Chapter 93

Roars and cheers erupted from the circular spectator stands. The tiered rows were more than eighty percent full. I stood in the center of the arena, surrounded by the heat of the crowd.

‘The energy here is incredible…’

This was the colosseum located within the entertainment city. I had used Nerea’s authority to enter as a walk-in participant. Including myself, there were seven combatants in the ring. We were all dressed in identical, drab clothing and had started empty-handed. Various weapons were scattered across the ground around us.

As I waited, a large bell chimed, echoing through the air. It was the signal to begin. The participants scrambled for weapons all at once. Following their lead, I snatched up a metal club. It was shaped like a bat and had decent reach. If I landed a solid swing with this, the victim wouldn’t get away with just a simple concussion.

The other six combatants were eyeing me warily. There was a palpable sense of cooperation between them. Instead of fighting each other, they slowly began to close the distance toward me.

“Teamwork, is it? Fine by me. I’ll take you all on at once.”

I flashed a bellicose grin. Cooperating to take down an opponent with overwhelming power wasn’t a bad strategy. In a battle royale format like this, it was the logical move. It seemed the prowess of Jack Aaron was recognized even in a place like this. My, my—I was starting to feel quite proud of myself.

As I was admiring my own fame, three combatants rushed me simultaneously. In the rear, a few others stayed back to observe, while the rest began chanting. It looked like there were some mage-types mixed in. In their case, having magic meant they were a threat even without a physical weapon. I’d have to keep an eye on their line of sight.

“Shaaa!”

A burly man with a massive frame unleashed a vertical overhead strike. Dodging the descending blade, I thrust the tip of my club into the man’s throat.

“…Gh!?”

The giant let out a voiceless scream and stumbled. I followed up with a leg sweep, sending him tumbling. Unable to break his fall, he slammed the back of his head against the ground and fainted, foaming at the mouth.

Two more vanguards closed in from my left and right, attempting a pincer maneuver. They were armed with an axe and a dagger. They were using the big man’s move as a feint to time their own attack. Good timing. They were probably used to this style of fighting.

I stared at the weapons on both sides, reading their trajectories. I caught the axe with my club and grabbed the wrist of the dagger-user to stop his blade. Using the momentum, I spun into a reverse roundhouse kick.

“G-buguagh!”

My heel exploded against the axe-wielder’s face. Spraying blood from his nose, he collapsed backward. For good measure, I punched the flustered dagger-user, sending him flying. Neither of them got back up. That left three.

“Come on, this isn’t much of a challenge. Put some more effort into it.”

Provoking them, I went on the offensive. Just as I started running, an arrow whistled through the air. I tilted my head to dodge. I caught a second shot aimed at my torso between two fingers.

“Wh—!?”

“Yahoo!”

I slammed a flying knee into the face of the stunned archer. The man flew several yards, his eyes rolling back into his head as he convulsed. It was a refreshing knockout, even if I do say so myself.

“Now then, who’s ne—whoops. Dangerous.”

I leaned my upper body back as a fireball streaked past. Looking toward the source, I saw two staff-wielders. Having missed their first shot, they hurriedly finished their chants with panicked looks, firing a fireball and a bolt of lightning simultaneously.

I leaped into a front flip, dodging the incoming magic. If you’re always listening to the chants, you know exactly when the trigger is pulled. You can also predict the trajectory based on their gaze and hand movements. There’s no reason you should ever get hit. It didn’t matter how many shots they fired.

As I began my descent, I hurled my club.

“Gyah!”

The high-speed spinning club struck a mage squarely in the forehead. I rolled across the ground, snatched up a knife, and threw it the moment I stood up. The blade buried itself in the neck of the other one. Both mages collapsed at the same time.

“Hmm…”

I surveyed the area.

The other participants had been completely wiped out. I was the only one left standing.

In that instant, a storm of applause thundered from the spectator stands. Some people were even breaking down in tears—likely because they’d lost their bets. Amidst the unending cheers, I left the ring and headed toward the waiting room.

