It was not a deep cut.
He could have severed the arm completely, but there was no need. Not much time had passed since the match began. If he ended it already, the guests would not be satisfied.
That would not do. What mattered in this first match was leaving a deep impression on the guests. He also had to leave the same impression on Ebil.
A slave who obeyed his mistress's commands and a gladiator who knew how to drive the guests wild. If he showed her that, Ebil would no longer be able to treat Yuto carelessly. She was the slaves' mistress and the owner of the Colosseum.
“Urgh!”
Gedrick groaned and staggered back. Only the skin of his shoulder had been cut. Blood dripped down with a sharp sting, but the wound would not stop him from moving his arm.
“Y-you......”
The instant Gedrick blurted that out, Yuto twirled the sword in his hand and drove it into the ground. Then he strode several paces back.
“......?”
Gedrick could not quite understand how Yuto had taken his sword or what had happened in the process. It had all occurred in the blink of an eye, and Gedrick's field of vision had been too narrow to grasp it.
But he knew this much. His shoulder had been cut. His wrist had been twisted. His index finger had been broken. Along with that pain, humiliation and rage surged through him. Hadn't Yuto gone to the trouble of taking his sword, only to plant it in the ground instead of swinging it again?
He did not even try to understand why Yuto had done such a thing. His humiliation and rage eclipsed the pain. With a monstrous scream, Gedrick charged forward to pull the sword from the ground.
Yuto let him. Gedrick yanked the planted sword free. The attack he launched after reclaiming it was even simpler and clumsier than his first attack. His wrist had already been twisted once, and his index finger had been broken outright. A sword swung with a hand like that could only follow a hopeless path.
Once again, Yuto made no large movement. He merely took half a step to the side, clearing the path of the blade.
He did not take the sword. Instead, as Gedrick stumbled after his wild swing, Yuto's fist smashed into his cheek.
WHAM! Gedrick's head snapped aside with a dull thud. Blood sprayed from his mouth.
“Guh!”
Gedrick staggered. Yuto did not stop. His hand shot out, seized Gedrick's shoulder, and hauled him forward as his rising knee drove into the solar plexus.
“Ugh......!”
His breath caught, and bile surged up from his stomach. The sword fell from his suddenly limp hand. Gedrick clutched his solar plexus and stumbled backward before belatedly realizing that he had dropped his weapon.
But Yuto did not take the sword. He merely raised his empty hands and backed away several steps. Gedrick's eyes trembled at the sight.
“A-aaargh!”
Gedrick hurriedly grabbed the sword and charged again. Half-mad with pain and rage, he swung it at random. The blade cut nothing but empty air. Yuto did not counterattack. He only dodged.
After swinging so many times, Gedrick inevitably began to pant. Throwing a sword around with all his strength rapidly drained his stamina.
Cheers erupted from the stands. When Yuto had first taken Gedrick's sword and cut him with it, the spectators had murmured among themselves, unable to immediately comprehend what they had witnessed. But the match had now gone on long enough for them to understand, and what they saw was extraordinary.
Feeling the audience's excitement rise, Yuto strode in just after Gedrick made another pathetic swing. WHAM! Yuto's elbow smashed into Gedrick's nose.
“Aaargh!”
Gedrick's nose caved in. Blood poured from his broken nose. Yuto's fist slammed into the staggering man once more. CRACK! The harder blow broke Gedrick's teeth. In an instant, his face became a mangled mask of blood.
“I told you.”
Yuto murmured under his breath. WHAM! His fist snapped Gedrick's jaw upward.
“The sword is wasted on you.”
Gedrick's knees buckled. Before he could fall, Yuto's foot struck his abdomen. Gedrick flew backward and rolled across the ground.
“Waaaaah!”
The Colosseum exploded. An unarmed boy was beating an opponent wielding a real sword senseless. It was completely one-sided domination. The common spectators sprang from their seats and stamped their feet. Even the nobles in the VIP section, who had been idly sipping their wine, now leaned forward and stared down into the Colosseum.
