"Bach. His opponent is Rufus."
As soon as Gaby's voice fell, the newcomers were surprised. They could not help but whisper to each other.
Gaby's appearance here today was actually beyond many people's expectations. Although everyone present had passed the final assessment and became a gladiator, most gladiators would not enter the arena so soon. They still had to go through several months of training. Of course, some unlucky gladiators who were not very optimistic about their chances would be pulled out early. These people were at a high risk of death.
However, Bach was the strongest among this batch of newcomers. It was impossible for him to be given up so early.
Moreover, his opponent was Rufus, the Black Sickle Rufus.
Rufus's profession was a protector. It was considered a branch of the Net Gladiator, but it was relatively rare. His weapons included a trident and a fishing net. Other than that, he also had a metal sleeve guard and a full body armor. The sleeve guard covered his entire arm, and it could be used as a shield to block damage together with the armor. It solved the problem of the Net Gladiator's lack of protection. At the same time, the metal sleeve guard was equipped with a sickle-shaped blade. It could also be used as a weapon when necessary.
Unlike the Net Gladiator, the protector was a profession that no one wanted to encounter.
Besides, Rufus himself was one of the best protectors. Although he was not as famous as Habitus, his popularity was almost the same as Garba's. If one had to choose one of them as an opponent, as long as one was not out of their mind, they would choose Garba.
A large part of Garba's fame was related to his age and the time he spent working in the Victor Arena. On the other hand, Rufus was the one who earned the title of Black Sickle. He was twenty-six years old this year, the golden age of a gladiator. He had three years of gladiatorial experience, and he had served in the military. His body and mind were at their peak.
In contrast, Bach was just a newcomer who entered the arena for the first time.
No matter how talented he was and how much Mark Rufus valued him, it was still a little too much for him to face a tough opponent like the Black Sickle.
If Gaby had not customized a lot of targeted training for Bach, the newcomers would have thought that Bach had somehow provoked the person in charge of the gladiator school. That was why the latter would take revenge on him.
However, Bach was not afraid when he heard that. He snorted, "Black Sickle? It's his bad luck to face me."
Because Gaby had changed the opponents of the final assessment to official gladiators, there was some friction between the newcomers and the veteran gladiators. The atmosphere was not very friendly. As the representative of the newcomers, Bach naturally would not be polite at this time. Besides, Germanic was not a person who liked to be polite.
Black Sickle, on the other hand, was much calmer. He did not make any provocative moves or words, but when he heard the arrangement of the battle, his face flashed with joy. The people around him also congratulated him. In their eyes, Black Sickle was lucky this time, and his opponent was not a difficult opponent.
Although they had also heard some rumors about Bach, including how much Mark Reuss valued him and wanted him to be the successor of Sethnets, it did not change the fact that Bach was a newcomer.
If the Black Sickle could not even take down a rookie who was playing for the first time, then he would have wasted his reputation.
On the other side, Gaby completely ignored the reactions and actions of the people below him. He continued to read the arrangement.
After a series of unfamiliar names were called, two more familiar names entered the ears of the newcomers.
"Zhang Heng, Varo, Nasika, Sulpicius … A twelve-person mixed battle."
If the newcomers were surprised when they heard Bach's name, they now looked at Zhang Heng and Varo with sympathy.
The twelve-man free-for-all was one of the most popular programs in the Victor Arena.
The reason was simple. A twelve-person mixed battle was exciting and cruel.
The specific rules were simple. Twelve people would form teams of two and fight against another team. The winner would look for the next team. At the same time, two or more teams were not allowed to attack the same team. In the end, the remaining team would be the winner.
This was not only a test of combat skills, but it also required the tacit understanding of the partners. Other than that, they also needed to have enough endurance to fight.
The two teams that fought until the end would often have a lot of wounds on their bodies. It would be more exciting to fight after that.
Of course, there were also many tricks to the arrangement of a twelve-person mixed battle. For example, most gladiator schools would arrange a team with outstanding strength to attract the audience's attention. In addition, they would add a few teams that were not famous but were relatively strong to ensure the audience's enjoyment. Finally, to reduce the casualties of star gladiators and control the cost, they would also add some newcomers and ordinary gladiators into the mixed battle.
Obviously, Zhang Heng and Varro were playing the last kind of role.
Among them, it was not surprising that Varo was named. It was said that he could not last more than a few moves against Habitus. He barely passed the test with his brilliant performance at the end. It was normal for him to be thrown into the twelve-person mixed battle, and it was impossible for him to win. However, if he could perform well, perhaps the audience would not ask for him to be killed. Zhang Heng's selection surprised the newcomers.
Because Zhang Heng performed well in the final assessment, defeating the famous Garba. He was also one of the few newcomers who passed the test by defeating his opponent. Coupled with his identity as an Asian, he should be worth training. Hence, they did not know why he was also assigned to the twelve-person mixed battle.
And one of the opponents they had to face was Nasika. The latter was more famous than Rufus, and his temperament was much more brutal than Rufus. This could be seen from his nickname, "Bone Crusher." Nasika was a frequent participant in the twelve-man melee. Because of his ferocious attacks, flesh, blood, and bones splattered everywhere he went. He was quite popular with the audience, and the arena sold a lot of tickets because of him.
So when Varo heard his name, he felt a little nervous, especially when Nasika deliberately looked in their direction and made a thumbs down gesture. This often represented the signal of death in the arena.
However, Varo soon noticed Zhang Heng beside him. When he heard his name, Zhang Heng's expression did not change at all. He still looked as if nothing had happened. Thinking about how Zhang Heng managed to bring trouble to Habitus with just one day of guidance, Varo felt inexplicably relieved.
In any case, this was not the worst situation. At least compared to the others, he and Zhang Heng were more familiar with each other, and they could work together well. However, compared to the other groups, they were undoubtedly at a disadvantage. Varo wanted to find a temple and ask why his luck was so bad recently.
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