Chapter 83: Red Wind Queen
From the Valkyrie's words, Ben gathered that the new Fighting Champion was a woman.
Ben didn't ask for more details, though.
The only champions he actually remembered were Beta Ray Bill and Ares, and he only knew their names from movie comments. He didn't know anyone else.
After the spaceship landed, the Valkyrie kicked Loki in the backside, sending him tumbling out of the ship. Then, she turned her head and glanced at Ben.
"Let's go."
Seeing this, Loki felt a pang of unfairness.
"Why do you only kick me and not him?"
"Because you're Odin's son," the Valkyrie sneered. With that, she leaped up and stomped on Loki, using him as a springboard.
Next, she looked up at Ben, who was standing at the edge of the spaceship's doorway, and extended her arms.
"Jump down, I'll catch you."
Ever since she learned Ben's age, she couldn't help but see him as a fragile infant needing careful protection. Honestly, at his age, in Asgard, he wouldn't be considered a baby, but his Divine Power would be incredibly weak. Asgardians without Divine Power were only slightly stronger physically than ordinary Earthlings.
However, she had clearly underestimated Ben.
Dozens of meters was nothing to him. He leaped, simultaneously firing a strand of spider silk from his wrist-mounted web shooter, and descended like an airborne soldier.
"For a 16-year-old Asgardian, you're quite something," she praised, then asked, "Are you sure you want to go to the Arena? It's not a good place. The Red King has enslaved almost all outsiders who come to this planet, forcing them into brutal fights. With your strength, you'll probably be torn to shreds by those savage gladiators in no time!"
"I can't wait," Ben said, his lips pressed into a thin line. With his current strength, he had no worries about fighting. The Cosmigod with Asgardian genes gave him power comparable to Thor's. Four Arms was strong enough to wrestle with a standard Hulk. Diamondhead had virtually no weaknesses. And Heatblast, when extremely angry, could unleash power capable of destroying a supernova. Even if someone was so powerful that he couldn't defeat them even with all his abilities, he could turn into Ghostfreak and escape. He could attack and retreat; there was truly nothing to worry about.
"As you wish," the Valkyrie said, seeing that Ben wouldn't heed her advice. She didn't say anything else.
Loki, on the other hand, wanted to escape this torment. Unfortunately, the Valkyrie knew he would use illusions, so she pressed the button on the control device every few seconds, making Loki's hair stand on end.
Loki: I'm behaving now, please let me go.
He was indeed behaving. Loki now understood one thing very clearly: might makes right, and it's even stronger than divinity. Right now, he was like fish on a chopping block. If he didn't want to be cut into eight pieces, it was best to stay put. So, he lowered his head, his face grim, and remained silent.
Inside the Arena, a massive roar echoed to the heavens. Ben heard countless people raising their arms and shouting. The sound was initially mixed, but then it gradually became more unified. He recognized that the audience was chanting a name he had never heard before.
"Red Wind Queen!"
"Red Wind Queen!"
"..."
"Red Wind Queen?" he asked, turning to the Valkyrie. "Who's that?"
"Sakaar's current Fighting Champion," the Valkyrie said, her face still showing a hint of awe when she mentioned the Red Wind Queen. "She's so powerful that even I feel inferior. I didn't expect some foolish idiot would challenge her."
The Valkyrie wore a look of schadenfreude. From the roar of the crowd, it was clear that the challenger who dared to face the Red Wind Queen had been beaten to a pulp.
"In this Arena, as long as you win three consecutive matches, you can regain your freedom. However, that's not an easy feat. Continuous battles will leave you physically and mentally exhausted, and your opponents will only get stronger until you face the Red Wind Queen. After all, the Red King would rather see you die in the gladiatorial arena than willingly let you go."
She then glanced at Ben with her emerald green eyes, seemingly looking for a hint of fear or hesitation on his face. To her disappointment, Ben remained calm, showing no signs of worry. The Valkyrie could only assume he hadn't witnessed the Red Wind Queen's strength and didn't understand the terrifying power she wielded.
She thought for a moment and said, "With your strength, as long as you don't fantasize about a Champion Challenge or try to regain your freedom, you might be able to barely survive."
"Don't worry, why would I do something so foolish?" Ben said with a smile. After all, what he intended to do was far more dangerous.
"That's good," the Valkyrie nodded, then kicked Loki again. The three of them walked towards the Arena.
From a distance, they saw two red-skinned aliens guarding the entrance. Seeing the Valkyrie, they didn't seem surprised, indicating that the female warrior was a familiar sight here.
"The Red King is still watching the Red Wind Queen's match. You might have to wait a moment. I'll take you to meet the Supreme Warrior first."
"Hurry up."
Next, one of the guards led Ben and the other two inside.
The space inside the arena was vast. It wasn't just a place for gladiators to spill their blood; it was also the Red King's palace.
That towering Totem Tower was the center of power on this planet.
The group ascended, breaking through several layers of defenses before finally encountering a different woman.
This woman had silvery-gray skin and black hair, though only a small lock trailed behind her like a horse's tail.
She stood about two meters tall, very upright.
Upon seeing the Valkyrie, she showed no surprise. However, when her gaze fell upon Ben and Loki, a barely perceptible flicker of astonishment crossed her face.
"Scavenger 142, the gladiators you've brought this time don't look like much," she said, walking over.
"Compared to the Red Wind Queen, these two look rather frail."
She was indeed qualified to call Ben and Loki frail, for the woman before them was named Caiera, a powerful warrior who could contend with the Hulk.
"You can't always be lucky enough to find strong warriors," the Valkyrie said, pulling out a bottle of wine, taking a few swigs, and then continuing, "Besides, the identity of this batch of goods is no ordinary matter. I think the Red King will like them."
Hearing this, Caiera smiled slightly and said, "The Red Wind Queen you brought last time already has him completely smitten. It's a shame the Queen doesn't think much of him."
The Valkyrie didn't find this surprising.
The Red Wind Queen had no regard for the weak. She remained in the arena not because she was enslaved, but because she voluntarily stayed to enjoy the battles.
Hearing them speak, Ben became even more curious about the Red Wind Queen.
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