This was wrong.

Shirou Emiya was aware of that fact.

His surroundings felt foreign. The air around him felt different. It was like he slowly awoke from a deep dream. He tried to collect his thoughts.

The last memories he had before losing consciousness were from his fight against the King of Heroes, Gilgamesh, the golden Archer-class Servant who attempted to cleanse the world through the power of the Holy Grail. During their fight, the red haired magus had to draw every bit of energy out of his body only to stand hold his ground against the legendary king, yet he still only managed to barely get the upper hand. Were it not for Rin Tohsaka, a gifted magus and fellow Master that he learned to hold dear, supplying him with even more energy, he would have died in a single attack. The downright unreasonable power that the servant in front of him possessed seemed impossible to overcome, only through the ominous powers of his Reality Marble and the king's self centered pride was he able to push the King of Heroes back.

The battle between them ended abruptly as the Grail started to devour the golden servant, an aftereffect caused by its destruction through Shirou's own Servant, the legendary King of Knights of the Saber-class, King Arturia Pendragon of Britain.

Gilgamesh was a servant with power beyond any other, easily strong enough to tear someone like Berserker apart. Were it not for Saber's destruction of the Grail and Rin's steady supply of energy, he would have never stood a chance against him.

The Grail started to consume the king of heroes and use his body as a new vessel, ending the Servant's existence in the process. But just as Shirou thought that the he was gone for good, he emerged again from the Grail and tried to pull himself out, only to drag Shirou as well into the darkness of the Grail.

The last thing Shirou could remember was someone screaming his name. And then, darkness.

But now he was awake, lying in a bed in an unfamiliar room.

The young redhead was sure that he was not dead … at least he didn't felt like it. He could still feel the pain from his wounds. But it were his surroundings that really worried him. Shirou didn't know the room he now was in, even the air didn't feel like Fuyuki's. It definitely wasn't his or Rin's home, nor was it a hospital or did it look like a hotel.

Shirou sat up in the bed and took a closer look around. There was a large bookshelf, he couldn't make out the titles of the books inside, beside it was a medium-sized wooden desk, it didn't look like anyone used it in quite some time. To the bed's left was a big window, warm light entering and brightening up the room, on the bed's right was a door, likely leading out to a hallway. There were also lamps on the walls that looked like they were powered by electricity … but again, something just felt odd about the whole situation.

The western style of the forniture reminded him a little of Rin's house, but it looked older and less refined. The entire room just looked dated and old compared to modern buildings, but it still seemed like someone cleaned it regularly and used it now and then.

Shirou took a deep breath, trying to assess the situation, but a sudden jolt of pain made him flinch. Only now he noticed that someone actually covered his wounds with bandages.

"What the … who did treat my wounds?" Shirou asked no one in particular as he checked the wrappings.

"That would have been Father Zirbel, he really did a good job at taking care of your wounds, I must say." Shirou quickly looked up and turned towards the door. In it stood an elderly man with gray hair and a matching mustache. "You gave all of us quite the shock. It is rather unusual to find a boy with wounds this severe in the middle of the fields."

"I … uhm … I am sorry for causing problems," Shirou said, unsure on who that man may be.

"Oh please, no worries my boy. You seem better now and that is everything that matters right now." The old man sent him a genuine smile, he really looked like he was relieved to see Shirou up. "How are you feeling? Are your wounds causing a lot of pain?"

"Only when I move." Shirou put one hand on the bandages around his stomach and pulled slightly on them. "Was this Father Zirbel the one who put these on?"

"Yes, he was. He visits every day to check up on you. He did a pretty good job I must say, considering that you were nearly dead over a week ago."

'A week? I was unconscious for a whole week?' Shirou thought and looked shocked at the elderly man.

As if reading his mind, the old man started to explain what happened over the last few days. Apparently a couple of children found him in one of the fields around the town. They were just playing in the fields but ended up finding his bloody and mutilated body. After returning screaming to the town, the adults quickly headed out to look into the matter. After confirming that the children told the truth, they brought Shirou to this man's home. The resident priest, a man with experience in treating the wounded, then took care of his wounds. The man ended the recollection by describing how they took care of him over the past week.

