Disclaimer: FATE does not belong to me, all its history and characters belong to Type-Moon.
Boys and girls.
In the middle of a flaming hell, boy and girl met.
Shirou recovered from his stupefaction and asked the girl, "What are you talking about? The last few times we met, you told me things like: that we had met here and had been together for the past seven years, however, I don't remember anything about that."
Manaka smiled, "It's understandable, as I said before, the shock must have been very great, but don't worry, I'll help you remember, I'll unlock those memories..."
For a moment, the landscape changed slightly.
Suddenly, he found himself in the closest part of the residential area to the epicenter of the tragedy, and then…
"Dad, mom!"
A young version of himself tried to get to one of the houses, but it was already too late, everything had been covered by that kind of burning mud that consumed everything in its path, and, seeing that he couldn't get to the house because of the mud, the boy could do nothing but run in the opposite direction from which he came.
"It seems you weren't home at the time, or maybe they took you out of there before the mud consumed everything," Manaka said, then smiled at the redhead who was either in disbelief at what he was seeing or trembling from helplessness these memories brought to him, "by the way, it won't do any good if you try to intervene, as you should know, they are just memories."
His young self ran with all his might, but it was useless, because that mud, as Manaka had called it, consumed everything with absurd speed, he was soon surrounded, and he had no choice but to climb one of the mountains of rubble, in an attempt to escape from the mud.
"D-Dad! Mom! Someone please… someone please help me!" the child begged between sobs.
But no one responded to his request, and the amount of mud was increasing more and more, from one moment to another...
Crack!
The rubbles gave way.
"NOOOO!" yelled both the younger version of him and the current version of him. And so, he was consumed by the mud...
But then, something happened, a light emanated from the place where his younger version was absorbed, and this couldn't belong to Avalon, since the younger one didn't know Kiritsugu yet, so...
"What's going on? Is it some kind of protection magic?" Shirou asked, he was worried about what he was seeing since Manaka had told him that these were his memories, and if that was true, then did it mean that at some point he was swallowed by the mud?
Manaka nodded, "That's right, and it must be a very powerful one to be able to oppose all the evils in the world, and with that said, come on," Manaka waded into the mud, "these are just memories, so if you want to know what happened afterward, we have no choice but to enter."
Shirou's body instinctively recoiled, he was afraid of that accumulation of curses... no, he wasn't just scared of it, he was terrified of it. Terror had been seared into his body ever since that incident, and if he was honest, he would almost rather go back to Aylesbury than touch that mud. And yet he had to know, had to know why he had survived, so carefully and fearfully, he followed the girl.
Dark... very dark, and then curses, an absurd amount of curses.
The apprentice mage watched as that mud tried to devour his younger version, but then that protection activated again, magic rooted in the earth, but even more so, magic rooted in him. This magic surrounded him and prevented the curses from touching him, however, this only lasted for a few moments, then the protection began to fade, and, when it was about to disappear, the magic shone once more and stronger than ever.
"What happened!? The magic was about to disappear!"
Manaka held her chin, which was a gesture that indicated she was thinking, "I think someone gave up their protection to increase yours, and, if this was some kind of family protection or something, maybe it was your parents."
He could barely process everything he heard, but the surprises did not end there, as that protection took shape.
What was shown was a woman, she had a maternal aura and looked with sorrow and pain at his younger version, she was also sitting on a lotus flower and had an absurd number of arms, and in one of these, she was wearing a vase. Seeing the younger version of him, she poured some of the water from the vase into the horrible mud and, as if they were both water and oil, the mud moved away and the water enveloped the younger version of him in a bubble, protecting him.
And at the same time that all this was happening, the mudflow flowed and, like a river, brought someone with it...
"That's you…?"
Manaka nodded, "Like you, I too fell into the stream of mud, but it was not so easy to consume me..."
And that was true, something was surrounding Manaka's young body, something fleshy, and it was trying to protect her from being swallowed by the mud, and whatever this was, it tried to take her to where young Shirou was, however, when the woman who saved him looked at her, her face darkening.
Suddenly, an animal appeared in front of her. Shirou recognized it as a qilin, an Asian phantasmal beast, a mythical chimerical creature with thick eyelashes, manes that always flow upward, and its body often shaped like an ox, deer, or horse.
And, although it was a peaceful beast, upon seeing the girl, the beast became angry and was about to attack her.
Manaka herself did not know what was happening. What she was seeing were only memories, Shirou's to be exact, which meant that Shirou should save her somehow, and however, the younger version of Shirou was unconscious, and she couldn't do anything. So the phantasmal beast lashed out at her, but...
"Wait!"
The one who screamed was none other than Shirou, the Shirou who was next to her.
The redhead screamed without thinking. He had let so many die, he had walked through that hell without heeding the pleas of the people around him, and now that remorse had forced him to act. Maybe it was a memory, maybe it was a futile action, but the boy couldn't keep quiet.
The qilin stopped its attack.
