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I'm just throwing it out there for people who haven't kept up with Arcane related League updates on the lore. The Black Rose has been trying for decades to recreate rune magic like Ryze, where runes carved onto the body can enhance the strength of even non-mage soldiers.

We already saw someone actually do something similar in Arcane, Viktor. What made Viktor a success (and not be disintegrated by the hexcore) was shimmer.

While Caitlyn tried to destroy all the remaining reserves of shimmer in Zaun, we know a bigger player has already had their eye on it. In fact, we can even guess which group has already reverse engineered their own version. The Black Rose. But how can we be sure that the Black Rose is responsible for the new version of shimmer we saw, or if the ones who made it were even Noxian?

"The underworld is the empire's unseen army, advancing where banners cannot."

There's actually an explanation for that! During Welcome to Noxus, we learned that Noxus' criminal underbelly moves in tandem with empire's agenda. Who has for centuries controlled the empire's agenda? The Black Rose.

And the only person we saw who actually had access to this special new shimmer was Lest, who is most likely Noxian in origin. But how can we be sure Lest is Noxian?

We can because Lest's people were well featured in the Welcome to Noxus' illustrations, not as decoration, but as part of the subject of what makes Noxus Noxus, from the cunning merchants to the ambitious reckoners.

"In Noxus, the market is more than commerce—it's a playground for the cunning."

"The Reckoner stands as a symbol of what the empire holds dear—unrelenting ambition."

Cat Vastaya aren't unique to Noxus, but compared to the ones we see in other regions, this group explicitly resembles Lest in appearance, and they are a part of Noxian history and culture.

So we can assume Lest is Noxian, but that doesn't confirm she's a member of the Black Rose. I argue that there are several clues both in show and out of it that hint at her association with the Black Rose.

First, lets point out all the funny coincidences that happen in the show with Lest. She's the last person to see two councilors alive before they go missing from the general public and are horrifically altered, and in Salo's case, brutally killed.

Speaking of Salo, it's because of him we know that Lest went to see Viktor. We don't know for what purpose Lest went there, but we do know she saw him "heal" others, and sent Salo to him. People like Jinx easily saw the something was strange with the commune and I doubt her assumption was unique, so lets put a pin in that for now.

The first time Lest is properly introduced in a speaking role, is back stage of theater production related to the Lightshield royal family of Demacia. Before the scene starts we see hands with dark painted nails gift the crown to the royal family. (Notice how LeBlanc, Amara, and Lest all have sharp dark nails).

It was a scene that was initially assumed to be a fun easter egg for Demacia, but has later been proven to be foreshadowing for not just LeBlanc's next scheme in Demacia, but also hints at her previous manipulations of Demacia's royal family. So the Lest's first real scene starts with a reference to the Black Rose's next scheme.

Lest was later included as a part of Mel's card set in Legends of Runerterra as a follower card along with Elora.

For Elora's card, her flavor text read:

"Exploit their ignorance. True deception can fool even the sharpest minds." – unnamed Black Rose mage

While Lest's flavor text read:

“I’ve done what the Council requested, but… why are they planning to investigate one of their own? I must wait… surely the Medardas will see through this ruse.” – unnamed Piltovan

Notice how these two cards who are meant to represent Mel's allies have text that represent two very different perspectives. Elora's card has the perspective Black Rose agent targeting them, while an involved citizen is pointing out there's a greater deception around them at work in Lest's card.

Then of course, there's the fact that members of the Black Rose all have some kind of rose theme in included in their outfit. Rose shaped updos (LeBlanc and Mel), buns (Amara and Rudo), rose included in clothing design (Vladmir's lapels, Mel's bodysuit, the masquerade masks), fabric that folds like a rose (LeBlanc), or just wearing dark purple/black for the black rose (Amara and Lest).

Also, hasn't anyone else noticed that Lest's silhouette combined with her stole is shaped like a rose?

Finally, Lest is magic. Lest literally disappeared out of thin air when Mel turned her head for a second. She's a mage, and she's probably a an agent of the Black Rose.

In conclusion, Lest was probably a double agent in association with the Black Rose. The last thing she gave Mel, was the last thing Mel held before she was kidnapped, shimmer. The Black Rose are probably the party Finn was referring to in s1, and they want to use shimmer as a new medium to create rune soldiers/warriors/mages and all that. (They're probably testing it on convenient users). *Take out pin* She probably went to Viktor's commune to update the Black Rose on what was going on with the new mage in town and Viktor's threat level in general. Lest sent Salo to Viktor after he told her Mel probably wasn't coming back (she was probably wanted Mel to survive the recruitment process), and his growing dependence made her feel unsafe. Sending Salo to Viktor was as good as killing him.

Piltover security is garbage, it's crawling with spies.

#arcane #arcane meta #lest arcane #mel medarda #welcome to noxus #viktor arcane #ryze league of legends #ryze #leblanc league of legends #emilia leblanc #amara arcane #ambessa chosen of the wolf #noxus league of legends #am i trying to make the black rose arc more interesting than it was... maybe #that arc was so rushed #anyway this is a bit rushed and the evidence is a bit circumstantial but i think it's worth thinking about

I've just finished reading Ruination (a League of Legends novel by Anthony Reynolds), and I LOVED it. The story, the lore, the characters, I think everything is so captivating. I have a physical copy of the book and the art in it is amazing, both the covers and the illustrations (I just love LOL artstyle so much).

I'm just so mad with the creators. They've come up with such an impressive lore for a videogame that barely mentions it. I just wish they'd do more with it. Like more novels, or even series. I got obsessed with Arcane, and while I was reading Ruination I was imagining it as an animated series. I think it would fit so much!

So, if you're passionate about the lore, and if you liked Arcane, read Ruination, you'll love it.

I can't wait to read the Ambessa: Chosen of the wolf novel, and I'm also considering buying the Realms of Runeterra guide. I'm just so curious about this world and everything that comes with it, I want to know more!