[FGO]: 3

Ryou nearly lost his life!

Barely managing to twist his body, the dagger plunged viciously into his abdomen.

"Ah!!!"

Ryou screamed in pain, his voice filled with both anger and the terror of impending death.

Never before had he been so close to dying.

The physical agony, the fear, and the rage in his heart transformed into an invisible fuel, igniting something dormant within him...

Just as the gladiator twisted the dagger with a sinister grin to inflict even more pain, a seemingly frail hand grabbed his wrist.

A deathly black magical glow flickered on this arm. Starting from the wrist that was held, the blackness, like the decay of life, began to spread slowly but resolutely, causing the skin it touched to age and wither.

The gladiator felt as if the hand gripping his wrist was not human, but the hand of the Grim Reaper from hell.

"Ah!!" The gladiator instinctively let go of the dagger, shaking his arm desperately to free himself from Ryou's grasp.

But Ryou's grip was as immovable as an iron vise.

"Ah! You damned little bastard! Let go! Let go!" The gladiator screamed and struggled frantically.

Without a word, Ryou dropped the wooden sword from his right hand, clenched his fist, and punched him in the head.

In that instant, a white magical glow flashed on Ryou's right arm. His fist then gathered tremendous force and slammed into the gladiator's face.

Bam!

Blood splattered. The gladiator fell backward, and upon closer inspection, his nose and the surrounding area of his face were completely caved in. A bloody, indistinguishable mass.

Ryou released his wrist, letting him collapse to the ground, then swiftly pulled out the dagger from his abdomen. As the white magical glow flowed, the wound began to heal visibly.

What Ryou didn't know was that a certain marker on his system panel, representing his overall attributes, flashed briefly and then disappeared.

Looking at the dazed and fallen enemy before him, Ryou's face showed no hint of mercy.

Clenching the dagger, he stabbed down hard.

Blood spurted, signifying the end of a lowly life.

Following the same method, Ryou killed another unconscious gladiator, then severed their heads and placed them in front of himself.

Sitting cross-legged on the ground, covered in blood, with two lifeless heads before him and two headless corpses not far away, no gladiator dared to approach his area.

As the setting sun slowly drew the curtain on the day, when the last ray of sunlight vanished beyond the horizon, all the gladiators simultaneously paused their actions.

Almost none of the gladiators were completely unscathed. Each one was covered in blood, both their own and their enemies. Some gladiators had even lost a limb or an eye.

The original group of over a hundred had dwindled to less than thirty, far below Aisha's required number, which was a huge irony.

Ryou absentmindedly listened to Aisha's grandiose speech from the stage, as she brainwashed and incited the slave gladiators below. She talked about how the victors would gain the glory of warriors, how those who performed well might be favored by the goddess, and even regain their freedom.

All of it was empty, meaningless talk!

The biggest victors weren't the gladiators or the goddess behind them, but rather the ones who decided the rewards, glory, and freedom!

Do they think I haven't seen Spartacus?! I know better than they do what kind of faces the people running the gladiator arena have!

However, Aisha was beautiful, and eloquent, and addressed the topics most important to the slave gladiators. Each gladiator listened attentively as if they believed they could be the next lucky one to regain their freedom.

Out of sight, out of mind, Ryou pretended to listen intently while he immersed himself in his system panel.

After more than ten days of grueling training and this life-and-death struggle, his attribute panel finally showed some promising signs:

[ Name: Nguyen Ryou

 Race: Human

 Class: None

 Level: Unranked

 Base Attributes:

 Strength: 13.6 (F)

 Agility: 14.3 (F)

 Endurance: 16.6 (E-)

 Mana: 6.6 (F-)

 (Average attributes for normal humans, except Mana, are 10. Below 10 is F-, between 15 and 20 is E-, and so on.)

 Luck: ???

Class Skills: None

Retained Skills:

Basic Weapon Mastery (Cold Weapons) (2%)

Mana Burst E Grade (1%)

Noble Phantasms:

Crying Warmonger (Demoted)(Note: The golden Card after Scathach) ]

Each attribute had made significant progress, especially Endurance, which had broken beyond mortal limits, hinting at reaching the realm of Heroic Spirits.

E grade was the minimum threshold for Heroic Spirits.

In addition, there was a surprise: "Mana Burst."

Mana Burst—A skill that allows the user to imbue weapons or even their body with mana and continue to release mana while fighting.

This seemingly simple skill is, in fact, essential for all powerful Heroic Spirits, ranging from low-tier to the very top, and can be considered a versatile tool.

In the mobile game Fate/Grand Order (FGO), there's even a saying: "Without X Mana Burst, dealing damage is impossible!"

Imbuing a weapon with mana makes it sharper while imbuing armor with mana makes it sturdier.

