"So, what brings all of you here? Let me make one thing clear first. I paid to reserve this location, so at least for today, I have the right to use it."
As the group approached, Nian spoke first.
As long as she spoke quickly, established the moral high ground, and secured her footing from the very beginning, she would have the advantage in the conversation that followed.
Wei Yenwu: "..."
Looking at her completely self-righteous expression, Wei Yenwu remained silent for a moment.
Although what she said was not without reason, had she not gone a little too far by creating such a huge commotion?
This was the middle of the city, after all. Even the smallest disturbance would be magnified many times over.
"You have caused quite a stir. Besides, my guests happened to take an interest in that enormous object, so we came by while we were in the area."
At that moment, Wei Yenwu could think of countless ways to punish Nian.
In the end, however, he restrained himself.
Getting angry would not solve anything.
Besides, given Nian's personality, continuing to argue over this would only make the situation worse.
As long as she did not go too far, it was best simply to go along with her.
That was the conclusion Wei Yenwu had reached after years of dealing with her.
"They are interested, are they..."
Hearing that, Nian wore a thoughtful expression.
She did not completely believe his explanation.
However, unlike the people from the Sui regulators, these visitors had not immediately bombarded her with questions and accusations. Because of that, she was willing to overlook the polite formalities.
"We are here in Lungmen on an inspection tour. We happened to notice that enormous object and asked Governor Wei to bring us over so that we could see it for ourselves."
One of the officials from the Court of Judicial Review spoke.
"I see. It must have been quite difficult for all of you to inspect your way over here."
Nian clearly did not believe their explanation.
If they genuinely wanted to understand what was happening here, they would have sent subordinates.
Why would they personally make the trip?
More importantly, they had interrupted her filming schedule.
Because of their status, she could not simply refuse them and had been forced to postpone filming instead.
That was why she was being unusually aggressive.
"..."
As the conversation continued, Shirou increasingly felt out of place.
The main reason was that Nian and the three red-robed figures had begun speaking in an extremely obscure and formal manner. Although he could understand the words themselves, grasping their full meaning was another matter entirely.
It was rather like listening to characters in a meticulously produced historical drama speaking in classical Chinese.
The difference was that this was real life.
There were no subtitles explaining what they meant.
Furthermore, perhaps it was just his imagination, but whenever Nian spoke to those three men, she seemed especially hostile. Her tone was noticeably sharper than usual.
Combined with Wei Yenwu's occasional glances in his direction, Shirou eventually decided to excuse himself.
Calling it an escape was perhaps an exaggeration.
He merely used the excuse of checking whether the supports holding up the two gigantic Noble Phantasms were still secure, rather than leaving to join everyone else outside.
It could not be helped.
According to the original filming schedule, everything should have been completed before the supports reached their limits.
However, with these unexpected "guests" arriving, the schedule had inevitably been delayed.
Therefore, checking the supports and reinforcing them a little was not merely an excuse to leave an awkward conversation.
It was genuinely necessary.
"Hmm... The tension is getting a little high. It is a good thing I came to check. Otherwise, this could have become dangerous."
After approaching the supports, Shirou immediately activated Structural Analysis.
Compared with simple visual inspection, Structural Analysis provided far more comprehensive and direct feedback, allowing him to reinforce the exact areas that needed attention.
Even so, Shirou still preferred to finish filming as quickly as possible and dismiss the Noble Phantasms.
The enormous swords were exposed out in the open, and there were simply too many unpredictable factors.
For example, he had already noticed that the reinforcements were deteriorating faster than he had originally expected.
"Perhaps the wind is stronger in Lungmen today."
With that thought in mind, Shirou committed the observation to memory.
After strengthening the supports, he headed toward Sul-sagana.
If the stronger wind really was the cause, then Sul-sagana, which stood at the front, was likely under even greater strain.
He needed to reinforce it as quickly as possible.
The sooner he dealt with the problem, the lower the chance of an accident occurring.
That was why he was in such a hurry.
So much so that he completely failed to notice several people following behind him.
"The reinforcements have been handled quite well. As for this ability... it really does not resemble the power of the Sui Beast."
Following behind Shirou were naturally Nian, Wei Yenwu, and the officials from the Court of Judicial Review.
While admiring the spectacle, the officials had not forgotten the purpose of their visit.
Their task was to determine whether there was any connection between Shirou's abilities and Nian's authority as a fragment of the Sui Beast.
Initially, they had been fairly suspicious.
However, after witnessing the countless swords suspended in the sky, their suspicions had diminished considerably.
