Tallinn's Recruitment

Chapter 72 Tallinn's Recruitment

Upon hearing Tarlin's words, a hint of confusion appeared in Caitlin's eyes.

If it were before, Caitlin might not have argued, but now—

Having realized there was no turning back, Caitlin's upbringing in a prominent family helped her quickly adjust her mindset.

Especially since this concerns her future identity and destiny, Caitlin couldn't help but advise, "Although Piltover is not as vast as Noxus, it has a long history. It was already a world trade hub during the ancient Shurima Empire."

Furthermore, Hextech weaponry is developing at an unprecedented pace, making it extremely difficult for even the most powerful Noxian Empire to forcibly conquer it. It's best to proceed with caution.

Upon hearing Caitlin's words, Tarlin couldn't help but smile, but seeing Caitlin's serious expression, he didn't say anything to discourage her.

It can only be said that the Middarda family infiltrated Piltover so effectively that these powerful families in Piltover genuinely believed they could negotiate with Noxus on a level playing field.

In reality, Noxus simply needed a seemingly fair port to facilitate trade between its nobles and outwardly hostile kingdoms like Demacia.

Thinking about it, Tarlin waved his hand gently and said, "Don't make your brother Lin laugh."

Piltover can go toe-to-toe with Noxus—you might as well say I'm a virgin.

At least I'll put on a show when necessary, but if you go head-to-head with Noxus, just watch how Noxus handles Piltover.

Thinking this, Tarlin, while making an OK sign with both hands and playing an air accordion, confidently said to Caitlin, "No one understands Piltover better than me."

Seeing Tallinn's confident demeanor, Caitlin didn't know where Tallinn's confidence came from, but a confident leader always inspires confidence in others.

After thinking for a moment, Caitlin took a deep breath and said, "Okay—"

"Alright, if there are no problems, let's set off—oh, and call over that Shuriman mercenary with the boomerang, the one named Sivir."

"Okay." Upon hearing this, Caitlin nodded, then adjusted her posture and turned to return along the same route.

Meanwhile, watching Caitlin leave, Farin approached and asked with some curiosity, "You just sent this little girl home so easily? Also, you don't seem to care much about Piltover?"

"I am somewhat concerned, but not about the threat aspect." Upon hearing Farin's question, Tarin calmly explained, "Piltworth lacks truly top-tier combat power."

Although it was just a simple sentence, Farin, being born in Ixtal and having a clear understanding of the true essence of a city-state, immediately understood why Tarin was so contemptuous of Piltover.

But since it was her first time leaving Ixtal, after understanding the situation, Farin still asked curiously, "Then—what about the middle levels?"

"According to you, Piltover seems to be the trading hub of the entire Runeterra? Such an important place, even without a god like Lord Skarner, should have quite a few epic or even legendary elites, right?"

The so-called epics and legends are not described in Ixtal. They are new terms that Tarin created specifically to help Qiyana and Farin understand the dangers of the outside world.

Among them, epic represents those who possess power far exceeding that of ordinary people, but are still a long way from the true realm of gods, and are capable of influencing the situation on small and medium-sized battlefields.

Legendary figures, on the other hand, represent powerful individuals capable of influencing a large-scale battlefield.

In fact, this positioning is very vague. After all, killing the enemy leader can influence the course of a war, and directly annihilating the enemy's legion is also a matter of influencing the battlefield situation.

However, the reason Tarlin brought this up was not to delve into their individual combat capabilities, but simply to help Farin and the others better understand the level of threat, so as to make more accurate judgments and decisions.

Hearing Farin's question, Tarin pondered for a moment before asking, "Do you remember the girl who just took a punch from me head-on?"

Upon hearing this, the image of Wei also appeared in Farin's mind.

Although Tarin knocked her out of the fight with a single punch, the fact that she was able to keep up with Tarin's attack rhythm, knock Caitlin aside in advance, and then defend against Tarin's attacks was enough to leave a deep impression on Farin.

Meeting Farin's gaze, Tarin explained, "That girl is already considered one of the strongest in Piltover."

Upon hearing this, Farin was slightly taken aback at first, then asked with a strange expression, "Uh—where would that pink-haired girl rank in terms of strength?"

"Around third," Tallinn replied, his expression casual.

At this point, not only Farin, but even Qiyana standing to the side couldn't help but fall silent.

After recalling Piltover's terrain in his mind for a moment, he couldn't help but say, "With this little strength, you think you can defend a city-state like this? Are you kidding me? — Why don't we just take over Piltover?"

"It's not difficult to do, but the subsequent management is very troublesome."

Tallinn shook his head.

Piltover doesn't really have any top-tier combat power. The only ones who are considered top-tier, ranked ahead of Vi, are Camille and Heimerdinger.

Heimerdinger's own strength is also quite limited; the main threat mostly comes from his unique Hextech creations.

In the card game Legends of Runeterra (LoR), the top-tier mechanical creation derived from a hero's ability is the Hextech Tyrannosaurus Rex.

Like Hearthstone, unit cards in LoR ​​have mana cost, attack, health, card attributes, and effects.

The Hextech Tyrannosaurus Rex card, on the other hand, costs 1 to 8 mana, is 8/8, and is a vanilla card; in other words, it has no additional effects besides its stats.

Considering that it is derived from hero skills, it may be difficult to handle in the game.

However, in reality—to be honest, without considering the Yordles' unique good luck and the portal to save their lives, Tarin alone could think of nine ways to bypass the Tyrannosaurus Rex and directly behead Heimerdinger.

Nine types!

Considering that this world is still set up around the battles between two cities, the big bosses in the future might be forced to flee to Zaun.

Nawei's ranking may rise further.

