IBHJ 1109

Shirou finally understood why his physical body appeared in this version of Britain. This wasn't just any Britain—this was the Britain of reality, the one belonging to Pan-Human History. The Emperor must have done something to cause this Pan-Human Britain to merge with the Empire's Britain. No wonder his physical body ended up in this place. The more he thought about it, the more he suspected Mordred might have thrown his physical body into their homeland in Pan-Human Britain.

The Emperor had already beaten the Council. Once they took control of the Seven Beasts that the Council kept, they would be able to stop the Lord of Salvation from coming out of the Root. Then, it would be a complete victory.

And what about Chaldea and those who fought for the Human Order?

Shirou pushed the thought away. There was no point in even thinking about it.

Even though he had never seen the Emperor, the way Abigail reacted when talking about them told him everything. The deep despair in her face, the emptiness in her voice - these things showed how terrifying they must be.

He had to admit something to himself: even without seeing the Emperor's true form, he could feel their overwhelming presence weighing down on him. But unlike the absolute evil pressure from the Lord of Salvation, the Emperor's pressure was mental and spiritual in nature.

But Shirou wasn't going to give up and accept defeat.

Maybe it was pride talking, but he didn't think the Emperor could handle the Lord of Salvation. And more than that - how could he let someone else decide what happened to his history and his world?

He might lose in the end, but he wouldn't surrender. That wasn't who he was.

There were still many things he didn't understand, but right now, they needed to get out of this endless white prison.

Getting to his feet, he began looking for a way out.

Abigail sighed when she saw what he was doing. "Don't bother, big brother. Everything in the Empire is perfect with no flaws. Even the Chairman had to create a flaw to get past the Emperor's Hands..."

"So what you're saying is things from the Empire can have flaws made in them?" He turned to look at her.

"Yes." Abigail nodded and touched the crown of thorns on her head. "But this crown has taken away all our powers."

"Which means only someone without this crown, someone who still has their powers, could do something about this..."

He turned to look at Xuanzang.

She stared back at him, eyes wide. "Wait—me?"

He nodded and put his hands on her shoulders. "You'll need to be the one to create the flaw."

"Ehhh? No way! I... this humble monk couldn't even catch a chicken, let alone create a flaw in some bigshot's creation!" Xuanzang waved her hands frantically.

He gripped Xuanzang's shoulders and looked at her earnestly. "I believe in you, Master Xuanzang. You're one of the few Tripitaka Masters in history who truly understands the sutras, monastic discipline, and philosophy!"

"Stop looking at me like that..." Xuanzang squirmed. "I can recite sutras and explain Buddhist philosophy, but fighting against powerful enemies... I really can't..."

"Just stop, big brother," Abigail cut in, pointing at Xuanzang. "You're asking too much from this useless nun. She's like those priests who couldn't spot a witch if one danced in front of them. She's as broken as that staff she carries. Don't push her."

Xuanzang turned to Abigail, tears of gratitude in her eyes. "...fellow Bodhisattva."

"No, no, no! Who are you calling Bodhisattva?" Abigail snapped. "I'm not some stupid nun - I'm a messenger of the Outer God!"

"Don't you have any divine weapons?" Shirou asked Xuanzang. "Like the Gold-Banded Staff or Nine-Toothed Rake?"

"This poor monk can't even catch a chicken - how could I use divine weapons? Besides, those belong to my disciple. I would never steal them!"

And who was that stealing the boat earlier? Shirou sighed, finally understanding why the Monkey King got so frustrated. His master was weak but reckless, always getting into trouble. Anyone with a short fuse would have lost their patience by now.

Oh. Wait.

The Monkey King probably wanted to whack her with his staff ages ago, but the Golden Headband kept him in check. He couldn't do anything about it.

And now here was Shirou, stuck with this crown of thorns, just as helpless.

"That staff... the monk's staff..."

Abigail was staring at Xuanzang's nine-ringed staff like she'd seen something strange. "That staff of yours... it doesn't look like a regular metal staff."

"This staff?" Xuanzang lifted her nine-ringed staff with a smile. "Of course it's not ordinary! Guanyin Bodhisattva gave it to me."

Abigail's eyes brightened. "Stupid nun, stab me with your staff!"

"What?" Xuanzang blinked, sure she must have heard wrong.

Abigail jabbed a finger at the keyhole between her eyebrows. "Right here!"

"Um... what???"

Xuanzang was completely bewildered.

"Ugh! Why are you being so wishy-washy?" Abigail snapped. "You're driving me crazy! Even Betty was more decisive than you - just hurry up and stab me!"

"Abigail knows what she's doing," Shirou said. "Master Xuanzang, you should just do as she says. Don't you want to get back to your journey to the west?"

"I've... never done anything like this before... I hope my master will forgive me..."

Crying what she felt were impure tears, Xuanzang raised her nine-ringed staff and pushed its end into Abigail's keyhole.

She expected to hurt Abigail, but instead found the keyhole went on forever, with no bottom in sight. "It goes so deep!"

"Just what I thought!" Abigail's eyes lit up. "This isn't a normal staff! It can work as my key to open the ultimate gate!"

She spun around to face Shirou, grinning. "This is perfect, big brother! When we activate the ultimate gate, we can use the void to distort this infinite prison. We might actually escape!"

His face lit up with a matching smile. "That's amazing!"

Abigail beamed, then caught herself.

Wait a minute!

Why was she sharing her excitement with him?

Stupid thief! She'd escape by herself and leave him trapped here!

The thought made her even happier.

Abigail had Xuanzang keep working the nine-ringed staff in her keyhole, using this divine weapon from Pure Land like a key of transcendence to open the ultimate gate.

Soon, endless void spilled out from Abigail's keyhole, spreading like cancer and warping the infinite whiteness around them.

Abigail watched the distorting white space eagerly. She planned to run away, leaving that thief and stupid nun behind. Then she'd find Betty and escape the Empire, getting as far from this place as possible.

But...

"No, no, this can't be!" Abigail stared at the white space as it stopped warping. Her face fell. "Of course the Emperor's things are perfect... We'll never get out of here, and Betty's doomed as well... wuu."

"Don't give up yet," Shirou said with a gentle smile. "You've done great, Abigail. I'll handle the rest."

Abigail's shoulders slumped. "Maybe big brother could have done something before getting this crown. But now... you're just as powerless as I am."

He smiled. "True strength stays with you even when everything else is gone. That's what my Shisho taught me."

"Huh?" Abigail stared at him.

He turned to Xuanzang. "Master Xuanzang, can I borrow your staff?"

"Yes, of course."

Xuanzang passed him the nine-ringed staff.

Shirou took it, then gave her a gentle smile. "One more thing - could I also have some of your blood?"

"What?"

Xuanzang froze, then bit her palm with tears in her eyes, letting the blood drip into his hand.

"Ah! What are you doing! The staff Bodhisattva gave me is being stained with my blood... it's... wait, what? Why is the staff glowing with Buddhist energy?"

Xuanzang watched in amazement as golden light began pouring from the staff in Shirou's hands.

A smile tugged at his lips.

"Just what I expected..."