The Great Phalanx

With most of his errands taken care of, Master had some time on his hands. After a brief deliberation, he set off toward the arena.

He figured he might as well register for the Ocelot Colosseum while he was at it.

The destination was in a prominent location and easy to find.

As they walked toward the arena, Spartian warriors could be seen rushing past in a hurry.

"Those are… All right, let's go."

"Um, where to?"

Azu asked, confused by Master's sudden flash of inspiration upon seeing the warriors.

Even she couldn't keep up with his thought process when it came out of nowhere like that.

"Something good to see. Follow me."

"Hey, at least explain a little more!"

"Just come on, come on."

With that, Master headed for a stairway leading up the surrounding wall.

Without understanding why, Azu and the others followed.

Azu wondered if they were allowed to just climb up like this, but there were other people already waiting atop the wall besides Master.

They didn't look like Spartians, so they were probably here for the same reason as Master.

As long as they didn't get too close to the warriors stationed on the wall, it seemed to be fine.

The gates opened, and roughly fifty Spartian warriors marched out and formed ranks.

From above, the formation was striking: perfectly even spacing, tightly packed, and yet every single one of them moved in such unison that they never collided.

The warriors in front raised their shields forward while those behind raised theirs overhead.

Spears extended through the gaps.

This was Spartia's signature formation: the phalanx.

The unit moved with such fluid precision that, to the onlookers, the entire group seemed like a single living organism.

Then, from the opposite direction, something came charging toward Spartia amid a cloud of dust.

The Spartian warriors had formed their phalanx to meet this threat.

It was a horde of Goblins.

Goblin Riders mounted on wolves led the charge, followed by a mass of Goblins bearing down on Spartia.

"What in the… look at those numbers…"

Alexia couldn't help but blurt it out.

The Goblin swarm easily exceeded a hundred.

Normally, a pack of Goblins numbered a handful at most. You might find ten in a nest, but a gathering this large was unheard of.

"It's because of the Demon Den. That place just endlessly spawns monsters."

Elza answered Alexia's murmur.

The Demon Den. A hole in the world. An ocean of monsters that birthed them without end.

No one had ever seen inside it. It had simply always been there.

Spartia's very existence as a nation, its policy of universal conscription, all of it was because of the Demon Den.

The Goblin Riders closed in on the phalanx.

They whirled stone-loaded slings overhead, building momentum before hurling them at the formation.

Goblins were exceptionally cunning. Individually weak, they compensated by using tools the way humans did.

Behind the Goblin Riders, Goblin Archers nocked arrows and drew their bows.

Goblin bows were small, but at close range they packed enough punch.

The Spartian phalanx didn't budge.

The seamlessly overlapping shields deflected every stone and blocked every arrow.

The only damage was arrows embedded in shields. An extraordinarily solid defense.

Then the Goblins pushed three Mages to the front.

The Goblin Mages began chanting spells, preparing to launch them at the phalanx.

"Throw javelins!"

At the commander's shout, the phalanx opened just slightly, revealing three warriors with javelins cocked back.

With no running start, launched by nothing but torque and raw muscle, the javelins cleanly crushed the Goblin Mages' heads.

"Charge!"

The Spartian warriors lowered their shields in unison, widened their formation, and drew their swords.

The judgment was clear: the Goblin threat had been neutralized.

They slashed the arrows from their shields with their blades.

And then the warriors surged into the Goblins.

What was truly impressive was that even on the offensive, they maintained their cohesion.

If anyone pushed too far ahead, the surrounding warriors would advance to cover and prevent any gaps from forming.

This wasn't just the commander's skill; it was only possible because every single warrior was trained to an exceptional degree.

The hundred-plus Goblins drew their swords and fought back, but it was hopeless. The gap in individual combat ability was simply too vast.

A Goblin that swung its sword at a Spartian warrior was smashed, weapon and all, by a shield bash.

The same warrior then cut down the next Goblin that flinched at the sight in a single stroke.

It was a one-sided battle. A handful of Goblins tried to flee, but javelin throws cut them down. The Goblins were annihilated.

The battle hadn't lasted long before the Spartian warriors had finished exterminating every last monster.

The gates opened again, and several men pushed carts out toward the warriors. They collected any usable equipment and items from the Goblins, then piled the corpses in one spot.

They doused them in oil and set them ablaze.

This was to prevent plague and to keep other monsters from being drawn by the blood. A monster that fed on another monster's carcass would not only breed, but grow stronger.

Humans weren't the only ones who benefited from the spoils of monster hunting.

The Spartian warriors then wiped the blood from themselves and returned to the city.

Fifty warriors, victorious without losing a single one.

More than sheer strength, it was their exceptional training and impenetrable defense.

"That was amazing!"

"I know!"

Master and Azu gushed over the Spartian warriors' overwhelming display of combat.

Alexia shrugged at the sight of them.

"I didn't expect them to be this good… Also, Azu, this isn't the time to be excited. Those warriors will be competing in the Colosseum too, you know."

The moment Azu heard that, she froze.

"Oh right… What do I do? I don't feel like I can win at all."

The Spartian warrior they'd met on the road, Darz, had clearly been in a league of his own. She hadn't spotted anyone quite at his level in that battle, but even so, every single one of them was absurdly formidable.

Azu shuddered, remembering the Goblin that had been pulverized by a shield.

Master clapped Azu on the back.

"It's a memento. A memento. Clear the preliminaries and we'll make back the entry fee, so just aim for that."

"Such lofty ambitions… Well, I certainly can't picture winning after watching that."

"Hehe, let's just give it our best shot."

"I'll do my best."

They descended the wall and headed for the arena once more.

Registration for the Ocelot Colosseum was complete.

He paid the entry fee for all three.

The current number of participants in the Ocelot Colosseum: one hundred and fifty.

Only twenty would advance to the main event.

They were told the Ocelot Colosseum would begin in two days, starting in the morning.