Rashaka was sitting in his office. He finished dealing with the paperwork, but his mind was still clouded with doubt. It had been three days since the human known as Dead Meat 44 had killed one of his most valuable allies.
Rumors spread like wildfire around the Demi human Council. People of all races were talking about the man who made history as the first human to reach the top 100. Countless stories and lies were running rampant among the citizens.
Some said he was a demi human masquerading as a human; others said he was a leader of some syndicate in the west. Others believe he was some kind of monster or beast that came from the northern mountains full of snow. The most outrageous was the rumor of him being some kind of dragon who had taken human form to infiltrate the nation.
Despite not having a single thing to back them up, Rashaka couldn't dismiss them entirely. He didn't have any idea of the human's true intentions or background.
For the last three days, the human had been confined to the hall, where he hung around alone. On the first night he spent with other humans, but conflict had occurred between them, he decided to sleep alone. They had to give him a room to not raise suspicion, but he was being carefully watched.
He ordered the guards to monitor the other humans to see if they were planning something together, but nothing unusual had happened yet. They haven't even talked to each other since the first night. Things seem to be calm for now.
On the outside, the army pushed to take the human but thanks to his authority, Rashaka managed to keep the soldiers out. He wasn't going to let a miserable human tarnish his reputation as the master of the coliseum. Still, the army made enough noise to call the attention of one of the council members.
The visit was scheduled for today. He said visit, but it was more like an inspection. He was going to come to make sure the human was under control. In the worst case, Rashaka could be killed on the spot if the council leader concludes that he is a failure as owner.
A knock on the door called his attention. "Boss is me, Alumi."
He fixed his mane and let him in.
"Tell me, is everything prepared for the council visit?"
"Yes, Beru Beru already confirmed the attendants and bets for today's three small fights, nothing too important."
"Good, we have the other fighters ready in case the council leader demands a bigger spectacle?"
"They're ready for a fight. At your service, boss."
"The collar controller system and the guard patrols? Make sure the human is always accompanied by five guards at a minimum, all of them capable of using [Alarm] in case of anything. Also-"
"Boss, boss. It is fine. We have triple checked the collar stone and the patrols have never been higher than before. If he tries anything, we'll know. He can't swipe his ass without us holding the paper."
The analogy was vulgar, but Alumi made his point. Nothing could go wrong after so many preparations, and yet the insecurity remained in the back of his mind. Maybe it was his instinct as a merchant, but the moments when you prepared the most were when things went wrong.
He bit the back of his hand and thought one last time.
"Alumi, go talk to the top five. Offer them anything to act as guards for today. I don't care how much it costs, you have my permission to offer anything."
"Boss, are you sure? What if they ask for a ton of gold or a chance to fight one of the leaders of the council to earn their freedom?"
"It is fine, they aren't going to ask for that. They are still training here before challenging them. And money is secondary; I can make it back as long as I have the coliseum."
This was the last resort. If everything else were to fail, he could use the top five strongest warriors to kill the human. The last barrier, a true merchant knows when it's time to go all out.
"After you convince them, have them guard the corridors leading to the guard restricted area. They should buy us enough time to regroup and attack."
Alumi bowed and left.
Whatever you're planning, I'll crush it. Anything you attempt.
***
Alumi was standing in front of the best fighters in the coliseum. He had already convinced them with promises of gold or powerful weapons. It was a risk to have the best fighter armed like this and without supervision, but it was a direct order from Rashaka.
"Your job is to guard the hallways around the restricted area. Report if you see anything suspicious."
"Is that all? You brought all of us here to watch the empty halls? Can you at least tell us who we are killing?" The man who spoke had iron teeth and dark fur. He was half hyena and half wolf, a master at fighting only with his claws. Ranked 4 Lum the vicious beast.
"Yes, you don't need to do anything. Your presence is a last resort in case of anything going wrong."
"I think what Lum means is, who is going to make things go wrong? I heard rumors that the new human is planning something." A pale and skinny man with dark eyes. He was a half Jotun; instead of receiving a great physique, he was blessed with an enormous talent for ice magic. Ranked 5 Jurgen the ice storm.
"Don't play dumb, Jurgen. You already know the council is visiting today. That's the reason for your presence here, nothing more."
"Then can you unlock the magic negation spell of the collar? I can't fight at my best with only my sword." A woman with brown skin said with a bored expression. Despite her appearance, she was a Skinchanger. She hops from body to body, taking the abilities and appearance of her victims. A half-caster, half-martial warrior. Ranked 3 Ereba Zos the last dance.
Alumi took his wand and dispelled the magic negation of the collars. Ereba and Jurgen were satisfied as they were the only magic casters.
