The Ashen Dominion
Chapter 81 - Own Organization

Chapter 81: 81 - Own Organization

"..."

Kaiser stood silently above Edmar, chest rising and falling, blood still dripping from the wound in his abdomen. The greatsword in his hand trembled slightly—not from fear, but exhaustion. His legs felt heavy. His vision, hazy. But he endured.

Down below him—Edmar lay on the ground, unmoving.

For a few long seconds, there was no sound but the faint breeze brushing across the coliseum.

Then—

"Kek...!"

Edmar coughed out a thick wad of blood! His eyes snapped open, red from strain. His entire body screamed at him as he tried to move!

He saw Kaiser towering over him like a statue. The same boy he mocked earlier. The same one he nearly beat.

"URGH...!"

With a grunt, Edmar tried to sit up.

Crack—!

But pain surged through his spine! It felt like shards of bone were digging into his flesh from inside, each movement sending a fresh wave of agony through his body!

His breath hitched.

Thud—

Then he involuntarily collapsed back down, his head hitting the sand with a dull thump. Grit stuck to the blood around his jaw.

"...Fuck...!"

Edmar clenched his teeth and spat out a curse. His voice was hoarse, rough with rage and disbelief.

He had been winning the fight earlier. Even with his cracked arm—he was faster. He was sharper.

Edmar made Kaiser bleed all over that arena, cut him dozens of times.

Meanwhile... Three hits. That’s all Kaiser managed. And none of them were clean hits as he was still able to block them even filmsy.

But the last one?

The one that shattered his back and sent him down?

That one ended everything.

It didn’t feel fair for Edmar.

But fairness didn’t exist in gladiator matches. Everyone knew that.

This is what it meant to fight.

One bad move. One wrong position. One unlucky moment.

Even the better fighter can fall.

Training gave them strength. But it didn’t give them invincibility.

And now—

Edmar was the one lying in the dirt. Beaten.

He was done in by a lucky attack from Kaiser.

’THIS IS SOME BULLSHIT!!’

Edmar screamed internally, his teeth grinding, his fingers twitching from sheer frustration. He can’t even clench his sword tightly.

"...!"

He glared up at Kaiser, the veins in his neck straining.

Then he opened his mouth again.

"Ki...ll me...!"

His words were strained, bitter, broken.

If he couldn’t rise again... if his back would never heal... if all he would be remembered as was the rising star who fell to a brat—

He’d rather die here, in the arena.

That was the pride of a gladiator.

The crowd had gone quiet. Watching. Waiting. Wondering if this would be the end.

But Kaiser... he wasn’t really paying attention to what Edmar was saying anymore.

His legs were shaking slightly.

His vision was blurry too.

The edges of the world pulsed in and out like a dying candle flame. He could barely hear anything clearly. Just muffled sounds. Distant cheers. And his own ragged breathing.

He was dizzy. Barely holding on.

He already lost too much blood.

Still, he opened his mouth—

"You’re strong... Stronger than me."

His voice was low, barely above a whisper, but somehow it carried through the silence.

A slight frown appeared on Edmar’s face after hearing that, confusion flickering in his eyes.

’What the hell is he talking about...? Of course, that’s obvious.’

But Kaiser didn’t seem to notice—or care.

He just kept speaking.

"You’ll definitely be useful for me in the future."

That sentence made Edmar blink.

’What?’

FWISH—

Kaiser raised his greatsword into the air, the blood-soaked metal glinting faintly under the sun.

(The bloods on it were mostly Kaiser’s :v)

And then—

"I will make my own organization in the Silver Rank."

Kaiser declared that! His voice was firm!

"Come find me... if you’re interested."

"?!"

Edmar’s eyes widened in shock, but before he could even react—

BOOM!!!

"GGAHH—!!"

C R A C K!

Kaiser brought the flat side of his greatsword crashing down onto Edmar’s forehead like a hammer!

A meaty thud echoed across the coliseum!

THUNK—!

Blood trickled from the point of impact, and a huge bump instantly swelled on Edmar’s forehead.

The blow would’ve killed any ordinary person!

But people here in this world—or at least the gladiators—were built different.

They’re stupidly durable.

Kaiser had learned that much after already spending a while here. One of the many absurd things about this world.

Anyway, with that—

"..."

Edmar’s head tilted slightly to the side.

His eyes rolled back while his mouth hung open, bleeding.

