Legends of Runeterra

Hey, you! Yes, you! You, a respectable Demacian, know how to listen—you should be willing to stop for a moment and listen to an old man's surprising insights and kind warnings. You must know that I am fulfilling a mission, given to me by the Astral God, and you can help me.

I have to retrieve... Well, I'd better explain the whole story first.

Come on, come on. Don't hide. Please listen to my story, every word is true.

I was first awakened by the tinkling of a bell: my mother's two-hundred-year-old heirloom wind chime, hanging by my window, tinkling furiously outside. She thought she was so clever, my mother, she led me to believe the chimes' summery tunes promised warm, sunny days. In my lifetime, I've only seen the Valarr Valley's pleasant season a few times. Ha! The boy who cut himself chopping wood with such abandon can attest to my harsh winters. That night was no exception—a winter storm was raging.

My door suddenly blew open, startling me. An icy wind rushed into my room. Shivering, I burrowed into my thickest fur and moved toward the door, ready to shut it securely. But I hesitated. My mother's wind chime was still tinkling in the wind. While the sound primarily reminded me of our difficult childhood, it was a reminder of my mother's legacy. I feared it would be blown away, but even more so, its mournful tinkling would keep me awake all night.

Don't get me wrong, this wind chime holds special significance. The story of how my ancestors came to possess it tells of an incredible story of destiny and glory. It was forged from iron—the metal used to craft weapons, the rarest of all in the Freljord. Whenever a battle was won or lost, my ancestors, the scavengers, with their few resources but many ways, would march into the battlefield and retrieve the iron that lay rusting in the red snow.

She often chatters about things from ancient times, and one time I asked, "Mom, how many pieces of iron are there in the world?"

"There are pieces of iron that are hundreds of years old," she replied.

"What does the picker do with the things he picks up?"

"We sell it to the Winter's Claw," she said, shrugging helplessly. "They use it to make weapons for a war that hasn't come yet." Then she paused, smiling as she listened to her wind chimes. "But we always keep some for ourselves, to make tools for living, not tools for killing."

It was true. That precious wind chime brought beautiful music to our land. She called it a "lucky omen in a year of famine." While she was bedridden, I tried to pray for good luck, but it was futile. The wandering spirit of the stars was too preoccupied with his own beautiful music to care for the elderly, the weak, and the sick. All I could do was watch over her scorching wind chimes, remembering her kindness and his ruthlessness.

I'm getting off topic.

I took a deep breath, opened the door, and stepped outside. The sight before me stunned me: a small, translucent creature floated before me, unfazed by the storm. It had no wings or arms, yet it hung in midair, as if pinned to the bricks of air by some hideous magic. Two blazing eyes adorned its round head, and across its belly, three glittering stars began to flicker and sway. To my surprise, my mother's wind chimes responded. One of the bells, like a child reaching out, floated toward the luminous creature, emitting the same starlight.

But then...

The bell shattered! I heard its summer music crumble. A crack began to extend along the side of the bell, and a wisp of golden light was pulled out, as if it was stealing some material from the bell. The creature was not trying to steal light, but my mother's tears, falling down, destroying this heirloom of my love and hate. I can't, I don't want to see this happen!

So I rushed into the blizzard and grabbed the wind chime. As I touched it, I heard a distant, resounding horn. I couldn't understand why. I pulled back with all my might, but the creature's magic was too strong, and I was powerless. Worse still, I felt myself being pulled up into the air, my feet completely off the ground. Soon, I was being yanked up into the sky, carried by that wicked little creature, into the clouds!

Crack! Another crack stretched along the bell. Then I saw something materialize between me and it, a fragment, part of an unknown whole, but gradually solidifying in the air. I felt that this was the only thing that could save my life, so I clutched it tightly.

As I reached out my hand, I glanced back at the malicious creature, only to find it had vanished. Where it had been, floated the mysterious and mighty Astral God. Some prayed their entire lives for his reappearance, and yet, as my mother said, the wind chimes summoned him. Bud seemed to meet my gaze... peering deep into my soul... curious as to why I was there. But it was too late to explain.

Suddenly, a gust of wind came, followed by a wave of heat. I felt my arms being stretched like canes. My body was being dragged behind, twisting and tumbling, as if I were being taken somewhere—a strange place!

As for where I was, I'll sing it out along with my mother's old dulcimer.

bell

That is the height described by the sound,

Bard the Wanderer, from beyond the veil.

The bells, drums, and strings of the stars,

Above the nine heavens, reveal the sky to me.

Bard opens the door to the universe,

Perceive the beginning, the end, and the in-between.

The silent sea, without light or pattern,

Only the sound of Thor preparing the stars can be heard.

No one has ever seen this scene since ancient times.

Only I can hear the forms of movement and stillness.

The ensemble has transformed me.

The mortal body is transformed in an instant.

Transformed and ascended, the celestial wood spirit,

Like a dream, like an illusion, like a star spirit ascending.

Singing with Bard, singing in the same range,

Carefully listen to the voice of the heart for a hundred years.

bell! bell! bell!

Listen, a bell is bent and out of tune,

A darkness extinguished the singing.

Fellow citizens and the Lord God have been alerted one after another.

Travel around the world and correct mistakes.

Unexpectedly, the bottomless mouth,

The empty hole swallows up even the light.

Use your ears to see the black hand on the other side,

The soul is infused with fear and trembling.

The huge mouth sang a terrifying and strange song,

There is no beginning, only an end.

If you look into the depths of the unknown,

The original music may be distorted.

Look up to the sky and listen to the voice of God,

Get back on track and follow Changheng.

But the rift of the void holds me fast,

Let me witness the disintegration of light.

bell! bell! bell!

Trillions of fragments, transformed into ringtones,

When the darkness was torn apart, it scattered across the vast sky.

The bells tick, all things move,

The songs of Runeterra must be preserved.

I want to close the door and recompose the notes.

Following Bud's orders, I searched all over the world.

The fragments of the ringing sound are the stitches that mend the pieces.

The rift in the void is thus mended.