Ancient Empire Calendar Year 1819
Ricardo was falling rapidly towards the bottom of the dark chasm.
"Am I falling or floating? I don't understand at all. What state am I in right now?"
Suddenly, Ricardo found himself on the ground.
"Ouch... huh? I'm not hurt, no wounds either."
He felt his powers and energy renewed. He took a deep breath and calmed down.
"Okay, where am I now?"
Ricardo looked around. Just then, a dazzling light burst forth.
"Ahhhhh, my eyes!"
Ricardo covered his eyes with his hands; it felt like he was burning at a thousand degrees Celsius.
"AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!"
Ricardo's pain-filled screams suddenly ceased as the pain in his eyes disappeared.
"Ahhh, what was that? Shit, who the HELL DID THAT?!"
He stood up angrily, drew his sword, hurled curses and insults. When his anger subsided, he carefully examined his surroundings.
"Is this a Colosseum?"
Ricardo found himself in the Colosseum of the Ancient Empire.
This was where war captives and slaves were forced to fight each other or dangerous animals to the death for entertainment or as a spectacle.
Curious, Ricardo asked himself, "Why am I here?"
Suddenly, human screams rose from the Colosseum above.
"They weren't there a moment ago. Did they just appear out of nowhere?"
After a while, a booming voice replaced the crowd's screams.
"HIS MAJESTY THE EMPEROR HAS GRACED US WITH HIS PRESENCE!"
Instinctively, Ricardo knew where to look.
"In the Ancient Empire, Colosseums always had a special section reserved for the Emperor and his family. There it is. Now, which Emperor is it? WHAT?"
A man so large and muscular that he would overshadow even Orsman appeared.
Upon seeing their Emperor, the people spoke in unison.
"HAIL THE VETERAN OF A HUNDRED WARS, EMPEROR VIII HARLOUMEN! LONG LIVE THE ANCIENT EMPEROR!"
Ricardo was seeing himself, and at that moment, he understood which time period he was in.
"Now I remember. This was the tournament organized by my eldest son and heir, Arjinises, in honor of my hundredth victory."
The announcer in the Colosseum amplified his voice with mana.
"PEOPLE OF THE ANCIENT EMPEROR! THE MAN YOU SEE IN THE COLOSSEUM NOW IS FEHRAM, THE SON OF V ALDEHARAM, THE LAST LORD OF THE WESTEFRAN DYNASTY, WHO DARED TO REBEL AGAINST OUR EMPEROR! AND FACING HIM IS THE EMPEROR'S LION, HUSREV!"
Ricardo looked towards one end of the Colosseum. The iron gates opened, and out came a lion, 3.5 meters long and weighing 500 kilograms, with a appearance terrifying enough to haunt nightmares.
"Holy shit!"
In his previous life, as Emperor VIII Harloumen, Ricardo had received a lion cub as a coronation gift.
This lion was to become Husrev, the largest and most dangerous lion in history.
Husrev had grown and strengthened abnormally and was abnormally loyal to Harloumen, who had raised him.
In every battle, he was by his master's side, sometimes even carrying the Emperor on his back like a horse.
The lions descended from Husrev continued to spread terror in the wild.
Seeing his old companion, Ricardo became emotional.
"Was this how we were meant to meet again, Husrev?"
Watching from the Colosseum, VIII Harloumen stood up and shouted sternly at Husrev.
"HUSREV!"
Husrev roared. The Colosseum fell silent as if frozen; everyone's hair stood on end.
"KILL HIM!"
Husrev charged furiously towards Ricardo.
Ricardo avoided the first attack by leaping to the left.
"This is no joke. I remember this day."
In his previous life, to save his crumbling Empire, Ricardo had fought in over a hundred wars over fifty years.
He had committed many massacres, burned cities, and wiped out Dynasties.
His hundredth war was against the Westefran Dynasty.
The Westefran Dynasty, a mixed Dynasty partly from the Central and partly from the Southern regions, was just one of hundreds of Dynasties that rebelled during the decline of the Ancient Empire.
Emperor VIII Harloumen suppressed this Dynasty's rebellion with blood, slaughtering its people and every member of the Dynasty, taking only one person captive: the Dynasty Heir, Fehram.
"In the original timeline, when I fed Fehram to my lion, I turned him into a meal with his own body. I don't know how this happened, but I can't use my mana or Aura. This is serious."
Husrev continued to attack Ricardo angrily. His massive frame leaped from side to side, swinging his sharp claws to shred Ricardo.
"I need to find an opening. I raised him. Remember Husrev's weakest point."
Ricardo opened his eyes wide, scanned Husrev's body, and found his weak point.
"The exact center of his paw pad. The softest and weakest spot."
Ricardo lunged forward. Seeing his prey running towards him, Husrev leaped forward, aiming his claws. With a single move of his sword, Ricardo made a deep cut on Husrev's paw pad.
Husrev collapsed in pain, unable to stand up. He tried to stand on his hind legs but couldn't fully straighten up.
"Forgive me, old friend."
Ricardo ran towards Husrev, jumped onto his back, and with one thrust, plunged his sword into his spine, another weak point.
Husrev thrashed in his final moments amidst the blood, feeling death upon him.
Within a minute, Husrev, the greatest lion history had ever seen, was dead.
In the original history, Husrev had torn Fehram to pieces in the Colosseum and devoured him with relish.
Years later, in the battle where VIII Harloumen was killed, Husrev was beheaded by Frank II.
"I killed the lion I raised and loved like my own child with my own hands. Truly, people pay for their sins."
A white light flashed. Ricardo's eyes burned in flames once more. The light vanished, and he opened his eyes in a new location.