The infinite sword system has been mastered, and you say this is the dragon clan?

Chapter 336: A story about Hidetaka Miyazaki's childhood
"The 3986th... imaginary submersible test failed..."

In Da Vinci's personal workshop, Helwell, who had just emerged from the shadows, spoke weakly. Before she could utter the word "failure," she collapsed to the ground as if all her strength had been drained away. She looked like a lost fish, a lost dream.

“…Ah, I’m so tired. I can’t do it anymore.”

"Come on, sister, why can't you do it? Think about your paid vacation, think about your membership package, and think about the admiring eyes of your sisters--"

The sister next to me sounded very energetic.

"Which of your eyes can show your admiration for me? Have some self-awareness, Jimei!" Helweier wanted to lie down, but after hearing this, she couldn't help but roll her eyes and shouted angrily:
"Besides, why haven't I heard you call me sister before? Now you're so sweet, like you're covered in honey. I think your admiration for me is fake, and you really want me to take your place and work overtime!"

Orluun's words of encouragement seemed like empty talk to Helver. Originally, this job belonged to Orluun alone, but Da Vinci's feedback said that the imaginary number technology still lacked too much data feedback, and one assistant was far from enough. So Helver had to join the battle with her sisters.

But if there were only two of them, they would work in shifts. Orluen would help Da Vinci with the work for a while, and then Helver would take over. But now Orluen wanted to be a little lazy, so he tried hard to persuade Helver to work for a while longer.

"Oh, sister, you have changed! You were not like this before. In the past, you would always give me the good things and keep the dirty work to yourself..." Orluen looked nostalgic, hugged her arms and sighed.

"Huh? You're talking about something that doesn't exist!"

Helweier hadn't expected that this sister, who hadn't been with Da Vinci for long and whose other abilities were unknown, had made significant progress in adding drama to her own performance.

"If your memory serves you well, you should know that a few years ago, when we sisters were still on Vincent's wrecked ship, we earned all the goodies and rewards through our own abilities and strength! When old man Vincent trained us, he was just using the Dark Forest Law to train cold-blooded private soldiers. When did he ever cultivate any 'comradeship' among us?"

Helweier sighed inwardly. This was all old news. A few years ago, they had been kicked out by old man Vincent and sold to Odin, but not long after, they were captured by Emiya again. They had changed hands as fast as a dollar bill.

If possible, neither she nor Orluen wanted to live a life of wandering. Fortunately, they had been diligent and obedient over the years, so they had settled down under Emiya's command.

To be fair, Helver and the other sister have always been obedient to Emiya, but over the years, Emiya's way of dealing with people has become unexpectedly peaceful. He possesses the power of a natural disaster but is not overbearing. The image of the "God-slayer Demon King" that the two sisters feared was just an exaggerated fantasy from beginning to end. Even Rigidreve, who has the least exposure to worldly affairs, has gradually become more and more accepting of Emiya.

Therefore, now, their essential emotions have changed from respect and fear in the beginning to a little flattery and closeness now.

So, even though Orluen and Helver were blaming each other verbally, neither of them was being dishonest. They consoled themselves by saying, "Just bear it for a while," and considered it all for Emiya-sama's greater plan.

"It's really rare to see you guys actually have the time to talk about your past."

They didn't know when, but Emiya had walked in and stood in front of them quietly.

"Ah hey hey!" Helwell hurriedly stood up from the ground, a blush on her cheeks because Emiya saw her in such an embarrassing and indecent state.

"Sorry, I didn't notice Emiya-sama just now..."

"Greetings. Welcome back. Thank you for your hard work on the singularity strategy, Lord Emiya." Orluen beside him greeted her appropriately, in stark contrast to Helver's behavior.

Just now, before she spoke, she was actually silently covering her mouth and smiling. It was obvious that her good sister had noticed Emiya's arrival in advance, but deliberately did not remind her.

