Emotionless Swordsmanship Genius

Chapter 9: Standing Out (2)

Pushing through the rough waves, Karon finally climbed onto a rock, moving quickly to the spot he had already planned. From the moment he had emerged from the water, he had been calculating his next steps.

The other four slaves followed Karon like wet rats. Without needing to speak, it was a natural action—they instinctively knew to follow him.

Karon had become their guiding light.

With agile movements, Karon fearlessly began scaling the cliff. The others mimicked his path, following his lead as they climbed.

“Hoo!”

Each time Karon had to make a leap, he took a deep breath and jumped with all his might.

Though it hadn’t been obvious before, now that the seawater had washed away the grime, his skin gleamed, revealing firm, well-defined muscles. Remarkably, his body had improved significantly in just a few days.

Like a resilient weed that grows stronger the more it’s trampled, Karon’s physique had toughened as he endured the harsh trials.

About halfway up the cliff, Karon braced himself against the rock and gave another powerful push to propel himself upward.

Just then—

“Ahhh!”

A desperate scream came from below. Glancing down, Karon saw one of the slaves had lost his footing and plummeted to his death on the rocks below.

“Ugh!”

The other slaves, who had been climbing steadily, suddenly slowed, their movements dulled by fear. The higher they climbed, the more the fear of falling to their deaths seemed to paralyze them.

But Karon was different. The more he climbed, the more he learned, and as he grew accustomed to the task, he ascended the cliff with increasing confidence.

Inspired by his courage, the remaining three slaves kept their eyes fixed on Karon, struggling to follow him as best they could.

Meanwhile, across the cliff, Altanic and Batiah watched the scene unfold, both feeling an involuntary shiver run down their spines.

“He’s climbing as if he knows the path by heart. Could he have memorized the cliff as he fell?” Batiah murmured to himself.

Altanic, overhearing, scoffed and shook his head. “That’s impossible. Falling happens in an instant. Even if he had seen the cliff, there’s no way he could’ve remembered it so precisely.”

Batiah pointed to the other side of the cliff and asked, “Then how do you explain that? Has anyone ever climbed the cliff so quickly before?”

“Well…”

Altanic found himself at a loss for words as Batiah pressed him further. In all his years of overseeing these trials, he had never seen anyone climb the cliff so quickly—especially not a mere boy.

Seeing Altanic hesitate, Batiah continued, “And that’s not all. He survived the beast attack, took down four grown men in solitary confinement, and passed the endurance test as well.”

Altanic had to admit it. Even he was starting to feel astonished by Karon’s abilities.

“For someone his age, it’s nearly impossible,” Altanic finally conceded.

“He’s incredibly talented. Karon… he might be even more exceptional than we initially thought,” Batiah remarked, lightly tapping the breastplate of his light armor as he watched Karon near the top of the cliff. Altanic, meanwhile, felt a pang of anxiety.

Was Batiah planning to take Karon for himself? If that happened, all of Altanic’s plans to use Karon to make money would crumble.

“Do you intend to take him in?” Altanic cautiously asked.

Batiah laughed, brushing off the suggestion. “Are you worried about that? I suppose with that level of talent, anyone would be tempted. But don’t worry—I have no interest in raising anyone. Especially not someone marked by Montecorato. However…”

Altanic’s face brightened momentarily, but when Batiah added “however,” his nerves returned. Batiah placed a hand on his shoulder and continued.

“I’ll leave the boy in your hands. Make sure you bring him to the capital.”

“The Colosseum, you mean?”

“Yes. By any means necessary, bring him there. Train him, push him to his limits. I don’t care if you turn him into a demon. In fact, the more monstrous, the better. Hahaha!”

Batiah laughed darkly, already imagining Karon’s arrival at the Colosseum, picturing Montecorato’s twisted face in his mind.

As long as Karon could humiliate Montecorato, Batiah didn’t care if the boy descended into madness, as long as he could fight.

Altanic smiled wickedly, rubbing his hands together. “That’s my specialty. Leave it to me.”

“It would be fitting to pit him against Gletch for the final test.”

“The champion?”

“He’s the perfect person to break the boy’s spirit.”

Realizing Batiah’s plan, Altanic clapped his hands and nodded enthusiastically. “Ah! Of course. Brilliant thinking.”

If they wanted to tame Karon into a compliant fighter, they needed someone like Gletch to crush his defiance from the start.

Given Karon’s remarkable progress thus far, it seemed only Gletch would be able to properly subdue him.

“It looks like they’ve reached the top. Let’s go,” Batiah said.

“Yes, Batiah,” Altanic replied.

Just as he had said, Karon and the other three surviving slaves had successfully reached the top of the cliff.

Batiah quickly climbed into his carriage, eager to see Karon officially recognized as a gladiator. He had only a short time left before he would return to the capital.

Once back, it would be at least half a year before he could return to Palemon again.

As the carriage set off, soldiers from Tripolas’ unit and Altanic’s private guards followed closely behind.

