Chapter 39: Aisha
"No, I have more important matters to attend to."
In the face of Uldin's invitation, Hikigaya refused. Everything has a priority, and it was only logical to first find the kin from his own era. The time for touring the Huns' camp would come later.
Moreover, he couldn't quite read Uldin. Although the man acted free-spirited and bold, Hikigaya had no idea what he was actually thinking—especially since this God-slayer was a Hun.
"It seems you don't quite trust me, brother. Very well." Uldin lightly patted the neck of the Wyvern he used as a mount, and the creature obediently lowered its head. "Then for your sake today, I will temporarily stop attacking this place. But you must not run away with that woman. If that happens, I'll have no choice but to go hunting for both of you."
With that, he straddled the Wyvern once more. The beast flapped its wings and took to the sky, where the sun was beginning to set.
Hikigaya watched the dragon's silhouette vanish, turned to lead his horse, and walked toward the city gate again. With every step he took, the massive burning crater at the entrance shrank slightly, the flames becoming withered. By the time he reached the gate, the hole blasted earlier had completely disappeared.
The Roman soldiers remained on the walls, watching Hikigaya warily. The gate was already teetering and in ruins; with a gentle push from Hikigaya, the massive wooden panels—several men high—shattered into several pieces and flew a dozen meters away.
He continued leading his horse through the gate, entering a sloped ramp. Following the steps past the ramp, Hikigaya entered a district lined with houses. The roads were narrow, and judging by the style of the buildings, this was a residential area.
Before long, the space in front of Hikigaya opened up as he entered a plaza. However, in the plaza, hundreds of Roman soldiers were lined up in a standard Roman infantry phalanx. Every soldier wore a helmet, lorica hamata or segmentata, and held an oval Roman scutum (shield).
When Hikigaya appeared in their line of sight, the soldiers raised their shields, covering most of their bodies. Likely because they had seen Hikigaya use a single bolt to blast a hole in the city gate, none of these soldiers threw a javelin at him; they all peered through the gaps in their shields with uneasy gazes.
Hikigaya released his horse, letting it wander off to the side, and then walked up to the Roman soldiers. Amidst the sound of clashing metal, the soldiers stepped back in unison, accompanied by the sound of unsheathing gladii.
Hikigaya looked left and right, unable to tell who was in charge, so he asked: "Where is your commander?"
"I am here."
A muffled voice came from within the phalanx. Hikigaya furrowed his brows.
"I know you're just garrison troops, but surely you're not so cowardly that you won't even show your face?"
After a moment of silence, the Roman soldiers parted with a rustle, and a well-dressed fellow stepped out. This was the same man who had shouted at Hikigaya from the bastion earlier.
"Who are you?"
His tone was wary and cold. In this era of Europe, black hair didn't necessarily mean Asian, but someone with Asian features was definitely a Hun. However, a Hun wasn't necessarily an enemy—heaven knows that while this tribe appeared in Europe with violent momentum, anyone willing to pay the price could surely hire a significant number of Hunnic mercenaries to fight their own kin.
"My identity is not important. If I wanted to make things difficult for you, you would already be dead," Hikigaya looked at the commander. "Whether this is true or not, you know it in your hearts."
"True enough. So what?"
"I will not join forces with Uldin. On the contrary, I can form a brief alliance with you, but you need to do one thing for me."
Hearing that Hikigaya was willing to ally, the Roman commander's expression softened considerably, and his tone was no longer so cold.
"And what is it you need us to do?"
"I am looking for my kin," Hikigaya said. "I heard there is a Saint with miraculous powers here. Have you seen her?"
As soon as he finished, Hikigaya noticed the Romans' expressions turn to fury.
"As I thought, you are the same kind of fellow as that barbarian!" the commander shouted angrily. "Don't even think about it. We would rather die than let you touch the Saint even once."
"Are you insane?" Hikigaya was baffled. "Don't you understand what 'kin' means?"
"Nonsense! How could the Saint's clansman be a barbarian like you!" the commander retorted indignantly. However, this time, he only managed to finish that sentence before reality crashed back into his skull.
With the commander's feet as the limit, half the plaza was overturned by Hikigaya's stomp, rolling in flames.
"I speak to you civilly and you get cocky?" Hikigaya looked coldly at the Romans. "Trash who can't even beat savages dares to call someone else a barbarian?"
Before he could finish, the expressions of the Romans in front of him changed, their eyes shifting to behind Hikigaya. Every single face turned into one of pure fanaticism.
"Oh my, so it wasn't Uldin after all?"
A pleasant female voice came from behind Hikigaya. He turned around. On the half of the plaza glowing red from the heat, a black-haired woman wearing a loose white trench coat was stepping inside.
With a wave of Hikigaya's hand, the flames in the plaza were instantly extinguished.
"Madame Aisha?"
"Yes. Hello. Since coming here, this is the first time someone has called me by my real name."
The young woman gave a faint smile. Her skin was slightly tanned, her expression gentle; one couldn't sense the combative nature of a Campione at all. But she was a Campione, make no mistake—walking through Hikigaya's flames just now was proof enough, and that cursed power could not lie.
"Looking at your attire, you must be my kin from the future world, right?"
"Correct. I am Hikigaya Hachiman. It's a pleasure to meet you."
"Ah, I know. You are the seventh kin from the future. This is our first time meeting."
Madame Aisha gave Hikigaya the impression of a very gentle and refined person. Furthermore, although she was called "Madame," she appeared entirely like a beautiful girl in her late teens. However, her temperament was the complete opposite of Luo Hao's.
"You're too kind. I actually don't mean to interrupt your leisure, I just have a few questions I'd like to ask," Hikigaya glanced at the Roman commander, who was already staring infatuatedly, and prepared to ask the question he had been holding for a long time.
But before he could ask, he heard Madame Aisha speak to herself.
"I understand. You want me to stop causing trouble for everyone, right? Mr. Hikigaya, you are so serious."
"No, that's not what I meant at all." Although he didn't know where the misunderstanding came from, Hikigaya quickly interrupted her. "I just wanted to ask, why is your 'Cave' so stable?"
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