It was easy work considering I got paid for it. It was just a way to earn some pocket change, but it felt good to move my body. Looking back, I’d had similar experiences in my original world. Sometimes I was forced to participate at an employer’s whim; other times, I fought tooth and nail just to pay off a bar tab. How nostalgic. I haven’t changed much since those days, but my environment has transformed completely. You really never know which way life is going to tumble.

As I was soaking in old memories, I found Alice standing in the corridor. She reached out her hand, asking for a high-five.

“That was a brilliant victory. As expected of you, Jack.”

“I won’t deny it. I’m always cool.”

When I answered while returning the high-five, Alice made a complicated face.

“…Is that another one of your usual jokes?”

“Haha, give me a break.”

We walked down the corridor, exchanging idle chatter. Including that gambling match just now, we had been fully enjoying the facilities of this entertainment city lately. One place that left an impression was the slave trading house. They had slaves of various races in stock—mostly war slaves or criminal slaves, apparently. When purchasing one, you supposedly establish a master-servant relationship through a magical contract. I was interested, but I didn’t buy any. Depending on how things developed, there was a high chance they’d just be dead weight. I’ll consider a purchase once my various jobs are finished.

At Nerea’s mansion, the hot springs were all-you-can-use. Alice seemed happy to use them, as they were said to be good for beauty and health. I’d thought she had little interest in such fields, but it seems that isn’t quite the case. While I didn’t care about the medicinal benefits, the hot springs themselves were excellent. Soaking at the end of the day washed the fatigue right out of me.

The only place in this city where I tasted defeat was the gambling den. Most of the games were very similar to gambling in my original world, but there were more than a few unique to this world. Trusting in my abundant funds, I participated casually. As a result, I won a fair amount at a poker-like game, but my performance in everything else was mediocre. I love gambling, but I’m not very good at it. Alice won back what I lost, so it’s not like my funds hit rock bottom or anything.

We spent our days enjoying ourselves while making use of such facilities and services. Every place lived up to the name of an entertainment city, and I was being thoroughly entertained.

“Wait here for a bit.”

“Understood.”

Arriving at the waiting room, I went inside alone. I washed away the sweat and splattered blood in the shower. I retrieved my stored change of clothes and equipment and got dressed. Then, together with Alice, I headed for the colosseum’s VIP seating.

In that space partitioned by glass, Nerea was waiting, sitting gracefully.

“Lord Jack! I have seared the image of your gallant figure into my very eyes…!”

“Glad to hear it.”

Brushing off her passionate feedback, I sat on an empty sofa. Below us, the next match was already underway. A man was locked in a life-or-death struggle with a giant monster. The spectators were screaming until their throats were raw.

“Everyone seems to be enjoying themselves.”

“It’s quite the event. Of course they’d be fired up,” I said while smoking.

I hadn’t seen a colosseum of this scale in any other city. Over half the spectators were apparently residents of Nerea’s territory, and every one of them looked lively. By enjoying these recreational events, they were likely venting their stress. In terms of governing a territory, she was doing quite well. The commoners harbored no resentment toward Nerea. If anything, they accepted and were grateful for this environment. Since there were various facilities besides the colosseum, it was designed to meet a wide range of demands.

Having observed it for several weeks, I truly realized how incredible this city was. As someone who also rules a territory, I felt there were many points I should learn from her. I want to keep adopting good ideas wherever I find them.

After that, we watched the matches while making small talk in the VIP seats. When about three matches had passed, I suddenly brought up a different topic.

“—By the way, I have a question.”

“Oh, what is it? I shall answer anything within the scope of my knowledge.”

“Anything, huh…”

Faced with a beaming Nerea, I exhaled a cloud of purple smoke. Alice, sitting next to me, shifted slightly. I could sense a hint of tension from her, however slight.

I looked Nerea in the eye and asked, “I’ll ask you straight: Are you joining hands with a foreign nation? To be honest, we came to this city to investigate that.”