Now they were only mildly suspicious.
It was not because they had been awestruck by the spectacle.
Rather...
None of the swords bore the distinctive style of Nian's previous creations.
If anything, the opposite was true.
The styles of the weapons were astonishingly varied, creating such a dazzling array that the sheer diversity itself made the scene appear magnificent.
If Shirou's abilities had truly been connected to Nian's authority, they would undoubtedly have recognized the characteristics of Yan's greatest legendary swords within them.
Instead, the overwhelming majority of the weapons displayed no such traits.
Most of them looked more like blades originating from Victoria, Ursus, or Kazimierz.
The Yan-style swords were not entirely absent. According to the files, the pair of black-and-white twin swords that Shirou frequently used had a distinctly Yan aesthetic.
Even so, they still did not resemble the style Nian employed when forging weapons.
"...Phew."
Hearing the discussion among the group, Wei Yenwu quietly let out a sigh of relief.
Back when he had first taken notice of Shirou, he had entertained the same suspicion.
In the end, however, after observing details like these, he had abandoned that line of thinking.
Especially after obtaining more detailed reports later on, he had become completely certain that Shirou and Nian had no such connection.
The people from the Court of Judicial Review, however, knew none of this.
Nor could they be allowed to know.
Otherwise, there would be even more matters requiring explanation.
Although he could simply leave all of that to Shirou and Emperor, Wei Yenwu was convinced that if those two were allowed to explain things themselves, the amount of work waiting for him afterward would probably double.
In every possible sense.
Not only would he have to deal with Yan's side of the matter, he would also have to endure retaliation from a certain petty penguin.
That was why he insisted on handling everything personally whenever possible, resolving every potential problem before it could develop further.
Just like now.
The officials from the Court of Judicial Review had already reached their own conclusions without any prompting from him.
That was precisely the outcome Wei Yenwu wanted.
Unfortunately, he had no idea what they were actually thinking.
So he simply stood to the side, watching the conversation while silently praying that they would not create another enormous headache for him.
Especially Shirou.
The dependable Shirou from before was gone.
Standing before him now was a Shirou who had been thoroughly "Penguin Logistics-ified."
What did "Penguin Logistics-ified" mean?
It meant that when he was out of sight, everything was peaceful enough that one could pretend he did not exist.
But the moment he appeared in one's field of vision, one's blood pressure would begin rising.
Fortunately, things had not become completely unmanageable yet.
Shirou's behavior just now had still retained much of his former self.
If he had to point out one difference...
It seemed that Shirou only became particularly aggressive whenever Wei Yenwu himself was present.
Could that penguin have been talking behind my back?
With these miscellaneous thoughts swirling through his mind, Wei Yenwu followed behind the others.
"This ability is remarkably useful. Just touching something tells you everything about it. Combined with that projection ability of yours, if you were willing to study blacksmithing, your future would be incredibly promising."
Walking at the front, Nian could not help sighing in admiration.
She had already known that Shirou possessed such an ability.
She simply had not realized how convenient it actually was.
One touch, and he immediately knew exactly where the problem was.
The range seemed quite impressive as well.
If it had been her, she would probably have needed quite some time to carefully inspect the structure before identifying the issue.
Meanwhile, Shirou had already finished reinforcing it and moved on to the next location.
The difference in efficiency was enormous.
If only he were willing to study under her, his future accomplishments would certainly be extraordinary.
More importantly, if they shared a master-disciple relationship, inviting him to help with filming or asking him out for hot pot would become much more convenient.
Wei Yenwu: "..."
The officials from the Court of Judicial Review: "..."
The good news was that they could now confirm Shirou and Nian were not connected in the way they had suspected.
The bad news was that Nian apparently had the intention of taking him as a disciple.
"Sigh..."
Wei Yenwu lit his pipe and took a deep drag, attempting to calm the overwhelming urge to give up on work entirely.
First, Shirou had produced those gigantic swords and attracted the attention of the Court of Judicial Review.
Then, Nian casually announced that she wanted to take him as a disciple, immediately putting the officials on alert.
Everything had happened so suddenly that there had been no opportunity to stop it.
At this point...
The best thing he could do was take a few puffs from his pipe to steady his nerves.
"...Are you considering accepting him as your disciple?"
After hesitating for a moment, one of the Court of Judicial Review officials asked directly.
Earlier, they had cautiously probed the situation because they believed any relationship between Shirou and Nian would have been deliberately concealed.
Simply asking outright would probably have yielded no useful answers.
They had expected to rely on observation and inference instead.
