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As I moved closer to the entrance, I could hear the crowd’s buzz. Before they led me outside, I was only given a one-handed sword; no shin guard, no shield, not even a helmet. Just wonderful.

When I walked out, I paused a few seconds, squinting from the light while looking around. I was alone.

“My people,” I heard a woman's voice resonating, “Today we have seen the best warriors of our kingdom. Their fights showing us the heights of power and the glory we can achieve.”

I looked up and saw a woman in the cabin of the First Oligarch; as I guessed from the Priest's words, seems like there’s been a change in leadership.

“The ones you saw until now are the most talented and hardworking warriors of our kingdom. They have participated here in the games not for glory, which they have accrued in abundance on the battlefield, but to show us the strength of us humans. To show you all that we are the rightful owners of this world. But —" she paused for effect, looking around the audience, "— we should never forget who we owe this strength to.”

So, they weren't gladiators. Still, that's quite arrogant of her, I thought as she looked around.

“We have reached this height of power and glory thanks to the Classes the gods gifted to us. We humans are the gods' chosen, and we should never forget that.” She then looked coldly at me. “Someone, though, thinks differently. This godless man, in his hubris, rejected to select a Class, and with it the gods’ grace, believing himself to be superior.”

I smiled at her and made the universal sign of “fuck you”.

“As you can see, to this day he refuses to see reason,” she said as she turned her gaze to the audience. "Many of you must have seen him fight, and some may have also been impressed by his ability, thinking that he equaled people who have been graced by the gods. That was a mistaken thought.

"All of his opponents until now have been chosen to be of a suitably low level, and through trickery and cunning, he managed to prevail. It is not dissimilar to how the beasts in the wild can escape and hunt our people and, like beasts, they can also be trained to fight. Skillful but misguided men have taught him — men with Classes."

This was really becoming tedious, so I began moving around to keep my muscles warm.

“He has worn clothes made by Tailors, armor and weapons made by the best of our Blacksmiths, ate the food prepared by our Cooks, was trained by Gladiators, and was kept alive by our Healers. All he has, including his life, he owes to the gods,” said the bitch. She was really starting to get on my nerves. “But today; today he will fight with a sword made by a young apprentice. One who had yet to reach the age for a Class. Today he will not be healed, he will not wear armor or use shields. Only the scrap sword, as that is the only thing someone without a Class will ever be able to produce.”

No wonder it felt so off balance, they gave me scraps. I tried to test the edge, and it felt dull. Damn, you don't need a fucking class to sharpen a sword. Bastards.

“And today,” she said, as the gates on the opposite side of me opened, “he will face, not an opponent with middling ability, chosen just to let him show his ability, but an opponent our warriors, our heroes, had to fight since time immemorial.”

A steel box on wheels was being dragged in. The people then also brought in two axes almost as tall as me and put them beside the box. After that, they opened the door and quickly went out of the gate, closing it.

“Our priests gave you many possibilities to repent, but you always refused. Now you will know your folly, and your example will serve as a reminder for all of us. You may now speak your last words for everyone to hear.”

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What is this? First cussing at me and now letting me have my last words like you were doing me a favor? Fine then, but you should give an adequate prize after that speech.

“Well, since inside there is an opponent that only one of your 'heroes' can defeat,” I said with a smirk, as some kind of magic made my voice resound in the arena, "I think I should be called one if I defeat it. So, since I will be a hero, I think that an appropriate reward should be given, right?"

I looked around and, before she could say anything, I continued, "I want freedom. And I believe that, as a hero, it would be a just reward for me. Don't you think so?"

I waited as a buzz went around the arena. She took her time to respond, consulting with those behind her.

“Heathen, your words show your arrogance once again, but if that is your last wish, we will grant it to you. It is, in any case, just the wild dream of a foolish man, and as such it will be remembered,” she said in the end. “Awaken the beast.”

At her words, runic symbols flashed for a moment on the cage. There was a moment of silence as everyone held their breaths, and then I could hear movements - something big was moving inside.

After another moment of silence, the door suddenly burst open, clanging against the cage, as something massive shot out in a blur. It landed in a crouch a few meters away from the cage, scanning its surroundings with alertness.

It was an opponent I already faced a few times. Gray-green skin, a dirty brown mane on its head, and dressed in what could pass for leather armor; it was an orc. There was something different from the ones I fought before, though. The first thing I noticed as it stood up was that it was much bigger, likely nearing two and a half meters tall. The second was how many scars he had. It was common knowledge that some races got bigger as their power increased, so this orc was incredibly strong compared to the ones I saw before, which were around my height. The quantity and type of scars also told me that this was an orc used to fighting.

Orcs this big are rarely seen. This is going to be tough. It was also a fight I would probably lose.

They prepared well for this show.

I didn’t waste time, and directly shot towards it as soon as he landed. The orc also didn’t panic and jumped back towards the cage where the weapons stood. It was a fast decision, without any hint of hesitation, showing its experience in maintaining calm in dangerous situations. I was hoping my sudden dash coupled with its awakening in such a situation would give me some advantage. It was a mistake not to get close to the cage when they brought it in.

I could hear the thunderous shouting of the people, but it was just a background noise to my senses. The orc had already lifted its weapons, its eyes never straying since it caught sight of me.

When I was around fifteen meters from it, I saw the slight lowering of its body. I understood what he was going to do just as it leaped forward — it was a tactic they often used as a surprise, though the distance this time was insane.

I dodged to the side just enough to avoid the swing of the axe, while slashing it on the side. As soon as its blow missed me, it planted his foot on the ground and swung its axe to the side in a sweep, trying to catch me. I ducked, the blade passing above me, then sidestepped the blow I predicted was coming. Its other axe swung down just a few centimeters near my face, then I had to back away as it tried to kick me. As I expected, my slash didn't do much damage. Their skin was nearly as tough as leather, and most of it was covered by actual leather armor. Add to that the layer of fat, and it was almost impossible to do much damage with a sharp sword, let alone the dull one I had.

It didn't waste time after he saw I dodged its attacks, and its swings were too damn fast — I could only try my best to anticipate its movements. It was hard, but it was possible, as orcs had a slightly lower reaction speed than humans.

What followed was a dance where I stuck as close as possible to invalidate its reach advantage and make use of its slower reflexes, while it used the axe blade, handle, feet, or any part of the body, constantly trying to make space to swing its weapons.

The groin was covered by the leather, so I tried to find opportunities to reach its throat or eyes, but it was too tall, and they were hard places to hit without overextending. In the meantime, its blows kept getting faster, and it was getting more daring as it saw my unwillingness to commit to a hit. Its axes were so fast and powerful that they raised the dust off the ground at every swing. I was feeling the battle thrill, but I had to keep control, or I couldn’t last long enough to find an opening.

I didn’t know how long we kept at it, but it felt like an eternity. The flow of the battle was on its side, and it became harder and harder to keep up my concentration. My movements were becoming less accurate, and I knew I was going to lose.

In the end, the inevitable occurred.

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