And just like that—

He blacked out.

Unconscious... But not dead.

Swoooosh~

Silence swept through the coliseum like a wave.

Time stood still.

But just then, like a thunderclap cracking open the sky—

"LOOKS LIKE WE ALREADY HAVE A WINNER—AND BELIEVE IT OR NOT—IT’S KAIIIIIISEEEEEER!!!"

The announcer’s voice exploded across the arena with all the force of a celebration.

And following him, crowd erupted.

"KAISER!!!"

"THAT WAS INSANE—!!"

"HE WON!! HE ACTUALLY WON!!!"

"GAH?! I LOST MY BET!!!"

"THE WAY IT ENDED SUCKS!!! WHAT THE FUCK?!!"

Their roars echoed throughout the stone walls, wild and electrified.

But Kaiser...

He just stood there.

Bleeding.

Breathing.

Still gripping his sword like he might fall over without it.

His body was screaming at him to rest.

And finally—

He smiled faintly.

"...I need to sit down."

He muttered.

And so with that, Kaiser started walking back to the waiting room.

His steps were heavy.

Slower than usual.

But still, he forced himself to walk as straight as he could.

Each breath burned in his chest. Each step sent dull pain through his legs. He pressed his empty left hand over his stomach, trying to stop the bleeding, fingers clutching the wound tightly. Warm blood seeped through his fingers, but he didn’t flinch.

His face was tense—brows furrowed—but he didn’t make a sound.

Not even a grunt.

’I think I broke a few bones too... ugh.’

He clenched his teeth.

’I got lucky I won this fight.’

He added.

But even as he thought that, he knew better.

It wasn’t just luck.

It was the result of all the hell he put himself through. The brutal hours of training. The sparring matches with Viktor—over and over, every day, even when he was too tired to move. After learning that Edmar was a dual wielder, he’d started sparring seriously against Viktor with heavier gear.

And Viktor wasn’t weak.

In fact... Viktor might be on the same level as Edmar.

That was what gave Kaiser the edge.

He was used to the pressure. The relentless speed. The chaos of fighting someone that didn’t give you a moment to breathe. All those training sessions, all those bruises—they prepared him for today.

Add to that the insane amount of physical conditioning he pushed himself through—

Strength drills. Endurance runs. Sparring with weights.

He’d trained his body to take a hit, to absorb pain, to keep going.

That’s why he won.

Not because he was the most skilled.

But because he was prepared to bleed for the win—and still keep going.

Though, even with that—

"I need to train more."

Kaiser wasn’t satisfied.

Anyway... His vision blurred slightly, but the hallway was already in front of him now.

He was almost there.

Just a few more steps...

But then, just as he reached the door; he saw someone standing in front of it.

"Heh..."

A tired smile formed on Kaiser’s face.

"Congrats."

Viktor said, arms crossed, a slight smirk playing on his lips.

"Thanks."

Kaiser replied, his voice low, barely above a whisper.

And right after saying that— His knees buckled!

He felt his strength leave him all at once. His body gave in.

But before he even could collapse—

Tap—

Fwip~

Viktor moved quickly and caught him.

"I’ll bring you to the healing room. Rest up."

He said, his voice steady, calm.

Kaiser didn’t argue with him.

"...Thanks..."

He simply muttered weakly.

And with that... He lost consciousness.

"Oof...!"

Viktor adjusted his grip, supporting Kaiser carefully om his shoulder.

Behind him, the announcer’s voice thundered one last time... He was closing the event.

The crowd roared, chanting and cheering like wild animals. But Viktor didn’t even glance back.

He stepped into the waiting room without wasting any second.

And the moment he did—

"KAISER!!"

Rose, Jenna, and Jhamillah rushed toward them, panic in their eyes.

They were about to speak, but before a single word could leave their mouths—

"Find something that can be used to stop his bleeding. It might get bad if he loses more blood."

Viktor instructed that firmly.

Without hesitation—

"Got it!"

Rose replied quickly, then the three of them scattered and began searching the room for extra cloth or anything remotely useful.

In the meantime—

Viktor gently laid Kaiser down on the nearby bench. Then, without beating around the bush—

RIIIIIP—!

He grabbed Kaiser’s torn shirt and ripped it further into strips. Carefully, he pressed it against the stab wound and began wrapping it around his torso.

Blood still seeped through, but it was slower now.

Manageable... for the moment.