Slaves of the Colosseum (3)

"Whoa."

The underground space of the Colosseum was even vaster than I had imagined.

Every time we walked through the underground corridors, we glimpsed gladiators resting at waiting stations and ferocious beasts pacing inside their cages.

"Jisan, snap out of it. This is not a beautiful sight."

"But we're inside the Colosseum ruins—even if it's just a simulation—"

"Yeah, yeah."

The moment I started gushing about the Colosseum's grandeur, Go Gyumin cut me off without ceremony. Probably because he could tell my breathless rambling would stretch on forever.

'The corridors twisted and wound like a maze. There's no way anyone could escape this alone.'

Looking at the Colosseum's exterior, its sheer scale had taken my breath away. But descending into the underground made my breathing tight in an entirely different way.

Unlike the hot, rough summer air we'd felt above, a damp, heavy pressure weighed down on my lungs. Moisture seeping through the stone walls mingled with the stench of old blood.

"Are we participating in a match right away?"

I asked the man leading us into the Colosseum's depths calmly. He was the slave trader who had purchased us from the old man.

The slave trader smacked his fat, fleshy cheeks and spat on the floor.

"You think so? A professional instructor will assess what kind of gladiator each of you should become."

"You mean the type of gladiator?"

The instant I echoed his words, fishing for a hint, the slave trader's eyes sharpened.

"No questions. Walk quietly and keep up. You'll be moving from the Hypogeum to the Ludus now."

"Hypogeum? Ludus?"

"You don't even know that? Stupid slaves."

The slave trader clicked his tongue and looked at me with contempt.

"The Hypogeum is the Colosseum's underground complex. The Ludus is the gladiator school located outside it."

"So it's like a school and dormitory combined."

"Right. Correct. Now shut your mouth! You're noisier than a flock of birds."

The slave trader bellowed at the top of his lungs, then handed our cage over to the figure standing before the Ludus.

The man was gaunt and aged in a way that didn't suit a gladiator training camp—he looked like nothing so much as a goat.

"Master Lanista. Here are the new slaves. Strong fighters from the East."

"These ones?"

The man, presumably the school's owner, stroked his beard and let out a displeased groan. But he added nothing more and soon nodded.

"Haha, let's see you last even a single day, slaves!"

Having handed us over to the man called Lanista, the slave trader went on his way. His rasping laughter quickly faded into the underground passage.

Leaving that laughter behind us, we entered the gladiator school known as the Ludus.

"I am the Lanista. Owner of this training school."

"Yes, sir."

"You will become stronger gladiators within this school."

'This feels less like a school and more like a prison.'

I swallowed the thought as I took in the guards stationed throughout the Ludus. There were sentries posted in front of every door where the gladiators were kept. The security was so airtight that simply walking down the corridor put me on edge.

"Sleep today. It all begins tomorrow."

The school's owner, the Lanista, crammed the three of us into a single room.

Was he making us bunk together without even separating us by gender for the sake of quest progression?

"We get beds, and maybe because we're all fated to die tomorrow, the treatment isn't half bad."

"No kidding. It beats sleeping in a cave."

Go Gyumin and Jang Siwoon were apparently exhausted, because they flopped onto their respective beds without another word.

'We did share quarters during the Jangsanbeom quest, and there wasn't exactly time to be self-conscious about it… but still, none of them bat an eye.'

Of course, I was too busy racking my brain over the quest to worry about propriety myself.

"Jisan, get some rest. Rest first, and then—"

"We have to acquire this."

"Huh?"

On the table sat three bowls of barley porridge—rations for gladiators. A modest spread, prepared with the understanding that filling one's stomach would dull the senses and rob us of agility.

"This is probably an item you eat for recovery after a match ends."

"Right. It doesn't even look appetizing, so let's not touch it for now."

"We should store it ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠in our Leaflets instead."

Shff—

When I stored the barley porridge in my Leaflet, Go Gyumin and Jang Siwoon acquired theirs one after another as well.

