THUD!
Barnus' fat body crashed to the ground heavily.
"Ke.. uk...!?"
I heard him groan weakly.
Then after that...
"..."
He became silent.
His body stopped moving too. No twitching. No slight motions.
Nothing.
Because Barnus...
"HE'S DEAD!!!"
The announcer shouted.
"BARNUS IS DEAD!!!"
He repeated, disbelief ringing in his voice.
And opening his mouth again—
"WHAT A TURN OF EVENTS—KAISER, ONCE AGAIN, TRIUMPHS AGAINST THE ODDS!!!"
The announcer declared that as loud as he can for everyone to hear.
And as soon as he did—
"WHOOOOOOOAAAAAHHHH!!!"
"WHAT THE FUCK?!!"
The crowd erupted with noise.
"THE KID WON AGAIN!!!"
"WHAT THE HELL?! HE THREW HIS SPEAR AT THE END, THAT'S SO STUPID!!!"
"IT WORKED, THOUGH—SO SHUT THE FUCK UP, FUCKER!!!"
"AARGH!! I LOST THE CARRIAGE ON THAT BET!!!"
"FUCK, GOOD FOR YOU—I LOST MY VACATION HOUSE!!"
Voices screamed from all directions, buzzing with adrenaline and surprise.
And I—mostly unharmed, except for just a few broken bones and light bruising...
"..."
I stared at Barnus' corpse, ignoring the shouts all around the coliseum. My ears were ringing from the noise.
Tap- tap- tap-
I started walking toward his lifeless body, a pool of blood spreading beneath his head where the javelin had pierced through his neck.
Tap—
I stopped just a step away from him.
Then, without any hesitation or thought—
SHIICK—
I pulled my javelin out of Barnus' throat.
'I can still get a few more uses out of this.'
Fwish!
I thought as I gave the javelin a hard swing to fling off the blood on it.
And glancing down at Barnus one last time...
"I'm not even feeling bad about killing him..."
I murmured that.
I knew this fat bastard was a disgusting pervert who deserved to die—I wanted to kill him too. But feeling nothing after doing so?
That's not normal.
No nerves. No hesitation. No weight of guilt.
'Just like when I tried to remember what I felt after killing Umar...'
Nothing.
"Guess I'm really weird in the head, huh."
I muttered that to myself, expression blank.
Then, with no more reason to stay—
Tap- tap- tap—
I turned around and started walking away.
"YOUR LUCK IS INSANE, KID!!!"
"I'LL BE WAITING FOR YOUR NEXT FIGHT!!!"
"WHAT WAS YOUR NAME AGAIN?!!"
The audience was still high on adrenaline.
"Ugh..."
I frowned, ignoring them completely as I made my way forward.
"ONCE AGAIN, LET'S GIVE A LIVELY ROAR TO THE WINNER OF TODAY'S FIRST MATCH—KAAAAIIISSEEEERRR!!!"
The crowd only got louder when the announcer exclaimed that.
"..."
And my frown only got deeper.
*****
Creak—
Tap-
I got back to the waiting room not long after.
"WHOOOAAAAHH—!!!"
"WE NEED MORE!!!"
The crowd behind me was still wilding out. Their cheers and shouting followed me even as I stepped inside.
And in the waiting room...
"..."
I saw Jin—just sitting on a beat-up bench, casually leaning forward with his elbows on his knees.
He was already looking at me, a smile plastered on his face.
"Yo."
He called for me.
"That was fast. And clean. You didn't even get messed up much."
Then he added, his voice sounding genuinely impressed.
"..."
My poker face broke a little. I let out a slight smile.
"Thanks."
I replied to him, stepping over to sit down near him.
Pat—
"Good luck on your fight too."
I followed as I settled down.
Jin just shrugged confidently.
"I already got it under control, kid."
He responded, bragful.
Then, without even a pause—
Fwish~
"Hm?"
His eyes flicked to the weapon in my right hand. On the javelin.
"That small spear thing that you used..."
He pointed with his chin.
"What is that?"
And then he asked.
"Oh, this?"
I raised the javelin slightly and looked at it.
The blood was mostly dry now.
"Yeah, that."
Jin nodded his head, waiting.
So I opened my mouth, then—
"Well..."
I tilted the javelin in my hand and leaned back a bit.
"It's called a javelin. It's a throwing spear—made to fly through the air, fast and straight. Lighter than a regular spear, shorter too. You don't stab with it up close unless you have to... it's really meant to be thrown."
Then I explained that all to Jin.
"..."
Jin leaned back and raised his brows a bit, interested.
"And it hits that hard?"
He asked.
"It does if you throw it right."
I answered simply.
"Speed and angle matter. It's not good if you're fighting face-to-face—but if your opponent turns their back or slows down..."
I gave a small shrug.
"...It's basically an arrow, but stronger."
"Huh..."
Jin looked at the javelin again, impressed.
"Never seen anyone use that anywhere."
He whispered under his breath.
"Yeah. I noticed."
I replied flatly, already knowing this world doesn't know a thing about javelin.
"How did you know something like that?"
Jin followed a curious question.
And with a shrug of my shoulders—
"I just know."
I simply muttered.
"..."
Jin just frowned a little at my response, but that's the best I could give him, really.
Then—
"Fuuuuu..."
I leaned forward and exhaled a bit.
The pain in my arm and shoulder was still there—dull and pulsing now that the adrenaline was wearing off.
'...Tch.'
I clenched my jaw.
"You good?"
Jin asked.
And looking at him, I nodded my head.
"Yeah. Just cracked, not broken. I've had worse."
I declared.
"Heh..."
Jin grinned again.
"Well, sit tight. I'll be back in a few minutes."
Fwoosh—
He stood up and rolled his shoulders. His whole vibe shifted—calmer, sharper.
And as he walked toward the metal door...
"..."
I watched his back.
I hoped his confidence wasn't just talk.
And just as I thought of that—
"THE FIRST MATCH WAS GOOD, TRUE. BUT WE STILL HAVE A FEW MATCHES, AND RIGHT NOW, WE'RE ONLY ON THE SECOND ONE!!!"
I heard the announcer shouting through the open metal door.
And following that—
"EVERYONE...! LET'S MAKE SOME NOISE FOR—JIIIIN!!!"
He yelled with excitement, the crowd roaring in response.
"YEAAAHHHH!!!"
And Jin...
"Watch, kid."
He said that to me, calm and confident—without even looking back.
And without any hesitation—
Tap—
He stepped out of the waiting room and into the blinding light of the arena.
"JIN! JIN! JIN! JIN! JIN!"
"GIVE US A GOOD MATCH!!!"
The cheers from the crowd swelled louder as soon as they saw him.
I stayed sitting where I was, the javelin resting beside me.
"..."
I leaned forward slightly, eyes fixed on the open gate.
Then—
"LET'S SEE WHAT JIN HAS IN STORE FOR US TODAY!!!"
The announcer shouted again, hyping everyone up.
And me—
I just narrowed my eyes.
'Let's see what you've got, mister.'