The next day.
At the Topside docks.
"Has this shipment been inspected?"
Sevika stood on a cargo ship, looking coldly at the goods in front of her as she asked.
"It's been inspected. No problems. It's all top-grade stuff."
The captain standing beside her immediately replied.
"Same as usual. Send men to deliver it to the Undercity." Sevika casually tossed over a bulging money pouch. "Divide that money yourself."
The captain hurriedly reached out to catch it. Feeling its heavy weight, his face broke into a smile. "You got it."
After dealing with the matters at the port, Sevika left.
Because the route was out of the way, she needed to pass through Topside before returning to the Undercity.
Walking through the streets of Topside for the first time in a while, Sevika realized this place really did change every day. Some of the buildings had been renovated again, and everywhere she looked, there was an irritating sense of life.
At a newspaper stand by the street, the owner was shouting with all his might, "Newspapers! Newspapers! The latest issue is out! Jan'ahrem's next performance is scheduled for six o'clock in the evening two days from now at Times Square! Tickets are being sold in advance! Detailed booking information is inside the newspaper, so anyone interested should buy one now!"
(TN: Yup, Times Square. Not sure if the author intends to make a reference)
On the wall of the shop hung several recent newspapers, along with an eye-catching poster. The poster showed the recently famous band, Jan'ahrem.
Sevika had no interest in Topside affairs, so she only glanced at it in passing. But the next second, she stopped.
Then she looked again, walked toward the newspaper stand, and stopped in front of the poster on the wall. Her brow furrowed little by little.
The poster was hand-drawn, depicting the five members of the band during a performance.
Sevika's attention fell mainly on the blue-haired girl toward the back right. She found her incredibly familiar, and no matter how she looked at her, she could only think of one person.
At this moment, the newspaper stand owner noticed Sevika was drawn in by the poster and greeted her warmly. "Ma'am, looks like you're interested in Jan'ahrem too. If you want to see their next performance, buy a newspaper. The ticket purchase method is inside."
"What is Jan'ahrem?" Sevika asked with a frown.
She remembered that the word had something to do with Janna of Zaun. She did not believe in that sort of thing, but it was still something from the Undercity. How had Topside taken it too?
"It's the hottest band around lately. The members are five young and beautiful girls. They're really talented, and their songs are great."
The newspaper stand owner promoted them enthusiastically.
Hearing this, Sevika thought for a moment. "Give me a newspaper. And this poster, I'm taking it. How much?"
"This is a hand-drawn version. Together with the newspaper, it'll be at least this much."
The newspaper stand owner pretended to think for a moment, then held up two fingers.
Seeing this, Sevika did not hesitate. She directly took out two gold coins and threw them to the owner.
"Perfect. You can just tear the poster off yourself." The owner smiled broadly and handed her a newspaper.
After taking the newspaper and tearing the poster from the wall, Sevika immediately strode away, her steps a little hurried.
After she left, the owner quickly put up a new poster on the wall and continued shouting.
Some time later.
The Undercity.
Sevika quickly found Silco, then slapped the newspaper and poster she had bought down in front of him. "I think you'll be very interested in seeing this."
Silco did not mind Sevika's roughness. His expression was calm and composed. "I remember newspapers aren't sold in the Undercity."
The Undercity had tried selling them before, but not many people bought them. To most people, what else could you do with the thing after bringing it home besides wipe your ass?
Sevika gave a strange cold laugh. "Weren't you wondering what that blue-haired brat has been doing lately? Once you finish looking at this, you'll have your answer."
Hearing this, Silco frowned slightly. At that moment, his gaze fell on the poster, and he froze.
Compared to Sevika, who had needed to look repeatedly to confirm it, he needed no confirmation at all.
Because he recognized Jinx on the poster at a glance.
So in that instant, he was a little stunned.
He could not help reaching out to pick up the poster. After looking at it again, he asked, "What is this?"
"Supposedly, it's a band from Topside." Sevika folded her arms and snorted coldly. "She's been having a grand old time playing with Topsiders now. I'm afraid she's already forgotten all about us."
