บท 94: Fists and Roses, Part Seven
That conversation with Seth sparked a small fire in Rin's heart. That Asahiro stubbornness made itself known in Rin's annoyed pout.
[So, he thinks I can't fight?] She scoffed, as Xhez looked at her from the side. [What the hell gives him the right to say that?]
"Um, Rin?" Xhez touched her left elbow and Rin blinked, focusing on the sprite.
"Yeah?"
"What is this place? Have you found out already?" Xhez asked, curious. "When the door opened, all I could smell was that strange human sweat of yours."
"It's a place where people fight for money," Rin said. "I just felt like checking it out a little. Seeing what it's all about. Doesn't look like they're open right now, though."
"Oh. So, what will we do?" Xhez asked.
"Let's just wait it out. Hopefully, they'll start things off soon."
They didn't.
The two of them sat there for three hours. At a point, Rin was sprawled out on the ground, looking up at the sky and hoping the door would open soon, as Xhez just watched everything around them with a patient smile on her face.
In the middle of it all, the adventurer's mind drifted to where she was thinking about some of the other matters that had been concerning her recently. Specifically, she wondered if she should tell Xhez about what she'd heard, or if maybe, it would be better to investigate further before relaying the information to her.
[Nah, I may as well get it out of the way before we go in,] she thought. [There's no one around here right now anyway. It should be fine to talk about this.]
"Xhez," she opened, and the sprite looked down at her.
"Yes?"
"I asked around a little," Rin stated, from below, before sitting up and shifting closer to her. Crossing her legs, Rin continued. "About your 'situation', remember? What happened at the lake?"
Hearing that, Xhez's eyes widened a little and she nodded, leaning a little closer.
"What did you learn?"
"I heard that, about a thousand years ago, there was this... I don't know, sickness? Condition? Something, that would turn fairies into monsters. Apparently, the same thing happened with beastborn, like Varyn, the guy with the wolf ears. Considering the similarities," Rin shrugged, "I think it's a safe guess that the same thing happened to that girl we saw."
"... Goodness," Xhez mumbled, looking away. "Something that can turn ordinary beings into monsters... I never heard about anything like this. I-I suppose it is good to know now, however."
"Hm, well, even if we know that's what happened, we still don't really get why, or how it can be countered. How you got rid of it so quickly, either," Rin replied. "Maybe we can ask around a little more, though."
As soon as she said that, the door next to her opened.
Rin turned to look and found that this time, the door wasn't being closed.
A couple of people immediately arrived at the building and headed in, as another man walked out and stood by the side of it. The same guy who'd been controlling the line the last time.
"I think they're open," Rin told Xhez. "Let's go."
The two of them stood up then, as the guy turned and raised a brow at both girls. Rin walked up, ahead of Xhez.
"Hey," she greeted the guy, raising a hand. "Can we go in?"
"Sure, but there aren't any fights on just yet," the man replied. "The first one starts at 4."
"What time is it right now?" Rin asked.
"2."
"Oh, okay," she nodded. "Um... Can I still go in, though?"
"Sure, just saying, there's nothing to do."
"Uh, I don't mind."
"In that case, that'll be fifty silvers each of you, if you're planning on standing in the crowd. For the seats, that'll be two gold coins each."
[I'll pass on that,] Rin thought as she reached into her pockets and pulled out one gold coin. The man took it and stepped aside.
With that exchange done, both women walked into the building, finally. Unlike before, now, everything was empty, which thankfully, though, allowed Rin to see more of it. There were a couple of broken chairs tossed aside at the corner to the left, some empty bottles of water littered throughout the space, and a few trash bins.
The stage, or "canvas", as Seth had called it, was empty. The blood that Rin had seen previously had been cleaned up, and the chairs to the left were all empty. Finally, there were two doors, one to Rin's right, and another straight ahead.
From those doors, Rin could hear people talking, along with various smacks and thuds ringing out.
[What's happening over there?] Rin asked herself, as Xhez tugged on her sleeve.
"This smell is almost nauseating," Xhez told her, as she looked around.
"Really? It doesn't bother me that much," Rin shrugged.
"The air is a little suffocating in here," the sprite continued. "Is the fighting you mentioned going to begin soon?"
