“Arthur?”
“…” The boy exhaled a small, tired breath before he looked at his friend. “… I will tell you later. It’s complicated.”
Arthur wasn’t certain of his assumption yet. But, if what he was thinking of was true, then perhaps he might’ve come across someone far more special than he expected.
‘Ginjo, The Minkey Warrior… Who the hell are you?’
***
‘Curse you all…’ Ginjo sucked in a cold breath as he looked around him. He could hear the cheers, the cries, and the noises all around him. He could see the smiles on people’s faces. Those wide, disgusting grinning mouths stuffed with food. He hated them…
Everything about these creatures disgusted him, from their appearance to their personality and everything in between. He could not believe such repulsive creatures were this strong. He could not believe these creatures were the cause of his pain and suffering. This world was truly unfair.
‘I will kill you all… One day… I will soak this city in your blood.’ As he thought of that future, he gripped his sword even tighter.
“Hahahaha! So it is this bastard after all! The ugly monkey!” Veril yelled loudly as he stared at Ginjo. “I have heard a lot about you. The monkey who never got defeated. I wonder if the other fighters are that bad or if you’re truly living up to my expectations.
“…” Ginjo ignored him completely as he kept staring around.
“Hey! I am talking to you, bastard!” Veril clenched his teeth angrily. Ginjo didn’t even seem like he noticed his presence and that didn’t sit well with him. He was a renowned warrior who traveled a large distance to join the Seraphica Colosseum Gladiatorial battles. He knew that he was one of the strongest and he was ready to prove it in front of everyone.
His first fight ever was against a very famous personality. The monkey monster himself, Ginjo!
‘Tsk, this is my opportunity to hit it big really quickly! If I defeat this bastard, I’m set for life!’ Feeling enthralled by the idea of becoming the new icon in the capital, Veril looked up. “Just start the goddamn fight! I’m going to shred him to pieces!” He yelled loudly.
“As you all can see, our fighters are very eager to star! So, let us go through the rules very quickly! The rules are simple: There are no rules! The one who remains standing is the winner!”
“WOAH!!!”
The crowds cheered loudly in response as if they were beyond excited to hear that.
“… No rules? Really? So they can just use any dirty trick or kill their opponent?” Arthur muttered with an impressed look on his face. ‘They’re going for the full gladiator experience. Endless violence and no rules.’
What surprised him even more was how excited the crowds were. There were so many people and they all were ready to see blood, severed limbs, and dead corpses. They didn’t seem bothered at all by that fact. Arthur didn’t know what to think of that.
“Now! Take your positions!” The commentator spoke.
Slowly, the two warriors moved to the marked spots where they stood, facing each other.
“Don’t scream too loudly when I start dissecting you to pieces.” Licking his lips, Veril glared at Ginjo.
“…” The latter didn’t bother to respond as he simply took a fighting stance.
“Get ready!!”
A few seconds passed as the two warriors finally focused on the fight, forgetting about all the noise around them. It was now only them and their opponent in the arena, ready to battle to death or till someone fell to the ground.
A few seconds passed in complete silence before the commentator finally yelled. “BEGIN!!”
Immediately, Veril sprung into motion as he rushed toward Ginjo like an unstoppable truck. His massive steps almost shook the arena with how heavy they were. His sword lifted up in the air.
“Veril had just launched a very sudden attack!! He didn’t waste a single moment to begin the fight!!” The commentator yelled.
“Die!!”
Without hesitation, Veril swung his arm down with all his power, creating a strong gush of air. Even as his attack was descending, the destructive power carried within it was palpable. Nobody would wish to be its target. However, the Monkey Warrior didn’t seem bothered at all.
Ginjo stood there, not moving at all. Everyone instinctively gasped when they realized that he might get instantly hit. The attack was extremely fast after all. empire
*Swish* *BOOOM*
The sword smashed down, creating a large shockwave that spread a good distance around Veril.
“Huh?”
“What?! Did Ginjo get hit?! We cannot see through the dust! Oh, wait!!”
Before he could even register if he had hit his target or not, he felt something touch his shoulder. His eyes widened as he looked to the side. There, standing on his shoulder was Ginjo. He had somehow vanished and appeared right on top of him, standing straight.
