Upon hearing his question, Clan Mistress Olivia nodded and proceeded to explain the overall strength of the heirs Orion had fought. After she finished her explanation, Orion nodded in understanding.
If Maya, at tier five Crystal Adept Rank, could be compared to Tala or himself when he was previously unranked, then Merida and the Prismaflow twins, who were slightly stronger and within the Crystal Radiant Rank, managed to land blows on him despite working together.
Orion deduced that Merida and the Prismaflow twins were likely at the lower boundaries of a one-star warrior rank, at most.
However, the full extent of this rank remained unknown to him. Thus, he concluded that the only way to find out was to face stronger opponents and compare their strength and rank to his own.
Orion fixed his gaze on Clan Mistress Olivia, who had patiently awaited his absorption of the information. "How about Princess Crystalia? Do you know how strong she currently is?" he asked.
Since the princess had rescued him, he had been intrigued by her strength. While he could have asked her about this personally earlier, he hadn't had the best opportunity to do so.
Olivia furrowed her brows in contemplation and replied, "I'm not sure. There have been recent rumours circulating that I cannot currently confirm. They suggest that Princess Crystalia has reached the Crystal Luminary Rank. However, as for which tier she currently occupies, both the royal family and the Crystalforge Clan have been cautious about preventing any information leaks. So, it's very difficult, even for me, to confirm the legitimacy of this information."
Orion's eyes involuntarily widened at her words. He could comprehend that she was strong, given he had witnessed a glimpse of her power. However, her level of strength seemed somewhat absurd when compared to their perspectives and the young heirs' overall abilities.
Regardless, Orion decided to change the topic.
"How about you, Clan Mistress Olivia? How strong are you?" he asked curiously.
He chose to shift the discussion towards her and gain an understanding of her strength. As a Clan Mistress, she was expected to be among the formidable Prismerion in the kingdom, which meant that by assessing her overall power, he could grasp the average level of strength in the Prismerian kingdom and possibly gain insight into the royal family's strength as well.
Hearing his question, Olivia was momentarily stunned.
She had anticipated that he might ask about something related to the Three Great Slaughters, so his question caught her off guard. Little did she know that Orion was already privy to the true identity of the White Flame and was trying to ascertain the history of their race before they became trapped in this mountain.
Nevertheless, instead of immediately responding, Olivia narrowed her eyes at Orion.
"You don't expect me to provide you with that information so readily, do you?" she retorted, locking her narrowed gaze with his. "Certainly, it's not exactly a personal secret, and you could obtain it from the right person. However, it's more reliable if I reveal it myself. But as things stand, I don't see a compelling reason to do so, right?"
A faint, almost imperceptible smile tugged at the corners of her otherwise stern and serious expression, a subtlety that Orion would have missed had he not been scrutinizing her countenance so closely.
Orion returned her smile. "Aren't you curious about my strength as well? I'm sure you understand that what I displayed during the duel wasn't my full potential," he remarked, observing her closely as she furrowed her brows, likely grasping the underlying implication in his words.
"So, you're suggesting that you'll reveal your true strength if I do the same?" Olivia asked, a hint of curiosity and suspicion in her tone, wondering if he was indeed serious.
Orion nodded in agreement. Although he didn't possess complete knowledge of his current strength, there was no rule stating that he couldn't lie a bit and remain guarded about his true abilities.
Regardless, given the isolation of his village, he lacked reliable information to provide, even if he were inclined to share it should she ask about anything else. Moreover, he wasn't about to disclose anything until he had devised a surefire means of escaping this mountain.
"Hmmm," Olivia regarded Orion thoughtfully, attempting to discern whether he was being truthful or not. Convinced that he was, she refocused her gaze on him and nodded solemnly. "Alright, stand up and follow me," she instructed.
"To where?" Orion asked, his brows furrowing in confusion.
"To another stage that isn't entirely broken, of course," Olivia replied, gesturing towards the already demolished grand amphitheatre stage that Orion had inadvertently wrecked.
While she could take his word for it, she would be much more reassured if she personally witnessed the limits of his strength and understood the kind of formidable force he truly was.
"You didn't expect me to solely rely on your word for it, did you? Or did you think about deceiving me?" She quirked a light smile, her eyes locked onto Orion's once again, observing his continued silence.
"Ha! While I have no intentions of lying to you, I think it's better this way for both of us to have some assurance," Orion chuckled briefly before continuing. "But don't you think everyone might start looking for me if I don't arrive at the banquet on time?"
"Don't worry, before I came here, I made sure to inform them that the Clan Heirs, including you, are receiving special attention and might be late for the closing banquet. So, I don't think anybody will suspect a thing if you arrive late. In fact, I believe it would be more suspicious and make everyone more wary if you showed up early after such an intense battle," Olivia assured him, dispelling his doubts.
"Alright, what are we waiting for then?" Orion replied.
He saw no issue with her suggestion, as it aligned with his own goal of concealing his true strength while gathering information about the Prismerion kingdom.
