Chapter 21: Meeting with Sasha Dejanstahl Voban
"Sir." The waiter's gaze had turned cold. "If you leave now, nothing will happen."
The phrase "there are no silver ingots buried here" (a famous idiom meaning a denial that gives you away) perfectly applies to this situation.
Of course, Hikigaya didn't care what kind of reaction the waiter had.
He said to the waiter, whose face had turned ashen, "The person currently using this place, which room are they in? Please take me there."
The waiter could no longer hold back. In an instant, he cast a spell at Hikigaya and simultaneously moved in, attempting to subdue him.
Afraid of making noise, he wanted to quietly take down this unknown intruder.
Unfortunately, that was wishful thinking.
He felt himself lifted into the air, his head ached, and then he knew nothing.
The sound of a human body smashing through a wall and crashing into a room echoed through the entire building—not just on this floor, likely audible from downstairs too.
Hikigaya withdrew the hand that had struck the man flying, calmly watching the people rushing out from various rooms in response to the noise.
Each of them possessed far more magical energy than ordinary people, and they looked visibly agitated.
This wasn't good. Impulsiveness is the devil.
"Kill him!"
A man gave the order succinctly.
The corridor was narrow, but still, over a dozen people transformed into shadows and darted toward Hikigaya.
Behind them, others immediately began casting spells.
Hikigaya didn't understand magic—not even the basics—but he could clearly feel the flow of magical energy in the air.
It made sense that online people joked that mages were just mobile artillery. Though cloaked in mystery, in general, magic wasn't much different from cannons and muskets—one fires bullets, the other fires magical energy.
In an instant, dozens of magical strikes blasted into Hikigaya.
But they had no effect. The magical energy inside Hikigaya's body was not just hundreds of times stronger than these people—it was incomparably greater. And the more magical energy one possessed, the stronger one's resistance to magic. That's why both gods and god slayers left magicians in despair. Except for very rare special spells, neither gods nor god slayers were affected by ordinary magic.
The magical energy clinging to him was annoying, so he waved his hand, and it instantly disintegrated.
Then, under the disbelieving eyes of the spellcasters, he made his move.
Or rather, he moved his mouth.
He simply opened his mouth and inhaled.
From everyone's body, beams of light burst forth—some strong, some weak—and were all sucked into Hikigaya's mouth.
In the next moment, the ones still standing fell over rigidly. Those who had jumped were slammed into the floor or the walls nearby, sprawling across the ground like piles of mud, no longer able to move.
Given their physical constitutions, this wasn't enough to kill them.
No, in fact, they had already died before that moment.
In both Eastern and Western mythology, the essence of life is often associated with light. In Chinese mythology, for instance, Nuwa gave birth to Zhuanxu after feeling a sacred light. The Yellow Emperor's mother conceived him after witnessing a great light surrounding the North Star. In Greek mythology, when Zeus and his brothers were vomited out by their father, they first appeared as beams of light.
This concept appears in the creation myths of many cultures. The arrival of light always accompanies the creation of the world.
The concept of devouring light and fire is, in essence, a way to absorb life energy from external light. If natural light contains life, then living beings certainly do—even if they are not human. Every living creature carries a light of life within them. When Hikigaya absorbed that light, they naturally died.
Still, Hikigaya felt he was being fair. The first guy who only tried to subdue him was still lying there peacefully—he hadn't taken that person's life light.
Stepping over the now-silent corridor, Hikigaya walked up to a door.
This was the only room from which no one had emerged earlier.
Judging by its layout, this was the luxury suite of the floor, occupying almost half the total space.
There was someone inside. Hikigaya could feel it—the calm and powerful heartbeat from within.
This person clearly hadn't cared at all about the ruckus outside.
Hikigaya turned the doorknob. Smoothly. It wasn't locked.
He pushed open the door.
The room was very spacious, richly decorated, and well-lit.
An elderly man was sitting there, eating.
Hikigaya could only describe it with that term—eating. Calling it "dining" would have been too refined.
It wasn't a vulgar gluttonous display—it was more a bold style of "whatever it is, just eat it."
Wine was drained in one gulp, and meat was handled the same. The movements were normal, but extremely quick.
On the table before the old man were many empty plates, suggesting he was nearly done.
He looked at Hikigaya, who had opened the door, with emerald-green eyes full of curiosity.
"I am Hikigaya Hachiman," Hikigaya said with a smile. "Might I ask if you are Marquis Voban?"
"Hm, seems like you know who I am. I'm getting old, memory's failing me—I don't recall you, but you're a polite young man."
The old man drank his last mouthful of wine and picked up a napkin to wipe his mouth.
"Well then, why not introduce yourself a little more fully? It's been a long time since I've met someone this way—I rather miss it."
It really was him. Then that silver-haired girl earlier was very likely Liliana Kranjcar.
After Seishuin Ena, this was the second time Hikigaya had encountered a character from the Campione! storyline—this one an especially significant figure.
"Not long ago, like you once did, I was fortunate enough to slay a god and inherit his power. I believe that makes me one of your kind," Hikigaya said, looking at the chair beside him. "You don't mind if I sit down, do you?"
"No need to be so polite. Do as you please." Voban smiled—that same domineering smile he had in the anime. He waved his hand, and the dining table before him disintegrated in a sudden whirlwind, blowing out the window.
Such exquisite control—this must be the authority to command wind and weather.
The power of Authorities depends on the user's control. Having lived 300 years, Voban was clearly one of the best among god slayers in that regard, especially since he was a pure Authority-type Campione.
Hikigaya pulled out a chair and sat down.
"Your pet is interesting," Voban's gaze swept over the fox spirit, Tamamo-no-Mae, perched on Hikigaya's shoulder. "When I was your age, I had many pets too. But they never lasted long. I imagine yours won't have that problem."
Voban crossed one leg over the other, exactly like his pose in the anime.
"I entered your territory without saying hello—I hope you didn't take offense. You must think that way too, right? I was once young myself, eager to expand my domain."
"No, actually I'm not very interested in that," Hikigaya said, leaning forward slightly. Tamamo-no-Mae jumped off his shoulder with a swoosh and darted away—the marquis's gaze had spooked her.
"Honestly, I'd rather hear your thoughts on being a Campione. I'd like to learn from your experience."