<Aaron Side Story Episode 9>
2. Swords waiting to be drawn (3)
No effort, no effort.
neither learned nor learned.
I did it because I could.
“Don’t joke… … mind.”
said Lars in a dazed voice.
That emotion soon turned to anger.
“Be honest about this! You tried! enough to bleed! much more than me! You earned it by reducing your sleep at night! Admit it!”
Lars’ eyes reddened.
An unknown emotion welled up inside him.
“Are you still lying? I have no intention of fighting. you guys won! I will die here! Wouldn’t it be nice to leave one for the losers though? That I tried harder than you, and this is just the result… … Just that one fact!”
“… … .”
“Admit it! admit it admit it! I tried… … That’s why I became so strong… … admit it! You son of a bitch!”
The man was silent.
Despite Lars’ cry to admit it, he remained silent.
‘What is that guy?’
Are you still cheating on me?
I conceded.
I acknowledged you
If it’s you, I’m admitting that you’re a lumber that could become a ‘special’ gladiator in that legend!
In your efforts to cut that bone,
Even so, in the elaborateness that hides power,
I was impressed and recognized you!
‘Didn’t you try something like that?’
Do not be ridiculous.
Don’t be funny!
Traces of time flashed through Lars’ mind like a kaleidoscope.
He was gifted with brute strength, but he was not lazy.
He did anything to survive and prove himself.
In the morning, I ran on the playground, lifted weights, and did squats. until you’re covered in sweat. until exhaustion sets in.
In the afternoon, he wielded an ax and polished his weapon skills.
There were several layers of torn and hardened flesh on his thick, thick palms.
Tried.
Even if I wanted to eat, I held back.
I endured even if I wanted to sleep.
So that means it’s stronger.
So that strength was his pride.
But what about him?
are denying
Trying to ruin your whole life.
“I’m sorry.”
“… … .”
“I don’t lie.”
said the man
“So, was it like that from the beginning?”
Power went into the hand holding the ax of Lars.
“Did you find out as soon as you grabbed the weapon? I can use this weapon freely. No training required. huh? You don’t even know what shedding is? Using technology that is several times superior to that? Was it like that from the beginning? Were you able to use a sword from the start?”
“Yes.”
The man answered without hesitation.
“From the moment I first grabbed the sword, I was able to do it.”
“Fuck… … Fuck you. Fuck you all.”
“I apologize if my words hurt you.”
“Don’t fuck! You bastard!”
I will kill you.
I can’t stand it.
It is unacceptable that such a being exists in this world.
“Get lost!”
A blow mixed with emotion.
The man threw it out casually.
Lars’ muscles began to stir again.
The ax blade rotated violently.
Kang! Cagan!
The crowd cheered as the battle ensued.
The conversation between the two could not be heard.
“yes!”
“Finish it!”
In winning, gambling is bound to open.
Most spectators were betting on Lars’ victory.
I enjoyed the battle as much as I enjoyed it.
Now was the time to get drunk on the stakes and the blood.
A bloody man and a giant with a double-edged axe.
Flashes of blue flashed whenever the two of them blended together as if dancing.
The audience could not take their eyes off the final flame.
‘… … You’re strong.’
the man thought
The man in front of him was the best fighter he had ever faced.
He was not conceited just because he was born with strength, and through constant training, he strengthened his strengths and overcame his weaknesses.
“OMG! Aww!”
The man screamed and brandished his axe.
Emotions mixed too much.
The attack tinged with rage has grown in motion and is less sharp than before.
‘… … .’
Is that man crying?
What makes that giant howl?
‘You and I are slaves anyway.’
The man laughed bitterly.
It was time to end the skit.
The worn-out iron sword slowly drew a circle.
I have never learned or learned.
But the man could.
because I was born that way.
“die!”
The man howled and brandished an axe.
The sword that was drawing a circle instantly sprayed a cool trail.
spam.
“Quaaaaagh!”
push shot.
push shot.
The man’s severed right arm soared into the sky.