"Oh by the goddess, where are my manners." The old man smiled and held out his hand. "My name is Otto Perm, the overseer and manager this town's market. I volunteered to take you in for the time being."

Shirou looked from the man's hand up to his face. "... It is nice to meet you, Mr. Perm." He leaned forward and gave Otto's hand a shake. "I am Shirou Emiya ..."

"It is nice to meet you as well, Shirou." Otto pulled a chair closer to the bed and took a seat. "I already asked the provincial army to look into your situation, but they seem to not have found anything of value. Though truth be told, they were not that interested in this whole matter." He sighed disappointed and continued. "I doubt that they actually tried looking for any clues … If just some of those Bracers were still around, then I could ask them … "

"Bracers?" Shirou asked clueless. 'Were they some kind of police force?'

"Oh, that's not really important right now …" Otto looked straight into his face. "But what really interests me is how you ended up in the fields in the first place? I am not trying to pry but it is somewhat important to me." He looked in Shirou's eyes. "Father Zirbel informed me that your wounds were not caused by animals, but from weapons. Were you attacked by someone?"

"I … I don't remember." Shirou thought about what he should say. He couldn't just come out and claim that he fought some kind of superhuman who shot all kinds of weapons at him.

"Hmm …" Otto studied his face. "And how did you get into the field? Or to Celdic for that matter? I asked around if someone knew you, but you are a stranger, so much is clear."

"Again … I am sorry but I don't remember a thing … where exactly is Celdic?" Shirou felt a little bad for holding out on the truth towards Otto, but he couldn't explain the situation in the first place.

The older man rubbed his chin in thought and shook his head. "Celdic is located east of the Imperial Capital of Erebonia, Heimdallr, and by the railway tracks towards Crossbell State."

'Erebonia? Heimdallr? Crossbell? … That doesn't sound good.' Shirou swallowed, a strange idea on what could have happened started to develop in his mind. "Do … Do you know a city called Fuyuki per chance? Located in Japan?"

"No. I don't think I ever heard these names. Are you from there?"

Shirou nodded silently. He was sure now. His theory got confirmed. Wherever he landed after blacking out, he wasn't in Japan anymore, or on the Earth he knew.

"Hm … I will have to report this to the authorities … though I don't think they will care. The provincial Army is currently not that interested in anything but the plans of Lord Albarea. For the time being you can stay as long as you want with us."

The young magus didn't really listen to the man's words. 'A different world? … that cannot be. That goes beyond normal magecraft … but the Grail was already a power beyond anything I ever knew … so it COULD be possible …'

"Shirou, you are looking a little pale… " Otto said as he watched him with concern. "I know this seems to be a lot right now, but believe me this is not the end of the world. Maybe you just don't remember how you got here, Father Zirbel warned me about this. Sometimes people forget things after traumatic events …"

"I think I should let you have some space and think this through" The older man stood up and took the chair back from where he got it. He looked at Shirou worried. "I will ask my wife to prepare something to eat for you. I will return a little later with the Father, to check again on your wounds if that is alright for you?"

"I … yes, and thank you, for everything I guess, Sir" Shirou pressed out and looked up to the man.

Otto smiled at him. "You strike me like a good kid, Shirou Emiya. As I said: take your time and stay as long as you want. My wife will be happy to hear that you are feeling better."

With that the older man went for the door and left Shirou to his thoughts.

"A different world, huh?" He sighed and looked out of the window. "Rin would let me have quite the speech if she found out where I got myself now… I really hope she managed to escape…"

March 20th, Afternoon, Celdic

The grand market of Celdic was buzzing with merchants and visitors, even right now during the market's less busy season. Shirou was amazed on how many people and different kind of goods were present. The young magus was helping out the merchants, and thus the whole market, as a means to repay Otto for his kindness. Despite his protest, Shirou kept working hard, carrying crates with goods to sell from a close by warehouse to the different stalls, restocking the goods or giving directions to visitors. Otto wasn't that happy whenever he saw Shirou straining his body and would scold him for his carelessness.

