Chapter 44: Transfer, the First Emperor Arrives

Night had fallen outside Fuyuki City.

"Hmph, they've already fled?"

Staring at the deserted Einzbern Castle, Kayneth snorted in frustration.

As soon as darkness fell, Kayneth had eagerly gathered his allies to seek "revenge" on Emiya Kiritsugu. But upon arrival, he found the castle completely empty.

The Saber team had already evacuated.

"Haha, looks like we've made a wasted trip," Iskandar laughed. "It seems Kiritsugu is quite a shrewd Master."

"Seems tonight's operation was in vain after all…" Waver sighed, glancing helplessly at Kayneth.

He understood why Kayneth was so furious with Emiya Kiritsugu, but he hadn't expected him to mobilize such a large force. They had brought everyone, three Masters and four Servants.

From the sheer number of combatants, it was obvious that Kayneth was determined to confront Kiritsugu directly.

"As long as the Holy Grail War isn't over, he'll have to show himself sooner or later," El-Melloi II remarked calmly. "Since there's nothing here, let's just retreat for now."

"Fine," Kayneth conceded reluctantly.

With no trace of where Emiya Kiritsugu's team had gone, Kayneth had no choice but to accept the situation and return with the others.

However, what they didn't know was that deep in the nearby forest, Assassin's spirit form lingered, observing their every move.

Following the quiz session that afternoon, Kiritsugu and his team had realized that Einzbern Castle was compromised and quickly decided to relocate. Staying there was too dangerous, with a high risk of being surrounded.

Of course, not everyone had left.

Assassin, in spirit form, had remained behind, hidden and watching for any intruders.

After witnessing the alliance between the Lancer and Rider factions, Assassin relayed the information immediately.

Emiya Kiritsugu frowned upon receiving the report.

"This is… troublesome," he muttered, his expression tense.

It wasn't just the alliance that concerned him. Now, both factions possessed two Servants each, meaning Kiritsugu no longer held a numerical advantage.

From this point onward, he would have to exercise even more caution.

The Einzbern group's new hideout was the future Emiya residence in Fuyuki City.

Located in the northern district of Miyama Town, it was a spacious estate with three buildings: a main house, a villa, and a storage house.

Originally owned by the Fujimura Group, Fuyuki City's prominent yakuza family, Kiritsugu had bought it from their boss, Raiga Fujimura, as a backup hideout before the Holy Grail War began.

---

Kayneth: "Emiya Kiritsugu, where are you hiding, you cowardly rat!"

Kayneth: "You think you're so powerful, yet you don't even have the courage to face me!"

With no sign of Kiritsugu, Kayneth's frustration spilled into the group chat, but his taunts were met with silence.

"Kiritsugu, are you alright?"

Irisviel asked softly, noticing his tense expression.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Kiritsugu replied, waving a hand dismissively. "Let's stay put tonight and monitor the situation here."

With Kayneth and his group so riled up, it was better for him to remain hidden and avoid any unnecessary risks.

And so, the second night of the Holy Grail War passed quietly, despite the tension simmering beneath the surface.

---

The following day, around noon.

---

[Ding! The question-answering session will begin in ten minutes. Please prepare.]

[Ding! New members "Sola-ui," "Valkyrie," and "The First Emperor" have joined the group chat.]

As usual, the system pulled new members into the group at the start of the session.

But that third name caught everyone's attention.

The First Emperor?

Chihiro and Zhang Jiao exchanged looks of surprise.

Their suspicions from yesterday were confirmed, that shadowy figure they'd glimpsed really was an ancient ruler. But neither of them had expected it to be the First Emperor.

Still, Chihiro had a feeling this was the case.

Although this First Emperor was likely the one from pan-human history and not the Lostbelt version, his purpose was likely similar.

A Ruler. An arbitrator.

Now Chihiro understood why the First Emperor had appeared in the Fourth Holy Grail War.

The suppression forces must have sent him down to maintain order.

After all, the Fourth Holy Grail War was becoming increasingly chaotic.

By now, five additional Servants had appeared.

Rider's Red Hare, Assassin's additional Heroic Spirit, Caster's El-Melloi II, Archer's Ishtar, and now the "Valkyrie," who was most likely Brynhildr, summoned as Lancer.

If a Saber and Berserker were added, they could form an entirely new set of seven Servants.

With things this out of control, it was no wonder Alaya had deployed a Ruler to monitor the situation.

Furthermore, the overall quality of the Servants in this war was unusually high, warranting a powerful figure to keep balance.

Many Rulers were divine in nature. Letting a god descend would only provoke Gilgamesh's pride.

And figures like Jeanne d'Arc or Amakusa Shirou, though strong, lacked the renown or authority to stabilize the situation effectively.

Given all this, the First Emperor was the ideal choice.

---

Waver: "This First Emperor… could it be that person?"

Chihiro: "It should"

Waver: "Really? I can't believe we have another legendary figure in the group!"

The King of Conquerors: "Little Master, who is this 'First Emperor'?"

Waver: "If I'm right, this is the man who created the title of 'Emperor' itself, the first Emperor of China, and perhaps the first true Emperor in the world—Qin Shi Huang, the First Emperor!" (T/N: My Emperor QSH, man I loved using him to solo battles (mostly LB runs lmao) back in the days, grailed him to Lvl 100, max 4 star fous. Those were the good old days before Castoria and Co)

The First Emperor: "Oh? I didn't expect a foreigner to know so much about my identity."

The First Emperor: "Indeed, I am the First Emperor of China. I ended the centuries of chaos, unified the six kingdoms, and achieved a legacy rivaling the ancient sages—the Qin Shi Huang!"

The King of Conquerors: "Hahaha! So this is the world's first Emperor!"

Hero King: "Hmph. Another upstart who claims a throne?"

General Tiangong: "Hero King, mind your tone! His Majesty the First Emperor isn't someone you should insult!"