TOOCM 95

Chapter 95

10. The Arena

The day the fighting arena opened.

Reina was once again awed by the sheer scale of the stadium.

The moment they entered, the space expanded magically into a tower-like structure, each floor glittering with lavish lighting.

It was designed so that the massive circular arena could be viewed from private boxes.

‘They cast magic over the entire arena.’

Maintaining a venue this size must cost an astronomical amount every match.

This place, steeped in extreme extravagance, was clearly an entertainment den for nobles drowning in money.

After checking the invitation, a staff member handed them masks.

“Please proceed to Room A-32. All other facilities and amusements are in sections B through E. Refer to the manual in your room for instructions. Masks must be worn at all times outside your designated room. They must be returned upon exit. Enjoy your time.”

The pure-white masks had only eye holes, making identities impossible to discern.

Magic runes inside made breathing easy and even altered voices.

For something that was merely watching fights, the security rivaled the imperial palace.

Kaiden fiddled with his mask and muttered,

“A perfect place to hide identities and make shady deals. They even provide masks.”

Reina thought the same.

There was a reason Michael had chosen the arena as their meeting place.

Nowhere else in Lunin offered this level of security.

‘This isn’t just a fighting arena.’

The fights were merely a smokescreen for what truly happened here.

A fortress built by nobles where those who could never meet officially could meet unofficially.

The room they were led to was a Lavender member-exclusive suite.

As a space used by paying regular members, it was on a completely different level from guest rooms.

While Reina and Kaiden were reading the manual, Alisa approached.

“That’ll take forever to read. Want help? I’ll give you the essentials.”

Alisa briefly explained the arena’s rules:

1. Masks must be worn outside private rooms. (Mask color varies by rank; mileage raises rank.)

2. Address each other only by nicknames.

3. To accumulate mileage, sponsor fighters. Mileage is earned each time a sponsored fighter wins.

“The white masks you received are for guests.”

Alisa explained that mask colors progressed from white → blue → red → black → gold depending on accumulated mileage.

Higher ranks unlocked more facilities.

Since mileage only accumulated when sponsored fighters won, throwing money blindly didn’t guarantee advancement.

“If there’s anywhere you want to go, just ask me. Higher ranks can invite lower ranks to use their facilities.”

Alisa’s mask was red. She then recommended fighters with recent high win rates.

Among them was the one Arteon had mentioned.

“I’d like to sponsor this one.”

“Oh, not a bad choice. He has a high win rate lately. Have you decided on a nickname? For reference, I’m Lemon.”

Alisa shook her golden hair and grinned.

Using personal traits made one memorable, she said.

“Hmm.”

While Reina pondered a nickname, Kaiden spoke up.

“Snow.”

“Pardon?”

“It suits the snow… Is it too lame?”

Worried he’d been too impulsive, he hesitated, but Reina smiled brightly.

“No, I like it.”

Seeing her genuinely pleased, Kaiden sheepishly touched his lips.

Even Alisa looked envious at the obvious newlywed affection.

“Then Snow, pick a partner nickname for him too. Lots of couples do that.”

Reina stared at Kaiden.

Jet-black hair like the night sky, brilliant violet eyes.

Suddenly thinking of crows that loved shiny things, she opened her mouth.

“How about Crow for you?”

“Matching the ending sound?”

“Exactly.”

Snow, Crow.

It rolled nicely on the tongue and felt quite romantic, especially with the matching endings.

“I like it.”

After grasping all the rules and finishing their sponsorships,

Isabel and Eric finally arrived late to the room.

Eric spotted Kaiden and greeted him warmly.

“Kaiden? What brings you here?”

Despite the enthusiastic tone, Kaiden’s response was unexpected.

“Who are you?”

“It’s me, Eric Vincent. We were academy classmates—don’t you remember?”

Eric tried to hide his embarrassment as he introduced himself, but Kaiden remained unfazed.

“Don’t know you.”

When Kaiden even made a genuinely disinterested face, Eric’s expression stiffened.

“…You really don’t remember me?”

“Do I need to?”

Kaiden tilted his head and delivered the final blow.

For Eric, the future Marquis Vincent, this was mortifying.

Of course, Kaiden, guardian of the North and head of Crensia, had no obligation to remember him.

“You haven’t changed.”

Eric looked disgusted and shifted his gaze away.

As the mood turned icy, Isabel stepped in.

“Sir Eric has become so handsome that His Grace momentarily forgot.”

“Hahaha, is that so? Well, I have changed a lot lately thanks to Her Highness.”

Eric quickly latched onto Isabel’s words and avoided total humiliation.

“Then enjoy yourselves.”

Isabel swiftly dragged Eric away.

Anyone else would have exploded, but since it was Kaiden, she chose to retreat gracefully.

It ended more tamely than expected.

Reina watched them quietly when the announcement signaled the start of the matches.

As attention naturally turned to the arena, Reina and Kaiden slipped out of the room.

Their destination was the poker lounge. Arteon, already seated, welcomed them.

They wore matching red rose brooches to recognize each other.

Seated at the same table, the three continued their conversation naturally.

Arteon asked,

“Unless something unexpected happens, ‘Black’ will win. May I ask why you told me to spread the sponsorships? The amounts were oddly specific too.”

‘Black’ was the fighter presumed to resemble Jeffrey.

A masked fighter with an excellent win rate at the arena.

The whole reason they came was to make contact and confirm his face.

He hadn’t lost recently, so Arteon’s confusion was understandable.

Reina whispered,

“Because the real owner here is the Lone Spider. We can’t let them know we’re interested in Black. Randomly sponsoring high-win-rate fighters is safer.”

The Lone Spider was the symbolic term for the Julid family.

Arteon’s eyes widened at the unexpected information.

“How did you know that?”

Even he hadn’t uncovered it, so his surprise was doubled.

Reina used her prepared answer to cover her ability.

“Crensia’s intelligence network.”

In truth, before coming, she had used Ritsi’s power to glimpse the future.

She would have been cautious before, but thanks to the gem Isadal gave her, she could now roughly gauge the life force required for prophecies.

“So you even knew in advance how much each person would sponsor? That level of intelligence?”

“Got a problem with that?”

When Kaiden cut in, Arteon shrugged.

“Honestly, I didn’t expect it to be that good. Maybe that’s why you could stand proud even before the Sun.”

The Sun was the code name for the Emperor among the Mernie imperial family.