Chapter 9: 9

Barbarian Quest

Chapter 9 – Horus Gladiator Troupe (2)

The Horus Gladiator Troupe arrived in the city. The troupe’s promoters went to all of the pubs to spread the news about the upcoming gladiator match, and the citizens of the city quickly gained interest in the bloody entertainment.

Horus finished signing a contract with another gladiator troupe, and the schedule was set smoothly.

The gladiators had their free time, and it was the same for Urich. He lacked a bit in money, so he asked Horus for 500,000 more cil in advance and used that money to look around the city.

“Looks like fighting brings in a fair bit of money.”

Urich noticed that the city was filled with excitement. Wherever he went, the only thing people talked about was the gladiator match.

“What the hell is this? It’s long and dark… It looks exactly like a dick?”

The sausages that the vendors put out had a delicious aroma. It even had a nice color on it from the sears.

“It’s made from mixing pig intestines and lean meat. Do you want one? It’s 3,000 cil.”

“Ah, shit. So expensive,” Urich grumbled to himself as he bought a sausage from the vendor. He took a bite, and its juices gushed into his mouth.

“It’s good. Really good. It’s damn good.”

Urich kept bursting into compliments. In the city they were currently in, they used salt and various spices to create food with a stimulating taste, and the cooking methods were incomparably more vast.

“Damn, it really was worth coming over here.”

Urich spoke in his native tongue. He walked around that alleyway but was pulled in by a familiar sound and smell.

Clang! Clang!

The sound of a blacksmith’s hammer echoed throughout a smithy.

‘A blacksmith.’

Urich entered the smithy. He watched the blacksmiths and lightly nodded.

‘Blacksmiths are people who deserve respect.’

They made weapons which were essentially the warriors’ life. A single good blacksmith was as valuable as tens of warriors.

“Welcome,” greeted an apprentice blacksmith. His face was completely reddened from standing in front of the forge all day.

“Are these all of the weapons?”

Urich looked at all of the weapons on display in front of the smithy. However, he didn’t like any of the axes.

“If you tell us, we’ll make it for you. Master! Come talk to the customer!”

A middle-aged man walked out from the deeper parts of the smithy, and the smell of sweat immediately filled the room. He must have been hammering iron until he was called out.

“Is there something you want?”

“I want a pair of axes.”

“If it’s axes you want, most types of them should already be there. It looks like you want something special.”

“The ones over there are too heavy, and I don’t like their balance.”

“Ahh, you want throwing axes. There aren’t a lot of customers looking for those.”

The blacksmith scratched his head. Urich used his hands to gesture the type of axes he wanted.

He wanted handaxes that had destructive force from spinning. It was the type of weapon Urich loved the most. Obviously, it felt good to wield, but it was also good at creating unexpected scenarios.

“It’s basically like this. Can you make it?”

Urich pretended to throw an axe as he said that. He was an expert at throwing them, capable of making the blade or the handle land wherever he wanted to.

“It’s not a problem to make it, but it’s quite meticulous work. And the money?”

“300,000 cil for the down payment. I’ll give the rest after it’s completed.”

“One million cill after it’s completed, then.”

Urich had no clue whether that was expensive or not. He just scratched his head and nodded.

“Alright. It will take three days, so come back for it then.”

“Ah, and sharpen this blade for me. It got quite dull.”

Urich pulled out Pordgal’s sword. He had been using it ever since he crossed over the mountain range.

‘This is a good sword.’

Even Urich, who didn’t like using swords, loved this sword.

“This is…”

The blacksmith’s eyes sparkled as he received it.

“Hey, I like that sword a lot. Don’t treat it recklessly.” Urich sternly warned him.

“It’s a sword made from imperial steel. And this small engraving on the blade… It’s Haion Forge’s mark. I can’t believe you managed to get your hands on something like this.”

“Imperial steel?”

“It’s iron that the imperial family has a monopoly on. It’s exceptionally stronger than regular iron, so people also call it ‘steel’. Only certain smithies received permission from the imperial family and were allowed to make steel weapons. They’re normally only made for imperial knights. It sometimes does find its way to regular people, but it’s pretty rare.”

Urich closed his eyes for a second and thought of Pordgal. He was a warrior that fought while wearing special armor.

‘So he was an imperial knight.’

