It's grim times in Demacia. The nation is still reeling from the death of King Jarvan III during the Mage Uprising led by Sylas. And the leader of the Dauntless Vanguard, Garen, is still feeling the guilt over his perceived failure to protect him.
But he has no time to wallow. He and the Vanguard are being sent on a mission. A seemingly minor writing change in a dispatch has convinced High Marshall Tianna that something is afoul in the border nation of Nockmirch. So the Vanguard, including up-and-coming Blade Squire Cithria, head for their ally nation. What awaits them there will soon prove trouble is on the horizon...
Contains examples of:
- Angsty Surviving Twin: After Rurik is killed holding the bridge, Saskja spends the remaining pages and final fight in a bloody frenzy.
- Big Fun: Being a Minotaur, Kriel is very large. And he's also one of the most pleasant members of the Vanguard. Always easing Cithria's mind and playing with children at a Nockmirch feast.
- Chekhov's Gunman: Early in the book, the detachment spy a group of Demacian warriors riding Raptors in the distance. Said Raptors prove to be the final component for victory against the invading Noxians.
- Creepy Crows: As the warriors take leave from Nockmirch, the book notes a red eyed raven watching them very closely. Very likely the Noxian Grand General, Swain, watching through its eyes.
- Finishing Each Other's Sentences: The twins, Rurik and Saskja, have a habit of doing this.
- Foreshadowing: Cithria's fascination with the Raptors. Come a few months later in Legends of Runeterra, she's now riding one as Cithria, Lady of Clouds.
◊ - Gameplay and Story Integration: The book does a good job of translating Garen and Quinn's playstyle into literature.
- Garen is displayed as a complete brick wall, shrugging off mountains of punishment and charging into the battle while taking out anyone in his way.
- Quinn conversely is displayed as the burst damage dealer she is, taking out enemies with one well placed shot. And also is just as squishy as she is in game, as one well aimed crossbow bolt nearly does her in.
- Kill and Replace: Garen's great uncle, Hargold, was replaced some time ago by a mysterious mage. Though never named, it's heavily hinted he was replaced by LeBlanc.
- Late-Arrival Spoiler: J3's death in the "Sylas" mini-comic series is mentioned in the first few pages, a pretty big spoiler for anyone who skipped it.
- Pocket Protector: Hess is spared death by Basilisk tail strike thanks to a pouch of pilfered coins in his breastplate. Though it stills shatters every rib he has.
- Properly Paranoid: The entire book kicks off when Tianna spots a barely noticeable grammar change in a Nockmirchian dispatch. Even Garen seems to think she's being paranoid. She turns out to be 100% correct in her suspicions.
- Soldier vs. Warrior: The dynamic between the Noxian army and First Shield in their conflict seems to be this, mirroring the respective approaches of their armies and nations. First Shield fights to protect both Demacia and the border states that it protects, while Noxus and its army seek conquest. First Shield is a structured, elite regiment, while the Noxian army attacks in a far less structured but far more vicious manner.
- Treacherous Advisor: Warden Vigril is this for Lord Eldwyn, using his grief over his wife's death (Which Noxus caused) to drive the broken man into Noxian hands.
