Standing in the palace grounds of the Wean Palace was Inala, stared at by a group of Wean Clansmen as he lifted a small, Billakin Hammer and began to hammer the pieces of rock before him. With every clang, the rock deformed.
The various pieces were slowly being merged into a singular whole and turned into a massive boulder. After that, Inala created a Billakin Chisel and carved out an intricate piece of stadium.
The process took a few hours. With every hit, Inala could seamlessly transfer the momentum behind the hits into the rock through his psychokinesis while refining it into a Spirit Weapon. As a result, he was able to morph its shape with greater precision, even if the tools he used were way larger than the miniature carvings he made.
When he was almost done, KalTara arrived at the palace grounds and stood next to Shuwrak Zahara, speaking after a couple minutes of silence, "What's your plan now, Uncle?"
"There isn't one." Shuwrak Zahara shook his head.
"I know, which is exactly why I am asking you this." KalTara became silent once again, breaking it another minute later, "Are you planning to switch to the Varahan Empire?"
"Do you don't want me to?" Shuwrak Zahara stared down at the Boar King, his eyes moist as he uttered, "Tell me."
"I'm sorry," That was all KalTara could say, closing his eyes as he couldn't afford to make eye contact with Shuwrak Zahara, "Even my own sentiments are changing the more this war progresses. So, I cannot tell the Wean Clan to act otherwise."
"I understand that, which is why it's so sad." Shuwrak Zahara let out a mild sigh as he observed Inala's actions, stating after a pause, "I'll leave this place and head somewhere far away."
"Thank you for your consideration." KalTara smiled wryly, "I would have been helpless had you decided to defect to the Varahan Empire."
"The last thing I want is to destroy everything I've helped build." Shuwrak Zahara expressed his pain, "Most of you guys are denying reality, but the fact of the matter is that the Wean Clan came from my sister."
"The lot of you are my kin."
A single tear streamed down his eyes as Shuwrak Zahara felt conflicted. There was anger in his expression, but most of all was helplessness. The Varahan Empire was one of his sister's greatest creations, something that was so groundbreaking that it would have expanded to encompass the entirety of Sumatra Continent eventually.
There was nothing that could hold back the Varahan Empire's growth as their Gold Grade numbers were only on an exponential increase, something no other force could ever hope to match. They would have dominated the Continent eventually, "If not for this civil war."
"That's the price of arrogance, Uncle." KalTara uttered, "We became overconfident in our strength until the Mystic Seven turned it against us."
"I still remember it to this day." KalTara grunted, his body trembling in fear, "Those guys…they casually captured our Boar Kings like they were nothing."
"Even mother got captured." He expressed in sadness, "And I don't know how they did it, but they turned mother against grandfather once she became the Empyrean Boar King."
"That's why, I'll be cautious." He said resolutely, seeing Shuwrak Zahara in the eye, "I'll continue to improve the Wean Clan's strength while also never neglecting my training. I'll keep growing stronger until I reach a point where I won't have to fear even the Mystic Seven."
"Most of them might have died or are dying, but that one bastard is still alive." He snorted, "Virala!"
"There's no guarantee that he wouldn't storm our place once he becomes sane." KalTara expressed his worry.
"Don't worry, for that won't happen." Shuwrak Zahara smiled in response, "For I'll be standing in his way if that day ever comes."
"Uncle, you…" His eyes widened in shock and grew moist as KalTara stared at Shuwrak Zahara, "After everything you did to this place and how we've been treating you recently, would you still go that far for us?"
"No, I'm not that selfless." Shuwrak Zahara shook his head, "But you see…"
With a resigned expression, he commented, "Even if I don't have a place here anymore, this is still my home."
"I am a talentless idiot, but my sister valued my opinion." He chuckled deprecatingly, "She based many of our architectural designs on what I loved talking about during our childhood."
Shuwrak Zahara then raised his hand and patted KalTara on the shoulder, "Let the Wean Clan deny their origin, but please ensure they never forget it. Otherwise, you'll go down the same route as your grandfather."
"To date, there has never been an existence stronger than your grandfather." Shuwrak Zahara commented solemnly, "But Brangara lost because he was overconfident and his enemies were smart enough to capitalise on that."
"Never forget it."
"I won't," KalTara nodded, "At least, no Wean Clan Leader will ever forget it. I'll ensure we maintain clear records for the leaders."
"Then, I won't have to worry." Shuwrak Zahara chuckled and rubbed KalTara on the head once, "You've grown a lot, huh?"
"The future is yours, KalTara." Tears streamed down his eyes as Shuwrak Zahara hugged the Boar King, "Promise me, please. Promise me that you will win the Varahan Challenge."
"Don't let that terrorist win."
"I will, Uncle. Believe me." KalTara nodded resolutely, "And I will never slack in my training to ensure I'll always emerge victorious."
Clang! Clang!
While such an emotional parting was happening in the background, Inala was awkwardly hammering away at the miniature Battle Stadium, knowing very well that he was the one who fuelled this civil war.
'It feels weird to be hearing all this.' He wanted to cry for the sadness he had caused, burst into laughter at the hilarity of the situation, and most of all, wanted to walk away as soon as possible.
