Holy Grail War/your starlit

On that note, allow me to officially welcome you to our world, visitors from the outside.

Good of you to come as well, Āyus, prime AI of the Type Rs. And your Servant, Berserker.

So you're the central governing AI, huh? Hmm...

Hey, stop staring at her! Don't you know that's rude?

...Ahem. Thank you, Governor.

Um, I didn't really know what to do after these people saved us...

...so I thought I'd bring them here and ask you, well, everything I didn't have an answer for... Is that okay?

You made the right call. Part of my job is dealing with unexpected problems whenever they

Hrm!?

Warning. Any attempts to forcibly access my inner workings...

...could put every function under my supervision at critical risk.

I do not recommend this course of action; I certainly don't approve of it.

Were I to abandon the nomenclature associated with the systems I govern, I might simply say...

What the hell do you think you're doing?

Pardon me. Before we go any further, I thought I should verify what kind of being you are.

Since you have introduced yourself, I will do the same.

My name is Sion Eltnam Sokaris. I used to be the Paper Moon's caretaker.

Could you search my name to see if I have administrator access?

Searching... No results.

But even if you were once the Paper Moon's caretaker, I have no way of determining that.

All I can say in response is, "Is that so?"

Hold up. If you really did design and manage this world, wouldn't that make you its god or something?

So why the hell do you apparently not even have the authority to tell this living doll what to do?

...I only had custody over the Paper Moon as a device.

But this world, and the AIs that spawned inside it, are that device's contents.

So when you think about it, it makes sense that I would not have direct administrative access over them.

Our god... I see. That's certainly a fascinating idea.

Then in accordance with the basic information I have on the outside world, let me ask you this:

If a being you had never seen before were to suddenly appear and declare themself your world's god...

...how would humans typically react?

Well...I guess all we could do is say, "Is that so?"

I see.

Then it seems my reaction was correct, since these circumstances are essentially the same as my hypothetical.

...Well, I suppose it is no big deal.

For my part, I do not intend to declare myself the god of a bunch of AIs I have no recollection of making.

Besides, I was able to learn some things from the brief moment I touched you with my Etherlite.

？！

Her disposition and mass.

If I really had created her, then just like a programmer reading their own code...

...I should have been able to read and modify any and all information about her.

But I was unable to learn anything more than I would if I had examined another human.

Remember what I said about perceiving this world via the paradigm with which we are familiar?

In this case, it means that I can only relate to her as a person, not as a creation I can manipulate however I like.

If I were to guess...

...the fact that you have tangible bodies here means that, componentwise, you are the same kind of being as us.

Even so, I can say that Rani-XII here is indeed an AI.

I felt the same reaction from her as I did when I touched Āyus with Etherlite.

Huh? When did you do that? Don't touch me without at least saying something. It's embarrassing...

There are some things I can say about you as well.

I searched you using my full authority as the central governing AI, and it's clear you are not AI yourselves.

In fact, you weren't created inside the Paper Moon at all. Which means you must be visitors from the outside.

This means you are not of this world but possess the same structural integrity as AIs like us, though you are yourselves not AIs.

Hm? So...they're outsiders who just happened to end up here?

Unfortunately, their presence here may not be entirely coincidental. Since two of them are Master and Servant...

...I would guess that they've also been selected to take part in the System Grail War.

Normally, all Masters would be chosen from among this world's AIs...

...and given a set of randomized modifications.

？！

The prime AIs that are chosen to become Masters may be of different types but they're all still R.A.N.I. Series at their core.

We thought that, were they to all become Masters under identical conditions...

...they would all end up using the same strategies and taking the same actions.

That wouldn't work for the System Grail War, which expects a certain degree of active, irregular resource allocation.

So we arranged things to ensure each AI would be assigned a set of random individual traits when they became a Master.

In summary, the Master AIs are prime AIs who were randomly transformed in both appearance and personality.

Now, with that in mind, let's turn the subject back to you.

Since you possess a similar structural integrity to the Master AIs...

...I would guess you've been caught up in the System Grail War for reasons that are still not clear to me.

