On the next day, Jake woke up a bit excited to get testing. It was still too early to head to the arena, though, so it was breakfast time first. After getting ready, he checked his menu quickly while getting out the door, seeing his objective for the day.

Current objective: Be promoted from Veteran Fighter to Expert Fighter

Current rank: Veteran Fighter (0/5)

Colosseum Points: 910

Lives remaining: 10

His Colosseum Points were slowly growing, and Jake had to admit he was curious about exactly what they were for. Well, it was obvious that they factored in when calculating how many Nevermore Points he would get from the Challenge Dungeon, but he also knew it wasn’t that simple. Case-in-point? The points had other uses than simply being hoarded for some final reward.

Something he was confronted with that morning at breakfast with Owen and Polly. Yeah, Polly had decided to constantly stick around after their first encounter, and while she did offer help with a few different things, Jake had yet to take her up on the offer. That didn’t stop her, though.

As for what else one could spend Colosseum Points?

”Jake… have you considered spending points and getting some boots or something? Maybe you can get some specially made. You should at least wear some leather greaves to avoid major injuries if your opponent manages to hit you… healing such a wound would take days, and no one wants that,” Owen said with genuine worry.

That’s right, you could buy things using Colosseum points. More accurately, you could buy armor and weapons. As for why one would need that when the Colosseum provided those for free? Well, because not all items were created equal, and the good stuff you had to cough up for.

Magic items.

That is what everyone called them. In reality, it was just items with mana infused into them. Proper, real items. While Jake had none of these, Owen bought one the moment he reached Fighter rank, spending 250 Colosseum Points. And what he got wasn’t even that good.

[Spear of Swiftness (Uncommon)] – A spear with a flexible metal shaft and sharp tip enchanted with the power of swiftness. This enchantment makes the spear far lighter than usual and allows the weapon to move faster without losing striking power.

Requirements: Soulbound. Fighter Colosseum Rank.

Sure, it was a lot better than the basic spear, but not by such a massive margin that Jake felt it justified costing nearly the entire combined winnings of both the Upcoming Fighter and Fighter rank. Then again, Jake was kind of special… and he could recognize that good equipment could be the difference-maker.

The weapon of the Cleaver had likely been at least rare rarity and was a big part of his claim to fame. The breastplate potentially also increased Strength. Jake didn’t really have any ways to check, considering all the items were Soulbound upon purchase, meaning looting was not a thing. The only reason he even knew what Owen’s weapon did was that he so openly shared any and all details related to it without even getting prompted.

Speaking of Owen talking a lot unprompted, the question of getting some greaves was indeed one Jake had considered, however…

“Nah, I’m good for now,” Jake smiled. “I will maybe get some equipment later, but no need quite yet.”

“Are you sure? Things could get dicey if you keep fighting so risky. That is why a spear is great, you know? I win most of my fights without even taking any injuries, as I can keep a distance. I know that you only took that bow for show, but have you considered learning how to use it? You are already incredibly strong unarmed, so if you learned to use a weapon, you could go really damn far,” Owen tried to convince him.

“I will pick up arms when I deem the time is right,” Jake said in a solemn tone. Owen did have a point that he should get better at archery, but he did think he was at least decent already. As for melee weapons… well, there wasn’t a single fight so far he couldn’t have ended within five seconds if he used his knife, though that did risk also killing his opponents.

“How about magic?” Polly asked. “I do sense some potential from you, and if you show promise, I could maybe even ask my teacher to come and show you some things. But you have to prove you can actually do magic first! Have you ever considered trying to explore the magical arts?”

“I will pick up magic when I deem the time is right,” Jake repeated his answer, throwing a cheeky smile at the two of them. He had already done a bit of testing with his mana, and… well, he could have ended every fight within four seconds if he had used mana. While, again, probably killing every single opponent. Destructive arcane mana went hard.

“You know what? I am sure Jake got it handled,” Owen said in a comforting tone. “If not, then I am sure he will at least stay alive and recover. There is always time to pick up and learn other ways to fight if he truly wants to. Jake is already strong, and clearly, he is experienced at fighting, so we should trust his judgment. I am sure he will only grow stronger as he progresses, no matter what he chooses to do.”

The young man’s assessment was pretty cool-headed. He had seen a lot of Jake’s fights, too, so that had likely left an impression. Even then, Jake could not help but tease the guy.

“How about you, Owen? Have you considered trying to learn the magical arts?” Jake asked in a searching tone.