Directly imbuing one's body with mana enhances basic attributes such as strength, agility, and endurance all around.

The potential of such a skill is nearly limitless. From Ryou's E-grade, which can only add simple mana damage, it can evolve to fully enhance one's attributes and even add various special attributes.

It's absolutely a top-tier auxiliary enhancement skill!

Unfortunately, with Ryou's current mana, "Mana Burst" can only last for a few seconds.

However... recalling the strange scene from before, Ryou couldn't help but feel that there was a secret hidden within this E-grade "Mana Burst" that he had yet to uncover.

Meanwhile, Aisha's speech (or rather, her brainwashing) seemed to be reaching its conclusion. Lastly, she dropped a bombshell.

"My esteemed mistress has decided that the arena will officially open in ten days. At that time, many gods will come to witness..."

"Warriors! The moment to change your fate has arrived!"

"If anyone performs exceptionally well and is fortunate enough to catch the eye of a god and become part of their family, they will regain their freedom!"

"Whoa!!!"

Aisha's final words ignited the atmosphere in the venue. The surviving gladiators, ignoring their injuries, raised their hands and cheered.

For a slave, nothing is more enticing than freedom!

Moreover, becoming a revered adventurer, an upper-class person, is like a pie falling from the sky!

Only Ryou watched the "performance" on stage with cold eyes.

Would that goddess, who uses her own body as a bargaining chip with no bottom line, be so kind-hearted? Ha...

When Ryou was escorted back to his cell, Anastasia suddenly leaned close to his ear and said mockingly, "Considering how much fun you've given me these past few days, I'll give you a piece of news for free."

"On the day of the grand opening, the mistress will have you form three teams, and your opponents will be..."

Anastasia whispered a name, causing Ryou's pupils to widen in shock. It was...

Anastasia patted Ryou's shoulder and turned to leave, her parting words laced with mockery, "Don't die, future hero..."

Ryou watched Anastasia's departing figure with cold eyes, remaining silent.

I won't die, nor will I become a hero.

A hero sacrifices for others, a golden statue of the deceased.

What I want to become is... strong!

...

Ten days passed in the blink of an eye.

During these ten days, all the gladiators seemed to be in an adrenaline rush, and the training ground was filled with an atmosphere resembling the intense preparation before an exam.

Ryou was no exception. After learning about their opponents from Anastasia, he intensified his efforts to sharpen his claws and fangs.

Because now, he could only rely on himself.

Despite having over 20,000 energy points, a purple magic ring, and two healing potions, Ryou dared not reveal any of these.

Are you kidding? How could a mere slave gladiator possess magic items worth hundreds of thousands or even millions of Valis?

Could he be a spy sent by some Familia?

Ryou was certain that if he exposed his possession of these magic items, even just those two healing potions, these Amazonian women, fierce as mother wolves, would have no qualms about torturing him to death and leaving nothing but bones.

By the way, Valis is the currency of this world, resembling a coin mixed with a bit of gold, with purchasing power roughly equivalent to the Japanese yen.

Ryou's increased zeal greatly annoyed Anastasia.

"Dammit! You're leaving me too exhausted to even relieve myself with the breeding slaves at night," was Anastasia's most frequent complaint these days.

Her words were filled with contempt for men.

In response, Ryou attacked even more fiercely.

When the grand opening of the gladiator arena finally arrived, Ryou keenly noticed that the number of patrolling Amazons had at least doubled.

Ishtar placed great importance on this ceremony.

It made sense. According to the information Ryou had extracted from Anastasia, this underground gladiator arena was the first under Ishtar's banner.

It also marked a new stage and symbol of Ishtar's ambition to become the Dark Queen of Pleasure Street. Without it, no matter how influential Ishtar became, she would still be nothing more than a brothel madam on Pleasure Street.

Ryou and the other gladiators were exceptionally allowed to wear simple leather armor painted in red and gold and were given sharpened metal weapons.

As Anastasia had said, the remaining gladiators were divided into three groups.

The members of the other two groups had all been severely injured in the brutal selection ten days prior, each bearing some degree of disability.

Only Ryou's group was equipped the most splendidly and robustly, with its members appearing the strongest. Aside from Ryou, each gladiator was muscular and formidable, clearly not to be trifled with.

However, the more this was the case, the colder Ryou felt. It seemed that vile goddess truly intended...

There was no time to think further; the ceremony had already begun.

Perhaps because this was an underground arena, the opening ceremony was low-key, without any fireworks or confetti.

But to a goddess, especially a dark, unscrupulous one, blood was the best way to adorn a celebration.

Through the bars, Ryou saw a classic Roman-style arena, with the stands filled with commoners and adventurers, indistinguishably cheering in frenzy.

