Chapter 207: Temporary Departure
The difference between the powers of the two worlds became evident at this moment.
After shattering Tohsaka Tokiomi's ring of fire with a single strike from the Demon Slayer blade, Hikigaya Hachiman planted his right foot on the road and charged rapidly toward Tokiomi.
From his prior experiences with Sakura and Kotomine Risei, Hachiman had roughly figured out one thing: in this world, so-called Maguss were extremely weak in close-quarters combat!
Not only that, but their attack cooldowns seemed very long.
Tokiomi watched Hachiman approaching at lightning speed. He lightly tapped his magic staff in the void, and five fireballs flew toward Hachiman.
Hachiman casually threw five talismans, nullifying each one.
Using the smoke as cover, he quickly closed the distance to Tokiomi.
Suddenly, several sparkling objects caught Hachiman's eyes.
Gems?
He was momentarily stunned by the expensive gems Tokiomi had thrown. Immediately, he recalled Sakura's explanation about the Tohsaka family's gem-based magic.
Mana surged through his body as he reinforced the protective formation around him.
The next moment, an earth-shattering explosion erupted around Hachiman.
"Sir!"
Since Hachiman had never introduced himself, and Sakura hadn't dared to ask, she still didn't know his name.
Seeing him struck by Tokiomi's gem magic, she could only stand tensely, hoping the familiar figure would emerge from the smoke unharmed.
"It's useless, Sakura. Taking my gem magic head-on, even a top-tier Magus would be seriously injured. And he's just a third-rate Magus…"
"Now, your recklessness ends here. Hurry and come with me to apologize to the Matou family head!"
Confident in his gem magic, Tokiomi had already mentally marked Hachiman for death after seeing him survive all five gem explosions.
At that distance, even with a magic barrier, Hachiman should not have survived!
Moreover, dying from gem magic would have been an honor for a third-rate Magus like him. After all, he had dared to abduct Tokiomi's daughter and nearly ruined the relationship between the Tohsaka and Matou families.
Just as Tokiomi stepped toward Sakura, ready to recapture her, Kotomine Kirei, lurking in the shadows, suddenly warned him to be careful.
"What?"
Tokiomi turned in surprise to where Hachiman had been, only to see three streaks of sword energy flying rapidly toward him.
Even though Tokiomi activated his magic barrier in time, the three sword beams seemed to have a mind of their own, all striking the same point.
The first two beams destroyed his defenses. With no time to chant, Tokiomi had to throw a gem to detonate at close range to counter the last beam.
Another massive explosion echoed through the empty street.
Covered in soot, his elegance gone, Tokiomi's face turned pale as he watched Hachiman emerge from the smoke, unharmed.
"This is impossible!"
Seeing Hachiman completely unscathed, despite being hit by five of his prized gem attacks, Tokiomi shouted in disbelief.
"This must be an illusion. The real him must be hiding somewhere, secretly recovering!"
He quickly invented an excuse to accept the impossible.
Raising his magic staff, Tokiomi unleashed another fireball at the "illusion," only to have it effortlessly deflected by a single swing of Hachiman's blade.
As he advanced, Hachiman worried about how to handle the man before him.
No matter how detestable he had been, he was still Sakura's father. Even if Sakura seemed to hate him, Hachiman could not be certain of her true feelings.
"Sakura, I'm taking you with me…"
Hesitating briefly, he demonstratively drew a sword beam that brushed past Tokiomi's neck, then returned to Sakura's side, taking her hand and walking away.
Tokiomi stood quietly, watching as Hachiman took his daughter away.
After the recent battle, he realized he was no match for Hachiman and that continuing to resist would only bring more humiliation.
"Master, should I send Assassin to take him out?"
After some time, Kotomine Kirei appeared behind Tokiomi. Another masked, dark figure silently emerged in the street.
"No need. For now, let Sakura stay with him."
Tokiomi shook his head, rejecting Kirei's suggestion to have the Servant kill Hachiman.
He had initially thought Hachiman was just a mediocre Magus and planned to eliminate him preemptively. But now, seeing Hachiman's incredible combat ability and knowing he was a Holy Grail War participant, all grudges could wait until the war began.
After all, considering Sakura, perhaps she might even choose to cooperate with him later…
"I see. Understood."
Kirei nodded, signaling the Assassin to vanish into the night.
.
.
.
"Didn't they follow us?"
Feeling around carefully and realizing the person who had been hiding during the fight with Tokiomi hadn't pursued them, Hachiman relaxed.
"That must have been the Servant, then."
With his nerves slightly eased, his thoughts began to clear. Unlike the constant threat from Tokiomi, this new relief allowed him to strategize.
He had to leave Fuyuki City immediately!
Although he didn't know why Tokiomi didn't unleash his Servant, Hachiman's sense of danger was heightened.
At the bus station in Fuyuki City, he bought two tickets with the remaining money borrowed from thugs and left the city overnight with Sakura.
Read ahead (60 chapters) by supporting me on buymeacoffee com/varietl or ko-fi edwriting