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It took her a little over a week to travel from Adalheid to the Heavens Arena, mostly because she used some of her deserved "vacation time".
After separating from Illumi and Yvan, she got her phone back and contacted Zeno to update him about her current situation. He didn't seem as surprised as an unknowing man should have been--but then again, when was Zeno unknowing?
He told her that he expected some kind of development in her nen, sooner or later. The nature of her ability itself appeared to be bending ever so slightly, which naturally brought new situations at hand.
Sure enough, she'd have to go back sometime to actually test it out with her mentor, but both of them already had a vague idea about what the change could be, apparently.
At any rate, Eirene got her pass to get some time for herself, to destress and focus more about her most recent development. Meditation had always been a good method to grow aware of the changes in one's spirit and body.
But first, she decided to go on a little shopping spree, both for herself and the Zoldycks.
The shops around the area had a good reputation for the quality of their products. Jewelry, clothes, food--except, she wouldn't really send food of unknown origins to a family of assassins, even if they would definitely survive whatever poison got thrown in their way--and various kinds of accessories for hair and so on.
Her eyes had scanned each and every window that held something that might interest the members of the assassin family before deciding on what to buy. It might have been a quirky whim, but she felt like doing something like that anyway.
Once she was satisfied, she sent the packages on their way to Kukuroo Mountain.
To be honest, she felt oddly light, despite everything.
Maybe it was the fact that she managed to close that door on her past with her own hands, maybe it was the knowledge she (probably) no longer needed someone else to keep her bloodlust in check. She hoped, at least.
Maybe it's the awareness of being completely in control, from now on.
She spent her traveling hours meditating in her assigned room, carving her way down her own consciousness with claws and teeth.
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The waiting line at the entrance of the arena was something she was never happy to see.
With the ever growing number of applicants, the Heavens Arena would become a more and more popular place for fighters and people in search for a way to make money alike. It was no surprise people gambled and placed bets on each round, even outside the "legal" ways.
The woman bypassed the line, walking straight up to the reception reserved for the fighters already signed up to the arena. The place was considerably less crowded than the other.
«Good morning, Miss. How may I help you?» the clerk girl asked politely when she was close enough to hear.
«Key number 2266, if you would. I want to take a shower before signing up for a match.»
«Ah, sure! Let me just check--Oh!» The girl paused, eyes going wider as she read the name assigned to the room. She shot up from her seat and scrambled for the room key archive.
It wasn't unusual that fighters left the tower for long periods of time, even if never over the time limit between the mandatory matches.
Eirene herself, despite being an habitual fighter, often left her room keys to the clerks. It actually happened more often than not, since she mostly stayed at the arena for a few days just to have her match and renew her rights on her personal room for three more months.
The rattling sound of the wheeled stool caught the blonde's attention again. The girl was back with her key and an odd blush on her cheeks (Eirene tilted an eyebrow at that, amusedly).
«H-Here you go, sorry for the wait! I really hope you'll enjoy your stay, Miss Raisa!»
Eirene didn't reply, only throwing a half-smirk in her direction, before taking her key and leaving.
She had forgotten about the "alias" she used in the Heavens Arena.
Once she was in her room, she organized her belongings in the wardrobe and bathroom, leaving also a few books on her night table. All that, before throwing herself under the warm water of the bathtub.
«Hm, I wonder which color could I use this time...»
Some time before, when she started to actually be "someone" at the Heavens Arena, she decided to play around a little with her character: "Raisa" was a rather theatrical individual who enjoyed entertaining the audience. Eirene made sure to add little quirks onto her fake persona, such as a passion for changing hair color every match or always ending said match the same way.
She had bought a series of temporary dye chalks to do that. And as stupid as it might have sounded, she enjoyed that little game--it served her well to destress, let out some steam from time to time.
Wrapped in her towel, she left the bathroom and turned on the television in the main room. It was mostly background noise for her, but an enjoyable one as she got dressed and ready to treat her hair. The assassin was debating between bright teal and coral pink, when the announcer voice--or rather, her words--caught her attention.
«And once again, Participant Gon and Participant Killua have scored a one hit K.O.! Moreover, they've reached the 200th floor!»
Eirene turned slowly around, her expression rather surprised as her eyes met the familiar figure of her "little brother" and his friend.
... Well, shit.
What were they doing there? Even accepting the possibility of the little trio of friends "rescuing" Killua from Kukuroo Mountain, what reason would they have to visit the Heavens Arena?
Wait, no. That didn't sound right.
Am I worrying about two kids now? Even if we met... Aah, whatever.
She watched the hour on the top right side of the screen. 19:28.
They would probably have dinner and then proceed up to the 200th floor to check-in.
Eirene was quite sure the two hadn't learned of nen yet, therefore if they went up to the 200th floor, they'd both risk having serious wounds at best and permanent issues at worst.
The latter case troubled her a bit--Kikyo and Illumi would probably throw a fit and kill everyone present in the building, if Killua became unable to perform assassinations ever again.
She cursed in her mind, jumping on her feet and rushing out of her room.
So much for a relaxed stay.
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Once again, her luck must have been depleted a long time ago already.
