episode_0044

Episode 44

His abs, which glistened copper-colored in the sunlight, were flawless, as if he had applied some oil to them.

-Alexander, of course…

-Who else but Chris can break through his defenses here?

-I heard that even after getting hit by Sword Auror, that abs didn’t get hurt at all?

-Don’t lie, how can a person withstand Sword Aura with bare body when his body isn’t even made of rare metal?

A murmur could be heard from the surrounding area as Alexon was seen sparring with other gladiator slaves.

‘Does that make sense…?’

Alexon was pressing his opponent with his bare body, without any weapons or armor except for his tight black leather clothes.

-Kang! Kang!

His bronze body made a sound like steel clashing with each other whenever it was struck by an opponent’s sword.

‘Did you harden your body with Manaro?’

“More! Push harder! I won’t allow petty attacks! ”

“Ugh!!”

The opponents facing Alexon seemed to be getting tired of Alexon’s appearance, who did not receive any hits no matter how fiercely he attacked.

“This is all I can do, I can’t stand it anymore…! Take it! [Triple Six Lariat!]”

-Bang!

“…!”

In an instant, mana surged through Alexson’s body, and he dashed forward at incredible speed, striking his opponent’s face with a technique.

-dump!

The opponent couldn’t even scream, and his body floated up from the impact and then fell to the ground.

Perhaps, if I had just struck the technique without controlling my strength, my opponent’s head would have burst like a watermelon.

“Ha…!”

The power of this absurd technology makes me laugh out loud.

‘To get out of here, I have to beat that monster in a match?’

I watched for a moment as the unconscious gladiator slave was carried away by Alexson, then moved to check on the other gladiator slaves.

#

“Lion, your first match opponent has been decided.”

A week has passed since I was sold to the Caracalla Colosseum, and the date for my first match has finally been set.

As I won the game, survived, gained attention from the audience, and became more popular, my treatment at the Colosseum also improved, so I wanted to get out of that stuffy, smelly, small room as soon as possible.

Not only that, if I win the game and collect the prize money given as a reward, I will also be able to get my broken ankle treated.

“Three days later, Urgos named himself to fight you.”

-Urgos? The executioner?

-Poor guy, he’s always meeting the executioner who targets new players from the first match.

-Among the new recruits this time, that guy is the victim.

When Urgos’ name was called in the training ground, people around me looked at me with pitiful eyes and murmured.

“Quiet! Normally, a designated gladiator match is held when the opponent is nominated. The person who is offered the match can exercise the right of refusal by using the prize money received from playing the match. ”

The manager began to explain the designated gladiator matches in a nonchalant manner as if it were something that happened all the time.

“But it would be difficult for new recruits since they don’t have any money saved up, right? So new recruits can refuse the nomination for free once.”

Then why does Urgos, known as the Executioner, target new recruits who have free refusal rights?

“For reference, if the nominee’s opponent rejects the nomination, the nominee cannot nominate the same person for at least one month, and conversely, a new player who uses the free refusal right cannot receive any compensation even if he or she wins a game for one month.”

‘The free refusal right is essentially a one-month life extension ticket.’

If you want to replace the cheap equipment you give to slaves in the Colosseum with good equipment, you will eventually need to use money earned from playing matches, so not being able to earn money for a month is fatal.

In the end, even if Urgos gets rejected, he can still apply again after a month, and in the meantime, the new recruit will wither away.

To this extent, the Colosseum is formally taking care of the new recruits, and in reality, it means that they are telling them not to use their free right of refusal.

Moreover, since the rewards that veteran gladiators can get from defeating newcomers are very small, there is no need for them to specifically target newcomers.

Nevertheless, the fact that the executioner is targeting a new recruit can only be seen as an extremely vicious character.

‘I rather like it.’

Judging from the reactions of those around him, Urgos is quite famous and well-known.

If a newbie defeats Urgos, he will surely gain a lot of fame in no time.

If you defeat Urgos and gain fame and monetary rewards, you will be able to heal your leg faster and play other matches in perfect condition.

“What do you think, do you use your veto, or do you accept the nomination and play in three days?”

“I will accept that nomination.”

” Hehehe, that’s a wise choice. You’re not an idiot who would use your veto just to live one more month. ”

The date for my first gladiator fight at the Caracalla Colosseum has been set.

##

Three days passed, and the day of the first match dawned.

The game is scheduled to start in the afternoon, but there is a lot to prepare for, so you should arrive early in the morning.

