Chapter 8

This victory won Scar several months of recuperation time. It was entirely necessary, as it took him a full month before he could walk out of his room with a cane.

When he stepped out of his room, he realized that his neighbor had changed. Before his fight with the Desert Leopard, he had already forgotten the name of his neighbor, and even if he remembered, it wouldn't have mattered. Every day, many names disappeared—those who were unfortunate enough to leave forever.

This row of rooms was part of the Gladiators' Academy's special quarters, all single rooms. By customary standards, this was the so-called "VIP section," where only gladiators who had survived enough matches could secure a spot. There were no strict rules or regulations here, and no armed guards patrolling. In fact, there was only one elderly guard. As everyone knew, his job had nothing to do with security; his role was to provide high-end dining and other luxuries to the residents.

However, like the other rooms in the Gladiators' Academy, the guests here usually did not stay long.

"Hey, Scar." As he passed by the neighboring room, he found an acquaintance inside.

Raze walked out. Scar still remembered this man who called himself a "knight."

"You seem to have recovered well. I saw everything; you actually managed to defeat that Desert Leopard... To be honest, that's quite an achievement."

"This is not something to be proud of," Scar replied coldly.

"Maybe not, but it's still impressive and worthy of admiration... Well, would you like to come into my room for a chat?"

Scar, leaning on his cane, entered Raze's room, and the latter closed the door.

"To be honest, I'm glad to see you alive. You know, you almost got chosen by the Queen."

"Queen?"

"Queen Kaelan, Qinxin. The progenitor of the vampire clan." Raze poured two glasses of wine and handed one to Scar.

"If you had defeated the Desert Leopard that day without sustaining such severe injuries and collapsing on the arena floor, Queen Qinxin might have taken a liking to you and turned you into a vampire."

Scar held the wine glass, not answering, but looked at Raze with confusion.

"Actually, that day, Queen Qinxin was watching the match from the VIP section. Don't ask me why I know this; I have my sources. Come, have a sip. This is my favorite plum wine. Or rather, in this hellhole of Kaelan, this is the only drink I can stand."

Scar took a small sip. The wine was sour and bitter, not very good. But this wasn't the fault of the wine; it was just that he was born disliking alcohol. If he did drink, it was usually sweet fruit wines with more sweetness than alcohol.

"Why would the Queen of the vampires...?"

"Because she desperately needs subordinates." Raze interrupted Scar. "The war is still ongoing, far from over."

As he sipped the sour plum wine, Scar felt a similar bitterness rise in his heart. He thought of the old man, the great battle, and many things he didn't want to remember.

"Kaelan is still winning. But their fate is already sealed in defeat. Kaelan's proud undead army has suffered heavy losses, with a significant reduction in numbers. The vampires commanding the undead army, especially the Blood Knights, have suffered even more severe casualties, with at least half of them lost."

"You mentioned earlier that Queen Qinxin can turn humans into vampires."

"That's right, but it has to be the right person. Vampires seem very proud and would never accept an unworthy comrade. If you had defeated the Desert Leopard without a scratch, they might have accepted you."

"Should I feel honored?"

"If I were you, I would. But fortunately, you weren't chosen. Turning into a blood-drinking monster and joining the Blood Knights, only to die in some battle from swords, guns, or cannons... that's definitely not a good end, and you wouldn't like it."

"Why are you telling me all this?"

"Maybe because we're both from Ryan." Raze smiled mysteriously. "Where did you get your knight title? Which unit were you part of?"

Scar fell silent again, not answering.

"Alright, I know you don't want to talk about those unfortunate things. But as long as you still consider yourself a knight of Ryan, perhaps there's something we can work on together."

Raze suddenly fell silent, and Scar also heard footsteps outside.

"Let's talk again when your leg is fully healed. If I'm still alive, that is."

Scar, leaning on his cane, walked out. A stranger passed by, but this was a common occurrence, so Scar didn't pay much attention. He had no specific destination in mind, just wanting to walk around and clear his mind, so he headed to the Gladiators' Academy's training ground. As usual, many people were training under different coaches, working hard on the equipment.

But it seemed there were fewer people.

