The Ashen Dominion

S L A S H—!

Kaiser cut off Ramon's head with a clean swing of his greatsword using his left hand.

Thud—

A dull sound was heard as Ramon's head hit the ground, followed by the slow, inevitable pooling of blood beneath it.

"..."

The whole arena gasped.

And for a second, just one— it was silent.

Everyone froze.

Then in that moment—

"Shut up, loser."

Kaiser muttered those words with a cold, unbothered expression, his voice not loud, but sharp enough to echo.

And after that—

"WHOOOOOOOOOOOOAHH—!!!"

"HE KILLED HIM!"

"THAT WAS BRUTAL HAHAHAHAHAHA!"

The spectators roared and went wild.

Some screamed in disbelief.

Others cheered like madmen.

There were even a few who stood up from their seats, throwing fists in the air, as if they themselves had landed the killing blow.

Bloodlust and adrenaline filled the air.

And finally—

"LOOKS LIKE WE ALREADY HAVE OUR WINNER, AND IT'S NONE OTHER THAN—KAIIIIISEEEER!!!"

The announcer screamed into the air, his voice trembling with excitement and it was the loudest above all, the audience going ballistic around him.

Then, after hearing his words—

Tap. Tap. Tap.

Kaiser didn't stick around.

He simply turned his back on Ramon's body and walked away from the center of the stage. Step by step, slowly making his way back to the waiting room.

His face never changed.

Cold.

Blank.

He wasn't happy. Wasn't angry. Wasn't proud.

He didn't feel anything.

He didn't care.

He's long used to this—killing. Death was something that didn't shake him anymore. If anything, it was just routine. A necessary outcome. Something bound to happen.

It's either him or his opponent. So of course he would kill the other person.

Especially if that person was part of that older, power-hungry organization.

'Ramon is with those guys who've been trying to suppress us from the start. The old dogs. The ones who want to keep us in line...'

Kaiser clenched his left hand once as he walked.

'Let them know I'm not afraid. Not of any of them. Come after us again—'

His steps didn't falter.

'—and I'll kill more of you.'

Tap.

Then he declared that in his head.

*****

Kaiser reached his destination not long...

The waiting room was quiet.

There was a single guard posted near the hallway when Kaiser walked in.

"..."

"..."

Their eyes met, but they didn't talk.

They didn't need to.

The guard simply turned around and walked ahead. And Kaiser, with calm and steady steps, followed after him.

Tap- tap- tap—

They walked in silence through the concrete hallways, up a short flight of stairs, and finally toward the exit that led back to the Silver Place where Kaiser's room was.

The sun was still up in the air. Though, the air got cooler now. Quieter.

Anyway...

Kaiser and the guard passed by a few staff along the way earlier, but none of them dared to say anything. They all looked at Kaiser the same way.

Like he was a monster.

But he didn't mind them.

After all, he already have Rai. And he's doing more than enough for his pay.

*****

Eventually... Kaiser made it back to the Silver Place, and the guard escorting him left without even saying a word.

It was calm, no sound of battle or sparring.

"Hmm?"

Kaiser looked around.

His cellmates weren't around. They were probably training, or maybe watching the event earlier from the spectating area and were just going back.

Though...

Not that Kaiser cared.

He opened the door of his room, stepped inside, and went straight toward his room. His fingers unclasped the buckles holding his vambraces tight, letting them fall onto the floor with a soft thud.

His javelins were removed next, strapped off and set aside near the corner.

Lastly, he unhooked the greatsword from his back and leaned it against the wall.

And after that—

He just let himself fall face-first into the bed.

"Haaaah..."

Kaiser sighed deeply.

Tired.

Not from the fight. No, that wasn't the hard part.

He was tired from everything else. The training. The pressure. The expectations. The building flame of his ambition.

It all added up.

And it weighed on him constantly.

Because every single day— He pushed himself.

Too much.

More than anyone else.

So it wasn't surprising that the moment he was comfortable, with no threat, no noise, no one around—his body naturally shut down.

He closed his eyes.

And just like that—

Sleep took him in only a few seconds.

...

...

*****

Later—

"Ugh...?"

By the time Kaiser opened his eyes again, the sun had already dipped beyond the horizon.

A soft glow illuminated the room from the torches outside, sneaking in through the blinds.

Kaiser blinked.

"...Tch."

He didn't say anything, but he felt mildly surprised. He didn't expect to fall asleep that long. Usually, even just 20–30 minutes was enough for him.

But this time...

He sat up on the edge of the bed and squinted forward, his eyes still adjusting.

His stomach growled.

GRRRRRRR~

"Right."

He stood up, stretched his arms overhead until his shoulders popped slightly, then rolled his neck a bit. His body still ached faintly from the last few days of pushing it beyond its limits.

But he could still move. That's what mattered.

So he stepped out of his room without hesitation.

Tap.

*****

...

...

