True Magician

Chapter 78

Rondel.

- I deeply apologize, but why are we doing this? - I asked with a twitching eyebrow, staring ahead of me-we could just go our separate ways and never meet again.

What was happening now? I was in some sort of arena with restraints, spectator seats and all. On the bleachers sat the companions of the Japanese warrior and himself, who were looking anxiously toward the other corner of the arena, where stood a...

-Battle is the only way to find out the true intentions of your opponent. - With a savage grin on her face, the lolita declared, clasping her huge halberd in both hands.

- But I-

- Don't even try to escape, Romani, or whatever your name is. Itami covered everything: Servants, magic, the Holy Grail War, everything. You're an Apostle and can definitely fight me," she interrupted me, "And don't you yourself benefit from this situation? This way, you can avert all suspicion from yourself. Or is everything we saw in that basement your doing, Demon King?

I rubbed my temples.

In theory, her words made sense. This lolita, Rory Mercury, from what I understand, can save me a lot of trouble thanks to her status. Being an Apostle, she has a pretty wide range of options. That guard at the entrance to the city spoke of her with the utmost respect and awe, which means people like her are listened to.

Our viewers have said nothing but await the outcome of events. I suppose that's to be expected, considering who exactly will be fighting.

From Rory's words, it's clear that the Japanese had already shared with everyone about the Nasuverse. This means that they have realized, as ordinary humans and non-humans, their inability to interfere in the affairs of the divine. After all, Solomon is the Apostle, in local terminology.

I activated the magical chains, which the Apostle in front of me immediately noticed, judging by the look in her eyes. She gripped her halberd tighter and a grin appeared on her face.

Well, I'll have to live with that. You don't have to take the Servant's form; this one will suffice. I didn't promise anything spectacular, did I?

-0-

Itami's nerves were stretched to the limit, and cold sweat slowly dripped from his forehead. His gaze did not open about the masculine figure of the man across from Rory, who did not show the slightest bit of fear or worry.

The reason for this was weighty. A very weighty one. The face of Rory's opponent was worn by two beings. And the feats of each of them made Itami admire and fear them at the same time.

Goetia and King Solomon. Beast I and Great Caster.

Itami would never have thought that characters from anime and manga could exist in reality. As an otaku, he had of course watched and read works from Kinoko Nasu, the man who created his own universe, the Nasuverse.

When Itami saw him there, in one of the squares of the city, he couldn't believe his eyes. The very real Romani Archaman of the Chaldean Security Service, with the features of Solomon, whose reincarnation he is. Every detail on his clothes, every facial feature, every muscle matched what Itami saw on his screen.

But after a second, he seemed to vaporize. And just when he was about to chalk it up to fatigue or the need for his hobby, his shoulder was tugged by Rory. As it turned out, she'd seen him too, because she'd followed his stunned gaze, and in her eyes he'd vanished just as much.

But Rory, unlike Itami, didn't write it off as a play of her mind and after drawing the obvious conclusion, she began to question him. She realized that Itami knew the man, and so he had to tell everything.