"You're right, it was a small fry. But that bullet bending in mid-air… that was your doing, wasn't it?"
Morgan glanced at the bullet hole and spoke with open disdain. It wasn't anything that could be shown off on a grand stage, but the outcome was obviously thanks to Koji. If someone dared to fire a gun in this kind of situation, they had to have at least some confidence in their marksmanship.
Koji admitted it calmly.
"There's nothing I can't say. One of my blessings makes it so that long-range attacks can't hit me."
"One of them?"
Morgan's expression grew thoughtful. In other words, Koji had other blessings besides that one.
However, with those blessings shrouding him, she currently couldn't see through his true nature at all.
As the only one who had seen just the tip of Koji's iceberg, Artoria's mouth twitched. It really was only "one of" his blessings.
With hundreds of blessings stacked on top of each other, he simply wasn't a monster a human could hope to fight.
Boom, rumble—
Thunder roared across the sky. Lightning crashed down as the sound of wheels rolling and iron hooves trampling echoed over the ground. The great king made his flashy entrance.
"Both sides, sheath your swords! In the presence of the king's chariot, you will not act discourteously!"
"Hold up a second. I'm the one holding a sword; those two are holding a gun and a staff."
Koji cut him off, sounding amused.
Iskandar: "…"
Saying it like that really made this king lose face. Still, he had to finish his lines.
"My name is Iskandar, King of Conquerors. In this Holy Grail War, I have descended upon this world under the Rider class."
The moment he said this, both those standing in the open and those secretly watching fell silent.
Was this Servant maybe a little too honest? He'd just blurted out both his true name and his class.
His Master, Waver, was on the verge of breaking down. Could this Servant maybe make his life a little easier?
Seriously? The war had only just started.
Iskandar ignored his Master's complaints and instead invited everyone present to join his army and hand the Grail over to him.
"Are you joking? I am the Lion King, the King of Storms, and ruler of the world's farthest reaches. I will never serve under someone else," Lion King Artoria said, exasperated.
"Oh?"
"I've never heard of you, but that kingly aura on you doesn't lie," Iskandar said with great interest as he studied Artoria.
Not only did she have the presence of a king, she carried the aura of a god as well.
The Lion King was a ruler of a singularity, and not a part of proper history. It was perfectly normal he'd never heard of her.
"And what about you two? You look so alike—are you sisters?"
Morgan's lips curled in a mocking smile.
"I have no intention of becoming anyone's subordinate. As for our relationship—yes, I am her elder sister."
Artoria merely raised a brow and said nothing. The relationship between these two sisters was… not exactly harmonious.
"I'm not taking part in the competition over the Holy Grail," Koji said, shaking his head.
"Oh?"
"Saber, you and your Master don't have a wish you want granted?" Iskandar asked curiously.
Even if a Servant had no wish, their Master should have something they wanted to achieve.
"My little Master doesn't really have any particular wish. And in the end, it's just a busted cup."
"Even if it can grant wishes, can it really grant absolutely anything?"
There wasn't a trace of greed or covetousness in Koji's tone when he spoke of the Grail. He truly didn't seem interested, and in fact that was exactly the case.
"Hahaha, in that case it really is a useless cup. At most you could use it as a wine goblet."
A delighted laugh rang out as a golden-armored blond suddenly appeared perched atop a streetlight.
"Don't tell me you're…"
"…the Lamp-post King?"
Koji feigned shock.
Gilgamesh: "…"
The Hero King looked down at the "throne" beneath his feet—the streetlight—and his face stiffened. If he climbed down now, it would be way too embarrassing.
"Pfft."
Artoria couldn't help but laugh.
With Koji's one little jab, the tense atmosphere instantly lightened.
"You mongrels!"
The repeated laughter finally broke Goldie's composure. Gate of Babylon flared open at once, a ring after ring of golden portals blooming in midair.
Sharp treasures emerged, gleaming with lethal light. Blades, spears, swords, and halberds fired out like a rain of bullets.
"Goldie, your aim seems a little off."
The barrage kicked up clouds of dust, but when the smoke cleared Koji was standing exactly where he'd been, completely unharmed. Every Noble Phantasm that had been aimed at him was buried in the ground all around him, as if they'd purposely avoided him.
"What?"
Gilgamesh frowned. Not a single hit. He knew Koji hadn't moved an inch.
"Oh? So you do have some skill," Iskandar said, genuinely impressed.
Koji explained slowly, "That was my First-Encounter Blessing. If it's an attack I can see, the first strike from the opponent simply cannot hit me—no matter what form it takes."
Waver stared wide-eyed. "That's way too broken!"
"What about the second time?"
Koji went on, smiling. "Then comes my Return-Visit Blessing. As long as it's an attack I can see, every strike from the second onward can't hit me either."
Gilgamesh's mouth twitched. What kind of insane blessings were these supposed to be?
In other words, any attack Koji could see would never land.
Waver even suspected Koji might have another blessing that let him dodge attacks he couldn't see as well.
Koji had technically revealed his abilities, but it wasn't much different from saying nothing at all.
Every Master fell silent.
What kind of decent person had powers like that?
They could only pray Koji truly meant what he'd said about not joining the battle over the Grail, or things were going to be a massive headache.
…
For now, all they could do was stay on guard. Koji was just that unreasonable.
The Hero King left first. He had the uncomfortable sense that even if he brought out his beloved Ea, he still wouldn't be able to land a blow on Koji's body.
"Anyone who has to face you as an enemy is going to suffer, I imagine," Artoria said, unable to hold back a laugh.
Koji only shrugged, noncommittal, and didn't argue.
…
At the hotel.
"Big Brother, you're back."
Hearing the door open, Sakura tensed up at first. After what she'd just gone through, she was extremely on edge. But when she saw Koji, a smile bloomed on her face.
"You're still awake, Sakura?" Koji asked with a smile.
"Big Brother hadn't come back yet, so I couldn't sleep."
Although Sakura had been born into the mage family of the Tohsakas, she was still too young and didn't really understand what the Holy Grail War actually was.
"There's no need to worry about me. Don't you trust my strength?"
Koji ruffled her hair, his smile gentle.
Sakura nodded. Koji was the strongest person she had ever seen, someone she instinctively relied on.
"Then how about I tell you a bright, healthy, positive story for tonight…" Koji's lips curled up.
Sakura, not knowing what was coming, lay in bed to listen—and by the time he finished, her eyes were brimming with tears.
"Uu-uu… how is that bright or positive in any way? Big Brother, you're awful." Sakura pouted.
By the end, she was sobbing her heart out. It was way too tragic.
Koji just kept laughing.
To him, the story of Honkai was of course "bright, healthy, and uplifting."
A teacher sacrifices herself to save her students—what a meaningful story.
(End of Chapter)
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