Chapter 385 Memory Shards Part 3

Chapter 385 Memory Shards Part 3

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/Drip... Drip.../

/Silence.../

"..."

Still in his cold cell, Dale remained silent as he waited for the guards to return...

"Pss... Pss! Hey, you, the lad on the cell beside me." Someone's voice echoed in the corridor, prompting Dale to open his eyes and walk to the window

"Me?"

"Who else? We're probably the last two left to be butchered in this section, everyone else already kicked the bucket for this Winter."

"..."

'Winter?... That's why its so damn cold.'

Things made a little more sense now, no wonder it was so cold, it was Winter in these lands, a fact Dale never learned.

The cell's walls were probably around 10 to 12 degrees Celsius, and he was wearing nothing else aside from a few rags, with a metal chain binding his neck tightly.

Sitting on the cold, hard stone ground didn't help either.

'If I don't die out there for a blade or an infection resulting from a wound, then I'll die here from hunger, cold, and the unsanitary conditions of this place.'

"What do you want?"

"Right to rat's head aye?... Well... I assumed you'd be like this."

"Look... Don't take it too badly but... I've heard your conversation with the guard, it was hard not to."

"..."

Dale said nothing, but it was evident he wasn't pleased with this.

"Don't be so silent! I'm not trying to get in your way. I'm not that petty... But I want to live too."

"... Truth be told, I've been here for half a year already, and all due to a mistake of mine."

"Half a year?"

"I know it sounds like a lie, anyone else would've died in the first week or two, but it's the truth."

"I've been forced to go through the cycle of victory and defeat numerous times by now, to the point this place has started to become comfortable."

"I win against 8 enemies in a row, then I'm placed against something I can't defeat, being forced to either surrender or give up my life to their nasty hands and consideration..."

"I usually don't kill my enemies, I believe that not murdering those that don't deserve it will one day pay me well... And although I can't say if everyone here is worthy of mercy, that is not something I can wholeheartedly decide."

"Besides, that has already paid off given how long I've lived... But I can't rely on luck forever, I can already tell that the spectators are growing tired of watching my struggle, there's only so many different creatures and situations I can win and lose. Sooner or later, I'll face my last opponent, and it'll likely not result in my victory."

"I didn't live my life to die a jester for an audience of bloodthirsty fools... And that's when I've heard you."

"We're in similar conditions, we can help each other here."

After a moment considering his words, Dale replied with a stoic expression, his expression cold:

"... Even if that is the case, I am confident in living through my next ordeal."

Beyond Dale's gaze, the man seemed to smile slightly before replying:

"... That does seem to be the case, you should be able to live, just like you did before... But what about after?"

"If they dragged you here once, they can do so again, and they'll do it for as long as you bring entertainment for the audience, and with it, profit."

"If you leave when they're uninterested, then there's a chance you can live a normal life, but never trust these bastards, once you get in their hands, they won't let you go so easily."

"To live longer, you need leverage, a hidden knife... I can give you mine in exchange for my freedom."

"I only need to leave this place, once I do, I'm free to go whenever I like, you can keep my things and use them however you see fit... After all, it seems like you'll need it."

"You look like someone with ambition, you won't stop beating a few alley vagabonds in subpar equipment... So? What do you think? Willing to listen?"

"... Everything you said is subjective, how will I know if I'll need anything you have to offer? And how does it compare to what you need to live?"

'He's treating me for a fool, I'm not so easy to convince.'

/CRUMBLE!/

Like a spear piercing through a block of ham, the man's hand penetrated through the wall, opening a passage to Dale's cell.

"..."

'His hand went through the stone blocks and the thin metal layer in between... Quite sturdy... He could've been lucky too since there are many gaps in the metal layer.'

'However, if he can do this... How come he's still falling?'

'He's hiding the severity of the situation... What does he really want?'

Not long after he pierced the stone wall, he pulled his hand, this time, speaking through the crumbling hole on the wall.

"Here, did you see it? This is but a basic application of the techniques I know, mastering it completely would make you unbeatable against any other warrior."

"Unbeatable? Then why are you here?"

"... Fine, stop with your irony, I understand..."

"But even if exaggerated, my argument still stands, this technique works as an entry one to multiple more, and mastering them all can, at the end of the journey, turn you into an unbeatable warrior."

"I've seen some of the Unit's Elites fighting... They're monsters... And I've been deprived of the chance to be one of them."

"How is it? Is this enough? I know many more and I can teach them to you..."

"That's not enough, what makes me believe that you won't just run away once everything's done?"

"I wouldn't do that, I may have fallen, but not that low."

"Honor means little here, not when you're stepping in shit and piss."

"... I could try and recite the training method to you, but we have little time for anything... Urg! Alright, take this..." The man said with extreme unwillingness as he passed something to Dale from the wall

An extremely small metal vial of an unknown substance.

"Treat it with the utmost care, that's a rare Drop of Salka, an extremely potent healing drug."

"A single drop can turn even the strongest of man into a beast unfazed by swords and wounds, there should be about twenty inside it. I managed to smuggle it by hiding it inside my fake pinky finger... The guards were too occupied stealing my old equipment to care about these little things." He said as he showed Dale his fake finger

"For a trainer warrior, those twenty drops would only be enough to stimulate their bodies, but for an ordinary person, it'll kill you."

"Take it in the most extreme of circumstances or when you're safe from harm, because as long as you can't harm yourself, the Salka will close up wounds."

"... Side Effects?"

"Tsk, you're more nagging than her... Taking a drop will cause severe headaches for hours and pain in the healed regions, that's all... As long as you take a single drop at a time that is."

"Do I need to voice out the rest? It doesn't get pretty."

"... No... Our time's over, they're coming." Dale said as he turned to the door

"Hm?"

/Step.../

"!..."

'He heard them coming before me?... This kid...'

/Creak!/

"Number 13... Stand before the light, it's time for your fight..." The guard said deeply as he opened the metal door to his cell

"..."

"Don't forget me, take care, I need you alive to get out of here."

Dale did not reply nor turned his head to face the man beyond the stone wall.

He didn't know how much the future would change, but he felt things were starting to get interesting.

The chance to experience things he hadn't before, the chance to bring back techniques from a completely different culture and civilization...

Yes, it seemed that, this time, he would go back home with something worthy of his time.

He stepped forward with confidence, approaching the guard with a stoic, stone cold expression.

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Notes