Continuing down the list, although Jayce has better equipment than Vi, he is essentially a scholar. Whether it is combat experience, combat talent, or combat intuition, he is far inferior to Vi.

As for Victor, who ascended to godhood in the Battle of the Two Cities storyline—

Stop messing around, they're from Zu'an.

Moreover, based on the information from the Shuma that Neeko had traveled through, Tarin was certain that in the current timeline, Viktor hadn't even healed his leg, let alone completed his ascension to godhood.

And ascending to godhood would be pointless. This isn't the timeline of the Battle of the Two Cities. If Viktor really wanted to manipulate runes, just wait and see if Ryze would come and deal with him.

Don't be fooled by Ryze's hesitation when facing mortals in game cinematics and personal novels. When it comes to actually facing world runes, Ryze always suffers from PTSD on the spot, and then—he starts with Overflow, then moves to the object, converts the object into spell vamp, returns to the basics, uses Jeweled Gauntlet, and charges in to interpret your dream.

Due to a combination of factors, Tallinn's attitude toward Piltover is quite clear.

"Piltworth has been able to exist, remain stable, and prosper only because the various city-states and regions of Runeterra need a relatively neutral trading hub to maintain a semblance of stability."

Tallinn casually remarked, "Apart from that, there's nothing in Piltover that we need to worry about."

"I understand." Upon hearing Tarin's words, Qiyana remarked, "This is the plot you were talking about, the return of the Dragon King and all those other things."

"It's not that cruel to the protagonist," Tarlin joked.

While Tarin and Qiyana were still chatting, Caitlin soon arrived with a Sivir whose expression was filled with surprise and uncertainty.

Meeting Tallinn's gaze, Sivir's eyes held a hint of seriousness, as if she were somewhat unsure of the current situation. Her eyes instinctively scanned her surroundings, seemingly trying to ascertain her surroundings.

Of course, this observation was merely Sivir's instinctive reaction. As a mercenary, Sivir knew very well that obediently following orders would give her a better chance of survival than attempting reckless resistance.

After bringing Sivir, Caitlin simply instructed, "Do whatever Mr. Tarlin tells you to do."

After saying that, Caitlin stood aside, looking down at herself, seemingly unconcerned.

Sivir felt a chill run down her spine at this.

For mercenaries, the worst thing that can happen is when their client suddenly betrays them during a mission.

Leaving aside whether the final payment will be received after the defection, the original contract will simply be void.

The battle ended quickly, so Sivir's mercenary group wasn't greatly affected. Otherwise, suddenly having to join forces with enemies they had previously fought would have been awkward for both sides, let alone entrusting their backs to each other.

When Tarin turned his gaze to Sivir, he nodded thoughtfully.

Sivir's appearance is typical of an Ixtal desert warrior: tall, strong, and with well-proportioned muscles.

Her skin tone was a healthy tan, and she wore a breathable short breastplate that revealed her well-defined abs and toned arms.

Her black hair cascaded down her back, and a green gem was set in her forehead. In Shurima's traditional culture, this gem represented the now-dead Dawn Oasis, a wonder of the Shurima Empire that possessed the power to bring the dead back to life.

Although the Oasis of Dawn dried up with the collapse of Shurima, its imagery still lingers in the sands of Shurima.

Her brown eyes were cold and sharp, carrying the arrogance of a mercenary queen. Although her lower abdomen was exposed, she still had her arm guards, leg guards, and waist belt intact.

While this bikini armor might seem a bit unsettling, considering the magic of Runeterra—it's perfectly reasonable.

However, more than his physique and appearance, Tarlin was clearly more interested in the iconic cross-blade wheel that Sivir gripped tightly in his right hand.

However, upon seeing the wheel blade in Sivir's hand, Tarin's eyes furrowed in confusion.

What comes into view in Tallinn is not the Charikar from my memory, which is based on the golden sand of the desert, inlaid with pine green gemstones, with a sharp and heavy shape, seemingly simple on the outside, but perfect in every detail.

Instead, it is a boomerang similar to Charikar's.

Not Charikar?

Amidst the confusion, Tarlin said, "Let me see your weapon."

Upon hearing this, Sivir instinctively pulled her weapon-wielding arm back. But after regaining her composure, she pursed her lips, nodded, and handed the cross-blade wheel to Tarin.

Sivir knew very well that she had no right to refuse, much less to negotiate.

After watching for a while, Tarin nodded thoughtfully, then returned the cross-shaped blade to Sivir, saying, "Not bad."

"—Thank you." Upon hearing Tarin's assessment, Sivir was slightly taken aback. After a moment's hesitation, she looked at Tarin with her bright eyes and asked with some confusion, "—So, why did you summon me here?"

"It's nothing, I just feel you have extraordinary potential—which mercenary group are you with now?" Tarin asked.

"The Blood Sand Mercenary Group is led by Aihar Zhaiharo." Upon hearing this, Sivir added, "I am currently his second-in-command."

Upon hearing this, Tallinn nodded in understanding.

Sivir found Charikar after she became the mercenary leader, and right now, Sivir is only Zhaiharo's second-in-command, which means that Sivir has not yet officially started working on her own.

Thinking this, Tarin also showed a regretful expression and said, "Having such talent and not building your own team to make a name for yourself, but instead staying under someone else's command as a lowly deputy, is truly a waste of this talent."

Sivir was puzzled by this but remained silent.

After saying that, Tarin calmly added, "Once things are settled in Piltover, I plan to go to Shurima to pay homage to the former glory of the Shurima Empire and, incidentally, to advance Shurima's historical progress. So, I'm looking for a local expert."

Upon hearing this, Sivir blinked and then said, "You mean—hire me?"

"It's not just about hiring people; I'm planning to form my own mercenary group—what do you think of the Eagle Band?" Tarin said with great interest.