While helping out the merchants, Shirou had time to sort out his thoughts about what happened in the last couple of days. Besides that, his job as a handyman reminded him of his part-time jobs back in Fuyuki. He almost felt nostalgic about it.

He now already stayed two weeks, or three when counting the time he was without consciousness, with the Perms. Otto's wife happily welcomed him to stay as long as wanted, gladly taking him in as if he were her actual grandchild. At first, he was hesitant to accept their kind offer, but Otto's reassurance that it wasn't a problem at all convinced him to stay with them for the time.

As soon as Shirou could stand on his feet, he already tried to persuade Otto to let him work and repay his debt to him. But the elder didn't want to hear any of that. He didn't want Shirou to hurt himself more, just because he wanted to help out. Though a couple of days later Otto had to accept Shirou's stubborn request to help him out at the market, but only with the promise that Shirou wouldn't do anything that would stress his body even more.

Over the past couple of days, Shirou got to know many of Celdics residents. He was genuinely surprised on how welcoming and kind they were to him, despite not knowing who he really was. He also was surprised how he never got a visit from the authorities, despite being reported to them by Otto. They really didn't seem to care a lot about a random teenager appearing out of nowhere.

From Otto, he learned more about the world he was in. The continent he was on now was called Zemuria, the country was called Erebonia, a striving empire that covered large parts of the continent. The term 'empire' didn't sit right with Shirou, considering that most empires in both history and fiction had a pretty bad reputation on how they treated the world around them. And while he learned that Erebonia had quite the strong military force and that it had consumed several smaller nations, he couldn't really bring himself to feel animosity towards it.

The people he met in the empire were kind and welcoming, they did not strike him as citizens who were oppressed by their government. The empire as well was built on strong moral values and ideologies, so much that even Shirou had to question if they were not slightly too optimistic.

Not that the empire was perfect, it had its fair share of internal problems. The growing divide between two political factions, the Reformists and the Noble Alliance, was worrisome.

The Reformists were the one who tried to push Erebonia forward, strengthening it through technological and social reforms. Many of their values did resonate with Shirou, but they were rather vague in many areas. He could understand the desire to give more power to the common man, to make them more independent of the nobles but Shirou could understand that a too strong push against the nobles could weaken the Empire as a whole. Their leader, the imperial Chancellor, was a controversial man, being both responsible for most major reforms and most military operations in the last decade.

On the other side of the divide was the Noble Alliance. As the name suggest, it is a faction that consists out of several powerful noble houses that oppose the Reformists. They mostly try to uphold the status quo of erebonian politics. The young magus understood that it were the nobles who built up the empire as it is now, with their strong ideals and moral expectations, so he could understand why the fear of changing that could cause unrest. Shirou learned from Otto that not all nobles think that the Reformist Faction would doom the Empire, many would even welcome the proposed reforms. He also informed Shirou that the nobles are not oppressive lords, just like the Reformist factions they want the best for the whole Empire.

In the end, Shirou knew still far too little about the Empire and its inhabitants. All he knew was what the people of Celdic in the Kreuzen province told him, this whole issue may be viewed completely different in other parts of Erebonia.

He just finished stocking up one of the merchant stalls as he noticed a crowd of people gathering near the entrance. Looking in their direction, Shirou notices how most of them looked worried. Excusing himself from the merchant, he quickly headed over to them.

"Unbelievable! Has the Empire really fallen this deep! No sign of respect!" Shirou heard a shrill voice shout over the mumbling of the crowd, pushing through, he noticed several men in uniform.

'That's … the provincial army?' Shirou thought as he looked at each one of them over. The one who was shouting carried himself with a lot of pride, wearing his decorations with pushed out chest while also sporting a neatly trimmed beard. 'That's a captain … why is he causing a scene?'

"Where are even your parents?! Shouldn't they be here to make amends immediately?! Such insolence towards House Albarea!" he kept on shouting as if he tried to make a show of it. Shirou tried to get a better view, looking past the captain.

