Butcher dragged Mika to the arena again the next day, but her opponent was already there when she arrived. A tall, wiry man with black hair and a spear stood on the other side of the Colosseum. 

Upon noticing Mika, he walked forward with a firm gait, confidence shining in his eyes. When he arrived in front of her, a smirk formed on his face as he stared down at her. 

"Well, don't you look adorable?" The man taunted, "The so-called mighty Sword Oni is merely a small child! I used to defeat opponents like you without breaking a sweat! Hahaha!"

Mika's expression turned cold, a mixture of anger and determination flickering in her eyes as she silently vowed to defeat the man. 

While she didn’t know him, he clearly wasn’t a good person if he could say something like that. “Hmph! I don’t need some limp dick of a man calling me cute. It’s creepy.” She ‘shivered’ in disgust. 

The man’s eyebrow twitched, and the devilish expression on his face disappeared. “I’ll make you regret saying that, kid.” He growled.

Hearing the anger in his voice, the corner of Mika’s lips curled upward into a smirk, “What? Are you mad? Wait! Don’t tell me… you actually can’t get it up!? Pfft-!” She pointed at the man, stifling a laugh while giving him a look of pity, “Sigh~ What a poor, poor man you are. Though, I suppose you can’t be considered one anymore! Hahahaha!”

The man’s eyes widened for the briefest of seconds before he comprehended what Mika had just said. Quivering in rage, the man towered over Mika, his spear threatening to pierce her neck at a moment’s notice. 

“Say that again, bitch, and see if I don’t pierce you here and now!” He roared, but Mika took no heed of his words. 

“Heh! I’d be surprised if you could even get it up.” 

It’d take a fool not to understand the double meaning behind her words, which only served to piss the man off even more. 

Now trembling, his muscles flexed as he prepared to drive his spear through her neck, nailing her to the ground. However, he heard the announcer before he could do so, so he reluctantly pulled back… For now.

“Welcome back, ladies and gentlemen, to another exciting day here at the Gladiatorial Battles! As we promised yesterday, the child warrior, the Sword Oni, Mika, will face off against her toughest opponent yet!” 

“WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!!”

The atmosphere in the coliseum became electric as the crowd erupted in a mixture of cheers and jeers, the excitement palpable as the spectators eagerly anticipated the upcoming battle.

“On the other side of the arena, we have a man who I’m sure you all know! Mark, the Newbie Crusher! For those who might not know, he has a record of 100 consecutive wins, with over half of them against newer gladiators! He’s at the 2nd Stage of the Black Core Realm and Initial-Stage Bronze Realm, and if he wins today, we will push his cultivation up another stage!” The masked person announced!

“Fuck yeah! Kill his ass, Mika! That bastard has cost me so much money!!”

“Kill her, Newbie Crusher!! We’ve seen you kill a child once; I know you can do it again!”

“OHHH! What a great fight! I’m looking forward to seeing who comes out on top!”

The audience placed their bets, with many more going toward the Newbie Crusher, and after about 5 minutes, the announcers stopped them.

“It’s now time for the legendary battle between the Newbie Crusher and the Sword Oni to begin!”

That was the signal to start, and like an experienced gladiator, Mark wasted no time trying to kill Mika. With bloodshot eyes maddened with rage, he thrust his spear at Mika’s throat, hoping to kill her right off the bat. However, Mika wasn’t an inexperienced fighter, especially in duels like this.

She didn’t swing her sword; she moved her body slightly so that the spearhead missed her neck by a centimeter.

“What?!” Mark cried out, surprised that Mika dodged his attack, and so effortlessly at that. Quickly regaining his composure, he pulled his spear back and thrust again, this time aiming for her chest. 

“HAAA!” He roared as he put all of his strength into his spear. 

Still, Mika stood there, relaxed, as if this was just an average day. She side-stepped the attack, then glanced at Mark with a bored look. 

This only enraged the man further as he redoubled his efforts to kill her. Thrusting, slashing, and swinging, he tried his very best to take down his opponent, but nothing seemed to work. He couldn’t even touch Mika, much less kill her!

Now overtaken by rage, Mark seemed to have lost his mind. Never in his life has he been so humiliated. Not only did she insult his manhood in front of thousands of people, but by dodging his attacks with a lazy expression, she was making fun of his skills as well. Skills that he developed in this very arena!

“WHY?!”

He bellowed as he thrust, but Mika easily sidestepped it.

“WON’T!!”

He took another step, slashing his spear at her stomach, but she stepped back by half a foot.

“YOU!!”

He gathered mana around his spear and swung it, hoping to catch her off guard, but other than the mild surprise on her face, Mika reacted as she usually did.

“DIEEE?!?!”

Mark roared as he jumped up in the air, his spear above his head, before descending onto Mika, trying to split her in half!

*BOOM!*

A mini explosion happened, causing dust and dirt to fly in the air, hiding Mika and Mark from the audience.

The people watching sat at the edge of their seats with their buts clenched as they waited in suspense to see who came out on top.

 *SHING!*

Suddenly, they heard the sound of s blade cutting through the air, followed by-

*PUCHI!*

“Ugh!

-the sound of Mark’s grunts. 

The audience’s eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets as they collapsed into their seats, each for different reasons. Some were ecstatic that they had bet on Mika, while others cursed Mark for being so incompetent!

Soon, the dust cleared, revealing a young, fiery red-haired girl standing over a thin, black-haired man with a deep gash in his stomach, His guts were spilling out, and his face grew paler by the second. No doubt, he wouldn’t last much longer.