Who was Raze? He seemed to have some information channels, able to get news from the outside.

Although Scar also wanted to know what was happening outside, the Gladiators' Academy was completely isolated, with no communication with the outside world. Apart from the internal guards and coaches, the entire academy was surrounded by double-layered high walls, with guards and guard dogs patrolling in between.

Moreover, each gladiator was under some form of magical supervision, especially those in the single rooms, who were the focus of attention. So although they appeared to have considerable freedom, able to wander around the academy, except for key areas like the armory, they could go anywhere. In reality, every move of the gladiators was under surveillance.

The coaches and guards could come and go freely, but Scar never expected to be able to buy off any of them to communicate with the outside world. He had nothing to offer.

Scar believed the other gladiators were in the same situation.

And the content of what Raze said... Although Scar had fought as a criminal soldier and hated both sides equally, he was still a human. Emotionally, he hoped humans would win the war. This wasn't a baseless one-sided delusion. All the countries in the True God Church's sphere of influence had joined the war driven by faith and interests. Although Kaelan was unexpectedly powerful, and the Blood Knights were invincible, if it turned into a war of attrition, Kaelan would be the first to bleed dry.

And this Gladiators' Academy...

Saying he didn't hate it would be a lie. Scar had seen gladiators die countless times before his eyes. These people fought to the death for others' entertainment, with no honor or value in their deaths. He had fought against this inhumane system with all his might, only to be rewarded with a Desert Leopard.

More people chose to fall.

Scar had seen many excellent warriors, like him, living in single rooms, drinking heavily the night before a fight, and indulging in women. They all knew that such indulgence before a fight was a death sentence. Alcohol dulled the senses and slowed reaction times, while indulging in women needlessly drained precious energy.

But they still did it. Scar could understand their mindset, the suffocating pressure, the hatred for the blood on their hands, and the complete hopelessness for the future. Since there was no hope, they might as well enjoy themselves before dying.

But Scar didn't want to die. He trained his body every day, controlled his desires, and struggled to survive. This wasn't because he had any hope of being saved or any grand goals. It was simply that he didn't want to die.

If the Gladiators' Academy were to give him freedom and let him leave right now, Scar would probably feel lost, not knowing where to go.

Whenever he saw his neighbors carrying crates of wine into their rooms or hugging several women, he couldn't help but think of what the old man had once told him.

"Stay alive. If you think dying this way is not worth it, then stay alive. There's always hope, as long as you don't abandon your fate, your fate won't abandon you."

He remembered that the old man had been a holy knight but never mentioned the gods.

Three months later, just as Scar's leg had recovered enough for him to walk, he finally received news about the war. This news wasn't told to him by anyone but was announced by the roar of the siege cannons. The siege of Kaelan had officially begun.

The cannons fired non-stop throughout the day. The guards and coaches of the Gladiators' Academy seemed to ignore it or not care.

However, the number of gladiators and coaches had indeed decreased. The daily gladiatorial matches continued, but there were no new recruits. The large training ground, which had once been bustling, now seemed empty, with many training equipment no longer having the long lines of people practicing.

At dusk, Scar was doing his recovery exercises in the corridor when he encountered Raze again.

Raze had clearly just returned from a fight, unharmed. When he met Scar, he casually greeted him. Since their conversation, he had always done this, greeting Scar and then leaving immediately.

"If you have time tonight, come to my room." As Raze passed by, Scar heard his low whisper.

When it was dark, Scar entered Raze's room. He was not surprised to see that there were already several guests in the room, all familiar faces.

"Alright, everyone is here." Raze closed the door.

"Let me introduce myself again. My name is Raze, a knight of the Kingdom of Ryan, part of the Allied Forces' special operations unit. I must clarify that I am not a prisoner of war; I infiltrated this Gladiators' Academy because I have a special mission."

"However, completing this mission alone is indeed difficult. That's why I've been lying low, waiting for the right opportunity."

"You're not a prisoner... how did you get in here?"

"Of course, I have my own channels in Kaelan. Money always has its uses in this world. But these details are not important. The reason I've called you all here is that my secret mission requires your assistance. My mission is to assassinate Queen Qinxin!"