Clang! Clang!

I couldn't believe it.

"Ugh! You're tougher than I thought! I thought you were just some nobody because of that weird helmet you were wearing!!"

Clang!

Without even knowing how, I ended up winning the match.

His left-handed slash came at me, sharp and deadly.

Without a doubt, I should have been sliced in half.

“Hup!”

But instead, I spun my body, twisting around smoothly like water, swinging my sword behind my back to block his attack.

Maintaining that rotational force, I swung my sword toward the dual-wielding killer.

Clang!

“Aaaagh!!”

Incredibly, the killer who blocked my sword was unable to withstand the force and was sent flying, crashing dozens of meters away.

“Huff, huff.”

I stared blankly at the tip of my sword that I had swung forward.

Though I was gasping for air, the tip of the sword did not waver at all.

‘How did I?’

Dozens of exchanges had passed.

The killer’s eyes gleamed with a deadly glint as he wielded his dual scimitars, launching a constantly shifting barrage of attacks.

But I had blocked that entire storm of slashes with a single sword.

And I even counterattacked smoothly in the end.

And then that mysterious voice echoed in my head once more.

‘Don't give your opponent time to recover. Close the gap immediately.’

No sooner had the voice finished speaking than my body moved instinctively, kicking off the ground and flying forward.

“W-Waahhh!!”

The killer, still dazed and lying in the dirt, saw me suddenly close the gap and screamed in panic.

I maintained my speed and swung my sword again.

Whoosh!

The sound of my blade slicing through the air rang out, like the sharp cry of a bird.

“Heeek!”

My sword clashed with the two scimitars the killer had crossed in front of him.

Claaang—!

A deafening noise.

The ear-piercing clash soon turned into the sound of shattering as the cheers of the arena’s audience drowned it out.

Thud, clatter.

Amazingly, the two scimitars that had blocked my sword shattered to pieces, falling to the ground.

Then, I held my sword to my opponent’s throat, halting his movement completely.

[ T-The winner is the gladiator from the west—!! Unbelievable! Azrol from the east has been brutally defeated!! He couldn’t even touch his opponent’s cloak!! Oh, this is incredible!! ]

Without understanding how, I ended up winning the match.

The commentator’s excited voice echoed in my ears, as if he were shouting right beside me.

I wasn’t sure how, but the voice of the commentator in the center of the audience was crystal clear.

“Damn it!! Kill him!! I bet my whole paycheck on that bastard!!”

“I won’t even have enough money for drinks!! Hey, west side!! Kill that guy!!”

“It’s the underdog victory!! Damn it, I knew it!! Hooray for the helmeted nobleman!!”

The voices erupting from the audience were a mixture of joy and fury.

Some people were so delighted by my victory that their faces turned red.

Others yelled in frustration, blaming Azrol for his loss.

And standing at the center of all this heated attention, I—

“Huff, huff…”

—simply stood there, bewildered, staring at my sword.

‘How did I even manage that?’

After the match ended, I returned to the waiting room.

But something was different from before.

This time, the servant of the man who owned me was excited by my victory and had brought various fruits, alcohol, cold water, and towels for me to clean myself with.

I soaked a towel in the cold water and wiped down my sweat-soaked body.

Then I draped the towel over my still-heated head and stared blankly at the floor.

The sensation from just a moment ago still lingered in my hands.

‘Is this… the memory of this body?’

The unknown man I had suddenly possessed.

Apparently, he was some sort of criminal, a wanted man, and, from what I could tell, he was extraordinarily skilled.

There was no other way to explain what had just happened.

‘My body moved far too naturally.’

This was my first time holding a sword.

In my life in South Korea, I had never even practiced taekwondo, let alone wielded a sword.

It was my first time almost being killed by someone, and it was also my first time holding someone else’s life in my hands.

Yet, despite all these intense, first-time experiences happening at once—

My heart remained cold.

My body was hot, but my head was clear, and my heart was beating calmly.

But…

‘What is this… feeling?’

It felt as though there was a hole somewhere inside my cold heart, an emptiness.

I thought perhaps it was hunger, so I grabbed some of the fruit that the servant had brought and took a handful, but—

I realized that this emptiness wasn't hunger.

So I just sat there in the waiting room, lost in thought.

“Number 3702.”

My number was called out from the hallway again.

Startled by the sudden call, I quickly grabbed the helmet next to me and pulled it over my head.

Soon, the guard who had dragged me to the arena before approached the bars.

“It’s an event match. You’ve been selected to participate. Get ready to come out.”

“Huh, what? I-I thought the match was over!”

“It means the matches aren’t over yet. Quit complaining and get out here!”

Clang!

The guard struck the iron bars sharply with his baton, perhaps to make sure I didn’t resist.

And once again, I was dragged off to the arena.