The double-edged ax he was holding sank into the sand, and blood rained down on it.
“Wow!”
The crowd cheered anyway.
Because I saw blood.
“Ouch! Aaaagh!”
Lars rolled on the sand, clutching at the severed part.
Every time he rolled, the sand turned red.
If it was that man, he would be able to overcome the pain of having his arm cut off.
However, the shattered heart clouded the man’s determination.
My heart broke before my body.
“Did you say Lars lost to him?”
“What do you know! Lose it! A piece of trash!”
“Kill! Cut your throat!”
Whoa.
The man took a deep breath.
It is not you who decides the life or death of that man.
His gaze turned to the center of the crowd.
There was a guy there.
A throne adorned with gold and various jewels.
There the king of this city sits and watches the game.
He called himself king, and because he killed all those who did not call, the hundred nobles called him king.
pale skin.
horns on the forehead.
He looked like a human, but he wasn’t human.
hundred nobles.
A race that dominates all of Niflheim.
Among them, that guy called himself the King of the Hundred Nobles.
Befitting his title, he wore a splendid mantle and a crown.
“Kill! kill! Kill!”
The audience chanted as one.
They also look like humans, but they are not.
It was a beast in human clothing.
It is to watch those beasts imitate humans and laugh and chatter as humans kill each other.
Swoop.
A hundred aristocrats, called kings, raised their hands.
The gladiator who loses the match is either alive or dead depending on the king’s will.
However, there were some probabilistic laws.
The fiercer the match.
The more colorful it is.
The loser is less likely to die.
The man’s gaze turned to the king.
A battle between high-ranking gladiators.
A splendid match was staged.
The burst of cheers from the crowd proved that fact.
And the losers have their arms cut off.
It’s like being punished for what you’ve already lost.
“… … .”
The king gave a thumbs up.
It was a sign of death.
‘is it.’
I’ve done this, but I’m not saving it.
The man closed his eyes.
“damn… … damn… … Shit!”
The loser groaned.
Realizing his fate, Lars spat out a curse.
“I’m sorry.”
don’t let the pain go away
The sword light flashed.
Immediately after, the light disappeared from Lars’ eyes.
dump.
The man lay down on the sandy bottom.
A puddle of blood flowed out.
It was over with this.
“The winner of this main event… … cotton! I am a high-ranking gladiator, Nameless!”
The human moderator shouted.
“Blessings to the winners! Death to the losers!”
“Wow!”
“Then let me introduce you to the next match. The next match… … !”
Their cheers meant nothing to the man.
He splattered the blood on the blade and entered the waiting room.
That’s how the twelfth match of the senior gladiator nameless ended.
Anonymous.
The fact that he has no name has become his name, and he has not named himself since he was born.
There was a name given by a slave trader, but I ignored it.
He remained silent when his peers gave themselves their first and last names, claiming they were given to them by their parents.
I don’t need anything like a name.
After all, he was sold as a gladiator slave at a very young age, and he didn’t want to know about his family, and he didn’t want to know about it.
His name was thus cemented into obscurity.
The more unique the title of gladiator was, the more it stood out, so it wasn’t meaningless.
“after.”
after the game is over.
The place he found was a training ground attached to an arena.
Not for training, of course.
I just needed a place where there were no people.
“… … .”
The wounds from the last game were throbbing.
However, it was not even a fatal wound from the beginning.
He sat on a sandy hill.
“Cluck.”
Laughter mixed with coughing and groaning.
“Aren’t you going to join the party?”
“Is it you?”
“An opportunity like this is rare. If you don’t enjoy it now, it will be difficult next time even if you want to.”
A stooped old man stood in front of the man.
The age spots and wrinkles on his face made it difficult to guess his exact age.
The old man laughed, a scrawny figure with leather sticking to his bones.
“Aren’t you the key to this party? Showdowns between high-level gladiators are rare.”
“What do you mean?”
The current time is evening.
A buzzing noise is heard from somewhere.
