Imperial Holy Grail War

A chance like this comes but once in a lifetime.

This astounding ritual devised by the great Lord Abe-no-Seimei is without peer in all of history!

Its name: the Imperial Holy Grail War!

By your grace, O Fujiwara-no-Michinaga, Minister of the Left, with my own onmyou techniques...

...and the assistance of the Onmyou Bureau, this ritual can begin today.

Seven Caster Heroic Spirits will be summoned here from distant lands...

...where seven of our fair city's fiercest warriors shall be chosen as these Casters' Masters!

All you have to do, Lord Fujiwara-no-Michinaga, is promise the Servant and Master pair to emerge victorious will be showered with riches and granted any wish their hearts desire...

...and all seven teams will fight without restraint or hesitation!

And that's not even the best part!

By sacrificing the Casters' lives, the city of Kyo's defenses will be strengthened a hundredfold...

...leading to a thousand years of peace and prosperity!

Truly, an astounding feat! Truly, a miraculous prospect!

It is all right here in Lord Seimei's letter. As I said before, O Minister of the Left, a chance like this comes but once in a lifetime.

I see.

And you say the only lives that will be sacrificed will be these Casters from foreign lands?

Indeed.

The idea of sacrificing the lives of the capital's guardians for a mere ritual would be the height of folly...

But, if only the lives of distant foreigners are at stake, that is no matter for concern at all!

In that case, the Imperial Holy Grail War must begin at once! Consider this the word of the emperor himself!

Hahahahahahahahaha! My Heian-kyo will be known for generations as the Thousand Year Capital!

That's what I heard.

Wait, you know what a Holy Grail War is!? I shoulda known!

？！

I-I am afraid I do not understand, either. But at least Lord Kintoki seems convinced.

Whoa, so your wounds're all closed up already? That's amazin'.

I simply used my self-repair function. Of course, Master's healing spells were a great help as well.

You're still not at a hundred percent though, are ya? Try to take it easy for a while, you hear?

R-right. Thank you.

Now, where was I... Oh, yeah, the Imperial Holy Grail War.

It's been about seven days or so since the Imperial Palace started this ritual thing in secret, and so far, two of the seven Heroic Spirits summoned here've been killed.

Not only that, their Masters were the other two members of the Four Heavenly Kings.

!

You mean Gatekeeper Usui Sadamitsu and Inspector Urabe-no-Suetake!?

Damn, you really know your stuff, don't ya? Yup, it was Brother Usui and Uncle Urabe!

Anyway, not only did they lose their Heroic Spirits, they got pretty banged up themselves.

The docs said they'll be fine, but they'll need some Arima hot spring therapy for a while.

Anyway...

The Master who managed to kill those two Heroic Spirits was Brother Tsuna.

？！

That's right.

Tsuna's about as strong as they come.

Even our boss, Lady Raikou, the current leader of the Genji...

...said he was the single most powerful warrior in the entire human world!

'Course, that hasn't stopped him from claimin' the only opponents he's comfortable with are monsters and such...

？！

Things might be a little different when you start includin' nonhumans, but even so, there's a reason Raikou said that.

I mean, you saw him for yourselves, right?

...Yes.

？！

The way things're goin' now, Tsuna's the clear favorite to win the whole Imperial Holy Grail War.

...Master.

？！

I agree. After all...

While it could be that this Imperial Holy Grail War is simply a variant of the traditional Holy Grail War...

...it is odd that there was no mention whatsoever of the Holy Grail in question.

That is far too big an error to merely be an oversight.

So the much more likely explanation is that this is Limbo's trap.

Limbo? What's that?

Oh, yes. Allow me to explain.

Caster of Limbo, also known as the Alter Ego Limbo, is an irredeemably evil monk that...

...Now I gotcha.

And you two're tryin' to nail this creep to the wall, huh?

That's right.

We suspect Limbo's True Name is Ashiya Douman, the onmyouji.

...You don't say.

The details of Douman's death have never been made clear in human history...

...so it is entirely possible that he could still be alive in 1008, the fifth year of Kankou.

