Gladiator

Lucius' life has once again fallen into a routine. Wake up, fight a monster, train, go to sleep. Lucius has long since stopped counting days because it doesn't really matter does it? There's no one waiting for him back home. The only thing keeping Lucius going is his desire to become strong enough to avenge his mother.

Lucius has gotten significantly bigger having needed to be transferred to a bigger cell to contain him. The amount of fighting has sharpened Lucius' battle senses and instincts. He can now control the electrical smog that he can fire. Like a Devil Jho, it is likely Lucius has developed a natural dragon affinity which expresses itself in an elemental organ.

???"You know the drill! Get going!"

'Yeah yeah, you don't need to say it every day.'

The guards that escort Lucius to the arena seem to rotate every so often. Some are nicer while some are not. Luckily one of them vouched that they no longer needed to sedate Lucius everytime he was transferred to and from the arena.

Lucius had no reason to attempt an escape yet because he was too weak to even attempt escape. While he could take on one or two guards, reinforcements would bring dozens and Lucius would be done for. The guards are also Master Rank hunters, they weren't pushovers. If Lucius couldn't handle the guards, there was no way he could defeat the ones who controlled the Zinogre that killed his Mom.

Walking down the corridor the light at the end of the tunnel was blinding as always. After a few seconds Lucius' eyes dilated giving back his vision.

'Living in a damp prison cell really sucks. I miss the feeling of the sun and breeze.'

Reminiscing of the past the opposing cell opened, yet no monster came out roaring in rage or refusing to leave the confines of its cell.

A single human in plated armor dragged a massive greatsword along the ground.

'What are they planning this time?'

Wary of the change in routine Lucius nerves are on edge preparing for an unexpected scenario.

With the human out of the cell, the cage slammed shut issuing the start of the match.

The human moved deceptively slow, but the nimble control of the sword proved otherwise. Being able to wield such a large weapon was a testament to one's strength.

-BOOM-

A dragon breath was fired across the arena testing the capabilities of Lucius' opponent. Nimbly they rolled out of its path dashing towards Lucius.

Each swing of the sword tore through the air as Lucius deftly avoided each strike. Craters followed each exchange between the two. Lucius was a speed based monster so his ability to react to his opponents movements were exceptional.

Analysing an opponent's movements and patterns was key to dealing a fatal blow. While the fight went on Lucius was confused at the inconsistency of the patterns he was noticing. The power behind that sword was no joke, but they moved like an amateur. Each move was predictable and contained a lot of wasted movements. Yet the strength was even stronger than some Master Ranked Hunters.

Knowing that he wouldn't find the answer to his questions Lucius prepared to end the battle. Slowly the human started to tire as its movements became more and more sluggish.

Not even fifteen minutes go by when the human overexerted themselves in an overhead charge leaving a massive opening for Lucius. Spinning around an immense amount of force was directed into his tail which landed square on the human's chest. The force was strong enough to send the human flying but not enough to kill them.

Ready for the referee to pull out the human and end the match Lucius stopped. But nobody came down or commanded him to stand down.

'Why aren't they pulling them out? There's no way that man will let a monster kill his subordinates. As much as I would love to see him losing a precious asset I can't risk being punished for killing them so what's happening?'

Looking around Lucius couldn't make heads or tales of the situation so he went to inspect the human and confirm a suspicion.

Finding the haggard body Lucius found out it was actually a she. And not just any she, a girl with a brand on her left cheek. Smooth round facial figures give away the fact she hasn't reached maturity. While Lucius has long since considered himself a monster deep within his soul he can't let go of his human identity.

The brand of a dragon breathing fire was the same one located on every resident of the arena. It was also one of the greatest shames of Lucius. It reminds him of the loss of his mother and his pride. The inability to save his mother from the monster in man's skin and the life of being a pet to his mother's murderer.

Sympathy begins to wash over Lucius as he begins to make relations with the girl in front of him.

'She probably had parents who raised her and a family she grew up with, but she's here fighting in this hell hole… Since she lost I doubt they'll heal her. Most likely they'll probably dispose of her if she isn't in fighting condition.'

Deciding to forgo any consequences Lucius carries the girl back to his side of the arena. They opened the gates and escorted him back to his cell. Surprised at the lack of reprimanding, Lucius saw the stoic faces of his escorts.

'As much as I hate being thankful to that man, he's probably the reason no one is objecting to my actions. Yet, feeling like a piece in a part of his game is still infuriating.'

Reaching his cell, Lucius lays the girl down. Waiting for all prying eyes to leave Lucius begins caring for the girl. Taking off the concaved armor Lucius carefully wipes her down with the water from his drinking trough.

'While I'm not the cleanest thing in the world, I like to believe I'm a pretty sanitary monster.'

Wiping down the wounds and dirt Lucius sets her on his stomach. Curling up Lucius, was actually on the verge of crying because of how much he missed his Mom and Cobalt. For the first time in months Lucius felt the warmth of another being instead of the cold prison floors.

Drifting into sleep Lucius dreamt for the first time since he was captured.

??? "Mmmm… Why is the floor fluffy?"

Groggily getting up it took the girl a few seconds to take in what was happening. She was alive, in the cell with the Nargacuga, and it was crying?

Tears slowly dripped down Lucius' cheeks as he imagined sharing a meal with Lucy and Cobalt. While the girl had no clue about what the Nargacuga was thinking or dreaming about, it wasn't so different from her. While she was a little mad at Lucius for beating up she was extremely grateful for the care he had given her.

Basking in the warmth from the Nargacuga's attempt at a hug, the girl slept in peace just as Lucius was.