It's worthy of the plastic sisterhood that was trained on the YAMAL cruise ship since childhood - during the training period, they learned how to get the best performance from the big guys to improve their own status, and at the same time, getting rid of the troublesome sister competitors around them is also part of their ability.

Humph! Helweier glared at him after noticing this.

"Where is Da Vinci?" Emiya noticed the little movements between the two but didn't say anything. He paid attention to the progress of the imaginary submarine. After all, this was related to the plan of the second Chaldea. Other strategies might fail, but the best strategy must be fully prepared.

"Sir, Ms. Da Vinci is still debugging the system in the imaginary submarine. I will take you there."

"Row."

Orluen calmly took the lead. As for Helver, still exhausted from the submarine experiment, she could barely walk properly and had to grit her teeth before surrendering.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

"Hey, you're back. Honestly, if it weren't for the fact that this tool vehicle's imaginary submersion is so interesting, I'd probably want to try out the spirit particle transfer myself."

As Emiya entered the car, Da Vinci poked his head out of the driver's seat and said.

"You, a technician, also want to experience repairing a singularity? Maybe next time—so how's the progress of Shadow Border's construction? I heard from Orluun that the imaginary submarine technology still lacks data support?"

"Yes!"

Leonardo da Vinci inevitably felt a bit melancholic. As a genius, she occasionally encountered problems. This wasn't to say they were unsolvable; given time, she was confident she could complete them. Unfortunately, celestial observations indicated that the world was in imminent danger, and the Shadow Border project actually faced a tight deadline.

"Let's not talk about this anymore, my Captain Emiya. Instead of being frustrated by the part where the progress is stuck, why not take a look at what I have already completed?"

Da Vinci led Emiya on a tour. "The interior of Shadow Border is quite complete, albeit small. Besides the necessary living quarters for food and lodging, the engine room and cab are also nearly complete. The remaining space is used for secondary areas like warehouses and storage..."

Emiya followed the female magician and nodded frequently. She was indeed an all-round genius. She was able to make all kinds of tools with ease. It was not difficult for her to make a large armored vehicle like Shadow Border. Her efficiency was comparable to that of an entire heavy industry manufacturing team.

“No poking!”

Emiya was full of praise. Indeed, technology is the primary productive force, whether it's science or alchemy. In other words, Caster is Chaldea's indispensable productive force and source of production materials! If these technological geniuses suffer, humanity will become a better place!
Hiss! Da Vinci, who had no idea what Emiya was thinking, suddenly felt a chill all over his body, but he couldn't find the source.

"That's about it for the explanation of the internal facilities. These are all hardware, and there's also the software..."

After putting aside her distracting thoughts, Da Vinci led Emiya to the driver's seat. Emiya glanced at the huge, pitch-black screen, which subtly surrounded the driver's seat like multiple walls. Da Vinci didn't waste any words. She completed the authentication process, and the screen instantly lit up.

A girl who looked similar to Leonardo da Vinci—no, almost exactly the same, but a little smaller—jumped out.

Welcome to Shadow Border's cockpit and operations center. I'm Da Vinci Lily! The most powerful secretary-type beautiful AI of the next generation, created to assist the original! —Ah, we have a new guest today. Surprisingly, it's not a lab assistant, but the infamous God Slayer!

The Da Vinci Lily, or the little Da Vinci on the screen, talks unexpectedly a lot and chatters non-stop. It can be said that he is full of energy. Compared with the larger Da Vinci with a more mature and charming style, he seems smart and lively.

Emiya crossed his arms, "You know me?"

"Of course!" Little Da Vinci smiled sweetly. "Although I'm a smaller genius and can't move freely, I've accessed the Chaldea database and have access to a lot of information to learn from, including information about you, Lord Emiya."

"Interesting," Emiya turned to look at Da Vinci, who had already taken the driver's seat. "You actually created your own AI clone, intending to replicate your own thinking patterns to support the operation of Shadow Border's system?"