We do not yet know what connection, if any, Limbo may have to the living, breathing Douman, but this Grail War itself...

...would almost certainly be his work, no?

？！

Yeah, that's right. Lord Seimei's the guy who originally came up with this Imperial Holy Grail War thing. But there's some room for doubt on that.

Is there now?

In our circles, it is generally believed that Lord Seimei passed away in the second year of Kankou, but

Hah, is that so! Yeah, Lord Seimei might look young, but he's actually pretty old.

There's been rumors for a long time that he's actually the second or even third to bear the name, so it wouldn't surprise me at all if that got passed down to future generations.

But anyway.

I think it was about a month ago when Lord Seimei disappeared to who knows where.

We only learned about this Imperial Holy Grail War from a letter he sent.

... ...

Th-that does sound suspicious.

Right?

Boss Raikou tried to tell the Minister of the Left that we shouldn't be so quick to trust something we know nothin' about...

...but that rat bastarI mean, His Imperial Magistrate...

...just laughed and said a few foreign Casters' lives were a small price to pay for a thousand years of peace!

And that ain't all. The guy who's basically runnin' the whole Onmyou Bureau in Lord Seimei's absence...

...is Lord Ashiya Douman.

!

That's...

That's...!

Crazy suspicious? Yeah, I think so too.

Yeah, part of that's 'cause of what you told me about this Limbo guy, but it's also 'cause, well, Lord Douman's always been somethin' of a schemer.

Though I guess you could say the same about the Minister of the Left and Lord Seimei, too...

I-I see.

？！

...Anyway...

...Well...

...Far as I know, this city's a hotbed of all the worst kinda stuff. Conspiracies, assassinations, curses, you name it.

Sure, we ain't never had anythin' as outright crazy as this Imperial Holy Grail War before, but I've heard stories about plenty of other kinds of spells, good and bad alike.

Good people, evil people, they all die by the cartload here. Take just a few steps off the main roads, and you're about guaranteed to run into monsters.

Or oni. Or tsuchigumo.

And then there's all the manors and Bandou rebels out in Azuma Province who don't give a flyin' fig about Kyo's authority.

So yeah, let's just say that us Heian warriors have got our work cut out for us.

Trust me, this city's way scarier than anythin' I saw on the mountain where I grew up.

？！

...That might be what this all boils down to, really.

The whole reason the Minister of the Left decided to pin all his hopes on this Imperial Holy Grail War to provide Kyo with a thousand years of peace...

...might be 'cause there ain't no other chance at peace otherwise.

... ...

...A wish, huh.

I guess one thing all the Masters takin' part in this Imperial Holy Grail War have in common...

...is that they all got some kinda wish they want granted.

Lord Kintoki? Why did you put down your axe?

What are you doing with your glove

!

？！

Command Spells!?

Oh, yeah! That's what these glowin' red marks are called, ain't it?

Yup, as it turns out, I'm actually one of the Imperial Holy Grail War Masters myself.

So you know what I'm thinkin'?

I'm thinkin' you might just be my Servant, Fujimaru!

Ahh, how pleasant.

How very pleasant indeed to have one's plan go so swimmingly.

Mmmmmm... A ritual that could not possibly exist in any hypothetical version of human history...

The impossible Imperial Holy Grail War!

Indeed, this represents the culmination of all the independent research I conducted as a Disciple of the Foreign God!

So I do so hope you enjoy this Pseudo-Parallel World I have created...

...including all the many personal touches I have added to better suit my tastes...

My dear Chaldeans...

...when all is said and done, the last laugh shall be mine!

So please, do enjoy what I have in store for you...

...right to the very end!

(Sigh)...

Gotcha.

Guess I had it all wrong then.

Don't be. It's nothin' you need to apologize for.

Don't worry about it! It's my fault for gettin' my own hopes up!

I mean, it's still disappointin', but I'll get over it.

？！

(Sigh) So you're not a Servant after all, huh.

Instead, the Servant's this lady, and she's more of a scout than a spell caster.

I don't get it!

You do not? Oh...

I-I suppose I just assumed you understood the situation based on what Lord Tsuna said earlier.

