บท 325: C325
Once again, he fell asleep, and this time, he woke up within the dream realm uwing his own consciousness. He logged in to his "Eternal King" account and began observing his surroundings.
His gaze first fell upon the lifeless Adashino Hishiri – [A deceitful snake pretending to be dead. How foolish!]
It was satisfying to see that the second Noble Phantasm was still working.
Shirou directed his gaze towards the gate, only to find emptiness greeting him. "It failed?" he questioned, furrowing his brow and stealing a quick glance at Altrouge. [Obsessed with being under my dominion? Pathetic!]
"It didn't fail?... So, it simply couldn't see through the anomaly?" Shirou pondered, his brow still furrowed. "Could it be... the Holy Grail?"
According to rumors, Galahad's Holy Grail was hidden within this Castle. If the anomaly within the Castle was connected to the Holy Grail, it would explain why his second Noble Phantasm couldn't see through it.
Just like Gilgamesh's Noble Phantasm, Enuma Elish, which claimed to see through everything but was ineffective against extraterrestrial beings, Shirou's second Noble Phantasm operated in a similar fashion.
Leaving aside other matters, both his second Noble Phantasm and Gilgamesh's "Enuma Elish" had no effect on the Enlightened One who was meditating in the Ryuudou Temple.
In the Nasuverse's view of history, just like bodhisattvas, God was also considered an extraterrestrial existence. Therefore, the Holy Grail was not a creation of this planet, but rather an extraterrestrial artifact that could establish a connection with God.
If the anomaly in the Adra Castle had any connection to the Holy Grail, it would make sense for his second Noble Phantasm to be unable to see through it.
Shirou returned from the dream realm and briefed Waver on Adashino's feigned death and his inability to find a way out.
Waver cast a brief glance at Adashino and commented, "I'm not surprised she faked her death. But this castle... there are no Bounded Fields or magical spells, yet it's causing this sealed phenomenon... Could it be that the castle has somehow transformed into a separate dimension, completely detached from reality, all because of the Holy Grail?"
"That's certainly one way to look at it."
The fact that the exit was sealed off and cut off from the outside world could indeed be seen as the creation of an isolated dimension, separate from its surroundings.
Waver sighed, "This is turning out to be quite troublesome..."
At first, he figured it was just a formality, but he also had concerns about any unforeseen issues. That's why he decided to reach out to Shirou for help. Sure enough, unexpected troubles did arise, and it turned out to be a troublesome situation even beyond Shirou's insight.
An otherworld spawned by the Holy Grail? That was something completely unheard of!
In fact, how many people have actually witnessed the Holy Grail's true form in the span of its over two thousand years of existence?
If this really was the genuine, high-level mystery that birthed a separate dimension, it wouldn't be surprising if they found themselves trapped with no way out.
Waver aimed to restore order among the magi, but even with El-Melloi's notable reputation, he lacked the authority to command their obedience.
Several esteemed magi completely disregarded him, causing panic to spread.
Just as the chaos was escalating, Barthomeloi Lorelei intervened and put an end to it.
This haughty woman had also tried various approaches to discover an escape route, but none had proven successful.
It was only natural, given that this was a predicament so challenging that not even the mighty "All the World's Evil" could unravel its mysteries.
Lorelei halted their actions, not to foster unity but to assert her superiority. In her value system, only those deemed valuable were worthy of respect. In essence, it was a true embodiment of elitism.
She had no interest in dealing with weak enemies and had no patience for feeble individuals. She upheld dominance and openly mocked the idea of unity. Despite her exceptional command abilities, she steadfastly adhered to the belief that strong individuals should forge their own paths.
This was precisely why, despite being the unofficial leader of the Clock Tower, no one rallied behind her.
She didn't think much of those supposedly prestigious magi and only shut them down because they were being too loud.
Although Waver didn't hold her in high regard, he had to give her credit for that.
Lorelei didn't pay any attention to the others and, with her fifty elite magi, tried to figure out the secrets of the sealed exit from different angles.
Meanwhile, Waver focused on calming everyone down and carefully analyzing what was going on.
Rather than revealing the truth about Adashino's staged death, Waver chose to encourage everyone to stay calm and thoroughly inspect their own invitation letters.
Shirou admired and supported this composed approach.
He had always believed that a leader who constantly keeps their distance from others could never truly inspire or guide them. This had been his perspective from the very start.
Waver openly shared his and Shirou's theories with the entire group.
Caesarmund, the Butterfly Magecraft expert, wore a serious expression as he posed his question, "Young Lord, do you think the Holy Grail is the reason behind the strange things happening in the castle? And do you really believe that the Holy Grail could actually be here?"
"Under the circumstances where all other possibilities have failed, we can only tentatively use this hypothesis for deduction," Waver replied.
"Deduction, huh..." Luvia furrowed her brow, "But if the initial premise is wrong, then the resulting answer would only be a misguided speculation."
Shirou stepped forward and said, "What he's trying to say is that we need to take a moment to calm down, cooperate fully, and avoid fighting among ourselves. If we want to escape from this situation, we must come together and search for any clues we can find."
Caesarmund looked at him and asked. "Putting our internal issues aside for now, I've been wondering about one thing. Who exactly are you?"
Heine and Jiroubou Seigen from Japan also turned their attention to Shirou, their expressions filled with doubt. "Indeed, we have our fair share of doubts surrounding you in this place. Could you provide some clarity on the matter?"
He responded with a simple introduction, "The name's Fujimaru Shirou."
Luvia's eyes widened in surprise, her gaze fixed on his face. Memories of a young boy with a kind expression from nine years ago flooded her mind.
Caesarmund pressed on, curiosity evident in his voice. "But why would Princess Altrouge fear you to such an extent and refer to you as the Eternal King?"
Shirou's response was curt. "That's a foolish question."
He neither confirmed nor denied the claim, leaving the question hanging in the air.
Waver suggested, "Let's search this castle for the Holy Grail. And if any of you come across any odd clues, don't keep them to yourselves. Unless you want to get stuck here and meet your demise."
Everyone glanced at each other and eventually agreed with a nod.
After all, unless they had a direct path to the Root, what magus would willingly choose death when they could still cling to life?
Just then, Arcueid spotted Gray, who appeared pale and was leaning against a stone pillar.
"What's the matter, Artoria? Oh, wait, my bad, it's Miss Gray," Arcueid asked with a hint of concern in her voice.
Gray placed a hand on her forehead, looking troubled, and replied, "It's...nothing, princess Arcueid. It's just that when I entered, I accidentally triggered the defensive spell in this castle. My teacher assured me it's nothing to worry about."
"Oh, I see," she nodded.
...
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