"Let me remind you one last time. Watch the corridors and alert us in the case of anything. If you get any funny ideas, I'm killing you." With that, Alumi retired to check the patrols one last time.
"How about we make a bet." A man in tight armor with a thin blade around his waist spoke with a cheery tone. His red hair caught everyone's attention. A Flame hound folk, it was a special race of dog demi human with fire abilities. Ranked 2 Cerbares the hell herald.
"What are you suggesting?"
"We should make this a game. If nothing happens, then that's fine. But if the human tries something, the one that kills him first wins and the other four have to give him the rewards they asked from Rashaka. Isn't that much more interesting than just killing a simple human and being done with it?"
"So, one person gets all the loot from this job? I don't have any problem." Jurgen agreed.
"HAHAHA, me too, me too. That's fun!" Lum didn't hesitate to join.
"I could use more money. I'll do it." Ereba was the fourth one.
Cerbares looked at the only one who didn't say anything. "What about you, Zen?"
Zen began to walk away, answering without looking back. "Do what you want. I don't care about petty things like gold. I'll kill the human not for a bet but for my honor as a warrior." Zen was a half insect demi human. He had six arms and a fusion between a human body and an exoskeleton. Half of his face was like an insect. Hated by humans and his own kind alike. Zen the insect monk was the coliseum's most powerful warrior.
"I'll take that as a yes. hehe." Cerbares laughed.
It wasn't wrong to say that fighting against any of these warriors was suicide. They were the top of the coliseum, fierce combatants polished by hundreds of battles. In fact, if they gang up on Alumi, he would lose. But they were individualistic and prideful.
Everyone had their own desires and objectives. They would never work together, much less cooperate to face a single human. The true reason they agreed to lend their services was to kill the human.
All of them pretend to do it for the bet except Zen. They were shocked after hearing about Uru's death. How dare a mere human disturb a sacred place like this coliseum. The mecca of demi human warriors.
Rashaka's plan worked. The warriors were ready to kill in case of anything.
***
Sitting on the ground, Thanatos was resting. It would be normal to see a coliseum fighter taking a break if it wasn't because he was surrounded by five guards.
They were keeping an eye on him. The council leader was about to arrive. The last thing they needed was for the human to do something. They have been watching him for several days now, but they didn't learn any weaknesses.
Some of the guards tried to grab their swords when he was sleeping during the night, but he instantly woke up the moment they touched their weapons. It was like he could sense the hostility even if he was in a profound sleep. Or maybe he was just pretending to sleep and only rested for a short time. In the end, they didn't learn anything else about him.
"I'm going to the bathroom." Thanatos got up, and the guards followed closely behind.
He couldn't get privacy, but instead of five, only one guard accompanied him inside and waited on the other side of the door. Thanatos took a deep breath and prepared himself. He looked at the signal made with blood on the wall. It was a thumbs-up drawing.
Thanatos smiled. That was all he needed to confirm the plan. It was time to escape. Step one: deal with the guards.
He opened the door and pointed to the back. "Hey, why is there blood on the wall there?"
"What blood?" The guard came close and looked. He saw the signal and at that moment, Thanatos grabbed him by the neck and broke it. He didn't have time to scream.
He needed to do the same thing with the other four guards. That's when help came in.
"Hey, I need one of you to respond to me about this." Robert came from the outside looking for a guard. Two of them turned around.
"What do you want?"
"Look at this. Tell me what you think it is." He extended his hand, but there was nothing there.
"Are you mocking us human?"
"No no. I was just buying time by making you turn around at me."
"What?" That was the last thing they said before their heads were turned to an unnatural degree, killing them instantly.
Robert moved the bodies inside quickly, making sure that no one saw. The five guards were thrown into the bathroom room behind the door. Hilrun and Gro came inside after making sure no one had noticed anything in the hall.
"The hall is fine. There are only four guards at the gate."
"Time for step two: taking this thing off." Thanatos grabbed the collar and began to tear it apart with his bare hands.
"HHHHHHHHHHHHHNNNNNNNNNNGGGGGGGGGGGG!" He was using his full strength and the collar still didn't break.
Trying to overcome the magic with pure brute power was a fool's errand. Only those who had reached the highest peak of physical power could do something like this. His veins were about to burst, and he bit his teeth so hard that blood came from his mouth.
If he couldn't do this, the plan was doomed.
"AAAAAAGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHH!"
CRASH... The collar broke in two and he was finally free. A miracle happened in front of their eyes. Breaking the collar also restored the faith of his companions. Escape wasn't a dream or forgone hope. They were about to make it a reality.