In this world, beasts are often massive and highly intelligent.
Although they cannot speak, they possess considerable wisdom.
Because of this, the profession of beast taming naturally emerged.
However, in a world that values personal strength above all else, few are willing to pursue the path of a beast tamer.
Additionally, trained beasts often struggle to adapt to prolonged sea travel, making it difficult for beast tamers to step onto the stage of the seas.
Gradually, beast tamers shifted their focus to the land.
Some trained beasts for national armies, exchanging their skills for fame and status.
Others performed circus tricks to entertain crowds and earn a living.
And some sent their well-trained beasts into brutal, blood-soaked gladiatorial matches to thrill spectators.
The beasts emerging from the barred gates were usually ferocious creatures towering over three to four meters tall.
Elephants, tigers, boars, and lions were common sights.
Against such a backdrop, the appearance of Bailey immediately drew attention and a wave of mocking laughter.
By contrast, the human participants—armed to the teeth and crawling on all fours as they emerged from another stone path—failed to garner the same level of interest.
Humans could also participate in these beast matches.
However, human contestants were subject to several restrictive rules.
One such rule required them to move on all fours during the match.
These human participants were typically slaves purchased through monetary transactions.
To ensure their fighting capabilities, owners often used special methods to train these human slaves to adapt to the posture of wild beasts, crawling on all fours.
In the audience, nearly everyone jeered at Bailey's small stature, while dozens of others cast somber and furious gazes at the nearly one hundred human slave participants crawling along the stone path.
Those gazes were filled with gravity and anger.
"This country has no humanity…"
"Silence."
"Yes."
A brief, hushed exchange was drowned out by the roaring laughter of the crowd.
The individuals closely watching the human slave participants were members of a Revolutionary Army cell scattered across the globe.
In another section of the audience, Buffalo sat holding a pile of roasted snacks, watching the crawling human slaves with excitement.
"Amazing~ How entertaining! I wonder if we could introduce something like this into our colosseum back home."
The Donquixote Family, under Doflamingo, ruled a New World nation called Dressrosa.
That country also had a colosseum steeped in an atmosphere reminiscent of ancient Rome.
Watching the beast and human contestants in the arena below, Buffalo began entertaining the idea of transplanting the essence of this beast match to the colosseum back home.
Of course, his favorite part was the betting system under this beast match mechanism.
"Now that I think about it, wasn't I supposed to call for reinforcements?"
Buffalo's gaze shifted to Bailey, who was strolling leisurely along the stone path.
Wait… Isn't that someone from the Maude Pirates?
Right!
"I was supposed to call for backup!"
Suddenly realizing this, Buffalo hastily pulled out a Den Den Mushi and dialed a number in Dressrosa.
In the arena, Bailey ignored the hostility around him and the mocking laughter echoing across the space, pondering how best to put on a performance.
If he played his role well, the Maude Pirates could make a fortune from the betting pools.
When that happened, he could eat whatever he wanted.
The thought made Bailey salivate involuntarily.
Soon, Bailey emerged from the stone path, arriving at one corner of the arena.
Participants from the other three stone paths also began arriving at the arena, numbering roughly one thousand in total.
"At last, the thrilling moment has arrived!"
"As you can see, all participants for the first preliminary round have assembled!"
"Now, let's bring out two special trial supervisors for this round!"
The announcer's enthusiastic voice boomed across the arena through a loudspeaker.
As his words fell, the barred gates at the north and south ends of the cruciform stone paths creaked open again. Two towering Tyrannosaurus rexes, each over 15 meters in length, strode out.
"Roar!"
The Tyrannosaurus rexes stepped onto the stone path, raising their heads to unleash thunderous roars that shook the air.
The beasts and human slaves in the arena froze in shock, while the audience erupted in gasps of amazement.
Most people knew of dinosaurs but had never seen one in person.
The appearance of the Tyrannosaurus rexes left most spectators awestruck.
From the observation deck, Maude's eyes narrowed as he remarked, "Tyrannosaurus rexes… Could they have been brought back from Little Garden?"
The purpose of the preliminary round was to eliminate a large number of unqualified participants.
Maude had assumed the arena's organizers would rely on conventional gladiatorial combat, but he hadn't expected them to go this far—sending in two Tyrannosaurus rexes during the preliminaries.
Were they planning a massacre?
Beside him, Law remained silent.
Due to the high number of participants, the preliminary round was divided into four stages.
Bailey was in the first stage, while Bepo was in the third.
Now it seemed the organizers didn't intend to waste much time or effort on these preliminary rounds.
"Speed and survival—that's the theme of this preliminary round!"
The announcer's fervent voice rang out again.
"As long as our adorable little participants can survive for 15 minutes against the two trial supervisors, they'll qualify for the next round. Oh, look, our supervisors can't wait to get started…"
The voice carried an air of bloodthirsty excitement, amplified by the loudspeaker.
Thump, thump—
The two bloodshot Tyrannosaurus rexes charged straight toward the arena.
Before being released into the arena, both rexes had been injected with a drug designed to stimulate aggression.
The drug was a standard tool used by the arena to heighten the spectacle.
"They're going all out, huh?"
Bailey's eyes widened in alarm as he watched the ferocious dinosaurs charging toward him. Suddenly, the acrid stench of urine filled the air.
Looking around, he noticed most of the beasts in the arena had already wet themselves in fear. The human slave participants were faring even worse, visibly trembling and paralyzed.
Before long, the Tyrannosaurus rexes reached the arena, plunging into the crowd like wolves among sheep, their gaping jaws leaving trails of blood in the air.
In an instant, dismembered limbs and bodies littered the ground.
The first victims were the human slave participants, whose speed paled in comparison to the beasts.
In this deadly arena, to move slowly was to die quickly.
Under the Tyrannosaurus rexes' onslaught, the human slaves were either bitten to death or crushed underfoot.
Surviving for 15 minutes on such a stage was an almost impossible feat for them.
Within less than three minutes, all human slave participants had met their grisly ends.
Yet this bloody spectacle only delighted the majority of the audience.
Even in the royal box at the highest point, reserved for aristocrats and royalty, bursts of laughter echoed.
In stark contrast, dozens of Revolutionary Army members in the audience wore grave expressions.
On the observation deck, Law remarked coldly, "Such vulgarity, yet it amuses those imbecilic fools."
Maude shot Law a glance but said nothing, keeping his focus on the arena below.
The littered corpses of human slaves starkly underscored the importance of freedom in a world where such atrocities had become commonplace.
Suddenly, Maude thought of Sunny.
It was time to figure out a way to establish a stable line of communication with her.
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