"Not just yet. But..." She paused, as she heard more of those thuds and smacks. "Something else might be happening."
The curiosity she was feeling tempted her to go and investigate, but she wasn't too sure what would await her at the other side of those halls. It concerned her, of course, because she didn't want to put Xhez in danger.
Still, she really wanted to know what was over there. So, she turned toward the sprite.
"I need to check something out. Can you stay here for a second?"
"I... I would rather not be in such a place," she said, looking around. "Do I have to?"
"..." That made Rin pause.
[Ah... if she really dislikes it so much, then, yeah, I can't just leave her here.]
"Alright, come on," Rin said, and Xhez smiled a little.
"Thank you."
As that was settled, the two of them moved forward, heading through the opening at the front. As soon as they did, Rin's brows shot up.
[Oh, wow,] she thought, as she looked around. [Is this a training room?]
Ahead, there was another canvas, just like the one behind both girls. In this room were many men with bulky and strong physiques, and only one woman who had short grey hair and was sitting behind a counter to the right. Some guys were laughing with each other as they spoke in the distance, their eyes briefly moving onto Rin and Xhez with visible confusion.
On that canvas, up ahead, Seth was fighting someone. Both of them were wearing some strange padded gear, as Seth tried his hardest to knock the guy out, from what she could see.
[What's happening in here?]
One of those guys who had been talking before walked up to her then. He had a smug look on his face, a bald head, and a thick beard, with one long scar running over his hairy, bare chest, as he wasn't wearing a shirt.
"Good afternoon, ladies. Are you lost?"
"No," Rin quickly replied, smiling politely. "Uh, actually, I had some questions I wanted to ask about."
"..." The guy paused, as did Rin.
[Uh...] She thought, as he only smirked at her, looking her up and down. [Did I say something weird?]
"Sure," he said, and Rin could tell he was trying his hardest not to laugh. "What questions do you have?"
"I-"
"Do you wanna know where the nearest spa is?" He asked, then, before she could finish. "Do you want to find a stylist or something? I mean, what is it? I think whatever directions you got that led you here were mistaken, dollface."
[... Oh,] she thought, as her smile faded. [He's an asshole.]
"I-"
Again, she was cut off. However, not by this guy in front of her. But, by another man, who walked in from the right.
"Knock it off, Evan," he said. Unlike the man in front of her, this one was wearing a fairly casual outfit, sporting a white shirt, running shoes, and some shorts. He had smooth black hair and a beard just as thick as the other guy's own. "Nothing wrong with wanting to learn more about the business."
"Oh? You're gonna entertain here, Trodon?" Evan asked, amused. "Eh, and here I was thinking I'd found a bit of fun for a few minutes. Fine."
He walked away, then, as Trodon approached.
"Pay no mind to him, he's just a jackass like any other. What can I do for ya?"
As Rin heard this man's far more respectable attitude, she smiled a little.
"So, I was wondering how much money people made here," she asked. "I just came here the other day and I'd never seen anything like it. I was curious."
"Ah, well, the fighters-" he stopped talking as the thuds emerging from the punches being thrown ahead rang out loudly. "Come with me, things are a bit noisy here."
"Alright," Rin shrugged, as she followed behind him.
She noticed Seth sneaking a suspicious glance at her, but she ignored him."
They went into a small office of sorts. Here, Trodon sat down and put his hands together.
"The money, right? That's what you wanted to know about?"
"Yeah," she nodded.
"Hm. Well, there isn't too much to say," he shrugged. "People regularly make around, ehm, maybe fifty silvers per win. The more popular fighters make more, of course, and the bigger matches, but those are rare. Typically, though, as long as you win consistently, you can put food on your plate. Why did you want to know?"
[... Well, it doesn't hurt to ask, right?]
"I was wondering if maybe I could get into this." She asked. "I-I have experience fighting. I'm a classmate of Seth's, actually. I'm training at the academy. I was just curious if maybe I could do this on the side, is all."
His expression changed when she heard her mention Seth and the academy. Suddenly, he looked a tad more invested.
"You're an adventurer?" He asked. "Then... Maybe."
And, as she heard that, Rin beamed.
[Eat your heart out, Seth.]
"But, you'll still get your ass kicked," he shrugged.
And just like that, her grin faded.
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