Chapter 49
Chapter 49
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>Translator: Vine
>Chapter: 49
>Chapter Title: An Ordinary Gag Resident vs. The Strongest Swordsman
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*Squelch—!*
“..!”
Then, she happened to see it. A sharp sword pierced Rian’s stomach, mercilessly slicing through his torso.
Iris lost all reason and was about to dash into the training grounds. She would have, if she hadn’t heard ‘that sound.’
“Monster... Monster!”
The moment the terrified slave shouted “Monster,” Iris’s feet stopped, as if bound by shackles.
*Zzzing—.*
A ringing filled her ears and her vision turned white.
*I’ve never seen such a brilliant test subject. A true monster!*
>*Get away from me! If I stay with a monster like you, I’ll die too!*
>*H-how are you still alive? Go away! Don’t come near me! You... you monster!*
>*Monster!*
>*Monster!*
>*Monster!*
Voices, indistinguishable as man or woman, child or adult, echoed endlessly in her mind.
*You are all alone in this world.*
>*You can’t be saved by anyone.*
>*You’re a monster—, a monster.*
>*You’re just using Rian, aren’t you?*
>*You just don’t want to die.*
>*You don’t deserve to hold a sword.*
>*You are, you are, you are—...*
Iris found herself curled into a ball, gasping for breath. Amidst the shrill, screeching noise, it was the scent of blood, now stronger than before, that brought her back to her senses.
“Ah...”
Iris lifted her head, her face dazed. At the end of her gaze was Rian, covered in blood, striding purposefully somewhere. With a trembling body, Iris forced herself to stand.
Iris knew how to erase her presence to survive. It wasn’t enough to fool the strong, but it was sufficient to avoid the eyes of the frightened slaves.
When she saw Rian enter a slave’s room and emerge spotless, Iris froze, her mouth agape in shock.
‘Since when...?’
Being with Rian was always peaceful and warm. As if all the cruel experiences she had endured were nothing but a dream.
For Iris, who had been treated like a toy in a brutal world for as long as she could remember, Rian was her first sanctuary.
Like any child, Iris had taken it for granted that Rian’s embrace was the safest place in the world, that nothing could go wrong there. But that had been a foolish thought.
The arms that had always held her so gently were getting hurt in places she didn’t know, hiding the traces of injury without her knowledge. And far too skillfully.
Iris stared blankly at Rian. As he drew closer, she fled back to her room.
And now.
Iris kept replaying the scene she had just witnessed.
‘I can’t do... anything.’
*Because I’m nothing.*
>*Because I’m a monster.*
>*Because I’m useless.*
Iris accepted these words, whispered to her by someone at some forgotten time, as undeniable truths. She no longer had the mental fortitude to deny them.
“Iris, um... Bianca has this really scary friend at her place. It, like, bites and stuff. But it doesn’t wear a muzzle, so if you go, you might get bitten. So—...”
Iris listened quietly to Rian’s words before asking softly.
“How... do you know?”
“Huh?”
“The biting... how do you know?”
How did he know there was a creature at Bianca’s place that bit things, and how did he know she might get bitten? It was something only a person who had been bitten would know.
“Ah, well...”
His hesitant mumbling prompted Iris to change the subject.
“Why... were you late today?”
Iris’s trembling gaze met Rian’s face. For a fleeting moment, panic flashed across his features. The emotion was gone in an instant, but Iris didn’t miss it.
“Ah—... On my way up, some other gladiators wanted to say hi, since we’re neighbors and all. You know, the ones who came by before Bianca visited.”
Rian conveniently left out the part about being grievously injured and covered in blood, or that his clothes had been ruined and he’d had to change, rattling on about other things instead.
Iris clenched her fists tightly. A sob caught in her throat.
The fear of losing her sanctuary, the helplessness of being unable to do anything, and the disappointment in Rian for hiding everything from her.
A whirlwind of emotions tore through her mind. Lost in a confusion she didn’t know how to resolve, she ultimately chose to run away.
“Are you... okay?”
“Hm? Of course, I’m okay.”
