaining people.

If a battle breaks out on the coast, it will inevitably affect others.

At the same time, the elders believed that their sudden attack would catch their opponents off guard.

Because the opponent probably never expected that the Ionians, who had been relentlessly pursued and unable to fight back, would suddenly launch a counterattack.

If we can achieve some results, we will definitely be able to get a chance to catch our breath.

Once they made up their minds, the elders didn't hold back, after all, this was a battle where they had to gamble everything.

If you don't succeed, you will become benevolent.

Therefore, the elders decided to lead 80,000 able-bodied men to launch a decisive attack, hoping to overwhelm the Noxians with sheer numbers even if they were outnumbered.

This is a battle that will determine the fate of the people of Galin!

.............

Riven continued escorting dozens of carts filled with pottery jars, heading towards the heart of the forest.

The further Riven went, the more her brows furrowed.

As they continued forward, the traces of battle in the forest became increasingly closer to the present.

Even now, Riven could still see the corpses of Ionians who had died no more than twelve hours earlier lying in a corner of the forest.

Finally, Riven arrived at a location close to the center of the forest.

And here, there is a Noxian military camp.

Similarly, this is also the end point of Riven's escort mission.

As the convoy slowly approached the military camp, she finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Regardless, although this mission had a strange air about it, it was ultimately accomplished successfully.

"Captain Riven, you've worked hard."

"Now, all you need to do is move these things to the camp and stay there for one night."

"We can simply wait for the army to arrive tomorrow."

The mage, hidden beneath his black robes, spoke to Riven in a somber voice.

Upon hearing this, Riven frowned.

"You mean there's no one in this military camp?"

A sense of unease crept into Riven's mind, and at the same time, she felt a renewed sense of profound unease.