Twin Cities: Who says scientists can't be conquerors?

Piltover's 200th Anniversary Progress Day celebrations were ultimately held as scheduled.

However, in stark contrast to the lively and jubilant crowds on the streets, the atmosphere inside the parliament was as cold as an ice cave.

Scarlett Giramane clenched her teeth so hard that her jaw muscles spasmed slightly.

She added two more chairs next to her so that Jinx and Caitlin could sit beside her.

The two girls were also in bad shape; their eyes were filled with grief and anger, as if they were attending a funeral.

"May, Representative May."

"You, you, do you want to...?"

Congressman Hoscal broke the cold silence, stammering as he cast a glance at Mel.

Before he could finish speaking, the sight of the empty seat next to Mel stung his eyes, and he quickly looked away as if he had been electrocuted.

Clearly, that position is missing a key figure in parliament, a member of parliament who is absolutely indispensable:

Jess Talisman!

As the sun rose again, the members of parliament who had been forced by Jess and others to vote the previous night to postpone the celebration suddenly received a new notification:

They don't need to rack their brains to come up with an excuse to tell the public that the Progress Day celebrations have been postponed.

Unfortunately, the matter concerning Urgot has taken an unacceptable turn.

Intense fighting broke out inside the "Sinking Hook," causing the foundation to collapse completely and directly triggering the backflow of seawater into the mouth of the Pilt River!

Whether it's Urgot, who was identified as a "dangerous criminal," Jayce, who personally led the team to the ditch, or even Aaron, who already had some fame in Piltover.

In an instant, they all became "missing persons" beneath the raging waves of the vast ocean...

"The collapse of the Sunken Hook region is not just Jess's problem; it is a terrible natural disaster that both cities will face."

"So, please remain calm, Hoskar."

When Mel's name was called, she seemed completely unaffected by the devastating news of her lover. She calmly analyzed the current situation and offered a peaceful word of comfort.

She wasn't wearing her usual elegant gown today, but rather a light and practical hunting outfit, her eyes sharp and cold.

Upon receiving this devastating news, the "wolf-like tenacity" that Mel's mother, Ambissa, always emphasized seemed to emanate from her instinctively.

That aura enveloped the council, making everyone present realize from the bottom of their hearts...

Mel is in grave danger!

Regarding the collapse of the sinking hook, which caused seawater to flood into the Zuan ditch area, I would like to say the following points.

Finally, Mel spoke again.

As the current backbone of the Piltover Council, Mel has a heavy burden on his shoulders.

It was so heavy that her voice became somewhat hoarse.

"First, Piltover must immediately organize personnel and allocate resources to go to Zaun for disaster relief."

"second……"

Why?

Before Mel could finish speaking, he was interrupted by another voice.

The blond senator named Saroo avoided eye contact with Mel, running away from Mel's drifting gaze, and began to explain with his head down:

"Although this disaster of seawater flooding has also caused Senator Jess... I'm sorry, that's not what I meant."

"In short, this should be a matter for Zaun itself."

At this point, Saroo glanced at the other councilors around him. After realizing that Hoskar and the others had tacitly agreed with his position, he seemed to have gained more confidence.

He looked up: "That thug from Zaun named Urgot has violated the interests of us Piltover people more than once. I think this seawater flooding must be because of him."

"Since that guy always targets Piltover residents, and has now caused such a huge disaster, why should we...?"

"What exactly are you trying to say?!"

Before Mel could even comment on Saroo's opinion, Caitlin, who had been sitting quietly beside her mother, couldn't hold back any longer.

She almost roared at Salo, then jumped to her feet.

"Are you trying to say that since the seawater flooding disaster only happened in Zaun, Piltover doesn't need to care?!"

"I'm telling you! If you dare let me hear that again..."

Caitlin didn't waste any time and slammed the Hextech rifle at her feet onto the table, pointing it at Saroo.

At this moment, a strange thing happened.

"Don't say that, Kate, don't say things like that."

Just as Caitlyn was about to utter the most serious threat, Jinx, the only Zaunite in the council, took the initiative to stop her.

Her face was expressionless, as if she were wearing a numb mask.

After pulling Caitlin back to her seat and giving Senator Salo a deep look, Jinx took a deep breath, just as Aaron would usually do.

