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

Chapter 19 She deserved a "very good" Zuan.

"Attack!"

With a grim face, Hilko gently put down the specially made iris syringe and, enduring the excruciating pain in his left eye, issued the command.

With Aaron and Jinx not around right now, and no one to inject the antidote into his left eye, he unconsciously revealed a more ruthless tone after performing the procedure himself.

Before Hilko stood a group of people, including Sevika and Gustav, as well as some veterans who had previously followed Vander, each a highly skilled elite.

Their expressions were serious; they all understood what their leader, Hilko, meant by "attack."

Upon hearing the order, they did not hesitate to pick up their weapons and rush out of the Fugen Tavern.

Now, they will punish that wicked beast Smitch in the harshest way possible and wipe out those disgusting armored soldiers!

"..."

After everyone left, Hilko leaned back in his chair and remained silent for a while.

He was sorting out his thoughts and confirming whether he had made the wrong decision today.

After all, if it were in the past...

He wouldn't confront Smith, whose strength was clearly unpredictable, head-on at this time.

"So, it regenerates flesh and blood and becomes invulnerable to blades and bullets?"

Hilcomo stroked his chin and muttered to himself.

Compared to Aaron, Hilko discovered the secret of the armored soldiers much earlier.

Because the moment Smitch, wielding the power he had obtained from that great man, began clamoring for revenge, Hilko's men had already discovered their whereabouts.

According to intelligence from his subordinates, Smith paid special attention to the maintenance of the soldiers' armor, and would even personally wipe the outer shell with machine oil, for fear that the armor would fall apart.

However, Smitch seemed very cautious at the time, and after returning to the city of Zaun, he did nothing and quietly hid away.

Hilco was preoccupied with the trivial matters of his children and had no time to attend to him, so he merely sent people to keep an eye on Smit.

It wasn't until Smitch suddenly went berserk, surrounded the southwest corner of the Zaun mid-level plaza, and began to massacre innocent people that Hilko realized the other side had made a new move.

Although it was strange that Smitch didn't just come to Fuchsburg's tavern to find him, Hilco didn't stand idly by:

He couldn't wait for Jinx to go find Aaron, nor could he wait for Aaron to return from finding Jinx. He immediately ordered his men to stop the other party!

He is no longer the same Hilco he once was.

Now, he finds it hard to watch people from Zaun perish within his sphere of influence... even those insignificant thugs who are like weeds that no one cares about.

Ultimately, this is all thanks to Aaron.

Although many of Aaron's ideas were considered by Hilco to be "too weak and merciful," he always agreed with one of Aaron's statements:

You are now the ruler of Zaun, stop thinking of yourself as that old gangster boss!

Yes.

Hilko wholeheartedly agreed with this statement.

He boasted that he would do anything for the rise of Zaun, so Aaron's suggestion to "treat all Zaunites as his own people" naturally resonated with him.

He became unable to accept the unnecessary sacrifices of the Zaun people and began to seriously consider Zaun's own path to development.

Even though he still insisted on smuggling the glimmer of light and refused to admit that he had strayed from the right path, when he was alone, Hilko couldn't help but feel regret.

He regretted why he had been so resolute back then, regretted why he hadn't understood these things sooner, regretted...

In short, his indifference to Aaron's blatant interference with his smuggling ship was already a tactful admission of wrongdoing.

He was also trying to embrace the bright atmosphere that Aaron brought.

And now, it seems, is the time to test the results of his understanding:

Those armored monsters that kill indiscriminately seem endless, even more suitable for fighting than the "super soldiers" who have taken the Glimmer of Light.

Hesilco had countless reasons to insist on using the Glimmer, so he should have the same reason to stop those armored monsters!

Of course, besides that...

"Is Dr. Singed ready?"

Hilko suddenly turned his head and asked the person next to him.

A dangerous glint flashed in his eyes, a mixture of anticipation and curiosity:

"Hasn't he been eyeing that monster's flesh and blood for days? If he gets a chance to see it with his own eyes this time..."

……

when--!

Ding ding—!

"Be careful!"

With a clanging sound of metal striking metal, the already precarious shop sign was smashed down by the armored soldiers.

Jinx quickly pushed Caitlin to the side, and the two narrowly avoided being crushed into meat patties.

The sound of signs and debris scattered on the ground was quite chaotic. The two ignored their lingering fear and tacitly lowered their pace, quickly leaving through the faintly visible passage in the ruins.

Only after leaving behind the continuous sounds of destruction and screams did they finally have a chance to breathe a sigh of relief...

"Phew... thank you."

Caitlin pulled her collar up slightly, still somewhat shaken.

She began to regret not bringing her most reliable Hextech rifle when she came to Zaun.

As long as she had that gun, along with the Hextech C44 with its lens, she wouldn't have been chased so relentlessly.

