Chapter Summaries

Gaia joined the Empire’s festival through a holographic projection, and A Jun and Sandora opened the carnival in Shadow City. The celebration began with a spectacular Holy Light sun that revealed Monina’s bound Brother dangling from a Two-Headed Dragon.

• Gaia told A Jun that she could attend the festival only through a holographic projection and praised the Empire’s recovery under his leadership.
• A Jun prepared for the opening ceremony with Sandora, Lin Xue, Qian Qian, and the other Empire leaders, while Suigintou teased him about his nerves.
• A Jun delivered a brief opening speech after forgetting most of Lin Xue’s prepared script, then declared the carnival officially begun.
• A golden Holy Light sun rose over the Assembly Hall as the festival’s surprise performance, while the Undercity attendees struggled with the brightness.
• A Jun and the other leaders spotted Monina’s bound Brother hanging from the tail of a Two-Headed Dragon, and the Dark Goddess praised him while trading snacks with Uncle Kenser.

The narrator and the Empire’s leaders toured Shadow City’s Carnival with Lin Feng and Ding Ling, who were astonished by the city and its festivities. Their sightseeing was interrupted by Lin’s arrival, and they ended up at a bizarre Snow White stage play just as it began.

• Lin Xue showed off her Imperial status to Lin Feng and Ding Ling, and the narrator agreed that Lin Feng could bring Sally to the Carnival if she kept the secret.
• A tremor shook Shadow City, and the narrator and Monina concluded that Lin had landed while still carrying Ilson.
• The narrator’s group set off to explore the Carnival, passing a fighter exhibition and a Transformers movie reenactment before choosing to watch a stage play called “Snow White War Chronicles.”
• The narrator caught Hakurei Reimu and Yakumo Yukari sneaking a break from their city management duties, then pardoned them and told them to watch the show.
• The stage announced “Snow White War Chronicles: Sand of Time,” and Lilina admitted she had written the play.

The narrator watched Qian Qian’s chaotic Carnival stage play, which veered from Snow White into a mermaid tale and a battle-filled farce before the stage collapsed. The audience applauded, but Hans Christian Andersen and the Grimm brothers mourned the story, leaving the narrator to demand that Qian Qian apologize.

• The narrator discovered that Qian Qian’s play had replaced Snow White with Isana as a Mermaid Princess and watched her suffer through a bizarre tale of hunger and illness.
• Isana’s Mermaid Princess was hooked and released by Kael'thas, then killed her family to seize treasure for a potion, which transformed her into Jaina, who renamed herself Snow White.
• Jaina joined Magni Bronzebeard and six armored dwarves, and they fought their way toward the Queen while the play turned into a battle spectacle.
• Magni and the dwarves fought Sylvanas’s Queen, and the chaotic performance caused the stage to collapse beneath the cast.
• The audience applauded the comedy, but Hans Christian Andersen, Jacob Grimm, and William Grimm wept, prompting the narrator to call for Qian Qian to apologize.

Chen and his companions spent the carnival’s first day eating at the Big Eater Competition before heading to the Imperial Military Academy for an exhibition sports meet. There, they met Rin Tohsaka, Sakura Matou, and Emiya, who had only just been released after two days in Urban Management Brigade custody.

• Chen, Sandora, Pandora, Lilina, and Monina entered the carnival’s Big Eater Competition, where Sandora won after eating the trophy along with the rest of the food.
• Sandora and Artoria admired each other’s appetites, and Artoria revealed that the Heroic Spirits planned a friendly Holy Grail War over a plastic cup.
• Viska told Chen that she and Pandora would compete in the Military Academy’s exhibition sports meet under restrictions that limited contestants to ordinary human abilities.
• Chen and his companions traveled to the Imperial Military Academy, where they encountered Rin Tohsaka, Sakura Matou, and Emiya.
• Sakura explained that Rin and the others had spent two days detained for trying to pry a gemstone from a public signpost, and Chen teased Emiya about the damage he had caused at his house.

The family attended the Imperial Military Academy Festival, where the Misakas’ extraordinary student clubs amazed the visitors and Viska entered several sports events. Viska dominated the opening race but ran straight past the finish line, leaving the result uncertain.

• The narrator reunited with Ilya and Berserker, then joined Rin Tohsaka’s group on the way to the festival.
• Judgment Suigintou showed the visitors the Misakas’ railgun, siege robot, spaceship, ecological dome, and Tsar Bomba projects.
• The group watched the sports meet, and Viska changed into athletic clothes and prepared for her events.
• Viska took an early lead in the long-distance race and pulled far ahead of the other contestants.
• Viska ran beneath and past the finish-line ribbon before realizing she had missed it.

