The stadium fills up to its limit. The crowd that piles in is almost three times as large as the mid-day fights. From the projector screen below, I can see that every seat is filled and people are attentively waiting for the night show to begin.
With the dark star-filled sky above, and mana-imbued light sources illuminating the arena below, it's almost impossible to see the invisible protective dome between the actual fight ring and the cheering crowds ready for a blood bath.
Sia stands on the transport platform with her spear in hand and a serious look on her face.
Then, she disappears from the warmup room, and is teleported into the ring.
"Let's hear a warm welcome for our nightly opener! She's been a regular the past few months in the arena, with a standing record of 46 Stage 5 Victories and 3 Stage 6 Wins. The Stone Maiden is here to put on a show for you all tonight, so get your bets ready, and enjoy!"
She waves to the eruption of noise in the stands and takes a lap around the arena as the announcer continues to explain the event rules to anyone new that has joined for tonight's event. Soon after, the stage 1 monster is brought into the ring and bets are placed.
A small white rabbit with a long brown horn on its forehead materializes into the ring and the battle begins, but is over in an instant.
As Sia shows off with an overpowered spear throw, tossing her weapon across the ring while raising the ground beneath the creature all around it so it has nowhere to run or hide. It's defeated and explodes into pieces along with the rock wall display that held it up in an explosion of stone.
Max smirks and walks up to my side with his arms crossed down below in the training rooms as we watch it all happen on the screen.
"She's just getting the crowd excited. No one bets on the first couple of fights because the odds and payouts are nearly nothing. Stage 5 and 6 is where the real money is at... Just wait and see."
He grins and stares up at the screen as the stage is cleared and the next monster is brought in without a moment of wait.
Stages 2, 3, and 4 end in all similar results. Beasts of level 118, 249, and 326 are all brought in and one-shotted in a magnificent display for the crowd to enjoy. This is why Sia didn't bother to warm up, the first 4 fights are more than enough.
I whisper under my breath.
"Now this is where the real fights begin..."
Sia takes the full 5 minutes to rest in between this stage and the next before the announcer speaks up again.
"We have a monster that many of you witnessed take out our best midday fighter today. The Berserker Giant. A level 405 beast with impressive battle IQ and destructive power. Will the Stone Maiden face the same fate? Place your bets and find out!"
I grin as I watch the numbers on my wristband actually show some different odds. All of the previous stages there was not much movement on the bets, but now people are much less sure if she can beat the monster before her.
I'm confident in her ability, and turn my gaze to see every one of the legacy fighters looking down at their wristwatches and placing bets.
Max speaks again as he sees my confusion.
"You can bet on any fight you please, even your own. But you're only allowed to bet on yourself winning, other than that, there are no rules against betting on other fighters."
I raise an eyebrow at this. Apparently, insider betting isn't frowned upon at all...
However, there's always someone deeper in with more information calling the real shots. I won't risk any capital until I'm in control of the fight itself. For now, I'll observe and enjoy the show.
A few minutes pass and the giant humanoid monster with sharp teeth and green eyes carrying a shimmering silver sword is teleported into the ring.
"Bets are now closed, let the battle begin!"
Sia uses similar tactics as her previous matches, but to my surprise, the monster isn't killed in a single shot.
The spear hits and its armor is severely damaged with blood dripping out, but this is the first monster with mana control in the event that I've seen so far. She's able to break through. But just enough to injure the beast.
It breaks out from the rock that creeps up its ankles and jumps toward the spear wielder with battle-crazed eyes and blood-stained armor.
She activates her ranked-up buff and I see two semi-circles of stone materialize out of thin air on both sides of the beast.
A loud thud sends ripples through the air as the stone crushes the life out of the monster. The crowd stands up and goes wild. Sia drops to a knee with a smile, then takes a victory lap to retrieve her spear and let the remains crumble from her rock formation.
As she takes a break, the announcer hypes up the crowd again.
"A rare occasion for the Stone Maiden to take on the 6th stage. You're all in for a treat tonight, will she be able to take on the level 566 Red Ogre, or will this be a one-sided battle?"
My eyes light up and are locked to the screen at this mention.
A new monster at a level higher than anything I've ever seen in dungeons other than a few extremely rare breaks and labyrinth boss fights. Yet, this city just lets people fight them like it's an every day thing.
The crowd starts to yell so loud, I can feel the entrance of the training room rattle, and people start to stand up in their chairs.
The odds on my wristband are against the legacy fighter for the first time in this whole event. Based on what I've seen so far my bet would be against her too, but I can't wait to get in that ring myself.
Minutes pass, and the monster is transported into the ring.
It towers above any creature I've seen in here all night, easily 4 times my own height and carries an enormous black club. Its skin is dark red, and teeth are bright white. The silver chestplate it has on reflects off the mana-imbued light fixtures as it lets out a ferocious roar.
At this, the battle begins.
However, it glows bright gold and zips around the ring with agility far greater than the Stone Maiden attempting to dodge.
She activates her Stone Prison Buff that took out the berserker giant in one hit last round, but the red ogre smashes it to pieces with a single hit from its club.
Sia is hit next, and is teleported out of the ring as her wristband hits 10% HP in a matter of milliseconds.
The crowd roars louder and the excitement in the ring grows even greater while the Black Knights are sent in from seemingly no where to defeat this beast in an instant while the arena is cleaned and the announcer hypes up the next upcoming fighter.
I murmur to myself.
"They sure do know how to open a show..."
My eyes stay glued to the screen, and I tingle with excitement. I can't wait for my turn in the arena to come.
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