The Proxy Gladiator is Going Berserk (1)
One of the mighty demonkin was known for that kind of behavior. This demon had the ability to revive after a certain time, and whenever it had the chance, it would charge at humanity like a mindless beast.
-That fucker's just blindly ramming and causing chaos. A giant or something?
-Yeah, it's pretty huge.
The heroes called it all sorts of derogatory names instead of its real one, thanks to its antics. The most common was "Mudulbak"—short for "mindlessly ramming."
-Can't we just call it a headbutting dinosaur?
-What the hell are you thinking?
-Fuckers, ramming is exactly what it does!
-You got incubus fever or something?
-Let's not live so bitterly. Honestly, that thing charges straight in and just grabs any woman it sees, fucking her right there in front of everyone. Either find and destroy whatever's letting it revive so fast!
-Fuck...
Stuff like that happened a lot, but in the end, it got taken out.
It wasn't mindless—it had its wits about it. It truly died each time it was killed. When it raided a small village, it massacred everyone, but if it ran into heroes while assaulting a major fortress, it got slaughtered without a fight.
I wondered about it. How could it plunge right into the heart of enemy territory? Just because it could revive? Because it had multiple lives like extra coins? Because it was worth risking its neck?
I found out. Didn't really want to, but I did—when I stormed the Demon King's castle solo as the last hero party (one member).
Partly because I had to. But mostly because I could. Because I was confident I could survive even against hundreds or thousands of foes.
If I didn't have that confidence, I never would've charged in with just a single weapon in the first place. Not back then, and not now.
"...Where exactly are you aiming that axe right now?"
After I barged in alone declaring I'd kill them all, Madam Helma pulled down her dress to cover herself.
"Perfect spot to leave an axe mark, but no way to explain it."
"Are you insane?"
She glanced somewhere when I pushed further. At the wall beside her. A concealed space.
"Whether you're insane or not, we'll see."
Shwick!
I hurled the handaxe I'd been gripping right at it.
Whoooosh!
Spinning wildly, the handaxe didn't embed in the wall—it passed straight through the curtain—
Puk!
And sank into whatever lay beyond.
And then—
"Eeeeek?!!"
Someone shrieked and collapsed.
The curtain hiding the wall vanished soon after, revealing the hidden space behind it.
"Huh. A little rat was lurking."
Park Chang-su, slumped on the floor. If he'd been standing, the axe would've barely grazed his neck—now embedded in the wall.
"Felt some shitty gaze from somewhere, and there it was."
"Hahk, hahk...!"
"And what's this? Why'd you leave Choi Yu-jin in that state?"
Next to Park Chang-su was Choi Yu-jin, bound head to toe in iron chains, trembling as she stared at me. Gagged, she couldn't speak, but her eyes screamed at me loud and clear.
Are you crazy? If you weren't hiding a weapon, that was your only axe—did you really just throw it away?
Yeah. Because I couldn't use it anyway right now.
'There's another gaze watching us.'
Did the people here know? Up in the ceiling's shadows, unnoticed unless you looked for it, a single bat was peering down at us.
"K-Knight order!!"
Madam Helma straightened up. Her underlings drew weapons, blocking her front.
"Knights at a brothel."
"Sh-Shut up! How dare you name Madam Helma...!"
"Just to be clear—I don't mean that kind of naming."
I didn't want any misunderstandings.
"I mean challenging you to a fight in the arena. I could name the brothel owner too if I wanted, but I have no intention of making a woman like you suck my dick. So—"
"W-Wait!! Shut up for a sec!!"
Madam Helma bellowed.
"Let's negotiate, you fucking bastard!"
"Negotiate?"
"Yeah! Negotiate!! Fuck, can't you see the hostage?!"
Veins bulging on her neck, Madam Helma pointed at Choi Yu-jin.
"Your ally's captured by us right now! Think it's just her?! The others owe us too—they're all caught! Want me to drag 'em all out?!"
"Drag out spectators if you want—I don't care. Unless that's your kink?"
"What?"
"If you wanna show your underlings you dying, I respect that. So—"
"Don't name me, you fucker!!"
I tried to speak, but she screamed so loud it rattled my eardrums, cutting me off.
"Don't you know who I am? I have the most power and influence in this arena—"
"A clone of the great Chekhov or something?"
"What?"
"If you're not Chekhov, you're just a human who dies if I cut your head off. You can be named, and if you die in the arena, you just scatter exchange vouchers. That's it."
"You crazy fuck...! Hey! This isn't what we talked about!"
As I openly radiated 'I'm gonna kill you' vibes, Helma's ire shifted targets.
"Park Chang-su!!"
"I-I didn't...!"
Park Chang-su panicked. Under the stares of Helma and her men, fear gripped him—and the look he shot me was pure terror. Before, it had been eyes shifting blame to me to bury his guilt and injustice. Now? Like staring down a modern-day psychopath killer.