‘Fuck! Looks like I’m finished!’ Mark thought, staring up at Mika hatefully, ‘But before I go, I’m gonna take you out with me!!’

“HIYAAAAA!!”

With one last burst of energy, Mark shot out with surprising force, hoping to catch Mika off-guard. Unfortunately, he’d never get the chance as Mika had pushed his spear out of the way and swung her sword, decapitating him!

 *SHING!*

*Splat!*

Before he drifted into eternal slumber, he heard Mika’s youthful yet indifferent voice, making him feel endless shame, even in death.

“You lived as an impotent. You fought impotently. And now, you die here like a dog. How pathetic.”

“...”

A heavy silence descended on the coliseum. This situation was too… strange. Normally, the people watching wouldn’t care who lived or died, only about their money. But seeing a little girl behead a person without hesitation or remorse stirred something in them. 

One of the emotions that prevailed during the event was fear, which gripped not only the audience but also the members of the Black Mask Guild. What scared them wasn’t the current Mika; she was too small and weak. What frightened them was the kind of monster she would turn into in 10-15 years. 

As a young and impressionable girl, Mika's experiences in the coliseum could profoundly shape her personality and values in ways they couldn’t predict. If she grew up in this kind of environment, she might have no morals if she ever gets out!

The other emotions were interest, curiosity, excitement, and amusement. Seeing such a young yet strong warrior was fascinating for these people who lived such mundane lives!

A few seconds passed by as the crowd regained their bearings before they went wild! 

“WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!”

“MIKA! MIKA! MIKA! MIKA!!”

“SWORD ONI!!”

Regardless of whether they lost money, the people cheered for her. Even when someone from the Black Mask Guild came down and dragged her away, they didn’t stop. The people knew; they knew this was the dawn of a genius. 

Nobody knew whether said genius would rise or fall, but it filled them with interest and excitement nonetheless.

***

Weeks passed after that fateful day when Mika killed Mark. Her name has spread far and wide across those connected to the Black Market. However, instead of people just being interested in her ability to kill people and beasts without hesitation, now they’ve begun to realize how exceptional her sword skills are. 

Her sword skills were like a work of art, and people couldn’t get enough of them, especially those training to become swordsmen. Watching her fight, even if it was only for a few minutes, was worth more than any mentor in the Kingdom could offer. 

Hell, in terms of skills alone, she might be the best, or at least she wasn’t too far from it. Still, what set her apart from the others was that she was free and easily accessible! 

Once news of this spread, the Black Market saw an exponential rise in profits as Mika continued to blaze through her competitors, waiting for a chance to break out. 

Inside Darlin, the city where the Black Market Mika is trapped, people were discussing her latest battle. 

“Did you guys see the Sword Oni’s earlier battle? She took down a Stage 5 Black Core Realm leopard!” A man outside of a large building told his friends. 

“Really? That little girl is that strong? Damn! The Black Mask Guild really struck gold with her!”

“Agreed. It’s a shame that she was captured and is used as a slave for entertainment, but hey, at least she gets to live, right?”

“Sure, sure~ Whatever makes you sleep at night.”

“Anyways, have you seen that kid’s sword skills?! She’s soooo fucking good that it’s unbelievable! In all my years as a swordsman, I’ve never seen someone with such exquisite skills!”

“You serious? She’s actually that good?”

“Fuck yeah, she is! Once, I was lucky enough to witness Master Orien’s sword skills, but I can confidently say that Mika is several times above him!”

The man’s friend gaped at him, hardly believing his words, as Master Orien was the Head of the Mercenary Guild. Such a person, someone who everyone except the king feared, couldn’t even match up against a little girl?! Such a claim was almost blasphemous!

Suddenly, before they could continue talking, a small child between the ages of 8-10 ran up to the man. She had golden blonde hair, bright blue eyes, and a frilly little skirt made of some of the finest material. The last important thing to note was that she had an emblem pinned to her chest. On the symbol was a balance scale with one side full of gold coins and the other side a person; atop all of it was a crown.

“Hey, uncle! Were you serious when you said you knew of a little girl stronger than Mister Orien?” The girl asked, tugging on the man’s sleeve. 

Annoyed that someone was bothering him, he turned around to curse at the person, “Eh?! Who’s the bast-” That’s when he realized it was a little girl, and not just any little girl either. “AH! Pardon me, Young Miss Aurelia! I didn’t see you there!” The man bowed his head. 

The young girl, known as Aurelia, snorted, seeing the fake look of reverence he had on his face, “Hmph! Just answer the question, will you?” 

“Ah…um… Yes, Young Miss, it’s true I saw a young girl around your age who had better sword skills than Master Orien.” The man said politely, but deep down, feeling annoyed at the girl’s behavior.

Aurelia beamed when she heard that. She reached out and grabbed the man’s hand with shining eyes and asked, “Really?! Like, really, really?! Where is she?! Bring me to her, now!!”

The man felt both annoyed and awkward at Aurelia’s request because he couldn’t take such a little girl, an important child no less, straight into the Black Market, could he?

“Umm… I’m sorry, Young Miss… I…”

“Miss Aurelia! Don’t go walking around the streets all by yourself! It’s dangerous out here! Who knows what kind of people are lurking about?!” Before the man could finish what he was about to say, a man dressed in a butler suit appeared behind Aurelia saving the day, but for some reason, he seemed to be insinuating something to the group of men.

‘What? What did we do? It was the little girl who ran up to us!’ They thought but didn’t dare to say it out loud.

Hearing her butler call to her, Aurelia turned around with shining eyes and exclaimed, “Butler Bernard! I think I found my new maid!”