Chapter 1902: Test Match: Part-2

Beta took Lackey to the registration area, where he submitted his Origin Card for verification and registration. After the system confirmed his identity, a mechanical attendant turned toward Beta.

“Since he is a slave under your ownership, I require your Purchased ID, Madam.” The robot said as it extended its mechanical hand toward her.

Beta nodded and presented the Purchased ID without saying a word.

The robot processed the identification data, its artificial eyes briefly flickering as it completed the verification.

“Please read the Rules of the Test Match and the Terms and Conditions carefully before signing.”

A holographic document appeared before Lackey, several translucent pages hovering in the air as lines of text slowly scrolled across them.

Lackey looked through the terms and conditions. Most of them concerned the same things: once the match began, participants could not leave the arena, the match would continue until its conclusion, and the organizers would bear no responsibility for injuries or death suffered during the test.

Just as he continued reading, his ears suddenly twitched.

Something moved behind him.

Lackey immediately turned around and caught a metallic hand that was about to slap Beta’s butt.

His expression remained strangely calm as he stared at the hand he had stopped.

“Oh? That’s something else?”

A haughty voice echoed through the Registration Avenue.

Beta glanced back and saw the Delta Governor standing behind her, his raised hand still suspended in the air. The visor covering his face glowed faintly as she turned toward him, and even without seeing his expression, the arrogance in his posture was unmistakable.

A huge ‘1’ was etched across the man’s chest.

Delta Governor, of course.

Lackey had not expected him to be here.

‘If he is here, then…’

Lackey glanced beyond the Delta Governor and noticed several other people wearing mech-suits standing behind him. Their presence alone made the registration avenue feel noticeably heavier, yet there was no mech-suit bearing the number ‘2’ on its shoulder.

“How dare you lay a hand on me!”

The words had barely left his mouth when the air itself seemed to explode.

BOP!!!

A violent wave of compressed air struck Lackey’s body and sent him flying backwards.

Thud!

His body crashed onto the ground and rolled several times across the polished floor before finally coming to a stop like a ragged doll thrown aside without care.

Beta’s eyes widened.

“GO—!”

She immediately covered her mouth, realising she had nearly revealed something she was not supposed to.

Without wasting another second, she hurried toward Lackey and knelt beside him. Her voice became noticeably softer as she helped him sit upright.

“Are you alright? Did you get hurt?”

Lackey groaned quietly as he placed a hand against his chest. A dull ache lingered beneath the impact.

“I… I am fine,” Lackey said, slowly steadying himself.

Beta clenched her fist at her side. Her visor suddenly brightened with an intense glow as she turned toward the Delta Governor, her restrained anger becoming impossible to hide.

“Iron Marshal, what exactly do you think you’re doing? How dare you lay a hand on my subordinate?”

The Iron Marshal merely shrugged, seemingly unimpressed by her anger. He tilted his head slightly as he looked down at Lackey.

“You should learn to control your toy, Beta. How dare he touch me?”

His voice carried a quiet arrogance as he straightened his posture.

“I am the Iron Marshal. Someone of my position does not tolerate being touched by a lowly life like him. Tsk, tsk… If anything, you should be responsible and grovel before me for your subordinate’s mistake”

Beta’s fingers tightened into a fist, her anger barely contained beneath the mechanical armour.

She gritted her teeth.

Iron Marshal smirked. “Since I have a big heart, I will let this slide for once… Ahahah!”

He laughed audibly, his voice carrying through the registration area as he walked closer.

He stopped in front of Lackey and looked directly at him. Lackey’s face remained hidden behind the rabbit mask, revealing nothing of his expression.

“I remember this guy… Right. The ugly one who didn’t sell at the auction. I didn’t know you had this kind of fetish, Beta. Haha…”

Beta’s expression turned cold. The metallic tendrils around her slowly began to rise.

Iron Marshal blinked and glanced at the rising tendrils.

“Oh? You want to fight with me?”

Beta stared blankly at him, her tendrils continuing to hover behind her like poised serpents.

Just then, Lackey quietly placed a hand on her shoulder.

Beta clenched her fist before slowly lowering her tendrils. She took a breath and forced herself to calm down.

Lackey stood up and dusted off his clothes before walking back toward the registration terminal. Without saying anything, he signed the document and then turned toward Governor Beta, bowing his head like an obedient subordinate.

Governor Beta sighed softly before walking past the Iron Marshal.

Lackey followed her quietly. However, just as he passed the Iron Marshal, a dangerous glint flashed through his eyes, and the corner of his lips curled upward slightly beneath the rabbit mask.

Iron Marshal stared at Beta’s back before speaking.

“Don’t forget, you cannot keep running from me forever. One day… you will be mine.”

He then turned toward his people, his expression becoming cold.

“I want you to cut him apart piece by piece. Slowly. Got it?”

“Understood, Iron Marshal!”

Everyone saluted at the same time before following him toward the registration area to register themselves.

Meanwhile, Beta and Lackey walked through the corridor in silence.

Neither of them said a word for several moments until Beta finally broke the silence.

“Why didn’t you dodge it?”

“Huh?”

Lackey looked at her in surprise.

Beta quietly asked, “I saw that you noticed his attack, but you deliberately let him hit you… Why?”

Lackey remained silent for a moment before suddenly speaking in the tone of a news reporter.

