The Arena (1)
The question had been bugging me ever since I first heard the word. Just who the hell was fighting what in this so-called arena? Turns out it was a place where people sat back and enjoyed watching hunters get torn apart by monsters. Five minutes before the match began, the once-empty stadium was already packed to the rafters. Elphy and I had completely forgotten why we’d even come here in the first place. We were just waiting for the fight to start.
“Hey. So why the hell would anyone sign up for this thing…?”
“Do they get prize money or something if they beat a monster?”
“Hmm… I dunno? Maybe just the glory?”
“…”
Fuck… for real? There’s seriously no reward except some bullshit honor? People are literally risking their lives in blood-soaked deathmatches just for that?
I stared at the back of the poor sacrificial lamb who’d become tonight’s entertainment, utterly dumbfounded. But when I actually heard the details, that so-called glory started to sound like it might actually be worth the risk.
“…Spec?”
“Well… if you want to put it bluntly, yeah?”
“The old man said just participating here helps you get into guilds and stuff.”
“It’s a chance to prove yourself in front of a huge crowd. Show and proof? Is that what it’s called?”
“…”
Show and proof… and spec, huh. If it was the kind of spec that actually helped you get into a guild, then places like rift-clearing companies would basically roll out the red carpet. Thinking about it that way, I could kind of understand why people would take the risk… until the monster actually appeared. Then every last bit of sympathy vanished.
“Wait… what the fuck is that?”
“It’s gonna die before it even gets to show anything. How is that thing so goddamn big…?”
Even from this distance, the sheer weight of its presence was crushing. Just how massive was this thing? I stared at the bizarre red monster that looked like a dragon but definitely wasn’t a lizard, and even I started to feel a chill. The reassurance that it was “actually pretty safe” came from the old man through Elphy’s mouth.
“…Safe?”
“Are these people seriously calling it safe when a monster is about to stomp a human into paste…?”
“I don’t know? The old man said it’s a pretty historic and traditional arena tournament.”
“Only two people have died since they built this stadium…”
“…”
Only two people have died since they built the stadium? Wait… didn’t the old man call this place state-of-the-art? I was completely thrown off… when suddenly the entire crowd began counting down in perfect unison.
“5!”
“4!”
“3!”
“W-what? Is it starting?”
“Huh?!”
My voice was swallowed by the roar of the crowd. I looked down at the sacrificial lamb while barely catching Elphy’s faint words.
“Yeah! It’s starting, so from now on just wa—”
“1!!!!!!!!!!!!!”
The moment the word “one” left their lips, the situation ended before Elphy could even finish her sentence. In a way, it was only natural. According to the old man, the odds on that Draf monster were 0x, while the nameless adventurer was sitting at 30x. The outcome had basically been decided before the fight even began.
“…”
Two seconds after the cheering died down, it was a knockout. Me, Elphy, and the entire audience fell into a heavy silence, stunned by how quickly it had all happened.
(Wait… what the fuck was that?)
(Did it just spin and whip its tail…?)
I hadn’t even seen it clearly. How could something that huge move at such ridiculous speed? With a deafening BOOM like an explosion of air, one man had been smashed to pieces. I looked at the nameless hunter crumpled on the ground and spoke to my slave, who wore the exact same expression I did.
“Hey… that guy’s dead, right?”
“W-well… maybe not? They blocked the finishing blow with magic, so he might be okay…?”
“Full-body fractures can be healed if they treat them right…”
“…”
Okay? Yeah, sure. Full-body fractures can be fixed pretty quickly with good treatment—my ass. What the hell is wrong with these barbaric people? This is way too much. Anyone could see the fight was never going to be fair from the start. But whether I liked it or not, the moment the victory screen appeared on the massive display above the arena, the crowd erupted into cheers again.
“Dude… is this really okay? In the 21st century?”
“It does feel a bit much, but… he chose to come out here, so…”
“The old man said this was just the beginning.”
“…”
Just the beginning? How brutal. Apparently the first fights featured people like that poor bastard who had zero chance of winning. The longer the night went on, the stronger the competitors got. That was why most people in the early rounds were just there to participate. It also explained why the odds were completely insane, like what we’d just seen. According to Elphy via the old man, those early fighters focused more on defense than offense.
“The first ones to appear usually focus on defense, so they don’t die easily.”
“Don’t die easily…? Wait, didn’t you just say it was safe?”
“I don’t know? I’m just translating what the old man said, okay?”
“Sigh… fine. So when’s the next match?”
“In ten minutes. What do you want to do? Wanna leave?”
“…”
Yeah… let’s get out of here. Watching people drop like flies was giving me serious PTSD vibes. I stood up with Elphy, ready to leave, when a familiar voice and familiar text suddenly appeared, blocking my path.
Quest: Participate in the arena and defeat the Draf. (0/1)
This information is absolutely necessary for calibration and testing.
Refusal is not permitted.
The Creator is watching you, so please do your best.