[ This will be the final match of today! Uh… it wasn't originally scheduled, but… ]

The crowd, apparently never tiring, still hadn’t calmed down.

[ At the request of none other than the owner of this place, Lord Eorite! An event match has been arranged, with double the stakes! Those who guess the winner correctly will receive double the payout! ]

The commentator’s announcement elicited cheers from the audience.

“Hooray for Lord Eorite!!”

“Damn, double the stakes! I’m putting my entire fortune on the line!!”

“Come on, Credos!! I’m counting on you!!”

It was truly a scene of madness.

But my gaze was drawn not to the crazed gamblers but to a woman seated in the VIP section above them.

There was no particular reason for me to stare at her.

She just happened to be watching me with an enigmatic smile.

‘…Who is she?’

Even from a distance, I could see she wore a fancy, expensive-looking dress.

I couldn’t tell her age due to the distance, but—

Even in such a noisy place, her gaze remained fixed solely on me.

It gave me a strange feeling.

[ Now, let’s introduce the contestant from the East! He’s the champion of the East, known by everyone as… ‘The Crusher,’ Credos!! ]

‘…Crusher?’

As soon as the commentator finished, a drumbeat began to pound heavily.

Then, from the entrance on the opposite side of the arena, where the killer had stood earlier—

A dark figure approached.

And when I finally saw him up close, my jaw dropped.

“Uwooooooo!!!”

The roar of the three-meter giant.

In response, the audience in the stands shouted in madness.

“Credos!! Crush that fool in the weird helmet!!”

“I’m counting on you!! Champion!!”

“Don’t be scared!! Masked noble!! You can do it!! Show me an underdog miracle!!”

It was a chilling scene—everyone throwing their full passion into witnessing a bloody, brutal battle.

Amid the surging madness, my body began to tremble with tension once again.

‘How can I win against that?!’

My opponent wasn’t another gladiator.

He was a monster.

No different from the creatures that appeared in the game.

The giant known as Credos proudly flexed biceps that were twice the size of my head and picked up a massive hammer.

The sword in my hand might as well have been a toothpick compared to that hammer.

[ Now! Introducing the rookie who put on an incredible performance in the first match! Nicknamed ‘Odd Helmet,’ it’s Peasant! Will he be able to survive against Credos in this event match?! ]

The commentator didn’t even bother to ask if I could win.

After all, my opponent wasn’t even human—he was a gigantic monster, the reigning champion of this deadly battle arena.

It seemed this match was simply a bet on whether or not Credos would smash my head in or whether I would manage to survive.

“Don’t run away!! Show him you’re different from the others!! Peasant!!”

“Don’t listen to that nonsense!! Run, you idiot!! Run a hundred laps around the arena if you have to, just survive!!”

“Is this idiot trying to turn an event match into a game of tag?!”

“Damn it, I bet my whole fortune!! Credos, I’m counting on you!! Bring me luck once again!!”

No one in the arena expected me to defeat that monster.

All they hoped for was survival.

That was when I realized what they expected of me.

They wanted a pathetic, gruesome story of me bawling and sobbing, crawling desperately across the ground, even with severed limbs, all in a desperate bid to survive.

That’s what they enjoyed.

And sadly—

“Damn it… Damn it, damn it, damn it…”

The story they were expecting would likely become my future.

[ Now, let the final match of the day… the event match, begin!! ]

Bwoooooooo!!

The second trumpet I’d heard that day signaled the beginning of the match, and the crowd’s cheers drowned out the sound.

The gigantic monster began walking towards me, his steps shaking the ground.

“Heh heh, what’s wrong? Little friend. If you want to live… you’d better run!!”

Thud, thud, thud, thud!!

He had started off approaching leisurely, but seeing me frozen in fear seemed to irk him, and he began charging toward me threateningly.

With his height, his strides were massive, and in an instant, he was right in front of me.

As his overwhelming figure approached, I felt like a mere child compared to him.

“H-Hiiiii!!”

Finally, I snapped out of it and turned to run away.

But—

‘…Don’t.’

The voice rang out again in my head.

‘Don’t run away. Running from a fight means admitting defeat.’

It was a calm, indifferent man’s voice—one I’d never heard before.

But because of that voice, my body moved against my will.

I stopped my fleeing legs, stood tall, and gripped my sword tightly.

‘But still…’

Thud, thud, thud, thud!

“Hahahaha!! Have you realized you’re about to die, and you’re just giving up everything?! How wise of you!!”

‘But this isn’t right!’

No matter how that voice in my head had led me to victory in the previous match, I couldn’t imagine defeating that monster.

So I was left standing there stupidly, awaiting death.

All that monster had to do was come closer and smash me into pieces with his massive hammer.

That would be my end.

If not for the voice in my head, I could at least try to run.

“Hey!! What are you doing, idiot?! Run!!”

“Yeah!! Running is futile! Credos will just get more vicious the longer you run!!”