At Rian’s answer, Iris nodded like an obedient child. Her judgment didn’t matter. If Rian said he was okay, then he was okay. That was her method of escape.
***
Perhaps my persuasion worked, because Iris’s mood returned to normal afterward. Her words, however, became fewer than before. Of course, she would answer whenever I asked a question or spoke to her, but she rarely initiated a conversation herself.
‘Isn’t it surprisingly comfortable living here?’
I had grown accustomed to life in the arena. Because there were so many slaves, matches weren’t scheduled very often. In my free time, I mostly just lazed around or ate delicious food.
I peeked at what the other gladiator slaves were doing, but they all seemed busy with training. Since I didn’t need to, I just lay on my bed and stuck the sword in my thigh.
At first, I’d stuck it in my stomach... but before long, the demon sword begged me to take it out, utterly disgusted. It seemed my internal organs had a few words for it after being impaled for so long.
In the meantime, Iris also fought in two matches. She sliced through her opponents with clean, effortless skill. From what I heard through the rat beastkin, they were matching her only with monsters she could overwhelm in order to raise her value.
After a few more days of such leisurely passing time, a new match was scheduled.
“You’d better fight hard if you don’t want to die.”
The rat beastkin said with a meaningful smile. I tilted my head, not understanding his meaning, and inwardly called for Gargandoa.
Blood spurted from the back of my hand. Flowing in a beautiful arc as if controlled by magic, the blood gathered in my palm.
The moment the crimson silhouette formed in my hand, the blood streamed downward like running water, and the demon sword appeared.
Considering how it had just popped from a lump of debt into a demon sword before, its entrance had become quite spectacular.
[Kuhuhu, this is it. Revere my greatness! Look upon me with more fear-filled eyes!]
Gargandoa... seemed to be an attention seeker. Its once solemn demeanor was long gone.
‘It’s noisy, but this is better.’
Discussing how to make a cooler entrance was much more fun than its nonsense about holding a festival of blood.
*Shing.*
The demon sword had transformed into an appearance like a flashy game item. Its crimson blade, which shimmered with every slight movement, was breathtakingly beautiful.
[Hmm, once I gather more power, I should craft some clothes for my partner as well.]
Lost in the excitement of discussing cooler entrances, the demon sword had started calling me its partner. Contractor or partner, they sounded the same to me, but ‘partner’ seemed to hold a more familiar meaning for the sword.
“Why clothes?”
[You don’t look cool!]
Compared to the demon sword, my clothes were certainly plain.
“If you make some weird design, you’re not getting dinner tonight.”
[Hmph, this Gargandoa’s aesthetic sense is the undisputed “strongest.”]
Where on earth did it learn to talk like that? As I pondered this, I watched the iron gate rise with a clatter.
“This next match is none other than a battle between gladiators!”
“...?”
I thought I’d be fighting a monster as usual, but apparently not. I stopped in my tracks on the way to the center of the arena and looked up at the announcer. After a long-winded, pointless speech, he finally uttered my opponent’s name.
“—...A genius among geniuses who has left behind countless achievements! Bianca!”
“Kuaaaargh!”
“Kyaaaaaaah!”
“Wheeeew—.”
“Wooooooooooh!”
Cheers so loud they shook the ground echoed through the arena. I scratched my cheek, holding the demon sword.
‘Ugh, this is awkward, fighting someone I know...’
With that thought, I looked toward the newly opened gate. Bianca was entering the arena, swaying her hips in a way that emphasized her figure. She definitely looked much better than the last time I saw her.
‘Looks like she’s recovered, thank goodness.’
Thinking that, I gave her a welcoming smile. Bianca, who had been striding confidently into the arena, stopped dead in her tracks the moment our eyes met.
‘Huh? Did Bianca not know either?’
If she, like me, had entered the match without knowing her opponent, it was understandable she’d be surprised. Feeling a sense of kinship, I was about to wave when I saw her falter, backing away step by step.
***
“Th-that... that crazy monster, what is it doing here?”
Bianca’s face turned deathly pale, and she began to tremble.
‘They said it would be a simple match!’