“No, I want to stick to the spear,” he said dismissively, Polly deflating a bit.

“Your choice, but it is a bit of a shame,” Jake said as he leaned in and continued in a whisper. “I get the feeling you would find magic… electrifying.”

Owen yanked away from Jake before staring at him for a few moments. “Do you… you know… know?”

“What can I say? I am quite perceptive,” Jake teased as he also leaned back. “But don’t worry, you keep doing you, and I keep doing me, alright? Who knows, maybe this is even something we have in common.”

Owen looked at him as he realized what Jake meant and smiled. “Maybe.”

“What are you two talking about?” Polly asked, confused. “Come on, fill me in.”

“Nope, classified information,” Jake shook his head.

“That’s unfair, you shou-“

“Oh, would you look at that? I am done with my food and the Colosseum beckons!”

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

Jake quickly stood up and, before she could say anything more, hurried out of the cantina as he made his way toward the Colosseum, leaving poor Owen to deal with an annoyed Polly.

As for what Jake and Owen were actually talking about… well, Owen was doing a bit of a Jake. While it was true he wasn’t an expert with a spear, he hadn’t quite shared anything related to his other talents. Talents that included quite the lightning affinity and what Jake estimated to be potent lightning magic.

For some reason, he kept it hidden and only used a spear to fight, but he couldn’t hide it from Jake. Jake had only gone to watch two of Owen’s matches as he had some downtime anyway, and during the first one, he felt it. A faint shiver in the air around his skin and an almost magnetic pull around him as he pushed himself. It was clear that the young guy was actively suppressing his own magic, and while Jake was curious, it would be a bit hypocritical for the Doomfoot – again, fuck that name - to call someone out for messing around in the lower ranks.

Anyway, after an excellent breakfast, Jake soon arrived at the arena and instantly went and signed up for another fight with the Battlemaster - a man who was a lot less of a dick than when Jake had just started entered the Colosseum.

“Already a Veteran Fighter, huh? If you keep this up, you may even join the upper echelons as a true Gladiator. But you still got a ways to go, so don’t slack off now,” he said encouragingly.

Alright, he wasn’t exactly overly polite, but he at least treated Jake as someone worth talking to now.

Nearly an hour later, it was finally his time to fight, and with excitement, he walked through the tunnel leading into the actual arena. The crowd had grown once more, and the announcer was as annoying as always, but Jake wasn’t there for either of those. He was there to instill primal fear in the poor guy standing at the other end of the arena.

Jake’s first opponent as a Veteran Warrior was an elven warrior wielding two thin curved swords. He didn’t wear any armor at all but only wore some light pants. Instead of armor, his upper body was entirely covered in what looked like tribal tattoos, and he did look quite fearsome, almost like he was some semi-feral forest elf.

The two of them stared at each other from across the battlefield… and as Jake prepared for battle, he felt it… no, he saw it. It was odd. When he looked at the elf with the intent to fight, it was like he could “see” weakness. He could see an opening of sorts. There wasn’t actually anything visually, just an odd feeling like there was something he could focus on that wasn’t necessarily there physically.

When the gates went down, both charged. Jake’s opponent did not have the caution of the Cleaver but instead had full confidence in his speed and superior offensive power due to his two long blades. Something he had a good reason for, as Jake instantly felt himself on the back foot.

Two slicing blades blocked off every path of attack, making it hard to dive in and land a proper kick. Not that Jake was in any major danger himself, as while his opponent was fast, Jake was faster, just waiting for his time to arrive. After about thirty seconds of Jake enduring a flurry of slicing swords from his silent opponent – a big upgrade from some of the other combatants he faced – he found his opening.

Opening his eyes wide, Jake stared at the weakness and grasped it. For a fraction of a second, his eyes glowed subtly, none but Jake himself noticing this strange occurrence… but it was proof of his success.

Jake’s gaze connected. He had initially thought eye contact was necessary to achieve a powerful effect, but the moment he unleashed the result of his epiphany, it became clear that it wasn’t needed in the slightest. The only requirement was that he could see his target. As for them seeing him… well, the moment he unleashed the attack, he could forcefully make them aware of him and “look” back at him instinctively.

Right when Jake felt the attack connect, the elf standing right in front of Jake froze, having just finished a swing. Simultaneously, two presences had clashed as one, with one coming out far superior, freezing the lesser of two beings in fear. Unlike the usual Gaze, the elf could still move a tiny bit, at least enough for his eyes to open wide and his face to contort.

