Chapter 2. Colosseum

Day 1 of being a slave in a massive Colosseum, the kind you'd find in some Italian historical site.

Got beaten as soon as I stepped into the facility.

The reason? Again, for looking at them like a disrespectful little shit.

Fuck, it's just how my face *is*.

After that, I got thrown into a filthy, stinking room with other kids like me.

I miss the crumbling shack and the daily pig slop.

Day 2.

Got beaten again.

Not for anything else, this time it was a group beatdown from the other kids in the room.

Little shits... Ten of them kicked the crap out of me just because I talked back a bit.

Eventually, a cleaner found me and dragged me to solitary confinement.

*I* got dragged away, the one who got *beaten*, not the ones who did the beating.

Apparently, it's easier to sort things out that way.

Day 3.

For once, I got some decent bread.

It was fucking delicious.

Then came my first 'debut', as they call it.

They gave me a single shitty dagger and sent me into the Colosseum.

My opponent was a Goblin, the first monster I've seen since being reborn into this world.

Somehow, I managed to stab it and kill it after taking a knife to the gut.

Day 7.

Spent three days laid up in solitary, delirious with fever. Woke up to a splash of cold water.

That's when I realized you can fucking *die* from a rusty blade.

Those motherfuckers.

They patched me up roughly, saying I fought well.

Day 14.

Fighting Goblins every single day.

Apparently, I've become part of the Colosseum's regular schedule.

They say I'm pretty popular.

Crazy medieval barbarian fucks, giggling while watching a kid fight a Goblin with a shitty dagger.

This world is fucked.

Day 21.

Moved from solitary to the group barracks.

They say I'll start getting training now, so maybe things will change?

Day 24.

Training is fucking brutal.

Day 37.

No wonder the training was so fucking intense.

Now I'm fighting *two* Goblins.

Four times as hard, fuck.

Day 72.

Being the Colosseum's popular kid has one advantage.

They give me a lot of food.

Whatever it is, I guess they plan on using me for a while. They give me some unidentifiable meat lumps and bread, and I shovel it all down.

Day 73.

Got food poisoning. Those bastards.

Day 80.

They were feeding me well, but today's opponent was a bit bigger.

Apparently, it's an Orc with a growth disorder.

Where the fuck do they even find these things?

Day 83.

Five Kobolds today.

One bit my thigh, but the shitty medicine they give here healed it up pretty quick.

Day 85.

I should have known there was a catch to them giving me medicine so readily.

My body's been acting weird since I took it.

Feverish, dizzy... basically, I feel like I'm dying.

I don't remember anything from yesterday.

Day 90.

I'm fucking indestructible.

Day 125.

Met a guy who's supposedly a Champion candidate for this Colosseum.

A former Knight, he acts like a real hotshot.

Day 131.

Met him again.

After talking a few times, he offered to teach me Swordsmanship.

Day 143.

This guy's a goddamn saint!

He gave me some incredibly smooth soup.

It was the best meal I've had since being reborn into this world.

***

"And now, Day 1532."

I muttered, scratching the wall with a pebble I'd found on the floor.

"What are you muttering about?"

"Nothing much."

I replied in a voice deepened by an early puberty. Going through puberty twice doesn't make it any easier.

"Little shit, you've got a mouth on you."

The guy I'm talking to is Alden, the Colosseum's Champion.

A while back...

About three years ago, was it?

My memory's hazy.

Anyway, we met by chance in the Colosseum's inner barracks.

And as time went by...

Now he's sort of training me.

Even though the Colosseum had its own training schedule... that shit was nothing but torture, a pointless grind. The training I got from Alden was definitely different.

“So, how’s it coming along?”

“Fucking hard.”

On top of everything, a year ago, he started teaching me some 'Aura Cultivation Method,' saying it was the one he used. Why he'd teach me something that sounds so valuable is beyond me.

“Hey, asshole, you said you felt *something*, right?”

“Yeah, I did.”

“That’s fucking fast progress.”

“If you say so.”

He says it's fast, but… honestly, it’s such a faint feeling, I can barely tell. Plus, I have to practice the meditation technique secretly from the Colosseum staff, so I don't have much time.

“Anyway, today I’m gonna teach you how to use a spear properly, so follow me.”

Still, whatever. The martial arts Alden teaches are excellent, so every lesson is satisfying.

Even though I learned some professionally in my past life, the techniques of this world that Alden teaches are definitely superior.

“Ha—this fucker’s a quick learner, I tell ya.”

“Thanks.”

“Thanks? What, are we buddies?”

Thanks to him, I’ve been able to get stronger really fast.

Maybe he's my lifesaver?