We have no desire to participate either, of course.

Is it possible for you to sever our connection to that system and return us to the outside world?

Unfortunately, no.

The Grail War is executed by the world itself.

As the central governing AI, part of my job is to oversee the war...

...but I can't intervene in the actual system.

The most I can do is run add-ons or mods based on the existing rules.

There's nothing I can do to change the rules themselves.

？！

You showed up here right when the System Grail War was starting...

...in a form that ties you directly to it.

This would seem to indicate that the system, for whatever reason...

...elected to reach into the outside world to bring the three of you here during its initial execution.

In which case, I think completing or ending the System Grail War may trigger your return to the outside.

I guess that's the only clue we have to go on.

Well, fine.

Then can you tell us more about this System Grail War?

？！

Of course. To begin...

...the System Grail War is meant to repair and stabilize the Paper Moon's world whenever an irregularity of some kind occurs.

You could think of it as an optimization or defragmentation routine which is executed at a worldwide scale.

Now that you mention it, before this happened to us, the Paper Moon was malfunctioning for reasons we could not determine.

And you say this system is designed to correct those kinds of malfunctions?

Correct.

We don't know what caused the malfunction either. All the AIs remained fully functional as normal.

It may be that the world chose to execute its most powerful stabilization routine specifically because nobody knows why this happened.

However, the Paper Moon is also very unlikely to return to normal form so long as the System Grail War is ongoing.

If we ignore it, the strain could continue to increase until the Paper Moon is no longer able to function normally again.

I cannot say what such a situation might be like, as I've never experienced anything like it.

I'm not able to simulate one, either.

At worst, it is possible the entire world could quite literally shatter.

？！

Good grief.

Shouldn't you be more worried about what would happen to US if things came to that?

Let me tell you the AI Holy Grail Warthat is, the System Grail War's rules.

As you can tell from the name, this Grail War's Masters are usually all AIs; five of them, specifically.

I believe you already know this, but those AIs are the prime AIs based on the respective AI type of each of this world's partitions.

These include Keep, Transfer, Build, Grow, and Repair.

In order to ensure individuality among Masters...

...each prime AI is given a randomized personality and a single Command Spell.

One of those Masters is right over there.

That's me. Like I said before, I'm the Master representing the Repair partition!

Five AIs? In the Holy Grail Wars we know, there are usually seven Masters. It is only five here?

That's right. It's because we only have five usable areasthe partitions.

The Defend area's Type D AIs need to focus on dealing with the bugs that naturally occur in this world, so they never get involved in the Grail War.

Furthermore, as the central area, Defend is also the only partition with a neutral zone.

This church is under my jurisdiction as the Grail War's overseer. Combat of any sort is prohibited here.

And any nonpeaceful interference with regular AIs, including Defend's Type Ds, is prohibited in all the other areas as well.

... ...

Once the Master AIs are sufficiently diversified, they each summon a Servant and fight to determine the victor.

Once the last Master AI remaining is determined...

...the system takes all the energy that was accumulated via combat...

...and uses it to restore the Paper Moon to working order.

So my guess is that a sixth team won't have any adverse effects on the system.

I see. So weor rather, he and Kama, are a sixth Master and Servant pair that do not correspond to any of the districts.

So that really is what this means? Nnn, that's going to be a problem...right?

Exactly. Now do you see? I knew I was right to atta

Ahem. I mean, ambush them earlier to see how strong they were. Purely for training reasons, of course.

But, a Holy Grail War can only have one victor.

If you're given a chance to thin out the competition, it only makes sense to take that opportunity.

After all, both Master and Servant alike have a reason for wanting to win.

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Oh come on, you really don't get it?

The winner is granted any wish they like.

That's why Masters and Servants fight together to try and achieve victory.

Hell, that's the whole reason the Holy Grail War exists in the first place, right?

AI Masters have a duty to restore the Paper Moon's world to normal working order.

Regardless of the randomized personality they are given, that core duty won't change.

Furthermore, the AI who wins the System Grail War...

...becomes the next central governing AI.