“A nobody dodged a Governor’s attack? Who the fuck does he think he is?”

He immediately returned to his normal tone.

“Do you want that story spreading around?”

Beta blinked before awkwardly nodding her head.

Lackey continued, “And besides, if I had dodged his attack, he would have either started taking me seriously or gotten his ego hurt. I want neither of those things for now.”

“Our goal is to enter the tournament and reach the top ten. That’s all.”

Lackey’s voice became serious as he looked ahead.

Beta stared at his rabbit mask for a moment before slowly nodding.

“Yes, we should focus on our goal.”

Beta then hesitated, seeming uncertain about whether she should say something.

“What?”

“Well… I’m not sure if I should ask this…”

Lackey blinked.

“It’s alright. You can ask me. What is it?”

“Well… isn’t it wrong for a God to use bad words?”

“…”

“…”

Lackey slowly turned his masked face toward her.

“How dare you question the God’s wisdom!”

“P-Please forgive me, God!”

***

**

Soon, they arrived at the arena. Behind the massive closed doors separating the preparation corridor from the Arena, Beta looked at Lackey with a slightly concerned expression.

“Are you sure you’ll be alright? What about weapons? You’re going into a Test Match completely unarmed.”

Lackey shook his head with a calm smile.

“I will be fine.”

Beta’s expression grew even more worried. She had already witnessed the God’s greatness with her own eyes, but this was different. The Test Match was not some ordinary sparring session.

Once a contestant entered the arena, the match would continue until he was killed or defeated every opponent assigned to him.

One mistake was all it would take.

If God died here, she would be the one held responsible.

And what if Arcane became angry and came after her and her family?

That was the last thing she wanted.

Even though a literal God was standing beside her, she still could not completely shake the uneasiness tightening inside her chest.

Once the fight started, it would not end until he died or defeated them all.

Lackey smiled faintly.

“Why don’t you go and watch the show?”

Beta sighed, nodding her head before walking towards her VIP section.

When she returned, however, her expression immediately darkened when she saw a red-striped mech-suit standing beside her Commander.

Her lips twitched slightly.

The Commander bowed her head.

“Forgive me, Governor, but he is persistent, and I cannot get rid of him.”

Beta sighed and waved her hand dismissively.

“It’s alright.”

She entered the chamber and saw Delta Governor sitting casually on one of the sofas, looking as though he owned the place.

“Come sit with me, Beta.”

Delta patted his thighs with an arrogant smile.

Beta barely glanced at him before walking past and sitting on another sofa. She crossed one leg over the other, maintaining a serious expression as she focused on the arena below.

Delta merely sneered, as though he had grown accustomed to her rejection.

“So? Have you planned for the mission? If you beg me, I might offer you some help.”

Beta did not even bother to look at him.

“Our mission has nothing to do with you.”

Delta’s smile faded slightly.

“Still pretending you can handle everything yourself?”

Beta finally glanced at him.

“I didn’t come here to ask for your help.”

Delta’s lips twitched.

‘This bitch… Just wait. Once I increase my order… You will be nothing but my fucking bitch!’

He clenched his fist tightly, the metal of his armoured fingers creaking beneath the pressure.

Beta briefly glanced at the sound before turning her attention back toward the arena.

The enormous display above the battlefield suddenly illuminated.

LACKEY.

His name appeared across the screen as the robotic announcer began introducing him to the audience.

“Contestant Lackey has entered the arena. Test Match Number 28 is about to begin.”

Lackey stepped into the center of the arena with a cold and emotionless expression.

“Huh? Is this a joke?”

A man with robotic arms and legs stared at Lackey with an annoyed expression.

“Where’s your weapon?”

Lackey calmly glanced at the man’s mechanical arms and legs.

The man flexed his metallic fingers, the joints producing a series of sharp mechanical clicks.

“You entered a Test Match without a weapon? You’re either incredibly stupid… or incredibly confident.”

Lackey remained silent.

The man grinned.

“Well, whatever. This will be an easy kill for me.”

Back in the VIP section, Delta Governor suddenly burst into laughter.

“Haha! Beta, have you gone insane?”

He leaned back comfortably on the sofa.

“If you wanted him to die, you could have killed him with your own hands. Why bother bringing him into a tournament and throwing him into a Test Match without even giving him a weapon?”

His laughter echoed through the VIP chamber.

“Hahaha… Look at him. He’s standing there like a lost lamb.”

Beta remained silent as she watched her God standing alone in the arena.

Her expression carried a mixture of curiosity and expectation.

She had already witnessed his greatness, but she still wanted to know what her God was truly capable of.

The announcer’s voice suddenly rang through the arena.

“Test Match… Begin!”

The moment the command was given, the man with the robotic limbs lunged forward.

Yet before anyone could properly perceive what happened, Lackey had already moved.

Chuckk…

The man’s robotic hands were suddenly holding his own head.

For a brief moment, nobody in the arena seemed to understand what had happened.

Drip… Drip…

Blood slowly dripped from his severed neck.

His body remained standing for another instant before collapsing heavily onto the arena floor.

Silence swallowed the battlefield.

The hundreds of spectators who had been shouting only moments ago stared at the corpse in disbelief.

Lackey calmly looked toward the next opponent’s gate.

His expression had not changed even slightly.

“Next, please.”

He said it as casually as though he were ordering food.

“…”

Delta Governor’s laughter abruptly stopped.