Another thing that was contrary to the true Gaze of the Apex Hunter was that this wouldn’t truly “attack” his foe’s soul and damage it. He only targeted their Perception and instincts, not any of the inner parts of their souls. Jake innately felt that even if he was C-grade and looked at a level 0, the effect would also only be them freezing them. He was only instilling fear, after all. Not to say dying of fright wasn’t possible, but if it did happen, Jake would write off all responsibility.

Not to worry about Gaze getting weaker and becoming unable to kill weaker foes. Once outside of the Challenge Dungeon, Jake was sure things would work out just fine, and he was fully aware that fully copying and improving all aspects of a high-tier Legendary skill like Gaze wasn’t something he could simply do.

Back in the fight, the result was already a foregone conclusion the moment his Gaze had worked. Jake took advantage of the opening fully as he twisted his body and performed a high kick straight to the chin of his opponent. Teeth and blood flew out as the elf was lifted nearly three meters off the ground before falling down like a rag doll, landing with a thud.

After five seconds passed, it was clear he wasn’t getting back up.

“And we have a winner! The Elven Twinblade Dancer looked to have the advantage, but no! No, all along, his opponent was waiting, analyzing his foe for the perfect chance to strike back. Waiting till he found his opening, and then he struck… no, unleashed his Ascending Doomkick upon his foe, ending his dance in a single move!”

Wait, was the fucker making up technique names for Jake now? Seriously, was he trying to force Jake to use other means than kicking to make him shut up? Perhaps it was some ploy by the Wyrmgod to make people show off all they had… or maybe it was Minaga who had somehow managed to get some influence. The voice wasn’t Minaga’s, and Jake was certain the god wasn’t actively involved, as Jake knew the guy would be utterly incapable of not giving it away. Minaga was many things, but subtle was not one of them.

Anyway, Jake quickly left the arena before he could hear any more drivel from that damn announcer. A few employees of the Colosseum came in to take the elf away as Jake walked down the tunnel to the training area, finally getting out of earshot from the still-talking announcer.

After getting to the training area and signing up for his next battle, Jake found a nice quiet spot to sit and ponder till it was kicking time again.

Jake was very happy with the test result, and he didn’t even feel any mental strain from using Jake’s new version of Gaze. Well, another version of Gaze. The two would fuse once outside the dungeon… so for now, the “new” Gaze would be called Fear Gaze.

Fear Gaze had proven incredibly effective and had a slightly different way of freezing the target than the usual Gaze of the Apex Hunter. One that seemed ever-so-slightly less effective but lasted longer. Or maybe it just lasted longer because of who he fought. No real way to find out yet at the current place and time.

He did also feel that using Fear Gaze would be less effective the more he used it in short succession, but so was Gaze, so that wasn’t really a big deal. Probably just something innate to the concept. Jake definitely wanted to test some more stuff fast, and luckily, it was soon time.

Sadly, that did also mean he had to listen to the announcer again only a bit over an hour after his first match. Fortunately, that also meant he had another opponent to test his newfound Gaze upon. Unfortunately for his opponent, she too soon felt an incredible sense of innate fear as Jake kicked the poor beastkin mage in the back of the head, knocking her out cold.

Seeing as he had knocked out two opponents in a row – something that Owen pointed out rarely happened above Fighter rank – Jake also began to suspect that his Gaze helped with that. Which probably shouldn’t be overly surprising. One had to rely on Willpower to not get knocked out even when the body took severe trauma, and if every shred of your Willpower was occupied with shivering in fear, there wasn’t much to keep you conscious when someone kicked you in the head.

This seeming effect on Willpower mattered more than just knocking people out. A lot more. It was lucky that he had met a mage in his second testing match because that allowed him to learn something he hadn’t even considered. When he had used Fear Gaze on the mage, the half-summoned stone bolt she was making crumbled and fell to the ground, as the fear did not only grip her body but even her soul.

One of the major weaknesses of Gaze of the Apex Hunter was that it only froze the body and didn’t impede his opponent’s abilities to react by controlling energy.

As for Fear Gaze?

With your Willpower suppressed… there was no controlling your magic.

It was truly a great discovery, and Jake could only look forward to continuing his kicking spree as he tried to find if there were more pleasant surprises from his Fear Gaze.

He was also confident now in achieving an utterly useless personal goal:

Completing the “Achieve Gladiator Rank Using Only Kicks” challenge.