Ohhh.

So THAT'S why Tsuna let you guys go! I thought it was weird for him to give up on a target like that!

Now I gotcha! It's all 'cause you weren't the quarry he was lookin' for in the first place!

That explains...

...a lot...?

All right, hang on. If you two don't have anything to do with the Imperial Holy Grail War...

...then what in the world are you?

Hmm, all right. The Pruning Theoretical Phenomenon, Lostbelts, Rayshifting, and Singularities, huh...

And basically, you guys are guests from waaay in the futurelike, tomorrow's tomorrow's tomorrow.

Well, a long ways past that, really.

Hmm. Hmmm.

Man, this stuff's hard to wrap your head around!

But that's okay. I believe you. And as far as I can tell, you guys ain't the lyin' type!

Besides, it looks like I was still right about somethin'.

You are lost, aren't ya?

？！

So you're lookin' for a way to get home, and you wanna find your friends you got separated from, huh.

Now we're talkin'!

Don't worry, I'll have ya back home in a flash.

...Well, I guess it might not be THAT easy, but the point is, don't worry.

Whatever it takes to get you back to this Chaldea place, I'll figure it out.

I'll get you home safe and sound! You have my word!

Of course, that goes for you too, Servant lady.

Thank you for your help. I am deeply grateful for your kindness.

Don't worry 'bout it! Everyone needs help sometimes, right?

'Sides, it's not like I've got anywhere to go, either!

Hm? What do you mean?

You are one of Raikou's Four Heavenly Kings, are you not?

And during this time period, Lady Minamoto-no-Raikou was charged by Minister of the Left Fujiwara-no-Michinaga with the task of keeping the city of Kyo safe.

So as one of her most prized retainers, surely you must also have a house or two of your own?

Or perhaps Lady Raikou has put you up in her own house?

Well, uh, how can I put this...? It's complicated.

Yeah, I am part of the Genji clan, and one of the Four Heavenly Kings...

...but I've, uh, got my reasons for wantin' to keep my distance from Raikou right now.

Basically, I guess you could say...

...I kinda ran away?

Hahaha! I'm glad you understand!

You got it!

？！

Sorry 'bout that. I wish I had a place you could stay!

But the only places that'd put you up on my say-so are ones with ties to the Genji clan.

Which means Brother Tsuna could show up there at any time, so that obviously ain't gonna work.

I've been stayin' outta his way all right for the past few days, but now that he said he's gonna take a look at my hand the next time he sees me, well...

？！

Hey now, what're you apologizin' for?

You were in a bind, so I helped ya. Nothin' else to it.

These Command Spell marks on my hand ain't got nothing to do with you.

Man, you're a real stickler for this stuff, huh.

All right, all right, you can owe me a favor then.

You know, you're a lot more stubborn than I would've guessed.

So that's how it is, huh? I like it! All right then, you officially owe me a favor!

You know, I'm okay with that kind of hardheadedness. Hell, I even find it endearing.

Good thing too, since I'm pretty hardheaded myself! Haha!

？！

Hm?

An ox-drawn carriage? At this hour?

Must be some court noble on their way back home from a poetry readin' or somethin'.

C'mere, you two, over this way so you don't get in their way.

Right.

...?

The oxcart just stopped in front of us. What is

Well now, this is a surprise.

Do tell, what are a tall, handsome man, a young boy in strange clothing, and a beautiful black-haired woman all doing out here in the dead of night?

Are you perhaps looking for a place to stay?

Oh, uh, thank you for your concern, Ms. Noble, but you don't have to worry about us.

We're part of the Genji clan. Keepin' Kyo safe at night is our duty.

I see. The Genji clan, is it?

... ...

Pfft.

Why so formal, Kaidoumaru!? C'mon, get that stick out of your ass!

!

Go on, let your hair down. It's not like we don't already know each other!

So what's going on? If you need help, I, NagikoI mean, Kiyoko, might just be able to provide it.

？！

...!

Whoa! Sei Shounago

I mean, Kiyoko! It's you!

Hehe. Long time no see, Blondy!