'Oh no …' He realized what had happened. By the captains feed, he saw a little boy cowering in fear, beside him laid a grilled meat skewer in the dirt. Shirou could also now see a fat stain on the captain's uniform. The kid must have run into the captain by accident, dirtying his uniform. 'Is that guy seriously causing a scene because of a child's mistake?'

"If your parents are not willing to educate you … then I shall see it as my duty to do so!" The captain announced and raised his arm. "May you never forget where your place is!" He proclaimed and brought his hand down, attempting to hit the boy with the back of his hand.

"NO!" Before Shirou could think about it, he already rushed forward, stopping the captains arm by grabbing it with his own hand. The surrounding crowd went suddenly silent.

"What the- … You dare to stop me in my duty, boy?!" the captain said and looked angry a Shirou, pressing his teeth together. "You are not doing yourself a favour here, remove your hand!"

Shirou just pushed the captains arm away and stood now between the child and the man, forcing him to take a step back. "Hitting a child cannot be a guard's duty!" he answered while standing protective over the boy.

The captain raised his arm again, signaling the other guards. They promptly pointed their weapons at Shirou. "You are resisting the authorities? Are you just a fool or is this really the future of our glorious empire?" the captain asked Shirou with anger in his eyes. "I am just doing the boy a favour, by showing him his place now he will know where it is in the future. Better now by my hand then in a few years through a judge, who will sentence him to even worse for the crimes he will surely commit."

"Are you trying to say that this boy is going to be dangerous criminal just because he dirtied your coat?" Shirou asked. 'These guards of the Provincial Army are really only loyal to their lord …'

"Yes," the captain answered him bluntly. "This is your last chance, boy. Step aside, apologize for your wrongdoings and let me perform my duty!"

"No." Shirou closed his fists tightly, his nails already digging into his palm. He wouldn't back down now, what kind of hero would he be if he couldn't even protect a single child?

"Your choice then …" The captain snorted and waived at his men. "Arrest him, we will deal with this … rebellious scoundrel later!"

The men kept walking closer towards Shirou, but suddenly the crowd behind the captain started to talk again. The guards as well stopped, looking a little confused at someone behind the captain.

"What are you fools doing?! Go, take him!" He repeated his orders. "Don't stop now!"

"Oh my… maybe they are just dazzled by my presence?" a male voice asked, Shirou was not able to see who spoke, being surrounded by a wall of guards.

"Who dares to interfere now with imperial ju-u-uh …!" The captain angrily turned around, but his sentence ended in a mere stutter. "I … I … what are you?! No … I mean …" He kept on spouting nonsense, being overwhelmed by someone's sudden appearance.

"I think you were talking about imperial justice … though it escapes my knowledge how punishing a little boy would be in the emperor's favour." The guards stepped aside and Shirou was now able to see the newcomer. The one who spoke was a young man, likely in his mid twenties and slightly taller than Shirou, with bright blond hair bound in a ponytail, wearing a fine red coat with golden decorations. By his side stood a tall man of similar age, but this one wore a purple military uniform with a cape, the man had a grim look on his face which could likely silence everyone in front of him. Shirou immediately noticed how the man in uniform had his hand resting on the grip of a large broadsword that was fixed by his belt.

"I … ugh … By … By dirtying the uniform of a representative of the empire, he … he insulted our glorious country! You … you must surely understand? Right?" The captain tried to further justify his actions.

"Insulted, hm?" The man in red smirked, his mouth forming a mischievous smile. "He may hold the title of emperor, but my father is still a rather kind man, you know?"

'Father?!' Shirou nearly lost the strength in his legs. 'That guy is the son of the emperor? What does a prince in the middle of a small town? With only one guy guarding him?!'

"I … I … I AM DEEPLY SORRY, YOUR HIGHNESS!" the captain suddenly shouted as he bowed down deeply. "I JUST TRIED TO DEFEND THE GLORY OF OUR BELOVED EMPIRE!"

"Oh, I am sure you did …" The prince leaned back, visibly happy with the outcome of the events. "But you should also apologize to these two here … for the inconveniences you have caused for them."