"A lot of people have already died! Please, I don't want to see someone else die," begged the boy.
What's going on? Did his voice travel back in time to save me? The girl wondered.
To his surprise, the woman looked at them, looked at both of them, at their current versions, and when her gaze passed over Manaka, the girl lowered her face, perhaps a little embarrassed, avoiding the woman's murderous gaze, then the woman looked at the young man, and smiled. She took Manaka's body, and this dissolved inside the young Shirou, then took the bubble and raised it above the river of mud, leaving them far away from it. Afterward, she headed towards the current versions of both…
"Listen to me, young man," she said in a melodious voice, "I am the one who hears the cries of the world. I have heard your prayers, and because of the sacrifice of those who abandoned their protection so that yours has grown stronger, as well as the enormous amount of mana gathered in this place, was what allowed me to manifest."
Instinctively, he leaned in, "Thank you very much, my Lady…?"
She smiled, "Kannon, Senju Kannon," then she looked up to the skies, "I can feel it, it is not entirely clear, but the path that awaits you is one full of adversity. My protection will be with you, just as it was with your ancestor when his mother offered him to me. Will you be able to heal the wound of this dying world? Can you have mercy on those who created this hell? Will you turn this hell into paradise? Will you break the cycle of reincarnation that now binds you to that girl? Let me observe it… now the two are bound by karma, for both have died, and both have been reborn together. The two will be tied up until the debt for saving the girl's life is paid off," then she pointed to Manaka, "and you, your freedom will be taken as a guarantee until then."
After this, the woman disappeared in exactly the same way as she appeared.
"I see, so it was her…" the girl whispered, "she intertwined our lives with a karmic bond. Was it an act of mercy or a form of punishment?"
Shirou, for his part, was still thinking. Kannon, also known as Guanyin, is the bodhisattva associated with compassion and is considered the goddess of mercy. Now that he remembered, his grandfather had told him that, when he was a child, his mother had offered him to Lady Kannon, and now that he thought about it, Sengo was short for Senju no ko, which meant: son of Senju. Grandpa wasn't incredibly religious unless it was towards some deity related to the Kusanagi, but, perhaps, through the generations, the worship of the bodhisattva continued in his family until it came to him.
But what shocked him the most was what the woman said, since the only other people who could have her protection, and who abandoned it so that his protection could be strengthened, must have been...
"Shirou, are you okay?" Manaka asked when she saw the boy's face.
A few small tears spilled from his eyes; however, he nodded, "I'm sorry, it's too many things..."
Manaka nodded, understanding what he was going through, "After this, I remember that I woke up momentarily. I didn't know why I was united with you, but I imagined that you saved me somehow. I also knew that I would die if you did, so I used what little I had of my Od and made it flow into you, forcing you to walk, and after that, you managed to continue on your own. It took me seven years to recover and thus appear in front of you, and one more year to recover me to this point, and, even so, I'm still pretty weak. For years I was trying to talk to you, my savior, but it was useless, at least, until last year."
"I see. Now I understand what you meant when you said that we met here and that we save each other."
The girl smiled, "Yes, and that's why you belong to me, Shirou. You saved me, and I saved you, you are mine, and I am yours, do you understand?"
"But I don't even know how I did it, wasn't it a memory?"
Manaka nodded, "It should be, but many things happened that day. Maybe it ended up becoming a singularity, and we managed to go back for a few moments to return the story to its original course..."
"Is that possible? It sounds like something only true magic could accomplish..."
Perhaps, in the end, if I was able to grant him a wish, although it was not the one he wanted, it is very likely... could it be that... did I use my connection to the Root, along with the grail, to momentarily alter reality? But that's impossible, I was already... She smiled, "Maybe it was that, or maybe it was something else, like I said, a lot of things happened that day."
Shirou lowered his gaze, "B-But, there's something wrong... did I really meet you here?"
Manaka nodded happily, "Exactly, you just saw it."
Shirou felt his head rumble like a bass drum, "A-Are you sure? I-I think I saw you somewhere else, maybe, a park?" then Shirou smiled, as if his mind cleared slightly, "yes, I remember you-"
"DO NOT DO IT!" Manaka quickly approached the boy and hugged him, then she whispered in his ear, "you… you met me in this place, do you understand!?"
Seeing the girl's desperate gaze, he couldn't help but nod to calm her down, "Y-Yes, I get it…"
She nodded at the boy's acceptance.
After seeing the reaction she had to his previous question, he understood that he had to be careful from now on since this girl might act innocent, but he was sure that she was very dangerous. The fact that she had survived the mud until she could get to him was proof of that. Or, in other words, If he pissed her off, he would be in trouble.
"W-Well, I understand that we have a mutual debt."
Manaka pouted, "A mutual debt… that's an unromantic way to put it, but you've lived in the magus world for two years, so I guess it's normal for you to think that way."
He nodded and carefully said the following, "However, since we both saved each other, isn't our debt already paid?"