A party is being held inside the arena.
A party for gladiators who survived purely through victories. Winners can enjoy many conveniences and pleasures that they have not normally tasted.
“Cluck. It’s still the same.”
“Give me something.”
Ting.
The gold coin the man was holding in his hand bounced off.
Rewards for this game.
After snatching it up, the old man pulled something out of his bosom.
It was an old bundle of books.
“It was difficult to find. You won’t regret it.”
chin.
He piled the books he had handed over next to his seat.
Then he took out the top book and checked its condition.
‘Not bad.’
Old but readable.
As the old man assured, the books were in good condition.
“This is a tip.”
A second coin went into the old man’s hand.
Second gold coin.
All the money he earned from dealing with the high-ranking gladiator, Lars, was lost to that old man.
The man was not obsessed with money or anything like that.
“Thank you for this.”
The old man smiled and hid the gold coin.
‘It’s quiet.’
Moonlight pours from the sky-pierced ceiling.
It was bright enough.
The man lit the moonlight and turned the first page of an anonymous book.
Previously… … .
“What are you doing? The business is over.”
The old man did not disappear.
“It reminds me of the old days too.”
“reminiscence?”
“Isn’t it really unfortunate? The fact that such a treasure in the world would become a mere gladiator and rot.”
he closed the book
It wasn’t often that the old man spoke up.
In the past, it was said that the old man was a special gladiator.
Express.
The best gladiator title you can get by winning 30 battles or more.
Since the opening of the arena, only one person has received that title.
‘Is that the old man?’
Anyway, the old man was a low-level manager of the arena.
No matter how much merit he accumulated, there was no way that a hundred nobles would give humans undeserved status.
“Aren’t you a gladiator?”
“no.”
“hmm?”
“My status as a gladiator came after I lost all honor and declined.”
The old man’s eyes turned to the past.
10 years ago.
20 years ago.
Beyond 30 or 40 years, to the more distant past.
To the time when humans, not the hundred nobles, ruled the world.
“I was a knight. Did you hear?”
“I do not know.”
The old man said in a reminiscent voice.
“Revere chivalry, follow honor, protect the weak, and be loyal to your master… … It is such a job.”
“… … .”
“It was truly a noble, human era.”
The man snorted.
“Because you’re so noble, did you lose to the hundred nobles?”
“I won’t make excuses. It’s our fault that you ended up like this.”
The old man’s wrinkled eyes turned to the man.
“It’s a pity. I’m sorry.”
“… … .”
“Even if you were born 100 years, no, 50 years earlier.”
The old man groaned.
“Is this also a divine punishment from the twin goddesses?”
“What are you talking about?”
“I’m sorry. It’s the grumbling of an old man. Anyway, let’s not disturb your time anymore. Enjoy it slowly.”
trudge.
The old man left his seat.
The man who was left alone turned his gaze back to the book.
‘It’s a book.’
It was a fleeting whim that he bought the book from the old man.
I didn’t know what to do with my free time.
The other gladiators seem to be preparing for the competition by training, but he didn’t feel the need.
I couldn’t find a reason to become stronger.
So while I was looking for various things to pass the time, I came to know the medium of books.
A bundle of papers on which past history or fictional stories are written.
He happened to learn to read as a child, so he could read and write.
Therefore, he gave a gold coin to the old man who brought in things from the outside and asked for it.
‘That old man, did he talk so much?’
I learned a new fact.
He took out the top book and opened it.
There is no particular purpose.
It was just mind blowing.
“… … .”
He read from the first chapter of the book.
<The distant past.>
<A time of chaos and darkness, when monsters ate humans, humans couldn’t trust each other, and nature became a catastrophe and harmed humans endlessly.>
<There was one king and two heroes>
<The king loved humans, and was angry at the monsters and disasters that hurt them.>
<The king had two blades to cut through fate.>
<A noble knight who venerates honor, Reed,>
<It was Gion, an undefeated warrior who worshiped power.>