So what're you doin' out here at this time of night, anyway? You looking for someone to help keep your bed warm or something?

I guess it has been a while, hasn't it? Uh, what was that about my bed?

Is that more of your mainland poetry? I don't get it.

Wahaha, don't worry about it. I was just saying the first thing that came to mind!

？！

Hm?

Hey now, cut that out. Hasn't anyone ever taught you it's rude to stare?

Hm? Oh?

Well now, I haven't heard that name in a long time.

Did you read a copy of some of my work or something? Bit of a bookworm, too?

Read anything good lately? I found something recently that is so

Y-yes, it is! Sei Shounagon made a name for herself as a poet during the Heian period! It's said she served the wife of Emperor Ichijou, Empress Fujiwara-no-Teishi.

... ...

Man, that takes me back. I haven't heard those names in a long time.

？！

Wait, hang on. Have we met before? Maybe back when I was still in the palace?

...Nah, that can't be it. You'd have still been a little kid back then.

？！

Whoa there, Fujimaru! There's two things you should never discuss with Sei Shouna Kiyoko: her age, and her name!

She's put a lotta work into makin' herself look young, ya see. Her real age's

WahahahaSei!

Ow.

Lord Kintoki, Lord Kintoki, could you please tell us how you came to know this lady?

Hm? Oh, uh, lemme see...

Well, I can't say exactly which family she's from, but Kiyoko here's a genuine noble.

I know you two might not have any business with the palace right now, but if you're gonna be stayin' around the city, it won't hurt to take this chance to introduce yourselves.

As for me, well, back when I was a kid who just couldn't get used to life in the big city...

Hehe, let's just say she helped me out of a few jams.

Yup, that about sums it up!

I know I might not look like it, but I actually love helping people out.

(I see.)

(According to the stories told in the Edo period, Lord Kintoki was born several years before Lady Sei Shounagon.)

(But in reality, it seems Lady Sei Shounagon was actually the older of the two.)

(...Of course, this would hardly be the first time a Heroic Spirit did not exactly line up with their real-life counterpart.)

(I mean, in my case, I am a puppet, so.)

Anyway, what's going on tonight?

Oh, does it have anything to do with Lord Michinaga's latest scheme?

Haha, as if that'd narrow it down, considering how many schemes he's always got goin' on! Nah, I just ran away from home, and I'm still runnin'.

Hmm, I see.

Did something happen back at the main Genji house? Or maybe Lord Mitsunaka demanded Lady Raikou give up her leadership position?

If it's going down how I think it's going down, then Lord Mitsunaka's being a real piece of work.

My bet is he wants Lady Raikou to give up leadership while keeping her in charge of fighting and stuff so he can declare one of his other kids leader and force her to form a branch clan entirely.

What's the main house gotta do with me runnin' away? Nah, this is just my own little screwup.

I guess I could've left the city altogether, but there's...reasons I need to stick around.

So I was just tryin' to think of a place where we could take shelter for the night.

Hmm hmm, I see, I see.

So you need a place that'd be brave enough to take in three strange visitors in the middle of the night, huh?

Lucky for you, I know just the place!

Whoa, you do?

I sure do.

I'd invite you guys to stay at my place, but three new guests all at once would be a little much for a semiretired woman like me.

Now come on, follow me! Let's get moving again, driver!

Yes, ma'am.

You get in the carriage with Kiyoko, Danzo. Don't want you trippin' in the dark and making your injuries worse.

Thank you, but I will stay by Master's side.

？！

But, what about

？！

...Understood. Thank you.

Welp, looks like you and me are walkin' then, Fujimaru.

Man, this sure was a heck of a coincidence, running into you guys out here like this.

Lucky I did, too. These days, not even the main roads are completely safe.

Sure can't hurt to have a warrior of Genji around just in case.

I see...

(Speaking of Sei Shounagon and the Genji...)

(...I believe her brother, Lord Kiyohara-no-Munenobu, eventually loses his life to someone from the Genji family.)

(Not that I can say anything about that now...)

The main roads are usually pretty safe, but things have been weird even on them the last few days.

... ...

...The last few days, huh.