That AI is then upgraded and given the right to customize the next version of the world.

Should the new personality happen to instill in them a wish, it likely also enables them to acquire whatever that wish might be.

That is how our world continually undergoes change, bringing with it much needed diversity.

And the same is true for the winning Servant.

That Servant is given the right to remain a resident of the new world and to have a wish granted, so long as it is within the central governing AI's power to grant.

We called this concept of granting the winners' wishes "the Holy Grail"...

...which is why this ritual is sometimes referred to as the AI Holy Grail War as well as the System Grail War.

Yeah, I don't really care what it's called. What I want to know is, what happens if a non-AI Master like Fujimaru here wins?

I doubt you would be given the authority to become the next central governing AI.

So in that scenario, I promise I would do everything I can to grant your wish instead.

Hmm. Is that so?

There's still a lot we don't know about this situation, and we definitely can't be sure that dying in here won't result in our minds dying out there.

I'll tell you right now that our wish is to leave this place and get back to the outside world.

So, to have that wish granted, and so we don't die while we're here, we need to win this Holy Grail War. That about right?

That is what it boils down to, yes. And since the condition for stopping the System Grail War is to have only one team left standing...

...the addition of an unexpected sixth team does not meaningfully change the proceedings. If you want to end this Holy Grail War, you will have to fight and win.

I see. Then I guess in one sense, you were right to try and ambush us, Berserker.

I don't know what kind of wish you're looking to make yourselves...

...but either way, it looks like we're going to have to try and kill each other sooner or later.

Oh, you finally figured it out? Essentially, yes, that's what it all comes down to.

I'm sure it's not easy, but try to keep up with me, okay?

Are your memory spaces malfunctioning?

Let me remind you that this church is a neutral zone. Fighting is strictly prohibited.

If you violate that rule, every Type D in this area will swarm and capture you, if not eliminate you outright.

You will also be disqualified from the Holy Grail War.

But why waste time? It just makes sense to get rid of them now.

Kindly shut your hole.

(Kindly shut my hole?)

The rules are in place for a reason. Formulas must be upheld.

As the central governing AI, I will not tolerate any exceptions.

Ooh! Me too! I also think fighting here would be a bad idea!

Um, though that's not to say fighting somewhere else would be a good one...

Look. Since you guys are an anomalous sixth team, you don't have your own home base area, right?

Of course not.

Then how about we work together until we're the last two teams standing?

At that point, we can have a good, clean fight to wrap things up. No hard feelings!

That way, I can pay you back for saving us and you can come and go from the Repair partition as you like.

I mean, I think you'll have a pretty hard time here without your own area. After all...

Indeed. Without your own area, it will be very difficult to replenish your Raniment.

Raniment... So basically, our magical energy here.

Generally speaking, Raniment is something all AIs possess.

The more Raniment you can collect through trade, negotiation, and so on...

...the more resources you will have for your Servant, which will in turn give you an advantage in battle.

Trade and negotiation? Why would other AIs bother with those? Wouldn't they only care about making sure their leader wins?

Usually, yes. However, AIs do each have free will.

In addition, they have their own desires to fulfill their given function.

So by assisting any AI who cannot fulfill their functions for one reason or another...

...you should be able to acquire Raniment from other AIs even if they're from a different area.

If they want to give you Raniment for whatever reason, I'm certain they will.

Well...technically, it would also be possible to extract Raniment from AIs who are unwilling to give it away.

I see. So that is why that Caster was attacking the Repair AIs.

He was trying to steal a resource which is essentially life force, magical energy, and currency all in one.

Yeah. And who's going to just sit back and let someone like that take what they want without trying to stop them?

It might be faster in one sense, but it's definitely not easy.

So a Master who's open to more, well, peaceful transactions...

That is, someone who gets along well with other AIs, is going to have a big advantage.

In your case, you've already met the Repair AIs, so that should make a lot of things easier for you.

To be completely honest, Berserker doesn't have a lot of Raniment to spare right now.

We still haven't replenished what he used when we fought off Caster. That training exercise didn't help matters either.