The captain grits his teeth but also bowed to Shirou and the boy behind him. "I … I am sorry for the inconveniences." He then turned back to the prince. "I still have some other work to do … If I may excuse myself, there are other matters that need my attention …" He waves his men and the guards quickly left the market.

As if on cue, a crying woman burst through the crowd, wrapping her arms around the little boy in a tight hug. She kept on thanking Shirou and the prince for protecting her little boy. The mother explained how she didn't even notice how her little boy ran off, she was just too occupied talking with some merchants further in the market. He must have been bored and started to wander off.

The crowd started to dissolve quickly, but there was still some uneasiness left. Everyone kept glancing towards the prince while he just stood there without a single care in the world. Only the prince, his guard and Shirou were still standing together.

"Ah~ A loving mother, crying over the safety of her child~ Almost makes you want to start a family yourself? Am I right or am I right, my dear Mueller?" The prince laughed and gave the stern looking man in uniform a pat on the back.

"You would be a terrible father," the soldier just answered bluntly.

'That's … odd' Shirou thought watching them interact. The prince acted as if there is nothing to worry in the world while the man in uniform, apparently called Mueller, answered him with a surprising lack of respect that a prince would normally demand.

"I … I have to thank you as well … your highness." Shirou stepped forward a little and bowed. "I don't know what would have happened if you didn't step in …"

"Oh, no worries~ a heroic soul like yours would always be victorious under Aidios' gaze," the prince answered colorful. "But I think this isn't over already~" He points at something behind Shirou.

The young magus followed his gesture and saw Otto running towards them. He stopped in front of them and had to catch his breath. "Your … Your highness ... And Shirou?! May I ask what has happened here?"

"Shirou?" The prince's smile grew quite a bit. "You know our aspiring hero already?"

"Yes, he stays with us for time being … And what is this talk about hero?"

"Oh, my dear Otto, while I was on my way to your place for our appointment, I got distracted by commotion at your beloved grand market~" Before Shirou was able to explain the situation to Otto, the prince already wrapped his arm around the elders shoulders, turning him back towards his house. "Let me tell you the story of our Shirou here, who saved the life of an innocent bystander from pure injustice!" The prince started to walk, pulling Otto with him while starting to tell him a rather colorful recollection of the event that just took place.

Shirou was baffled and watched them go ahead. He then turned to the guard who was still standing beside him. Before Shirou could ask, he already started talking. "Yes, he is always like this. And yes, he is the son of the emperor. He may not be the heir, but he is still the real deal. I get to hear these questions so often that I can already feel them before they get asked." He sighed and starts walking. "Come … I think we should follow them."

Shirou was confused for a few seconds but in the end also followed them towards Otto's house.

After a short walk, the group arrived at Otto's home, the older man and the prince quickly excused themselves and headed upstairs, having something important to discuss. Otto's wife was already heavy at work in the kitchen, preparing snacks for the guests. Shirou offered to help, but the woman declined and rather wanted him to wait with the prince's bodyguard a little.

They both sat by the coffee table directly opposite each other, the silence between them felt a little awkward for Shirou. The guard on the other hand just looked at him with a grim expression, the heavy broadsword leaning against the couch but always close enough to be drawn.

"You have experience in combat," the man in uniform stated after a few minutes, his tone did not leave any room for doubt.

Shirou looked up surprised. 'How does he know? … I only grabbed that man's arm…' He thought as he had to swallow. Deciding that there was no hope in denying it he nodded and asks the question. "How … ?"

"Your eyes," the stranger said while pointing at his own. "You only get eyes like that by actually fighting for your life … not by training in some school or standing guard all week-long."

'My eyes?' The magus thought. 'Well, I guess I did my fair share of fighting during the holy grail war.'

"I think we haven't introduced ourselves properly," the guard said as his stoic face softens a little. "I am Major Mueller Vander, of the House of Vander … and as you can assume, I am Prince Olivert's personal guard."

"Shirou Emiya … I am staying with the Perms for a few weeks now," Shirou answered. The Major raised an eyebrow but didn't ask further into his past. "So, he really is a prince?"

