Chapter 248: A Duel Invitation
"Wait, you didn't come here to fight?"
Waver seemed somewhat surprised when he heard Hikigaya Hachiman state the reason for his visit.
"Why would I fight you?"
Hikigaya Hachiman looked at Waver's surprised face and shrugged helplessly.
He didn't have any reason why they absolutely had to fight. If they could talk things out, why resort to violence?
Moreover, Karna had already consumed a good amount of magical energy in the battle tonight. Even if he had recovered some on the way here, even if they defeated Rider, Karna himself would likely be in a disabled state. If they were going to fight, they should at least wait a while.
"Hmm, that's true..."
The reason Hikigaya Hachiman gave was quite convincing, and Waver nodded in agreement.
There was indeed no real conflict between their two sides. Even if they had to fight eventually for the Holy Grail, there was no need to rush into battle when their condition hadn't fully recovered after dealing with Caster.
"Lancer's Master, rather than asking if you came to fight, I am more curious why Saber is in your team?"
Seeing his Master so easily persuaded by Hikigaya Hachiman, Iskandar clapped him hard on the shoulder, then looked up and asked with a serious expression.
If the truth was that Hikigaya Hachiman had used some means to cause Saber to temporarily switch allegiance, then giving Irisviel back would be tantamount to sending her into a fire pit.
"Saber's Master was killed in a sneak attack by the Assassins while Lancer and Saber were fighting..."
Because Kiritsugu Emiya was not killed by his own hand, Hikigaya Hachiman described the events that had occurred without any psychological burden.
"Is that so, Saber?"
After hearing Hikigaya Hachiman's account, Iskandar was mostly convinced.
After all, Hikigaya Hachiman's explanation was strongly cohesive and did not sound like a story made up on the spot. But for final confirmation, Iskandar still looked toward Artoria.
"That's correct. Due to my dereliction of duty, Master..."
The scene of Kiritsugu Emiya's death flashed before her eyes again. Artoria lowered her head, her voice subdued, admitting that what Hikigaya Hachiman said was true.
"I see. I apologize for making you recall bad memories... but I did this only for confirmation..."
After confirming that Hikigaya Hachiman was not lying, Iskandar carefully lifted Irisviel from the chariot.
Although he was curious about the abnormality he sensed in Irisviel, since Artoria had come to claim her, he couldn't forcibly withhold her.
"Thank you very much!"
Seeing Irisviel again, Artoria seemed a little agitated.
Taking Irisviel, Artoria immediately turned and walked toward Hikigaya Hachiman, intending to send her back to Germany once Irisviel woke up.
"Wait..."
Just when everyone thought the night's events were over, Iskandar spoke up again, calling out to the group.
"Is there something else?"
Turning back to look at Iskandar, who had a high-spirited, combative look, Hikigaya Hachiman frowned.
Surely this warmonger didn't want them to fight him?
"Although it is only the third night, the remaining participants are only myself, Archer, and you three teams."
"So?"
Hearing Iskandar's words, Hikigaya Hachiman had a rough idea of what he wanted.
"How about tomorrow night? After one full day, everyone's magical energy should be mostly recovered, right?"
"Are you serious?"
Hikigaya Hachiman looked at Iskandar, who was proactively issuing a challenge, his face full of doubt.
He now had two powerful Heroic Spirits, Karna and Artoria, under his command. Iskandar actively seeking a fight was almost guaranteed to end in defeat.
"When it comes to war, of course I am serious..."
Seeing that Hikigaya Hachiman thought he had lost his mind, Iskandar scratched his head, confirming with resignation.
"Whether it's both of them together, or a random person comes forward, how about a duel at the big bridge tomorrow night at eight o'clock?"
".....All right."
Hikigaya Hachiman pondered for a moment, then nodded, agreeing to Iskandar's proposal.
"Then, I'll see you tomorrow night..."
Hearing Hikigaya Hachiman agree to the duel proposal, Iskandar nodded in satisfaction and then left with Waver aboard the chariot.
"Brother, why did you agree?"
Looking at the receding figures of Iskandar and Waver, Sakura, who had been almost like an extra since encountering Kiritsugu Emiya, raised her head and asked Hikigaya Hachiman.
He had clearly not intended to participate, so why agree to Rider's invitation for a decisive battle?
"Things have reached this point; whether to continue participating is completely out of my hands now..."
Glancing at Artoria beside him, Hikigaya Hachiman said with a trace of bitterness.
Indeed, at the very beginning, he only planned to lay low until the Holy Grail War ended and he could return to his own world.
But from the moment Caster's indiscriminate killings made it impossible for him to stand by, he had actually been drawn into the vortex of this battle.
Especially after three teams were eliminated in one night, and Saber joined his faction under an agreement, even if he explicitly stated he had no interest in the Holy Grail, Rider and Archer wouldn't believe him.
After all, with both Saber and Lancer, he looked like he held a decisive advantage...
Instead of praying that the other two teams would ignore his threat and proceed with the final Holy Grail contest, it was better to agree to Rider's invitation.
At least this way, the risk was smaller.
"But if Rider is eliminated tomorrow, we'll eventually have to fight that super strong guy..."
Thinking of the man who was so extravagant as to use Noble Phantasms as basic attacks, a trace of worry surfaced on Hikigaya Hachiman's face.
Although he had enough confidence in Karna's strength, the opponent was simply too strong...
If possible, he really wanted Karna and Artoria to attack together, giving Archer a combination strike.
But unfortunately, given the characters of Karna and Artoria, neither of them would likely agree to such a thing...