He could argue that the culprit was the Royal Zinger Inala and he, the Brully Inala was innocent. But at the end of the day, they had the same soul. So, he was pretty much the one responsible for kickstarting all the shit that was happening in this region.
"It's done," Soon after, he finished the model and turned around to stare at KalTara, "This is how I have envisioned it."
"The fighting grounds will cover an area of 16 square kilometres, built at a depth of 200 metres below the ground. From the border on the surface, the seater stands would be raised into the sky, taking measures for the safety of the audience." Inala began to explain further, "There would be a gap between the stands and the battleground. The cliff walls would emit a powerful suppression force that can dampen the strength behind any attacks that pass through."
"Unless the attacker is someone at your level, you don't have to worry about a sneak attack during the fight." Inala pointed at the stands, "There will also be guards posted in this gap for further security."
He then patted one of the sides, "This half will face the Varahan Empire while the other half will face the Varahan Enclave. This way, combatants from both sides will have their backs pointed at their people. So, you won't have to worry about sneak attacks and instead could focus on the enemy in front of you."
"Alright, I approve this." KalTara snapped his finger as three Wean Clansmen appeared before him and kneeled in respect. He stared at the first Wean Clansman and commanded, "Send a team to the Zahara Kingdom and harvest all the rock pillars my grandfather placed at its entrance. Tally its quantity according to the model made by Leukeu here."
He eyed Inala and pointed at the Wean Clansman, "Share the blueprints with them."
"Yes," Inala brought out a Vara Slip and handed it to the Wean Clansmen who immediately set out to gather the materials.
KalTara stared at the second Wean Clansman and handed him a Vara Slip, "This is my order. Make the Clumped Finger in our nest lay eggs within a week. All the Natures you require to hasten the progress have my approval."
"Yes, Leader." The Wean Clansman nodded, "We already have them ready. The Clumped Finger has laid its eggs only a month ago, so we have some spares to use."
"Good," KalTara then faced the third Wean Clansman and handed the latter a Vara Slip, "Send a delegation to the Varahan Empire and tell Narkahamy of the place where I wish to fight him. Tell him he can send a batch of soldiers to oversee the construction process to ensure fairness and a lack of traps, if he's that afraid."
"How strong should my tone be?" The Wean Clansman asked.
"Don't hold back." KalTara expressed coldly, "Assume you're not making it out of there alive. So, send a body of the delegates who have recently built a new body in their stack."
"As you say, Leader." The Wean Clansman nodded and got to work immediately after. He followed the instructions and made preparations. And by evening time, a delegation was sent to the Varahan Empire's capital, with a lot of fanfare, revealing that they were a team of delegates.
In the meantime, Inala and Shuwrak Zahara began to make their way on a railway to the designated location, accompanying KalTara.
"You think they'll accept the proposition?" Inala asked just for conversation's sake, knowing very well Narkahamy's character, 'This is a spectacular opportunity to cement his authority in the minds of his people. It's a PR event for him too, so he'd love it.'
"He will," KalTara nodded, "There's a lot at stake here. Since he gave out the Varahan Challenge, it's my right to set up the battle location. If he doesn't accept my terms, he'll lose favour with his people."
"Unlike mine, his seat is still shaky." KalTara chuckled. He then eyed Inala to ask, "Are you sure your stadium will withstand our battle? Your miniature model did survive, but when it's scaled up, the weight of the structure changes everything."
"That's why I designed it within a pit." Inala chuckled, "These rocks are just walls. You have the entire earth surrounding it to absorb shockwaves from your attacks. So, they won't crumble that easily."
"Alright, I'll take your word for it." KalTara nodded, finally getting to the heart of the matter, "Uncle said you wanted the Celestial Boar's Vara in exchange?"
"Yes," Inala nodded.
"You think you can differentiate it from the Vara I produce?" KalTara asked next.
"Yes," Saying so, Inala condensed his Billakin Hammer, "It's my race's speciality."
"How much do you need?" KalTara asked next.
"A Human Avatar's worth," Inala replied.
"Hmm…" KalTara thought for a moment and spoke, "I'll pay it to you in parts. In the meantime, I'll relegate you to the Battle Stadium's maintenance. After every fight, I want you to fix up all the damage, every day, until there is an eventual victor."
"Deal!" Inala nodded, "I'll be leaving to visit the Gold Varahan Library during the Librarian Debate every month, if that's fine with you."
"Sure," KalTara didn't mind it too much, "Unless the stadium isn't damaged, you're free to go as you please. Of course, only after reporting to me about your intentions first."
"Thank you." Inala expressed his gratitude, 'Well, I only need a small clump to turn my hands into it. After that, I can extracted however much Celestial Boar Vara I want from myself.'
He quoted a bigger price simply because he knew KalTara would use it to control him. And now, it won't matter to Inala, as after the first transaction, he would have what he wanted and could leave the place if needed, 'There will be a devastating war by the end of this battle, irrespective of who the winner is.'
'I'm running away before that! I've had my share of wars already.' Inala thought in silence. Since he already had his Secondary Nature, he was now ready to leave and explore Sumatra. He only stayed behind for there were too many interesting things happening at the place.