"And the contestant 'Lapsa' had knocked out another one of his enemies with only a single punch!"
Ignoring the voice of the moderator and the murmurs, I turned my back to the unconscious enemy, walking back.
After this fight, it should be determined that I was a finalist and fought against the other finalist of the other bracket, namely Thauma.
All my fights until now were pretty lackluster, as my enemies couldn't even last for more than a single punch, even though they all boasted about their strength in the beginning.
Bamf—!
The gate closed behind me with a loud sound as I passed the bridge.
Surprisingly, the colosseum was rebuilt in only a single day, as Melina, our principal, decided to help rebuild that place.
The audience was also compensated for being put in such a dangerous position, so there weren't many complaints about the incident on the last day.
The interior of the colosseum consisted of a long and dark hallway with some doors on the walls, which led to the changing room for the contestants.
Dark and gloomy.
That's how I would describe the interior of the Colosseum. The fact that my steps all resounded loudly inside this gloomy place, just reinforced my beliefs.
"So you will be my next opponent..."
Thauma, who leaned against a wall inside the hallway, spoke to me.
"Is that surprising?"
"No, not really."
He shook his head before approaching me, cracking a weak smile while tilting his head.
"I actually expected it. There aren't many people who would be able to beat you, 'Lapsa'."
"...are you making fun of my naming sense again?"
Thauma shook his head, releasing a short snicker.
"That wasn't my intention, but now that you say it...yes. Yes, I am. Seriously, the runic word for fox? Couldn't you think of a more creative name?"
Taking my kitsune mask off, I rolled my eyes while releasing an irritated sigh.
"Nobody knows the runic language, anyway."
"Yeah, except rune mages."
"They still exist?"
"Like three of them, maybe? It's been like 50 years since I'd last seen one."
I nodded and started walking again, Thauma following right after me.
"Aren't you scared of losing against me?"
He asked while leaning forward, looking at me with an expectant gaze.
"Not really. As long as you don't use 'subjective reality', I should be fine."
"And what if I do use it?"
"Then it would be just fair for me to use 'Emptiness', right?"
Thauma froze up, staring at me with a stiff expression. His following words sounded shaky, his voice carrying a slight tremble.
"...let's not do that then."
"I expected that answer."
I cracked a small smile at his nervous expression. It was rare to see him actually worry about something, but I would too if I was in his position.
"You know..."
Facing the exit, which was only a few meters away now, he knit his brows, releasing a heavy breath.
"...these abilities can't even be compared. You shouldn't even joke about that. While my magic doesn't necessarily have to be lethal, 'Emptiness' is the definition of lethality."
I just shrugged my shoulders at his complaints, his words coming in on one and out on the other ear.
"I think it's just fair for us both to use our strongest techniques."
"Difference is that I can actually control mine, you moron."
Massaging his temples, Thauma grumbled in a low voice.
"Can't you just resign and let me get the price?"
He looked at me with a pleading expression, but I just shook my head. It was a gift for Ophelia, so I was the one who had to get it.
"I can't."
"Is it because of your little sister? I'll give you the artifact then! I only need the money!"
"No."
I repeated, slowly feeling a slight sense of irritation inside me. I hated repeating myself, and Thauma should already know about that.
Narrowing my eyes, I shot him an annoyed side glance, signaling him to stop persuading the conversation.
Of course, in view of his personality, he didn't listen to me. Although Thauma is usually very soft, he is also weirdly persistent when it comes to things he truly wants.
"I don't want to fight you."
"Resign then."
"No, I don't want to."
With a firm expression, Thauma shook his head.
"I need the money."
"I'll give it to you then."
For a short moment, there was silence between us, as Thauma seemingly started to think about that option. However, that silence was soon broken by a weak laugh.
"I don't want that either."
I stopped walking, facing Thauma with a confused expression.
If he didn't want to fight me and only wanted the money, why would he be so determined to stay inside the tournament?
Even though I had known Thauma for multiple years now, I still couldn't understand his thought process.
It just didn't make any sense to me in any way.
"What do you want, then?"
"To not be in your debt."
Narrowing his eyes, he looked at me with a determined face, his rose-colored iris glimmering with a sparkle.
"...even if I resign, you will still stand in my debt, as you only won because I quit, no?"
"That's not the same. It just doesn't feel right to resign and get the money from you. It's almost like I am using you as a piggy bank."
"That's because you are."
"..."
For some reason, he didn't answer my sentence, and just skipped it, acting as if I'd never said it.
Admittedly, he didn't have anything he could say to retort to that, as we both knew I was right.
He just didn't want to accept it.
"Anyway, if you won't resign, then the only option is to carry out the fight."
Seriously, Thauma was just way too stubborn at times. While I often appreciated his presence, in such moments, his trait of reasoning everything with the excuse of 'feeling right' was just something I didn't get.
"Fine. Don't come crying to me when I accidentally hurt you too much."
"I won't, Zenith."
For the rest of the way, we walked in solitude until we finally passed the exit of the colosseum, leaving it.
The now snowy empire was more crowded than it usually was, as kids and adults alike roamed around, building snowmen and doing snowball fights.
I wondered if I would have also experienced something like that if my childhood had been normal.
Contrary to Ophelia or most other people, I didn't have a very fond memory of winter, as I didn't make the same experience as everyone else did.
Winter for me wasn't determined by a white landscape, but by a red one.
Soon, as my eyes skimmed over the crowds, their faces overlapped with faces of my past, each one of them turning to me, as they looked at me with a crazed look.
Ba-dump— Ba-dump—
I could feel my heart racing against my chest while closing my eyes, trying to calm myself down.
I had to remember that this wasn't the past.
But instead of helping me, closing my eyes just made it worse, as the stench of blood invaded my nose and the sound of screams rang in my ear.
My mind was a blur and my thoughts all seemingly vanished into nothingness, as I kept taking deep breaths.
I had to calm down.
"...Zenith?"
In the far distance, a faint voice could be heard, but it wasn't loud enough to actually reach me.
I wanted to reach out to the voice and grab it, but it wasn't possible for me.
It was just too far away.
Snap—!
Waking up by the sound of a snap, I turned my head to the perpetrator of that sound.
Thauma.
"It seemed like you remembered some unsightly thinks again."
Not wanting to talk about that, I just nodded before quickly switching the topic of the conversation.
"Thank you. Just like in the dungeon."
Thauma, who seemed to be taken aback by the sudden thanks, widened his eyes in surprise, before weakly shaking his head.
"No, it was nothing. That's just what friends are there for, right?"
Slowly forming a faint smile, I nodded my head in agreement.
"Yes, you're right. But if you ever need something from me, then you can just ask. I am grateful for your help."
"Take me out to dinner, then."
I faced him with a blank expression.
"You don't have enough food to pay for your food, right?"
Thauma just chuckled in response, but that was enough of an answer for me to understand.
He probably only ran on cheap food like porridge or such things to pass by the days.
Sighing, I nodded.
"Sure, then."
"That's great. By the way..."
Thauma paused, closing his nose, as he narrowed his eyes while looking around.
"Am I the only one who smells this iron stench?"
Hearing that, I raised an eyebrow, facing him with an expression of surprise.
"You too?"