Chapter 65: Arena of Trials (2)
[You have entered the 'Ophesia Arena.']
A massive colosseum.
Countless races filled the spectator seats. In the center of the arena, a fierce bloodbath raged between a lizardman and a gnoll.
—Yeah! Go for it, Gomongo! Stab him right there!
—You stinking gnoll bastard! Crush him flat!
—Kaleks! Don't lose! I bet everything on you today!
The one called Kaleks was pushing back the lizardman.
He himself was locked in a small cage on the arena floor.
Then.
An old gnome approached the cage.
Standing before the iron bars, the gnome bared his yellowed teeth and spoke.
“You look completely clueless. First time doing this stuff, huh?”
“Who are you?”
“Me? Your overseer. Can't imagine why a weak human like you came here… Got sold into it?”
“Something like that.”
“Tch. That's humans for you. Whatever. Your match is up next. If you don't wanna die, put up a fight. Not that it'll help…”
The gnome clicked his tongue in pity as he looked this way.
“Who's my opponent?”
“Kalligo.”
“What's that?”
“Hah, you don't know 'Slaughterer' Kalligo? You're in deep shit, kid. He's a troll who smashes the heads of rookies like you.”
A troll.
Average level between 200 and 250.
Roughly a mid-to-upper C-rank monster.
‘Beating that guy passes the test?’
This is diamond?
… Too easy?
He tilted his head.
Misinterpreting that somehow, the gnome looked at him with pity.
“Hey, you don't even know trolls? You been living under a rock or what?”
“I know them.”
Soon after.
Ah! Kaleks takes the win! He smashed Gomongo's head in one shot with his mace! What a splendid victory!
The gnoll raised his hand triumphantly over the lizardman whose head had burst open.
The crowd went wild in response.
“So we can kill them?”
“In an illegal arena like this? Who cares? Choose wisely. If you surrender too quick… you'll end up as dog food.”
“Got it.”
Soon, the gnome opened the cage door.
“Go on. Might as well try to survive.”
The gnome handed him a single sword.
‘Come to think of it…’
He didn't have his own sword?
Not just the sword— all his gear had been stripped.
['Beginner - Diamond' difficulty test begins!]
[Stage 1: Defeat 'Slaughterer' Kalligo.]
['Diamond' difficulty.]
[Difficulty adjustments applied!]
[Stage 1]
[1. Kalligo's health increased by 300%.]
[2. Existing gear cannot be used.]
[3. Consumables cannot be used.]
[4. Skills cannot be used.]
“So that's how it is?”
Kim Minwoo nodded nonchalantly.
As expected.
He figured there'd be some restrictions.
And there were.
No potions or consumables, no gear, no skills.
Plus the enemy's health boosted.
But it didn't matter.
Gear?
This one sword was plenty. Extra health wouldn't make the blade not cut.
A normal necromancer would've wept at no skills, but Kim Minwoo was different.
He was an irregular who sliced through foes with a sword even without skills.
—This match's challenger is a rookie debuting in the arena! A human named 'Kim Minwoo'! His opponent is…
Soon, the iron bars on the opposite side ground open.
Thud.
Thud.
A massive troll nearly 5 meters tall lumbered out.
Clutching a brutal iron mace.
—'Slaughterer' Kalligo, who has crushed countless rookies!
—Woooah!
—Haha., the outcome's obvious.
—I bet the human lasts under a minute!
—Then I say one minute thirty!
The crowd's fervent cheers continued. They were mostly betting on how many minutes it'd take Kalligo to smash him.
Gamblers through and through.
—Oh yeah? Then I'll bet against! Human wins, one ruble!
—One ruble? You're insane!
The spectators buzzed.
Only Kim Minwoo smirked.
‘Jackpot.’
No matter how he thought about it, he couldn't imagine losing.
No need to summon skeletons.
Not yet.
—Then! Let the match begin!
Boom!
The drum resounded.
The troll charged with full force.
Whoosh!
The iron mace swung powerfully.
“Hup.”
He leaped lightly, landing on the mace.
Then dashed up the handle, mounting the troll's shoulder, and stabbed deep into its neck.
The blade sliced smoothly through flesh, shattered bone, and pierced the neck clean through.
—Grrk!
Like swatting a mosquito, the troll tried slapping its neck with its palm.
He swung at the approaching hand. Two fingers flew off in a spray of blood. The remaining fingers struck the neck, but Kim Minwoo was already gone.
He had leaped onto its head.
And plunged the sword into its crown.
Lots of health?
Doesn't matter if the brain's mush. The staggering troll collapsed with a thud.
Barely ten seconds since the fight started.
And the troll was dead.
—… Huh?
The announcer blinked in confusion.
—… K-Kim Minwoo wins! He took down Kalligo in a flash! Is this the birth of a super rookie?!
—My money!
—You crazy human bastard!
—You rigged it to take our bets, didn't you!
The gamblers, struck poor in an instant, went berserk.
Slaughterer Kalligo, rookie killer.
Every hundred new gladiators got their heads smashed at his feet.
Of course they'd bet on him.
But it flipped.
Ignoring the frenzy.
Kim Minwoo stared at the announcer.
—If it ends like this, it's no fun! Kalligo was just the gatekeeper! Bringing out the second challenger now!
