2:10 AM

The giant bandit had already realized that the fight was starting to turn against him. He had been pleased at how quickly he had found his prey, but suddenly the prey had begun to fight back—weakly at first, but with surprising precision. And now one of the two people he had identified as the greatest threat was standing right in front of him, stronger than before. Just as his siblings had always told him: it was high time to rein in his temper and start thinking logically.

If he engaged an opponent who could block and counterattack, the others might use the opportunity to escape. He did not want to resort to more drastic measures than hand-to-hand combat; killing time travelers caused serious problems and could attract the attention of forces far more powerful than he could imagine. He had heard stories from other bandits they sometimes met on neutral ground, and that was definitely not an outcome he wanted to provoke.

There was no point in overthinking it now. Maybe he was exaggerating—after all, how dangerous could a tall girl with a wooden sword really be, even if it was magically reinforced? Magic was indeed incredibly dangerous, something they had all learned painfully throughout their lives, and he had lost his best protection against it in a stupid way—but he still had one more trick up his sleeve. Or rather, in his pocket. Just not yet. Not yet.

He swung his massive fist. Asagi blocked the blow with her wooden sword without the slightest trouble. Jimmy followed up with a rapid series of punches from both fists, but Asagi parried those as well and launched a swift counterattack, stepping forward and striking him with the hilt of her sword straight into the solar plexus.

Despite his huge, muscular build, the blow knocked the breath from Jimmy’s lungs, and he nearly dropped to his knees. He expected a strike to the head—but it never came. The girl simply stood there, motionless, waiting for his next move.

Your mistake, he thought. Where I come from, that kind of chivalry would have gotten you killed long ago.

He reached into his pocket, where he kept his priceless gadget—the very thing that allowed him to travel through time. The small, round device with a dial did not look particularly impressive; in fact, it seemed crude, almost primitive, like something assembled in a home workshop. But in reality, it was the most important possession Jimmy had. Over the years, his siblings had studied it and added several extra functions. Now he intended to use one of them. He pressed a button and twisted the dial all the way.

Warm light enveloped his entire body. From his perspective, everything began to move more slowly. From the observers’ point of view, Jimmy became terrifyingly fast.

He lunged at Asagi and threw a punch. She managed only to block it—there was no chance of a proper parry. The next blow sent her flying backward, straight into a wooden wall. The impact knocked the air from her lungs, but she stayed on her feet. She immediately raised her wooden sword to shield herself from another barrage of blows. An ordinary wooden sword would have shattered into splinters long ago; fortunately, Asagi’s blade had been tempered by battles with demons, and now it was further strengthened by the talisman Aya had given her. The question was: for how long?

The barrage did not let up. Finally, Jimmy leapt into the air and slammed down with both heavy arms. Asagi dropped to her knees, unable to withstand such a powerful strike. The wooden sword survived only thanks to the protective talismans.

The massive bandit prepared to kick the kneeling Asagi, who was clearly running out of strength. At the last moment, a precise kick struck his leg, saving her.

“Where I come from, we don’t hit women,” Mr. Harada announced. The ojuzu beads and protective talismans were now tied not only around his fists, but also around his ankles.

The flurry of kicks nearly matched Jimmy’s enhanced speed. Mr. Harada pressed the attack relentlessly, forcing the bandit to block. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Asagi getting back to her feet, ready to continue fighting. Their chances were clearly improving.

Asagi joined the offensive as well. Despite his immense strength and speed, the giant bandit could not mount an effective counterattack. The exorcist and Mr. Harada fell into a rhythm that surprised even themselves—perfect synchronization that only fueled their confidence.

Mr. Harada stopped kicking and smoothly transitioned into a series of punches, knocking Jimmy’s arms aside. It was the perfect opening for Asagi to thrust her sword forward once more, striking the giant squarely in the solar plexus and forcing him to bend over again. With a precise kick to the side, Mr. Harada knocked the strange device with the dial into the air—where Suzuki hit it cleanly with his thrown crowbar, smashing the box into pieces.

“I played baseball in high school!” Suzuki boasted, though no one paid him any attention.

The glowing aura surrounding Jimmy vanished, catching the powerful bandit off guard. Mr. Harada unleashed a barrage of punches to his face until he began to stagger, and then Asagi unceremoniously struck him on the head with her wooden sword, knocking him unconscious.

“We did it!” Robert and Aya shouted at the same time, high-fiving each other.

“I had no idea protective talismans could be used like that!”

“Neither did I!” Aya replied with a smile, her cheeks flushed.

“It’s a shame his device got destroyed,” Kaguya said, bringing them back down to earth. “But I don’t think we had much of a choice.”

Robert, Aya, and Suzuki exchanged embarrassed glances, while Mr. Harada and Asagi caught their breath after the exhausting fight. They were surprised by their own prowess—they had never fought so well in their lives. And as long as the adrenaline lasted, they felt like they could keep going.

“I suggest we return to the pier, to the taxi,” Kaguya said, trying to take control of the situation. “We haven’t really figured out much, other than the fact that time travel is far more dangerous than we thought.”

There were no objections.

“I feel like we forgot something,” Robert said thoughtfully as they began walking toward the Edo Bay pier. “But I have no idea what…”

“If we forgot it, then it probably wasn’t that important,” Kaguya replied, clearly discouraging further thought. “Besides, we need to rest and collect our thoughts. And notice—there are still no people on the streets. I’m not convinced the danger has really passed.”

They walked in silence for a moment.

“There’s just one thought I can’t shake…” Robert began again.

“Oh no,” Kaguya sighed, trudging along beside him.

“Our team is like something out of a video game! You’re the summoner, Asagi is the swordsman, Mr. Harada fights barehanded like a monk, Aya is the healer, Mr. Suzuki is… I don’t know, a sniper?”

“And who does that make you?” Kaguya asked pointedly.

“I… don’t know? Right now, I guess I’m nobody. Hm.”

That effectively silenced Robert for the rest of the walk.

When they reached the pier, a thin, short man was sitting on the hood of the taxi.

“You’re denting the hood!” Suzuki snapped.

“Oh, you’re finally here,” the man said, turning toward them. Everyone understood him perfectly—there was no language barrier. “My stupid brother ran off to look for you, but I kept telling him we had plenty of time. All we had to do was wait patiently, and you’d come to us yourselves. Apparently, he didn’t find you…”

In response, Asagi raised the black lenses she had picked up from the ground after the fight, holding them up like a trophy.

“Oh. Now I understand.”

The short man fell silent for a moment, thinking. The whole group watched him expectantly.

“Well then,” he said at last, clearly having made a decision. He jumped down from the hood to the ground; now it was clear he stood about 160 centimeters tall, with an unimpressive build. “I suppose we’ll have to handle this in a less diplomatic way. Unless you’re willing to hand over your artifact—or your time-travel device—peacefully?”

He was met with hostile stares, and Asagi and Mr. Harada took up fighting stances.

“I was afraid of that. Very well.” He grabbed the lapels of his black jacket. “My name is Bimmy. One of the Steel Brothers. Let’s begin.”

A luminous aura surrounded his body, and he broke into a run straight toward the group.