"Well, after all, the Shadow Border isn't just any armored vehicle. It needs to be adaptable to a variety of terrains, including those in imaginary worlds. So, rather than creating a complex, massive system, it's much faster to use a powerful AI to assist in operation... Of course, this is all thanks to the incredibly tight deadline set by Emiya-sama."

"So, it's my fault?" Emiya spread his hands. If he hadn't prepared these things in advance, when the Demon Pillars and the alien gods all attacked together, Chaldea, without any precautions, would probably not even have time to cry.

"How could that be?" Da Vinci glanced at the little Da Vinci on the screen. The latter seemed dissatisfied with the real Da Vinci for stealing the topic without permission, and secretly rolled her eyes at her.

"—The biggest problem right now is the imaginary voyage itself. Once we enter the deep dive phase, Shadow Border will be unable to locate specific spacetime coordinates. Even with an anchor point from reality, it will be difficult for us to reach the correct location via the correct route."

"What's the specific reason?" Emiya also felt a little tricky. As expected, this engineering development was not that simple. "Can't we imitate Helwell and the others' stealth method and copy their research on navigation methods?"

Da Vinci shook his head. "There's no such thing as a free lunch. It's like how humans got the inspiration for airplanes from birds, but real airplanes, apart from their lift source, are vastly different from birds in nature in terms of both shape and dynamics..." "Similarly, although I've confirmed the possibility of imaginary stealth based on the abilities of your two maids, the difficulty lies in the fact that stealth is different from ordinary stealth. Stealth doesn't actually completely escape from real space; it's at a shallow boundary stage, so your maid can even observe the outside world while stealthing."

"And that kind of imaginary voyage, capable of spanning vast stretches of time and space, requires complete immersion within the imaginary realm. This means that external observations from the Shadow Border will be completely ineffective. Each time we advance, our direction, distance, and time will fluctuate randomly, becoming undefinable. My smaller self and I have repeatedly tested and calculated this, and it's always the same, with no pattern to be found."

"If I can't derive anything from the data, I won't be able to create the correct pointing tool. If our Shadow Border submerges, we'll probably get lost in the imaginary world!"

The atmosphere fell into silence, completely random and undefinable, indeed an unsolvable problem.

Emiya thought about it and decided that since that was the case, he could only use his limited opportunity again to ask that person for help.

"Da Vinci, are you interested in witnessing the skills of the Alchemist King of the Atlas Academy?"

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

After a while.

"Are you looking for me again? As we agreed, the branch base I helped you build inside Avalon last year already counts as one use of your power of attorney. This time, the amount I reserved for you probably won't be much left."

In the closed city "Atlas Court" under the Sahara Desert, Norton looked at the strange-looking armored vehicle Shadow Border and spoke.

"I understand that," Emiya said as he was told, handing a letter of authorization to Norton. Thus, the number of Atlas Academy's letters of authorization that were scattered around was reduced to one less.

"Tell me about this thing."

While the two were talking, Leonardo da Vinci, who was entering this so-called alchemy "holy land" for the first time, looked around at the empty cityscape with curiosity.

"Hello... My brother asked me to receive you. Where do you want to visit?" Constantine, a boy who didn't look very outgoing, stood not far away with a stiff expression, looking like he was not good at dealing with people.

"It's okay, I don't need it." Da Vinci waved her hand. Her eyes sparkled, and she looked at this place as if she had discovered a dragon's treasure trove. "I'm just taking a walk~"

After saying that, the female servant walked away on her own.

"Ah...that's not allowed!"

The boy Constantine looked panicked. Atlas Court looked easy to enter, but in fact, it was dangerous everywhere!

Especially after a group of crazy otakus were recruited by Norton a few years ago, the protection arrangements of this place have become more and more abstract!

Rumble!
As expected, Da Vinci, who was unfamiliar with the place and knew nothing about it, triggered the trap.

Constantine turned into a fast afterimage and rushed over to save the situation. A large amount of fire rain fell, mixed with lightning strikes.