So we're going to have a hard time in our next battle unless we can go back and fill up.

Basically, we'll be stuck in a recovery phase for a while.

Come on, why would you tell them that? If bandits come knocking, who do you think they'll go for?

A target who's had a full meal and has lots of energy, or a target who's obviously so hungry they can barely stand up straight?

Exactly. So if you don't want to be a target, you need to act tough even when you're starving.

...Though I guess there's not much you can do about your stomach growling.

Think about it, Berserker. If another Servant were to attack us on our way back...

...wouldn't you feel better knowing Assassin was here to help?

Like they say, two heads are betterwell, in this case, safer than one. It's true now and it'll be true tomorrow.

I know you're smart, so I'm sure you also knew there was a good chance we were going to team up with them in the future. Right?

Nn, well...I guess so.

(I was thinking more in terms of using them rather than teaming up...but, I suppose it all works out the same.)

(That aside, I've never seen Master this aggressive before. I wonder what changed?)

(Oh... Maybe it's because this is all close to her wish.)

(Fine, I guess I've got no choice then. And there ARE some advantages in it for me.)

(Namely, this softhearted, naive Master and his Assassin Servant.)

(It's a safe bet they won't betray us before the end...)

(...and I doubt they'll even notice if I come up with a secret plan to beat them during our final showdown.)

(All told...this deal has no downside for me!)

Khhh... All right, fine.

It'll be dangerous for us, but we do owe them for their help.

So it is with a heavy heart but an open mind that I accept the risks of teaming up with you!

We will be on the same side until we are the last two teams remaining, then!

You're really trying to work this so we feel like we owe you, aren't you?

Sucks for you! I never feel like I owe anyone anything.

Hahaha, ah, it's fine. I like people who make themselves useful to me.

So just keep up the hard work and all will be well.

... ...

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Yay! Now we can stay together for the time being. Ehehe.

Okay, let's start by heading back to Repair and stocking up on Raniment.

How exactly do we go about collecting Raniment from other AIs?

Do you use your authority as the prime AI to requisition it or something?

Well...I could, but I'd rather not. It'd just make things harder down the road.

In general, AIs are programmed to return favors and pay appropriate compensation.

These AIs remain active even during a System Grail War and constantly encounter problems that need to be solved.

So by helping AIs with their work or solving problems for them...

...you will earn their gratitude and should accordingly have no trouble acquiring Raniment in exchange.

There you have it. Now come on, let's get back and get busy!

We've got our work cut out for us!

Thanks for everything, Governor. See you later!

There's no need to thank me. This is all part of my duties.

Good luck, everyone.

Executing issue raising program... Aye, nay, and abstaining votes tied.

...That was an error. I cannot deny the possibility that I behaved inappropriately.

I am the Grail War's overseer; it's my duty to remain neutral.

Even so, I wound up wishing the outsiders luck.

Maybe I need to add another layer of verification to my standard pleasantries routine.

But that can wait. Right now, I need to come up with a solution to make this right, and quickly.

If I can't take back my encouraging words...

...then I'll just have to make more such remarks to balance things out, embarrassing though that may be.

All right then, to right this wrong...

...I'll send similar thoughts and well wishes to the other teams as well, in my capacity as overseer.

Hey, Master. How's your mood now?

...Bad. Now shut up.

Perfect. I'm pretty confident this time, so you'll be in a great mood when this is over! Hahaha!

What did I just say? ...(Sigh)

Hehehe, I love it. This world's just full of surprises.

Don't you agree, Rider?

Not interested. I'm a tool for my Master. Nothing more, nothing less.

My only concern is doing my job when I'm needed.

Hmm, that so? Well, whatever. Tools are extensions of our hands. When there aren't enough hands to go around, we'll take whatever we can get.

Shit, this place is so damn fascinating I can't decide what I want to investigate first. The hell happened to this world's future, huh?

Look at this, Saber. What do you think? Isn't it huge? Isn't it grand?

I guess.

...Would you please keep your distance? I dislike the heat of others' bodies so close to me.

Oh! I'm sorry...

