episode_0049

Puhahak -!

“..!”

Then, by chance, she saw it. A sharp sword piercing through Lian’s abdomen, ruthlessly cleaving his upper body.

Iris lost her composure and immediately tried to rush into the armory. If she hadn’t heard “that sound,” she would have done so.

“Monster… monster!”

The terrified slave stopped as if Iris’s feet were bound by shackles at the same time as someone screamed “monster.”

Ziiing-.

A ringing in her ears and her vision turned white.

This exceptional specimen is truly unprecedented; there seems to be no other monster like it!

Go away, if I’m with a monster like you, I’ll end up dead too!

H-how are you still alive? Go away! Don’t come near me! M-monster!

Monster!

Monster!

Monster!

A voice, whether female or male, child or adult, constantly echoed in her mind.

You are alone in this world.

You cannot be saved by anyone.

You are a monster – a monster.

You’re just using Lian, aren’t you?

You just don’t want to die.

You’re not worthy of wielding a sword.

You are you are you are…

Iris was now huddled, gasping for breath. She regained her senses amidst the squeaking noise, due to the stronger scent of blood than before.

“Ah…”

Iris raised her dazed face. At the end of her gaze, she saw Lian, covered in blood, walking somewhere. Trembling, Iris gathered her strength and barely got up.

Iris knew how to suppress her presence to survive. It wasn’t enough to dominate the strong, but it was enough to avoid the gaze of frightened slaves.

Seeing Lian enter a slave’s room and then emerge looking neat, Iris stood frozen in shock, her mouth agape.

“Since when..?”

Next to Lian, it was always calm and warm. As if all the cruel experiences she had endured until now were just a dream.

Since the moment she gained memory, Iris had been treated like a toy in a cruel world, and Lian was the first sanctuary she had ever known.

Like any other child, Iris thought Lian’s embrace was the safest place in the world without any problems. But that was a foolish thought.

The affectionate embrace always concealed injuries she didn’t know about, hiding the traces of her pain too familiarly.

Iris looked at Lian with a blank face, then fled to her room as Lian approached.

And now.

Iris kept recalling the scene she had seen a while ago.

“I… I can’t do anything.”

I am nothing.

I am a monster.

I am useless.

Iris accepted these words as if they were natural, lacking the mental strength to deny the fact.

“Iris, there’s a really scary friend at Bianca’s house, you know? It bites like this. But since that friend doesn’t wear a muzzle, you might get bitten if you go. So…”

Iris quietly asked Lian’s words.

“How… did you know?”

“Huh?”

“How… did you know it bites?”

How did he know there is something tearing at Bianca’s house, and how could he say I might get bitten? It was a fact that one couldn’t know unless they had been bitten.

“Oh, that’s…”

Mumbling, Iris changed the subject.

“Why… were you late today?”

Iris’s trembling gaze turned to Lian’s face. For a moment, confusion crossed Lian’s face. It was a fleeting emotion, but Iris didn’t miss it.

“On the way up, I greeted other gladiators who were neighbors. You know, the other gladiator who visited before Bianca came.”

Lian talked on and on, leaving out the fact that she was badly injured and covered in blood, or that her clothes were a mess and she had changed into new ones.

Iris clenched her fists tightly, tears welling up at the edge of her throat.

Fear of losing her sanctuary, helplessness at being unable to do anything, and resentment towards Lian, who only hid everything.

All sorts of emotions stirred in Iris’s mind. In the end, she chose to escape from the confusion of not knowing what to do.

“Are you… okay?”

“Huh? Of course, I’m fine.”

In response to Lian’s answer, Iris nodded her head like a blind child. Her judgment didn’t matter. If Lian said she was okay, then she was. That was her way of escaping.

***

Whether it was because I persuaded her well or not, Iris’s mood returned to normal after that. She just spoke less than before. Of course, she would answer promptly if I asked a question or started a conversation, but she rarely initiated one herself.

“Isn’t it more comfortable living here than you thought?”

I had become accustomed to life in the arena without realizing it. There weren’t many matches because there were so many slaves. In my spare time, I lounged around or ate something delicious.

The other gladiator slaves seemed to be busy training, so they glanced around. Since I didn’t need to do that, I lay on the bed with a knife stuck in my thigh.

At first, I stuck it in my stomach… but before long, the cursed sword begged to be removed with a look of disgust. As the time it was stuck increased, my organs seemed to make a sound.

In the meantime, Iris also fought in two matches. With skillful moves, she easily defeated her opponents. From what I heard through the informant, it seemed that only overwhelming monsters were matched to raise the price of the body.

After spending a few leisurely days, a new match was scheduled.

“If you don’t want to die, you have to work hard,” Juisuin said with a meaningful smile. Not knowing what it meant, I shook my head and silently called for Gargandoa.

Then blood spurted from the back of my hand. The beautiful lines of blood, as if controlling water by magic, gathered in my hand.

As the crimson silhouette clenched in my hand, the blood flowed down like water, revealing the appearance of the demon sword.

Thinking back to when it transformed from a lump of debt into a demon sword, I realized that its appearance had become quite splendid.

“Hmph, this is it. Admire the great me! Look at me with a more fearful gaze!”

Gargandoa… seemed to be a bit of an attention seeker. His serious demeanor had disappeared long ago.

“It’s noisy, but this side seems better.”

It was more fun to discuss how to make a cooler entrance than to talk nonsense about holding a festival of blood.

Srrung.

The demon sword had transformed into a flashy game item-like appearance. With each slight movement, the crimson glow emanating from the black blade was so beautiful that it elicited admiration.

“Hmm, if I gain more power, I should also make clothes for my partner.”

While discussing how to make a cooler entrance, the excited demon sword suddenly started calling me its partner. Whether it was a contractor or a partner, it seemed that “partner” was a more familiar meaning to the demon sword.

“Clothes? Why?”

“It won’t look cool!”

Certainly, compared to the demon sword, the clothes I was wearing were rather plain.

“If you make strange designs, they won’t give us dinner.”

“Haha, the aesthetic ability of this Gargandoa is undeniably ‘the strongest’.”

Where did he learn such words? I thought while looking at the iron bars rising with a clanking sound.

“This time, it’s a battle between gladiators!”

“…?”

I thought I would fight the demon as usual, but it seemed like it wasn’t the case. Instead of walking into the arena, I looked up at the announcer. After rambling on about nonsense, the announcer finally mentioned the name of the person I had to face.

” -… The genius among geniuses who left countless achievements! Bianca!”

“Screaaam!”

“Yeeeaahh!”

“Squeak -.”

“Wooohhh!”

The cheers reverberated through the arena like the ground was shaking. I scratched my head with the dark sword in hand.

‘Ugh, it’s uncomfortable when you know the person…’

Thinking that, I looked towards the newly opened iron bars. Bianca was swaying her hips as if emphasizing her figure as she walked into the arena. She definitely looked better than the last time I saw her.

‘Thankfully, she seems to be doing better.’

Thinking so, I smiled at Bianca with joy. As Bianca confidently walked into the arena, our eyes met, and she abruptly stopped.

‘Huh? Did Bianca not know either?’

If she came out for the match not knowing who her opponent was, it was understandable that she would be surprised. Just as I was about to wave in solidarity, Bianca seemed to hesitate and stepped back.

***

“C-Crazy… W-Why is that monster here?”

Bianca’s face turned pale as she began to tremble.

“It was supposed to be a simple match!”