Jang Siwoon closed her Leaflet and sat up on her bed.

"It's been a while. I'm glad you're alive, Teacher Go. Oh, and you too, Jisan."

Jang Siwoon greeted us with an air of great composure. A completely different attitude from her rough-edged behavior just moments ago.

"If I'd known Siwoon was this terrifying a person, I would've watched my temper around her."

Go Gyumin muttered under his breath, scratching his head. Apparently the full force of Jang Siwoon's offensive power had left quite an impression on him.

'Well, he and Siwoon did bicker quite a bit early on, after all.'

"Being alone made me more guarded, that's all. I don't normally throw punches at just anyone. I'm a physical education major, after all."

Jang Siwoon offered a small excuse, ducking her head slightly. She was insisting that, as an athlete, she would never swing at a civilian.

'A sheepish expression, and yet the results were terrifying.'

Her round, gentle eyes gave her a docile air, which only made the gap all the more striking. Then again, thanks to Jang Siwoon's outrageous offensive power, our three-person requirement had been met—so maybe I should have been grateful.

"Jisan. Were there different types of Colosseum gladiators?"

Jang Siwoon tilted her head, apparently puzzled by what the Lanista had said.

"Ah, I don't remember exactly, but let me dig through my Docent."

Since I'd already shown the Docent Perk to Jang Siwoon and Go Gyumin, there was no need to hide it anymore.

Docent. Tell me about the gladiators who fought in the Colosseum.

"Even if you're a walking dictionary, Jisan, you can't possibly have memories of that?"

Shff—

"Huh. There is."

Go Gyumin scratched his head even harder, unable to believe it.

I knew about gladiators because I'd read about them in books. But since they were memory fragments, the pieces didn't easily fit together.

"Though I don't seem to have information on the specific gladiator types."

I had confirmed that there were categories of armament, combat style, and division of roles—but the crucial detail was missing.

"Tomorrow, you will train before your duels. You can hear the professional instructor's explanation then."

Who knew when he'd approached without a sound—the Lanista was standing at the door, smiling at us.

Training time existed. It was a small mercy, and the color returned to all three of our faces.

"Ah. And here's some news for you."

As if he couldn't leave us in good spirits, the Lanista immediately pivoted to a new subject.

"A duel format has been added."

"?"

Shff—

The quest guide Leaflet window had unfolded once more. Additional text was being written out at the bottom in script.

"Decide. It is one of the few choices left to you slaves."

In individual matches, we would have to fight three duels. But if we fought as a team and won, we would instantly climb fifteen floors. The catch: even fighting together, if even one fighter died, all three of us would be counted as defeated.

"…Still, if Siwoon handles both defense and offense, the team match might be doable, don't you think?"

Go Gyumin ventured his opinion cautiously. Go Gyumin's gaze and mine naturally turned toward Jang Siwoon.

"Teacher Go, you're overestimating me. Everyone guards their own life."

Jang Siwoon answered firmly, her brow furrowed.

But in that brief span of time, my mind had already reached a conclusion.

"Team match."

"Even you, Jisan…"

Jang Siwoon narrowed her eyes and looked at me with a face full of disappointment. I suppose it must have seemed like I was riding on her strength and Perk, just like Go Gyumin.

"Siwoon, Jisan says he's confident this time. He just needs me to ride along."

"Excuse me? Jisan does…?"

Jang Siwoon's skeptical gaze was so honest that I almost burst out laughing.

"Siwoon, I may look weak, but I can hold my own in a fight."

'Because I carry a soul of equipment, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠you see.'

I added the last part only in my head, which resulted in a rather impressively bombastic statement.

"…I won't even ask for offense. Just both of you, please keep yourselves alive."

Jang Siwoon's eyes turned even colder as she looked back and forth between Go Gyumin and me.

"We'll do our best."

Go Gyumin nodded with grim determination, offering Jang Siwoon his trust. Though Jang Siwoon didn't exactly look very reassured.

