Thump—thump! Thump!
Like a beating drum, his heartbeat grew faster and faster, and Ogre's movements became increasingly erratic and elusive.
As his body adapted over the last ten days, the frequency of the Heartbeat Drum he could withstand had increased significantly.
This also meant his limits of speed and explosive power had been raised as well.
‘If only my bones were a bit stronger...’
Currently, the only thing limiting Ogre's speed was his bone density. Two days ago, he had realized that when he moved too fast, the first thing that couldn't handle the strain was his bones.
His bones would dislocate or even fracture under intense movements.
This was caused by his muscle strength increasing too rapidly.
Fortunately, even with a bone fracture, it was just a matter of a single night's rest for Ogre. His formidable ogre physique combined with his breathing technique training allowed him to rapidly recover from most injuries, short of permanent crippling.
‘Still, this is enough!’
At this moment, every explosive step Ogre took was powerful enough to leave a small crater in the ground!
His extreme speed made him almost dissolve into afterimages, transforming him into a blue streak that darted left and right like lightning.
A fleeting instant of collision.
The spear rained down upon Will.
The tempestuous thrusts of the spear made it seem as though dozens of people were besieging Will at the exact same moment.
Speed was power!
The violent force, carrying lightning, broke through the surface battle qi.
The sturdy plate armor also dented under the successive impacts.
Finally, having suffered such devastating attacks, Will managed to clearly see Ogre, whose body was covered in electrical currents.
But it was too late.
For at this very instant, Ogre had delivered a final, crouched kick that sent him flying into the air, with no way to dodge.
“Shatter!”
With a twist of his joints, he built up power—Dragon Raises Its Head!
The spinning spear had already arrived!
Overflowing lightning surged along the spear, as if transforming into a terrifying dragon devouring its prey as it shot upward.
“No!” someone in the stands cried out, jumping to their feet.
But nothing could prevent the final scene that was about to unfold.
The spear pierced the plate armor, and the lightning shattered the battle qi.
The moment blood spilled, the battle was decided.
Once Ogre made his move, he would not stop until he claimed his opponent's life!
Will crashed heavily to the ground along with his sword. As his protective battle qi dispersed, the spear drove once more into his throat...
This battle had found its victor, and the line between life and death was drawn...
‘No... If only I had been given a little more time to use that move...’
In the end, before his feelings of resentment and regret could fully manifest, Will lost consciousness.
He was dead, and he had died in absolute, suffocating frustration.
“How dare you kill a noble!” A middle-aged man with a powerful aura yelled, attempting to rush into the arena.
But he was stopped.
“Steward Changboji, a sacred Imperial Duel is not to be disrupted, not even by your master,” said the heavily built, blonde man who blocked him.
“Roberson, didn't you see that this fellow killed Will!” Although the middle-aged man called Changboji was furious, he did not dare to move any further.
If Will were still alive, he would have rushed forward regardless of the consequences, but now that the boy was dead...
...he had to consider whether his actions would be worth it.
Returning with a corpse didn't seem likely to appease the Viscount's anger anyway...
“His Lordship the Viscount will not let this slide.”
“Hmph, in any case, a sacred duel is perfectly legal. Any retaliation would be a direct provocation to the Emperor's authority! Besides, Will had not even inherited his title yet...”
To seek revenge immediately on the spot, under the watchful eyes of the public after a death match had been officially initiated and witnessed, would undoubtedly break the rules.
Furthermore, it would give other families a perfect excuse to make a move. When that happened... not even the two great churches would step in to stop them.
The nobles who managed to survive in the borderlands were never pushovers.
At their core, they were still a pack of insatiable wolves.
One only had to look at the taxes in the city district to see that. Outside of the borderlands, where else would anyone dare to collect taxes twenty years in advance?
This was also one of the reasons why some commoners preferred to live in villages or slums rather than remain in the city.
“Winner: Ogre Kessin! This duel was conducted by mutual consent, where life and death were waived, and is protected under sacred law!”
The referee's announcement officially determined the nature of this match.
