An Exceptional Genius, the Strongest Gladiator!

An Exceptional Genius, the Strongest Gladiator!

"Kyros?"

"Who's that? He's incredibly popular. A gladiator with 440 consecutive wins? Sounds pretty impressive."

In the stands, Aokiji lounged sideways in his seat, surrounded by the large bags of snacks he had bought.

Seeing the crowd surge around them, Aokiji curiously sat up straight and turned his gaze toward the center of the arena. Yoriichi was eating the star-shaped local fruit they had bought, watching the center of the arena with equal interest.

Kyros.

Even after all these years, Yoriichi still remembered this person.

When he was fifteen, this guy had become a murderer to avenge his deceased best friend. Even when he was arrested, he had attacked King Riku with a blunt weapon, successfully striking him in the head. Just as the guards were about to shoot him dead—

King Riku suddenly stopped his men.

Perhaps it was because Kyros valued loyalty and sentiment, or perhaps King Riku regretted wasting Kyros's extraordinary talent for battle. In any case, King Riku spared Kyros.

However, Kyros's identity as a murderer did not change because of that. Murder and assaulting King Riku were both serious crimes, enough to warrant the death penalty.

King Riku later brought Kyros to Dressrosa's colosseum and promised him that if he could win one hundred matches, he would grant Kyros his freedom.

Gifted with exceptional talent, Kyros began to realize his potential in the arena. Endless battles made him stronger and stronger. In less than half a year, he had achieved one hundred victories.

After fulfilling King Riku's promise, Kyros did not leave the arena. The identity of a murderer was simply too detestable. Even though he had won one hundred battles, Kyros had not been able to erase that label.

Unable to fit into society, Kyros remained in the arena, numbing himself through battle.

By now, Kyros had won 440 battles. Whether in strength or popularity, he stood at the very top of the colosseum.

Shortly afterward, Kyros and his opponent, "Berserk Sea Bear," stepped into the center of the arena.

Berserk Sea Bear was a giant standing five meters tall, broad-shouldered and thick-waisted, clad in armor. His helmet covered his face, leaving only his eyes exposed. In one hand, he held a round shield covered in spikes; in the other, an axe as tall as a man. He looked immensely imposing.

Kyros, meanwhile, was still only a seventeen-year-old youth. Yet he was tall, over two meters in height by estimate, with a well-proportioned body and exceptionally developed muscles. He could absolutely be called powerfully built.

Compared to him, Aokiji, who was roughly the same height, was practically a skinny wimp.

Unlike his fully armed opponent, Kyros wore only a tattered cloth outfit, though he did have a skirt of armor around his waist. In his hands was a Twin-bladed Greatsword that gleamed coldly beneath the sunlight, clearly a fine weapon.

But compared to his opponent, Kyros's equipment was far too shabby. If not for the sword in his hand, he would have looked perfectly suited to begging on the streets.

His appearance was truly dreadful.

"Whoa! So that's Kyros? He's huge, and that armor of his looks pretty amazing too. No wonder he's won so many matches."

Looking at the two men in the arena, Aokiji mistook Berserk Sea Bear for Kyros. There was even a faint trace of envy in his eyes. After a pause, Aokiji suddenly sighed, "If all us Marines could be equipped with full armor like that, wouldn't it be cool?"

Yoriichi gave Aokiji a sidelong look, speechless. He could only agree, "That would be so cool."

Aokiji caught the sarcasm in Yoriichi's words. He opened his mouth, just about to say something, when Yoriichi continued, "Kuzan, the one holding the axe isn't Kyros. The one holding the Twin-bladed Sword is."

"I can feel it. He's very strong!"

Yoriichi narrowed his eyes slightly as he looked at Kyros in the center of the arena.

Within Yoriichi's Transparent World, he could clearly see the "qi" emanating from Kyros's body. It was not Haki, but qi.

Kyros's breaths were long and steady, the muscles in his body brimming with explosive strength. Most importantly, in Yoriichi's eyes, Kyros's heart was full of vitality.