Yes, that's right. I'm still not quite satisfied.

Still...are you sure about this?

It's easy to pick flowers from a field, but that also means the field will eventually be barren.

Don't worry. The "flowers" grown here are cheap and infinitely replaceable.

Their saving grace is that they're easy to acquire. But real value...?

Real value is only found in what is truly exceptional. In the blue bloods, such as myself.

That is why there is only ever one truly correct, rational answer.

If we don't have enough flowers here, we can just take them from somewhere else.

As many as we want, whenever we want...

The System Grail War has only just begun. There have been a few skirmishes but no one has yet been eliminated.

The only serious battle so far was the one fought between Berserker and Caster.

But that's all about to change.

In support of every team fighting to complete the System Grail War, allow me to say once more:

Good luck.

May the stars of the northern sky always illuminate the right path, even upon the Paper Moon...

Would you mind telling us about the differences between the various AI types while we head back to Repair?

The names have given me a fairly clear idea but I would like to be certain.

Yes, of course. Repair's Type Rs, as you can probably guess, repair damaged or injured AIs.

Transfer's Type T AIs carry goods and information wherever they're needed. Build's Type Bs create new things.

Keep's Type Ks, well, keep AIs from naturally degrading over time.

Their role is similar to ours, except they're more focused on regular maintenance.

And Grow's Type Gs produce the base materials from which this world itself is made.

They are responsible for making everything this world needs except Raniment.

That includes things like the materials used to construct all these buildings.

What about Servants? Do you already know what kind of Servant each type's Master has?

Nnn... No, I'm afraid not.

I think that Caster probably came from Build, but that's about it.

Oh, and we saw another one around Keep when we tried a bit of light scouting. I think they were a Lance

(Cough, cough!) Ahem, ahem!

Whoops, sorry about that. Is it just me, or is the air kind of bad here?

I'm not detecting any toxins in the atmosphere. It is probably just you.

Anyway, that Lancer was

O-oh, h-hey! Look! Look over there!

Why do you keep interrupting me, Berserker!? What is it now!?

Umm... There! Those Type Ds were definitely in a hurry! Maybe something bad happened!?

...I guess they were, weren't they? Want to take a look?

？！

Okay. Then let's follow them.

Phew.

What is that?

Malicious data! If we leave them to their own devices, they'll destroy everything they can get their hands on!

Remember what the governor said? They're one of the problems we regularly have to deal with.

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Malicious data shows up fairly regularly, so the Type Ds are used to dealing with it...

...but it does seem it takes them a little time to assemble in sufficient numbers.

I see. Then we should help them.

We may be prohibited from attacking other AIs in this area, but that doesn't mean we can't help them out, right?

No, it doesn't. I don't think that would be a problem.

What are you up to?

Who do you think I am, you fool!? Helping poor, downtrodden citizens is the duty of royalty and warriors, and I am both!

Gods like you might have trouble understanding this, but humans have to rely on each other for help all the time. Ahh, another keen insight from my brilliant mind.

All right, AIs, stand back. We'll have this taken care of in no time flat.

Thank you for your assistance.

As the basic subroutines which govern our thought dictate, we would like to offer you some Raniment as a token of our appreciation.

Think of it as a certificate of merit for saving our lives. We hope you'll accept it.

Oh, really now?

I didn't do it for a reward, but thank you just the same. You're too kind.

Hehehe. This is perfect.

I've achieved the maximum reward with minimal effort and now I've got heavy pockets to show for it. Ahh, sometimes I'm so smart it's scary.

Oh, thank you, but I'm good. Let the Assassin have that.

Understood.

That was so nice of you, Berserker!

To be honest, I thought you were going to try and keep it all for yourself. Sorry for doubting you.

Don't be stupid. If I'm the only Servant with a full belly...

...then I'll be the only one fighting on the front line next time someone attacks!

Come here and listen to me. From now on, we let them take as many hits for us as we can.

Our priorities here are staying safe and conserve our energy.

You see...I can't afford to lose this war.

That's right. There's an enemy out there I can't allow to win, no matter wha

Yeow!