Now, however, Nian herself had openly brought up the subject.
There was no reason to continue making guesses.
Why not simply ask the person involved?
"That depends on whether he wants to learn. That boy's interests lie elsewhere."
After their earlier verbal sparring, Nian was in a fairly good mood, so she answered their question without hesitation.
It was hardly a secret.
There was no harm in saying it aloud.
"His interests lie elsewhere?"
The officials from the Court of Judicial Review looked puzzled.
It was not that they failed to understand what Nian meant.
They simply found it difficult to believe.
After all, Shirou had already developed his abilities to such an astonishing level despite his young age.
Yet Nian was saying that his focus and priorities had never actually been centered on those abilities.
"It is not exactly that his interests are elsewhere," Nian corrected herself. "It is just that, for that boy, there are other matters that are even more important and require his attention."
After thinking for a moment, Nian carefully chose her words.
As far as she knew, Shirou had never neglected training in this area, so it would not be accurate to say that he did not value it.
It was simply that, compared to everything else in his life, it ranked much lower on his list of priorities.
Unlike most blacksmiths, Shirou treated this ability more as a means to accomplish an objective than as an end in itself.
She could not say that such a way of thinking was wrong.
Human beings naturally held all kinds of different beliefs, and throughout history there had been many craftsmen with that same mindset who had forged legendary weapons.
There was no reason to dismiss such an approach as inherently incorrect.
Shirou was different.
It was both his greatest strength...
And his greatest weakness.
After all...
What kind of blacksmith forged weapons only to use them as oversized explosives and blow them up?
If she ever did succeed in taking him as a disciple, the very first thing she would do would be to correct that fundamentally flawed way of thinking.
"That is true. The boy keeps himself extremely busy. As far as I know, besides frequently assisting the Guard Department with dangerous criminals, he also established a shelter for homeless children in the slums. It seems that the only time he has to practice this ability is a short while before going to sleep."
Standing nearby, Wei Yenwu exhaled a cloud of smoke as he spoke.
Everything he said was true.
It had all been included in the documents previously provided to the Court of Judicial Review.
Mentioning it again now was simply another way of emphasizing that Shirou posed no threat.
"Wow. You even investigated the fact that he only practices before going to bed? That is a little creepy."
Nian immediately picked out the least important detail and focused on it instead.
"..."
None of the officials from the Court of Judicial Review said anything.
Instead, they all turned toward Wei Yenwu with puzzled expressions.
"Emperor was the one who told me. That boy is extremely alert. Every time I send someone to observe him, he notices immediately."
Caught off guard by Nian's attack, Wei Yenwu remained perfectly calm and promptly shifted the blame onto Emperor.
"Oh? Is that so? Then I suppose I misunderstood."
It was obvious that Nian did not believe him.
Even so, she had no intention of exposing his lie.
She had merely seized a rare opportunity to get a little revenge after failing to gain the upper hand earlier.
Wei Yenwu: "..."
Ignoring Nian entirely, Wei Yenwu took another deep draw from his pipe.
He, Wei Yenwu, was mentally exhausted.
He did not feel like talking anymore.
The group followed Shirou until they arrived beneath Sul-sagana.
Although Sul-sagana looked nearly identical to Ig-Alima, it gave off an entirely different feeling.
It was difficult to imagine what sort of person could actually wield either of these weapons.
Even a colossal beast would struggle to use them.
Even a Feranmut would have trouble using them, let alone ordinary martial artists or common people.
It was equally difficult to imagine under what circumstances this young man would draw and wield such weapons.
"Hmm... perhaps he really has nothing to do with the Feranmuts, but he does not seem to be any less dangerous than they are. What do you think, Jingzhe?"
While everyone else was focused on Shirou, one of the officials in red robes quietly moved beside Jingzhe and spoke in a low voice.
He mainly wanted to hear her opinion. Having worked at the Supreme Court for many years, and because of the Office of Sui Affairs, he inevitably held certain prejudices against the Feranmuts.
Jingzhe was different. She was still young and might have a more fair and impartial perspective.
"I have reviewed his records. Shirou's daily life is, for the most part, exactly as Governor Wei just described. Most of his neighbors also speak very highly of him."
"And if I judge solely by his actions in Ursus, I would say he is... a good person? Yes, a very capable good person."
After considering the question for a moment, Jingzhe gave her answer.
People like Shirou were not unheard of. After all, it was perfectly normal for young people to be somewhat idealistic.
The truly unusual part was probably his combat record. For someone his age to stand against several Emperor Blades was genuinely terrifying.