She couldn't explain otherwise how it was possible not only to find the two children there, but also another problematic element such as Hisoka.
«Oh, what a surprise!»
The familiar, masculine voice of the magician spoke those words with a drawl, making the woman turn around right after changing corridors. She had her En activated, so she knew he was literally on her way, but still.
«What is my little bird doing here, hm?» Hisoka asked again, drawing close to her until they were basically face-to-face. «Did you miss me that much you had to just come to see me again~?»
«Oh please, don't flatter yourself. If I missed you, believe me, you wouldn't go anywhere from the beginning.» His smirk grew wider at her words, as Eirene simply rolled her eyes. Her stare turned harder with her next words. «You're not here because you have business with Killua and Gon, are you? You must know they're here, too.»
«Ohh, perceptive~» Hisoka purred, letting a chuckle escape his lips. «Well, they've been climbing up the floors like crazy since they arrived. Common people are praising them as geniuses of fighting... but we know they won't hold out up here, right~?»
He got the whole point, no other way to put it.
Eirene scoffed, spreading her nen a little more over the floor--she manipulated it into an irregular shape, so that it could reach a wider area. Hisoka watched, and felt, her nen with something akin to fascination.
She found a familiar feeling aura a few seconds after. «... They're already up here.»
«Then we should go greet them!» he replied cheerfully, clapping his hands together. He started making his way down the hallway towards the elevator area, where the corridors crossed the way with the check-in area. «By the way, little bird. How strong are you, really?»
The woman gave him a slight push imbued with her own aura. The area she touched dropped in temperature, sending a light shiver down the man's back--the sensation hit him weirdly, creating a little spark in his stomach.
«See for yourself instead of asking me, you clown.»
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«Are you kidding me?! We've made it here...»
Killua's enraged shout echoed in the hallway, even more after the jester literally told him to go back.
«You won't pass. Actually, you can't pass.»
From her spot, leaning on the wall opposite of the one Hisoka was sitting against, the kids couldn't see her figure. The blonde watched as the jester unleashed his aura to throw both him and Gon back, the two children resisting only because the man wasn't being serious. Honestly, she had to commend the resistance: even as prodigies, non-nen users usually would have problems resisting against an hostile aura like Hisoka's.
«Don't insist.»
Another voice called from the other corridor, the same one the children came from a few minutes before. She couldn't see him, but judging from his aura he had to be a nen user too.
«In front of his nen, you have almost no defense. You're like someone in the ice flow who asks themselves why they're so cold. If you make your body and spirit endure any more, you'll inevitably die.»
Eirene snorted from her nose at the comparison, finding oddly fitting in her case. «Not really. Only an idiot wouldn't know when it's the right moment to step back.» she commented, detaching herself from her spot and walking leisurely in the kids' field of view.
«Eirene?!»
«Hello, Killua, Gon. Nice to meet you again.»
«What are you doing--»
The other nen user, a man with jet black hair and glasses with a slightly messed up shirt, regarded both her and Hisoka with a hard stare, even as he spoke with the youngest two. «Guys, I'm sorry to interrupt but we shouldn't stay here. I'm going to explain everything properly this time, but let's start leaving this place.»
Killua seemed to be on the indecisive side--there were so many questions in his mind, but he couldn't sort them in order of importance at the moment.
She smiled a little. «Kil, before you go... you've reached this level before, right? But never registered for the matches.» He nodded, lips pursed in a thin line. «Make sure to be back before midnight and actually check-in this time. If you don't, you probably won't be able to do that anymore.»
The woman clerk (Eirene forgot about her for a moment) confirmed her words, making Gon grow panicked for his friend.
«Eirene, you know about nen too? And Illumi?» Killua asked again, his voice holding a hint of sentiment akin to betrayal.
The assassin could understand the reaction quite frankly, even with her empathy level being as low as it was: if her family didn't tell her such an important thing, she would feel like that too.
«Everyone in the family knows, except you. Can't say I know why they decided to wait to get you started on it, though.»
Nen was admittedly useful, vital even, in their business. Again, she ignored the slight sense of sympathy blooming in her chest, and waved them off.
«We'll be back, you two just wait!»
«Good luck, please don't die~»
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In the end, much to her surprise, both Killua and Gon had been able to learn the basics of Ten quickly enough to be able to pass Hisoka's wall of nen and check-in before midnight. Admittedly, the woman was quite amazed by that feat: even the most talented in the Zoldyck family (prior to Killua) had taken at least a week to get the gist of it from zero.
She gave a call to Kikyo and Zeno to inform them--the woman cried rather loudly in her ear about how talented her son was. Eirene rolled her eyes at the anthics. She also promised to keep an eye on him during her stay at the Heavens Arena, just in case anyone tried something against him.
Again, so much for a relaxing time.
The organizers had also set a match for her in the late evening of the day after the whole ordeal. Her adversary was a man she never heard of, a man wearing a set of coat and high hat that made him look like an old time detective.
The tv channels of the Heavens Arena were already advertising the match--the skillful blade expert, the favorite of the match, Challenger Kamakiri versus the mysterious, frozen-hearted artist, Challenger Raisa.