If it weren't for Alden's training, dealing with the monsters the aggro-crazed Colosseum threw at me would have been a lot tougher.

“If we were in my country, you could've been a knight.”

“....”

“Well, it’s gone now, but still.”

Alden is a war slave.

To be precise, a knight who fought to the bitter end for his country, only to be captured after its defeat.

He's on a whole different level compared to me, who was shipped here after winning first place in the 'Family Breadwinner Lottery.'

“More importantly, be careful. The management’s been acting pretty crazy lately, probably because your popularity’s dropped.”

“Yeah, I’ve noticed.”

“It’s been sketchy ever since they put you up against that Orc and the kid.”

The 'kid' who fought the Orc there… was me.

I almost fucking died that time.

“But shouldn't *you* be the one being careful?”

“Me?”

“Things have been getting tougher for you.”

Alden is the Champion.

He’s been the Champion for three years.

With his immense popularity and rising expectations, he’s constantly fighting stronger and stronger opponents.

“I can handle it.”

“You’ve got that Restraint, though.”

Plus, Alden’s ankle is shackled with a Restraint that suppresses a knight's Aura. Where they even got that thing, I have no idea. Because of it, Alden’s fighting with a handicap.

“The chumps they put up here are nothing a single sword can’t handle.”

Yet, he always says this to me with a relaxed smile.

“I told you, right? What’s the best ending for a Gladiator?”

“...Buying your freedom?”

“That’s right, kid. I’ve saved up quite a bit.”

Usually, Gladiators are slaves and treated accordingly.

But when you’re the Champion, things are different.

Alden is pretty wealthy, for a Gladiator, enough to even give me some decent soup. He gets a small prize purse, but more importantly, as the Champion, he gets sponsorships from Nobles.

“If things don’t go my way, getting bought by some high-ranking Noble wouldn’t be so bad.”

“That’s still being a slave, though.”

“You know what? When you've been a former knight and Gladiator Champion for this long, your price goes way up.”

“Uh-huh.”

“At that point, wouldn't the Noble lords treat you a bit better? Good food, nice place to sleep…”

Even with good treatment, I thought, it's still slavery, isn't it?

Still, it would be much better than this life.

…Maybe I should have just been obedient and accepted my fate as a slave instead of trying to escape.

This Fantasy world seems a bit better than I initially thought.

People might watch Gladiator fights for entertainment, but from a different perspective, the middle-class citizens in the Metropolitan Area have a decent standard of living if they can spend their time and money on entertainment.

Well, considering this is the Kingdom that destroyed Alden's homeland, it makes sense.

It means they're powerful.

I bet they're the second strongest nation, right after the Empire that rules the continent.

“Anyway, I’m getting out of here soon, so don’t go bawling your eyes out when I’m gone.”

“Wouldn't dream of it.”

“You’re no fun. Still, make sure you practice everything I taught you.”

“Alright, take care out there.”

He’s my benefactor, after all.

I truly hoped he’d achieve his wish, escape this place, and live a good life in freedom.

But….

A few days later.

“An Ogre?”

“Yeah, those crazy bastards somehow got their hands on one.”

I was just as surprised as Alden, who delivered the news with a sneer.

“...Isn't that a fucking dangerous Monster?”

“It is. Even they probably can't handle it well.”

I've seen a lot of Monsters in my three years of toiling in this Colosseum.

Starting with the usual Goblins, Kobolds, and Orcs.

Then there were Werewolves they caught from who-knows-where, lions the size of houses, and so on.

But an Ogre is on a whole different level.

They're usually the King of the Mountains.

Obviously, they’re not meant to be hunted by people who can’t even use Aura….

“They cut off one of its wrists as a handicap, so let’s see how well it fights.”

However.

Alden, as always, maintained his calm and composed demeanor.

“...Good luck.”

“Why so serious? Don’t worry, I won’t die. I *will* live free.”

And so.

After uttering words that would have foreshadowed certain death if this were a novel, Alden confidently walked into the arena.

“What?”

“He escaped! That crazy monster broke his Restraint and ran!”

News came that he had broken his Restraint and fled the arena, a stage where all kinds of Nobles had gathered for what was touted as a legendary match.

…That Restraint could even be *broken*?

He really *is* a monster.

“That dog!”

“It was going to be the match of the century!”

While the other staff panicked over the Champion’s escape…

I didn't really care.

No, I was actually relieved.

Yeah, escaping is better than dying.

I spent the next few days alone, hoping he’d live freely as he wished, even if it meant crossing the border.

“You learned from Alden, right? You're the next Champion candidate!”

Having lost their star Champion in an instant, the Colosseum…

…decided I was the next best thing.

And that was the beginning of my true descent into Hell.