Whoa there. Looks like Kiyoko was tellin' the truth! Fujimaru!

？！

I see 'em! Don't worry, Danzo, you stay put!

Me and Fujimaru can handle them ourselves! All right, let's do this!

There! That's the last of 'em!

？！

Thanks! You too!

Anyone hurt? No? Great.

These kinds of battles don't bother me at all, but...

？！

Well, it's just...

... ...

......

...I'm a little unsure about what to do.

Okay, we're here!

What is this place?

Ever heard of "The Tale of Genji"? It's all the rage in Kyo right now!

Well, its author, Murasaki Shikibu, lives here!

？！

Is Lady Murasaki a friend of yours, Lady Kiyoko?

Nah, I've never met her.

You haven't!?

But I'd bet anything she's, like, THE graceful noblewoman's noblewoman.

So I'm sure she's the type of girl who'd never abandon anybody in trouble!

(Come on, she's gotta be too old to be called a girl by now, right?)

Sei!

Ow!

Anyway, the point is, we've arrived at Murasaki Shikibu's house.

She's a lady-in-waiting for Empress Shoushi, so when she's not writing stories, she works at the palace.

？！

Hmm. In that case...

Just tell her that Kusa-no-Iori sends her regards.

I'm pretty sure... No, I'm positive she'll know what that means! Ahaha!

Hmm.

All right, my house is over there, so this is where we part. See you guys some other time.

Bye, Kiyoko. Thanks for the help!

W-wait!

We just ran into some monsters not too long ago.

Is it not dangerous to travel along the main road at night with only a bare minimum of attendants?

Not necessarily. Noble carriages like that always have several shikigami with them.

They might not be able to handle a tsuchigumo, but those're kept out by the Bounded Field the Onmyou Bureau set up around the main roads, anyway.

But the carriage shikigami can handle any smaller monsters that come around no problem.

？！

Personally, I'd just as soon not have to depend on any onmyouji for help...

...but, times being what they are, I can't afford to be picky.

Shikigami...

Then, why did you and Master defeat those monsters we encountered earlier?

Oh, that? Well...

I was sorta just givin' Kiyoko a show to thank her for her help.

And I totally enjoyed it! But that doesn't mean you should take too many risks out there, 'kay?

'Cause if there's one thing I hate, it's people dying young from a little mischief that got out of hand.

All right, I'm really going now! Good niiight!

Okay! Let's go ask this Lady Murasaki here to put us up!

I-I'm sorry?

Um...

I-I do beg your pardon, but...

...I'm afraid I just don't understand what this is all about.

For starters...

...who in the world is this Kiyoko person you mentioned?

I recognize you as Lord Sakata Kintoki of the Genji family, of course. I've seen you around Lord Michinaga's mansion a number of times.

That's me! And here I thought we were meetin' each other for the first time.

Sorry for not recognizin' ya from the Minister of the Left's place.

O-oh, no, that's quite all right.

I-I mean...

Wh-what is it that brings you to my house at this hour of the night, Lord Kintoki?

D-did... Um...

Did I make a terrible mistake at the palace or something?

？！

I agree, Lord Fujimaru. Do forgive us for intruding so late.

Don't worry, Lady Murasaki. You didn't do anythin' wrong.

!!!

I-I, um... I only use that name when I'm writing, so...

...please, just call me Kaoruko.

Oh? 'Kay, got it.

Anyway, don't worry. I know Brother Tsuna likes to play at bein' an officer, but that ain't my thing.

We ain't here to bring you in for any wrongdoin' at all. Actually, we kinda need your help.

Huh?

(Gasp of realization)

Come to think of it, Lord Watanabe-no-Tsuna did appear to be dressed like a police officer.

And yet, as far as my records show, there is no mention of him ever actually serving as such.

Huh, really?

So that's how things are in the future? You don't have exact records of anything and everything, eh?

See, Tsuna's not exactly a typical, proper officer. When he was first ordered to protect the city...

...he said it was only right for him to learn how to be an officer too. He went to the Bureau on his own and asked them to make him one.

He's nothin' if not responsible, that's for sure.