Yuto felt their gazes. Commoner and noble alike, everyone was excited. His goal of leaving a powerful impression was well on its way to being achieved.
‘Not yet.’
This was not enough. Simply overwhelming an opponent would not make him a commodity they wanted to possess. The Colosseum's guests wanted something else.
Blood.
Cruelty.
The savagery befitting a gladiator.
‘I know what the guests in a place like this want.’
Once again, it was a certainty he could not explain. Yuto instinctively knew what made those looking down from above go wild.
“A-aaargh!”
Gedrick struggled up from the ground and swung his sword in one last desperate effort. Yuto easily dodged the blade and snatched Gedrick's wrist.
CRUNCH.
The wrist that had already been twisted once was crushed completely. The sword dropped from Gedrick's hand. Yuto caught it naturally before it struck the ground.
Yuto swept the blade sideways.
—SLICE!
This time, the cut was not shallow. Gedrick's left ankle was severed cleanly.
“A-aaaargh!”
Gedrick screamed and collapsed face-first. Blood gushed from the severed ankle, soaking the floor of the Colosseum.
“Waaaaah!”
Madness boiled through the Colosseum. The spectators cheered like lunatics. They stamped their feet, shouted, and waved both arms. Yuto slowly approached Gedrick, who clutched his severed ankle and writhed on the ground.
He could not even force out the words of surrender. Only animalistic screams spilled from his mouth. Yuto looked down impassively at Gedrick's prone back.
SHNK.
The descending sword pierced the back of Gedrick's right hand. The blade punched through it and sank deep into the dirt beneath. His hand was nailed to the ground by the sword.
“Aaargh!”
Gedrick howled. He could no longer flee or stand. Only then did Yuto look away from him. He slowly turned toward the nobles in the stands.
Yuto raised both arms high toward them. The spectators' cheers grew even louder. No one properly remembered Yuto's name, but that did not matter. A rookie who had dominated his opponent barehanded in his debut and cruelly nailed him down—the powerful image alone branded itself deep into their minds.
With his arms raised, Yuto stoked the audience's cheers still higher. Like a seasoned gladiator, he freely drove the atmosphere in the Colosseum toward a fever pitch.
‘I'm familiar with this too.’
He was used to being adored. That fact stirred a growing question in a corner of his heart.
“I-I surrender...... Surrender, surrender......”
Nailed to the ground, Gedrick stammered through streams of tears.
“Th-the match is over!”
Who could possibly have predicted this outcome? The announcer shouted.
“The winner of today's first match is Yuto!”
The Colosseum boiled over once more. Yuto slowly lowered his raised arms and looked up at the VIP section.
The nobles seated beside Ebil looked down at Yuto with keen interest. Several of them seemed to be asking Ebil something, and though she wore an enigmatic smile, she answered them.
‘Done.’
Yuto muttered inwardly. He had created the picture he wanted in his first match. A slave obedient to his mistress. A gladiator who drove the guests wild. And a commodity that aroused the nobles' interest.
All that remained was to use this impression as a springboard and seize an opportunity to leave the Colosseum. Yuto planted the blood-soaked sword in the ground and returned to the barred gate through which he had entered.
Behind him, Gedrick's sobs and the spectators' cheers continued to mingle and echo.
“Y-you— What are you?”
The moment Yuto returned to the waiting room, Rugil and Gaon crowded around him. Gaon in particular stood with his mouth hanging open and his eyes blazing with excitement as he alternated between staring at Yuto and Gedrick being carried away on a stretcher.
“How the hell did you......? N-no, hey, I'm sorry I cursed you out yesterday. Seriously. I was just trying to act tough, okay? You know what I mean, right?”
Gaon immediately put on a servile smile and watched Yuto's reaction. He was worried that he might end up fighting Yuto in the matches two days from now.
