Sol turned to her with a polite smile. "Orla? What are you doing here?"
She let out a hearty laugh. "Please. I wouldn't miss out on having some fun before the Rite of Ascension. I just happened to be passing through when I saw you three approach the kids to play Crashball."
She tilted her head toward the group of orc children already tossing the heavy leather ball around in the snow. Her grin widened. "And I happen to love that game. Haven't played it since I became an A-Ranker."
Sol nodded, immediately understanding why. Once Orla reached A-Rank, there were only so many people who could physically contend with her. Most of the A-Rank orcs were too busy with responsibilities like missions, managing, or guarding key locations, leaving her with no possibility to gather enough to make a proper game. And while she could hold back and play against B-Rankers or below, it always felt lackluster since she could never give it her all.
"Since the three of you are A-Rank, it's the perfect opportunity! No way I'm letting it pass me by. So how about it?" Her expression was eager, almost childishly so.
Sol chuckled. "Sure, why not? The more the merrier—"
"Hold on!" Reena stepped forward, planting herself squarely between Sol and Orla, eyes narrowed. "This isn't fair."
Orla blinked innocently. "Not fair?"
"You're good at this game," Reena accused. "An expert. And we've never even played before. Plus, you're a warrior, this is a physical game. I'm a mage, and Thorwyn…" She glanced at the wolfman, who tilted his head. "…doesn't even have hands."
While Reena normally wouldn't care if it was just for fun, this time she wanted to win the bet. With such an opposing team, she stood no chance otherwise.
Orla laughed. "You think I'm going to bully you? Come on, mage girl, that's not my style. In Crashball, anything goes. Magic, tricks, brute force, whatever it takes to get the ball through the ring."
Reena crossed her arms. "Yeah, but I can't use my magic thanks to a certain someone."
Orla opened her mouth, then paused, remembering what her father had told her earlier about Reena and Sol's arrangement. He hadn't gone into detail, but it was enough to know that Reena's space magic was sealed unless she agreed to guide Sol's group. Orla's smile dimmed slightly, turning thoughtful.
"…Okay, fine. You have a point." She nodded slowly. "It would be too one sided if it were just you and Thorwyn against the Savior and me. So… I won't use my hands, and the Savior can't use mana."
Sol tilted his head, amused. "You're making up rules for me now?"
"Gotta make it fair." Orla shrugged. Then her tone shifted subtly, carrying a weight none of them missed. "Oh, and none of us use A-Rank skills. At all."
While Orla would rather be able to go all out, she felt this was an acceptable restriction. She wouldn't have to hold back her strength but instead limit the limbs she could use which rather than going easy on them, it was making it harder for herself.
As for Sol, his restriction was just as impactful. Most of his skills used mana, not just his elemental magic, but even so he found it rather reasonable given their opponents.
Reena quickly weighed their odds with these new restrictions. Her law technique was already sealed by Sol; making sure no one else could use theirs was only fair. With Sol not able to use mana and Orla losing her hands, the match at least seemed winnable.
"…Alright, that's fair." Reena turned to Sol. "But just to be sure, if you lose with these restrictions, I still win the bet, right?"
"Yep. Fine by me." Sol replied casually with a thumbs up.
"Hoh? A bet?" Orla's ears perked up. "Great! Crashball is better with stakes! In that case, I'll also add that whoever wins can take any one item they want from the Clan's vault."
"The vault? Are you sure?" Sol had heard of the Frostaxe Clan's vault. It was where the clan kept their rarest weapons and artifacts. Anything inside was at least unique rarity, and even if it wasn't, its value or rarity easily rivaled it.
Orla nodded. "I'm owed one item from the vault anyway, from when I last earned a Frost Token. I haven't claimed it yet since there's nothing I really need from there right now."
She already had everything she needed, weaponry, magical items, rare potions, tools, so she'd never felt the urge to cash in the reward. She ultimately decided it was better to save it for when she needed something specific… or, apparently, to make a game more interesting.
Since she had earned the reward herself, there was no issue in transferring the right to someone else, even as part of a bet.
Both Sol and Reena immediately perked up at the opportunity. Neither was willing to pass on the chance to enter that vault.
Sol, who had nothing much to gain before with the one sided bet, suddenly felt far more motivated. Even with the handicap, he liked his odds. Reena likewise felt victory was even more worth fighting for than before.
Seeing the fire lit in their eyes, Orla grinned. "That's what I wanted to see! Then let's play! Give the kids back their ball. We're using this bad boy instead…"
From her spatial ring, she pulled out a rough, black ball. Unlike the leather ball the kids had been playing with, this one looked sturdier, faint traces of magic seeping from its surface.
[Wreckingball
Unique
Durability: 2789/3000
Skills:
[Unbreaking] Lv MAX, [Dampner] Lv MAX, [Fluidmend] Lv 3]
Sol didn't even need to ask where she'd gotten it—he suspected she'd commissioned it herself. It was nearly impossible to damage without using a law technique, and [Fluidmend] meant it could repair itself on contact with bodily fluids like sweat or blood, perfect for a rough game like Crashball.
The [Dampner] enchantment ensured that no matter how hard it was struck, it wouldn't destroy the surroundings—it would simply bounce cleanly off any surface.
After reading the item's description, Sol realized something very clearly: Orla didn't mess around when it came to Crashball.