For a world still in its ancient stage of technological and societal development, nothing was more bloody or thrilling than watching a live gladiator fight.

In the center of the arena, on the viewing platform, several intimidating, presence-heavy figures stood out. Without a doubt, they were the gods who had come to witness the event.

Among them, Ryou could identify the true stars of the ceremony.

There were four gods seated at the front of the viewing platform.

Among them was a goddess dressed in a black kimono, her long hair reaching her waist, exuding the refined elegance of a Yamato Nadeshiko.

Another goddess wore a Greek robe, with golden hair and blue eyes, radiating an aura of nobility and grace.

As for the one clad in nothing but a semi-transparent veil, her alluring and sensuous body faintly visible, there was no doubt this was the infamous goddess Ishtar.

What surprised Ryou was that Ishtar was not seated in the central main seat but had ceded this position to a beautiful goddess with dragon horns, her entire body shrouded in a large black robe.

There were many goddesses present, all of them extraordinarily beautiful, each trying to outshine the others. Yet, this particular goddess, despite her low-key attire, had a presence that far surpassed all the other goddesses, rendering them mere background.

Seeing those large, curved dragon horns, Ryou narrowed his eyes, having a sudden realization...

Ishtar seemed to have little patience for formalities and announced the official start of the ceremony after only a few words.

Aside from Ryou's group of gladiators, the other two groups were led into the sand-covered arena.

Ishtar then declared that their opponents would be each other, and only the winning side would have the right to survive, with the victorious ones receiving the gods' rewards.

Observing Ishtar's vague statements and sensing the unusual energy fluctuations in the air, Ryou smirked coldly.

Using a 'Charm' skill to make the gladiators fight to the death under unrealistic illusions, indeed Ishtar had a twisted sense of humor.

Ryou stopped paying attention to the scene and began his warm-up exercises, knowing there was a tough battle ahead.

Unaware of Ishtar's trickery, the gladiators in the arena were filled with dreams and hopes of freedom. Combined with the influence of the 'Charm' skill, they were all fired up, eager to tear their opponents apart.

"Kill!!!"

The battle started with bloodshed and violence.

The gladiators seemed drugged with adrenaline, showing no mercy or fear.

They mercilessly beheaded fallen opponents, their wounds not hindering their actions. Even if they lost their weapons or had their limbs severed, they fought to bite off a piece of their enemy!

Blood sprayed wildly across the arena, the furious roars of the gladiators mingling with the frenzied cheers of the audience.

In just half an hour, only one gladiator remained standing. One of his eyes had been gouged out, and his left hand was long gone. Around him lay fifteen mutilated corpses.

He raised his blood-soaked right hand high, as if he had already won his freedom, and the audience responded with thunderous applause.

The fortunate gladiator failed to notice the mocking smile on Ishtar's face on the viewing platform.

After a brief cleanup of the arena, the bodies were dragged away, and the blood-soaked sand was covered with fresh yellow sand.

"Go on! It's your turn now!" A fully armed squad of Amazons entered the backstage area, driving Ryou and the other gladiators into the arena.

Ryou followed the group, entering the arena from the tunnel below.

For a moment, he felt as if he had entered another world. The frenzied cheers and screams of the audience were like huge tsunamis constantly crashing over him.

For a brief instant, Ryou felt like a superstar.

No wonder so many people go to great lengths to become celebrities. This feeling... it's simply exhilarating!

Before crossing over, Ryou was a homebody who hated noisy and crowded environments. It made him feel like he was in a public spectacle.

However, Ryou had grown into a competent warrior. Suppressing his discomfort, he followed the team to the viewing platform.

As usual, Ishtar delivered a long, brainwashing speech, activating her full 'Charm' skill.

Prepared for this, Ryou pretended to look at Ishtar while closing his eyes under the shadow of his helmet.

What Ryou didn't know was that his little trick had been seen through by a certain goddess.

The goddess, with dragon horns on her head and dressed in a black robe, had been somewhat absent-minded. Suddenly, she lifted her vertical, snake-like pupils, and Ryou's figure was reflected in her gaze. However, although the goddess noticed Ryou's trick, she didn't expose him but instead smiled meaningfully.

After Ishtar finished her rousing speech, the elaborately dressed 'Amazon' Aisha appeared as the master of ceremonies.

"Dear audience! Before you stand warriors selected from among hundreds. Even LV1 adventurers would fall at their feet..."

Aisha, worthy of her title 'Antianeira ', had excellent oratory skills. She first delivered a round of praise, eliciting cheers from the audience and heating the atmosphere, then suddenly changed her tone.

"...But their opponent is even more ruthless and stronger. Countless adventurers have met their end at his hands, earning him the title of the Grim Reaper of low-level adventurers! He is..."