Fortunately, Da Vinci was a servant and his reaction was quick. In addition, he promptly opened an invisible and colorless protective shield to isolate the flames and lightning that were raging in the entire corridor.

"...What is all this?" Da Vinci was stunned. She had just been walking, and unexpectedly, when she turned a corner and opened the door, she was greeted by a wave of extremely grand "welcome".

"According to Akadullah (former Minister of Armaments), this was a test of a multi-element chain reaction. He was attempting to recreate a flash-melt chain reaction similar to the Rhine in an external environment, but with a simplicity that required minimal preparation and could be produced in combat."

Constantine said helplessly, "For example."

As soon as he finished speaking, a strong wind appeared again between the rain of fire and the lightning. The wind compressed and rotated the two, and the transparent shield surrounding Constantine gradually approached, as if to compress the movement of the elements.

"...I mean, I want to know his...philosophy behind making these traps."

Da Vinci's face turned pale. She felt a deep malice from the "corner kill" she encountered.

"It seems... they said there must be corner kills, cesspools, long-range attacks, and corner jumps... The inspiration came from the childhood stories of a certain game producer in human society—"

"What? Who?" Da Vinci obviously didn't understand the joke of the game geek.

As they were talking, the bricks under their feet suddenly broke, the deep soil began to riot, and at the same time, a rushing stream of water gushed out, instantly turning it into a gurgling quagmire. Ignoring the protective shield, Da Vinci and Constantine gradually sank.

Oh, as expected, the cesspool is here.

Facing Da Vinci's twitching eyes, Constantine explained slowly, "That person seems to be called Miyazaki Hidetaka."

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

"What's the noise?"

Emiya poked his head out of the Shadow Border's car door and looked out at the city buildings in the distance. The interior design of the Atlas Courtyard was almost a replica of a human city, except for the lack of people and the excessive metal content. Through these buildings, he couldn't see what Leonardo had encountered over there.

"It's okay. I've asked my brother to follow me. No matter what happens, he'll be able to handle it."

Norton spoke in a relaxed tone. He was currently sitting in the cab, adjusting the equipment. He was somewhat surprised by these components with a strong sense of design, as well as their operating concepts... After using magic, humans were able to forge their own path.

"You actually attempted to advance into a realm of nothingness...imaginary numbers. How audacious! This is equivalent to blindly exploring the empty lands beyond the Nibelungen, an unfamiliar dimension of space and time. This realm's very premise is 'nothingness,' so space-time coordinates are naturally undefined. Otherwise, it would be a real dimension."

Norton quickly analyzed the essence of imaginary submarine navigation.

"Can the navigation problem during the submersible process be solved?"

"Although it's a bit difficult, I already have a feasible idea." Norton is worthy of being a master in the field of technology. Even if Leonardo da Vinci is a true genius, his talent seems too immature in front of the master.

"The method is simple. Since imaginary space cannot be defined, all we need to do is find a 'definition of eternity' to serve as a guide."

"Eternal?" Emiya frowned in confusion.

"To be precise, it means allowing the higher-dimensional realm, which is not affected by the lower-dimensional realm, to reversely guide your navigation positioning," said Norton.

"You know the 'World Tree', right? Here's the most convenient method. All you need to do is connect the Heroic Spirits on the World Tree with your spirit computer, forming a pseudo-spirit link. Copy the images from the higher-dimensional perspective, and you'll be able to guide your voyage—"

"For example, if you were to travel to the moon via submarine, high-dimensional image information, including the moon's pattern, the distance and direction between the earth and the moon, and so on, would be presented in a two-dimensional format that you could understand."

"However, the prerequisite for production is a sufficiently mature and excellent spiritual computer. Coincidentally, I have one."

"understood."

Emiya pondered for a moment. "It feels like the flat moon that children stick on tinfoil universes when they're doing crafts... So, how about calling this thing 'Imaginary Compass: Flat Moon'?"

(End of this chapter)