"What kind of material is this made of? Looks like impressive craftsmanship!"
Fatty Nico held the ticket high, examining it meticulously.
"If the Colosseum is open, then there's bound to be a bookmaker taking bets!"
Putting the ticket away, Fatty Nico suddenly stood, his tone full of conviction. He rose, searching for where the betting might take place.
Sure enough, at the top of each section in the stands was a small counter, behind which stood an attractive, seductive succubus. Locals from the Stoneheart Horde who knew the arena well were already heading there to sign up for the challenge or place wagers on the outcomes.
"Kadir, they're taking bets! They're taking bets!"
Nico grabbed Kadir and tried to make his way up to the highest row of seats.
But Kadir shrugged off Nico's tug.
"You go yourself!
"You know you're going to lose, so why go throw away your Blackstone Coins?"
Nico shot Kadir a glare, left him behind, and squeezed through the crowd toward the top. Surprisingly, his plump body seemed far more agile here than one would guess.
"This place is a gold mine—and a money pit!"
"If you don't figure out how to position yourself, you'll lose your shirt."
Kadir sat up straight, directing his gaze toward the tall building that formed the front of the Colosseum.
"Not many people there, but the lights are bright."
"The Giant King is probably sitting in that spot, watching the entire Colosseum."
"Word has it this Colosseum was opened to welcome the dwarves and the dragons."
"That means some big shots from those two races have arrived in Stoneheart City."
He tore his eyes away, lost in thought. He didn't dare make a show of staring at the Colosseum's VIP area. A curious gaze toward someone like the Giant King might invite unknown fury.
Regardless of the faction, every leadership circle had its share of violent types—a faction's razor's edge, the weapon they raise against their enemies.
"Stoneheart City, the Stoneheart Horde…how should I get my foot in the door?"
Kadir began pondering deeply. His family had no future left in the human kingdom. Now that Stoneheart City was thriving, he was already thinking about making it his permanent home.
Unlike Kadir, Torin, Mike, and Wyatt, seated on another side of the stands, looked out at the huge, bustling crowd with excitement and anticipation.
Just yesterday, Delilah had negotiated a slave deal on Orion's behalf with Torin.
"Master, if this Colosseum stays open indefinitely, the demand for slaves is going to be enormous."
"They'll need tons and tons of slaves!"
The speaker was Wyatt, commander of the slaver band. As a slave leader, he knew all too well that their fortunes were looking bright.
"Master, from now on we won't have to pay tribute with our slaves to those damned nobles."
Torin remained silent. Delilah had gifted him the ticket in his hand—it was for a decent seat in the VIP area.
A trace of excitement curved Torin's lips; his expression was equal parts sinister and fanatical.
"The Stoneheart Horde doesn't lack other races. What they lack is humans—human slaves."
"And for our's group, human slaves are as plentiful as you'd like."
"Don't have any now?"
"Go catch them. Rob them. Trick them..."
"The human kingdom is basically an empire, with countless towns. So if a few people vanish from some slum, who'll really notice?"
A fiery madness glinted in Torin's eyes, growing stronger by the second.
"To fuel my own rise, sacrificing a few human slaves is hardly worth mentioning."
"Master, we're short on manpower. It'd also be best to keep it all discreet," Mike remarked. He was a mercenary who'd handled plenty of missing-person cases. So he knew that if they kidnapped a slave connected to someone important, it would be a real headache.
"This time, once we return to Soaring Bird City, we'll no longer be short on gold.
"With gold, how can we ever be short on manpower?"
Torin turned, gazing at Mike with a burning look.
Mike blinked, then realized what Torin meant. Yes, their trip to the giants' territory wasn't just about currying favor with the Giant King for protection. They'd also come to acquire goods.
As soon as they got back to Soaring Bird City and resold what they'd obtained, they'd have all the gold they needed. And with enough gold, manpower wouldn't be an issue.
"Master, your foresight is impressive!"
Facing Torin's calculating expression, flattery was indeed the wisest course. That was how Mike survived.
"Master, the challenge is starting!"
Wyatt drew Torin's attention. In the center of the colosseum, a metal cage holding dark creatures was already being raised from below. Opposite it stood a giant from Stoneheart City, ready for battle.
"Under the rules, whoever kills these dark creatures gets to keep the dark source crystal."
"If a challenger fails, they have to die in battle—the dark creatures move on to the next challenger."
"Mmph…mmph…mmph!"
As soon as the war horn blew, the cage for the dark creatures opened. The Giant challenger hoisted a huge axe and charged in with a roar.
James lucked out by getting in first, as a challenger.
As one of the Giant King's childhood playmates and rivals, James feels he's quite the disappointment.
Orion's already become the Giant King, whereas he's still stuck at hero level peak.
The only reason James had advanced that fast was from fighting in several wars against the dark creatures. Last year, he'd even followed Orion to Valkorath Realm, where he gained further experience battling fungal creatures. Now he was hero level peak.
All he needed was enough battle achievements to exchange at the Horde for Alpha-level resources. But he knew he still had more work to do.
James was aware that his innate talent wasn't remarkable. His potential alone might not be enough to break through to Alpha-level.
However, surrender was out of the question—he planned to keep striving, to emulate Gnoll Dirtclaw.
James believed he'd become just like Dirtclaw, advancing to Alpha-level and joining the council someday.
For a giant to take a gnoll as his role model was neither unusual nor shameful within the Stoneheart Horde.
After all, wherever a powerful being went, respect always followed.