"Yes, Prince Olivert Reise Arnor, first son of Eugent Reise Arnor III. Also known as the 'Debaucherous Prince' or the 'Fool of the Empire.'"

The redhead raised an eyebrow. "You … you talk rather openly about your opinion of a member of the royal family."

"A fool is a fool, it does not matter if he is born royal, noble, commoner or as a horse." Mueller stood up from the couch and took his blade. "I recommend to not talk like this in the open, though. I earned this privilege because I know him. But even I wouldn't talk like this about him in the circles where it mattered. But in the end it is likely pointless … his nature is well-known in the Empire, it is likely a reason why he is this well liked." He started to walk towards the exit. "Come, meet me behind the house."

Before Shirou could ask why he wanted him to head outside, he already left. Having nothing better to do he quickly followed the Major.

As Shirou went around the corner of the house, he was already greeted by Mueller, now carrying a pair of wooden sticks. He threw one towards him. "Come, let me see what your experiences is good for!"

Shirou caught the stick with one hand. "What do you want-!?" Looking up, he already saw the other stick being swung in his direction, he barely managed to bring his own stick up to stop the blow.

Another strike followed, and after that another one. The Major kept pushing forward while Shirou only managed to barely hold his ground until he finally got to chance to get a few steps between him and the soldier by pushing himself off an incoming hit.

"What is your problem?!"

"As I said … I want to know what you can do."

Shirou grits his teeth a little annoyed. "Then here I come!" He jumped forward and tried to hit Mueller with his makeshift weapon, but the experienced man sidestepped and dove forward himself, hitting Shirou with his stick across the back and forcing him on his knees.

"Nice try … but you put way too much weight in your attack, making it easy to counterattack."

'That guy … he's good' Shirou thought as he got up. 'He is both fast and strong … even with reinforcement he would be tough to overpower' The novice magus quickly dismissed the idea of using magecraft in a battle that has obviously no real stakes. 'No … I will show him that I can fight both with and without magecraft!'

He broke his stick in two over his knee, wielding now one stick in each hand. He rose them up a little and got into position, the soldier just looked at him with interest in his eyes.

Shirou once again went into the offence and attacked the Vander. The sticks clashed against each other and Shirou now actually managed to push a few attacks through while also defending against incoming hits. Not that he actually managed to connect a hit, but he also managed to evade or block all incoming attacks.

"Hmph … this style does suit you better," Mueller said after they had traded a few blows. "But there is still much to learn!" He moved forward and went for an opening in Shirou's defence, attempting to hit him from his left.

'Yes!' Shirou thought as he quickly moved one stick down, actually managing to push the incoming piece of wood away and briefly unbalancing the Vander who seemed surprised. His other hand moved for the attack, aiming the stick at the soldier's sword arm.

The swordsman let himself fall down a little, saving his arm from a direct hit but the incoming stick still left a mark on his uniform. He then pushed himself back, disengaging from the teenager.

"I see … an intentional opening to lure in your opponent. That can be effective."

Shirou smirked, feeling a little satisfied now. 'He really knows his stuff. It is obvious that he still goes easy on me… but even I can see that his swordsmanship is first class. But with reinforcement, I may have been able to land a real hit.'

"But there is one thing you haven't considered!" Mueller shouts as he jumped forward, again going for an opening, but this time faster and with more force in the attack.

'What is he trying to do?! I can still manage to catch an attack like this!' The thought shot through Shirou's mind as he now moved both sticks to catch the incoming blow. 'NO!' He noticed too late how the incoming stick bent under the force of the strike, his own wooden weapons now unable to reach it.

"Agh!" He let out a pained groan as the attack connected against his sides, hitting him on his ribs..

"See?"

"That … I would have caught that hit if you used a blade, one that doesn't bend," Shirou pressed out, trying to ignore the pain.

"Yes … if we both used swords then you would likely have caught this strike as well," Mueller agreed but shook his head. He then pulled his blade out of its sheath, presenting the broadsword to Shirou. "But with this blade it wouldn't have mattered if you caught it or not … I would have just torn through your defence, from that angle you may be able put your swords up but you would never be able to actually stop the attack." He explained while giving his sword a swing. "My strike would not have slowed down, it would have kept moving forward, splitting your body in two."

