"Sit, please," Svein said, gesturing to the two chairs across from him. "I'd better stand, Lord." Oram replied.

"It's up to you."

There was some kind of irresistible coercion and coercion in this Archon, and Alyssa could be sure...... Even if he was a cripple in his twilight years......

"Oram Valrokan, Elisa Valrokan, the third and fourth sons of the prefect of Fort Delvo," he continued. "The Iron Thorn Mountains are far away here. The two of you must not have come to greet each other. ”

"I'm traveling with my father's seal," Oram began. "In my father's name." "Then speak quickly," said Darius's voice, like the low roar of a black wolf warning his enemy. "No need to be polite. This is Noxus, not some aristocratic court. ”

His accent was rough and rustic, and he wasn't as cultured as Svein. The accent of the common people. Alyssa could almost hear her brother's sneer.

"Fort Dig has been doing his duty for decades," Oram began, deliberately accentuating his aristocratic accent, perhaps unwise to appear superior at this time. "Our gold feeds the Empire's conquests. Our steel protects and arms the warbands of the Empire. Also includes the Trefalli Legion. ”

Darius was unmoved: "Iron Thorn Ore makes the best armor. I'm not going to give anything else to the Trifali Army, and you should be proud. ”

"We are, indeed, proud, my king." Alyssa said.

"I am not a king. Not even your king. ”

Svein smiled and raised a hand. What he meant was that in Noxus, no one is born noble. A person gains status not by blood, but by merit. ”

"That's nature." Alyssa immediately changed her tune, scolding herself for her stupidity.

"We toiled like slaves in the dark mines under the mountains," Oram continued. "Every day we have to watch the fruits of our labor be loaded onto a huge fleet of containers and replaced with new empty containers. We can't even feed ourselves—"

"Oh? Is it? Svein interrupted him loudly, raising an eyebrow. Please let me see your palm. ”

"What?" Oram said in surprise.

"Reach out, boy." Darius said, leaning forward to the smooth marble table. "Let's take a look at your hands toiling in the dark caverns and dust beneath the mountain fortress."

Oram pursed his lips, not wanting to be led by the nose.

Darius snorted. "I haven't suffered a day in my life, boy. Neither did she. The calluses on the two of you are certainly not the result of hard work. ”

"How can I ......," Oram began, but Alyssa placed her hand on his shoulder. He shrugged his shoulders angrily, but wisely changed the subject. "The blood of the mountains is about to be sucked dry."

This time his voice was more measured. "This kind of mining can't go on forever, and it's not good for anyone – it's not good for us, and it's certainly not good for the Noxus army. There must be a waiver. ”

"Tell me, Oram Akhan Valrokan," said Svein, "how many warriors did Fort Dig send to fight for Noxus?" Ballpark figure. Annually. ”

"Not sent, sir. But it doesn't matter. Our men are better suited to play in the mines, and we also have to defend against the barbarian attacks on the northern border. This is our main value to Noxus. ”

Svein sighed. "There are so many provinces, city-states, and nations that belong to Noxus, but Fort Dig is the only one, and no soldiers are sent to join our legions. You don't shed blood for Noxus. You have never shed a drop of blood for Noxus. Isn't such a reduction enough? ”

"Not enough," Oram rejected. "We have been commissioned by our father to come and renegotiate tithing, or Fort Dig will have to reconsider its place in the Noxian Empire."

The room froze. Even Darius's fingers stopped tapping.

Alyssa's face was bloodless. She looked at her brother in horror. At present, this turn of events was something she had never expected before, and the meaning of the words made her feel like the world was spinning. The Faceless One still stared at her, mysterious beneath the smooth mask.

"I see," Svein finally spoke. "I think I understand what your father really sent you for, but the question is...... Do you know? ”

Oram nodded to Alyssa. "Submit it," he ordered, anger glinting in his eyes.

She took a deep breath and handed a scroll box forward. With trembling hands, she unhooked the hook at the end, sliding out a roll of ancient parchment written in intricate, angular Enochas.

It bears the seal of Fort Dig and the blood-red coat of arms of Noxus. She spread the parchment on the table and flattened it, then retreated to her brother's side—half a step further back than him. This is where she should be in the customs of the Iron Thorn region.

"Eighty-seven years ago, Fort Dig was under the rule of Noxus," said Oram, "and our ancestors gave up their sovereignty and surrendered to the Noxian throne, the empty throne before me. ”

Darius yelled at him. "And then?"

"The terms are clear, as you can see with your own eyes, about the object of the covenant we have sworn to. The last man to sit on the throne died more than seven years ago. Oram said as he gestured to the stone platform.

"In my father's opinion, this piece of paper is invalid. Fort Dig was not obligated to continue to pay any taxes, but due to its credibility, it was not interrupted. As a result, if the relief we propose cannot be achieved, Fort Delvo will have no choice but to secede from the Empire. The Iron Thorn area will no longer be guarded by us. ”

Alyssa tried to look away, to run away, but she found herself unable to move. She waited for a response from the council.

"History only remembers the victors." Darius warns him, "Conform to Noxus and you will go down in history." Disobey us, and you will be crushed and forgotten. ”

"No army has ever breached Fort Digva." Oram said. "Our fathers voluntarily opened the gates to Noxus, don't forget. There was no bloodshed at that time. ”

"You're playing a dangerous game, boy." Darius gestured to the two warriors not far behind Alyssa and Oram.

"It only takes two Trefali legionnaires to swagger into your precious fort and claim it for yourself. I didn't even need to follow personally. ”

As if to match his words, the two legionnaires slammed into the ground with the ends of their halberds, and the sound of thunder echoed through the hall.