IBHJ 1100

"The Emperor is the Emperor - the god of our world and ruler of the empire." Guinevere spoke as if explaining that water was wet.

"Empire..." He chose his words carefully. "I'm a bit lost. With all these different nations around, what exactly makes up this empire?"

"Oh, that's right. Since you're from outside the empire, you wouldn't know how it works. Camlann is part of the empire. The Emperor rules everything. Below him are the twelve apostles who carry out his divine will. Then you have kingdoms like our Camlann."

He frowned. "Where does this Emperor live?"

"Up there."

Guinevere pointed to the sky.

He looked up but saw only blue sky.

"The Emperor is our god, after all," she said, as if it were the most natural thing in the world. "His palace is in the heavens - even if we can't see it."

"But if enemies attack, does the Emperor just... watch? How does he even know what's happening down here?"

"Well..." Guinevere paused. "I don't understand how these enemies got past the Emperor's Hand to attack us. But nothing in the empire escapes the Emperor's eyes. Even when he needs to rest and close his eyes, we can still tell him what's happening through the Divine Tower."

She pointed to a pure white tower in the distance that stretched up toward the sky.

Shirou turned to look at it, his eyes narrowing. I see, it's a signal transmission tower!

Now he understood why the people of Camlann hadn't panicked during the attack, except for Guinevere. They had a backup plan all along.

"You've asked me so many questions." Guinevere looked at him, her eyes bright with curiosity. "May I ask you some too?"

"Go ahead."

"So - do you like Camlann?"

"I do. It's beautiful here, and everyone's been so kind. The priest even gave me his cloak when he thought I might be cold." He smiled. "With all this warmth around me, I can't help but want to write poems about it."

"That's wonderful!"

Guinevere's face lit up with joy. "When you write them, promise you'll show them to me first."

"I will." He nodded, turning his head slightly to look past her at the pure white tower that reached toward the sky.

...

Within the magnificent white palace, a pure white Apostle hurried through the halls.

"What is it?" The voice came from a strategist hidden in the shadows.

The white apostle said, "Camlann was attacked by foreign enemies. Although Camlann managed to repel them, I believe we should report this matter to the Emperor."

"Such a minor incident doesn't warrant disturbing the Emperor."

"But these foreign enemies managed to pass through the Emperor's Hands..."

"And why is that surprising? Remember that assassin who not only passed through the Emperor's Hands but even infiltrated this very palace? These enemies likely mastered similar techniques. Most foreign enemies remain blocked outside the Emperor's Hands which means these methods can only be used on a small scale."

"Even if it can only be used on a small scale, shouldn't we still investigate this matter?"

"To investigate would be to fall into their trap," the strategist said. "If we turn the apostles' attention toward Camlann, they won't notice what's happening in other places."

"Then their real goal is..."

"Most likely that witch." The strategist paused. "Where are they keeping her?"

"Tintagel."

"Have the closest Apostle guard Tintagel. After attacking Camlann, the foreign enemies will target that place next."

"Understood, but shouldn't the Emperor know about this?"

"The Emperor's eyes are not here." The strategist turned and walked away.

The white apostle gazed toward the depths of the palace. Though he saw nothing there, he knew that somewhere in that place was the god of their world, the emperor of the empire.

He bowed slightly before leaving.

...

Shirou lay in his bed, restless. His thoughts kept circling back to what was missing: no Vortigern, no Saxons. Instead, he found himself in a world of Empire, Emperor, and Apostles—foreign enemies he never knew existed. The pieces didn't fit together, making him question everything he knew about Britain.

This wasn't his Britain—he knew that much. But how had he arrived here? Someone had to be behind this. He looked up through his window. The sky was clear, with no black ring in sight. If this was like the South American connection point, then this probably wasn't the Council's.

The questions kept coming. Why this place? Why now? He couldn't feel Eternal King or Formless Vortex anymore, as if they had never existed. Even the black mud was gone without a trace.