"Since you'll face them as a group, you will be matched against a very ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠strong opponent."

"I figured as much."

When I nodded in agreement, the Lanista registered that our choice was complete and curled one corner of his mouth upward.

Shff—

The individual match details had vanished, leaving only the team match guidelines in the quest window. The choice was made now. One powerful gladiator would stand against the three of us, the visitors.

"Then I'll see you tomorrow."

Having finished the quest briefing, the Lanista shut the door and left.

The moment the door closed, Go Gyumin pointed a finger at me.

"Siwoon! Believe it or not, Jisan's been saying he's confident this whole time."

"Why on earth?"

Jang Siwoon had gone on many quests with me, so her skepticism ran deep. As she trailed off in disbelief, I resolved to lay everything out for them.

'Truthfully, Siwoon already saw Beethoven possess me back during the Trojan War.'

"Since it's a team match, I'll explain. I currently possess the soul of a piece of equipment."

"…?"

Jang Siwoon and Go Gyumin could only blink their lips wordlessly, unable to say anything. Watching their lost ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠pupils waver, I realized my mistake a beat too late.

In introducing it so briefly, I'd made my line sound a little chuunibyou.

"I have a secondary Perk that lets me be briefly possessed by the soul of a historical figure. The soul I'm carrying right now belongs to a piece of equipment."

"What? Whoa…. So that's why you were confident."

Go Gyumin finally understood my confidence and let out an audible gasp of admiration. Jang Siwoon's expression brightened as well.

"Raw attack power isn't everything. You're sharp too, Jisan, so the effect should be even greater than it was with Beethoven."

Only then did Go Gyumin and Jang Siwoon drop their distrust of me and celebrate freely. Without the equipment soul, their reaction to me probably would have stayed pretty frosty.

'Even though those two likely have secondary Perks of their own.'

"Anyway, we need to plan our team strategy, which means we should share our abilities."

When I proposed putting everything on the table equally, Go Gyumin and Jang Siwoon hesitated for just a moment. In that fleeting silence, I grew a little uneasy.

They weren't about to back out of being honest at this point, were they?

"The three of us will be entering the arena together. Better to know each other's Perks in advance than to reveal them mid-duel."

Jang Siwoon's Perk was River Flow.

A Perk that allowed her to withstand an incoming attack and reflect back a single blow even greater than the one she absorbed.

'She has to endure damage equal to a powerful strike to use it. Still, it's a force worth spending her health on.'

On top of that, confirming Jang Siwoon's secondary Perk and Go Gyumin's Perk and secondary Perk would let us craft an even more effective strategy.

"Fair enough."

Jang Siwoon agreed readily, then turned her head and shot Go Gyumin a look.

"Your turn, Teacher Go. We really are all in the same boat now."

"Right. Then you'll have to tell us everything too, Siwoon."

"Yes, yes."

Perhaps because both of them had refreshingly straightforward personalities, they shared their information with each other in no time.

'So that's how it is. Both of them carry Perks perfectly suited to their abilities.'

Once we'd mapped out one another's Perks, the rough outline of a strategy began to take shape.

"During tomorrow's gladiator type selection, each of our Perks will be taken into account."

"But Jisan, your Perk and secondary Perk are complete opposites right now. That means you'll have a choice in gladiator type, won't you?"

"Exactly."

I immediately agreed with Jang Siwoon's sharp deduction. A choice in type—meaning a variable.

'If we knew the enemy's type in advance, we could pick our gladiator type far more strategically.'

Then, as if to answer that very thought, the closed door swung open.

The Lanista, entering yet again, beckoned for us to come out.

"Out. Now."

"Excuse me? Night hasn't even fallen yet—why are we leaving already?"

Don't tell me they were already making us fight. A sense of foreboding crept over me, and as I pushed back, the Lanista pressed a finger to his lips, signaling for silence.

"There are times one must move in haste."