Huh?

Records? Lord Tsuna?

？！

Y-yes?

？！

Kusa-no...Iori...

!!!

Kusa-no-Iori? Th-th-then, that must mean...

I-I-I see... Lady Sei Shounagon sent that message, did she?

E-even though I've never met her in the palace, or even so much as spoken to her...

I see...

V-very well, I suppose it would be rude of me to turn away guests on such a cold night...

All right, I'll have a room made up for you. Well, two rooms, since you have a woman accompanying

Oh, no, that's quite all right! Please, pay me no mind.

So I would ask that you let us all share a room, if that is all right.

？！

Huh?

Uh, yeah, I guess so.

(That prob'ly is for the best, given the circumstances.)

I-I see. Very well, I'll convey your wishes to the servants.

...Are you truly certain about this?

We are. Please, pay it no mind.

I-I see. Very well then.

You're very, um, open-minded, aren't you? And free-spirited, judging from your manner of dress...

?

Phew! It's good to finally take a load off!

I'll have to make this up to Kiyoko somehow. And to Lady Kaoruko, of course.

Master. Lord Fujimaru.

We have been fighting a great deal from the moment we Rayshifted here, so please, get some rest. I will focus on doing the same.

Not at all.

You are too kind, Master. Rest assured, I will be back to peak condition by tomorrow morning.

？！

And most importantly, I can finally begin following our original itinerary.

Whoa, the servants even laid out shitone for us. That's real considerate of 'em.

Shitone. That's a kind of mat used for sleeping, correct?

And they gave us hot water, too, hehe. This is a real nice change of pace after several days spent campin' out.

Plus, if I'd stayed out there, it'd prob'ly just be a matter of time till Raikou found me and gave me a good scolding.

I can almost hear her tellin' me "You're no longer on the mountain where you grew up, Kintoki," hehe. Makes me nervous just thinkin' about it.

？！

Get Raikou to help us, huh.

True, Raikou'd definitely be willing to believe all the crazy stuff you've told me.

She's a lot more open-minded than most warriors, that's for sure.

But, uh...now's not a good time.

See, Boss Raikou hasn't really been herself lately.

She's been holing up in her house since the Imperial Holy Grail War started...

...and she didn't even come out when she heard that both Brother Usui and Uncle Urabe had been injured.

I don't know if she's just broken up about the idea of her fellow Genji fightin' among themselves, or...

(Or if she's one of the Masters, too.)

Senpai!

Master!

Fooou! Fou!

Aah!

Wh-what the...!? Are those ghosts!? No, wait, that ain't it...

Aha, I think I've seen this kinda thing somewhere before. This some kind of sorcery or onmyou spell of yours?

You mean someone developed a method of video transmission even in the Heian period!? Er, but never mind that now.

Master! In accordance with our original plan, I've activated my full functionality!

And I have just succeeded at establishing contact with Novum Chaldea!

Thank you, Master!

You are too kind, Master!

？！

(Novum Chaldea... So this must be that place way off beyond tomorrow's tomorrow.)

(Damn, this is really something.)

Good, the video connection is holding steady, too! I can see you, Danzo, and...

Ooh! Is that...!?

The Sakata Kintoki of Heian-kyo!?

Thank goodness you're both okay! And I see you've already managed to secure help from one of the locals!

We are! I'm so glad you're okay too, Senpai!

I mean, the fragment of Sheba in the round shield...

Or rather, the Observation Lens Sheba's signal was still strong, so I knew on a rational level that you were okay, but still...

(They're both sayin' the same thing. Hmm... Aha, that's it!)

(Maybe they're siblings?)

(Well, they don't look alike, but...)

(Ah, whatever!)

I-I'm afraid so!

That's correct, Master.

？！

Did something interfere with the Rayshift!?

We believe so. And Lady Sion's calculations say that's the most likely explanation as well.

Both Lady Mash and I were unable to Rayshift there, and instead were left behind here at Novum Chaldea.

We quickly tried to Rayshift again, of course, but it failed in the same way...