At the Academy Festival, Viska and Pandora suffered a string of setbacks in their events because of their height, so they fused into Pandozilla to compete at a more ordinary size. Pandozilla drew a scavenger-race clue that sent her to Chen, then carried him toward the course while insisting they would win.

• Viska lost the sprint because she was too short to reach the finish line, and Sandora carried her away as she broke down crying.
• Pandora withdrew from the three-legged race after realizing her height made it impossible to compete, leaving the sisters with another defeat.
• Pandora and Viska fused into the tall Pandozilla and entered the scavenger race in place of the two registered contestants.
• Pandozilla drew a slip reading “Your most important thing,” then returned to Chen and asked if she could choose him.
• Chen agreed, and Pandozilla hoisted him up and sprinted toward the competition, claiming their fusion had increased more than their height.

After Pandora and Viska suffered humiliating defeats at the sports meet, Older Sister cheered them up, and the group relaxed as the first day of the carnival ended. Little Pao Pao joined them after slipping away from the Mother Nest, where Viska discovered the toddler may have an extraordinary talent for correcting or altering perception.

• Pandora and Viska lost their sports events, and their fusion ended before they could compete successfully.
• Older Sister made Pandora and Viska laugh by telling them that A Jun was a loli lover.
• A Jun and the others rested near the campus entertainment center and listened as Gaia described her impressions of Shadow City.
• Little Pao Pao escaped the Mother Nest after finishing her data exchange with Child's Mother and joined A Jun.
• Viska challenged Little Pao Pao to demonstrate how she disappeared, but the toddler went to buy orange juice without anyone noticing her leave.
• Viska and Sandora theorized that Little Pao Pao's unusual ability came from a talent for correction, while A Jun dismissed concern about putting pressure on her.

The narrator explored Shadow City’s bustling night market with Bubble and Little Pao Pao, encountering Reimu and Yakumo Yukari illegally selling talismans and later finding Jill. The evening ended with Jill taking Little Pao Pao to bed after proudly describing how she had won the Holy Grail in a series of unusual contests.

• Qian Qian led the family to Shadow City’s night market, where the narrator slipped away from the shopping group with Bubble and Little Pao Pao.
• Bubble spotted Reimu selling talismans near the World Tree Temple while Yakumo Yukari supplied handwritten signatures, and the narrator warned them about breaking market rules before letting them go without punishment.
• The narrator passed Asidda and Asidora’s flower shop without stopping because he expected the sisters to ask him for money.
• Jill found the narrator and Little Pao Pao, then explained that she had won the Holy Grail by placing first overall in a contest that included games and other unusual events.
• Jill took Little Pao Pao away to sleep, and Bubble said she trusted Gilgamesh to look after her daughter.

After Bubble went home, the narrator wandered through Shadow City and met Laura at the Assembly Hall monuments, where her reflections on her world's weakness prompted him to consider how the Empire could better support its weaker vassals. Silvia then appeared and said she was curious about the event, leaving the narrator surprised by her late-night visit.

• Bubble yawned and returned to the mother nest after the narrator took the trinkets she had bought.
• The narrator wandered alone through the Assembly Hall and Totem Area, viewing monuments that recorded the histories of civilizations saved from destruction.
• Laura told the narrator she felt her world had been too weak and unprepared to resist its destruction, unlike the heroes commemorated on the monuments.
• The narrator realized Laura wanted him to pay more attention to weaker vassal worlds and began considering ways to strengthen them without disrupting their development.
• Silvia approached the narrator and said she had stayed out because she was curious about the Empire's event.

Chen met Bellavella during the carnival, and she explained how she had protected Viska and advised him to build his rule around the capable people gathered at his side. Bellavella fell asleep before Chen could bring Viska to see her, leaving their reunion for another time.

• Chen recognized Bellavella and chose to speak with her privately instead of calling the guards.
• Bellavella described the carnival as chaotic but happy and told Chen that Viska had once been targeted by Fallen Apostle officers, so she had sent her on dangerous missions to keep her alive.
• Bellavella advised Chen that the people around him were his King's Way and that he should rely on their strengths instead of trying to become a great ruler himself.
• Bellavella revealed that Silvia had asked her to help Chen, then declined to wake Viska because she did not want to fall asleep in front of her.
• Bellavella fell asleep leaning against Chen after asking him about her saved game and Rubik's Cube, then teased him when he tried to stay composed.

After Bellavella warned that the Fallen Apostles were watching him and that he might be able to reverse Abyss Infection, the protagonist returned Silvia to her shop and settled her in for the night. The carnival resumed the next day, but volunteer disputes overwhelmed the organizers, and Lilina proposed an integrity-rating system that the protagonist immediately tried to burn.

