Inside Mantili Prison, Barrett sat against the wall, on the hard rocky floor, and wrapped his numbered right arm around his silent 'roommate'.

"I'm good at killing, and I love it. He whispered to his roommate, "I've slain thousands of aliens and beasts, and the number of humans who have died at my hands is not small. But why do I suddenly feel bored because of my desperate struggle in the arena?"

"To be clear, I'm not the kind of person who has a compassionate heart. "If someone says to the adventurers in Bay of Pigs, 'Hey, Barrett has a soft heart,' he's going to be suspected of being insane." ”

"You must want to ask why, don't you?" the roommate's head nodded helplessly under Barrett's teasing, "Then I'll tell you, because hundreds of people have died indirectly at my hands." Of course, that's not to say I killed them outright, I'm not that ...... Bloodthirsty. I mean, those people died under my leadership, and there were a lot of lads who were fed to that dangerous forest by me before they even came of age. ”

"So, you see, I don't like to be pitiful. But why do I feel an indescribable depression in my heart? Even if the guys I killed in the arena didn't even have a single human, they were all annoying species like lizardmen or orcs, and the only one who had a better relationship with humans was a dwarf, but that guy looked quite crazy, and God knows what evil things he had done. ”

"Besides, the arena is like this, either you die or I die. So, I have the right to kill them, and I'm going to use the same right to kill them in future gladiatorial fights, don't I?" Barrett asked his roommate with a tilt of his head.

"Yes, that's it, because you're a gladiator!" a hoarse voice came from the other side of the wall, "Anyway, why do you like to talk to that skeleton lately? "Tell you, the last prisoner who was locked up in your cage had the same fetishes as you, and then he ......"

"What happened?" Barrett asked curiously.

Later, he was caught in the throat by a bone in the soup and suffocated to death. The Soul Merchant replied solemnly, "His soul has been transferred to another cage, waiting to be slowly corrupted. ”

“...... Thanks for the warning, I'll be extra careful when drinking soup. Barrett said angrily.

"Hey, it's just you and me in this compartment right now, would you rather talk to a skeleton than talk to me?" the soul merchant was a little dissatisfied, "This is so sad, my friend!"

"When I'm bored or need answers, I'll choose you, the know-it-all guy. "And when I just want to talk, this taciturn roommate is a better choice for me." ”

"Oh, then, you already have the answer in your mind?"

"There is no need for an answer. Barrett replied, "I've just been locked up for too long and I'm mentally feeling a little tired, that's all." ”

"I'm afraid it's not all, my friend. The Soul Merchant tapped the wall twice, hoping that Barrett would listen to him, "It seems to me that after listening to my previous story, you are worried that you will continue to be stained with the blood of innocents in the arena, and that you will gradually lose yourself and become corrupt and degenerate, just like the tyrant of old. Moreover, the fact that Martin has become that young man must have touched you a lot. ”

"Alas......" the Soul Merchant sighed, but there was a smug look in his tone that saw through the problem, "The reason why I told you that story is to ask you to be careful about the endless methods of the devil, not to make you afraid in the arena. Alas, how could the proverb say, 'The less you know, the better you sleep'? ”

"Hmph, I'm sure I'm not going to give up in a duel. Barrett said in a deep voice.

"But you will bear the burden in your heart because of this, won't you?" said the soul merchant triumphantly, "although you like to kill, but you find that this kind of killing in the arena is not something you can control. He's very different from you hunting in the forest, or fighting with others. ”

"If one day, your opponent is an innocent human like you who is trapped here, and he fails and kneels on the ground and asks for your forgiveness, but you end up with no choice but to end up with him, because you have to. Then, you'll kill the second, the third, the fourth, and then you'll get used to it, like the tyrant 'Elliott'. Deep down you fear that this will happen. ”

“...... Will it happen?" Barrett asked, frowning.

"Of course, my friend," said the Soul Merchant, in a tone of utter exaggeration, "where do you think this is? This is the Bato Hell, and this is Mantiri! It is all too obvious that people are deprived of all dignity and hope, and have to compete with each other for survival. Recognize the reality, friend, it's good to be alive. ”

That's not a good answer. The brute was even more depressed, "I didn't let you tell me these annoying things, and that's why I prefer to talk to this white bone." ”

"But I get the answer to your question, doesn't it? It doesn't do that. The Soul Merchant said with a smile.

"It didn't make me feel better after untying it!"

"That's because you're not strong enough, my friend. The Soul Merchant's tone suddenly turned flat, "Although your body is as strong as an ogre, your heart and mind are like a goblin. Fighting and fighting will make you nerves tough, but they won't make you strong inside. You've faced so few choices, not the boring ones like what to eat tonight, but the kind of ...... that will break your heart and soul."

Barrett was silent, he recalled his past, and found that he had experienced many moments of life and death, but he really did not have the kind of difficult choice that many soul merchants said.

"Rest well, friend, the second battle should not be long before it arrives. After the soul merchant said this, he gradually lost his voice.

With a sigh, Barrett lay on the dirty straw mat and summoned the [Mission Log] by the way.

In the [Achievement] column, under [Bloody Body], there is a new achievement at this time. This achievement pops up when Barrett finishes his first duel, and is called Arena Juggernaut

"Do you want me to fight on that yellow sand?" he whispered.

......