“Damn it, damn it!! My money!! My money, you bastard!!”

But my body wasn’t listening to me.

It was as if the voice had carved its command into my muscles, making me stand my ground confidently.

Then, as the hammer-wielding executioner approached—

“Die!! Let’s finish this quickly so I can go eat!!”

Whoooom!!

The hammer roared like an animal as it cut through the air, blocking out the sun and casting a shadow over me.

‘Ah, so this is how I die.’

With that thought, I calmly closed my eyes.

And then.

My arm moved against my will, driven by something else—

Blocking that hammer.

━Claang!!

With just one hand, I raised my sword to stop it.

“…Huh?”

“What, what is this?!”

[ Aaaah━!! He, he blocked it!! He blocked Credos’ Crushing Hammer!! The rookie gladiator has blocked it with just one arm!! ]

““Wooooo━!!!””

Everyone was stunned.

The monster who swung the hammer, the commentator narrating the match, the spectators watching—

And even myself, the one who blocked the hammer.

“How… how am I even blocking this?”

“Are you mocking me—?!”

No way.

It was a mutter born of disbelief.

But Credos took it as a taunt and pressed down harder with his hammer.

But my arm didn’t budge an inch.

‘This… how is this real…’

It didn’t make any sense.

It wasn’t a situation that could be understood rationally.

Not at all.

The hammer he pressed down on me was so light it was almost laughable.

“Grr, grrrrr!! You little rat!!”

Credos pushed down with all his strength, the ground beneath his feet beginning to break apart.

He was easily three meters tall.

A massive frame that dwarfed mine, covered in bulging, bodybuilder-like muscles.

A monster, in every sense of the word.

But the hammer that such a monster swung down with all his weight and strength wasn’t heavy to me at all…

“Arghhhh!!!”

Unable to bear being overpowered by someone half his size, Credos screamed in rage.

Bang, bang, bang, bang!!

He swung the hammer down repeatedly.

“Grr!!”

My body, once again moving instinctively, deflected every blow with my sword.

“You want to try me—?!”

The more I blocked, the fiercer Credos became, his hammer flying faster and heavier each time.

[ A-Amazing!! The western gladiator Peasant!! Once again, he’s deflecting all of Credos’ attacks without difficulty!! This is unbelievable!! The champion—!! Could he fail to take down this rookie and lose the match?! ]

Every time the hammer struck my sword, cheers and jeers erupted from the audience.

No matter how the people watching reacted—

“Hraaaagh!!”

Credos swung his enormous hammer more violently than ever.

“Grr!!”

And I blocked each blow, falling into an almost trance-like state.

‘If I just keep holding out like this…’

I could do it.

I could survive.

Death seemed to inch away from me.

If I could just last until time ran out, then this damned match would end, and I could return to the waiting room.

Then—

I’d get another chance to escape━

━Crack.

“…Huh?”

That was when a foreboding sound of something breaking came from in front of me.

“Hraaaagh!!”

And as Credos swung his hammer down again.

Claang!!

As I blocked his hammer with my sword again—

“…Wha—?!”

Crack, shatter—!!

The blade split in two and shattered.

[ Aaaaah━!! T-The sword broke! Peasant! Though he matched Credos’ strength and blocked all his attacks—!! The sword! The sword couldn’t withstand the power any longer!! ]

In slow motion, the broken halves of the blade seemed to hang in the air, fragments floating between them.

It was as if time had stopped around me.

As I looked at my broken sword, one thought came to mind…

‘I’m screwed.’

Just when hope of survival seemed within reach—

Now, I didn’t even have a sword to block that hammer.

Should I run?

But if I get caught?

Could I block that hammer without a sword?

Could I avoid all the attacks?

Ah, I’m going to die now.

I could struggle, but I would die in the end.

As all those thoughts flashed through my mind—

‘━━’

Some kind of incomprehensible voice passed through my head.

And my hand—

Moved once again on its own.

Throwing away the broken sword, I extended my empty hand toward Credos.

‘What… what am I trying to do?!’

As my vision slowly panned across the scene, I couldn’t understand what my body was intending to do.

And then.

‘…Create.’

Before I knew it, I was muttering something, like casting a spell in my heart.

━Rapid Creation.

Suddenly, information flooded my mind.

Numerous categories appeared in a virtual space in my head.

They were all—

Weapons that I had seen somewhere, at least once. Weapons that seemed strangely familiar.

And like drawing a sword from its scabbard—

I chose one from the contents of that category.

And then—

━Slash!!

Thud….

“Ugh… guh.”

Before I knew it, I had moved behind Credos, all the way to the eastern entrance where he had first appeared.

My feet had already landed on the ground.

In my hand was a massive iron greatsword.

At the same time—

Credos let out a short groan and collapsed to his knees.

Please support the series on NovelUpdates

Read Here for premium chapters