It appears to be an advanced jamming method that bypasses every anti-interference safeguard we have in place! We're looking into a way around it, but we still have yet to come up with anything.

I'm so sorry, Master...

？！

I'm glad to see you're safe, but the situation...isn't great.

The reason you and Katou Danzo were the only two to Rayshift there successfully...

...is that whoever was interfering with it considers you two special cases.

In other words, you're basically welcome guests.

I see. So nobody besides us is welcome here.

But who could be the one inviting us...

I'm sorry, that was foolish of me.

？！

Yes. I agree. That is almost certainly the case.

... ...

Hmm.

Sorry to butt in, but there's a lotta things I'm not gettin' here, and one thing I wanna make sure of.

So the companions you guys thought you came here with are back at this Chaldea place, yeah?

That right?

？！

Got it. That's great news!

This means we don't hafta run around searchin' Kyo for them!

Right!?

Yes, that's true...

I feel as though we may be saying the same thing in different ways, but yes, this does mean we have achieved one of our goals, though without acting.

Actually, make that two, since we also managed to find a local willing to help us. And that just leaves

？！

Right.

？！

Indeed it does. Now we can finally begin the operation in earnest.

There ya go! That's the spirit!

Ah! Master!?

A-are you okay, Senpai!?

Um, Kintoki, do you think you could pull your punum, slaps a little more next time?

O-oh, sure. Sorry 'bout that.

？！

So, hey, you there, the tiny pretty one. What's your deal?

You're not just an ordinary kid, right? I'm sensing somethin' powerful from you.

You an onmyouji? A sage? Maybe some kinda tengu?

Not that I know if they even got those in your time...

Hmm... Was the "tiny" part really necessary?

Oh well, I can roll with it. I can't deny that I look pretty young in this form.

Anyway, I'm Leonardo da Vinci, friend of Fujimaru's and unparalleled genius.

Damn, so you're an honest-to-goodness prodigy, huh? That's real impressive.

I'm Sakata Kintoki, Genji warrior. Nice to meet ya!

And I'm Sherlock Holmes. It's a pleasure, Sakata Kintoki.

(Oh?)

(Looks like we got yet another new guy here.)

(And there's somethin' about this one that reminds me of Lord Seimei. Man, Chaldea must be a hell of a place!)

All right, here is the situation as we understand it.

We believe that both Fujimaru and Katou Danzo...

...were explicitly invited to the city of Heian-kyo in the year 1008.

Invited by whom, you may ask? Limbo, naturally.

While it was an unfortunate surprise to learn that Mash Kyrielight and Fuuma Kotarou were unable to accompany you on your Rayshift...

...everything else has unfolded just as we predicted.

Limbo has gone out of his way to create a new Singularitya black mark on human history.

His targets are almost certainly you, Fujimaru, for having been an obstruction to his plans so many times...

...and Katou Danzo, with whom he has history of sorts.

I doubt his plan here is to achieve final victory. Rather, his goal is likely to simply be toying with you on his home ground. Nothing more.

Now that he has cut you off from any aid, and seems focused on boxing you both in on all sides...

...he has clearly foregone any pretense of strategy in favor of indulging his...proclivities...

...foul and steeped in death and pain as they are.

And that is all there is to say. I suspected he may have someone helping him before you two Rayshifted there...

...but I am at this stage absolutely certain no such collaborator exists.

Limbo is the one behind this, and he is acting entirely on his own.

Hahaha.

I may not be back at one-hundred-percent just yet, but for something this obvious, I assure you I'm more than equal to the task.

？！

I mean, it doesn't get more obvious than the bad guy outright signing their work.

I gotta tell you, I was NOT expecting to see a bunch of letters in the logs for Mash and Kotarou's failed Rayshifts!

Letters?

That's right. The letters:

D

O U

M

A

N

Bufou!

？！

So what, this guy put his name in as some kinda message?

Indeed. This is clearly Douman telling us he is the one behind all this.

If that's s'posed to be some kinda joke, it ain't funny.

So basically, whoever this guy is, Limbo or Lord Ashiya Douman or whoever, he's outright darin' you guys to come after him.

