The Arcane Emperor

Impossible," denied Tohsaka.

"Think about what happened at the end of the war?"

"The Fuyuki City Fire," replied Tohsaka.

"The previous winner, Kiritsugu, realized the truth about the Grail and ordered Saber to destroy it. However, his actions released negative emotions, causing the fire."

Tohsaka could not immediately accept this fact. She walked back and forth, thinking about this news.

"Who would corrupt the Grail?"

"If you think about it carefully, you should be able to figure it out."

After thinking for a moment, Tohsaka asked, "One of the three founding families?" Three families were responsible for setting up the Holy Grail War, so they were the most likely to corrupt it secretly.

"The Einzbern's family, to be exact," added Edward. "They made a pact with Angra Mainyu. Of course, they were not the only cause."

"Angra Mainyu? The person called as the embodiment of All The World's Evil? Why would they do that?"

"They've been obsessed with the Third True Magic and believe such a choice would help."

"These stupid bastards," cursed Tohsaka.

"Language, young lady."

"Sorry. Wait, why am I apologizing? You're not my father."

"You should still show me some respect."

"Whatever." She decided not to swear in front of him again, but she won't admit it. "You said they were not the only ones contributing to the corruption. Who else?"

"Now is not the time to know such a thing."

"You! Do you want me to use the seal."

"Listen to me," Edward said calmly and authoritatively while looking at her directly. "Some truths must be learned at the correct time. Don't act like a child throwing tantrums whenever you don't get what you want."

The corruption of the grail involved a father figure in Tohsaka's life, and once she learned the truth, she wouldn't be able to accept such a fact easily. Her mental instability is not ideal for when he modifies her Magic Circuit.

"I…understand," replied Tohsaka, who walked out of the summoning room and sat down. Edward followed her and let her think for a moment.

"Wait," she suddenly said. "How do you know all of this? Were you a part of the previous Grail?"

"No. I use Divination," explained Edward.

"Divination? That's not one of your skills."

"Rune Magic is an umbrella term to explain that I can do many things with magic."

"I see. That's a great ability since we can know much about our enemies and even predict their movement."

"Of course. With me here, you're guaranteed to win this war."

"Winning the war?" she muttered. She did not have any specific wish for the grail, but she wanted to win the war for one reason: to preserve the rights and honor of the Tohsaka Family.

"Yes, we must win," nodded Tohsaka. "By the way, you never told who you were?"

"I doubt you'll know me, but my name is Edward Bones —"

"Edward Bones? The Arcane Emperor?"

"You…know me?"

"Of course. All magicians know your legend. You're almost as famous as the King of Heroes, Gilgamesh."

Edward had a terrible sense of foreboding, but he remained calm as he asked, "Oh, I wonder what the modern world knows of my life."

"According to records, you gathered magicians and magic from all over the world and created the Arcane Empire — a magical kingdom designated to study and develop magic."

Tohsaka's eyes lit up:

"The books say the time of the Arcane Empire was when magic reached its pinnacle during the Age of the Gods. Although the Arcane Empire only existed for a hundred years, you pushed the development of magic by thousands of years. I could not imagine how wonderful such a period would be. Knowledge was shared and not safeguarded. Every day, countless cutting-edge inventions and magical theories that pushed the boundaries were developed. Such an era is the dream of all magicians."

The corner of Edward's lips twitched. Akasha had given him a myth and legend, but what scared him was that he did not even know when he had learned these things from him.

'You could have at least told me,' complained Edward. He also realized he might have underestimated the power of Akasha; this was not a simple Tier 11 Entity but went beyond it.

"Do you know what happened to my Empire?" asked Edward, trying to get more information.

"Shouldn't you know about this?"

"I just want to know how the world remembers. One of my fears was that all records of my existence and the Empire would be wiped out from history."

Tohsaka nodded as that response made sense.

"It was destroyed," she replied with pity in her eyes. "The Gods did not like how powerful mortals were becoming under your rule, so they banded together to destroy it. The records said you personally slayed dozens of Gods in the final battle, and that day was also called [Gilded Blood Sky] because so much Divine Blood was spilled that the sky turned golden red for seven days."

Tohsaka's voice was slightly raised as she told the story due to excitement. Meanwhile, Edward was not feeling good. The idea that he lost to the Gods irked him to his very soul. Furthermore, he felt Akasha could have given him a skill with the title of [God Slayer].

"Some historians believe the destruction of the Arcane Empire is the main reason for the end of the Age of Gods."

"That's an exaggeration," commented Edward.

"No, they might be right. After that war, the gods' influence further weakened, and all the knowledge scattered from the Arcane Empire contributed to the rise of human civilization."

Edward nodded, albeit slightly distracted. The fact that he had a legend or myth in this world was good and bad news. He could not easily reveal his name to others, as they might recognize his myth and use it against him; in other words, his identity became his weakness, like all Servants.

'After the war, I also need to research this so-called legend to say whether they were just written words or actual events that occurred.'

"So, you're the legendary Arcane Emperor," uttered Tohsaka, looking at him up and down. "Can I ask you a few questions?"

"Sure, but don't expect answers for certain things."

"That's fine," she nodded. "There are rumors you would summon past and future mages to contribute to the Empire. Is that true?"

"Well, I can manipulate space-time and even access parallel worlds, so it's probably true."

"Then, where is my invitation?" she asked directly.

"What can I say? You simply did not meet our requirements."

"You!"

"Don't ask things you know the answer will hurt you."

"Hmph, I won't argue with a dead man."

"Oh, that's harsh."

"Second question: Is the legendary floating city — Netheril — real?" asked Tohsaka. "The thing was labeled as the pinnacle of Human Alchemy — a creation praised even by the best Gods of Forgery, but there are debates on its existence. So, was it real?"

"The pinnacle of humanity, huh?" muttered Edward; that was another phrase that bothered him, but he could not argue against it. His Artificer accomplishments were not the pinnacle in this world as many of God's creations, like the Enuma Elish, surpassed even his floating city.

"It was real," he answered.

"Really? Can I see it?" Her eyes were practically glowing.

"Yes, but not now."

Tohsaka smiled, happy she got to see such a magical wonder.

"Last question: Are the Arcane Runes as wonderful as the books said?"

"My Arcane Rune? They weren't passed down?"

"Sadly, no," she replied. "Rumors have it they were a magical language on par with the Divine Words and could even compare with Primordial Runes. More importantly, they were created to suit humans perfectly. Can you show it to me?"

"Better yet, once this war is over, I'll teach it to you."

"Really?" asked Tohsaka, not hiding her excitement. She quickly calmed down, "Can I even learn?"

Modern magicians cannot learn much ancient magic because of the decline of the supernatural in the world or because of extreme requirements, such as having some divinity.

"The only requirements are to be a mage and have a soul, so there is no need to worry about learning."

"Great." She could not help but be excited at the prospect of learning such powerful magic. With it, she will be able to improve the Tohsaka's Jewel Magecraft and elevate it to a higher level.

"Now that you know who I am, can you trust me to modify your Magic Circuit?"

"Hmm, since you're the Arcane Emperor, it's understandable you could do something like that." Tohsaka gritted her teeth, "Fine, I'll trust you. What should I do?"

—--

[AN: It's very difficult for me to rewatch Fate/Unlimited Blade Works because it reminded me of why I never finished the series in the first place — the protagonist, Shirou Emiya. I hate, disdain, and despise this man. His extreme hero-complex just gets me mad for no reason.]