This time, Silco did not speak. He only frowned slightly, looking at Jinx sitting behind the drum set on the poster.
So during this period, she had gone to Topside and even joined a band?
Based on his understanding of her, that girl did not seem like someone who would like Topside, much less someone who would be having such a good time there.
So what exactly had happened during this period?
Silco could not come up with an answer. He felt that going directly to ask Jinx might be better.
But if she had wanted to tell him, she would not have hidden it when she came back last time.
Very quickly, another word flashed through Silco's mind.
Rebellious phase.
Supposedly, people in this stage became very rebellious.
But when he thought about it carefully, Silco remembered that he had not really been strict with her about much of anything.
So where had this rebelliousness come from?
At this moment, Silco was somewhat baffled, completely unable to understand.
Then his gaze landed on the band name, Jan'ahrem. He felt that perhaps he would have to learn more about this band before he could figure out the situation.
"Investigate this band. Also, follow the method listed there and get two tickets."
Silco put down the poster and instructed Sevika.
"Understood." Sevika nodded, then turned and left.
Only Silco remained, sinking into thought.
In the blink of an eye, it was the day of the band's performance.
As dusk arrived, the whole sky was dyed with sunset glow, spilling gently down from the horizon and announcing that another day was about to end.
However, this did not affect Piltover at this very moment. On the contrary, as the performance drew closer, the city's atmosphere entered a heated state.
A band that had suddenly appeared out of nowhere had already managed to stir the emotions of many people in such a short time.
The performance venue had been changed from Sidereal Plaza to the larger and more spacious Times Square, which could hold up to thirty-five thousand people at once.
The streets surrounding Times Square were also broader, allowing many people on the outer edges to participate in the concert as well.
As for Jan'ahrem's background, many people had already guessed it.
After all, this was a band that had managed to draw out several councilors and major noble families on the very day of its first performance.
At this moment, there was still some time before the performance began, but a large crowd had already gathered in the square.
The shops on the surrounding streets and the roadside stalls had also begun selling band merchandise, and sales were extremely hot.
A single band had directly boosted the overall revenue of the shops on the nearby streets.
Piltover now looked even livelier than it did during the day.
Silco and Sevika walked down the street, looking around, both feeling rather unfamiliar with this incredibly lively environment.
It was hard to imagine that all of this had been caused by a single band.
There were also a great many people. Even on the broad streets, one could brush past hundreds of people within minutes.
It was clearly winter, yet walking down the street, they could not feel even the slightest chill because of the sheer number of people.
"Jan'ahrem official glow sticks! First come, first served! Come buy them now!"
A hardworking shout from the roadside caught Silco's attention. He looked over and found that the stall was surrounded by people.
This made him somewhat curious about the glow sticks. After he walked closer, a spot happened to open up.
Then he saw the small stall in front of him, where rows of objects resembling glow sticks were laid out.
"These have the band members' names on them. Buy one to support the band member you like. Of course, you can also buy them all."
The stall owner introduced them enthusiastically. "Current stock is limited. Two gold per stick, first come, first served!"
Silco noticed that these glow sticks indeed had five different names engraved on them. He also immediately saw the one engraved with "Jinx."
He took two gold coins from his pocket, handed them to the stall owner, then picked up that glow stick and left the stall.
He lit it up. As a blue glow appeared, he saw the name "Jinx" light up along with it.
"Isn't that just a glow stick?" Sevika glanced at it and said disdainfully, "You fell for a Topsider scam too."
"It's just a little money."
Silco smiled faintly and did not mind.
The two continued walking toward Times Square. Jan'ahrem was not hard to investigate. They had learned that this was a phenomenon-level band in Piltover.
After their first performance ended, they became wildly popular throughout Piltover. Their second performance drew countless people to watch. Now, to maintain order at the venue, they had begun using a ticketed model, yet countless people were still willing to pay.
In the short span of one day, more than ten thousand tickets had sold out.
If they had not used a few connections, they probably would not have been able to get even the back-row tickets they had now.
Soon, the two arrived at the entrance to Times Square. There were dedicated staff members checking tickets here, and only after passing inspection could one enter.