• Bellavella warned the protagonist that the Fallen Apostles might target him, that his apparent ability to restore Abyss-corrupted beings was dangerous, and that their hidden domain lay in the shadow of the Old Empire.
• The protagonist discussed Bellavella's information with Sandora, carried the sleeping Silvia back to her shop, and put her to bed after she woke briefly and invited him for coffee.
• The carnival continued smoothly overall, though its organizers faced congestion, complaints, and conflicts among visitors and participants.
• Lilina told the protagonist that volunteers from different worlds were competing unfairly for customers and presented a proposed system of ratings, rewards, memberships, and tips.
• The protagonist read Lilina's proposal and tried to set it on fire, while Lilina protested.

The narrator took Anweina to the Assembly Hall carnival to help her face her fear of going outside, while Xiao Qi Jing watched through his halo. There, he stopped Bubble from chasing Hatsune Miku and ended up guiding Miku around the carnival with Anweina and Bubble.

• The narrator put Lilina in charge of trivial matters after burning her disastrous proposal, then asked Anweina to join him at the carnival.
• Anweina hid inside a birdcage and trembled as the narrator carried her through the crowded plaza, but she grew curious about the sights.
• The narrator caught Hatsune Miku as she stumbled and learned she was fleeing a smaller, costumed Bubble wielding scallions.
• The narrator pulled off Bubble's wig, scolded her for chasing and capturing Miku and others, and made her apologize.
• Hatsune Miku recognized the narrator as the Emperor, and he offered to guide her around the carnival.

The narrator joined Misaka Mikoto and her friends at the Military Academy Festival, where he tried to avoid a concert by nearly ten thousand Misaka Sisters. The choir began singing Hatsune Miku’s song, and its deafening sound waves knocked out the audience as the narrator prepared for the worst.

• The narrator introduced Hatsune Miku to Misaka Mikoto, Kazari Uiharu, Ruiko Saten, and Shirai Kuroko, then joined them on a trip to the Academy Festival.
• Misaka Mikoto revealed that she wanted to attend the Misaka Sisters’ concert, while the narrator warned the group that it would be dangerous.
• The narrator encountered Yashiro Nanakase, Shermie, and Chris, who explained that Orochi had been sentenced to sixty thousand years of labor reform and that they had joined the Empire’s workforce.
• Ruiko Saten and Shirai Kuroko stopped the narrator from covering his ears as nearly ten thousand Misaka Sisters began singing The Disappearance of Hatsune Miku.
• The choir’s sound waves overwhelmed the auditorium, knocking down the narrator, Misaka Mikoto’s friends, Yashiro Nanakase, and Bubble.

After the Misaka Sisters’ overwhelming concert, the narrator and his companions fled the auditorium while Kusanagi Kyo and the New Face Team stayed to defend their honor. Later, he encountered Fina pushing the sick, non-floating Biberlu through the streets and learned she had labeled the sphere’s front for them.

• The concert left the audience stunned, and the narrator checked on Bubble, Shermie, Kuroko, Hatsune, and the other survivors.
• Kusanagi Kyo and the New Face Team refused to leave before the next song, while Kagura Chizuru and the narrator’s group escaped ahead of the Misaka Sisters’ performance of "10000 Digits of Pi."
• The narrator took the exhausted human girls back to the A Certain Magical Index Residence, and Hatsune went home to recover from the concert.
• The narrator, Bubble, and Anweina continued through Shadow City, where they encountered Fina pushing a giant metal sphere containing the cold-stricken Biberlu.
• Fina explained Biberlu’s unusual ailments and marked his front with a marker after the group realized they had been speaking to his back.

A Jun and Fina joined their friends at Silvia's dessert shop during the carnival, where the crowd shared stories and discussed how the Empire and the Pan-Galactic Civilization Community had learned to enjoy peace. Silvia presented her prized dessert, revealing Ding Dang hiding beneath the cover and devouring it.

• A Jun, Fina, and their companions brought Biberlu to Silvia's shop, where Silvia marked his front and head so everyone could tell which way he was facing.
• A Jun found the shop packed with their friends and Star Domain God Race members, while Biberlu stayed outside to recharge in the sun.
• The group traded stories about their carnival outings, and Fina described the festival as a chance for her people to relearn how to celebrate peace.
• Sandora explained that the Shilin Apostles had once known only war and that A Jun's influence had helped them embrace entertainment and other cultures.
• Silvia served her cakes and unveiled her special creation, revealing Ding Dang covered in cream beside a cake she had gnawed full of holes.

