Blaine pointed it out before he could continue. He hadn't come to listen to nonsense. He still had business to take care of, and he was already tired of hearing all this rambling, so he decided quickly and wanted to end it as soon as possible.
This was probably the most Blaine had spoken in front of outsiders.
"Hmph, that's right,"
"If you still can't accept it,"
"Then please leave."
After saying this, Grandmaster turned away on his own, as if he had already made up his mind.
"Alright, I'll take it."
Blaine was equally straightforward and agreed immediately.
"Huh? You agreed so quickly,"
"I'm not finished yet,"
"This battle isn't one-on-one,"
"You alone will face all the gladiators in my arena!!!"
After finishing, Grandmaster lifted his chin proudly, as if to say: be afraid. If you're scared, then honestly exchange with me.
"Understood. I'm fine with it."
Grandmaster's thoughts had already been seen through by Blaine.
There was nothing mysterious about it—just confidence and calculation. First, he wanted Blaine to fight for him, drawing in the audience and earning a fortune in the process.
Second, Grandmaster believed it was absolutely impossible for Blaine to win. In the arena, once you stepped in, it was a matter of life and death—only the outcome mattered.
So long as he used a small trick to let Blaine die in the arena, he could rightfully obtain the star core. Even in the worst-case scenario, if Blaine truly was strong enough to defeat everyone, the match itself would be spectacular. It was easy to imagine that the profits from such a battle would reach unprecedented heights.
At this point, even Blaine had to admit inwardly that Grandmaster truly possessed sharp business acumen, comparable to Tony's.
After that, Blaine turned his head and glanced at Loki. Since appearing, the guy hadn't dared to make a sound. He kept his head lowered, face hidden, not daring to look at Blaine at all.
The shadow Blaine had left on Loki was probably no less than Hulk's. After all, Blaine was the man who had nearly wiped out the Chitauri army by himself.
"By the way, what's your name?"
"I've said so much and still don't know your name,"
"I need to introduce you before the match, don't I?"
Without an introduction, Grandmaster couldn't profit properly. At the same time, he wanted to remember Blaine's name so he could look him up later and continue planning around the star core.
In truth, he was also deeply curious. How could Blaine remain unaffected by the charm of two vixens? Did he really—
"Bounty Hunter."
Seeing what Grandmaster was thinking, Blaine almost lost his composure. He coldly spat out the two words, turned around, and leapt straight down from the viewing platform.
Boom—
Blaine's body slammed into the center of the arena, smashing a deep crater into the ground once again.
All around, the audience in the stands hadn't left. Blaine's dramatic entrance immediately drew their attention again. Though there weren't many cheers, everyone still focused their gaze on his not-so-tall figure.
Dressed in a black robe, a cold face and a pair of icy eyes were hidden beneath the hood.
Since there was no one else in the arena at the moment, Blaine crossed his arms over his chest and closed his eyes, quietly waiting for the next gladiator to step onto the field.
Thump, thump, thump.
Suddenly, all the lights in the arena lit up one after another. Under the illumination, Blaine's Hunter suit reflected a faint, pulsating black glow.
"Ladies and gentlemen,"
"Please allow me to introduce the finale and highlight of today's arena,"
"This is a special match added today to celebrate the centennial of the Sakaar Arena,"
"What you see now,"
"Comes from faraway space, and is said to originate from the same place as our invincible Hulk,"
"So today, not only will he face the Hulk,"
"But he will also challenge this—"
As Grandmaster spoke, he pointed toward the three prizes hanging above the arena.
Blaine had thought the audience would erupt into cheers after hearing this. Instead, what followed was a wave of boos. Using mind reading to catch fragments of thought from the crowd, Blaine quickly understood why.
Since the establishment of the arena, countless people had wanted to lift the black cloth and see what lay beneath. When the prizes were first displayed, challengers rushed to sign up—but anyone who attempted to challenge the three prizes never survived. Ordinary matches were fine, but once the prizes were involved, death was guaranteed.
These three prizes had become symbols of life and death in the arena. To challenge them was to stake one's life, and so far, no one had ever walked out of the arena alive.
Because of this strange system, anyone who dared to challenge was seen as a lunatic by the people of Sakaar, and the prizes themselves became the highest honor.
It was also because of this twisted setup that people gradually lost interest, even in ordinary matches. That was why, in recent years, so many scavengers had appeared—robbing not only money but people as well, selling them to Grandmaster to be forced into gladiatorial combat.
Blaine naturally scoffed at all of this. What kind of bizarre setup was this? Just cheap tricks devised in secret by Grandmaster. As long as one was strong enough, no amount of schemes mattered—
Just smash through them directly.
"The match will begin in three minutes,"
"Please spread the word quickly so more people can witness this once-in-a-lifetime battle!"
Grandmaster truly knew how to promote a show, shamelessly advertising at every opportunity. Blaine felt a trace of contempt, but shrugged it off. This was Grandmaster's territory. Blaine would just wait—he was definitely taking that precious metal key with him.
"Let us welcome this guest from afar,"
"And look forward to the visual feast he will bring us next,"
"Remember his name,"
"His is—"
"BOUNTY HUNTER FROM EARTH!!!"
As soon as Grandmaster finished, a deafening roar erupted. Whistles, shouts, and chaotic cheers filled the air all at once.
Three minutes passed in the blink of an eye.
When the time came, Grandmaster did not appear again. Blaine opened his eyes and discovered that the audience had multiplied several times over. There were even more people than during Thor and Hulk's fight earlier. Voices overlapped, crowds surged, and every seat was packed without a single gap.
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