Three days have passed since the duel was officially announced.

  Yuki has trained both Rhea and himself to prepare for their upcoming match. At minimum, he wants Rhea able to hold her ground in the stadium if necessary.

  With only two days for training, he picked up the pace considerably. She must be extremely exhausted, so he took care to manage her rest carefully—the last thing he needs is for her to faint from malnutrition.

  On the final day before the duel, they relaxed their bodies and minds by shopping for her equipment. She preferred knuckles or gauntlets rather than swords or other blades. For her secondary weapon, she chose a bow—quite confident in her hunting skills.

  And now she's ready to enter the stadium.

  The transformation in her is remarkable. Where before she moved with hesitation, now her stance holds confidence. Her strikes carry real power—he's watched her strength nearly triple through relentless drilling. Her reflexes have sharpened, her endurance deepened. The collar around her neck might still mark her as a slave to outsiders, but her eyes burn with the spirit of a warrior awakening.

  Even her blessing seems to respond to her growth—the Beast Lord's favor flowing stronger through her veins with each passing day.

  "Alright, stats check complete. Now your equipment check."

  "Yes, Master. Knuckles are set, chainmail and leather boots ready as well."

  "How about the strategy?"

  "I remember—the main action is avoiding fatal blows. The attacking role is entirely yours, and I'll watch and learn."

  "Good. Remember, this is your first time fighting against people. So whatever urge you feel, you won't attack them. Understood?"

  "Yes, Master! I'll follow your orders wholeheartedly."

  "I trust you. Shall we set off after breakfast?"

  "Y-yes, Master, but..."

  Rhea trembles as she answers.

  "Come here. It'll be faster if we eat together."

  "Y-yes, Master. Then excuse me."

  Rhea hesitates at first, but knowing the importance of the event, it doesn't take long before she eats more casually, consuming enough to fill her energy reserves.

  Today they're ready for their little game. I'm quite excited, Yuki thinks.

  "Alright, Mr. Yuki. You look ready, but I don't see your weapons."

  "Yes, actually I'll borrow the Guild's training sword."

  "W-what??? Yuki, are you serious? We don't even know what rules they're going to set! You should be fully prepared!"

  "Calm down, Miss. You can ask the Guildmaster's opinion on this. Anyway, it's just a little game between adventurers, right? We should prioritize safety."

  "Their safety, you mean?"

  "Hmm, I wonder?"

  "Haahh, alright. I'll report it to the Guildmaster later. He'll decide then. For the sword you requested, I'll deliver it to your waiting room."

  "Thank you for your understanding, Miss Emily." Yuki smirks.

  "Yes, yes. I think further worry will be useless then. Be careful, Yuki."

  Yuki simply smiles back and follows the guide staff to the main corridor beside the receptionist counter, located exactly in the middle of the first floor hall.

  The guide explains while walking that the corridor connects directly to the stadium arena behind the Guild's building—it's named 'Berserker's Thirst.'

  History states the name originated from battles between berserkers in the past who constantly got involved in fights over trivial matters.

  Hmm, the ancestors were really savage. It makes sense the stadium is named like that, Yuki muses.

  "Here's your room, sir. All participants have the right to make preparations before the fight announcement. Please relax for a while, sir."

  "Thank you for your guidance."

  "You're welcome. Then excuse me."

  After resting briefly and checking their status and strategy, the training sword he requested arrives. Seconds later, there's a violent bang on the door.

  BAAM!!

  The door gets kicked open from outside.

  "What's the deal with you, boy?!"

  The Guildmaster storms inside, yelling furiously at Yuki.

  "What is it, old man?"

  "I heard from Emily—you just asked for a training sword? Take this seriously! Your life is on the line!"

  "Yes, here's the swo—"

  "I don't care about that, boy!"

  Yuki can only sigh.

  "Did you not see my plate?"

  "Y-yes?"

  "Then how do I compare to those scoundrels?"

  "Ugh, but still you need to be careful, Mr. Agent..."

  "I've seen their plates. It's within my calculations. This way, everyone else will learn the gap between us and inevitably recognize my rank."

  "Haahh... if you say so. Still, don't let your guard down even a bit."

  "Certainly, sir."

  "Good luck then." Herald sighs.

  Before leaving, Herald pauses for a moment, then tells Yuki something.

  "Regardless of the result, please wait for me in this room after the battle. I have something on my mind."

  "No problem. I'll wait."

  "Thanks, boy. Alright, I'm leaving."

  After the Guildmaster leaves, Yuki and Rhea check their condition once more before the guide staff takes them to the arena.

  WHAAA! WOOO!

  Even from afar, the entrance gives off loud cheers from the audience.

  "Haha, looks like our guests can't hold their excitement anymore." The Guild staff chuckles.

  The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  "Seems like it."

