An Arcanist in the Karakura Town 8 (Patreon)

An Arcanist in Karakura Town
Chapter 8

-VB-

Well, canon happened.

Specifically speaking, Ishida Uryu decided to be the immature and impulsive teenager that he was and used the Hollow bait. How did I know this? Aside from a dozen Hollows I already had to kill, there was the looming specter of a Menos Grande stepping out of a Garganta, the dark portals that Hollows use to traverse long distances or between the physical and spiritual realms.

I just couldn’t help it. I grimaced and sighed at the same time. ‘I’m running out of time,’ I thought to myself.

“Hide, I think you should start setting up your wall around the town once this incident is done with,” I advised.

My Servant hummed. “As great as a protection my walls may provide,” Hidemasa, aka Jin Shihuang aka the First Emperor of China, spoke up. “I doubt that it will stop the future that you’ve told me about. Or rather, I am unsure whether or not I could provide enough protection with only the small amount of mana you can provide.”

My grimace grew deeper.

“What would you need?”

“Nothing you can help with right now, unless you want to sacrifice a school full of children,” Hide laughed but then stopped laughing after a moment or two. “Or, if you truly seek to protect, that might exactly be what you do.”

I glared at him from the corner of my eyes.

Hidemasa, an incorrect and indirect translation of my Servant’s given name, was like that; he grew up in an era of constant wars and established an empire that, while it wouldn’t last long, would forever alter the course of Chinese history. A man who established such an empire were - while I wouldn’t say prone to do so - more used to making sacrifices for the greater achievements, goals, and ideals.

It was in how he just talked about sacrificing a school full of children. After all, what was a school full of children worth in comparison to a city?

Unfortunately for him, I knew that he was testing me. While I could do such a heinous thing, I was not the ruler of this city nor was I willing to give more than I had to.

My morale was too big of a sacrifice for a city that I didn’t really care about.

“Just set it up around our home.”

“As you wish.” A pause. “And how goes your studies?”

“Too late,” I grumbled in frustration. “I’ve only reached, maybe, sixth tier so far.”

“Hmm. Is that what your string of glass beads are for?”

I looked down at the object he was referring to, and nodded when I saw that he was talking about the four new glass bead bracelets hanging from my right wrist.

“It happened yesterday, so I invested in a spell for defense.”

“Would it work against these shinigamis and Hollows?”

I paused. “Most of the low to middle tier ones, yes.”

“That is good to hear. I was wondering when you would finally gain an upper tier spellwork.”

“I wouldn’t exactly call it -”

A Hollow screeched as it came down upon us from the sky with talons and claws readied. I looked up and casted my strongest defensive spell.

“Globe of Invulnerability!”

One of the many beads on my wrist lit up and a ten foot radius nearly transparent globe covered Hide and me. The bat smashed into it, and the bat Hollow did a window splat, crashing against a spell that could hold against other spells and attacks like Wall of Fire or Lightning Bolt for a set duration.

“Shall I?” Hide asked.

“Please,” I grunted while holding my concentration in place.

Hide produced a simple dagger before I dropped the shield - with the glowing glass bead shattering with the dispelling of the spell - and sliced.

The Hollow gagged before it fell away, turning to dust before my eyes.

I didn’t waste any time pointing my staff at it, and drained the remnant spiritual particles. I grinned in satisfaction as I grew just a smidgen more powerful. It was nothing like the power boost I got from killing and absorbing Grand Fisher, but I wasn’t going to complain.

More Hollows were coming our way again… and I would have been stuck fighting these pests had it not been for a HUGE blast of an aggressive spiritual attack that cut the Menos.

The monstrous shade screeched in pain before it stepped back sluggishly into the Garganta and closed the gap in reality.

That made the rest of the Hollows in the city panic and disperse.

“And there goes the protagonist being the protagonist,” I huffed. “Someone must be happy they don’t have to suffer through the slow and steady route.”

“Careful, Alan,” Hide laughed. “Your envy is showing.”

I gagged. “Me? Envy?” I sneered. “No, that’s just fucking fate deciding that he is the center of this world. I’m just going to do my own thing off to the side.”

“But you’ve told me that your woman was vital to several events in this world’s future. Would you not be changing that?”

I paused for a moment, even though I have already thought about this. “Even without her, it’ll work out for the boy,” I scoffed. “He has multiple guardian angels looking out for him, after all.”

Hide merely hummed before he turned himself incorporeal - even to the spirits - and went back home.

I stayed for a bit longer, watching the interactions of the “heroes” from a safe distance and out of their line of sight before I too began my walk back home.

-VB-

The next morning, I got a morning visit from Hirako Shinji.

The grinning Visored invited himself into the house when I opened the door.

“I was surprised you helped out with the Hollow situation yesterday~!” he cackled a little before he sat down on my couch. I kept myself cool and calm outwardly while remaining frustrated by the man’s forced entrance into my home.

“What are you doing here?” I asked a little tersely as I sat down across from him on the second couch.

“Well, I wanted to know why! You didn’t seem like the kind of fellow who would, you know, help out!” He leaned in. “Does the fact that you’ve stuck around the high school have something to do with it~?”

“My girl goes there.”

“Really? I didn’t know you were the type to go for Japanese girls~.”

My cheeks twitched. “I’m sorry, a blonde Japanese soul saying what?”

He cackled.

And then he stopped laughing to observe me seriously. “Seriously?”

“Yes.”

He stared at me a bit longer before shrugging. “Alright,” he said as he stood up. “Nice talking with you.”

I looked at him incredulously. “Wait, that’s it? You came to check why I was helping?”

“No, I thought you were using the whole shenanigan to kill some humans.”

I blinked in surprise at his honest reply. “Seriously? That’s what you thought I was doing?”

He shrugged. “No one really knows what you’re doing. All we know is that this warehouse is impenetrable and that you, along with that other human, are growing at a ridiculous pace… whatever your Hollow eating thing is.” And then he was gone out the door and then shunshined out of existence.

Grumbling, I leaned back into my couch.

Orihime came back only an hour afterwards, panickingly asking me what I was doing on the rooftop of her school and why there were so many monsters flying around. I answered all of her questions before I cooked ourselves some late lunch.

The next day, I got another visit. This time, it was from Urahara. IT was obvious who he was from the hat, clogs, and the tacky green and white color scheme. And the mischievous grin.

“Can you-”

“No.”

And I slammed the door on his face.