◇ Eve Speed ◇
Eve Speed returned to the blood arena.
A carriage was stopped in front of the gate.
It was a familiar carriage.
It belonged to the branch chief of the Mercenary Guild.
She also confirmed Duke Zuan's carriage.
Tomorrow's blood fight was an important match for the operators as well.
They were probably holding a final meeting the day before.
"…"
She passed through the gate and entered the blood arena.
The residential area set up at the edge of the blood arena.
In principle, blood gladiators lived here.
It cost no money.
Meals were also provided.
Compared to slaves, the treatment was exceptional.
However, on the other side was a life that might end tomorrow.
Blood gladiators could be said to obtain food, clothing, and shelter by offering their lives.
Eve walked down the corridor and returned to her room.
The moment she entered, she lay down on her bedding.
She looked up at the ceiling.
(My heart will not calm down.)
It was not because tomorrow was her final blood fight.
The cause was clear.
It was because she had spoken with that man called Hati.
The story of the blood gladiator who was killed the day after gaining his freedom.
The one who fought to buy back the freedom of the person he cared for…
(It is similar… to me… that story about the blood gladiator's beloved…)
Was everything arranged?
So that Duke Zuan could obtain her.
The darkness of the doubt that had been lit continued to swell.
(He occasionally spoke about that child.)
"The growth of that child is something I cannot wait to see."
"Oh, her future is truly exciting."
"However, it bothers me that she only opens up to you."
"For now it is fine. But eventually she should become independent without you."
"Could you tell her from your side that I am a trustworthy man?"
Until now she had not paid much attention to it.
(But…)
Now it caught on her mind.
She closed her eyes and tried to push the doubt away.
(Do not be misled… this must be a trick that man set up to obtain information about the witch…)
The man who called himself Hati.
He was a strange man.
His manner was not particularly polite.
In terms of speech and behavior, the duke was more polite.
(And yet, for some reason the man called Hati feels more sincere…)
She suddenly realized and corrected herself.
(How foolish.)
The duke had kept his promises until now, had he not?
Besides, Eve had made enormous contributions to the duke.
She had brought him vast profits.
(I have more than fulfilled my duty to my owner. He should be satisfied. He should at least have the mercy to reward my contributions so far…)
"The one you were really directing those words at just now—was it not yourself?"
Hati's question.
Partway through, one change had occurred in her own words.
Eve noticed it later.
The thing she believed in.
Duke Zuan.
The Mercenary Guild.
At first she had spoken those two names.
But midway the words had been replaced with something else.
(Yes… before I knew it, they had been replaced with "the world of the blood arena." Not Duke Zuan or the Mercenary Guild.)
She turned onto her side.
(In my heart, I do not truly trust the duke or the Mercenary Guild… is that what it means?)
The unease in her chest would not settle.
Instead, it grew larger as time passed.
Living peacefully.
(Is that such an outrageous wish…?)
The happy future she had dreamed of.
(Living quietly and peacefully with that child… I no longer want to fight…)
Fights to please the audience.
Fights as entertainment.
The more brutally she killed, the more the audience rejoiced.
Proportionally, she earned more money.
But there was no longer any pride as a warrior in it.
(The only reason I was able to keep fighting until now was because of that child.)
If not for her, she would probably have killed herself long ago.
The pride of a leopard warrior had already vanished.
A warrior who had become a clown.
Even so, it was fine.
She had resolved herself and continued fighting.
(But if… the duke is targeting that child—)
She began to feel ill.
She could tell she was confused.
Eve closed her eyes tightly.
However, sleepiness did not come at all.
She knew the reason.
"…"
(I want to erase this doubt.)
She rose from the bedding and quietly left the room.
▽
Eve was now in the second-floor corridor of the blood arena.
Duke Zuan's private room was on the second floor.
A man stood in front of the duke's room.
Private guard captain Costelo.
He was Duke Zuan's confidant.
He gave off an impression like iron.
She had heard he had killed many people who opposed the duke.
He was also one of the opponents the citizens hoped for in Eve's final blood fight.
In other words, he was that strong a warrior.
There was no sign of anyone else around.
"…"
Because Costelo was there, she could not get close to the door.
Eve pressed her back against the corner of the corridor.
From here she could not be seen by Costelo.
The duke's room was a little distance away from here.
However, the conversation could be heard without issue.
Leopard people had better hearing than humans.
Even from a distance, if she concentrated she could hear inside the room.
Thanks to her ears she could also easily sense the presence of people.
The reason she had noticed Hati and the others tailing her was also because of her good hearing.
(Well, it seems they noticed that I had noticed them.)
"…"
Why was she here right now?
Eve asked herself.
Yes—she wanted to confirm.
Whether she could truly trust the duke and the guild.
At first she had planned to visit the room and ask directly.
If she won tomorrow, would she really be granted freedom?
She had intended to ask that.
But she had not done so.
Because she did not think he would tell her the truth.
(I am already… doubting the duke and the Mercenary Guild…)
While feeling a little surprised at herself, she focused her ears.
The conversation inside the room reached her.
Eve listened for a while.
There was nothing suspicious.
It was mostly final confirmation for tomorrow.
Tomorrow's opponent seemed somewhat strong, but there should be no problem.
The operators would naturally prepare a fairly strong opponent.
(Fuu…)
There was no despicable scheme.
She felt as if a weight had been lifted from her chest.
Relieved, Eve started to leave the spot.
"By the way—Eve Speed will definitely die as planned, correct?"
Eve's feet stopped.
"Of course. As usual, we plan to have her drink the numbing drug before the blood fight."
The branch chief asked and the duke answered.
"Fufufu, the 'purification cup' performed as a ritual before the final blood fight… that was an excellent idea."
The purification cup.
It was the ritual wine drunk only before the final blood fight.
Drinking alcohol and moving violently would dull one's thinking.
The final blood fight was one where lives were easily lost.
It was said that the cause was the influence of alcohol.
However, because it was a ritual custom, it could not be refused.
Even so, alcohol alone would not be a problem.
Eve had confidence in that.
But it had not been only alcohol.
(They were mixing in a drug.)
The hair all over her body stood on end.
"The key is that it is a mild numbing drug. If the numbing drug is too strong, the audience will also feel something is off."
"The customers want to see a pure killing match without tricks… if the tricks are exposed, they will stop spending money so generously. Goodness, the petty-rich citizens are such a hassle."
"Eve no longer intends to continue as a blood gladiator?"
"I invited her… but she flatly refused, saying she would wash her hands of it. She started spouting nonsense like she no longer wanted to continue such fights. It is completely ridiculous."
"What a waste. There are not many blood gladiators who know how to please the audience so well."
"Because she is too strong, she has the leeway to fight in such an insolent manner. Still, perhaps I indulged her a little too much. Sigh… I went out of my way to prepare a shining stage for that filthy sub-human, yet she would repay me with such ingratitude…"
"She is a beast after all."
"But because she is a beast, there is a good use for her."
Eve listened to the conversation for a while longer.
There was no longer any need to listen.
She quietly left the spot.
Her steps were heavy.
The unease in her chest had not disappeared.
Instead, it had grown even larger.