  "Then my duty ends here, sir. You can enter the stadium and walk straight forward to the arena from here. On the arena, there are already the judge and your opponents, sir."

  "Alright, thank you."

  "My pleasure."

  "Then, Rhea, let's begin our little game."

  "Yes, sir."

  Yuki steps forward without hesitation, more focused on the upcoming battle than the gossip heard throughout the stadium.

  "Haha! So you didn't tuck your tail and run away, newbie!" The thug leader shouts.

  Yuki stands silently, waiting for the judge to start the battle.

  "Guuhh! Seems he can still keep up his arrogance, brother!"

  While the Gladiator thug reports the obvious fact, the leader already struggles to hold his temper against Yuki's attitude.

  "Yes! As seniors, it's our duty to train our junior about manners, right?!"

  "Haha, indeed the truth, brother!"

  The thugs clearly display their hostility toward Yuki.

  "Alright, before we start the battle, I'll first announce the battle form submitted by the Roaring Beast party. The battle that will take place is a deathmatch!"

  When hearing the announcement, most of the audience members' jaws drop. Some high-rankers already expected such an outcome, considering they know the thugs' personalities.

  "The rules are simple with some notation. The battle will end when one party is annihilated, rendered unconscious, or crippled. The judge may stop the battle temporarily if such conditions occur, and then it will be decided by the stand of witnesses—consisting of high-rankers including the Guildmaster."

  The thug party smiles widely with evil intentions painted across their faces, expecting a terrified expression to appear on Yuki's face.

  "So, does Yuki's party accept this challenge? Or propose another form?"

  The thug party begins their psychological attack, intending to destroy every aspect of Yuki.

  "Haha, relax, my junior~ I'll let you pick another one if yo—"

  "Nope. I don't mind at all."

  Yuki responds without hesitation.

  "Guuhh! Yooouu! Really..!"

  The thugs nearly explode with humiliation but still hold onto their pride, having already planned everything out.

  This plan should go smoothly since they've already asked for help from their accomplices. Though the judge and Guildmaster are present, they've succeeded in buying most of the witnesses.

  But there's one mistake they never anticipated.

  "Then, are both parties ready?"

  "Ha! We're dying for it!"

  "I'm ready too."

  "Then by my right as judge, I declare... The duel begins!"

  Just one second after the duel starts, the Roaring Beast party quickly initiates their attacks.

  "Hyaaa! Die, you moron!"

  "Stupid bastard! Hahaha!"

  The first thug dashes toward Yuki, thrusting his spear.

  The leader shortens his distance with Yuki from the opposite direction, wielding his dual daggers.

  And the sage thug launches the fireball like he used before.

  Slash!!

  But Yuki only needs one horizontal slash with his training sword. All obstacles, including the fireball, are sliced cleanly.

  Without a sound, the thugs drop dead, their bodies cut cleanly in half horizontally.

  Drop. Drop. Drop.

  When their bodies touch the ground simultaneously, their blood flows out. Still immersed in their delusion that they would succeed in killing Yuki, they don't realize what actually happened.

  The audience stares at the scene absentmindedly while the judge already grasps the reality—thanks to Yuki's glare.

  "T-the duel is over! Adventurer Yuki's party wins the duel!"

  Clap! Clap!

  Guildmaster Herald initiates the applause while still unable to grasp the exact situation. It's unbelievable, even to his eyes.

  Clap clap clap!!

  Woooaahh!!

  Woohooo!!

  A moment later, all the audience members shout their excitement and disbelief into an uproar throughout the stadium.

  "Waahh! I couldn't believe it—it ended in just one second! Did you see it too?"

  "Of course! I still doubt it myself! Are they really dead? In one slash? Those bullies, second only to the Terror Arms?!"

  Meanwhile, some high-rankers also evaluate Yuki's battle from their perspective.

  "Haha, with this, no one in the lower ranks won't recognize his worth, right, Captain?"

  "Hmm, yes. Lower ranks, that is. But the defeat of those scums proves nothing to high-rankers, since they're just low-rank dead scoundrels."

  "Hahaha, you're too strict as always, Captain."

  At the same time, the Silver Honor party discusses among themselves.

  "Is it okay, Captain?"

  "What is?"

  "These happy-go-lucky people celebrating such a murder. Never heard of this happening in the past few years."

  "Rarely. Not never."

  "Huh?"

  "In the past, occasions like this often happened. And I heard this barbaric habit dropped drastically in my master's generation."

  "Ah, that's why new rankers like us don't hear about such things."

  "Yes. Besides, they asked for it themselves. We only prevent violence when someone is forced into it."

  While the audience continues discussing their opinions about the battle, they don't realize that the main actor has already left the arena.

  Knock knock.

  "Come in, sir."

  "Ah, so you knew it was me."

  "Of course. Your presence leaks everywhere."

