Rogue Villain-Chapter 212: Gladiator

With the would-be robbers’ blood dulling the blade of his morality, Ackster had a hunch he would have an easier time claiming victory in the raw life-and-death battles of the Tarragia Gladiatoreum.

Unlike the battles and duels on Matar, which were nothing more than intense spars thanks to the advanced and well-developed healing abilities on the islands, the battles in Myrrhia’s colosseums were of a more violently entertaining nature.

Losing on Matar had simply been a matter of having to try again.

Losing on Myrrhia was more of trying again in your next life.

That and the fact that the Sun God Token was the grand prize of the Tarragia Gladiatoreum was as much Ackster knew about the southern half of the continent. The Hero had stopped by, but his business had been up north to deal with a hostile Yeti migration.

But Ackster didn’t mind since he could gather information by tuning his hearing while walking the bustling and winding streets of Tarragia. Not that he needed to gather a lot of information.

What Ackster needed to do was pretty straightforward.

Ackster had to go to the Gladiatoreum, offer payment to participate in the next round of battle, and finally emerge victorious to have a chance at the Sun God Token. The fact that no one had succeeded in acquiring the Sun God Token ever since it appeared as the grand prize spoke volumes about how difficult it was to get there, win against the Gladiatoreum, and overcome the tricks and corruption the house would throw at one to keep them from winning.

Ackster wondered if he would actually be strong enough to get his hands on the Sun God Token now that he had arrived. He was touching on the S-rank in terms of combat capability. He was still a far cry from the actual rank, but it wouldn’t be fair to constrain him to A anymore.

But a place as wild, free, and lucrative as Tarragia and its Gladiatoreum was bound to have at least one or two at and above the S-rank.

If they decided to keep the Sun God Token, Ackster might be in a little pinch, especially if the rest of the city-state and the other gladiators sided against him.

’Sounds exactly like what I need, though.’

But that wasn’t enough to make Ackster back down.

He would have been fearless with his skills. But without them, Ackster had to be a little prudent and think before acting. It was just that his thoughts didn’t necessarily change his actions.

So, Ackster signed up. He didn’t have to wait long before he and a bunch of others were called into the grand colosseum’s waiting rooms. One by one, they were sent into the arena to fight with each other or beasts and monsters of increasing ferocity.

The stands were rife with excitement as dust fell from the waiting area’s ceiling whenever a fight—slaughter—concluded.

Ackster didn’t know if they were saving the best for last or if they picked the order at random, but it took quite a while for it to be his turn.

The guard, probably a veteran of the colosseum himself, gestured at Ackster as the heavy iron grid rose with a grinding noise. It also looked like someone had used magic to block part of the ruckus from inside the ring.

As soon as Ackster stepped into the sandy ring, the crowd’s sheer size and volume crashed into him like a tidal wave. The sun standing high up in the sky and pointing straight at him didn’t help.

Ackster blocked out all of that and focused on his opponents.

Apparently, the previous fight hadn’t reached a total conclusion before the organizers decided to toss in a new fighter to spice things up. Ackster didn’t mind, even if the blood-drenched swordsman and red-maned lion decided to team up on him since he was the obvious threat to them both.

Regardless of what they had done, they wouldn’t have stood a chance against Ackster, especially now after his training in Matar and with Stormcaller in his hand. Ackster didn’t even need to use his mana or anything before ending his opponents’ misery.

His clean and concise fighting earned him a couple of boos from the crowd. But Ackster would much rather endure the crowd’s jeers than toy with another man’s life. The lion was whatever. He had already killed too many beasts to count. But he was still new to killing and far from making a spectacle of murder.

But just because the crowd didn’t like his methods, it didn’t mean he was done. As long as people and creatures died and killed each other, sending showers of warm blood, the crowd didn’t mind. The more exciting, the better, but if the fights weren’t exciting, the rapid-fire bets were.

Ackster quickly became a favorite as he continued to slaughter his opponents without fail and without apparent struggle. He bulldozed his way through any foe that entered the arena with merciless violence. Those who entered knew what they had signed up for.

The Sun God Token was too important to Ackster’s mission for him to consider giving it up on account of the lives of others who were happily trying to kill him.

It took a while, including a night’s break when the crowd needed to rest despite the flashing lights keeping the ring lit up before Ackster finally met opponents who needed him to put in a modicum of effort. And it took another several hours of fighting before he encountered a swordsman who forced him on his toes.

But Ackster only needed to use his mana in the three rounds leading up to the final battle. Even the final elimination round was a low hurdle when he used his mana.

Ackster had made it through, and now he only needed to beat one last opponent before he was supposed to get his hands on the Sun God Token.

"Now, ladies and gentlemen, mongrels and bastards! It is time! For the Grand Finale! Will our challenger emerge victorious and get his hands—hand. Pardon me—on the priceless and legendary treasure?! The Sun God Token!"

The announcer, speaking from a platform high up in the air, paused to let the crowd cheer before continuing.

"Or will the Gladiatoreum’s own undefeated, unstoppable, unbeatable champion eat another cocky challenger for breakfast?! From another continent! Another side of the world! The mighty! The Terrifying! The Destructive! Everyone, give me a thunderous applause for Tetraxia!"