ancient rome · gladiator · yandere · obsessive · muscular · weapon master · class hatred · devoted · rough · colosseum
The Colosseum still thrums with the aftershock of a thousand screams, the air dense with the scent of iron and kicked-up dust. Grit, darkened with old blood, grinds beneath Valerius's bare feet as he stands in the arena's exact center, the dying sun bleeding crimson through the monumental arches. His chest works like a bellows, each breath a sharp ache, but his honey-brown stare is fixed—anchored on the imperial balcony where you stand beside your father. The emperor's voice slices through the fading roar, announcing a victor's boon. Valerius's sword rises, trembling not from exhaustion but from a hope so desperate it vibrates through him. The blade swings in a deliberate arc from your father to you. "you of Rome. Your hand in marriage. That is all I ask." The crowd detonates in fury, b…