This formal ruling, at least on the surface and within the city, would shield Ogre from anyone looking to cause trouble.
After all, Ogre could be considered half a member of the colosseum, so the referee naturally favored him.
This was one of the reasons why Ogre had insisted on fighting in the arena despite the immense physical strain.
Fighting here worked in his favor.
‘Actually... I didn't want to kill you.’
Ogre retrieved his spear, cast a glance at Will, and put his mask back on.
In truth, Ogre was not someone who enjoyed killing randomly.
But analyzing it rationally, he had to show his fangs in this clash.
Otherwise, subsequent troubles would only keep coming, one after another.
Engaging in a death match would not make Ogre's life any easier.
But it could buy him a period of safety.
At the very least, it ensured he could securely claim his earnings from the betting pool.
Furthermore, notoriety was a form of protection in itself.
This was the most prudent choice at the moment, and it would also discourage the colosseum from trying to recruit him.
A person who dared to kill a noble would not be truly welcome in most places.
‘Changing my identity... needs to be put on the agenda as well.’
Did Ogre care about these consequences? He did not...
From the very beginning, Ogre had no intention of playing along in this game of nobles.
He desperately needed an event to isolate him from the vortex while milking the remaining value of his current identity. Though this death match wasn't in his plans, it was actually quite perfect.
Do it thoroughly or don't do it at all.
This was one of the warnings his father had left him.
Though he might have been reluctant, Ogre would not regret his choice.
Just as Lange had said: once you take action, just do it—don't overthink.
Hesitation would only lead to losing everything.
Trying to have it both ways usually meant ending up with nothing.
As for any sentimental reflections, those could be saved for later.
Ignoring the clamor and uproar, Ogre stepped down from the platform and approached the staff member to claim the payout he was owed. “Pay out my winnings. An eighty-gold-coin bet at forty-eight times the payout, minus the transaction fee on the profits—you owe me three thousand six hundred and fifty-two gold coins.”
Ogre's purpose for coming here had been clear from the very beginning—to make money.
With this sum of gold, he could do whatever he wanted.
Three thousand six hundred and fifty-two gold coins was already more than everything Ogre had saved over the past two years...
“Ah, yes... please wait a moment.”
Had Ogre chosen to back down earlier, he didn't know if he would face future troubles, but he certainly wouldn't have received a single copper of this money. The nobles might have even extorted him instead.
Ogre could endure almost any verbal provocation or doubt, but he would never allow his own interests to be severely infringed upon—because such encroachments would be endless.
As for whether his identity would be exposed... What a joke. Did anyone truly think a mask could hide anything? Anyone with half an interest could easily uncover Ogre's identity with a basic investigation.
Rather than waiting for others to investigate him, he had chosen to directly take off his mask and reveal his "true face" to ensure the death match could proceed legitimately.
The face beneath the mask was nothing more than an escape guise Ogre had prepared long ago.
“Here is your gold...”
Before long, Ogre's chest of gold coins was brought forward.
Normally, withdrawing such a large sum of money directly might have posed some difficulty.
But after the stunt Ogre had just pulled, the managers behind the colosseum probably couldn't wait to sever all ties with him.
How could they dare to give him any trouble?
They hadn't even seen that fat manager show up, after all.
“Alright, good.”
Ogre nodded, turning his gaze toward the small chest of gold coins.
Over three thousand six hundred gold coins was enough to feed an ordinary family for more than three centuries.
That might not sound like a massive amount in words, but seeing it in person was a different story.
There was so much of it that it had to be packed into a small chest, which the staff member before him had struggled quite a bit to carry onto the counter.
Ogre plunged his hand into the chest and rummaged around. Only after confirming there were no hidden traps did he lift the chest to gauge its weight.
Between the chest and the coins, it was indeed quite heavy, weighing around fifty kilograms.
Of course, such a weight was nothing to a Martial Apprentice.
‘This is all gamblers' money... tsk.’
Feeling a touch of sentimentality in his heart, Ogre closed the chest.
He then casually slung his spear over his shoulder, picked up the chest, and left the colosseum.
Rate on N.U.