Ridiculous.
He'd obediently died once before, but was this the gaze a guy who'd killed by negligence should give a murderer?
"Forget that idiot. Just accept it quietly. You got strength, power, men all around."
I pointed at the guys aiming weapons at me.
"One of you's probably fucked the madam, right? He can be the proxy."
"Th-That's...!"
"What? Isn't Helma your boss? If the hunting dog tells her dogs to fight for her, they should head to the arena meekly. Hey, Madam."
I spread my arms toward Helma, pointing at her men one by one.
"Since we're here, pick your proxy now. I'll take him straight to the arena. Efficient with routes and time."
"Wh-Why would I name—"
"Refuse?"
I pointed my finger straight at the ceiling.
"Gonna defy the sacred arena rules set by the great Chekhov? Names can't be refused. You're no newbie."
"...You."
Sometimes, when anger boils over, people regain their senses and cool down.
"You're misunderstanding something... Even if you name me, I can just send a proxy. Think killing Dex makes you the arena's strongest?"
Madam Helma countered calmly.
"So, who're you calling?"
"My strongest man."
"Bring him. I'll kill him."
"...And that's it. Even if you name me again, I send another proxy. Meanwhile, you'll rack up five wins."
True enough. Even at zero wins, I had five chances to name Madam Helma.
"Let's try it. You'll get booted from the arena, and I'll win this place in the end. Plenty wanna kill you... And even without fighting you, lots can force you in."
With my three wins stacked, she just needed two more men to die for her to dodge my names.
"Fine. Throw in Park Chang-su."
"What?!"
"Park Chang-su, your contract with me includes that, right? I can name you whenever I want."
"That bullshit...!"
Park Chang-su freaked, the other men gripped their weapons tighter in silence.
"Hey, Yoo Si-woo. How about it? Let you kill Park Chang-su. You seem pissed—think coolly. Or... back off a bit?"
Helma kept negotiating.
"Choi Yu-jin there? I'll let you fuck her. Fresh, untouched goods—no one's spread her legs yet?"
"Mmph, mmph!!"
Offering Park Chang-su, then a screaming, gagged Choi Yu-jin jumping in shock.
"Or all your allies waiting out back? I got contracts on eight women right now. Fuck 'em all—join hands with me. Yeah?"
Even wagering the virginity of every reserve hero she'd bound in debt contracts.
"This balances the scales. No need to spill innocent blood, right?"
She wanted to protect them. Her strongest men. Like Shin Yu-hee to me—her most reliable, pre-groomed underlings. Fear was plain on her face.
"Th-This is a fair deal. N-No need for blood. You're leaving anyway, right?"
The madam wanted to protect it. Her brothel empire. The lives of her empire's strongest generals.
"Hmm..."
"G-Go get 'em! The bitches, now!"
"Y-Yes!"
While I pondered, Madam Helma barked orders.
Clank!
Her men dragged in several on chains from somewhere, all staring at me in terror.
Pretty ones, all gathered.
Some like Shin Yu-hee, but others too fragile for this world. Prime brides back home, but here? One bad contract and they're whores.
"Want Choi Yu-jin? Or all of 'em? Worried about getting fucked over? I'll hamstring the lot, keep 'em locked in this brothel forever. Deal?"
Even selling pussy under a mid-boss-tier bitch from the tutorial.
One emotion in their eyes toward me: Save us.
The hero's most common look. I'd seen how it evolved countless times.
"Sorry, gotta pass."
I approached the wall and yanked out the axe.
"I didn't come to negotiate. I came to notify."
I drew the axe. A hard side swing would snap the chains, freeing Choi Yu-jin—but I aimed it at Park Chang-su and the men instead.
"About time."
"Time for wha—"
"Pardon the intrusion."
Swish.
The ceiling. The black bat descended, flashing with a pop into a white-haired woman.
"Fighter Helma. You've been named."
Arena management. The suited vampire had a "1" emblazoned on her chest.
"Prep time: 30 minutes. Head to Arena 1."
"W-Wait! The name...!"
"The namer is."
The Arena 1 judge spoke slowly.
"Yoo—"
"That fucker Yoo Si-woo!!"
"Eucli."
"...What?"
"Fighter Eucli with 2 wins has named Fighter Helma with 3 wins. And... while here."
The judge's eyes turned to me.
"Fighter Eucli requests you as proxy, Fighter Yoo Si-woo. What say you?"
"Call."
"Wh-What...?"
"What. Why."
Before coming.
"I'm a proxy fighter."
I'd made one request to Grimmwald.
"People just want me fighting as their proxy. Damn, you must've turned so many guys' women into whores. How many men are itching for revenge?"
If I named Helma, I'd proxy fight for them.
"Let's see whose proxies outnumber whose."