  "Haha, really?"

  "So what do you want to talk about, as you said before?"

  "Ah yeah, but first I want to ask—how the hell did you do that?! Though they're lower rankers, they're still quite durable. But you just cut them like tofu!"

  "I just coated the sword with my unique magic. You remember from my plate, right?"

  "Ah yeah, so that's the effect of your magic..."

  "Not quite right. Actually, my magic can be applied in various conditions. That one was just a simple trick of many."

  "R-really? Wow, I can't imagine how scary you are, sir."

  "Haahh, nevermind it. I'm here just to enjoy my holiday in this world besides my mission. So don't refer to me as something scary, old man."

  "That's reassuring to hear. Alright, now I'll tell you my business here."

  "Please, sir."

  "First, I'll immediately promote you to A-rank tomorrow morning. And I've planned to ask your permission for something."

  "What is it? Is it connected to the promotion?"

  "Yes. I'll announce the fact that you're an adopted son of Huberg. Though I won't mention its connection to your origin. I think some high-rankers will ask about your origin sooner or later."

  "If that's the case, then it's alright, old man. After all, it's a fact that doesn't need to be concealed."

  "Alright. Next is about my own curiosity. But is it okay for your little miss to hear about your origin?"

  "It's okay. Later at home, I'll explain it anyway."

  "Then my question is... who exactly are you?"

  "I know you're another worlder just like the heroes. But since you answered my little quiz perfectly back then, it's not as simple as summoned heroes."

  "Are you reincarnated?"

  "Hmm, you're asking about a god's secret, you know? Though it's done by a Guardian, it's still in the god's domain."

  "N-no, I didn't mean it like that, boy. Alright, I'm being honest here. I'm worried whether you're really my old friend's son. Look, I worry about that old man's privacy even if he's already dead."

  "Haahh... I know what concerns you, old man. What I can tell you—it's half-wrong."

  "W-what do you mean?!"

  "I was transferred to the body of the son. But it's really his adopted son—or to be more precise, his already-dead body."

  "What?! So you're undead?!"

  "Don't jump to such conclusions. It's within the Guardian's power with god's permission to transfer life to another. I just assumed that before his son's soul disappeared, my existence entered his body. So it still counts as alive."

  "My god... of course it's possible if it's the Guardian... still..."

  "In that regard, the memories are real from his son's body. You could say I'm here to continue their dreams."

  "Aah... if that's the case... yes, I'm truly grateful..."

  "Though I haven't met Huberg, Miss Freya already confirmed that these are his real memories with his adopted son. All of it really happened years ago."

  "Yes, thank you for your confirmation..."

  "Is that all you wanted to ask, old man?"

  "Yes... Haha, though I look like this, inside I really care about such trivial things! It didn't sit right with me not to know the truth about Huberg."

  "It's okay. I know all of this seems suspicious, moreover when it concerns an old friend of yours. I'd do the same things you did, too."

  "Uuhh... don't tell me you realized..?!"

  "Of course. I'm kind of a skeptical person too, old man."

  "Hahaha! Looks like my senses have already dulled because of my old age! Alright, my business is over. Then I'll excuse myself now."

  "Oh yeah, by the way, I'd like to inform you that we're going to take some quests after this."

  "Wha?!... Hah! Hahaha! Huberg sure got lucky having a diligent son like you!"

  "Heh, thank you for the compliment."

  "Hah, alright. Then I'll head out first. Don't push yourself too hard. We're not officers, after all."

  After Herald leaves the room, Yuki mumbles something to himself.

  "Yes, of course. But I need to do something, old man."

  While walking through the corridor to the front room, Yuki talks with Rhea.

  "So how was the battle? I must say you didn't learn anything, did you?"

  "Yes, unfortunately. Since it was over in only one slash, Mas—"

  "If you're bothered by that, I said you can call me brother or Yuki."

  "Umm... N-no, that's hardly possible, Master. Since I'm still your slave in the eyes of outsiders, at least let me repay your kindness this way."

  "Well, I won't force you into anything. Anyway, I expected a little fun game back there with some safety rules. I didn't expect they'd demand a deathmatch—that's why I gave them the death they so desired."

  "Why? If Master really has such a big gap with them, you should be able to play with them easily."

  "Hmph." Yuki smirks. "But I didn't want to take the risk. What if their aim was you, not me? Or what if their attack landed on people accidentally?"

  Rhea grins. "Indeed, as expected of my Master. You're so wise."

  Yuki smirks back. "Don't flatter me too much—it doesn't affect me at all. Let's grab some cleaning quests, then continue your training from yesterday."

  "Yes, of course. Thank you, Master."

  "Don't sweat it. My promise, after all."

  After that, they clear several quests until late, then have dinner at Flamerose Inn like before.

  - Struggle to Awake: ON PROGRESS -