Ha! The guy's gotta be a real piece of work to straight up sign his name like that!

...Indeed.

That said, I still do not understand. If Limbo's goal is to seek revenge on us...

...then what is the point of this Imperial Holy Grail War ritual?

An Imperial Holy Grail War...

I've not heard that term before. Tell us everything you know.

Really?

So the only Servants being summoned are Casters? That's certainly a decision.

It sounds like he's taken the whole Holy Grail War concept of summoning Heroic Spirits and...downsized it or something.

But if he did it like that, then this Holy Grail's capacity for granting wishes couldn't possibly be

Omnipotent? No, it certainly couldn't. Which means the part about the winner having a wish granted must be a lie.

In which case, what if the Grail were restricted to a single function only?

...I think that could work.

The idea of using Heroic Spirits' souls as an incredible source of magical energy has been around since long before Holy Grail Wars were even a thing.

If you just wanted to use them as a power source for a single goal, it wouldn't matter how unbalanced that source ended up being.

I think... Yeah. It could definitely work.

Well, if our resident Uomo Universale says it would work, I, for one, am inclined to believe her.

Then if we assume that this Imperial Holy Grail War is designed with a single purpose in mind...

...the next question to ask would quite naturally be, "What is that purpose?"

Personally...I suspect it is to transform the very world itself.

...!

D-do you mean...

...as in to change the world in whatever way the wisher desires?

？！

Naturally.

Think back to the events of Shimousa.

A great ritual was held there that involved the deaths of countless human souls and several Heroic Spirits...

...and as a result, Shimousa became a Pseudo-Parallel World of sortsa pseudo-Lostbelt, if you will.

That's true. According to our records, Shimousa's Onriedo Castle was functionally equivalent to a Lostbelt's Tree of Emptiness.

You could even call it a Pseudo-Tree of Emptiness.

So, maybe Limbo's planning to use this Imperial Holy Grail War as a means to create something similar...

...so he can make Heian-kyo into a Lostbelt? Nnn, but why would he want to do that?

Hmm.

Perhaps he wishes to have the Foreign God manifest in the Heian period?

!

Could that be...!?

？！

Precisely. Now that the Foreign God has manifested in Olympus, they should have no further need of a vessel.

Unless perhaps as a spare? ...No, I cannot see any way a transcendent being of that magnitude would require anything like a spare.

And let's not forget, with nothing but Caster souls in the mix, the result's not exactly gonna be balanced.

Like I said before, it's no easy feat to keep the magical energy source for such a massive spell stable.

Even if the ritual is designed for just a single purpose, any imbalance in the Heroic Spirit souls used to power it could still cause the whole spell to implode!

Hmmm. There must be some trick we're not seeing...

Unless...maybe the whole thing's just some kind of twisted prank...?

Huh?

Aw crap.

We're losing our connection! Senpai!

Perhaps Limbo finally noticed our connection? Or, perhaps he wants to cut us off before we realize something he'd rather we not know.

Regardless, Fujimaru, it is absolutely imperative that you stop this ritual from being completed!

If every Heroic Spirit materialized there is killed...

...Heian-kyo could be subjected to a new Pseudo-Tree of Emptiness, just like what happened in Shimousa!

And that would result in two concurrent and existential threats to Proper Human History: a Singularity and a Lostbelt all in one!

That's just a possibility for now, not a certainty, but either way, you watch your back out there!

We'll continue trying to establish contact until we get through again!

So please...keep your...comms line...open...

？！

Sen...pai...!

Oh my.

It seems I got a bit carried away. HeheheheheHEHE.

Really, Chaldeans, you could at least TRY to secure your communications a little. As it is now, it only took a flick of my fingers to sever them entirely!

Ah well. In any case...

I think that detective explained quite enough of my plan.

We do need to save some surprises for later, after all.

Now then...

Master of Chaldea. My beautiful marionette.

Mmmmm, from this point onward, we will be engaged in a contest of pure strength! Come, and let us compete to see which of us can slaughter the most innocents!

HeheheheHEHEHEHE. HahaHAHA.

HahahahahahahahahaHAHAHAHAHA!!!