Meanwhile, in the distance, a figure watched the scene unfold. It was a scout, loyal to General Eugenia, sent by the prince to observe Karon’s situation.

After confirming that Karon had boarded the transport carriage again, the scout quickly rode northward towards the checkpoint. He planned to send a homing pigeon to the capital with his report.

* * *

When Karon and the other three slaves returned to the training grounds, the reactions from the gladiators were mixed.

Utallo, who had bet on Karon, had made over five times his initial wager in silver shillings. On the other hand, Gletch had lost all his money. He had originally bet on the blond-haired slave in the first trial but lost, and then he had bet a large sum on Karon failing the second trial to make up for it.

“Damn that stubborn brat!”

Gletch cursed under his breath, glaring at Karon, who stood calmly in the training yard.

Soon after, the order was given for the gladiators to gather, and around thirty of them lined up in the training grounds, waiting for Altanic to appear. The four slaves stood in a row before them.

Altanic and Batiah soon appeared, and Altanic stepped up to the terrace railing and spoke.

“For the final test, I will select four gladiators. When your name is called, stand in front of the corresponding slave. Giorzo, Matteo, Hime.”

As Altanic called out the names, the chosen gladiators took their places in front of the slaves, starting from the far side of the line, leaving Karon for last.

“And… Gletch.”

With the final name called, not only did Gletch look surprised, but the other gladiators also showed signs of shock. It was unheard of for the champion of Palemon to participate in such a basic test for new gladiators.

However, Gletch quickly understood what was happening when he realized that his opponent was Karon. He stepped forward confidently, standing directly in front of him.

“Consider yourself honored, kid.”

Gletch grinned, a wicked smile spreading across his face. He had lost a lot of money because of Karon, but now he had the perfect opportunity to vent his frustration.

In reality, the final test wasn’t particularly difficult. It was never expected that the slaves would defeat the gladiators. The purpose of the test was to demonstrate that the slave had the potential to survive in the arena, at which point Altanic would stop the fight and declare the slave a gladiator.

It was an effective way to tame the slaves.

Whether Karon knew this or not, he simply looked up at Gletch, expressionless and unmoved by the aura of killing intent emanating from him.

Gletch, however, had no intention of showing mercy.

‘That brat has been nothing but bad luck. I should just break him, make him half-dead,’ Gletch thought to himself, already imagining how he would torment Karon.

Meanwhile, Utallo, standing among the gladiators, watched as Gletch sized up Karon, deep in thought.

That afternoon, the four slaves were given a chance to rest in their solitary cells before the final test.

They had been fed well, and after being drenched and climbing the cliff, most of them were so exhausted that they fell asleep almost immediately.

But Karon alone remained awake, quietly watching Gletch as he sparred in the training yard, memorizing every movement.

Not long ago, Karon’s eyes had been dull and lifeless, but now they gleamed with sharp focus. It was a look that wouldn’t have been possible had he continued living with his parents in the mercenary group.

The extreme environment of life and death had transformed him rapidly. With his exceptional memory and heightened senses, Karon’s growth was much faster than anyone could have imagined.

Late at night, as usual, Karon continued practicing the gladiatorial techniques in his mind, visualizing his upcoming fight with Gletch. His muscles and bones were developing rapidly, aided by his growing body.

* * *

The next morning, an unusual scene unfolded at Altanic’s training grounds.

Gladiators, officers, and soldiers were lined up around the perimeter, while on the second floor of the main building, Altanic, his wife, and his daughter—who rarely appeared—were watching the proceedings.

Beside them were Batiah and several high-ranking officers from the Tripolas unit.

As the atmosphere reached a peak, Altanic stood up and raised his arms, shouting, “Let the gladiator promotion battles begin!”

Cheers erupted from the crowd.

The training grounds were filled with the roaring cheers of the gladiators.

For the slaves, becoming a gladiator was akin to joining a new family.

Most of the gladiators welcomed this event, as having more comrades meant fewer matches and more help during team events.

For both the owners and the gladiators, the promotion test was a significant event.

On either side of the training grounds stood the challengers and the gladiators.

The challengers had their bodies marked with black paint in various places, while the gladiators each had unique symbols drawn on their torsos.

Both groups held wooden swords. These practice swords were made from a highly durable type of wood that only grew in Palemon, strong enough that they rarely broke.

The cheers and excitement of the crowd slowly died down as the promotion test quickly progressed.

As time passed, two challengers passed the final test, while one failed.

Finally, it was Karon’s turn.

He walked to the center of the training yard, dragging his wooden sword behind him.

Moments later, Gletch raised both hands in the air as he stepped into the arena, and the crowd erupted into a frenzy once again.

Waaaah!

Despite the overwhelming cheers, Karon remained unfazed, lifting his wooden sword with a calm, expressionless face.

On the second floor, Altanic and Batiah watched Karon’s movements with far more interest than before.

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