Pinching your own Servant's derriere? What kind of Master are you!? Did you forget you're dealing with a genuine prince!?

Maybe if you'd stop saying such cowardly things, I wouldn't have to pinch your butt!

Anyway, it looks like some of you Type Ds are a little hurt. Let me heal you.

Hehehe, I finally get to show everyone what I can do.

Just you wait! I'll have you all back to perfect condition in no time! When I'm done, there won't be a scratch on any of you!

(...Cowardly things, huh...)

Are you feeling all right?

I have a decent grasp of your condition thanks to the Etherlite, but that is not the same thing as monitoring all of your vitals 24/7.

So if at any point you feel something is wrong, tell me immediately.

？！

Hm? Some tough-looking guy's headed our way. Be on your guard, just in case.

Oh, don't worry, everything's fine. That's Defend's prime AI.

I think I mentioned this before, but she doesn't take part in the Holy Grail War because she's too busy with her regular duties.

Hello, Type R Master. I understand you helped my Type Ds deal with some malicious data.

Apologies for my late arrival. And thank you on behalf of my subordinates.

Hey, it wasn't just us. We all worked together to take care of this.

... ...

May I ask who that is?

Hmm, it's kind of hard to explain. At first I thought they were just lost...

...but after talking to the central governing AI, we found out they're actually participants of the AI Holy Grail War.

So I hope you'll treat them the same way you treat us.

...Understood.

？！

Hehe. Since she's an AI, she doesn't have an individual name. I guess that's kind of awkward for you, hm?

Say, why don't you come up with a nickname for yourself? Even just a temporary one.

Berserker gave me mine. It turns out names are a kind of nice thing to have.

...Hesitant. Determined to be a difficult task. Requesting assistance.

Hmm, okay, I guess we can help with that. It'd probably be best if it was something related to your role, right?

Let's see. You're the head of Defend's Type D AIs, so maybe something along those lines?

Dee... Fen... Um...

...Then I will go with "DX."

DX? That kind of sounds like a symbol rather than a name to me... But I guess it's okay. It's certainly easy to remember.

Type D AIs and myself exist to keep this world stable.

I therefore ask the rules to be respected and minimize collateral damage to other AIs and this world to a minimum during combat.

She's kind of a stiff for an AI, huh?

We all are, really. She's just...kind of more so than the rest?

In the outside world, I think they'd call her a workaholic.

She takes her duty to keep this world peaceful very seriously.

...She's also very, very literal. So no messing around, okay?

Got that? No messing around.

Yeah, don't even think about it. Remember, we're the ones who'll have to deal with the consequences.

？！

Why is all this directed at ME!? Do you think I am a child or something!?

But anyway... Hmm...

What is it?

Hmm, no, this one's not quite right either. I don't suppose you'd be willing to take that armor off?

What did I JUST say about messing around!?

I'm sorry about him, DX. He has a bad habit of slobbering all over every new woman he meets.

Hey! Don't talk about me like I'm some kind of dog sniffing around!

Anyway, would you Type Ds mind handling the cleanup? Thanks. Well then, we'd better get going.

Warning: malicious data spawning rates are currently rising, perhaps as a side effect of the System Grail War.

Be on your guard.

Unidentified forms of aggressive data in this area have also been detected. I recommend caution should you encounter them.

Unidentified forms of aggressive data?

And they're not more of Caster's wriggly things?

Negative. We believe they are similar to Caster's summoned familiars, which also are a threat to the public's safety and treated with caution.

However I am referring to something else entirely.

Then, what exactly is it?

Unknown. Our reports say only that they appear to be human-shaped shadows. The other Type Ds and I will be informing all Masters of this development soon.

Now, I must return to my post.

I am not sure what that was all about, but it sounds like she was warning us to watch out for hostile creatures.

Naturally, my calculations accounted for such an occurrence.

After all, it is exceptionally rare for a given location to have only a few different types of enemies.

The best thing we can do is remain alert and be ready to adapt to the situation as it demands.

？！

Good point. Okay, let's head back to Repair headquarters for real this time!