That vitality was enough to rival the Upper Rank demons from the Demon Slayer World.

The vitality of a human heart rivaled that of a demon! Yoriichi dared say that if Kyros were placed in the Demon Slayer World, only one man and one demon could defeat him with certainty.

That man was Yoriichi himself, and that demon was the Demon King Muzan, who had died beneath his blade.

"The one holding the Twin-bladed Sword?"

Aokiji was slightly stunned by this, somewhat surprised. However, he did not doubt Yoriichi's judgment. Aokiji knew that Yoriichi's perception was not limited to simple Observation Haki. His friend seemed to possess a different kind of sensing ability, one that allowed him to gauge an opponent's strength.

During the time Yoriichi and Aokiji were talking, the host had already rattled off a great deal, mainly introducing the two gladiators in the arena while also stalling for time.

As mentioned before, the colosseum was Dressrosa's largest money sink. The spectators who came here could spend money placing bets on the gladiator they favored.

The time being dragged out was mainly to give people time to place their bets.

"Hey, Kuzan, do you still have money?"

"Go bet on Kyros to win. Consider whatever you win an early repayment from me."

Yoriichi suddenly said this to Aokiji beside him. The latter smiled and shook his head, then refused with a solemn expression. "What are you thinking? Even if I'm on vacation, I'm still a Marine. How could I possibly gamble?"

Aokiji's words startled Yoriichi. This was the first time he had learned that the Marines had such a rule. He vaguely remembered that the Marines' future World Military Draft would bring in an admiral who was both an "actor" and a "gambling addict," as well as a "blind man."

"That really is a missed opportunity to make money." Yoriichi did not mind. He leaned back against his chair and leisurely ate his fruit.

Before long, the colosseum referee announced the start of the duel, and the entire arena suddenly fell silent.

After the referee announced the start, Sea Bear and Kyros did not immediately attack. Kyros gripped his sword with both hands and coldly watched his opponent. Sea Bear, meanwhile, circled around Kyros, seemingly searching for an opening and ready to strike with thunderous force at any moment.

After several seconds of deadlock, Sea Bear was the first to lose patience. He pushed off the ground with both feet and charged fiercely at Kyros. Though Sea Bear was enormous and heavy, he was not slow in the slightest. In the blink of an eye, he was right before Kyros, smashing his shield toward him in a brutal bash.

The spikes on the shield glinted coldly. Without question, if Kyros was hit, he would immediately lose his ability to fight.

Just as the shield was about to strike him, Kyros leaped up and vaulted directly over Sea Bear's head. He flipped in midair, then fiercely brought his greatsword down on the back of Sea Bear's helmet.

Clang!!!

The greatsword collided violently with the helmet, and the crisp ring of metal striking metal echoed throughout the arena.

Kyros, having completed the slash in midair, landed behind Sea Bear. Sea Bear still maintained his shield-bashing posture, but several seconds later, his massive body seemed to lose all support and crashed to the ground.

Bang!

After a thunderous crash, Sea Bear fell. Amid the referee's call and the spectators' cries, he failed to stand again. Fully armed Sea Bear had been brought down in a single strike by the poorly equipped Kyros.

That terrifying strength instantly ignited the audience's enthusiasm, and cheers flooded the arena.

"Oh! He really is impressive." Aokiji sighed. Though he said so, his tone remained calm.

Kyros was strong, but only at the level of an ordinary person.

"I like him."

"Kuzan, how about bringing this guy into the Marines?"

"I think sparring with him would definitely be more interesting than sparring with you!"

Although Kyros's strength and speed were both ordinary, neither Yoriichi nor Aokiji considered him beyond the scope of an "ordinary person."

However, Yoriichi greatly admired Kyros's swordsmanship. That kind of swordsmanship honed through battle was enough to spark Yoriichi's interest. Fighting him would certainly be fun.

(End of Chapter)