[Stage 2: Defeat 'Steel Ogre' Turk.]
['Diamond' difficulty.]
[Difficulty adjustments applied!]
[Stage 2]
[1. Turk's health increased by 300%.]
[2. Existing gear cannot be used.]
[3. Consumables cannot be used.]
[4. Skills cannot be used.]
[5. Random curse activated.]
Soon.
[Curse of Itching applied!]
Starting from his fingers, creeping up his arms to his whole body. Suddenly, his skin crawled everywhere. Like bugs crawling under his skin.
An itch so bad he wanted to roll on the ground.
Kim Minwoo bit his lip.
‘Damn it.’
First time facing such a weird curse. He scratched his arm, but the itch didn't fade.
It got worse.
Sweating coldly, he looked ahead. The iron bars had opened, and a massive ogre lumbered out.
An ogre outranked a troll. And this one was armored head to toe in steel.
—Groooar!
The steel-club-wielding ogre bellowed savagely. Odds were 7:3.
Still, most bet on the ogre.
Buoyed by cheers, Turk glared at him.
—Human! Kill! Rip apart!
—Can this rookie take down infamous ogre Turk too? Match begins!
Thud. Thud.
The ogre charged toughly.
['Law of Victory' activates!]
[All stats increased by 10%.]
[All damage increased by 10%.]
The beast swung its steel club with full might. Far faster and stronger than the troll's strike.
But the outcome didn't change. He dodged the whistling club and closed in on its leg.
Steel-plated in spots, but not fully covered.
He drove the blade into the exposed Achilles tendon like chopping firewood.
Splat!
Deep enough to expose bone. The ogre staggered and slammed its club down.
Boom!
A miss again.
‘Taking out the legs first.’
Three times the health.
Head and heart were steel-shielded.
Piercing would take time.
Seal movement first.
He stabbed the same spot again.
[Stacked attack!]
[Damage increased by 11%.]
['Digging into One Spot' effect activates!]
[Additional damage!]
[Stacked attack!]
[Damage increased by 22%.]
['Digging into One…]
Thanks to his title, each stack added extra damage.
After three stabs, one foot was severed clean.
—Groooar!
The ogre wailed pitifully as it fell. He finished it easily.
Two minutes until the sword pierced its skull.
‘That was a sweat.’
Not from effort—from the itch.
The damn curse finally lifted.
He looked at the announcer.
—Turk… is down! Could this be the birth of a mega rookie today! Kim Minwoo, proceed to the next match?
Nod.
That moment.
[Perfect score on stages 1-2!]
['Diamond' difficulty cannot measure your limit!]
[Hidden difficulty unlocked!]
[Special route of the 'Trial' unlocked!]
[You may now 'nominate' the next challenger.]
[1. 'Black Knight' Idrick]
[A masked knight, known as the strongest in Ophesia Arena. Normally doesn't appear, but you might summon him now. Difficulty increases if chosen.]
[2. 'Cerberus' Sastera]
[A cerberus who fights in Ophesia Arena.]
[3. 'Chain Scythe' Jemerson]
[A master of the chain scythe.]
A list of all sorts popped up.
The standout was Idrick.
A player who normally doesn't show.
‘Probably high difficulty.’
But the rewards would be huge. A hidden route, after all.
‘Then let's do it.’
Hidden routes are for conquering. Kim Minwoo wasn't one to dodge them.
He looked at the announcer and said.
“Black Knight Idrick. Only someone like that might be a match for me.”
—…
The announcer fell silent.
If he'd said that without proving anything, he'd get cursed out.
But now was different.
Rookie-crusher Kalligo.
Mid-tier ogre Turk.
Taken down effortlessly.
Sending a regular would end predictably.
—Call Idrick?
—Now this'll be fun!
—Hey, announcer! Block this and you're an idiot!
Watching the frenzied crowd, the announcer nodded.
—… Understood! We'll bring the challenger! Our Ophesia Arena's finest!
After a wait, the announcer returned with someone.
—Introducing! Surely the crowd remembers this fighter's moniker?
—Black Knight! Black Knight!
—Finally, a real match!
Cheering spectators.
The announcer grinned and nodded.
—Black Knight Idrick! He's stepping up personally against the rookie! Give him a round of applause!
Amid roaring cheers, the black knight stepped forward.
‘Unique look.’
Classic knight vibe, but with an iron mask over his face.
[Special route unlocked!]
[* Warning! Difficulty changed from 'Diamond' to 'Murderous'!]
[* 'Murderous' difficulty.]
[Stage 3: Survive 'Black Knight' Idrick for 3 minutes.]
[Difficulty adjustments applied!]
['Murderous']
[1. Existing gear cannot be used.]
[2. Consumables cannot be used.]
[3. Skills cannot be used.]
[4. Two random curses activated.]
[5. 'Idrick's' all stats increased by 100%.]
[6. 'Kim Minwoo's' all stats fixed at 100.]
Told to survive three minutes—now he saw why it was murderous.
His stats locked at 100, while the opponent's doubled.
Higher level than the ogre—mid-300s to 400s at least.
Meaning strength and agility easily over 800.
‘And two curses on top?’
Wow.
Murderous for real?
Which made it even better.
Honestly, it'd been boring so far.
Now it might get fun.