Just by looking at the soldier's blade, Shirou was forced to agree. Even with Kanshou and Bakuya, and additional reinforcement of his own body, he would like not be able to stop a blade of this size and weight, in particular when wielded with force greater than his own.

"This is what they call the Sword of Vander." Mueller kept going. "The relentless blade that cuts down everything in its path."

"The Sword of Vander?"

"The style of swordsmanship." Mueller said as he sheathed his blade. "There are several practitioners of it throughout the imperial army, but most of them are just novices who learned a few basics. As the name suggest, it was created, taught and passed down by my family." He then held out his hand to help Shirou up.

The teenager took the offered hand, there was no point in acting like a sore loser. He knew better than most when he was outclassed.

"Bravo, bravo! I must say! What a wonderful sight to behold!" Shirou heard from the sidelines, he noticed only now that the Prince and Otto were standing beside the house, watching their fight. "Two swordsman, sharing their ideologies and learning from each other! It is almost romantic, right? You agree with me Otto?"

"You did well Shirou. I may not know much about combat but even I can see that you really seem to have some skill." Otto seemed to just ignore Olivert's question. "But I hope you didn't open up your wounds again."

Shirou shook his head. "No. His attacks were strong but I think I am going to be fine."

"Isn't that good to hear? Would be a shame if my dear Mueller beats up your little hero here~" Olivert smirks while looking at his guard. "And I assume you did all of this because you knew what I was planning? Do you agree with him as our last?"

"Like my opinion would change yours … you would drag him into this even if he were an inexperienced runt," groaned Mueller annoyed. "But yes, he has what it takes. A little too reckless if you ask me, but he has potential to better himself."

'Plans? What does he mean with 'last?'' Shirou looked confused between them back and forth. Otto and the prince must have talked about something concerning him as well while they were inside.

"Oh you look a little confused there, my dear Shirou." Olivert winked at him, wrapping one arm around Shirou's shoulders, slowly starting to pull him back toward the entrance of the house. "Let me explain everything in detail over a cup of tea and a few snacks, my dearest~."

Not being able to resist the eager prince, Shirou was forced to listen a long and colorful descriptions of Olivert's suggestion.

"Let me check if I understood you correctly." Shirou sat opposite to the prince, looking at him deadpan. "You intend to create a class of students at a prestigious academy, mixing both nobles and commoners together, something unheard-of in Erebonia."

"Yes~" Olivert answered with an innocent smile.

"And you want me to attend it as well…" Shirou continued.

"Indeed, my dear~" The prince nodded agreeing.

"Me … a complete stranger?"

"Aren't we all strangers before we get to know each other?" Olivert formed with his fingers guns and pointed at him with a cheeky grin.

"I am not even Erebonian!"

"Actually, there is another student who does hail from outside the Empire. Besides … I thought you got amnesia?" The prince shrugged without a care.

"I still remember a little … but why me of all people?!"

"Because you, Shirou, possess the qualities we are looking for. That Erebonia is looking for," Olivert said, suddenly serious. "Today, you jumped in to save a child from being hit. If you were not there at the right time, the child would have a bruised cheek now. Likely nothing serious, but it would remember it. This boy could have grown up to become someone who dislikes our country just because of that. Or maybe it would have just forgotten it in a week or two. But that was not the reason why you jumped in. There would have been no consequences for you if you had just ignoring it. You would not be rewarded by rescuing a commoner's child, you would not become a legendary hero by saving an unknown bystander. All you saw was injustice and that you had to do something against it. Am I right?"

Shirou listened closely to his voice and nodded.

"Yes … you jumped in because you saw injustice ... a child being punished for being a child. What a truly selfless recklessness you displayed today." Olivert chuckles slightly amused. "But this recklessness guided by an honest heart is what we need. It can inspire the people close to you to better themselves as well. That boy from today will not look back on this day with grief, but with fond memories of being saved. He will grow up to follow your actions that you displayed today."

