The moment Shirou had accepted people into his heart and decided to never become like Archer with knowledge of future troubles, his future had already changed beyond recognition.
It was the last middle finger Archer gave to the Alaya for making him do the things he despised. He had become a servant to kill his past in the hopes of the time paradox erasing him but in the end he couldn't go through with it and went with other methods to atleast change this future, even if it didn't erase him.
The things that Archer would have learnt in the future, the things that would have taken him years to learn were learnt by Shirou during the war. He learnt hi strongest skill UBW that shouldn't been available until a decade later but now this skill had been sealed away by the mana cost.
The summoning has cancelled the UBW that he kept on stacking with weapons, allowing him to shoot weapons without much cost.
It had canceled his contract with Rin, Illya and Sakura as well, messing up with his magical circuits. The Magical circuit's quantity and quality decided how strong of a mage a person could be. Shirou had 27 circuits but without a teacher he had used his nerves instead if the circuits, meaning his circuits had been weaker than what they should be. Shirou with 27 circuits could use less magic than someone with an average amount, 20.
Only through proper direction and with the help of the girls did these circuits become robust and get close to their optimum condition. Plus with the new mage tech, Shirou had been implanted with three more magic circuits that cost a lot of money.
It wasn't something normal mages could ever afford and Shirou only got them because of the girls, who decided he needed them.
It was something that indebted him and along with their love for him. But the summoning cancelling the contract also messed up his circuits a little bit, meaning his mana had become low again until it adjusted itself.
The process should be finished with a good night sleep especially since this world was the best for magic. His world was at the last stages where magic had declined while this was a world where it was only going up and up.
His world's magecraft might be more skilled and dangerous but the amount of mages was too low and it required more training than this world.
This world still had the Immortals, whose presence itself radiated magical energy and the world hadn't been attacked by some alien species that damaged the world.
The atmosphere was just right for improving the magical abilities and if he adjusted himself to it, his magic could become even stronger by taking from this world.
It had been a really low blow by the world on him, destroying his UBW that he had cultivated for a year and filled with all kinds of weapons. He had made normal weapons and armors along with legendary artifacts.
He had been reading up on and learning about the legends to reproduce those weapons. With someone like Saber, Medusa, Illya, Sakura and Rin by his side he was about to learn many of those legends especially since two of them were witness to their usage.
Shirou had become able to create UBW without any support but with support it reached a level that made him a complete beast.
He had been pushing himself ever since the war by making stronger weapons and even recreating noble phantasms.
His UBW was just like the treasury belonging to Gilgamesh as he continued to fill it with treasures of the world.
But, now he had to go through the whole process again and without support.
This thought couldn't let him sleep and he woke up after an half an hour. He had also been learning how to keep his sleeping time to the minimum and satisfy his body desire with short naps.
With practice he had got his body used to just sleeping for 4 hours even after getting drained to the point of death.
He had learned how to rest in any situation as there will be times when a bed was not possible.
Getting up, Shirou saw that Kurono was moving in his sleep again. It was understandable that nightmares would plague his mind as it took a long time to move on from such experiences.
Walking to the window, Shirou looked outside and climbed to the roof to get a better view. Standing above the roof of the three stories inn, Shirou saw the city filled with light like it was the modern world.
The streets had magic lamps that took energy from the world during the day and used it during the night to provide light.
The magicians of the world didn't forget about conveniences and spread them, especially once the White Sacrament got involved. The Sacrament made it so people stopped hoarding technology and knowledge. They regulated the knowledge so that no powerful and dangerous thing slipped to evil beings or normal people.
In the older days, knowledge was hoarded and it was very hard to grow but now anyone could try becoming something. In these times, talent was respected and only rarely would corruption push it down.
Shirou had seen such things in his world as well so it wasn't anything impressive but the scenery was nice, especially the starry sky above.
The soul and body felt very relaxed under the stars as it was the ideal place for a mage. Closing his eyes, Shirou checked his body and saw that he was feeling a lot better now after the short nap.
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'Training in this place should accelerate my progress with less risk.' Shirou thought as he had been training with the girls and using other's mana all the time was risky.
'I wonder what they are doing now. They should have sensed the connection cut away, but is there really a way to dimension travel. I didn't even think it was possible but here we are. This is the first time after the war that I am so stressed. My head is just filled with thoughts. We really need to quickly find some safe zone.' Shirou thought and stood up as someone approached him without any intention of hiding.
'How did this happen? We were so careful about it.' It was confusing for him as he didn't remember making a mistake. Nonetheless, he kept the expression calm and collected.
"Greetings stranger, my name is Achilles. I am the head of the army of my Duchess and her Knight." Achilles introduced himself in a respectable manner that was expected of someone of his position.
He was a man with light golden hair, blue eyes and a muscular body that wasn't too buff but just the right shape. He wore silver full body armor with beautiful designs that were actually magical runes and a red cape.
Achilles was a man coming from a knight background and was born with talent. He trained and explored the world. He never let his talent make him lazy and pushed himself to the extremes.