No one found this rule inappropriate.
After all, without order, everything would only end up ruined.
Once their tickets were confirmed to be valid, the two were allowed inside.
Times Square had also been divided into different sections: premium section, front section, middle section, and back section. The two of them were seated in the back section.
So they headed toward the back. Although it was the back section, the view was unexpectedly good. Silco could see the stage directly.
At this moment, Times Square was packed with a dense sea of people. One glance showed heads surging everywhere.
The sound of discussion was loud and constant. Even Silco and Sevika rarely saw a scene like this.
"I have to say, the people of Piltover really have too much free time." Sevika folded her arms and stood beside Silco, mocking coldly. "They're actually willing to pay money to watch this kind of meaningless performance, throwing away cash on a bunch of scams."
Silco rather agreed with these words. "The one thing Piltover never lacks is rich fools, so the wealth in their hands often flows back into the market in other ways."
At this moment, neither of them believed this so-called concert would be anything impressive.
But these Pilties happened to love this sort of thing.
Only a little time remained before the performance began, and the sky gradually darkened. Yet the venue was not dim in the slightest.
Buzz.
As a burst of feedback suddenly rang out, the venue fell silent all at once.
Then the curtain on the stage opened, and the five members of the band had already appeared onstage.
The next second, thunderous cheers instantly resounded. The venue seemed to boil over, and the noise made Sevika frown hard.
Meanwhile, Silco's gaze was fixed tightly on Jinx on the stage.
Now he could be one hundred percent certain. It really was her.
Looking at Jinx twirling two drumsticks in her hand with the corners of her mouth raised in a smile, Silco felt she seemed somewhat unfamiliar.
Lately, it seemed there were many things about her that he did not know.
He truly had not expected Jinx to be one of the five people responsible for causing such a phenomenon-level scene in Piltover.
At this moment, Seraphine adjusted the microphone onstage, then smiled and said, "Thank you all for your support. The performance will begin very soon. We hope you enjoy today's songs!"
Amid the passionate cheers, the drumsticks spinning in Jinx's hands suddenly stopped. Then they came down sharply, striking the drums.
Along with her rapid drumming, a rhythmic burst of drumbeats spread outward. The next second, all the instruments rang out together, instantly setting the atmosphere of the venue ablaze.
Even Silco and Sevika felt goosebumps rise across their bodies.
It had to be said, the accompaniment alone was indeed very high quality.
Immediately afterward, as the lead singer opened her mouth, a light and melodious song echoed over Times Square.
Countless glow sticks rose from the crowd, clapping and waving in rhythm with the song.
The scene was rather spectacular to behold.
For a time, Silco and Sevika both felt the noise in their ears vanish, even though the sounds around them had not stopped.
Before they knew it, they had become immersed in the song.
Sevika quickly snapped back to herself. She considered herself someone without a musical bone in her body. She usually did not like listening to flashy songs, and on top of that, she hated Piltover to her core. So at this moment, she merely curled her lip.
"I think it's just okay. Don't you agree?"
She looked toward Silco beside her, only to discover that this guy had actually thrown all dignity aside and was also waving that damned glow stick.
"What are you doing?"
Sevika asked in disbelief.
She felt as if Silco's usual image had cracked a little in that instant.
Silco's movements stiffened. Without saying a word, he lowered his raised hand, then said calmly, "Since we're here, naturally we should blend into the atmosphere."
Sevika snorted coldly. "Aren't you here to observe that blue-haired brat? Why are you blending into the atmosphere?"
"I've been observing the whole time."
Silco replied. He realized the band's songs really were good.
No wonder so many people in Piltover liked them. He had only listened for a short while, yet he had nearly become immersed in it.
At this moment, his gaze landed on the stage, on the figure behind the drum set.
The smile shining on Jinx's face was familiar to him. But in her eyes, there was a brilliance he had never seen before, bright and sparkling, like dazzling stars.
It was a kind of happiness he had never seen her show before.
//Check out my P@tre0n for 30 extra chapters on all my fanfics //[email protected]/Razeil0810