"No good!"
As the fight dragged on, the trolls' resistance to True Ice weapons began to show.
And among the Iceborn who had entered the battlefield, Sejuani and Ashe were not the type who could withstand direct attacks.
"Fall back!"
Caleb's decision was fast enough. At the very least, the trolls had now suffered serious losses.
In order to recover, they would not travel so far just to harass the hearthbound who had moved away.
The coarse grain the village could not take with them should be enough to fill the trolls' stomachs.
"Tryndamere, you fall back too!"
The wounds left on Tryndamere by Aatrox's death-dealing sword energy were already healing more slowly.
"I can't retreat. I have to kill him! I have to avenge my people!"
"Clearly, you can't do that right now!"
Caleb moved forward and used Arcane Shift to dodge a club aimed at the back of his head.
Serylda's Grudge finally truly struck, leaving a deep wound over that troll's heart.
"Go! Otherwise, Ashe will have to find herself another oathfather!"
"There will be another chance!"
Youmuu's Ghostblade whipped up a gale in Caleb's hand and knocked Aatrox back for a brief moment.
Using that opportunity, Tryndamere, the red fury in his eyes gradually fading, spun his body and rushed toward the cave entrance.
At his current level, he could not defeat Aatrox, not even while working together with the king of the trolls.
Even though Trundle had weakened Aatrox's surface defenses, Tryndamere's strength was still not enough to kill him.
"Go. Ashe is waiting for you outside!"
Caleb patted his broad shoulder, then beckoned Yuumi over.
"All of you retreat. I'll handle this side."
With his connection to Yaanogel, Caleb felt somewhat confident about convincing Aatrox.
Even the full name, along with Shadow Step and all of Rhaast's moves, could let Caleb spin a story about his relationship with the Darkin.
As long as he told Aatrox that Shurima still existed, Caleb believed that these great but lost god-warriors could still listen to reason.
"Watch yourself."
Knowing that Caleb's combat ability was powerful and that he had Yuumi's protection, Kai'Sa understood that Caleb was not in too much danger.
If things truly went wrong, once the Book of Thresholds' Final Chapter restrained these trolls, Caleb could escape with Arcane Shift and Shadow Step.
Caleb's figure flickered, and Serylda's Grudge moved through the crowd of trolls according to his will.
"Everyone, fall back!"
Seeing that Caleb had no intention of retreating, Olaf and Udyr were a few steps slower, but they still withdrew.
If they truly continued fighting to the death, they might be able to wipe out the trolls, but a few people in the group might never make it out.
Bristle was still recovering from his wounds. As the offspring of that tusklord, he naturally possessed the ability to heal wounds through rage.
"He won't have any problems, will he?"
Seeing that Caleb was the only one left inside the cave, even though his way of fighting was extremely impressive and he had the help of a yordle cat, there was still a gigantic existence inside.
"I'm not sure, but he dealt with someone similar in Shurima before."
Kai'Sa thought for a moment. Considering Tryndamere's attitude toward that figure, she still modified her wording slightly.
"He can actually deal with something like that? Does he have some hidden trick?"
Tryndamere was also extremely shocked. He had slashed at that enemy again and again just now, yet he had not been able to truly wound him.
"I'm not sure about that."
Kai'Sa shook her head. Back in Shurima, she had not clearly seen Yaanogel's methods.
What Kai'Sa did not know was that Aatrox, who was now inside the cave, was the first among the Darkin to break free from his weapon.
As for Yaanogel's violent attacks, in terms of raw power, they could injure Aatrox.
However, even if they could wound him, Caleb's body probably would not be able to endure that kind of abuse.
What Caleb did not know was that during the Darkin War, the flesh-and-blood body Yaanogel had constructed himself had not been able to withstand his own style of attack either.
That was why he had been sealed into a weapon fairly early, because his body had already begun to fall apart.
Even so, Yaanogel's offensive power had still been pushed to the limit. While possessing Caleb, he had rapidly defeated Xerath alongside Azir.
"Trolls, retreat!"
Several trolls obeyed Trundle's command and used their flesh-and-blood bodies to hold back the figure who had folded away his enormous wings.
Aatrox turned, intending to pursue the man who had slipped around him.
"You can't catch the Troll King!"
Trundle seemed to love calling himself the Troll King all the time. Perhaps it was because he usually met too few rational creatures.
The trolls' screams rose one after another. They had already lost more than half of their forces.
A pillar radiating cold air burst from the ground, causing Aatrox, who had used Umbral Dash, to freeze in place for a brief moment.
"Haha, idiot! The Troll King will remember you!"
Trundle was like a mouse that had escaped from a cat's claws, celebrating his survival after a disaster.
"You won't remember for long."
A cold, sharp voice made Trundle freeze.
Then an identical Pillar of Ice rose in front of him.
"What?"
Among trolls, Trundle's brain practically counted as genius.
Yet when he saw a move identical to his own, he still froze for a moment.
And in that brief moment of hesitation, that long arrow screamed through the air and pierced his body hard.
With a crisp sound, the Troll King was nailed to the ice pillar he had raised himself.
Until Aatrox's death-dealing sword energy pierced his heart, Trundle's eyes still held an expression of disbelief.
"Weren't we… working together?"
Trundle even wanted to curse the man in front of him. Could he not see that the guy holding the greatsword was the biggest opponent here?
Why? Why had this happened so suddenly?
Until the last second of his life slipped away, he was still thinking about that question.
"Can we have a proper talk now?"
Around them, the trolls were almost entirely dead or wounded, and the metallic smell of blood spread through the whole cave.
"I noticed you from the moment you came in."
Aatrox spread his wings. At that moment, the trolls' flesh and blood were surging into his body.
"Your body bears traces of having been strengthened by blood magic, and blood magic unique to the Darkin at that!"
Aatrox's voice sounded very calm, which instead made him seem terrifying beyond measure.
Who could have imagined that it was the great mage Ryze who had nearly brought a village to ruin?
And that it was a notorious butcher whose actions had saved that same village?
"Until I finish strengthening my body, you may speak without fear."
This was Aatrox's mercy toward Caleb, and also his warning.
But Caleb's next words made the entire cave tremble.
"Shurima has risen again. The Sun Disc stands in the sky once more."
"Azir has returned as an Ascended, and Nasus and Renekton have been protecting that nation all along."
"Yaanogel, who was once your comrade, is now serving Shurima."
"The Void has also awakened again. The world needs you, Aatrox."
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