Bet (3)
Morgan II spoke to William as instructed by Reed, pointing at the crystal ball.
"I'll bet on the Orc warrior for this match. The amount is..."
He paused for a moment.
"500,000 UP."
500,000 UP.
Morgan II staked an audacious amount he had never bet before.
His bombshell statement seemed to have flustered William as well.
-500,000 UP... So you're going all in for this match?
"That's right."
-500,000 UP seems too little, don't you think? How about 1,000,000 UP instead?
"1,000,000... UP, you say?"
It had doubled.
It was an amount that left Morgan II genuinely flustered.
-Ah, well, considering the matchup, that big monster child is probably more advantageous. If I win, I'll graciously allow King Hupper to pay only 500,000 UP. How about it?
Morgan II couldn't respond to William's proposal.
'1,000,000 UP... With that money...'
Morgan II unknowingly supported his head with his hand.
It wasn't that he didn't trust Reed.
It was just that the amount had risen too much.
'I'm getting swayed.'
1,000,000 UP.
Perhaps it wasn't that much money.
Reed had spent 100 million UP on the magic engineering reform, and was currently spending over 1 million UP continuously for the project.
It wouldn't be that much money in the Hupper Kingdom either.
'Did I learn too much from the people's senses?'
Morgan II wanted to be the wisest king more than anyone else.
He observed the lives of the people and learned how they thought.
He believed that would make him a king who thought of the people more than anyone else.
But now, it had become the biggest obstacle for this young and frail king.
"We will win."
Reed tried to encourage him, but Morgan II didn't hear it.
'What should I do? Should I back out now?'
Negative thoughts swirled in his head.
His hands and feet began to tremble, and his insides churned like a stormy sea.
He clenched his lungs and pounded his heart.
It was when he felt he had reached his limit.
Something suddenly burst in Morgan II's mind.
Blood, guts, and the stress of debt burst from his nose and flowed down.
Reed, who was sitting next to him, panicked.
"Your Majesty, you have a nosebleed..."
As Reed tried to stop the bleeding, he couldn't say anything more.
Morgan II showed that he was fine with his hand, but his eyes had completely changed.
Morgan II's eyes resembled those of a wolf hiding in a snowstorm.
His once anxious green eyes shone brightly, staring at William in the distance.
His hesitation had ended.
"I'm fine."
The subtle trembling in Morgan II's voice, speaking to the crystal ball, had completely disappeared.
"Let's do it for the 1,000,000 UP you mentioned."
If he wins, he'll gain 870,000 UP, and if he loses, he'll owe 1,130,000 UP in debt.
However, unlike when he was 130,000 UP in debt, he stared at William with a more determined face.
"Your Majesty, blood is flowing."
The blood from his nose pooled in his palm and dripped onto the carpet.
"Ah, I'm sorry, Deputy Tower Master."
Phoebe knelt down and wiped the blood from his nose and the blood on his hand.
Morgan II looked down at his hand with a calm face, and Reed swallowed his astonishment.
'He used to faint at the sight of his own blood...'
Now, he was watching Phoebe wipe it away without any issue.
'Has he grown as Adonis wished?'
His inner strength had grown stronger.
It was unclear whether it would only flare up and evaporate in this moment or burn deeper and stronger.
'But it's certain that he's becoming more of a king.'
He could feel the tender stem growing stronger and its roots reaching deeper.
Reed smiled at the sight of his growth.
The bloodstain on Morgan II's clothes disappeared without a trace.
"That's amazing, Deputy Tower Master. Even our court wizards can't clean it up this perfectly."
"I'm always in charge of the chores, after all~."
Cleaning and laundry were a piece of cake for her.
It seemed like the match would start soon, as the soldiers who had brought the iron-barred cage began to unlock the shackles that suppressed Rhinotodus' movements.
As the chains binding its body were released, Rhinotodus' small eyes flickered with rage.
The last lock was released, and Rhinotodus began to rampage as soon as it felt its body freed.
Crash!
It kicked the iron-barred cage and came out, roaring towards the sky.
Kuwooooo!
The 8th match began with the rough cries of Rhinotodus.
The Orc warrior pulled out the spear that was strapped to his back as he saw Rhinotodus coming out.
Rhinotodus charged at the Orc warrior, kicking the ground.
With each step, the vibration could be felt even in the VIP room.
It was about 10 meters away from ramming its body into the Orc warrior.
Rhinotodus lowered its head and tried to pierce the Orc warrior's body with its sharp horn.
Kuwooo!
With a roar that shook the heavens, it impaled the Orc warrior's body.
No, the Orc warrior dodged Rhinotodus' attack by swiftly leaping sideways.
At the same time, the Orc warrior forcefully stabbed the spear into Rhinotodus' leg.
The spearhead was completely swallowed, and it succeeded in piercing through the thick skin.
However, Rhinotodus, a field boss monster, couldn't be defeated that easily.
Despite inflicting effective damage, Rhinotodus was still in good shape.
The Orc warrior lowered his body and held the spear wide.
His eyes, as sharp as the tip of the spear, glared at Rhinotodus.
Rhinotodus tried to attack the Orc warrior once again.
Even one hit could be fatal, but the Orc warrior didn't allow a single attack from Rhinotodus.
Now, the key was who would tire out first.
'Is it really... Larksper?'
Even five gladiators wouldn't be able to handle Rhinotodus as skillfully as this.
The battle was only possible because he had come from a different dimension of survival, compared to the gladiators created in the training grounds.
Neither side was tired even after 5 minutes of the match.
Although it could be considered a loose fight, everyone was holding their breath and watching the Orc warrior's battle.
The Orc warrior succeeded in attacking Rhinotodus' legs for the 10th time following its 10th charging attack.
Finally, Rhinotodus let out a roar.
Kuwoooo!
Soon, Rhinotodus began to stagger.
Crack!
The spear the Orc warrior was holding broke.
It wasn't Rhinotodus that had broken it.
He twisted it in the opposite direction of Rhinotodus and deliberately broke it as soon as he heard its painful cry.
He did it so that it couldn't pull the spearhead out by itself.
Rhinotodus noticeably began to limp.
The Orc warrior threw away the broken spear shaft and placed both hands on his waist.
He raised a pair of well-forged axes.
At the same time, cheers erupted from the audience.
Although he was an Orc, his fight was no different from the other gladiators.
The sight of him fighting the giant monster Rhinotodus alone transcended race and made people cheer for the Orc warrior.
The Orc warrior let out a battle cry, further inciting himself.
He charged towards Rhinotodus, whose movements were sealed.
His rough and rugged attacks swiftly penetrated Rhinotodus' body.
Rhinotodus desperately resisted the attack but couldn't land a single effective hit on the Orc warrior.
On the other hand, the Orc warrior's breathing became more labored.
His muscles swelled as if they were about to burst, and his eyes turned red.
Still, the Orc warrior didn't stop moving.
Instead, he ignited himself and pushed harder.
He didn't stop moving until he exploded like a balloon that had reached its limit.
Half of Rhinotodus' green-skinned body was dyed red.
The Orc warrior's body also turned red as he was covered in blood.
With all the tendons in its legs severed, Rhinotodus spat out dust as it lay on the ground.
The Orc warrior raised his axe for the final blow.
His target was the worn-out skull with tattered skin.
As his axe blade flashed, Rhinotodus fiercely swung its horn for the last resistance.
That resistance didn't reach the Orc warrior.
However, the axes in his hands shattered.
Now, he had no remaining weapons.
There was no object left to end its last breath.
