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The 5th Hall: Hall of Combat—it looked more like an arena than a hall, really.
It is spacious, open-roofed, and well-illuminated. It also seemed to be located in the middle of a coliseum. There was no audience, not even system-generated NPCs that would cheer to uplift the mood of this place.
The only people, or entities, in here were the contestants themselves and the enemy they had to face.
That enemy was already in the arena, sitting in front of a crackling bonfire with its eyes closed, one leg propped up with its elbow resting on its knee. It looked human, at the very least, but still a bit strange.
It wore dirtied white armor that's also flayed in some areas. The creature almost looked peaceful or inanimate. But the rising and falling of its chest made it clear that it was alive.
The moment the contestant steps into the arena, though, this entity opens its eyes to look at the intruder.