“Lion, get your gear and follow me.”

Following the manager, we arrived at a fairly large waiting area set up in the basement of the Colosseum.

“This is where you wait before and after the game. Here, you can freely relax, prepare your weapons, and watch other people’s games through the iron bars you see over there. ”

The spacious waiting area, like a semi-basement room, had a long window blocked by iron bars.

“I’ll call you when it’s your turn, so wait here. Oh, and by the way, if you do anything that interferes with the game, a terrible punishment awaits you, so don’t do anything reckless. ”

-Nod.

The manager who had informed me of the precautions turned around and left as soon as I nodded.

-Limp…Limp…

To check the condition of the equipment that had been issued to me, I limped over to the equipment management stand set up in a corner of the waiting area.

-Clang…

The only equipment given to me in the Colosseum was a longsword made of cheap iron.

“Hmm…”

The center of gravity is not right, and you can see that there are teeth missing here and there.

Durability is low, so if you take a strong hit from a heavy blunt weapon, the sword will break.

Fortunately, equipment maintenance supplies were better than expected.

-Thump!

-Sudden…sudden…

He brought a bucket of water and a whetstone and slowly began to sharpen the blade of his longsword.

After spending quite some time sharpening the blade, it became very sharp.

-Sreung…

No matter how low-quality a sword is, if you put in the time and effort to sharpen it, it can become a usable weapon.

However, since it uses cheap iron, the blade wears out quickly even with just a little use, but it’s not bad for using it once in this match.

“Hoo…”

I put away the items I had used and looked at the scenery outside the iron bars.

The stadium, covered in rough, dry dirt, was exactly as I had imagined.

.

.

.

Time passed quickly and it was afternoon, and the Colosseum’s stands were filled with a large crowd of spectators.

As the host came out and began to present, the atmosphere in the Colosseum heated up with the enthusiasm and noise of the audience.

Finally, the first match of the day has begun.

The first match was a duel between a hungry bear and a seemingly inexperienced gladiator.

-Wow!

The bear in the cage was drooling as it looked at the cowering gladiator, and the audience was screaming in anticipation of what was about to happen.

-From now on, the match between our Caracalla Arena’s mascot, ‘Teddy’, and the gladiator Sven will begin!

-Clang!

With the announcer’s shout, the cage door made of iron bars opened, and a huge bear named Teddy slowly came out of the cage.

-Krrrr…

-Kooong! Thump!

Teddy, who seemed to weigh a lot as he was so big, made the ground shake with every step he took.

-Clang!

The gladiator, armed only with a single polearm and a small wooden shield, stood on both feet and took a stance facing the bear that was gazing down at him.

-Kueueung!

-Koo-kung! Koo-kung!

-Whaaah! Kill me!

As Teddy began to lunge at the gladiator with his heavy body, accompanied by a loud cry, the excited cheers of the audience filled the Colosseum.

-Bang!

-Kuaaaak!

The moment Theda slammed his heavy body into the gladiator, he fell to the ground screaming without even being able to swing his sword properly.

-Kill him! Kill him!

-Gyaaaah!

As the bear drools at the gladiator who is unable to get up from the ground and groans in pain, a mixture of pitiful screams and excited shouts can be heard from the audience.

-Crack! Crack!

-Ahhh! Aahhh!

-Wow!!

Eventually, the horrifying screams of the gladiator who was being eaten alive by a bear and the excited cheers of the crowd echoed throughout the Colosseum.

The gladiator tried to get the bear off by swinging his fists and sword and hitting its head, but the bear continued to gnaw at his body as if it was ticklish.

-Ahh! Sadly for Sven, but fortunately we won’t have to feed Teddy today! Teddy’s food costs are no joke, it’s breaking my back, so that’s a relief!

-Hahahaha!

The audience burst into laughter as the MC mocked him.

-Thud…!Thud!

Soon, the gladiator’s body stopped moving, and Teddy began to devour the gladiator’s body, bones and all.

“That’s terrible.”

If I were to be defeated by that bear or any other hungry beast, I would meet a terrible end like that.

After Teddy finished devouring the gladiator’s body, Colosseum workers entered the arena, put the bear back in its cage, and began cleaning the arena floor.

-Bam!

As I was gathering my thoughts while looking at the bitter sight, the door suddenly opened.

“Hey, Irion! It’s your turn next time, get ready and come out right away. ”