Rise of the Eromancer

"Next time… think twice before underestimating someone."

Clio refused to let go of the man, still pinning him on the ground with her foot while threatening to completely dislocate his arm. The man's friends seemed to have recovered from having been knocked out by Clio, and all of them didn't seem to appreciate what Clio was doing.

Clio may very well have a part of Rhys's strength, but the participants of the Coliesium of Champions were no normal people either—as the name suggests, all of them are champions of their own right, and most of them had been doing this long before Clio and even Rhys.

"If I were you, little girl…" They all started to circle around Clio; their eyes were like wolves, and Clio was their singular prey, "...I'd let go of our friend."

"That's right. We were just playing around, little girl. There's no need for this violence." One of them started laughing.

"You people are the ones who started it!" Clio did not let herself be intimidated by their glares, "You are supposed to be heroes and champions, and yet you come up to me like ruffians and talk to me like I am inferior just because I am a woman—if this is how you are, then I am now ashamed to even be here, in a place that is supposed to be filled with honor and glory."

"Honor… and glory?" One of the men started chuckling at Clio's words while he and his friends stepped closer to her, "Do you really think this place is honor and glory? We are the gods' playthings. If we don't do well in this fucking place, we are abandoned, left to die alone—the only glory here is being able to slit the throats of people like you!"

The men surrounding Clio sneered, circling her with the look of predators who thought they'd cornered their prey.

They were about to lunge toward Clio all at the same time, but before they could do so, Rhys stepped forward. The cold edge in his voice cut through the noise, freezing them in their tracks.

"I also don't believe in honor and glory…" he said, his voice low and deliberate. "But I suggest you and your people leave. You too, Clio—just let their friend go."

"But—"

"You think you scare us?" One of the men scoffed as he exchanged glances with the others.

"Pft… now you're just hiding behind this giant?" Another chuckled, pointing at Clio. "And here you are talking about honor and glory."

"I don't need anyone's protection." Clio clenched her fists, her knuckles turning white. She turned to Rhys, a determined glint in her eye. "Rhys, please. I know I can handle this."

"I know you can." But alas, Rhys's patience has already worn thin. As someone who had always been insulted and looked down upon before he gained his powers, he knew that there was really only one way for people like this to stop, "But there's no point in trying to prove your strength in people weaker than you, Clio."

"What…?" The men took his words as a challenge.

"Oh, so it's like that?" another sneered, cracking his knuckles as he stepped forward. "Big guy's looking for a fight."

Rhys didn't respond. Instead, he took a calm breath, his stance steady. The look in his eyes was chilling.

And without warning, Rhys rushed forward. He drove his elbow into the nearest man's jaw, the crack echoing through the arena. The man stumbled back, blood streaming from his mouth.

"What the!? Get him!"

Another lunged at Rhys from the side, but Rhys just took it head-on, catching the man's wrist with ease. And with a swift and calculated brutality, he twisted the man's arm until it snapped; the man's scream cutting through the air. Rhys kicked him away without a second glance.

One of the remaining men tried to rush him, but Rhys just casually dodged to the side and brought his fist down on the back of the man's neck, sending him crashing to the ground. He didn't even bother to check if the man was still conscious.

The last of them, desperate and furious, grabbed a weapon—a short blade from his side—and lunged, aiming right for Rhys's throat.

"Hm…" Rhys's eyes narrowed. In a flash, he grabbed the man's arm, twisted the blade out of his grasp… and drove it back straight through the man's own throat, killing him.

Rhys then quickly looked around if there would be anyone… or anything stopping him from doing what he was doing, but there was nothing at all. Were there actually no rules in this place?

"..." Rhys then turned to look at the man he threw to the ground, and then walked toward him before placing his foot right over the man's head… before slowly pinning it down to the point it started to crack.

And still, no one and nothing stopped him.

Just as Rhys was about to squash the man's head, someone stepped forward from the gathering crowed. He was older, his expression hardened by years of battle, with scars painting his arms.

"That's enough," the champion said, his voice rough but steady. "There's a time and place for bloodshed, but this isn't it."

Rhys's gaze locked onto him, unphased. "I apologize, but they are the ones who insulted my companion. If I let them go now, they'll only cause trouble."

The champion's eyes narrowed, sizing Rhys up. "You're new here—and you might not know it yet, but the best way to survive this place is to make friends."

"Tell that to them." Rhys removed his foot from the man before glancing at Clio and gesturing to her to let go of the man she was holding, "Making friends didn't seem to work out for them that much. They—"

And before Rhys could finish his words, the old man unsheathed his weapon. His sword cut through the air, aiming for Rhys's shoulder, but Rhys just casually moved to the side.

The old man did not let up at all, however, as each of his strikes was faster than the last.

But it didn't matter at all, Rhys moved like water dodging the old man's strikes with minimal effort. The champion's face twisted in frustration, his attacks growing more forceful. But soon, however, Rhys seemed to have grown tired of this as he stopped dodging.

And instead, he just blocked the sword with his arm—and the sword snapped in half.

"What—" And without even letting the old man speak, Rhys punched him straight on the stomach, causing his feet to leave the ground and for him to land on his knees before ultimately dropping on his face.

"Well…" Rhys stepped forward, his gaze cold as he prepared to just crack the old man's head.

"Okay, okay. That's enough, young man."

"That's… Achilles!?"

"He knew Achilles!?"

Before any cracking could actually happen, however, Achilles just suddenly appeared behind Rhys… and he didn't even feel him coming.

"That's enough, Rhys. There's no point in killing someone who's already lost." Achilles let out a small sigh before just kicking the old man on the side of his stomach, causing him to roll toward the crowd.

"Sir." Rhys finally calmed down as he saw Achilles's familiar face. Clio too, let out a breath of relief.

"Young warrior." Achilles also sighed, but it was the exhausted kind, "I already knew you would fit right in this place. But wow, welcome to the Coliseum of Champions…

…where people could just fight to the death anytime and anywhere they want."