He turned to his other side, knowing he wouldn't sleep anytime soon. Too many questions filled his mind.

In the middle of the night, when everyone slept and the palace halls were quiet, Shirou got dressed and left his room. He had planned to use the Cap of Invisibility to stay hidden, but when he saw the guards asleep at their posts, he paused.

"The city just gets invaded and everyone's sleeping?" He stared at the guards in disbelief, but put on Hades' Cap anyway. Better safe than sorry.

Hidden from sight, he made his way to the port, passing more sleeping soldiers as he entered the military warehouse. Inside, he found several ships and steel alchemy furnaces. The crimson battleship stood out immediately—sitting in plain view without any guards around it.

Shirou walked around the crimson battleship, taking in its size. The structure was solid throughout, with only a cockpit carved into the head. He moved to examine its right hand, where a large red crystal sat embedded in the back—the source of that glowing barrier.

He studied the crystal closely, then shook his head. "Just what I thought. A leyline crystal."

The sight brought him back to the Holy Grail War. The Holy Grail itself had been a leyline crystal, one the Einzbern family created by harnessing the Third Magic. Their family alone had mastered the art of crystallizing leylines, a skill they used to create the Lesser Grail. Yet as he studied this crystal's shape and structure, he could tell it wasn't their work. Someone else had discovered how to crystallize leylines, but they'd used different magical techniques than the Einzberns.

"Who are these enemies really?" He needed to keep looking. The more he found, the better he could understand what he'd walked into.

Shirou left the warehouse and made his way to the port. Under the night sky, he projected a small fishing boat and set off toward the opposite shore. The waves carried him forward, but after a few miles from the coast, the boat stopped as if it had hit something solid.

"This is..." He stood up and reached out. His hand met something he couldn't see—an invisible barrier, cold against his skin.

"This must be what Guinevere meant by the Emperor's Hands." He pressed his palm against it. "But what kind of barrier is this?"

Nothing made sense. He couldn't detect any spells, any authority, or even a Bounded Field. It was as if nothing was there, yet his boat couldn't move forward. Something solid and invisible blocked his path.

He spent time studying the barrier but found no way through. "If I still had the black mud, I could test if it would eat through this." He looked at the invisible wall one last time before turning his boat around.

Back at the port, Shirou dispelled his projected boat. Still wearing Hades' Cap, he turned toward the palace. That's when he saw it—a figure moving in the shadows near the warehouse. The moonlight breaking through thin clouds caught the bronze furnaces, revealing the person's careful movements.

He stopped, watching. A young girl with long black hair that reached her waist crept between the buildings. She held a staff and wore monk's robes. She looked about seventeen or eighteen.

Xuanzang?

Shirou watched as she pressed herself against a wall, peering around like she was afraid of being caught. When she saw the sleeping soldiers, she grabbed her packed luggage and tiptoed toward one of the moored fishing boats.

As she worked to untie the boat's rope, she kept whispering to herself. Shirou moved closer to hear her words: "Buddha forgive me... I don't want to do this... but they left me no choice... What else can I do? Amitabha Buddha, Amitabha Buddha..."

"What are you doing, Master Xuanzang?" Shirou removed Hades' Cap and approached.

She jumped like a startled cat. "A-Amitabha! Brother Shirou!" Her hands flew together in prayer as the color drained from her face.

"Why are you at the port so late instead of sleeping? What are you planning?"

"This... well..." She couldn't meet his eyes.

He glanced at the untied boat behind her. "Are you stealing a boat?"

"No!" Her eyes went wide. "How could this poor monk engage in such dishonest behavior?" She waved her hands frantically. "This poor monk is merely borrowing a boat to journey west!"

"That's still stealing a boat."

"It's borrowing! Do you understand? Borrowing!" She emphasized the word, then pressed her palms together again. "Once this poor monk reaches the other shore, I'll set the boat adrift. The sea breeze will naturally carry it back."

Shirou: "..."

He stared at her. This monk clearly had some issues with common sense.