He was a man of principals and would never let people step over them. He was a man that people loved. He was the man kids aspired to be. He was the heroic Knight of the Duchess.
The man who upheld justice and it would never accept a command that put him in the wrong position. He had come here for the invitation and if the criminals declined then he would apprehend them.
Achilles was loyal to his Master and loved her dearly as she had done more for the world than he ever could but that didn't mean he would follow her evil plans and let her fall into darkness.
Unlike Jacky who followed whatever was commanded and William who just wanted interesting events to take place, Achilles wished to keep the Duchess on the right path and stay as the hero of the people.
He wasn't stupid and knew that Jacky must have been commanded to kill them if they declined but he won't allow it. There was no proof of much misdeed by the duo and they should only get jailed for theft.
Shirou stayed calm and finally accepted that this world definitely had copies of the people from his world, meaning those names were attached to similar people in this world.
It was an interesting thing but very dangerous at the moment as this Achilles also gave him a very strong presence.
With Archer's and others help, Shirou had awakened the mind's eye slightly that allowed him to know if an opponent was dangerous or not.
Achilles was strong without a doubt and if he fought now, there was a chance he would get defeated. He needed to get back to full health before fight such opponents especially without his UBW.
He had already heard the names of Semiramis, Arthur, Achilles, William and Mordred so it would be a bad idea if a fight took place. He would get killed if more than one of these guys attacked him.
"Relax and think carefully before acting. I have come to invite you to serve the Duchess and your crime of trespassing into the city and stealing would be waived. Serving my master is an honor and you will be given optimum conditions to improve yourself, while also getting rewards and payment for your services. We know that both of you are mages and do not seem to be locals, so let me tell you that the Duchess has access to the Magic Tower and can summon high ranked mages to teach you." Achilles explained carefully as he wanted to avoid a bad result and he could also tell that his target wasn't some weak kid, but was a proper warrior that gave him a dangerous feeling.
A fight between them would cause destruction that was unacceptable.
Shirou could also see that the opponent didn't want a fight and was actually trying to rope them in. It made him understand that the knowledge of their existence was a secret from the nobles at this point in time.
Judas and his subordinates might be the only ones aware of their origins.
Going with them peacefully would be the best choice for them but he was sure that the Duchess wouldn't let their backgrounds remain a mystery.
They would be forced to open up and knowledge of their appearance might be shared soon, and most likely they would be passed to Judas.
'Accept for now and escape once an opportunity arrives.' Shirou decided as this was bad situation at the moment. The guy must not have come alone and he needed to know how they found them.
"What is your choice?" Achilles asked, he could only hope that the young man wasn't hot blooded youth like him and would act appropriately at this moment.
'Should I try praising our side more and make the appeal higher?'
"I would be honored to serve under the most wonderful and beautiful Duchess of Assyria. I apologize for the theft as I had lost my money on the way, when I escaped from a dangerous situation using the river. I didn't know there was a rule about registering at the gate." Shirou talked in a friendly manner so that an opportunity could arise.
He had to use translation magic again since the arrival of the man and luckily it wasn't flashy so the man hadn't noticed it.
Hearing his response, Achilles looked at him carefully once again and smiled. He was happy that a bad result was avoided for both of them.
"So, what is your name?"
"Gilgamesh and my friend's name is Enkidu. We are adventurers from Pandora and got lost on the sea, which led us into conflict with some important people here." Shirou replied without a hitch as he had prepared for a scenario where they needed to use false names.
"You have come from afar, so it's understandable. But why come here?" Achilles asked as he knew that the Sacrament intended to dominate Pandora soon. He didn't agree with their method of forcing things upon people but he couldn't do a thing against such a mighty wave.
Atleast they didn't intend to cause genocide so he was still willing to control the situation from their side.
'Outside of Assyria, it is definitely problematic for anyone from Pandora especially someone clueless.'
"I wanted to see the beautiful Duchess, meet the Magic King and the meet King Arthur. I am a fan as I grew up listening to their tales. My father was an adventurer from the Kingdom of Logres before he migrated to Pandora." Shirou replied with a confident and friendly tone that was laced with genuine emotions as he imagined talking about heroism to others.
Acted was part of his training as there would be times that he could need it. Archer had told him to lose the honest and direct method, learn how to adapt to situations if he really wanted to become a hero of justice so he hadn't forgotten his words.
He respected Archer like the man was his older brother, someone teaching him to avoid the mistakes that had been made.
Achilles definitely didn't expect such a response and laughed as he patted Shirou's back, "Man, now that's some passion for your heroes. You are in luck today, as you will be able to meet the Duchess tonight or in the morning for sure." Achilles said with a grin, he respected the passion that was conveyed from the expressions and words.
It wasn't some easy journey that anyone could do.
"Really?"
"Yes."
"Let me bring my friend and we can leave immediately, he would be so delighted about this news."
"Sure, I will wait for you." Achilles allowed it and Shirou went to the room while he sent a signal that the mission was success and Jacky should retreat.
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