nycdaug Chapter 38 Rider
Chapter 38 Rider
"What an amazing scene! I'm totally shipping this couple!"
"Don't ship every weird pairing!"
"But to be honest, these two look really good together, and they even seem quite harmonious."
"Because they're all top-tier handsome men, right?"
Arthur and Oda Nobunaga were unaware that outsiders were once again pairing up as a couple, and during the battle, neither of them had the extra attention to focus on anything else.
The magic is released!
As the red dragon breathed, Arthur stepped forward and was swept away by the magic-enhanced blade, instantly evaporating the dozen or so approaching ghosts. Unfortunately, compared to the thousands, it was just a drop in the ocean.
One group was killed, but another group kept coming. The pale ghosts swarmed up in shadowy figures, and some even broke through Oda Nobunaga's arquebus blockade.
Unfortunately, without using his Noble Phantasm, Oda Nobunaga's arquebus was not very powerful, and even though they were cooperating, the two Servants were still wary of each other.
"Tch, it's too narrow."
Oda Nobunaga snorted coldly. After all, if he were to unleash his Noble Phantasm, he would surely raze this stadium to the ground. Right now, 50 to 60 percent of the audience was still crowded at the back of the stadium. Even though celebrities like Yoko Okino were trying their best to maintain order, they were too afraid to care. If this continued, before the ghosts could kill them, he would trample a group of people to death.
The sheer number of ghosts was overwhelming, and King Arthur wasn't particularly adept at dealing with scattered targets, being an Archer after all. The problem was that this was an enclosed space, and he couldn't unleash his full power; otherwise, while the stadium might collapse, the two Servants would be unharmed, but everyone else would be doomed. Furthermore, with so many ghosts, the difficulty lay not in inflicting damage but in containing them. Therefore, even with the two Servants fighting fiercely, a few ghosts managed to break through the blockade and attack the crowd behind them.
For these ghosts, the life force of the crowd is a feast.
"Ahhh-"
"A ghost is coming! Run!"
"Get out of the way!"
"Shinichi, where are you?"
Those squeezed at the back of the crowd screamed in terror as they desperately pushed forward, and the situation was on the verge of spiraling out of control.
"Well, I'm not exactly enthusiastic, but now that the road is open... okay, let's go!"
The red magic circle instantly expanded across the ground, engulfing the terrified people. Then, everything blurred before their eyes... They were flying!
Even in the blink of an eye, everyone could feel a tremendous force lifting them off the ground, through the roof that had just been blown off their heads, soaring into the air before quickly landing back on the ground.
When his legs landed on the ground, the audience was still somewhat dazed, and then erupted in uproar after they came to their senses.
"What, what's going on?"
"Did we just fly? Yes, we flew!"
"Who remembers what just happened!"
"My goodness, which deity has appeared now!"
People outside the city stared in astonishment as thousands of spectators descended from the sky, their mouths agape. Who, from ancient times, did this? It's incredible!
The attacking ghosts lost their target and drifted aimlessly. The magic circle reappeared and instantly killed the ghosts.
The moment the person in the shadows made their move, Oda Nobunaga and Arthur instinctively became wary. After all, even heroic spirits might not be able to cooperate. Seeing thousands of people teleport away in an instant, even Oda Nobunaga was surprised.
"Wow, that would be fantastic for military purposes!" Oda Nobunaga exclaimed with great interest, his eyes shining. "Who are you? Would you be willing to join my ranks and work with me to achieve the unification of Japan by force?"
"It's a real shame this time. Given my Rider class, you can just call me Rider."
The man in the shadows appeared. He was dressed in a fitted Tang suit adorned with red auspicious clouds. His long black hair was tied into a long braid, and his handsome face was smiling with his eyes crinkling.
The first reaction of people watching the live stream was: "Anyone with squinty eyes is a monster! This person is definitely extraordinary!"
As for why everyone can still see the live stream, we have to thank that this is a concert, after all, there are several camera positions. Even though the people have been sent away, the machines are still working faithfully.
"Ah, it's the Sixth Demon King, truly captivating... Unfortunately, I have no plans to work overtime for the time being."
Rider's smiling, praising tone made Oda Nobunaga secretly pleased, so he didn't dwell on being rejected. After all, he hadn't had high expectations when he invited him; Servants all have Masters, and it's unlikely they would join another Servant's ranks.
"But does this young lady need my help?" He was referring to the only ordinary person present, Nakano Nino.
Nakano Nino instinctively grabbed Oda Nobunaga's sleeve: "I..."