But after glancing at Jinx, who had just saved her, she thought again and realized that she had been "kidnapped" by Jinx in Zaun today, so how could she possibly have had the opportunity to carry a weapon?

Caitlin suddenly found herself in a state of bewilderment, finding the situation both amusing and absurd.

Am I starting to think like Jinx? Why am I becoming so impulsive?

"You're welcome, just don't blame me."

"I never expected to encounter this today... I'm just glad you're alright."

Jinx was also exhausted, collapsing against the wall and panting with her legs spread wide, completely lacking any decorum.

Now that the two had broken free of Smith's encirclement and successfully escaped the city, they finally had time to reflect on the terrifying moment they had just experienced—

At that time, when Smitch started muttering incoherent prayers, chanting things like "Great Lord Urgot," Jinx keenly sensed an opportunity.

She wasn't going to patiently wait for Smith to make his move.

She grabbed Caitlin and ran in the opposite direction, disappearing back into the chaotic crowd before Smith could react—she had already figured out how to escape!

In Zaun, the phrase "complete encirclement" is always a joke.

As far as Jinx knows, there are at least three routes that allow one to escape the encirclement directly from the city.

Unbeknownst to her, Hilco had already ordered an attack, sending his fully armed men into the market. Just as Hilco was unaware, Jinx was among these lambs to the slaughter.

So the girl didn't hesitate and jumped down into a sewer pipe hidden in a corner with Caitlin.

Interestingly, that pipe was the one Jinx used to crawl through after stealing the Hextech Crystal in Piltover to evade law enforcement.

Now, she's taking the Piltover guy with her.

She even wondered: Now that she was covered in filth, she wondered if Caitlin would forgive her for selling the other person's exquisite suit.

At the very least, that suit should still be lying safely in the window of Midnight Flower Garden, haha.

When the two, covered in dust and dirt, emerged from the other end of the pipe, they had arrived in an area outside the market—or more precisely, in the backyard of the Fugen Tavern.

Although those armored monsters that are impervious to swords and spears still exist and indiscriminately create chaos and destruction, they are now only a few scattered individuals.

This gave Jinx and Caitlin the opportunity to completely escape the monsters by making noise.

Through observation, they discovered that the armored monsters seemed to have no sight and relied entirely on hearing to perceive the outside world...

"There's a water pipe here, would you like to rinse your hair?"

After recovering, Jinx shook her wet hair and showed concern for Caitlyn.

After all, they were partners who had gone through life and death together, and she was too lazy to pretend to be "Lux the Witch of Destruction" anymore, making no attempt to hide her familiarity with her own backyard.

If Aaron hadn't always emphasized not to expose Hillco's information to the Upper City people too early, and to wait until Hillco's businesses were completely laundered before doing so...

Jinx even wanted to take Caitlyn straight to her room for a while!

There's also something that Jinx finds puzzling:

Smitch clearly said he wanted to "make his enemy suffer," but he seemed to be deliberately avoiding the Fuggen Tavern and avoiding Hillco, his real enemy.

As a result, the riots that swept through most of the mid-level plaza did not affect this area much.

That's really strange...

"Okay, sure."

Caitlyn paused for a moment, seemingly sensing the change in Jinx's tone, and smiled slightly.

Then, following Jinx's example, she abandoned her reserve, scooped up a handful of water, haphazardly splashed it on her face, and prepared to wash her hair.

She's not one of those delicate law enforcement officers who would look down on this kind of hair washing.

At the same time, Caitlin didn't think Jinx, who seemed apologetic, had done anything wrong.

Even the dangers she experienced in Zaun today did not make her develop much prejudice against Zaun.

On the contrary, Caitlyn began to feel sorry for Jinx.

They are all around the same age, and he can enjoy a carefree aristocratic life, while Jinx has to face life-or-death crises like today from time to time.

Don't you think that's incredibly unfair?

Moreover, Jinx's efforts today to prove that "Zaun is also great" deeply touched her.

She really liked the grilled peppers today, the lively atmosphere of the market, and the vendor who secretly gave Jinx two extra skewers of grilled octopus because she wasn't full.

So when these beautiful things were completely destroyed before her eyes, Caitlyn suddenly felt a shared sense of righteous indignation with Jinx.

Why?

Zaun was pretty good, so why did it turn out like this?

As for Jinx kidnapping him, and the secrets surrounding Jinx and Aaron... we'll talk about that another time.

"Uh, why can't I shake it dry?"

Caitlin rinsed her hair, quickly washing away the dirt, and awkwardly tried to dry it by shaking it.

However, she lacked experience and ended up getting herself wet, which was a bit embarrassing.

She stared at Jinx, who was struggling to hold back her laughter, and finally left with the words, "You won't learn this. Wait for me to get a towel," and secretly made up her mind:

Even if I eventually return to Piltover, I can no longer stand idly by while things go down in the city.

I have to help Jinx!

She... deserves a "very good" Zaun!