As the crowd hurried onto Ark'shaRin's corpse, they jumped onto it without restraint—some using their bare fingers to dig into the bloated gut of the fallen Deity, tearing chunks of flesh free and shoving them into their mouths in desperate haste, hoping to retain their lost fate and health.
For some, the corpse replenished them, even if only a little.
But for others, the chunk did nothing but literally burn through their tongue and throat, killing them in an instant.
It was a horrid scene to behold. Villagers struck one another in blind desperation, clawing and shoving in an attempt to reach the corpse. Many fell, only to be trampled to death beneath the feet of the frenzied masses along the way.
For Steven, who had only managed to make it a few meters away before the horde of greedy humans surged toward him, he faced the full brunt of the push.
He felt shoulders crash into his face, elbows slam into his sides, and constant bodies collide with him, each impact threatening to knock him off balance.
But he dared not fall. With a single misstep, he would be trampled to death. So he did his best to stabilize himself, taking the hits as they came and bearing the pain as it shot through his entire body.
Thanks to his Physique being at its maximum, he was able to withstand the crushing force of the crowd for a while. After enduring the chaos and forcing himself forward, he finally escaped the rushing mass, stumbling into a more open area not too far from the door that led down to the arena.
There also stood Drake—the handsome, dashing man now covered in bruises from the tide of greedy, intent-driven humans. Even so, he still looked far better than Steven, who was drenched in blood—his own, that of the Deity, and that of the people who had crashed into him during the mad charge toward the corpse.
"You made it out," Drake spoke, a small smile appearing on his lips.
Steven nodded as he walked up to Drake, and after that, exhaustion finally claimed him. He dropped to the ground, resting his back against the cold wall of the Colosseum and letting his gaze fall toward the arena below.
"You managed to figure out the second condition on your own and killed a Deity by yourself, which is quite amazing. I commend you for that," Drake said, genuine appreciation in his voice.
Steven did not reply. His eyes drifted to his system instead.
{No skills can be copied from the vessel}
"Vessel?" Steven repeated quietly, dismissing the system soon after. He had no immediate explanation for the statement—something he would have to figure out later.
Finally, the true reason he and Drake had come here settled sickeningly in both of their hearts as their eyes returned to the towering walls of the Colosseum.
"What now?" Steven asked.
"I thought you would tell me, since you thought all this through on your own. Right now, I'm just baggage, aren't I, Steeve?" Drake replied, his voice carrying a hint of sarcasm. He stared at his own system for a moment, and dread washed over him once more.
{All effects of the Sea Deity Ark'shaRin have subsided along with him}
Which meant by extension that the control over all the Shadow Eaters within the Colosseum had vanished.
Drake wished this was only theory, but he knew better. Steven's actions had plunged them into a situation far worse than the one they were originally trapped in. Still, he couldn't bring himself to point fingers. Thanks to Steven, he was also one step closer to returning home.
After a long moment of introspection, Drake finally sighed.
"The first thing we need to do is find the other two Favour and Lin, and then escape the Colosseum. That might be the third condition for leaving this Realm."
Steven shrugged slightly. "How are we going to get back to the prison, then? We can't go through the arena—we don't want to stir the Eaters into tearing through the doors. Or at least, we can't take that risk. So we need another way."
Drake's face hardened as he fell into deep contemplation. He let the silence stretch for a moment before finally speaking.
"I can find another route with my ability. That shouldn't be much of a problem."
Steven smiled faintly. Just as he suspected—Drake's ability had more to it than raw strength alone, and he had done well to hide its true nature. Whether it was heightened perception, environmental awareness, or even a form of future sight, Steven wasn't entirely sure. And that uncertainty was precisely why he had brought Drake along.
"Let's escape this hellhole and return home," Drake said, turning toward the exit of the upper Colosseum.
Steven smiled as he rose to his feet to follow. But for a brief moment, curiosity stirred within him, and he turned his gaze back toward the massive walls of the Colosseum.
It was… strange.
Strange that no Shadow Eater had forced its way through by now. Stranger still that there were no marks on the walls—no cracks, no damage—nothing to suggest they had even tried.
It was as though they weren't there at all.
---
Meanwhile, in the darkest depths of the Colosseum, within a massive pit that stretched deep into the earth's crust, the air was thick with the foul stench of blood. The bottom of the pit was littered with endless bodies not human, but Shadow Eaters brutally ripped apart as though they were nothing more than livestock in the grasp of a greedy predator.
And it was a predator.
One that did not kill for sustenance, but for the sheer joy of it.
Standing atop one of the many piles of butchered corpses was a behemoth—a monstrous creature resembling a massive wolf mounted upon the remains beneath it. Its legs were bulky, straining with muscle, dark veins pulsing as thick, shadowed blood coursed through them. From its wide back sprouted dozens of razor-sharp tentacles, each one impaling the bodies of Shadow Eaters it had slaughtered without mercy, the lifeless forms still suspended in the air.
Its six eyes twisted and shifted as they scanned the pit for survivors.
There were none.
Nothing breathed within the pit. Nothing lived—except it.
Instinctively, its gaze locked onto a passageway carved into the side of the pit's wall, one that led upward. With a turbulent, bone-shaking roar, it charged into the passage, driven by instinct alone, in search of its next prey.
This predator was the King Beast.
//Author's note//
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