The incident with the other cultivator left Zae Zin Nim disturbed for almost a week, even though she refused to admit it. Instead of going with him anywhere she spent all her time cultivating, despite the fact that she seemed to believe that reaching the next stage in the near future was impossible. Since the encounter had troubled her so much, he hadn't pressed.
Kai wasn't going to let her stew in her room the entire time, though, and finally found something that could draw her out: a duel between two of the Diamond Crystalliers.
So far he had met two of them, and he'd been secretly hoping to see one of them in action. Instead, the way it fell out was that the match was between two of the others. He told himself that was actually positive as well, if he wanted to get a strong sense for the Diamond Crystalliers: this would mean he'd seen all but one. Considering they were the strongest people in all of Krysal, that was something worth understanding.
A duel of this importance took place in the Yulthens Stadium and Kai was shocked by the size of the crowds trying to get into the lower seats. They were able to glide directly over to a higher entrance for flying vehicles, then discovered that they got in free as crystalliers.
From a glance down, it looked like everyone was paying at least an Eagle to get inside. Were the workers that rich, or was demand for the fight really that high? Either way, he imagined that whoever ran it was making a lot of money.
"This way." Zae Zin Nim gestured to a staircase and they headed toward one of the boxes. Between his size and her qi, everyone got out of their way, so they ended up seated far faster than he'd expected.
That left them with unexpected time before the match. Ordinarily that would have been positive, but Zae Zin Nim still seemed moody after her encounter. Kai considered a few possible topics of conversation before deciding that it wasn't worth it.
"Care to place a bet, my lord? My lady?" A thin man wearing a sash with the Stadium's emblems appeared nearby, walking along the handrail of the boxes with the confidence of someone with high Physique.
"You're asking us to hand you money?" Kai asked.
"Oh no, my lord, not for crystalliers. If you place a bet, we trust that you will be good for the amount either way."
At first Kai thought that gambling on such an event was foolish, then he immediately reconsidered. He still needed to reach 100,000 Eagles and this was another potential option. It certainly could be easier than fighting so many people for small sums. Then again, he knew that the arena had to profit from the betting, so he shouldn't do it idly.
There was another official in a nearby box, where Kai heard two young men placing bets and arguing about which of the combatants was most attractive. However uninformed his guess was, Kai figured it had to be better than the dumb money. He looked around Yulthens Stadium to try to find the Diamond Crystalliers.
"Are we allowed to examine them first?" he asked.
"If you're capable of it, my lord." The official smiled and handed him a sheet of paper. "But we do have a record of their souls in case that would be useful to you."
According to the paper, it was a narrow contest between a woman named Traelisia of the Earthquake, who was representing Suortril, and one named Vyorrine Nermtrian, who represented one of his rivals. The fight itself was over a matter of trade rights, but Kai set that aside and considered what was said about them. Both allegedly had Power ratings just a little below 400, but with different compositions.
Even though he was looking at the stated numbers, he still scanned the arena for signs. Eventually he found one: an immensely powerful soul just on the other side of a wall. Clearly preparing for a battle, making no effort to hide her power, so he managed to get a clear view.
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<
Name: Traelisia of the Earthquake
Total Power: 390
Earthborn: Twiceshook (243)
Crystal Cultivation: 533 (31)
Physique Level: E-0 (80)
Soul Level: 6 (36)
>
Aside from the universal Physique and Soul Levels, Traelisia's power appeared to come entirely from her Elemental Nations abilities. There was one curious difference: the sheet of paper listed nothing else, but in her soul he saw that she had cultivated a fairly small number of crystals. He wondered if she had abandoned that path, or if she was a new arrival increasing her power with crystal cultivation.
Now that he had located one of them, Kai had to find the other contestant. He searched around on the opposite side, trying to get through the haze of symbols from all the crowd, especially the crystalliers in nearby boxes. It was futile until Zae Zin Nim nudged his arm.
"Over there." She inclined her head to the opposite side of the arena. When he checked more carefully, he felt another powerful soul.
<
Name: Vyorrine Nermtrian
Total Power: 386
Flamecaster Class: 40 (50)
Waterborn: Firstswept (89)
Path of Steel: Steel 2 (40)
Crystal Cultivation: 2551 (72)
Physique Level: E-2 (86)
Soul Level: 7 (49)
>
The result was one of the largest collections of symbols he'd ever seen, outside of his own monstrous soul. It looked as though the woman known as Vyorrine Nermtrian had somehow managed to collect powers from all four Frontier nations, which was an impressive feat. If any of them had been equal to the top fighters he'd seen, she would have been the clear favorite, but each was only of moderate strength.
Well, each individual piece was strong enough to make her a veteran in most cities, but they were moderate on this elite level.
"What are the odds?" Kai asked the official, who was waiting patiently.
"Right here, my lord." The man showed him another paper.
It listed a number of different matches, but the fight between the Diamond Crystalliers was by far the largest portion. Unsurprisingly, given the similar Power ratings it gave them close to even odds but with Traelisia slightly favored. More interested in the art of it than the money, Kai glanced over at Zae Zin Nim, who shrugged.
"Normally I would bet on the higher overall rating, but 4 Power is nothing at this level," she said.
"So you think it's even?" Kai asked.
"Within reason, but I definitely give the advantage to Traelisia. She has one immensely developed skill, almost equal to a Nascent Foundation cultivator. I think that will prove superior to a hodgepodge of different abilities."
"You don't think that flexibility and surprise count for anything?"
"They'll break against the more advanced ability."
"Maybe you're right, but I don't want to believe it." Kai turned back to the official with a smile. "Alright, I'll bet on Vyorrine."
"Wonderful!" The official whipped out a pad and smiled broadly. "How much does my lord want to bet? One thousand? Five thousand?"
Honestly, he'd been planning to bet a few hundred, more for fun than anything. Maybe he was being impetuous, but Kai decided to simply go with his instincts. He put down one thousand Eagles and hoped that he wouldn't regret it.
"And for the lady?"
"Nothing for you." Zae Zin Nim glanced in Kai's direction with a thoughtful look. "But as a personal bet, if you're right, I will help you break through your current stage."
"Aren't you already doing that?" Kai asked.
"Hush, it's the principle of the thing."
Not long after that, he felt the two powerful souls begin to move. Traelisia emerged on the arena floor first, to raucous applause. She was a woman with earth-brown skin and hair that looked dark until it pulsed a faint red. Instead of Elemental Nations robes, she wore the usual wraps from Krysal. Quite a few of them, which suggested that she didn't plan to do much maneuvering.
On her way out, Suortril descended down to meet her, still floating on his crystal chair. It was impossible to hear what he said, and honestly he might just be reminding everyone that he owned a Diamond Crystallier. After a short conversation he glided away, and as if on cue the door on the other side of the arena opened.
Vyorrine stalked out and Kai shifted forward in surprise. Despite her name she didn't look very Goralian, more like a mix of Irunian and Krysali. Whatever her origin, she wore a black tunic that showed off heavily scarred arms. Her belt was absolutely loaded with different items, from a sword to a crystal to strange crimson rods.
Her own sponsor moved to speak to her - just walking - and then retreated. That left the two Diamond Crystalliers in the arena and the crowds, which had been irrepressible before that point, finally quieted.
For a long time the two stood in complete silence, watching one another. Maybe they were exchanging unspoken promises, maybe they were just letting the tension stretch. On some unspoken signal they both leapt forward and the battle began.