--- [Alex’s perspective] Almost three months later

We still haven’t seen Lett since our first mission together…

I wonder what she’s been up to…

She promised that she would meet up with us at the E-rank exam; I really hope she’ll be there…

It’s just a week until it starts now, time really flies.

“Shin, maybe we should just skip out on missions and just head straight to where the E-rank exam is being held.” – Alex

“I was thinking the same thing. It should take about two days for us to get there, so we can explore the city or just relax for a few days before it starts.” – Shin

“Dolor, right? You ever been there before?” – Alex

“Nah, but I’ve heard about it. Apparently, it’s known as the ‘city of pain’.” – Shin

City of pain…?

“Despite its name, it’s supposedly a pretty peaceful and prosperous city in the middle area. I think it came from the ancient days, but I’m not too familiar with its history. The thing it’s most famous for nowadays is the colosseum where gladiators battle it out for massive rewards, and entertainment.” – Shin

“Colosseum? Like the one from the F-rank exam?” – Alex

“Maybe, I’m not too sure myself.” – Shin

It might not seem like it at first, but Shin sure knows a lot.

Is this the kind of stuff that people from the middle area learn in school?

“Well, anyways, you ready to go?” – Shin

“Yup!” – Alex

With nothing left for us to do, we left immediately.

The terrain on the way there was quite unusual.

We had to cross a river that was so long it take weeks just to get from one end to the other.

There were mountains that were said to be so high that the air at the top was so thin you couldn’t even breathe it.

Luckily there were tunnels…

The hardest part of the journey was when we had to walk through a vast, but also empty desert.

It was so hot, I felt like I was about to pass out the entire time.

The desert was surrounded by large rain forests.

That by itself was fine, but they reminded me of the jungle in that dungeon we did with Luna back then…

But in the end, we arrived at Dolor!

It’s a beautiful place with people all around.

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Anywhere you look, you’ll find something interesting.

There are shops that sells anything you could imagine.

There are large parks where kids are playing, and old people are feeding ducks.

Everyone looks so happy.

It’s nothing like Minima…

Compared to the cities in the middle area, Minima is so small and poor.

The people here are walking around without a worry in the world, while in Minima people are struggling to stay fed.

In Minima, people can go days without eating, and they do nothing but work all day.

The difference is like night and day.

Why is it like that…?

…

But enough about that, for now, let’s just enjoy ourselves!

We’ve got five days until the exam starts, so we might as well spend our time having fun!

After walking around for a few hours, checking out various shops and stuff, we find the colosseum that Shin talked about.

“Look! Over there, behind those buildings! It’s the colosseum that you mentioned!” – Alex

“Sure is! Wanna check it out?” – Shin

“Yeah!” – Alex

We run over there, and right outside is a crowd of people.

“Only 200 seats left! First come first serve!” – Man at the gates of the colosseum

The crowd rushes inside.

“Just 100 seats left!”

“Alex, lets head inside.” – Shin

“Right!” – Alex

We squeeze our way through the crowd and manage to get in.

There is a receptionist right at the entrance.

“You two, go to section B, row 4.” – Receptionist

Section B, row 4?

I look over at Shin, and without saying a word, he understands exactly what I’m thinking.

He shrugs his shoulders.

“Get moving already!” – Receptionist

“S-sorry!” – Alex

We walk around for a bit, confused as to where to go.

I walk up to a woman in front of us and ask:

“Sorry, we’re new here. Do you happen to know where section B, row 4 is?” – Alex

“Oh, that’s where my seat is as well. I’ll take you there.” – Woman

“Thanks, we appreciate it a lot!” – Alex

She takes us there and…

Wow…

There are so many people here!

It’s fully packed.

Every seat on every row, around the entire colosseum…

You couldn’t squeeze in any more people even if you tried!

I’ve never seen this many people in one place before.

“You said you’re new here, are you tourists?” – Woman

Before I get to answer, Shin interrupts.

“Something like that, yeah.” – Shin

“Nice! I’m actually just visiting this place myself, but I’ve been here a couple times before, so I’m familiar. It’s a beautiful place, right?” – Woman

“Yeah! I’m Alex by the way, and that’s Shin.” – Alex

“Oh! Right. I forgot to introduce myself… Hehe. I’m Lily, nice to meet you!” – Lily

“Nice to meet you, Lily!” – Alex

“Is the colosseum usually this packed?” – Shin

“I think so, at least it was every time I’ve been here. Although, I’ve heard there is going to be a hunter competing this time!” – Lily

“Is it not normal for hunters to compete? I mean, they’re the strong guys.” – Alex

“Oh no. Hunters don’t tend to compete here; they have way more important stuff to do. The gladiators are mostly normal people. Some of them do know how to use Divinity, but that’s just the top guys.” – Lily

I suppose that makes sense.

Although it’s not an official requirement, you need to be proficient at BDM to be able to become a hunter.

That itself takes years and years of training for most people.

Out of the hundreds of people who took the F-rank exam, only a handful of us passed.

“Oh look, it’s the announcer!” – Lily

A man enters the main part of the colosseum.

“Ladies and gentlemen, tonight we present you with three thrilling battles! The first is weaponless men vs hungry lions! If they survive, then they will win a lifetime supply of bread from the more than 100 bakeries that sponsor us! Right after that, there will be a free-for-all set up by the rich parents of a beautiful young woman. The winner will become her husband!” – Announcer

“What?!” – Shin

“Hmm?” – Lily

“He said the match was set up by her parents. I sure hope she also consented to this…” – Shin

“Who knows… Arranged marriages like this isn’t exactly uncommon around these parts. They see it as some sort of business deal, where they both have something to gain. More specifically, the parents have something to gain. There obviously are cases where the bride also wants it, but I can’t imagine that would be the majority…” – Lily

“That’s awful!” – Alex

“Damn right…” – Shin

Shin looks annoyed.

“And last but certainly not least, the main event today will be a head-on clash between two legendary fighters! The undefeated champion of the colosseum has been challenged to a duel by a hunter! Unlike the other fights, there is no reward for the winner here. The thing that is on the line, is the fighters pride!!!” – Announcer