Urich now had a good idea of how the world worked. A massive country called the ‘Empire’ ruled the place beyond the mountain range.

“It’s stronger and more durable against impacts compared to other iron materials. I can’t believe I was able to see a weapon made from imperial steel with my own two eyes. My eyes would be screaming with joy if they could.”

The blacksmith spoke while feeling in awe.

“So you’re saying it’s a really good sword, right? Haha.”

Urich felt good as well.

“I guess you’ll never be tempted to steal someone else’s weapon with a sword like this. I can roughly guess how you managed to get your hands on this, but… I warn you. There are going to be a lot of people who will recognize the value of this sword and will want it for themselves.”

The blacksmith spoke while sharpening the blade.

“How much does that go for?”

“I’m not sure, at least 20 million cil? If you’re thinking of selling it, I’ll pay a premium for it,” the blacksmith honestly offered.

He was already satisfied from seeing a weapon made from imperial steel with his own eyes.

“I’m not selling. I was just curious.”

Urich couldn’t stop laughing.

‘If I bring this back to the village, everyone will be jealous to death.’

Urich took back the sharpened blade. It even took the oil coating well and had a brilliant sheen.

“Consider sharpening it a free service. Honestly, I wouldn’t even have enough money to pay you for the experience. It’s the first time in a long while since I saw a renowned sword like that.”

“I like you. Come stop by the gladiator match later. Because I, Urich, will be participating.”

“You were a gladiator? I wish you fortune in battle.”

The blacksmith slightly nodded. Urich showed the same respect back and left.

* * *

* * *

“I have to fight with my life on the line, but I only receive 800,000 cil? That’s too cheap.”

“If everyone earned all of their share just by putting their lives on the line, dogs and cows would be filthy rich. Ha!”

Horus laughed at Urich who asked for a higher cut.

The arena was filled with enthusiastic sounds. The bloodthirsty audience was whooping and cheering.

“What about your armor and shield?”

The equipment manager asked Urich. One side of the waiting area was filled with old armor. Gladiators that didn’t have personal weapons would wear armor that they took a liking to from here.

“Ha, wearing that shit will just make your body heavier.”

Urich spoke while cleaning his blade. He sat alone. The other gladiators treated him like an invisible person.

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Donovan, who had friction with Urich, was a veteran gladiator with considerable influence in the Horus Gladiator Troupe. None of the gladiators wanted to be friends with the newcomer that was targeted by Donovan.

“It’d be best if you put on a chest plate and helmet, youngin.”

A slave gladiator who was freed from his shackles spoke. His hair and beard were unkempt, but his eyes were calm. He was holding a large two-handed battleaxe.

“So you’re the old man who’s my partner this time. Did you say your name was Sven?”

Urich sat next to him. Sven was paired up with Urich for this match. It was uncommon for free gladiators and slave gladiators to team up, but there were no gladiators that wanted to team up with Urich.

“You’re using a nice sword.”

Sven showed interest in Urich’s sword.

“From what I heard, it’s made from imperial steel. How is it? Awesome, right?”

Urich spun the sword around. A metallic tone reverberated in the air.

“Imperial steel? Are you certain?”

The gladiators who were checking their equipment were all surprised and stared at his sword. They had no way of differentiating between regular iron and imperial steel with their eyes, though.

“I’ve swung it a couple of times, but it really is different from other swords. Even if I cut people, the blade doesn’t dull easily.”

“If it really is imperial steel…”

All of the gladiators swallowed their spit. Even they knew about the reputation of imperial steel weapons. It was a steel weapon that every warrior wanted.

“That’s made from imperial steel? You probably got scammed by some idiot somewhere. Do you think that just anybody can carry around a weapon made from imperial steel?”

Donovan spoke as he tied his leather armor.

‘That barbarian bastard has a weapon made from imperial steel? Don’t make me laugh.’

After hearing Donovan’s words, some of the gladiators thought to themselves, ‘Yeah, I thought so.’

“Enough chatting! Go out and fight! And make some money! Like how a gladiator should!”

Horus spoke after suddenly appearing in the waiting area. The gladiators roared with excitement while raising their weapons.

The paired Sven and Urich hung around the exit and warmed up their bodies.

“Where are you from? You don’t look like you were born and grew up in the Empire,” Sven asked Urich in a low tone.

