Chapter 283 Chapter 283: The Final
?After Nova's mother's "debut battle," the storyline of "Dragoness's Dream" shifts to the gladiator's day-to-day work, performing mutual combat for the entertainment of the audience in the arena.
Renji, still playing the role of a gladiator, goes along with the progression of the story.
"Don't kill me, I surrender! I surrender!"
Renji's first fight arrives quickly, and unsurprisingly, his opponent, another gladiator, is on his knees begging for mercy, continuously kowtowing with tears and snot mixed on his face, looking as wretched as one can be.
The audience, seeing this, shows disdain and disgust, cursing the bettors who wagered on this gladiator, while those who bet on Renji shout excitedly, urging Renji to quickly execute his opponent with a final, fatal blow.
But looking at the gladiator kneeling before him, showing such a pitiful face, although knowing these are just NPCs in a dream, Renji still cannot bring himself to kill him and prepares to turn away.
However, at the moment Renji turns around, the gladiator who had just been crying and begging suddenly changes expression to one of ferocity. With eyes reddened, revealing a crazed intent to kill, he pulls out a dagger he had prepared in advance, aiming for the heart of Renji's back.
"Die!"
The gladiator, charging with the dagger, shows a fierce determination mixed with excitement. He thinks Renji foolish for letting him go and leaving his back unguarded, almost visualizing his own victory.
Turnarounds in desperate situations often result in greater rewards, with greed and bloodlust filling the gladiator's mind. The audience, too, gets excited by such a twist, where a strong contender is taken down by a weaker one due to carelessness, a scenario the audience never tires of.
Unfortunately for the attacker, Renji doesn't even need to look back. His companions, 86 and Control Number One, immediately cover the sneaky gladiator with firepower. The gladiator doesn't even touch the hem of Renji's garment before being turned into a sieve, dying miserably on the spot.
The gladiator Renji had once spared had no intention of emulating Renji's mercy. The polite demeanor he showed against Renji was now nowhere to be seen.
He became bloodthirsty and ferocious, choosing the most brutal method of beheading, simply to evoke strong applause from the audience, receiving rewards from the pleased wealthy spectators.
Renji felt uncomfortable watching this scene.
If he had not spared this gladiator before, maybe this father would not have had to die?
'No'
Renji quickly understood that it had nothing to do with his decision to kill or not kill. This is the cruelty of the arena, where survival of the fittest is the only rule, and any moral constraints are a joke to the arena.
The destiny of all gladiators is to entertain the audience through killing. It's an artificially created breeding ground, where the "insects" inside have no right to resist or choose, only to kill each other endlessly.
Quickly, Renji's dream scene changed again. This time, the arena appeared especially grand, absolutely packed, with countless spectators even willing to stand in the gaps between seats to watch.
Each tournament held in the arena is an elimination contest, with the final battle between the two strongest gladiators of the tournament to determine the true champion of the arena.
Such a final is almost the annual highlight of the arena and a major event for the Gulase base, not only attracting regulars but also many civilians eager to witness the combat between the strong.
This year's final was touted by the officials as the most significant match in decades. In addition to the usual privilege of the winner making a request within the officials' capacity, the prize money was significantly increased to motivate the competitors.
As one of the two strongest competitors to emerge from numerous gladiators, Renji was naturally one of them.
And the other...
Renji looked across the arena at a middle-aged Dragonkin woman who was also looking back at him.