The ethereal voice sounded beside his ear. Logan looked toward the shrine and saw a green light appear, gathering into a glowing orb. Then the green orb shifted and took shape as a little green bird—only about the size of Jinx's hand.
The bird's body was extremely thin, and the cyan-green glow around it flickered in and out. It flapped its wings twice, as if trying to fly up, but it couldn't manage it.
Logan stepped forward and raised both hands, cupping them and holding them out in front of the shrine.
The little green bird straightened up. It looked at Logan, then at Logan's hands, and then, with visible effort, hopped into Logan's palm.
Cradling the bird, Logan lowered his head to look at it and said, "I didn't think our first meeting would look like this."
"First?" The bird looked at Logan. That ethereal voice sounded again—gentle, holy, with a faint hint of a smile. "No, Logan. This isn't our first meeting."
"When you were born, we already met," it said.
It dipped its head and lightly pecked at its feathers, then continued, "I know every Zaunite."
"Then why… have you never shown yourself?" Logan hesitated, then asked.
It wasn't just what Logan wanted to ask. It was probably what every Zaunite—especially those who believed in Janna—wanted to know most.
Why… didn't you appear?
When we needed you the most.
"Because I was sleeping," Janna said. "But even while I slept, I was watching you."
The little green bird shifted, curling into a small bundle in Logan's palm, and said softly, "My faith power wasn't enough to keep me awake for long, so I spent most of the year in deep slumber.
"Sometimes I would wake up, then watch over you from places you couldn't see, helping you. I wanted to tell you that I was right beside you… but I couldn't. Because when you needed me, I couldn't appear whenever you called."
"But today is different. Today, I received a great deal of faith power."
"But you look really weak right now," Logan said.
The form Janna had taken truly looked fragile, as if this tiny green bird might scatter into light in the very next second.
Even the way Logan held her was careful, as though he was afraid of breaking her.
"Because that wind used up all the faith power I had," Janna said with a smile in her voice, gentle and warm.
"…" Logan fell silent.
Thinking back to that moment, Logan's thought had been simple: If only every Zaunite could see the sun like this. Had that voice inside his heart reached Janna's ears?
It sounded a little self-absorbed, but Logan really couldn't help thinking that way.
And Janna could see what Logan was thinking. Having lost followers and lacking faith power, Janna was still a god, no matter what.
Naturally, she could sense what her "follower" was thinking.
Amused, Janna said to Logan, "Don't blame yourself, Logan."
"This was something I chose to do. I'm glad you were born. I'm glad you stayed in Zaun. I'm glad you're still willing to trust me… even though, Logan, your faith is a little… mixed."
"?" Logan froze.
Mixed faith?
How could that be?!
To be honest, Logan really did believe in Janna. Between the original body's memories and Logan's own 'bigger picture' understanding, he knew Janna existed in Zaun, knew her stories, and knew what kind of god she was—otherwise how could he possibly believe in her?
But Janna said his faith was mixed?
Wasn't she blatantly accusing him?!
"Am I wrong?" The little green bird shifted its wings and spoke. "But on you, there really is the scent of two powerful beings. One smells very pleasant, and one… not so pleasant. I'm not saying it's evil, but that scent isn't pleasant, Logan."
Hearing that, Logan reacted—and immediately understood who those two powerful beings were.
"You can sense that?" Logan swallowed and asked.
"Even if I'm very weak right now, Logan… I'm still a god," Janna said.
Logan's mouth twitched.
Goddamn it… Thresh. I'm already so far away from you!
There was too much to do in Zaun. The energy meter in Logan's Spirit Blossom space had actually been full for a long time, but he still hadn't gone back in—no, it had been so long already. How was that bastard Thresh still keeping tabs on him?
Like a curse that wouldn't go away—seriously?!
Believing in Ahri? No problem. Logan was more than willing.
Believing in Thresh? What a joke. Was Logan insane?
"Anyway, Logan, don't feel guilty about my condition. If it weren't for you, I think it would've been difficult for me to wake at all. And besides… I'm truly happy you've been able to stand back up again. This is really good."
"Logan, you've done wonderfully. Under your lead, Zaun is getting better."
If Janna were also one of the spirits within the Spirit Blossom realm, then Logan guessed her displayed favorability wouldn't be low. After all, the words "Zaunite" alone were enough for Janna to feel goodwill toward him. And Janna's compassion was almost excessive—she didn't only help Zaunites who believed in her. She helped anyone who endured quietly and carried kindness in their heart.
After all, even in Bilgewater, there were followers of Janna. People who lived by the sea, more or less, had all received her help before.
"Thank you for the praise. Then, Janna… what are you going to do next?" Logan asked the important question.
"Actually, I don't know," Janna said. The little green bird shook its small head in Logan's hand, looking oddly cute—but it was far too thin, thin enough that it was only about as thick as two of Logan's fingers.
"But I think… I'll stay by your side. I'll accompany you and watch Zaun get better day by day."
"And I need your help, Logan."
"Go on."
"I need faith power. For you right now, that shouldn't be too difficult."
"I understand. Leave it to me. But Janna… there's something else I want to ask you."
Logan gently lifted the bird until they were eye level and said seriously, "Zaun and Piltover—who will you choose?"
"I won't choose, Logan."
Janna seemed to have expected the question. The little green bird rose with elegant poise, its small, round eyes meeting Logan's as that ethereal voice sounded again. "I have only ever helped the weak and lowly—the side that is oppressed and forced to endure."
Logan fell silent. He understood what Janna meant.
"But I can turn a blind eye," Janna added when Logan didn't know what to say.
A very human expression appeared on the bird's face, like she was smiling. She really was smiling—there was laughter in her voice, too.
"Zaun has been bullied for far too long. You have resentment. You need to vent it. I'll understand, Logan. I'm not some lofty god looking down from above. I told you—I've always been beside you."
"I remember I once helped a Zaunite. He was bullied relentlessly and thrown out of Piltover, so I helped him take revenge~ I helped him prank those self-important people."
"So you can do what you want to do."
"You're not worried my revenge will be… extreme?" Logan thought for a moment and asked.
Janna shook her head and said with a smile, "I'm not worried. After all, you care about how I would feel about something like that, which means you're a kind person."
"Alright. I really wasn't planning to do that, but I also don't plan to forgive what Piltover has done," Logan said frankly.
"But right now, what I should be thinking about isn't those Pilties. What I should be thinking about is… how to reintroduce you to Zaun."
Logan set the little green bird onto his shoulder, then walked out of the tiny room.
Looking out at the rare, bright Zaun—overlooking the Sump—Logan thought about how to introduce Janna to the people around him.
Mm… show up with a little green bird on his shoulder, then tell Jinx and Silco, Hey, I found our god. Look—Janna!
Jinx would probably be thrilled and start playing pretend with him on the spot.
Grab a bug and declare it the stinky little world-ending insect, or something.
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