“If I told you where I was from, you’d be so shocked that you’d faint.”

“It looks like you’re used to fighting, but don’t let your guard down.”

Creak, creak.

A pulley activated to open the arena doors. They slowly walked out into the sand-floor arena.

WHOAAAAAAA!

The audience screamed to the point that their ears could have gone numb. The audience was excited because the previous match had already spilled blood.

“Because citizens in the Empire rarely go out to war themselves, they get much more excited for blood,” Sven muttered to himself. He looked straight ahead. Two gladiators also came out from the opposite side.

“Old man, take care of the right.”

“I’m not old enough to be called an old man yet.”

“Then shave your beard or something. Do you want your beard to fly off with your head?”

Urich cackled while spinning his sword. The opposing side had gladiators who carried both a sword and a shield.

“I can’t believe he came out with only a sword. He’s full of himself.”

The gladiator spoke while facing Urich. They naturally moved towards a 1v1. The side that killed their opponent first and helped out their partner would have the advantage.

“Hmph.”

Urich didn’t respond to him and observed the gladiator. He wore leather armor and held a round shield that covered half his body.

‘He has a strong defense.’

Urich lightly hopped in place. His springy muscles moved naturally, making his body bounce around. His muscles had both flexibility and power.

Dash.

Urich ran towards the gladiator. The gladiator then raised his shield and braced for impact.

“Hmph!”

Urich jumped high and dodged the gladiator’s sword. With just a single leap, he jumped higher than the gladiator’s height.

Stab.

Urich stabbed between the gladiator’s collarbone while midair. His sharp sword instantly sliced through the gladiator’s lungs and stabbed the heart.

“Keok. Kukkuukkk.”

The gladiator’s blood sprayed all over the floor before he tumbled over.

“This is why armor that makes your body heavier isn’t good. It’ll make you react slowly. Way too slow.”

Urich spoke while wiping blood off the sword. The fight was decided in a single clash, but the audience was excited and cheered for Urich regardless.

“D-Did you see that? He jumped higher than a person!”

“Is he from a circus?”

The movements that Urich showed were flamboyant. It was an athletic ability that other gladiators couldn’t imitate.

“Hey, old man. Need some help?”

Urich watched Sven fight his opponent. The opposing gladiator started to rush, trying to avoid a 2v1 situation.

“HUAHAHAHAHA!” Sven heartily laughed and spread his arms. He had no guard up, inviting the opponent to stab.

The other gladiator aimed for his chest with a one-handed sword. He thought that, no matter how fast a two-handed battleaxe was, a one-handed sword was incomparably faster.

‘A logical decision.’

Urich believed that this fight would be decided in their next clash.

CRUSH!

The opposing gladiator’s decision was logically correct, but Sven’s two-handed battleaxe was illogical. It moved faster than a one-handed sword.

The heavy axe blade split the gladiator’s head in half along with the helmet. Sven raised his axe that was now covered in blood and brain fluid.

WHOAAAAAAAA!

Their skins stung from the audience’s cheers.

“It’s still too early for you to help me, brat,” Sven said as he passed by Urich. Urich couldn’t help but laugh.

“So earlier I was a youngin, but now I’m a brat? I’ve lived my fair share of years as well, old man.”

“That bullshit will only work on people from here. If I look at you, you’re at most seventeen? Eighteen? If my son were alive, he would be about that age.”

Sven’s eyes were correct. Urich was, at most, sixteen.

Sven was a barbarian from the North. His standards for discerning people were different from the Empire’s citizens. He was able to exactly tell Urich’s age.

“Anyway, I survived today as well. It looks like going to the Hill of Swords is still far away for me.”

Sven laughed while placing the axe on his back. His actions and way of speaking were not at all like a normal slave gladiator’s.

‘He has skill and guts.’

The image of Sven’s final attack was implanted in Urich’s brain.

Sven opened up his chest to bait in the opponent’s attack and split their head with a faster attack. His strategy was possible because he was confident that his two-handed battleaxe would be faster than his opponent’s one-handed sword.

‘Someone using that bold of a strategy is living as a slave?’

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Urich spat on the floor and returned to the waiting room. The other gladiators murmured to each other while looking at Urich.

‘He’s pretty good.’

‘Even when I’m not wearing armor, I don’t think I can jump that high.’

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