Just outside his room, Kaiser saw them...

Viktor and Edmar.

The two were standing side by side, laughing about something.

Kaiser took a step forward—and they noticed him.

"Oh! Look who's finally awake."

"Yo, Kaiser!"

Viktor grinned, raising a hand.

"Thought you'd be snoring the whole night."

Edmar mumbled, half joking and half serious.

"..."

Kaiser didn't respond with words. He just raised one hand lazily in return, then walked over to the front gate, where the evening food rations were being handed out by a staff member. He grabbed one—rice, meat, and soup in a sturdy box—then turned back and walked toward them.

...

...

Kaiser sat down beside the two after joining Viktor and Edmar.

They all looked relaxed.

Viktor had a cup of water between his knees, while Edmar was half-leaning against the wall with his arms crossed.

"You've really improved a lot, I can tell from your last match."

Viktor said, glancing at Kaiser.

"Yeah, we watched the whole event from the spectating room. You were sharp out there. That axe guy never stood a chance."

Then Edmar added.

But Kaiser, he just ignored them and started eating first!

"Nom..."

He didn't respond.

But the two were used to that by now.

"Anyway... he was from the White Cross, wasn't he? One of the old orgs."

Viktor asked casually, biting into a small cut of meat. It was one of the largest and oldest organization in the Silver Rank.

"Yeah. I recognized the small emblem in his armor. I think it's not a coincidence he got paired against Kaiser."

Edmar explained.

"They're testing us or provoking."

Kaiser chewed silently, then finally, he opened his mouth—

"Let them."

His voice was calm. Flat. But there was a slight fire behind it.

"Let them all come. I'll take them all on anytime."

Edmar raised a brow.

"You sure about that?"

He asked.

"Nah, I'm just joking. I'll die."

Kaiser immediately responded.

(Bruh...)

Then he continued eating.

"But don't worry, no one's getting in our way. I'll make sure of that, at least."

Kaiser said, his voice was confident enough to be believed in.

So, Viktor and Edmar just shrugged and went back to eating too.

...

...

A short silence passed.

The three sat under the dim Silver Place, lights glowing faintly around the edges of the training zone. Crickets chirped nearby.

It was peaceful.

Then—

Edmar smirked.

"You know, after today, there's a chance they'll target [Ashborn] for real."

Viktor laughed.

"Yeah. I don't think they have enough more patience to just let us grow."

Kaiser didn't say anything, but he knows what the two are saying is true as well.

He was ready.

Let them come.

Kaiser just thinks they'll be a good stepping stone in getting stronger. And if he got defeated and dies—

'Then that's it for me, I guess.'

He calmly thought.

.....

Anyway, moving on, after being silent for a while—

'Hmm, I'm getting bored of this place... It's time to start executing our plan to get out of here.'

Kaiser impulsively thought of that!

He was really starting to get bored in the endless cycle here in the coliseum!

'But are we really ready...?'

Though, that question soon followed inside his head.

"..."

He stopped eating to think about it for a while.

Then, after some time...

"Haaaaa... I guess we'll have to push of again."

Kaiser muttered that to himself, deciding to wait a bit more.

'At least until the four get into the Silver Rank, and Brock, Jin, Khan joins us.'

Then he set that as his sign to start of his plan.

*****

The next day...

Kaiser woke up early, and he immediately fixed up his bed.

He only gets one day of rest, and it's already done yesterday—so no more.

He dropped to the floor.

Then he started his morning exercises with push ups!

His hands ached a bit when his palms pressed against the cold concrete floor, but he didn't care.

He just kept going.

'One... two... three...'

The quiet rhythm of his breathing filled the room.

"Haa..."

He exhaled through his nose, locked in.

He did push-ups until his arms warmed up.

Then—

Sit-ups.

Then—

Squats.

Just simple sets. Nothing fancy.

But still controlled. Still clean.

He knew how important it was to keep the habit going. Even on light days. Even when tired.

He couldn't afford to slack off.

Not now.

...

...

After thirty minutes or so, he stopped.

Kaiser was done with his morning exercise.

His body was lightly sweating, shirt sticking a bit to his back.

He rolled his neck side to side.

Pop~ Pop~

He sat back on the bed and stretched again, then leaned back with both arms behind him.

A small smirk crept up on his face.

"...Still good."

His body wasn't falling apart yet.

That was enough.

He stood up again, pulled a dry shirt from the drawer beside his table.

Then—

Knock- knock—

The door opened without waiting.

It was Viktor.

"Yo."

Viktor muttered, half-asleep, his hair still messy, shirt wrinkled.

"Oh, you're earlier than usual... I still hadn't started mine."

He said, seeing Kaiser sweating from training.

Kaiser gave him a look.

"It's a habit now."

Then he just shrugged.

Viktor scratched his cheek and yawned.

"Well... whatever. Let's eat."

Kaiser nodded once, grabbed his towel, and followed him out.