Verus hadn't been allowed to leave the small training room that he stood in now, and already, he found himself growing bored. The two slaves in the room had been escorted out, one limping and one still trying to catch his breath, glaring at him angrily as they walked out of the room. They only received a smug look of victory in return. The man knew what he was, what he would continue to be. He was a weapon, a tool, that could well decide if a man would rise or fall, by no work of his own.
It was disgusting.
Through his work, he wasn't rewarded, the men who owned him were. Such behavior was simply put, unfair to the man, however immature such would sound. He couldn't rise by his own right. The only thing that he enjoyed was the crowd cheering his name, because then he knew that it was him, not his master, that had the peoples approval.
This time, he heard the metal boots on concrete easily, now that he wasn't wrapped up in his own thoughts. Looking down the hall, he noticed two more guards walking down the hall. Their approach caught the attention of the two men already with Verus, turning around to converse with the new arrivals. He didn't hear most of it, though he understood what was happening well enough regardless. He was being given away now.
The next order to stand and walk came as no surprise, being led in between four armed soldiers with nothing but the clothes on his back. He felt like a prisoner, and he technically was, though that was a story for a different time. But this? This was humiliating. Being led like a dog on a leash, by four royal soldiers nonetheless. Soon enough, he reached his destination, just in time to hear the announcement. The emperors daughter? This was interesting. The guards stood behind him, as if daring him to make a hostile move towards them. He wasn't being presented as a man, he was being presented as a thing, given as a present as one would give his dog a bone for behaving.
However, Verus kept his visage passive and calm, even as she gripped his chin to looked him in the eye. She would find him staring back at her, giving her the gaze of a man. He found himself surprised by the look she gave him, directly after her words to the emperor. His form was adorned only in the most basic of clothing. A simple tunic, and a simple pair of trousers were all the man had to wear, and it only made it more humiliating to be presented to the emperors daughter in such a fashion, before what felt like half of the city. His hands clenched, the muscles in his arms bulging for a brief moment before the gladiator decided that the guards behind him wouldn't take kindly to something they'd view as hostile intent.
So he continued to stare at the now puzzling girl, and her gaze filled with sadness. He wished to know why she seemed to be upset now. Was he undesired then? Was his humiliation going to be that much more complete, to be denied by the emperors own daughter? He doubted such a feat would extend his life, and so he could only hope that such wasn't the case.