‘When did he..?!’ Without wasting any time, Veril swung his sword again almost purely from instinct. His mind still didn’t comprehend how his target had moved that fast. He did not see anything at all.
Immediately, Ginjo leaped in the air above Veril as he spun around then he swiftly kicked Veril in the face, sending him flying back a few meters. The crowds gasped in shock. Everything happened really quickly so nobody could react in time.
“AGH!” Veril slammed into the ground violently as he rolled a few times, eventually ending up on his knees. “Hah…”
His face had a large red mark on it and some blood dripped out of his mouth. “Ptuh!” Spitting out the blood, he noticed that he had lost one tooth.
‘Damn it, that hit hurts! He didn’t even have any ground to launch a kick and it still was this bad! He ain’t simple!’
“Ginjo had counter-attacked quickly out of nowhere! Nobody could see him move out of the way!”
Just one single interaction and all of Veril’s bravado were thrown into the bin. Now, he was completely serious. Ginjo was very strong.
Then, he slowly stood up and picked up his sword before he grinned. “Nice try! Let me see you stop this!”
*Swish*
The man then rushed forward with even more vigor, closing the distance very quickly. He then swung his sword horizontally. His eyes stared intently at Ginjo, waiting for him to move again.
However, this time, Ginjo didn’t vanish as he expected. Instead, he simply made one single step to the side. A split second later, the sword passed by him, barely missing the target.
‘Fuck!’
Without stopping the momentum, he changed the direction of the swing again. But, Ginjo simply tilted to the back, dodging the sword swiftly.
‘What?!! Goddamit!’
“I can’t believe it!!! Ginjo is taking a defensive stance out of nowhere! But Veril cannot hit him!”
Veril clenched his teeth before he launched a rain of quick attacks at Ginjo. He swung his swords in all directions, keeping a very high speed. He stepped forward, using all his power to corner Ginjo who didn’t seem bothered at all. All he did was gently sway left and right as if he was dancing and the sword would move past him, not touching him at all.
With each passing second, Veril was losing his mind. He was being toyed with, there was no other way to describe it.
‘How is he this fast?!’
The crowd watched the scene with stupefied looks. Ginjo was not only dodging the attacks successfully, but he was also doing it in such a beautiful manner. The graceful steps and body sways were so precise that he barely left a few inches away from the sword every time.
“Stop!! Dodging!!” Veril yelled loudly. He was quickly getting frustrated as none of his attacks worked. So, out of desperation, he stopped swinging and launched his other hand forward, aiming to sneak attack Ginjo.
But, at the last second, the man knocked his arm with an elbow attack, making Veril lose his balance and fall face first.
“Ugh!”
Ginjo watched the man stand up and wipe his face. His expression was as cold as his moves.
“… Hah… Hah…”
“You’re pathetic.” Ginjo opened his mouth and said.
“WHAT DID YOU SAY?!”
“You have no technique and you don’t try to read your opponent. You’re just barbarically swinging your sword as if that will do anything. What a waste of time.” The Monkey Warrior clicked his tongue as if he was very annoyed. He had already expected such an outcome once he saw his opponent, but it was still disappointing to see it happen.
‘Nothing… They’re always idiotic… Yet, they always win…’ He thought to himself as he clenched his teeth.
“I will… I will kill you! Haaaah!!”
Feeling an insane rage fill his mind, Veril finally channeled his mana, shaking the arena with his pure aura. His body was slowly coated in a thick haze.
“I have tried to keep this battle swift and simple. But, you gave me no choice. I will show you why they call me The King Of Dunes!!”
“Veril had used his Mana!! He seems to have decided to take the fight more seriously! This is getting exciting!! What will Ginjo do?!” The commentator yelled.
“I will show you the true power of the East!” Slowly lifting his hand up, a ball of chaotic yellow grains formed on Veril’s hand.
“Sand! He can create sand!”
“Interesting…” Arthur watched the fight attentively. ‘Sand powers huh? This is about to be fun.’
Meanwhile, Ginjo himself simply squinted his eyes slightly before he exhaled a small breath.
“Come at me.” He said coldly.
A//N: Don’t forget to give the book some golden tickets for good luck! :3