“He won't be advancing to the Middle League in that state. Surely you're not scared of a man missing an ankle?”
Yuto answered with a faint chuckle.
“Did you...... take revenge for me......?”
The word revenge sent a stab of pain through his head. Puzzled by the sensation, Yuto answered.
“It wasn't for anything as grand as revenge. I felt sorry for you.”
“C-can I call you big brother?”
“I don't even know my age. I'm probably younger than you.”
Not knowing one's own age might have seemed strange, but Gaon did not ask further. Among slaves, not knowing one's age was hardly rare.
“There'll be meat with your meal today.”
Rugil swallowed and spoke.
“They might even change your bed. You could be given a weapon too......”
“I-if we end up fighting you next time...... go easy on us. A little cut is fine, but don't chop anything off. Please.”
Yuto shrugged.
The remaining matches proceeded. Gaon and Rugil both fought poorly but somehow won. Gaon hopped about on his limping leg and cheered, but the audience's reaction was lukewarm.
Every match was the same. Yuto's opening fight had raised the audience's expectations too high. After watching a fight like that, the battles between Lower League gladiators felt nothing but dull.
“Once all the Lower League matches are over, do the Middle League matches start?”
“No. The Middle League doesn't fight on the same days as the Lower League.”
Gaon answered while massaging Yuto's shoulders.
“And the Upper League fights once a week.”
“How many gladiators are there?”
“I don't know exactly. Twenty fought today, but there are more Lower League gladiators than that. If you include the Middle and Upper Leagues, wouldn't there be at least a hundred? There are even more if you count the Evomon.”
“We can't watch the Middle League matches, but we can watch the Evomon fights.”
Rugil whispered. Just as he said, the iron gate on the far side of the empty Colosseum began to open. Unlike this waiting room, which was separated from the arena only by bars, the Evomon waiting room was sealed behind a thick iron gate. Beyond it, Evomon were imprisoned in small cages.
The reason was obvious. Evomon were harder to control than humans. By nature, they were a hardier race.
“That's the Mad Fox.”
Rugil whispered.
The Mad Fox.
The mindless Evomon that had supposedly torn its opponent apart and reduced it to an Evostone in its very first match was remarkably small for something with such a vicious record. It stood shorter than a ten-year-old human child, an orange-furred fox standing on two legs. Chains bound its limbs, and a blindfold covered its eyes.
It did not look especially ferocious, but the Evomon grimaced like an enraged beast and breathed heavily. WHOOSH......! Red flames mingled with every breath.
“It's small, but incredibly fast and strong. It can even use fire.”
As Yuto listened to Rugil's whisper.
Yuto stared blankly at the Evomon. His heart pounded wildly, and his head throbbed. The announcer's voice, the spectators' cheers—he heard none of it. Every one of Yuto's senses focused on the Evomon imprisoned in the cage across the arena.
‘What is this......?’
Yuto rose without realizing it. The instant he saw the little fox, something surged from deep inside his chest. It was not anger or hatred. It was an indescribable emotion that felt endlessly warm even as it gouged at his heart.
Longing and sorrow.
‘Why...... does seeing that Evomon make me feel this way?’
Yuto had never seen the Evomon called the Mad Fox before. At least, not as far as he could remember. Even so, his heart raced madly. It felt as though he had finally been reunited with something he had lost long ago.
His throat burned. His nose stung. Without knowing why, Yuto was seized by the urge to cry.
‘Why?’
Yuto clenched his teeth. He felt ready to cry after seeing an Evomon for the first time. He could not begin to understand where this emotion came from. His head ached as though it would split. The very edge of a memory that seemed about to surface, yet never did, was reaching toward the little fox.
‘I know that Evomon.’
He could not remember its name. Nor could he tell when or where they had met. Only a certainty welled from deep in his heart that the Evomon was extraordinarily precious to him.
“Hey, what's wrong with you? Your face......”
