Clamor.
Shouting.
The air was thick with the mixed scent of sweat, blood, and cheap ale.
The underground arena.
A massive circular arena was surrounded by tiers of stands.
The stands were packed with people.
Laborers wore coarse cloth, adventurers wore leather armor, and merchants dressed impeccably.
There were also a few nobles sitting in the very front row, surrounded by bodyguards.
Their faces were half-lit in the glow of magic glowstones.
Their eyes were filled with excitement and greed.
In the exact center of the arena stood a massive iron cage.
Inside the iron cage, two people were fighting.
It was no match; it was a slaughter.
Dull thuds of fists slammed into faces.
There was the sharp crack of breaking bones.
There was the wet splatter of blood hitting the iron cage.
With every sound, the crowd in the stands burst into deafening roars.
"Beat him to death!"
"Beat him to death!"
"Beat him to death!"
Gold coins rained down from the stands, clinking as they hit the ground.
Next to the iron cage stood a massive wooden sign.
Rows of names hung from the board.
Behind every name were a few red crosses.
They were already dead.
Lin Gui stood at the entrance.
He stared blankly at the wooden sign.
He looked at the very top of the board.
Hanging high was a familiar name.
Elvia Rolan.
He stared at that name.
He looked at it for a long time.
Absurd.
Baffling.
Shocking.
That noble Princess Her Highness, who should have been out living it up in luxury.
That girl who had traveled through the wilderness, complaining of hardship and enduring so much suffering with him.
That death-fearing coward who valued pleasure and enjoyment above all else.
She actually showed up here.
In the capacity of a deathmatch gladiator.
In this killing field that brought together the strongest and most vicious fighters of the bottom tier.
Her name was hung right on that wooden board.
Lin Gui knitted his brows.
Following the Thread of Affection, he kept walking forward.
Passing through the roaring crowd, passing through the waving arms.
Passing through the blood-scented air.
He headed straight down.
Finally, he reached the subterranean level.
Inside a dirty, dimly lit gladiator room.
He found her.
Inside the room were only a few simple wooden plank beds.
Lying on the beds were several people covered in blood.
There were both men and women.
Some had severed arms, while others had gaping wounds on their abdomens.
Groans echoed from various corners.
And Elvia lay on the innermost bed.
Her eyes were closed.
Her long golden hair was scattered across the stained bedsheet.
Her face was covered in bloodstains and bruises.
Her lips were chapped, and a trace of dried blood clung to the corner of her mouth.
Her female knight light armor was torn in several places.
Underneath every tear was a deep wound exposed to the bone.
Her left arm was twisted at an unnatural angle.
Across her chest was a slash extending diagonally from her shoulder down to her ribs.
Blood was still seeping through the gaps in her bandages.
A female priest in a gray robe stood by the bed.
Her hands hovered above her body.
Pale-gold healing mana slowly flowed into her.
Bafflement showed on the female priest's face.
She shook her head time and time again.
Lin Gui walked into the room.
His footsteps were very light.
Yet the female priest still heard him.
She raised her head and glanced at Lin Gui.
Then she lowered her head and resumed her treatment.
Lin Gui walked up to the bed and stopped.
He looked at Elvia lying on the bed.
Her delicate face was swollen and bruised at this moment.
Those golden eyes that usually flickered with slyness were tightly closed at this moment.
Her eyelashes trembled slightly.
His expression was complex.
Inside his mind, a voice sounded.
It carried a faint hint of playfulness.
"I said that within a month, I would have her reach Transcendent."
It was Shadow Blade Lynn's voice.
"Though the method might be a tiny bit cruel."
She paused for a moment.
"You... won't mind, right?"
A tiny soul fluttered.
It landed on Lin Gui's shoulder.
She folded her arms and tilted her head.
She looked at Lin Gui's face with a mocking expression.
Expecting to see anger on it.
His woman had been tortured to such a state.
What kind of expression would this little mage make—the one who had once scammed her with a soul bomb?
What kind of face would he show?
However, there was nothing.