"Let's hear what Representative Mel has to say first."

"Congressman Mel is absolutely right. We all need to calm down in order to truly solve the problem."

ha?

When Jinx finished speaking, Caitlin was utterly incredulous.

She stared at Jinx, completely disregarding the occasion, and asked in bewilderment:

"What are you thinking?!"

Caitlin pointed at Saroo:

"Aaron and Jayce are both missing, and the disaster is in Zaun. How could you let someone like that spout nonsense, saying Piltover should just ignore it?!"

"..."

I know you're going through a lot of pain right now.

Seeing that Jinx didn't answer, Caitlin lowered her voice, pursed her lips, and slowly placed her hand on the back of Jinx's hand: "Me too."

"And it's not just about Aaron and Jayce going missing; seeing Zaun in such a precarious situation makes me feel..."

"Therefore, we need to calm down even more."

Jinx showed no emotion whatsoever and suddenly spoke up to Caitlin's heartbreaking outburst.

She grabbed Caitlin's wrist as if to shut her up, while looking at Mel, who had been quietly waiting for their argument.

"Congressman Mel, please continue. Tell me your current plans."

"As a representative of the Zaun side and a party involved at the scene, I now have only two demands."

"What?"

"My first demand is to keep the news of Aaron and Councilor Jess's disappearance a secret, and to conduct a full-scale search and rescue operation during the disaster relief efforts. Because I don't believe Aaron could just be dead!"

"I agree."

Mel answered almost without hesitation.

She moved her lips twice, and finally added, "I don't believe it either," before quickly asking, "What's the second condition?"

Mel's current state is almost identical to Jinx's.

The conversation between the two flowed smoothly, and their eye contact seemed to reveal their shared determination.

"The second condition."

Jinx glanced at Saroo, who was now speechless and dared not utter a word:

"I need Parliament to immediately come up with a complete disaster relief plan, and during its implementation, no one is allowed to shirk responsibility or hinder progress."

"If I find that anyone has broken their promise..."

As she spoke, a flicker of emotion seemed to finally cross Jinx's usually calm face.

That frenzy she displayed when she cried out and blew up the Stillwater Prison flashed briefly through her outer layer of calm.

"I won't trouble anyone else; I'll have a proper 'talk' with him myself."

……

When the disaster struck, unlike the situation in Piltover, the unsuspecting public enjoyed the celebrations, and the council members even had "time" to hold meetings.

The situation in Zaun is truly in complete chaos!

As an entrance to the trench area and a direct route to the "sinking hook," the sinking gate can now be renamed the "sinking lake."

When the proving grounds carved out by Urgot collapsed completely with his death, the Piltover River, the mother river of the Twin Cities, mercilessly lashed out at Zaun—

There was absolutely no room for negotiation. Zaun, whose foundations had already sunk due to the excavation of the Sun Gate, didn't even have time to react. A large part of the area was instantly turned into a swamp!

If it weren't for the location of the Fugen Tavern, it could barely be considered a relatively high-altitude area.

It's likely that Hilko and his crew will end up like the ordinary Zaun civilians they're currently rescuing—eating fish and turtles in their sleep.

It was precisely because the disaster struck so suddenly that there was no opportunity to transmit information.

So until now, none of the Zaunites, including Hillco, knew that "Young Master Aaron," who never disappointed them, had become a member of the missing persons list.

And naturally, no one knew that Jinx and Caitlyn rushed to the Piltover Council to seek supplies and rescue efforts immediately after the disaster.

The current situation is like a sudden flood, which has truly transformed the already divided two cities into two completely different worlds.

"Idiot! Turn the chainsaw sword upside down!"

"If you place it face down on the plank, the plank will be cut!"

Zeli frowned and shouted, desperately directing Hilko's men.

Her home is located on the top floor of the Dance Steps corridor in Zuan, and was not affected by the flood.

However, upon hearing that the drainage area had been washed away by the sea, Zeli immediately gathered all her equipment—two modified multi-functional electrician's guns, a pair of power pliers, and a waterproof raincoat—and rushed to Fugen Tavern.

Upon seeing the overwhelmed and exhausted Hilko, Zeli didn't hesitate to tell him why she had come:

She felt that she was also from Zaun, so she wanted to participate in the rescue!