"Her? Not for now." Oda Nobunaga shook his head. If he threw Nakano Nino out, she would probably be immediately controlled by those with ulterior motives. Anyway, one more Nakano Nino wouldn't make any difference.
However, it seems that someone has already gone to the Nakano residence. A murderous glint flashed in Oda Nobunaga's eyes, but since Nakano Miku did not use a Command Seal, the situation should not have reached that point.
"I see." Rider nodded with a smile.
"This must be King Arthur! He's as noble and handsome as the legends say. Absolutely magnificent!"
Does this guy have some kind of social superpower?! You know, Oda Nobunaga and King Arthur cooperated for quite a while, but they didn't even exchange more than a few words.
"Hmm," King Arthur said softly, "Although we're of different genders, why do I feel a connection to Merry?"
Oda Nobunaga pondered, "Why does this feel a bit like Hanbei?" He was referring to his important strategist, Takenaka Shigeharu.
It's no wonder they were a bit slow in their fight against the ghosts, as they were all focused on the newly appeared Servants. They had been fighting aggressively before because there were still many innocent spectators inside. Now that everyone except Nino Nakano had been rescued outside by the Rider, they didn't need to worry too much about the scattered ghosts.
Of course, they weren't completely ignored, after all, these were ghosts, not physical entities, and they could walk through walls! It was just that King Arthur, Oda Nobunaga, and the lively atmosphere of the crowd had attracted their attention.
Now that people have left, they will eventually run out of the stadium seeking life.
"Yes, yes, I'll presume to say that as a Taoist priest, I do have some experience in dealing with ghosts. Of course, I will also use my magic to assist you two."
"So you're a Taoist priest from the Ming Dynasty." Oda Nobunaga nodded slightly. "Go ahead and do your best to assist us."
Rider smiled slightly, raised the wooden pole wrapped with a red ribbon in his hand, and a red magic circle unfolded. Oda Nobunaga and King Arthur both felt a slight increase in all their attributes, and their magic power also surged.
The ghosts shrouded in the magic circle melted away easily, like butter exposed to the scorching sun, emitting strange screams.
"Who is this? They must be someone from ancient times, can anyone recognize them?!"
"I don't care who he is, I just want to know, were all people in ancient times this handsome? Waaah, I was born in the wrong era, how could I possibly be saved!"
"Actually, King Arthur didn't show his face, right? Well, even half of his face is enough to make people's dicks hard."
"Damn, another gay man!"
There are still people having serious discussions about it.
"Lord Nobunaga said he was a Taoist priest from the Ming Dynasty! Who were some famous Taoist priests from the Ming Dynasty?"
"Jiajing"
"It doesn't seem like it no matter how you look at it! It might not necessarily be from the Ming Dynasty, but for Lord Nobunaga, the China of that time was the Ming Dynasty!"
"Was that Xu Fu? Ge Xuan? Zhang Daoling? Tao Hongjing? Ge Hong? Wang Chongyang?"
"Are you using brute force here?!"
"Why wear Tang suits instead of Taoist robes? At least we could identify which school of Taoism they belong to!"
"What's that wooden stick in his hand? Is it wrapped with ribbon? Why isn't it a whisk?"
Given the buzz surrounding the appearances of King Arthur and Oda Nobunaga, various websites speculate that the newcomer's betting pool has already opened, with the prize money quickly climbing to ten million yen.
However, almost no one guessed correctly.
It has to be said that, given its shape, no one could recognize it as a whip. And if you mention that it is used as a weapon and is a Taoist priest, the answer is obvious.
Jiang Ziya, the God-Slaying Whip.
Rider, whose real name is Taigong Wang, Jiang Shang, is most famously known as Jiang Ziya. He is the protagonist of the Investiture of the Gods, a disciple of Yuanshi Tianzun, and fought against the golden-haired, jade-faced, nine-tailed fox Daji, who was a beast. In the original work, he reconciled with the young form of the fourth beast, Koyanskaya, and achieved a non-Grand Rank Spirit Origin, almost single-handedly killing a beast.
Since Jiang Ziya himself did not die, the Servant in the present world is equivalent to an incarnation of the immortal Jiang Ziya. In terms of both spirit origin and strength, he is among the top of all Servants. As he said, if he were to appear in the world as a Magician, he would definitely be a Grand Magician.
However, beneath the guise of the world-renowned strategist and Taoist priest, this follower Taiko no Momoko, is actually Aoki Makoto.