Gory Warning: This chapter contains scenes involving bloodshed and Violence.
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I entered the battlefield labyrinth as soon as I jumped inside the gate.
And before I could even catch my breath, I heard two thuds,
—Thud!
—Thud!
As I turned to face the sounds, I discovered that two more combatants had landed directly alongside me.
We three looked at one another, puzzled as to how the hell this had happened.
Luck didn't seem to be on our side, as nobody wanted to start a fight as soon as they were on the battlefield, and without a weapon at that.
*Gulp One of the gladiators gulped loudly, his brow sweaty, while the other hurried in a certain way.
I assumed he was escaping, but when I looked in his direction, I noticed a weapon grounded not far from him.
And before he could grab the weapon, I rushed toward it, encircling myself with electricity, and seized it.
I examined the weapon and discovered it to be a spiked hammer.
Then I turned to confront the man who was ready to pick up the weapon, his body still bowed toward the ground since I had arrived in front of him too quickly for him to realize.
The man slowly raised his eyes, puzzled, and whispered something,
"HELL NO-"
I whacked his head with a spiky hammer before he could finish his sentence.
— Splash!
His head was smashed, and he died in an instant, his blood dripping from the hammer I was clutching.
— Drip! Drip!
Then I carefully shifted my focus to the other gladiator, who was so stunned that he fell backward on his buttocks as everything happened in rapid succession.
Because everything happened so quickly, he didn't even have time to flee.
"Please spare me! Please spare me!"
The gladiator yelled as he noticed my focus on him, and as I moved closer, he dragged himself backward while still on the ground, a horrified expression on his face.
I came to a halt right in front of him, while he begged for his life.
"I-I will do anything, p-please, I-I will become your slave-"
—Splash!
He died in the same manner as the other gladiator.
I killed them both, in just a few moments as the game begins, And I honestly don't feel anything even after killing them.
'Does it have anything to do with the fact that they were criminals?' I tried to excuse myself like I always do.
I'll have to grow used to killing because I'm not sure what my future holds.
When the time comes, I may even have to assassinate Previous Ares's brother and stepmother, as they are coming after my life.
To be honest, I'd rather not be bothered by them, but since they already made the first move, they must bear the consequences.
As I was thinking to myself, I heard the Afro commentator's scream.
"The day's first kill goes to "The Prince!!!"
Whoah!!
The stadium was filled with loud cheers.
"Prince!"
"Prince!"
'Are you people delighted?' Is it so entertaining to watch fellows slaughter each other like monsters?'
Hearing their enthusiastic applause for me, I thought to myself...
I then shook my head and proceeded to the door.
"There's just one left in the door ahead of you," Irethiel informed.
I nodded after hearing her, opened the door, and walked forward.
As I passed through the doorway, I noticed a human...or was it a monster? I'm not sure what he was, but he was about the size of a small little goblin with a human face.
"Is he a hybrid?" I asked Irethiel.
"Yes, He appears to be one," Irethiel replied.
What I saw as I looked at him rendered me stunned.
The tiny creature was repeatedly stabbing the gladiator, who appeared to be already dead long ago while laughing frantically.
"Hehehehe - hehehe -"
His laughter resonated in my ears; if an average person had witnessed this, he would have been terrified.
When the goblin-sized creature noticed my presence, he shifted his attention to me. His face was stained with the blood of the gladiator he just killed.
"Hehe - hehe, one more, one more!" He yelled and dashed away from his position.
—Swish! Swish!
He began running in circles around me, yelling, "Catch me if you can, Catch me if you can."
I simply gave him a blank stare...
And soon he rushed at me at full speed, his speed was not too shabby, and I now understand how this tiny creature murdered that huge-built gladiator before I arrived here.
If it had been anyone else—
I was interrupted in my thoughts as he charged in front of me with his bloodied dagger as if to attack me.
—Splash!
I slammed the spiky hammer into his gut as he approached me at his quick speed as if convinced I couldn't keep up with him.
His small corpse was thrown flying at the wall, painting the wall in his blood as he died instantaneously.
So, I was thinking that if it had been someone else, they would have been in big trouble because of his speed.
But that tiny creature was trying to compete in speed with me? Seriously?
I may not be the fastest, but I am proud of my speed, and I do not believe that I will be defeated by a tiny creature.
"Whoah!" Cheers could be heard from the audience once more.
"May you rest in peace, little fella!!!" The Afro Commentator made a statement and proclaimed it.
"The Prince already has "3" kills on his head!!!"
***
"Irethiel, how is the situation around Meira?" I inquired telepathically to Irethiel.
"That dark elf is better than I anticipated; she already killed "2" people, and appears to be fine for the time being, as there isn't anyone near her who appears to be as strong as her," Irethiel reported.
"Okay, which door should I go through next?" I wondered because there were several doors.
"You should go via the right door, since the left one has a trap with deadly arrows that will come at you as soon as you open it," Irethiel explained.
"Hmm," I responded while nodding and moving toward the right door.
I followed Irethiel's advice and proceeded without encountering any traps, and according to Irethiel, the many other gladiators were already fighting each other not far away from me.
So I decided to proceed toward them, but as I doing so, Irethiel cautioned me of the Archer in the distance who may have been aiming at me.
I utilized my Hawkeye skill to examine the spot Irethiel mentioned.
And sure enough, I found her, and she was waiting for me to get into her assault range.
"It appears that the quality of the arrows is poor, else she would have attacked me by now," I muttered to myself.
The truth is that an arrow bends when it is released, and how it flies is determined by the "stiffness" of the arrow shaft or spine.
An arrow that is too light will bend too much, whereas an arrow that is too heavy will not bend enough.
So, to hit the target accurately, you must have well-balanced arrows.
After pondering to myself for a few moments,
I locked my gaze on the woman aiming at me from behind a large boulder three doorways away, the doors appearing to have been left open allowing her to clearly observe her targets.
"SWAP!"
I whispered as I watched her.
***
He couldn't have spotted me from such a distance away, right? While still aiming at Ares with one eye closed, the woman with the bow rationalized her actions as she felt his gaze.
However, as she was aiming at him, Ares disappeared from her sight, and she soon heard a voice coming from behind her.
"Do you see anyone, lady?"
As she hurriedly turned toward the voice, she became bewildered when she discovered the person she was aiming for standing directly behind her.
"H-How?" She asked, terrified, as she stared at Ares as if seeing her doom.
"I guess you'll never know," Ares remarked.
—Splash!
She died with a horrified expression on her face, and the spiky mace Ares was clutching appeared to be shattered.
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