Calibration? Testing? The Creator is watching me? Caught completely off guard by this sudden development, I was still trying to process what the hell was going on when I suddenly found myself sitting in the gladiator waiting room. Elphy was staring at me with deep worry in her eyes.
“You’re really going out there?”
“Yeah… I have to…”
“Why? Why are you suddenly doing this?”
“Sigh… I don’t want to either, but God told me to, so I don’t have a choice.”
“God? What the hell are you talking about?”
“…”
Exactly. I wanted to deny it too, but every single thing that had happened so far was clearly connected to that so-called Creator bastard. If I got on his bad side and he took away the abilities and power he’d given me, I’d be screwed. I sat Elphy down beside me with a serious expression.
“Elphy… listen carefully to what I’m about to say…”
“After I almost died in that dungeon that day, I started hearing someone’s voice.”
“…Huh?”
“And that’s not all. You know those smart glasses? It’s kind of like that…”
“Words just float in the air like a VR game chat window or something…”
I was explaining it with complete sincerity, pouring my heart into every word… but of course, Elphy’s expression was anything but convinced.
“What are you suddenly talking about? You were fine just a minute ago…”
“No… ugh… okay. So what exactly did the text tell you to do? You absolutely have to go into the arena?”
“Yeah. Want me to read exactly what it says?”
“…”
She really didn’t look like she wanted to hear it… but there was no helping it. I kindly began reading the text that had floated up right in front of my eyes.
“Quest. Participate in the arena and defeat the Draf. (0/1)”
“This information is absolutely necessary for calibration and testing.”
“Refusal is no—”
“Sigh… that’s enough.”
“So… is that quest text still floating in the air right now?”
“Uh… yeah.”
“…”
Fuck… she really doesn’t believe me, does she? Of course not. I never thought I could convince her with just this much. I went back to the beginning and started trying to persuade my slave with what had happened before we got here.
“…The sandbag?”
“Yeah, remember when I punched that sandbag and it exploded? Everyone was shocked, right? You saw that, didn’t you?”
“I saw it… but what does that have to do with the hallucination you’re seeing right now?”
“No! It’s not a hallucination…”
It’s all thanks to God’s power. The fact that a forfeit just happened to open up a spot for me might be part of God’s will too… Of course, saying it out loud made me sound completely insane… and sure enough, Elphy’s expression grew even more serious than before.
“…God’s power?”
“But nothing happened when we went to the sanctuary together.”
“Well… that’s true, but… maybe the god who likes me doesn’t have a sanctuary…?”
“Really? Then what kind of god is it?”
“…Huh?”
“It has to be in charge of something, right? Fire, earth, water…”
“…”
Right… now that I thought about it, what kind of god was it? The Six Gods were supposed to be the gods of fire, water, earth, air, light, and darkness… So what exactly was this Creator in charge of? I racked my brain while Elphy stared at me with eyes full of disbelief… Wait, didn’t it show me the future when I fought that white wolf? So… the God of Time?
“What…? The God of Time? You’re saying you have the ability to see one second into the future?”
“Y-yeah… that’s right. The God of Time…”
“Are you kidding me? What the hell are you talking about?”
“There are only six gods in this world… Don’t you know about the Six Color Magic?”
“I do! I know that much… but… maybe it’s a forgotten god. Haha;;”
“…”
A forgotten god… Fuck. Even I sounded ridiculous saying it. Ugh… what the hell was I supposed to say? How could I possibly convince Elphy to believe me…? This was driving me crazy… and then she suddenly started crying again.
“No…! Why are you crying…?”
“Hic… sob… I… as your slave… I must have failed to take care of you properly…”
“The counselor said… to show the patient as much empathy as possible…”
She said she’d been too busy eating and playing games to look after me properly. Because she was so busy watching my mood, she hadn’t noticed my condition getting worse, and now my depression had become severe… And why the hell was she bringing up sex therapy again? If even you start acting like this, I’m really going to lose it. I might actually develop schizophrenia for real?!
“No… that’s not the problem…”
“You just talked about empathy, right? Can’t you just extend that empathy and believe me?”
“But…! How can a sane person claim they can see one second into the future? It’s weird…”
“…”
I’m going insane. Ugh… the match is about to start soon… If she keeps making that depressed face, my mind’s going to be all over the place and I won’t be able to focus. I grabbed both of Elphy’s shoulders like I was comforting a child and said,
“Fine. Then I’ll just prove it.”
“If I win without getting hit even once, you’ll believe me, right?”
“…Really? You can really win without getting hit at all?”
“Yeah. I can win, so stop crying. Okay?”
“…”
I stared into her red eyes without saying another word. She didn’t say anything either. That’s right. I just had to prove it with my actions. I’m not the kind of guy who falls over so easily like you’re worried about. I’m way stronger than you think. I pulled my slave into a deep embrace.
“You have to come back. I bet on you, so you better win, okay?”
“Yeah… I’ll definitely win, so let go already… People are gonna think I’m heading off to war…”
“By the way, what are my odds? How much is riding on my neck?”
“Uh… a hundred times. That’s what they had you at.”