Chapter 131
Translator: uly
Chapter: 131
Chapter Title: Gladiator King Uruuta
It started with the poison master.
Kenny unveiled his new technique right as phase two began, like he'd been waiting for it.
Acid rain.
And a tsunami of poison.
The wide-area combo using both crushed the orcs' momentum completely.
He'd conquered the most worrisome phase two with his new skill.
Random patterns had already made it hard to even get close.
The audience was purely amazed.
A humiliating past.
They said he'd focused on growth ever since that day, and now he was clearly showing the results in the promotion exam.
Days of relentlessly honing his poisons without giving up.
This was the moment all that effort paid off.
"Acid poison from a low-rank region? That stuff's not easy to get."
"How badly does he want to beat Iron Mask to go that far?!"
"Wow... Gotta respect the effort."
"Poison Master Kenny!"
"Kenny!"
He deserved the praise.
That's why the crowd was chanting his name.
He'd once scored high in ability tests, right up there with the other rookies.
And he backed that talent with effort.
Just one goal.
To surpass Iron Mask above all else.
No wonder the admiration spilled out.
The scouts were mostly applauding too, but some were still eyeing reality.
"Impressive, sure, but..."
"He's hitting his limit soon."
Exactly.
Outstanding mana comprehension and control.
The poison tsunami sweeping the arena on that foundation.
But skills relying mainly on mana inevitably had limits.
Mental strength and mana.
Neither recovered easily with potions.
Soon, those threatening poison skills would fade.
Then it'd be Iron Mask's turn.
But a close-range fighter like him couldn't easily handle the orcs' random patterns.
At best, he'd buy time.
That's what most scouts predicted.
But.
-Kreeek!
-Kreek!
That prediction shattered again.
Without a single inch of error.
Not even a minor mistake as he faced the orcs.
Just like with the phase one goblins.
Handling attacks with ease, even as patterns shifted irregularly midway.
"He's parrying that?!"
"Insane! The charge turned into a grab mid-motion, and he read it?!"
"How?!"
"No way."
"...That's not human."
The colosseum plunged into shock.
A greater shiver than during the war swept through everyone's bodies.
Impossible.
It had to be impossible, but...
Slash!
Whoosh!
Iron Mask was making the impossible real.
A low-rank rookie was achieving what even seasoned powerhouses couldn't.
Fearsome judgment.
Machine-like reaction speed.
Clean, efficient movements without waste.
And item usage rivaling veterans.
Talents and physical prowess never seen before.
High ranker?
Top ranker?
No, maybe beyond that.
Purely by talent, no one compared.
At best, Luke, the Worst Criminal in History.
But this exam changed even that view.
Even that infamous Luke couldn't dismantle monster random patterns so perfectly.
Only one.
Only the Iron Mask standing there could do it.
'What the hell am I watching?'
Gunsi clutched his head in confusion.
This wasn't just his imagination.
The scene obliterated low- and mid-rankers' expectations in one go.
'...If he gets the right items and skills?'
Gulp.
High ranker.
No, maybe even top ranker potential.
Lost in that thought for a moment.
Then a horn blared across the colosseum.
Giant monsters.
Elephants with berserk patterns hidden within.
The Petra team naturally retreated to the safety stones.
Using barriers to watch safely.
The safest method.
And it applied to Iron Mask's team too.
Berserk hidden in random patterns.
One mistake.
One second too slow, and the elephants would berserk.
Already hard to handle due to size.
Now with traps in irregular patterns.
Difficulty several times higher than orcs.
Even Iron Mask would struggle against giant monsters.
'Yeah, devs made those to force using the safety stones.'
Trying to fight them?
Suicide.
So Gunsi thought Iron Mask would fall back this time.
But no.
Iron Mask held position, staring straight ahead.
Doubt flickered—then the world went dark.
"Wh-what?"
"It got dark suddenly!"
"Teachers, I can't see!"
"What's going on? The other side's fine, why only us...?"
Chaos from the sudden darkness.
-Whoa, it's dark!
Admin Peril.
Even she panicked.
For some reason, only Iron Mask's side was pitch black.
-Damn, lights on as emergency measure!
Peril activated colosseum lights, but they couldn't illuminate everything.
Beams focused on one spot.
Soon, spotlights hit Kenny and Iron Mask simultaneously.
"Th-there!"
The crowd saw it.
Orc-trained elephants.
Iron Mask charging them.
"No, not like this!"
"Impossible! Giant monsters aren't like orcs!"
Everyone sighed.
No chance in sight.
They pictured Iron Mask's quick defeat.
That's why the pity.
Throwing away a hard-earned chance.
Just hide like Petra team.
Why challenge the impossible?
Most watched Iron Mask that way.
But sighs turned to gasps soon.
Psssh!
The orc atop the elephant.
Iron Mask slashed its throat.
Safe method?
Textbook strategy?
None needed.
At best, others' standards.
Didn't apply to him.
Impossible?
Ridiculous.
He set his own limits.
So watch quietly.
As he crushes everything with overwhelming power.
Psh!
Shaking vision.
Masterless beast thrashes wildly.
Desperate to shake him off.
Pointless.
His center of gravity was perfectly maintained.
Just walking freely atop it.
Like flat ground.
What it wanted.
What it'd do next.
All clear in his eyes.
Now, grant it fitting night-time sleep.
Psssh!
A line forms where he passes.
White powder sprays along it.
Vibrations rumble.
Elephant screams in agony, flailing.
But Luke doesn't stop slashing.
Silently traversing the top.
Bwooo...
Mournful cry.
Finally exhausted, the elephant tilts sideways.
Slowly rolling eyes.
But no tricks fool him.
Next move plain as day.
No falling for shallow feints.
"Drama queen."
Luke raised his hand high.
Black claw engulfed it.
Black grip filling the light.
Mercilessly slammed into the elephant's torso.
Boom!
Ground craters.
Pinned down.
Crushing its massive bulk with overwhelming force.
Nearby orcs couldn't approach.
Couldn't, period.
Dark everywhere, sole light the arena spots.
Even that claimed by the slaughterer.
Who slew the tamer.
And buried the giant elephant underground.
But orcs didn't know.
This was just the start.
Bwoooo!
-Kreeek!
Ignorance drove them to charge again.
Moths to flame.
Slash!
Splurt!
Thus began Luke's butchery.
Unilateral massacre.
Hell for the orcs.
Pathetically carved by one human.
Counterattack?
Tried already.
Never succeeded.
Elephant?
Still some left.
Just legs half-severed, collapsed.
No method worked on him.
And in this darkness, he was a hunter.
Night hunter overwhelming with superior strength and speed, instilling terror.
Predicting their moves, always one step ahead.
Thud!
Another elephant down.
Fourth already.
"Kreeeek!"
"Kreek!"
Late reinforcements arrived, but Kenny had rested.
Whoosh!
Poison tsunami surged again.
Perfectly striking the orc horde charging Luke's flank.
"...That monster."
Kenny's belated voice.
Laced with defeat.
What all deemed impossible.
Luke did it, extinguishing his last fight.
So now, he manipulated the tsunami to support Luke.
To let him rampage freely.
Helping as a true partner.
Thanks to that, Luke targeted elephants even more easily.
Thud!
Another falls.
Black blade pierces its gut.
Black Wolf's Fang pierces tamed elephant's abdomen!
[Piercing damage!]
[Ignores defense for additional 20% fixed damage!]
One strike to eternal rest.
Slowly rising amid scattering powder.
Bwooo!
Finally, the fourth horn.
He's here.
The battlefield's ruler.
King of all orcs.
Gladiator King Uruuta revealed himself in the arena.