Rugil flinched when he saw Yuto's expression. Without answering, Yuto stared fixedly at the Evomon. Breath mixed with red flame, a face twisted with rage, eyes hidden by a blindfold, and iron chains around its limbs.
The sight made Yuto's heart ache.
“Now! Next comes the match you've all been waiting for—the Evomon bout!”
The announcer's booming voice rang throughout the Colosseum. The spectators cheered. Evomon matches were far more stimulating and brutal than human bouts.
“First, allow me to introduce the first Evomon! The Adhesive Predator whose squishy body repels every attack—Gluton!”
Another cage opened. A massive, slime-like Evomon slid out. Its sticky, gelatinous body glistened as the giant slime lumbered toward the center of the Colosseum.
“And! The Flame of Madness that tore its opponent limb from limb in its debut—the Mad Fox!”
The announcer pointed toward the fox's cage.
Click.
The lock on the fox's cage came undone. At the same time, the magical chains wound around its body slipped free. Even the blindfold covering both eyes vanished.
The fox's eyes were revealed. Yellow, bestial pupils seething with emotion. Just as the announcer had called it madness, not a glimmer of reason could be seen in the Evomon's eyes.
“Rooooar!”
The moment the cage opened, the fox burst out. WHOOSH! Its flame-wreathed body charged at the opponent before it. It moved so quickly that following it with the eye was difficult.
Gluton, the slime-like Evomon, slowly twisted its body. It intended to receive the fox's charge with its gelatinous mass. That sticky body absorbed and repelled nearly every physical attack.
But.
BOOM!
The flame-wreathed fox punched straight through Gluton's body. Its gelatinous mass evaporated the moment the fire touched it. Gluton writhed in resistance. A tentacle lashed like a whip, trying to seize the fox.
The fox caught the tentacle in midair, tore into it with its teeth, and severed it with sharp claws. Then the complete domination began. The flames the fox breathed vaporized Gluton's slime, and its slashing claws tore Gluton's body apart.
The Colosseum fell silent. Before much time had passed after the match began, Gluton lost its original form. Its hacked body dissolved into a shapeless mass, leaving a single blue stone behind.
It was an Evostone. Still unable to calm its savagery after tearing its opponent apart, the fox roared. THUMP, THUMP, THUMP! Stamping its feet, it whipped its head around to glare at the stands.
“Waaaaah!”
The spectators went wild at the brutal, overwhelming slaughter. The fox gave no answer to their cheers. Its yellow eyes merely continued sweeping over the crowd as it growled.
As the fox looked around, its gaze turned toward the barred gate of the Lower League gladiators' waiting room where Yuto stood. At that instant, its eyes flew wide.
“Rooooar!”
With a monstrous cry, the fox kicked off the ground. None of the gladiators or guards behind the bars had imagined that the Mad Fox would charge toward them, and they recoiled in horror.
Just before the fox reached the bars.
CLANK! Magical chains bound its body. The flames covering it guttered out, and the fox tumbled across the ground.
“Even after tearing its opponent apart, the Mad Fox still thirsts for blood!”
The announcer shouted. Unable even to struggle against the binding chains, the fox barely managed to raise its head and look toward the bars. Its eyes met Yuto's. Without realizing it, Yuto stood and approached the bars.
Those eyes.
Yuto could feel the emotions within them. Deep despair. Endless rage. And—
‘Longing......?’
Just like Yuto, the fox's eyes held that emotion too. A guard grabbed Yuto as he tried to approach the bars. Guards on the other side seized the bound fox and dragged it back to its cage.
‘Why?’
All thoughts of seeking a way out of the arena vanished from his mind. Only the fox occupied Yuto's thoughts.
***
After all the Evomon matches ended, the gladiators returned to their rooms.
Yuto was following a guard back to his room when someone approached him along the corridor.
It was the woman who had guided Yuto the day before.
“Mistress summons you.”
After the extraordinary display he had put on in his first match, it was only natural for Ebil to summon him.