Hilcone, who already admired Zeli, readily handed over command of a squad to Zeli, letting her do as she pleased.

This led to the scene before us:

Zeli, whose voice was already hoarse from shouting, sat on the simple dugout canoe, using a pair of pliers to hold a piece of iron as an oar, and while rowing, she cursed and gave orders to the resistance soldiers.

What she is doing now is teaching those resistance soldiers who used to only know how to fight and kill to use their shotguns and chainsaws as a framework to build a temporary pontoon bridge.

Only in this way can those refugees who are about to drown even while clinging to the rooftops have a chance to escape this raging torrent that is swallowing people.

"Do not attempt to swim! Do not go into the water!"

Zeli suddenly cried out.

With her sharp eyes, she spotted several civilians from Zaun who had been trapped all night on the other side, already impatient for the clumsy rebels to finish building the pontoon bridge.

The family huddled together, looking at a large fishing boat not far from them, as if they had made up their minds and were about to leap into the water and swim there.

The trapped people of Zaun all know that a large fishing boat with the name "Hilko" flying on its flag is making difficult trips to ferry civilians.

As long as I can swim there! Swimming there is enough...

"I'll kill anyone who dares to go into the water!"

"Don't go into the water if you don't want to die!"

At the critical moment, Zeli didn't care about anything else and directly pulled out her electrician's gun and fired it into the air, waking the family with crackling sparks.

"Oh shit……"

After doing all this, Zeli saw the family timidly shrink back and continue to obediently wait for rescue, and only then did she breathe a sigh of relief.

She couldn't help but swear.

Because this kind of situation is commonplace during her strenuous rescue efforts.

When the flood struck, most of Zu'an was submerged. The toxic waste that was already hidden in the gullies of Zu'an naturally all floated to the surface.

It's no exaggeration to say that the already impoverished commoners of Zu'an would be in serious trouble if they dared to go into the water.

Leaving aside the possibility of being submerged by the still surging waves, the mere thought of drinking sewage and having their skin contaminated with venom is enough to kill them!

"Hurry up! Stop dawdling!"

Zeli then began urging the rebels on the other small boats, her tone quite unpleasant.

However, those rebels who had long accepted the ideas instilled by Aaron did not have any objections to Zeli because of this. On the contrary, they silently accelerated the construction of the pontoon bridge.

Not one of them delayed the construction of the pontoon bridge because they were unwilling to sacrifice their chainsaw sword.

On the contrary, almost everyone's first reaction upon hearing that they had to contribute their weapons was to go to Fugen's Tavern and buy two more, considering it the only way they could help.

Even some of the rebels, whose own homes were flooded, are still trying to concentrate and follow orders to carry out rescue operations.

Clearly, the experience of having Hilco send them to clean up the bloodshed in the streets not only changed Hilco, but also shaped them.

"Hey! Zeli!"

Suddenly a loud, strained voice came from above.

Zeli went to check and found that it was Sevika, who was soaking wet, who had just climbed onto a rebel canoe, with a pale-faced, lifeless Zaun man tucked under her arm.

"Is there any space left on your boat?"

Sevika spat out a mouthful of dirty water and asked loudly.

She looked extremely disheveled, with clumps of hair stuck to her forehead.

Yes, yes, yes.

Zeli didn't react immediately and subconsciously answered Sevika.

Then she saw Sevika nod, showing no intention of staying on the boat, and prepare to plunge into the water.

"Okay, then I'll put the people on your boat when I get them back."

"Wait, wait! You, you're going into the water?!"

Zeli quickly called out to Sevika.

She never expected that Sevika, as Hilko's right-hand woman, would lead the way in violating their "discipline"!

"You can't go into the water! There are a lot of..."

"I know, I know."

Sevika clearly understood what Zeli was trying to say.

But she seemed completely unconcerned. After shrugging, she showed Zeli the liquid inside her mechanical arm—no longer the pale pink, side-effect-free luminescence, but the deep purple potion that Singed had once injected into Aaron.

"With this thing, why would I be afraid of this sewage?"

"Heh, anyway, if you can reduce the number of those idiots who jump into the water, then you'll have helped me."

"Do you know how much effort I put into rescuing them!"