48 Hours a Day

The two gladiators woke up when Zhang Heng and Varo went for a bath. They were no longer in the room when Zhang Heng returned. When the sky finally turned dark, they returned to the room with their hands on each other’s shoulders and a strong smell of alcohol on them.

It was understandable that they would go all out and enjoy themselves on this day. Although the gladiator school promised gladiator slaves like Sethnets and Garba their freedom back, the vast majority of the slaves would die fighting in the arena before they could regain their freedom.

Although the death rate of current gladiators had dropped significantly compared to gladiators from BC, the average survival age of twenty-five still posed many problems. If they chose not to enjoy themselves while they were able to do so, it was likely that they would not be able to do it in the future. Not to mention that they were only allowed to go all out to enjoy themselves on this day.

After a while, Varo also came back from the training ground. Upon a brief chat with Zhang Heng, he went to bed.

…

Late at night, the entire Roman city became really quiet except for the Domus and temples that had their oil lamps lighted. Most of the places were plunged into darkness.

Zhang Heng then closed his eyes and soon fell asleep until someone pushed his body. When he opened his eyes, he saw the old Persian trainer standing in front of his bed, signaling him to leave the room. The old man walked out of the room first. Zhang Heng immediately put on his sandals, followed the old trainer from behind, passed the three people who were still sleeping soundly, and came to the courtyard.

At least for now, Zhang Heng knew that the old trainer did not lie to him.

Having endured quite a few quests so far, many of them were extremely dangerous. This forced him to develop the habit of staying alert when he slept. Usually, when someone or something moved, he would quickly wake up from his sleep. However, he was sleeping in a room where everyone was snoring. It meant that this habit would not be as effective as before. Still, Zhang Heng felt that it posed many problems when he failed to hear the old trainer’s footsteps.

If the other party had a murderous intent towards him, his head wouldn’t have been attached to his body anymore.

So… was this how an assassin fought?

Zhang Heng saw the old trainer walking towards the small training ground in front of him, quickly following him. However, when he entered the training ground, the old trainer was gone.

The place wasn’t as lively as it was in the daytime. It was so quiet that one could hear a pin dropped on the ground. But soon, Zhang Heng was alerted, and he could feel that someone would attack him from his back. The person’s movements were very light; the air currents created by the person when he moved almost non-existent.

However, Zhang Heng’s rich combat experience had come in handy this time. He twisted his body and dodged the blow at the last moment. Other than that, he also had a clear view that the person was attacking him with a small wooden dagger.

The old trainer was a little surprised when he saw Zhang Heng dodging the attack.

By coming to Zhang Heng’s bed without him realizing it and disappearing without a trace, he intended to let Zhang Heng feel the power of the assassins. However, the ending was not what he expected. He knew that Zhang Heng concealed his strength during the final assessment, but he did not expect the latter to be that powerful.

Besides, he had gotten older. His skill has indeed deteriorated as compared to his younger self.

Time was the greatest enemy a human would face; impossible to defy. Whether it was an assassin or a gladiator, it was only logical that the person’s physical fitness would deteriorate as the person aged. As someone who partnered up with death all year round, he could clearly feel that his body was failing him and could no longer do what he did last time.

Zhang Heng, on the other side, had already moved away from the old trainer. He looked around and was trying to find a weapon. Unexpectedly, the old trainer gave up the attack the next moment, turned, and ran towards the training ground.

Zhang Heng did not go after him immediately. Instead, he went to the room where the weapons were stored. He could also see that the old trainer had no malicious intent towards him, so he only took a wooden training sword.

As soon as he stepped out of the room, a dagger was struck at his throat.

“Pay attention to the spots that can block your line of sight. These are the best places for assassins to attack,” whispered the old trainer.

But this time, Zhang Heng was prepared, and he was able to stop the dagger with the wooden sword in his hand.

To be fair, the old trainer’s attacks were still very effective. This one was faster than his previous attack. The angle was more unpredictable, and it was stealthy. But unfortunately, his opponent was Zhang Heng, whose swordsmanship had reached Lv 4. Once he had a sword in his hand, even the best assassin in the world could hardly break his defense.

The old trainer was still using the hit and run strategy. He had no intention to stay and fight after he landed a strike on Zhang Heng. This time he jumped directly onto a wall that not far away from him. And Zhang Heng quickly followed closely behind him. They went over the wall to enter the courtyard. In that short time, the old trainer disappeared from his eyes again.

Zhang Heng soon thought of something. He raised the wooden sword in his hand and blocked an attack that came from the sky.

“Your eyes can deceive you. Learn to observe your opponent’s attack pattern.”

The old trainer looked like he just came out of Zhang Heng’s shadow. It was terrifying and stealthy. He then stopped Zhang Heng from continuing to attack him and lean on the dirt wall beside him, “Wait, let me catch my breath first.”

Zhang Heng then put away the training sword.

The old trainer rested for a while and managed to regain his strength, but he did not intend to continue the battle. He waved his hand with joy and said, “No more fights. Let’s end it here.”

“Okay.” Zhang Heng wished that the battle would last a little longer. Although the old trainer showed only three moves, they were something that Zhang Heng had never seen before. It did broaden his view of this world and he could gain something from it.

Since Dadatis had already surrendered, it would not be nice for Zhang Heng to continue to attack and bully him.

“Actually, an excellent assassin would not attack the same target more than three times. If he fails to kill the target in three strikes, it means that Kreis does not want to take the target’s life. As an assassin, no matter how good the reward is, he would allow his target to live.”

The old trainer paused and continued, “I have to admit that I have underestimated you. Even if I’m still my young-self, I’m not completely sure that I’m good enough to kill you in the three sneak attacks just now. However, it is too early for you to feel happy about it. The top-class assassins will have more than one way to eliminate their targets.”

Zhang Heng did not say a word after he heard what Dadatis told him. It seemed like he was disappointed by himself. According to the original plan, he should quietly use the wooden dagger to stab Zhang Heng’s heart. After that, he would use his deep voice to tell Zhang Heng that he was dead. If his plan worked, it would be more convincing for him to say to Zhang Heng his glorious past.