Lin Gui simply stepped forward.
He squatted down.
He squatted in front of the blood-stained Elvia.
He reached out and gently brushed aside the blood-soaked strands of hair on her forehead.
He checked her condition for a short while.
Then he turned his head and looked at the female priest.
"How is her condition?"
The female priest raised her head.
She spoke indifferently.
"All fatal wounds have been treated."
"After resting for a while, she can continue participating in the next deathmatch."
She paused for a moment.
"However, she needs to pay high medical fees."
"She is neither a slave nor a gladiator kept by nobles."
"She entered the deathmatch voluntarily."
"Therefore, she cannot enjoy free medical benefits."
Lin Gui asked,
"How much?"
The female priest stated a figure.
Lin Gui pulled a money pouch from his robe and handed it over.
Then, he turned around.
He bent down.
He hoisted Elvia onto his back from the bed.
Elvia's body tensed up subconsciously.
Her hands instinctively tried to push him away.
Yet her face pressed against Lin Gui's back.
That familiar, faint herbal scent wafted into her nose.
Her body slowly relaxed.
Her arms limply fell.
They rested against Lin Gui's chest.
Lin Gui carried her on his back and walked toward the exit.
"Wait."
The female priest called out to stop him.
At the doorway, several guards stepped over to block the way.
Their hands rested on their weapons.
"She still has to participate in the upcoming matches."
One of the guards said,
"She can't leave."
"If she leaves, we can't answer to the big lords upstairs who paid to watch."
His words were cut off midway.
Whoosh.
Whoosh.
Whoosh.
Several sharp slicing sounds echoed in the narrow corridor.
All the guards blocking the way froze.
Lin Gui carried Elvia on his back, passing right by them.
No one dared to move.
No one dared to stop him.
On the wall opposite the cage were three sharp slash marks.
Red lines appeared on their necks.
Extremely thin threads of blood slowly seeped out.
Emerging from the underground arena,
outside were the streets of Coppergate City.
The sunlight was pleasant.
On Central Avenue, crowds wove back and forth like fabric.
People dressed in all sorts of attire came and went.
Their faces were filled with excitement and anticipation.
In the distance, the preliminary trials of the preparatory transport team selection contest had just drawn to a close.
The celebratory crowds were still reveling.
Laughter and cheers echoed from various directions.
The light screens of the magic bulletin boards were still shimmering in midair.
【37th Transport Team Selection Conference】
【Coppergate City Sub-Venue】
Those gilded characters glittered under the sunlight.
Lin Gui controlled his staff, floating slowly.
He carried Elvia on his back.
Elvia's chin rested on his shoulder.
Her long golden hair draped down over his chest.
Her bloodstains and bruises contrasted with the surrounding bustle.
It formed a striking contrast.
"I thought you would be squandering money in some high-end store,"
Lin Gui said in a flat tone.
"Why... did you think to join the deathmatches instead?"
"I don't recall asking you to do this."
Elvia lay slumped over his back.
Her voice was very low and labored.
"I had no choice."
"I wanted to enjoy myself too."
"But Shadow Blade Lynn's authority is just too daunting."
"I didn't dare refuse her."
Her voice held a trace of grievance,
as well as an indescribable hint of resignation.
In his mind, Shadow Blade Lynn's laugh rang out.
The laugh was very soft.
Yet inside it seemed to carry a very peculiar quality.
A touch of amusement, along with a subtle, slight sense of newfound respect.
Lin Gui caught the subtle nuance in her laughter.
He didn't press Elvia further either.
He merely said,
"You've truly made me see you in a new light, Elvia."
Elvia whimpered softly.
Her voice sounded muffled.
"Sooner or later, I'll beat you—the guy who hasn't been home for two weeks and went fooling around outside—"
"—into a pig's head."
Lin Gui chuckled.
"I look forward to the day you beat me down."
The staff continued floating forward.
Passing through the reveling crowds, passing through the shimmering light screens.
Toward the outside of the city.
It slowly flew away.
Rate on N.U.
