I don't know how much time passed…
One by one, my senses returned. The smell of dry earth. The rough, warm texture of the ground. The dryness in my throat. And at some point, I managed to open my eyes.
Radiant light pierced straight into my retinas, blinding me for a brief moment.
There was no subway anymore.
No city.
Only sand, ashes, and a twilight sky stretching as far as the eye could see.
I was inside what looked like a coliseum—a shattered structure of black stone that reeked of gunpowder and soot.
My head was still spinning and my vision hadn't fully adjusted to the light. Using a pillar for support, I struggled to my feet.
—What the hell…?—was the first thing that came out of my mouth, as dry as the land around me—. Is this hell?
In response, a clinking sound behind me drew my attention. Slowly—almost as if my body itself were warning me of danger—I turned to look.
Barely restrained by flimsy chains stood a massive mechanical ram, clad in bronze. It thrashed its neck in fury, kicking up clouds of dust around it.
—This isn't happening, this isn't happening…
I repeated the words as I crawled away from the beast. What happened next was so fast that I could only describe it as two figures emerging as if history itself had spat them out in front of me.
The first was a colossus.
Over two meters tall, with muscles carved from marble and living steel. Draped over his shoulders was a magnificent black lion pelt covering his back, crowned by the beast's head, which masked his face.
—Let's have a little fun—growled the colossus, his voice deep—. Nothing personal, little guy, but you'd better stay down.
He flashed me a confident, masculine grin beneath the lion's fangs, while the second figure—slimmer—only glanced at me from the corner of her eye.
She was a woman clad in white armor, her expression serene. Gray eyes filled with restrained passion shone beneath black hair that barely framed her face. She wielded a sword forged of diamond, and a magnificent banner fluttered behind her back, emblazoned with the fleur-de-lis.
—Listen, kid. Hide in the stands and don't make a sound—she said firmly.
What the hell was happening?That was the only thought echoing in my mind.
My heart was pounding out of my chest, my head spinning, my legs shaking like noodles. Even if I wanted to, I couldn't follow the young woman's instructions.
How was it possible that two figures so impressive—like they had stepped straight out of a manga or a video game—were standing so heroically in front of me? And why?
The entire coliseum felt like an epic nightmare, and I… I stuck out like a cameraman who had wandered onto the set in the middle of filming.
—This is a damn mistake—I muttered, wishing I could disappear.
Then, right in front of us, three new figures burst forth violently, immediately charging at my supposed guardians.
The first was a gladiator, armed with a trident, who lunged straight at the colossus.
Behind him came a woman with hair as red as fire, driving a bronze chariot pulled by spectral creatures that could only be described as giant hares.
And finally, a man mounted on a warhorse, lance in hand and a beard so thick it nearly covered his entire face. He took flight and charged at the man with the lion's mane—who stopped the horse dead with a single hand.
Panic forced strength out of me from somewhere I didn't know I had. I ran to the crumbling stands, throwing myself between the ruins to hide.
Around me, everything was chaos—war cries mixed with the metallic thunder of the ram struggling to break free from its chains.
—This has to be a dream…—I repeated like a mantra, gasping for air and praying the savage beast wouldn't escape—. I fell asleep… yeah, I must've fallen asleep on the train home… right?
Peeking my head just over one of the steps, I watched the spectacle with a mix of horror and fascination.
The colossus didn't seem bothered by the combined assault of the gladiator and the knight. With his right hand, he blocked the knight's lance. With his left, he deflected the gladiator's trident.
The woman with the banner held her ground as the red-haired warrior circled her in the chariot. Then, in one fluid motion, the young woman drove the banner into the ground, unleashing a wave of light that flipped the chariot, causing the spectral hares to vanish and sending the warrior crashing onto the earth.
The colossus finally grabbed the mounted knight's horse by the chest and hurled it toward the stands…
Straight at me.
By sheer luck, the rider was crushed beneath his own mount just a few steps away from where I stood.
—Sorry, kid!—the colossus shouted, still holding onto the gladiator.
Pure terror took over. With a muffled scream, I kicked the fallen rider, using the momentum to scramble away as fast as I could—just as a second impact echoed behind me.
The gladiator fared no better than the knight, flung like a rag doll by the laughing colossus.
The angelic woman reappeared, carrying the red-haired warrior. With a powerful strike of her sword's pommel to the back of the woman's neck, a radiant message appeared in the center of the coliseum:
[GREAT VICTORY / WHITE TEAM: Reward 20k CN]
Below it, on a smaller screen, the combatants were listed:
[White Team: Heracles MVP | Jeanne d'Arc | Mr. Nobody]
—Well, look at that—Heracles growled, shrugging—. Mr. Nobody scored a takedown.
—Me? Mr. Nobody…?
It took me a second to understand. By some twisted stroke of luck, the kick I'd given the poor rider in the stands had knocked him unconscious—counting as my participation.
Jeanne sighed and gave a slight nod.
For a moment, I simply stared at the man who kindly extended his hand to help me up, bathed in twilight light.
For the first time in my life, I felt completely useless… and at the same time, strangely victorious.
I tried to accept the colossus's kindness—but before I could reach him, the entire coliseum dissolved into particles of light, my companions included.
In an instant, I was floating in an empty space, surrounded by ashes and glowing lights.
My head spun as I tried to process what had just happened, and only one phrase escaped my trembling lips:
—This…! This can't be real!