ATPnovel Chapter 27 Arena Match
Chapter 27 Arena Match
Miao Meng's choice to come to the arena was not a whim, but rather based on past records and the recent movements of the Black Earl, choosing the day when the latter was most likely to come.
The entire festival lasts for about 10 days, but the arena event only lasts for 7 days. After all, this is all real fighting, and if you get injured, it won't just refresh like in a game.
Therefore, the first four days are for drills with wooden weapons, and only the last three days will feature sharpened iron weapons, making the festive and bloody atmosphere even more intense.
Even though they were made of wood, they could still cause death in the hands of those hot-blooded mercenaries, but the gore and excitement were ultimately no match for sharpened iron weapons.
Considering that Bartholomew is now a count, not some nobody, and given that he comes from a pirate background and has a good tolerance for bloodshed, Miao Meng only came to the arena on the fifth day, which is today.
Besides confirming the Black Earl's strength, the main reason for coming here is also to recognize his face. Several years have passed in the story, and we still don't know if he's gained weight.
Moreover, since the Black Earl has cleaned up his name as a pirate, he can't still have that wanted face from before. He'll definitely have to do something to his face, so this trip to the arena is something he has to do in person.
To ensure that his reconnaissance would not alert the enemy, Miao Meng also used his newly acquired skill points to unlock a new skill on the survival skill page.
Survival - Aura Concealment: +1 difficulty to be detected, enhances your ability to hide, and blends your aura into your surroundings.
This skill will be extremely useful, whether it's hiding when launching an assassination or scouting the Black Earl in the arena.
"Seating fee is 20 copper coins. Any mercenary groups you're interested in?"
After collecting the ticket money, the soldiers at the arena entrance casually took out a few colored wooden sticks. Different colors represented different mercenary groups, and you could buy whichever one you liked.
"Do you have the Violent Dog Mercenary Group? I'd like to buy one silver coin."
Miao Meng did not refuse this implicit demand for payment. Instead, he pretended to be very interested and casually placed a bet with a mercenary group that he found pleasing.
"Yes, yes, that black and red one, from a very powerful team, 1.5 to 1, take it, we're not responsible if you lose it."
Upon hearing Miao Meng's choice, the soldier picked out a stick from the pile and handed it over with considerable approval, without taking all the money with him.
The arena is not a sport for ordinary people; common residents and farmers are only fit to listen to poets broadcast their stories in places like taverns or squares.
To watch it live requires some financial resources; those who can get in are either middle-class individuals with considerable assets or upper-class individuals with a lineage of knowledge or martial arts skills.
After entering the venue, Miao Meng looked around at the distribution of the viewing area where the nobles were located and found a secluded corner that was relatively close but not directly noticeable to them.
The entire area resembled the Roman Colosseum, with a walled dueling area at the very center. On either side were large doors leading to the seats, which allowed gladiators to enter and exit, and occasionally also allowed the release of wild beasts.
Then there are rows and rows of seats surrounding the dueling area, which are for ordinary people to watch from, and above that is the deliberately elevated VIP area.
Some are separated by wooden and stone walls, while others are simply covered with a thin gauze curtain, but without exception, they are all extremely spacious rooms.
After taking his seat, Miao Meng seemed no different from the other spectators, constantly commenting on the gladiators in the dueling area and occasionally hurling insults at them over the bets.
As for Count Bartholomew, whom he had been waiting for, he did not arrive at the venue until the sun was high in the sky and it was almost lunchtime. He checked into the largest VIP room on the west side.
The upstairs room has a balcony that protrudes outwards, supported by pillars. It is a special spot reserved for the city lord, who can stand up and say a few words when he is interested.
Miao Meng didn't see the Black Earl directly, but he noticed that several soldiers suddenly stood up on the balcony of the previously empty room to keep watch, which made him guess that the other side had arrived at the scene.
"Tsk. He's really afraid of dying. They have to keep so many soldiers stationed in the arena. No, we need to find a way to get him out there and show his face."
Watching the gladiators below finish another match, and seeing that the Black Earl showed no intention of showing up, Miao Meng began to think about how he could get a meeting with him.
However, when he noticed the referee who had suddenly walked into the dueling arena, he abandoned the idea. It seemed that he didn't need to bother, as the owner of the arena was more interested in attracting the city lord's attention than he was.
"Well, the three matches this morning were certainly good, but they are still far inferior to the two contestants who will be appearing next."
They were the Violent Hound Mercenary Group from the Kingdom of Senist, their attacks as swift as tigers, their teamwork as precise as a pack of wolves.
As the referee shouted loudly, a neat team of five walked out from the north gate.
This squad consisted of two square soldiers, two warriors, and one archer. Their neatly equipped uniforms and fierce eyes clearly indicated that they were the cream of the crop among fighters.
"And then there are our ever-victorious generals, the Frozen Rock Knights from the snow-capped mountains, whose attacks are like a relentless tsunami!"
This squad also consists of five people, but the leader is a berserker, a third-tier class. As an advanced class of warrior, he possesses terrifying extreme counterattack capabilities, enabling him to simultaneously deal with attacks from a circle of people.
Behind him were two infantrymen in a square formation, followed by two archers surrounded by the three men.
The audience on stage, upon seeing the composition of the two teams, especially the berserker leading the Bastion Knights, erupted in curses and threw their wooden sticks down.
There's one Tier 3 professional here, and five Tier 2 professionals over there. None of them are a match for the Berserker. It seems that the Berserker, who performed so well a few days ago, has run straight into the snow mountain this time.
Miao Meng glanced at the bet in his hand, worth one silver coin, and wasn't too angry. This kind of shady dealing was too simple; even a powerful dragon can't suppress a local snake.
Of course, he wasn't afraid that what he was doing would expose him. There were many other gamblers like him, who were holding onto that stick tightly, hoping to see an upset.
Even if the Violent Dog Mercenary Group wins, they will only receive 1.5 times the profit. This does not stop these gamblers who have placed heavy bets from believing in each other as if they were drowning people grasping at the last straw.
Seeing the sudden explosion of the atmosphere around him, Miao Meng became somewhat interested in the owner of the arena; the other party seemed to know how to do business.
Regardless of whether this mercenary group wins or loses, they will definitely get a lot of money in the end, and judging from the atmosphere, the Black Earl might even be intrigued and lift the curtain to take a look.
So he simply took a few deep breaths, pretending to be about to gamble with his life, while Miao Meng stared intently at the situation on the field, but in reality he kept glancing at the balcony out of the corner of his eye.
Sure enough, after the referees below continued to explain and encourage him, the curtain in the VIP room was suddenly lifted, and the city lord that Miao Meng had been looking forward to for so long finally appeared in front of everyone.
However, when Miao Meng saw the appearance of the Black Earl, he couldn't help but gasp. How could a fat pig have crawled out of there?