Chapter 46: System Space

["It's said that the Holy Grail will go to the one most worthy, and this battle is simply a means of selection."]

[Iskandar continued speaking, his tone casual: "It's just a selection ceremony. There's no need for so much bloodshed. If heroes recognize each other's worth, the answer will come naturally."]

[As he spoke, he scooped another ladleful of wine and handed it to Artoria.]

[Without hesitation, Artoria took the ladle and drank.]

---

Chihiro: "King of Conquerors, you didn't even bring cups for everyone when you decided to have a drink?"

The King of Conquerors: "Maybe it slipped my mind."

Waver: "More like you were just winging it, as usual."

The King of Conquerors: "Haha! Little Master truly understands me."

---

["Then let's settle things, Rider."]

[Handing back the ladle, Artoria's face was serious.]

["Haha, naturally."]

[Iskandar grinned, his eyes gleaming with a new idea. "But how about this instead?"]

["Since we both call ourselves kings and won't yield to one another, a clash is inevitable."]

["However, we can change the way we fight—from weapons to words."]

["Who among us is the most worthy of the Holy Grail? Let's decide it over wine."]

["Not a Holy Grail War, but a Holy Grail Debate!"]

[The video ends here.]

---

The King of Conquerors: "A Holy Grail debate? I rather like that idea."

Kayneth: "But what exactly are we supposed to debate?"

Waver: "Yeah, why did the video just cut off there?"

---

[A face-to-face debate is best experienced in person. Please take your seats…]

---

"Take our seats?"

Before any of the group members could react, the scene around them shifted abruptly.

They found themselves in a pure white space, empty and seemingly infinite. Everyone was gathered together—even Bluebeard, who had been in spirit form, was now standing with them.

Chihiro finally had a chance to meet the First Emperor in person.

He wore a flat, twelve-tasseled crown and a dark robe decorated with coiled dragons and black birds. His appearance was strikingly similar to the Lostbelt version of Qin Shi Huang, but with subtle differences—this First Emperor of pan-human history appeared older, with a dignified goatee and a more restrained, but equally commanding, presence.

---

"Aha! Chihiro! I'm going to kill you!"

"Prelati's Spellbook!"

Just as Chihiro was about to step forward to greet the First Emperor, Bluebeard suddenly charged toward him, activating his Noble Phantasm.

"Hmph. You dare attack people in front of me?"

The First Emperor let out a cold snort, and with that single sound, Bluebeard's Prelati's Spellbook seemed to fizzle and die, its power completely neutralized.

"Who… who are you?!"

Bluebeard looked around in shock. Even his Noble Phantasm seemed fearful of this man.

Bluebeard didn't recognize the First Emperor, having ignored anything in the group chat that wasn't related to Joan of Arc.

---

Chihiro: "Oh wow… Is this 'book-burning' in action?"

Chihiro chuckled, realizing what had happened.

The First Emperor of pan-human history was known for having little tolerance for book-based powers, a quality that seemed to extend even here.

Unfortunately, he couldn't view the Emperor's stats.

---

[Note: The use of force is prohibited in this space. Bluebeard's first offense will result in a deduction of 1 Saint Quartz.]

The system's voice echoed in the white space.

---

Chihiro: "Not that it matters. He doesn't even have any Saint Quartz to begin with."

---

"Hahaha! Truly worthy of being called the First Emperor!"

Iskandar approached with his usual familiarity, greeting the First Emperor with a hearty laugh.

Watching the First Emperor silence Bluebeard's Noble Phantasm with a mere snort, Emiya Kiritsugu and several others became visibly wary.

"Have we been transported to some other dimension?"

El-Melloi II and Zhang Jiao surveyed the area, exchanging looks of wonder.

The space seemed endless, without any discernible boundaries.

---

[This debate will proceed in teams, based on the following figures: the Hero King, King Arthur, the King of Conquerors, and the First Emperor.]

---

"Ah, so we're debating in teams this time."

Iskandar grinned, beckoning with a wave. "My followers, come join me."

Excited, Waver and El-Melloi II immediately took their places at his side.

Since the Lancer faction had already allied with Rider's group, Kayneth and his companions naturally joined Team Conqueror as well.

Chihiro and his two allies moved to stand by the First Emperor. To Chihiro's surprise, Rin brought Sakura and Ishtar to join their side as well.

Seeing this, Tokiomi's expression darkened, but he held his tongue.

Bluebeard, now somewhat subdued, shuffled over to Artoria, addressing her as "Saint" and "Jeanne" with a fanatical gleam in his eyes.

Although Artoria was sorely tempted to strike him, she restrained herself, as force was forbidden in this space. She settled for ignoring him entirely.

Artoria had initially thought her team would consist only of herself, Bluebeard, and the occasional nuisance of his mad ravings, but to her surprise, the Black Knight joined her team as well, standing by her side with quiet resolve.

Kariya, seeing his choice, nodded at Artoria before moving over to stand with her as well.

So, Artoria's team consisted of herself, Bluebeard, The Black Knight, and Kariya.

The remaining members naturally aligned with Gilgamesh—Tohsaka Tokiomi, Kotomine Kirei, and Assassin's many identical forms.

If Gilgamesh felt his team was lacking in numbers, he could always summon more of Assassin's duplicates to even things out.

---

[Now that teams have been established, let's review the rules of this debate.]

[The topic is open-ended. Each group may choose their argument freely.]

[However, the argument must center around either the Holy Grail or the concept of Kingship.]

[Teams will be awarded between 5 and 10 Saint Quartz based on their contributions to the debate.]

[The debate begins now.]

---

Waver: "Wait… that's it?"

Tohsaka Rin: "Are we really supposed to come up with the topic ourselves?"

Chihiro: "Seriously? This system's getting lazier by the day."

In response to their complaints, the system remained silent, completely ignoring them.