She felt a little annoyed that people had the man as their favorite instead of her, but it made sense since she hadn't been around so much. She just had to make them change their mind on the ring, no problem.
The day of the match, she was ready with her "stage outfit"--a set of skin-tight trousers and accordingly black boots, a white button-up shirt, and silky, bronze-and-gold hued sash tied around her waist--and her newly dyed peach colored hair tied up in a tight ponytail.
She smirked at her own reflection in the wall mirror and headed down to the ring area.
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«Good evening, spectators! Today's your lovely Noce, guiding you through the match with her heartfelt live commentary! Can I get a "YEAH" from everyone, all together?!» The audience roared upon being incited by the commentator. «GOOD! For tonight's match, give a warm greeting to the favorite, Fighter Kamakiri! And another one for the comeback of the ice queen, Fighter Raisa!»
As the commentator called their names, the two fighters walked on the ring. The referee greeted them with a nod each, explaining the general rules as custom.
Eirene stood with her hands on her hips, air exuding a placid confidence she also felt inside. Her opponent had a similar atmosphere around him, his weapons nowhere to be seen at the moment.
The woman coated herself in a thick layer of aura, her Ten unwavering.
As soon as the man announced the beginning of the match, she felt grateful that she took precautions: the kamas she didn't see on the man had come down from above, going straight for her nape and abdomen. A surprise attack was to be expected, sure, but she didn't think he'd be on the offensive like that.
Kamakiri caught his kamas back and proceeded to charge again, physically this time. She jumped back, staying on the defense for the moment.
«Woah! Fighter Kamakiri is the first one to strike! His control is close to perfect and he managed to land a few hits! The score is already 2-0 in favor of Kamakiri! What will Raisa do to reverse the result?! Will she manage to do it at all?!»
Eirene tuned the commentary out, focusing more on her opponent.
A conjurer? No, most probably a manipulator. The kamas felt rather physical when they hit her, so she excluded the possibility of them being nen constructs. Real weapons reinforced and imbued with aura were more efficient that way and if he was an emitter he'd have a high level control over them, even if he didn't have a hold.
Now, what about his hand to hand combat skills?
The woman evaded a slash by bending down abruptly and closed in on him. He immediately got on the defense--still, Eirene noticed one of the kamas missing from his hands.
Planting her foot on the ring right before her adversary, she pivoted her body on her right leg and aimed a kick to the man's neck. The tip of her boot managed to land the hit, making the man turn his head from the impact.
She had then just enough time to side-step the missing weapon aimed at her back.
Just as she did that, Kamakiri swiped the first kama at her chest, missing the hit but successfully making her jump back to avoid giving him more points.
Well rounded, hm? Still prefers to have some range... a safe player, then. She smirked bashfully, the amusement in her eyes hidden by the mask hiding her upper face. How boring!
The fight went on in a similar way for various minutes, with the commentator inciting the crowd more and more.
«Seems like the two contestants have fallen into their own rhythm! Who thought they would dance this beautifully, huh?! And yet!» she took a deep breath, raising from her seat with the microphone in her hand to lean towards the ring. «Looks like Fighter Raisa hadn't shown her nen technique! Is she playing safe, keeping her cards hidden for the next matches, or is it a way to taunt her adversary?!»
Well, she's not so wrong, Eirene thought with amusement. Maybe it really was time to show her tricks a bit.
Throwing herself backwards and vaulting herself at an acceptable distance, she eyed the man with the twin sickles and held her hands up before her. Modifying her fingers--tensing her muscles, sharpening her nails and strengthening her bones--she created five pairs of claws on her fingers, shining in a light teal colored aura.
«Ooh?! Look at that, it seems like Raisa is ready to take the initiative! What will she-»
The woman crouched down and leaped again towards the man at full speed, before the commentator could finish. She passed him in a flash, landing in a bent position a few meters behind him.
She straightened up and looked at the man. He turned around too, both hands ready to strike with his twin kamas, the tip pointed towards her and ready to throw. His expression was a mix of concentration, arrogance and careful search for an opening--
Until his body registered what was happening to him, at least. His face contorted to confusion and horror as the pain began to sink.
Cold grey eyes watched as the man fell on his knees, weapons clattering on the ground and hands grasping at his chest. His body began moving more and more like a machine (stiff, quirky) and less fluid, his skin losing its color in favor of a pale, sickly tone. Little cracks began showing up the more he tried to move his non-frozen parts, from which grew vine-like construction that shaped themselves like roses.
In under a minute, her adversary was turned into a decaying sculpture covered in ice flowers.
The stadium was silent as Eirene looked at her taloned hands, her aura pulsating happily around her fingers. The man was defending himself with his aura, surely, but she didn't feel much resistance when she thrust her claws in his chest. The result was pretty enough, but the visual effect was just a result of the "order" she gave to her own aura.
«The... The match is over! The winner is Raisa, who goes up to a total of 4 wins and 2 losses over the last year and half! Is there anyone capable of stopping her now?!»
The crowd overcame the initial shock, answering with cheers and encouragement.
Eirene could only bow, an arm behind her back and the other stretched out, like an artist thanking their audience after an exhibition.
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