Just as Shiomi and the others had sensed earlier, this anomalous Tunguska domain truly did reject non-human Heroic Spirits.
Yet from what Taigong Wang and Nikitich themselves reported, the situation differed. Both were masterless Servants summoned by the Counter Force, but Taigong Wang had to rely on his arts to maintain his manifestation here and avoid being forcibly repelled by the domain. Nikitich, however, felt no such pressure at all.
That discrepancy alone was intriguing.
Still, compared to that, what Shiomi found harder to ignore was the utterly undignified sight of Taigong Wang sprawled across the back of a tapir-like beast, letting it carry him through the untouched wilderness.
"Even if you need to use your arts to maintain your manifestation, it's not like you're too exhausted to walk, right, Taigong Wang?" Shiomi said, eyeing him suspiciously. "You're just being lazy."
"Ahahaha, not at all. I really am working quite hard," Taigong Wang replied cheerfully. "If Sibu Xiang can carry me, all the better. It saves some strength. I manifested as a Rider this time, after all. Wouldn't it be a waste not to make use of my mount?"
He laughed openly, completely unconcerned about appearances. If anything, he carried himself like a carefree wandering immortal.
A disciple of Yuanshi Tianzun who only encountered King Wen at the age of seventy would naturally have that kind of unbothered temperament.
"So this is the legendary Sibu Xiang," Shiomi muttered, studying the tapir-like creature.
"If Tenkei thinks walking is tiring, I can summon Dun Stallion for transport," Artoria offered. "We have mounts too. We won't lose to Taigong Wang."
"Since when did you get competitive about this, my King of Knights?" Shiomi covered his face in mock despair. "But if you want a ride, I won't stop you. There isn't even a proper path here."
At the moment, they were simply following behind Nikitich as she hacked a way forward. It was efficient enough, sparing them the trouble.
Artoria shook her head. A bit of rough terrain did not bother her. Instead, she returned to the earlier topic.
"Speaking of which, Taigong Wang, you manifested as a Rider. But from what we know, you are a top-tier Magus from the Age of Gods. You also mentioned you're maintaining your manifestation here through your arts, preventing the domain from forcing you out."
"That's right," Taigong Wang nodded. "If I had manifested as a Caster, I might have qualified for Grand Caster. Considering this is a campaign against a Beast, and they still didn't grant me a Grand seat, the Counter Force is truly stingy."
"So you're also a Grand candidate," Shiomi said, enlightened. "But the throne of the King of Magecraft was already taken by Goetia. I suppose they couldn't very well appoint a second Grand Caster."
"Grand Rider would have worked too. I qualify for that as well," Taigong Wang added lightly. "Still stingy."
He delivered that astonishing fact as if it were nothing.
Shiomi and the others had already encountered more than one Servant with Grand qualifications. But someone qualified for two different Grand classes at once? Taigong Wang was the first.
Even manifested with an ordinary Saint Graph, a Servant of that caliber was anything but simple.
And according to legend, after his mortal lifespan ended, Taigong Wang ascended to the immortal realm and became a divine being.
In other words, there should truly exist a deity known as Taigong Wang.
Which meant the Servant before them might very well be a manifested aspect, a divided spirit of that divine existence.
Considering that, and the fact that before coming here he had received direct instructions from both Lady Nüwa and Yuanshi Tianzun regarding Shiomi, the mechanism behind it all became easier to understand.
After all, deities and the Throne of Heroes both resided beyond the world's surface. For a god to influence the Throne was no great feat.
"Why did you suddenly go quiet? Do you have a question?" Taigong Wang asked lightly. "There's no need to be surprised. I'm using an ordinary Saint Graph right now, and this Lostbelt domain is interfering with me. I can't display my full strength. When the real battle begins, I'll still be relying on all of you."
"That may be," Scáthach said, "but a Servant qualified for two Grand classes at once is still something special. As the leader, my disciple is bound to be surprised."
"Are you perhaps thinking about Thought Magecraft?" Taigong Wang asked with a smile. "If I had taken you in under the lineage of Chinese Magecraft from the beginning, that wouldn't have been impossible. But you've already inherited the wisdom of Odin. There's no need to crave more."
Shiomi waved his hands at once.
"It's not like that. Even if I were greedy, I wouldn't go that far for extra power."
"Spoken like someone who's become a god. Such confidence," Taigong Wang said approvingly.
"And weren't you the same, Supreme Chancellor of the Celestial Pivot?" Shiomi asked pointedly, deliberately using his Daoist title.
Taigong Wang only laughed it off, clearly choosing not to answer.
Shiomi could only steer the conversation back to business.
"Then allow us to formally introduce ourselves again. We are a special task force from Chaldea. This time, we've come to subdue the Beast IV candidate who once aided the Alien Apostle in destroying Antarctic Chaldea, repeatedly interfered with our operations in the Lostbelts, and even attempted to devour me. Her name is Tamamo Vitch Koyanskaya."
That full name was something he had heard from Team A. According to Fou, Koyanskaya likely had nothing to do with Tamamo no Mae at all. The name was probably a smokescreen.
"I'm still in the dark about Chaldea's past battles and your experiences," Taigong Wang said. "Nikitich and I are Heroic Spirits on humanity's side. We came here to seal what lies at the core of this domain, so we know this region well. But as for Chaldea itself, we only know it as an organization resisting for the sake of Human Order."
"I understand. You want an exchange of information," Shiomi nodded. "Within reasonable limits, I'll answer what I can."
"Excellent." Taigong Wang raised a hand. "We can discuss strategy later."
"Later? We're already on the move," Morgan noted, catching the nuance in his wording.
At that moment, Nikitich came to a stop and called out loudly.
"It's open up ahead. Plenty of space to stretch our arms, Taigong Wang!"
"Very good."
Taigong Wang urged Sibu Xiang forward to join her.
As they advanced, Sibu Xiang's form shifted. The tapir-like body elongated and reshaped, transforming into something resembling a qilin.
"Taigong Wang?" Shiomi asked, confused, then smiled faintly. "At this stage, you still want to test us?"
"Heroic Spirits have their pride. I hope Lord Tenkei will understand."
Taigong Wang cupped his hands in salute from atop Sibu Xiang's back.
"…Fine."
Shiomi scratched his head for a moment before agreeing.