"One gold for mortals, free entry for magisters!" A man shouted as an orderly queue had formed,"Those who wish to fight, enter through the red door at the side!"
Short and sweet, just my type. I languidly slinked through the door under curious gazes.
"A newbie's joining! Ten silvers say they're going to die in the first round!"
"I second that!"
The clamour quietened as I made my way to the clearly labelled registration area,"Magister or mortal?"
"Mortal."
The receptionist looked up, pushing up his glasses,"Kid, I suggest you leave. This arena is filled with people who would want nothing more than to kill. It's no place for a mortal. Besides, you're beautiful, go find a husband who treats you right. Hell, if I wasn't married, I'd be courting you."
Unfazed by his warning, I fired back,"I ripped the arm off a magister yesterday. Furthermore, I came here looking to kill."
He sighed,"Young people boasting nowadays. Haah. Let it be, if you have a death wish, so be it. Name?"
"Artemis."
"No, your nickname. Not your actual name."
"Artemis. No need for nicknames."
"Very well. Enter the door and you'll find yourself transported to a cage. Simple rules: Killing is allowed. If you wish, admitting defeat is also an option. Whatever items on the corpse is yours. Ten wins to pass onto the next realm. Ten realms total. Good luck."
I entered the door and found myself in a metal cage, the deafening screams of excited mortals and magisters alike shook me for a second.
A man with snake-like eyes stared at me with momentary surprise before a grin spread across his mouth, from ear to ear,"A newbie and a mortal to boot. Looks like I'll be getting to the second realm today."
I kept my head down, mindful of my cloak. If possible, I wished to avoid people sexually harassing me before I killed them. It would ruin the mood and tone of the hunt. Thus, I wore a cloak to conceal myself.
"On the left, Frosty Glare! A rank one magister famed for his swiftness! On the right, a new addition to our Abyss Arena's family! Artemis! Will Frosty Glare outclass the newbie or will the newbie be an upcoming star of the stage?! That will now be decided in three! Two! One! FIGHT!"
"Kid, admit defeat now or don't blame me for being merciless!" The man stood arrogantly, as if confident of his win.
"A mere rank one magister spouts a rather large amount of bull. I'd like to see this mercilessness you speak of."
Enraged, he cackled,"Then I want you to die for me! Minute Iceberg!" A chunk of ice flew at me at a dizzying speed.
"Chucking ice at me?" I raised a fist, colliding and shattering the spell in an instant as my foot smashed down on the arena ground, chunks of rock flying up.
Grabbing a stray rock, I grinned under the cloak,"I'm rather good at chucking things too." With all my strength, I sent the fist sized rock barrelling his way.
Despite being a little shaken from my shattering of his spell, he stood strong, snorting,"You think a mere rock can stop me? Thousand Ice Shield!" A wall of frost ice grew rapidly from the ground, shielding the man.
I laughed internally. A rock thrown with the strength of sixty men—It was not something a shield from a mere rank one could blow.
CRASH!
The rock effortlessly shattered the ice like thin glass, impacting his skull with a violent reaction that resulted in the splatter of blood.
Walking over, I looted anything of value with mild indifference before a voice asked,"Do you wish to continue?"
I answered with a nod.
I heard the loud whisperings of the crowd. Some wondering if I was mortal or magister, others admiring my skill, some lamenting having betted on Frosty Glare to win while others were overjoyed at having betted on me.
In an instant, the corpse was replaced by another man.
"Here is Artemis' next challenger! The Black Mamba, famed for his sneaky kills and unique set of skills, this foe is not to be trifled with! On our right, Artemis with their terrifying display of raw strength, shattering Frosty Glare's Thousand Ice Shield and killing him! This fight will begin in three! Two!"
I casually bent down to pick up another stray piece of rock, careful to flash a bit of metal at my waist, a cheap dagger I had bought to deal with more delicate things, rather than just the simple punch.
From the announcer's description, it seemed as if the man was more versed in skilful attacks rather than a strong defence which would be a hard counter to my raw strength.
"Into strength." I muttered as I took aim, two more triangles appearing, totalling sixty-two. Throwing the rock, I drew the dagger and rushed towards him.
He took out what resembled a scimitar. His eyes left mine and focused on the rock, his hand instinctively blocking it.
Bad decision.
The rock bent the scimitar and whizzed past his head, the force shooting up his arm which crippled it as evident by his limp arm and cry of agony following which he crumpled to the floor.
"Eh? He survived that? No matter." I picked up another rock and chucked it.
"I admit d—"
SPLAT!
The rock had arrived before he had the chance to mutter the words, leading to his inevitable death. Following the same procedure as the last, he was looted clean and the next challenger entered.
Things went swimmingly for the rounds as I progressed to the sixth realm, winning fifty consecutive fights.
"Artemis, the War God continues to rampage on, demolishing any opponent with pure unbridled strength! Be it the thickness of the metal magic's armour or the strength of the earthen magic's power, he remains undefeated in the ring after fifty consecutive rounds and has entered the sixth realm in a matter of under two hours! Will this dark horse continue his rampage or will his legend end at the sixth realm where the experts of the second and third rank lie?!"
The crowd was deafeningly wild as I was transported to my next cage.
On my right wrist, eighty-eight triangles stood.
Looking at my opponent, I felt a passing chill. I didn't want to take unnecessary risks. Using the five kills, I dumped three into lives and two more into strength, making ninety.
"On my left, the War God Artemis stands, undefeated at the hands of those which have faced
him in the past! On my right, the Electric Monarch of the third rank stands, merely two kills standing between him and the seventh realm! Will Electric Monarch finally be taken down by the War God or will Artemis finally meet his maker?!"