The narrator and the others discussed the Kopru Star Sector’s reconstruction before Lin Xue brought her brother Lin Feng, his girlfriend Sally, and Ding Ling to Shadow City. Lin Xue revealed that Sally’s fear of Imperial military forces came from a memory dating back to the destruction of Atlantis civilization.

• Ding Dang had gnawed the Golden Cake while eating, so the narrator put her in a mug to wash off the cream.
• Gaia explained that the Kopru Star Sector’s celestial systems had been rebuilt, while the New Eden Federation planned to restore only selected civilizations and let people rebuild elsewhere themselves.
• Lin Xue arrived and brought in Lin Feng, Ding Ling, and Lin Feng’s girlfriend Sally.
• The narrator exposed that much of Lin Feng and Ding Ling’s expensive-looking equipment was counterfeit, including goods sold by Sikaro.
• Lin Xue showed that Sally panicked at Imperial Army imagery and revealed that her fear came from an ancient memory linked to Atlantis civilization’s destruction.

Lin Xue revealed that Sally likely descended from Atlantis survivors, prompting the group to agree to investigate the ancient civilization’s fate and the history of Viska’s Glory Starship. The discussion ended when the injured Yakumo Ran arrived through a malfunctioning world passage, and the group sent her to the Medical Center.

• Lin Xue explained that Sally’s instinctive fear of the Imperial Army and Pandora likely came from inherited Atlantis memories, and Sandora approved an investigation into her ancestry and the lost history.
• I told Sally, Lin Feng, and Ding Ling the story of Atlantis and Viska’s past, and Sally said she felt no hatred toward events from hundreds of thousands of years earlier.
• Reimu hurried to report that Yakumo Ran had arrived seriously injured, and I and Sandora went with her to see the sleeping fox girl.
• Yakumo Yukari explained that Ran had been trapped in a malfunctioning world passage, and the group arranged for her to be treated in a Medical Pod.

The narrator and Lin Xue investigated the injured Yakumo Ran, whose arrival suggested trouble in Gensokyo, though Lin Xue foresaw that the situation was still stable. After leaving the Medical Center, they went to a martial-arts-themed restaurant and found that its ancient-world visitors had readily adopted modern devices.

• The narrator and a crowd of visitors gathered around Yakumo Ran, while the Medical Center staff treated her injuries and said she needed several days to recover.
• Lin Xue divined that Gensokyo faced a serious disturbance but that its future was trending toward balance, and Yakumo Yukari asked to return home as soon as possible.
• The narrator and Lin Xue promised Yakumo Yukari and Reimu they would locate Gensokyo, then left the Medical Center.
• The narrator triggered Yashiro Nanakase, Shermie, and Chris with the Song of Pi, and Medical Center staff rushed the three back for treatment.
• Lin Xue took the narrator to Dragon Gate Inn, where they discovered that martial heroes from ancient worlds had adopted tablets, phones, and other modern technology.

After dinner in Shadow City, Lin Xue and Wood walked together and grew closer as they discussed how their relationship began. Lin Xue revealed that her early hostility came from prophetic visions that showed she would fall in love with him, and they ended the conversation still trading affectionate barbs.

• Wood and Lin Xue overheard martial artists from other worlds discussing modern technology and games at the restaurant, and Lin Xue wiped sauce from Wood's face.
• Lin Xue leaned against Wood during their walk, then asked him to hold her hand when walking arm in arm proved uncomfortable.
• Wood told Lin Xue that he cherished her and asked why she had always argued with him, and she admitted she had disliked him from their first meeting.
• Lin Xue revealed that her prophecies had shown she would fall in love with Wood, so she had tried to make him hate her and change their future.
• Lin Xue said she still argued with Wood out of habit and recalled that her first vision showed him pushing her down.

After learning why Lin Xue had treated him harshly, A Jun discussed her relationship with Sandora, who admitted she had once accepted Lin Xue for the Empire’s sake but now trusted her. They returned home to find Chen Qian had calmed the children by teaching them games.

• A Jun reflected on Lin Xue’s prophetic vision and realized her past hostility had gradually changed into teasing and affection.
• Sandora caught A Jun holding hands with Lin Xue, then explained that she and Qian Qian had already understood Lin Xue’s feelings and accepted her for different reasons.
• Sandora told A Jun that she still felt jealous and asked him not to be fickle; A Jun reassured her that his feelings for her, Qian Qian, and Lin Xue were genuine.
• Sandora described the children’s usual household chaos and asked A Jun to help manage them.
• A Jun and Sandora returned home and found Chen Qian had settled the children into a gaming session, while Lilina and Suigintou competed and the Dwarf King and Thrall shouted from upstairs.