"I cannot tell whether that was supposed to be praise or not."
The official in red robes looked rather speechless after hearing Jingzhe's assessment.
"Of course it was praise. Other than the fact that he works for Penguin Logistics, which is admittedly something of a stain on his record, there is practically nothing else worth criticizing. Why would you even ask that?"
Although she did not quite understand his reaction, Jingzhe still explained her reasoning.
"It is nothing. Some young people seem to enjoy using complimentary words sarcastically to criticize others."
Although they were colleagues, Jingzhe had only been appointed not long ago. They had not worked together for very long, so they did not know each other particularly well, which was why he had asked.
Jingzhe: "..."
"I am not that kind of person. And pay attention to your work. Tell me what you think of him."
Speechless for a brief moment, Jingzhe decided to ignore his earlier remarks and forcibly change the subject.
"You sound even more like an old fossil than I do! Hey! Do not get worked up! I will talk! I will talk!"
The other official in red robes let out a sigh, but the moment he noticed faint arcs of lightning flickering around Jingzhe's fingertips, he hurriedly apologized.
A little shock like that would not seriously hurt him, but it would certainly leave him miserable for a while.
More importantly, there were too many people watching. He could not afford to lose face here.
"Hm? Why is everyone here?"
Only when lightning crackled at Jingzhe's fingertips did Shirou finally notice the group.
His attention had been completely focused on Sul-sagana. Since none of them harbored any hostility toward him and this was not a battlefield, he had relaxed a little and failed to notice their movements immediately.
Besides, while his opinion of Wei Yenwu was not particularly favorable, it was nowhere near bad enough for him to remain constantly on guard against the man.
As for Wei Yenwu's guests... they had come because of Nian, which had even less to do with him.
"Do not mind us. Finish dealing with this first."
Seeing Shirou momentarily frozen, Nian stepped forward to help reinforce Sul-sagana.
Without any materials, she could not offer much practical assistance, but she was strong enough to lend a hand. More importantly, she possessed a wealth of knowledge and
"This will only hold together for a little while longer. We need to hurry up and finish filming. Otherwise, we will have to scrap the entire prop and start over from scratch."
The two of them bustled about before finally reinforcing Sul-sagana once more.
Even so, no matter how many patches they applied, they could only extend its lifespan for a short while. In fact, it would probably last far less time than they had originally expected.
The weather had taken a much heavier toll than anticipated.
"Do not worry. We only have the last few shots left."
Hearing Shirou's words, Nian patted her chest confidently before turning toward the others.
"You heard him. I need to get back to work, so if there is nothing else, you should all leave."
Without the slightest regard for anyone's status, Nian bluntly showed them the door.
"..."
Her remarkably impolite attitude made even Shirou's eyelids twitch.
Fortunately, when he saw that no one's expression had changed, he quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
He had no idea who the others were, but he certainly knew Wei Yenwu's standing in Lungmen. Up until now, the only person he knew who dared speak to Wei Yenwu like that was... his own boss, perhaps? Other than that, no one came to mind.
Still, even if the man himself chose not to take offense, he could always vent his frustration on someone else.
And looking around, the most suitable target seemed to be Shirou himself.
With that thought in mind, Shirou slowly shuffled backward, doing his best to make his presence as inconspicuous as possible while quietly slipping away from the center of trouble.
He was still young and inexperienced. It was best not to get too involved with people like this.
"Heh. Shirou, do not be in such a hurry to leave. There are a few things I need to discuss with you."
Everyone present was exceptionally perceptive, so naturally they noticed Shirou's little attempt to sneak away.
Nian paid no attention because her mind was completely occupied with filming the movie. The other three did not know Shirou well enough to comment even if they noticed.
Wei Yenwu, however, was another matter.
After having his patience tested throughout the journey by Shirou, Nian, and the officials from the Supreme Court, he was already in a rather poor mood.
The moment he saw Shirou's subtle movements, he immediately understood exactly what the young man was thinking.
Driven by a small desire for revenge, Wei Yenwu deliberately called him out.
Shirou: "..."
He really should have come up with an excuse to leave earlier. At worst, simply running away might even have worked.
Now, however, it was too late.
Wei Yenwu had already called him by name. There was no way to pretend he had not heard or bluff his way out of it.
Sigh.
His boss and Yith had been right after all.
In certain respects, Wei Yenwu really could be remarkably petty.
All Shirou could do was let out a deep sigh inwardly while silently condemning Wei Yenwu for behaving this way.