The fight had only just begun.
For a moment, Hector's ghastly face left me stunned, but when he lunged at me, I immediately snapped out of my daze, blocking the incoming strike.
In the beginning, the gladiator would use precise, calculated strikes, but now, he unleashed dozens of mindless blows. He attacked so many times that I didn't have a single opening to act. For every hit that I blocked, I was pushed back, and it wouldn't be long until I would be trapped against the wall.
To prevent a disadvantageous state, I used Holy Shield and dodged to the right. Hector's pure white eyes followed me faster than a cat chasing a red dot. At this point, the gladiator was less a human and more of an untamed beast.
Even as we fought, a terrifying aura surrounded him, as if he were possessed by madness incarnate.
One of Hector's strikes busted through my Holy Shield, striking my shoulder and bringing my health down to eighty-one percent. That attack charged my special, but I didn't have any openings to activate it.
Additionally, I didn't have the time to equip my Wing Boots. Even if I could use them to get away by jumping, Hector would be able to cross the distance in a single dash.
Lightbringer and Angelic Blaze would be useless in this situation. My only option was to use Cleansing Inferno, expelling a field of flames and bringing down my HP to fifty-six percent.
Despite the searing heat, Hector pressed onward as if he couldn't feel any pain. The fires eventually brought his health down to forty-eight percent, but he continued pummeling me with wild eyes and a grin.
The audience was going crazy as they watched the human beast. They feasted on one-sided massacres like these.
I could keep blocking Hector, but I would eventually exhaust myself and my mana reserves. I had to think of something fast. Despite how much I racked my brain, I had no clear plan against such a relentless enemy.
The worst part was that there was no way to use Silent Sting, my main win condition. In the past, I had been much too reliant on my powerful special attack.
I had to come up with a solution fast.
For now, the only option that I had for competing against such a monstrosity was to activate Latent Power. It was unbelievably risky, but at least I would have the ability to fight back.
I let Hector pummel me until my health dropped to twenty-four percent. Finally, my eyes glowed red, and the buffs kicked in, raising my strength and speed by forty percent.
It was like walking a tightrope. One little mistake, and I would be dead.
But now, I could keep up with Hector's attacks.
I blocked the strikes with my sword, finally able to hold my ground against the immense force behind each swing. Now, I only had to look for an opening to counterattack.
Despite how fast Hector was swinging his sword, his assault formed a recognizable pattern: overhead, horizontal, diagonal, horizontal, thrust, diagonal, diagonal, repeat.
I waited for Hector's third diagonal attack, and I sidestepped in the nick of time, activating a perfect dodge.
The window was only about a half-second, so I still wasn't able to use Silent Sting. Instead, I used Lightbringer to buff my attack further, and I swung my blade twice, reducing Hector's HP to thirty-eight percent.
The perfect dodge ended, and Hector attacked with a sweeping slash that forced me backward. Then, he lunged in with an overhead swing that would have flattened me if I hadn't evaded it. The tremendous hit crushed the ground and sent rocks flying in my direction.
Without giving me a chance to breathe, Hector dashed forward again. He unleashed his signature hurricane of slashes, but it was the same pattern as before.
Once I recognized the gladiator's habits, he was easily predictable.
I initiated another perfect dodge, giving me the chance to land two more strikes. The second attack brought down Hector's HP to four percent. As the window of opportunity ended, I braced myself for retaliation, but Hector fell to his knees.
The gladiator's face returned to normal, and he held up his body by using his sword like a cane. He then coughed up blood and said, "I may have...underestimated you, Hierophant."
The audience chanted, "End him! End him! End him! End him!"
"You hear them?" Hector asked. "I lost. Now, you may take my life."
"End him! End him! End him! End him!"
"No," I said.
"End him! End him! End him! End him!"
"The fight can only end when one fighter dies," Hector said.
"End him! End him! End him! End him!"
I scowled. The crowd was getting on my nerves, and I wanted to punch all their faces.
"There's no point in killing you, Hector," I said. "You're a human just like me, one who has been forced into this horrid situation."
"What's the matter, Ares?" Thello said from his special seat. "If you don't kill Hector, then I'm afraid that one of your friends may have to suffer."
I glanced back at the gladiator, who was kneeling before me with his head down and his neck exposed.
"You have no choice, Hierophant. It would be the greatest honor to have my life ended by someone such as you. Like all of Thello's gladiators, my family was held hostage, and I had to kill many innocent lives. I have sinned; Therefore, I must receive my punishment. I can only hope that you can end the world's suffering, Hierophant."
My jaw was clamped shut, and I sucked in a sharp breath.
Throughout my entire time in this world, I had never killed a single human. It was only demons and monsters; they were the enemies.
If it meant protecting Sakimi and Marigold, would it be worth it to kill Hector?
This man wasn't evil. He was forced to fight.
Did I have any right to say that my friends' lives were more important than his?
No. That's not how it should be. Objectively, no life should be more valuable than another. But to me, Hector was a stranger. In this case, I had a stronger connection with Sakimi and Marigold. Did that make their lives more valuable?
Dammit!
What should I do?
I'm running out of time. If I didn't make a decision, I would have to face the consequences.
Hector looked up at me with tears in his eyes. "Please, Hierophant. Only you have the power to stop Thello. Free this continent. Free my family!"
I shut my eyes and brought down my blade, ending the gladiator's life.
[Level up!]
[You have reached level 46!]
Even though the crowd cheered, I couldn't hear their voices. An overwhelmingly cold darkness surrounded my field of vision, threatening to engulf my entire body.
What was this feeling?
It was something indescribable.
For some reason, I only felt...empty.
I didn't feel any remorse for killing another man.
Was this bad? Should I feel sad? Did this make me a terrible person?
Surely, not. I killed Hector for a justifiable cause. Besides, he wanted me to kill him.
This was fine, right?
I looked up to Sakimi and Marigold for a response, but they only looked down at me in horror. Beside them, Thello wore a fanged smile.
No. This wasn't right. It was never okay to kill another person.
Deep down, I knew that I would only turn myself into a monster, but I killed Hector anyway.
It was better to out-monster the evil that threatened to end my life.
Soon enough, the female guard escorted me out of the colosseum, and she returned me to my cell.
"You did what you had to do," the guard said.
I remained silent.
With a sigh, the guard closed the bars and left.
"I'm sorry, Hector," I muttered to myself. "But your death won't be in vain. I'll fight and fight until I've accomplished my goal. Even if I might stand on a mound of corpses, I hope they'll forgive me for wanting to grasp the light."
"What's this about grasping the light?" Thello asked, suddenly appearing in front of my cell.
Thello pantomimed my expression and mockingly said, "I hope they'll forgive me for wanting to grasp the light."
The archdemon let out a raucous laugh.
"You said it just like that! Grasp the light! Ahahahaha! You sound like such an idiot!"
"What do you want!" I snapped.
"Oh, I was congratulating you for another good fight. I hope you're excited for the next one later today!"
"Fuck you."
"I'll be sure to enjoy the last moments of your life. Anyway, I'll see you later!"
At that, Thello left.
After a few hours of waiting, the guard returned to my cell. She unlocked it and said, "Your next fight will begin shortly.
I got up and trudged forward, following the woman.
"Prepare yourself," she said with a low voice.
I've had enough of Thello's games. With Typhon's help, I'm breaking out of this hell.