Shirou was speechless. This was the first time that Olivert actually looked like real royalty to him. "I … thank you." A small smile appears on his face. "I am thankful … but someone once told my that my reckless desire to save people will be my end one day."

"Oho, I would like to meet that person one day … but I have to agree with that person, it really could be your end. That is why it is important to know which fights to pick, or even better how to avoid fighting in the first place. And here is where I think Thors Military Academy could be beneficial to you as well." Olivert leans back and smiles at Shirou reassuring. "It would be a shame if you get yourself killed because you pick a pointless fight that you cannot win, a fight where there is nothing to save. Sometimes it is just impossible to save everyone."

"Yes … I am aware of that." Shirou grits his teeth, remembering his conversation with HIM. "But you have to try at least."

"Haha, this is exactly the type of stubbornness that I like. I know someone who would absolutely agree with you there." Olivert laughed wholeheartedly. He then looked at Shirou with a bit of concern. "But just promise me that you will not throw your life away to save the unsaveable. The world already lacks enough good people."

"I can only try …" Shirou said. "... your highness." Only now he noticed that he actually talked rather disrespectfully to the prince.

"Hmm~ … Well? What do you say to my offer?"

"I am sorry … I am still not sure if a military academy is the right place for me," apologized Shirou.

"Shirou …" Otto, who sat on the couch as well and listened to the conversation, intervened. "Thors may be called a military academy, but it was never a school that focused on training new soldiers. It is one of the best schools in the empire."

"Only a select few decide to join the military and nobody is forced to. Most rather decide to take what they learned there and go out in the world to make it on their own. Being a Thors alumni opens all kinds of doors. The military, public services, politics, big companies … you name it." Olivert said. "Honestly, the most 'military' thing about that academy is that it has combat classes, was founded by the empire and that some of the teachers come from a military background. But even they don't try to persuade the young to join the military."

"Are you sure I will fit in there?" Shirou asked one last time.

"I am sure you will do just fine. And if you want to quit, you can just do so. I am not going to be mad about it." Olivert assured him and leaned forward. "And as a bonus: I will ask my contacts if they know anything about your mysterious situation."

'I don't think they will be able to find anything, but well … better safe than sorry,' Shirou thought. "Good … I will join your class."

Olivert grinned excited and stood up, reaching out his hand towards Shirou. "Well then let's shake hands and hope for a glorious school life, right?"

Shirou sighed but stood up as well, taking his hand. "Yes, let's hope for that …"

'Maybe this could actually turn out interesting.' Shirou thought while shaking Olivert's hand.

AN: So, yeah… Shirou ended up in the world of the "The Legend of Heroes"-Videogames, in particular the "Trails of Cold Steel"-Series.

As this is a fanfiction, it should be obvious that I own nothing of the "Fate" and the "The Legend of Heroes"-Series.

I don't think I need to explain what the "Fate"-Series is, but "The Legend of Heroes" may be a little more unknown. It's JRPG series with already many games in it, but only a few got released in the west. The "Trails of Cold Steel"-Games are part of that series and at the time of this writing, Game 1 and 2 are released in the West, Game 3 and 4 are still only available in Japan but I hope that they will come to the west as well. There are also the "Trails in the Sky"-Games, that take place before the Cold Steel games, but they will not be that important and will not be the focus of this story.

The Sky-Games may be a little hard to get into, because they are already a bit older, but both them and the Cold Steel games are some of the best RPGs that I had the honor to play over the last couple of years. If you like JRPGs, they are definitely a recommendation from me. The games are available on Steam, this means that you don't have to cram out an old console to play them. They are also rather regularly on sale, if you are interested, you may get them then. The story of Cold Steel 1/2 is tightly connected, so you may want to get both games if they are on sale (The same goes with Sky 1/2).

English is not my native language, so I hope I haven't messed up too often. Chapter 2 is already finished (with currently around 15.000 words) and just needs a little more proofreading until I feel on releasing it. It will focus on the actual prolog of the first game. Should any questions come up, I will address them there as well!