She smiled, "In a normal situation, I suppose that would be correct, but thanks to that goddess, we are united from now on, or do you want to separate from me?" she asked, narrowing her eyes at him.
"N-Not at all, you saved me, and I'm very grateful for that, but... aren't you upset that you don't have your own body?"
Manaka smiled when she realized he was only caring about her, "Oh, don't worry, I'll get it back soon, maybe a few more years. My body did not disappear, but I was mortally wounded; however, during all this time, I've been recovering. The goddess united our lives and somehow made you into a kind of container for me, dissolving my physical form, but she did not eliminate it. And in a while, I should be able to get back into my physical form. I guess I had better luck than my other versions..."
"What?"
"Nothing, nothing," she smiled, "now I understand, it was your wish… your wish was what saved me."
He was careful in asking the next question, "By the way, Manaka…"
"Yes?"
"How did you get involved in this whole mess?"
She laughed innocently, "Well, my family moved from Tokyo to Fuyuki, and we hadn't been in the city long, but we ended up involved in all this mess. And, in the end, I ended up hurt and on the verge of death," then she smiled dreamily, "until you saved me, Shirou, just now, and 8 years ago… and by the way, Shirou..."
"Yes?"
"Do you know why I was quick to wake up again?"
The redhead shook his head.
"It was because I felt something that upset me," Manaka hugged him from behind.
Shirou gulped, he didn't need to be an expert reading the environment to know that he was in danger, "W-What do you mean?" he asked in the most normal way that he could.
"There are too many..." she said with venom in her voice, "one even dared to make a contract with you, and a powerful one for a change... what does this mean, Shirou? You remember, right? That I would be the only one who would grant your wish."
The only one with whom he had entered into a contract was Altrouge, and from the bone-chilling tone of her voice, she was no doubt angry, so to avoid this dangerous path, the redhead tried to change the course of the conversation.
"Manaka…"
"Yes, Shirou?" she whispered in his ear.
"Why did you kiss me so suddenly?"
At that moment, she quickly separated from the boy, and with her flushed face and an embarrassed look, she told him, "I wanted to be the first to have it..."
"The first? The first to kiss me? Is that what you mean?" Shirou asked, confused.
She nodded as she smiled sweetly at him, "Yes! After all, the first kiss is something that only happens once. I wanted you to have mine, and I wanted to take yours," then she looked down, "unfortunately, I can't take your first kiss with my real body because I'm still weak. So until I get it back, you'll have to wait for me."
It seemed that Manaka wanted to say something else; however, the whole scene began to fade.
"It seems our time is coming to an end... Moouuu, I wanted to spend a little more time with you," Manaka pouted in frustration, "well, I guess it doesn't matter much. I'm glad to know what happened."
"Is the dream ending?"
She nodded, "Shirou, I'll go back to sleep for a while, but this time it won't be for that long."
The redhead nodded, not sure if he had to be happy or worried about it.
"Remember this only I will make your wish come true, so you better wait for me. Do you understand me? Otherwise…" for a moment, her smile turned extremely sweet, but within that sweetness, there was something he could tell was totally wrong, and yet her smile quickly changed to a mischievous one, "however, now that I think about it, it would be very boring if I won so easily, it would be too boring a result," Manaka came over for the last time and hugged him, and he wasn't suicidal enough to push her away, "I guess I don't mind some competition, but don't relax, I'll be the one to claim you for myself. After all, there is no magic more powerful than love. So, until that day comes, please, wait for me, my savior."
Once again, she tried to take his lips, and if she succeeded, he did not know, as the world turned white too fast...
Shirou opened his eyes, and… oh God… he had jumped out of the pan straight into the oven. After opening his eyes, the first thing he saw was: The Princess of the Eclipse right above him, and she was frowning while having an expression of being quite annoyed.
"Altrouge? Are you okay?"
She smiled threateningly, "I don't know, do you think I am?"
"Shall we play a game...?" Shirou asked nervously.
She nodded, "So my dear Shirou, who or what was that it?"
"Did you see something?"
The Princess shook her head, "More than seeing it, I felt it. It was a disgusting sensation that I had never felt before," Altrouge stared at him, "so… what happened?"
Shirou tried his best to explain to his partner what he had dreamed of and she listened to him until he finished explaining himself.
She looked at him in shock, "Shirou... I don't know if you have very good or very bad luck, honestly, I don't know how to define it."
"To be honest, neither do I and now I'm scared of what she might do. I don't even know who she is or what family she comes from... but what I'm sure of is that she and I have known each other before."
Altrouge nodded, "I see; it will be something you will have to investigate. By the way, are you okay?"
Shirou looked at her strangely; however, now that he had calmed down, he realized his current state: he was hyperventilated and covered in a cold sweat, his eyes were watery, and his skin was pale.
He nodded slightly, "Y-Yeah, it's just... I watched that thing swallow me, and, my parents... I can't even remember them, and yet..."
Altrouge smiled, not in a mischievous or threatening way, but in a slightly reassuring way.
She patted his head as she looked away, "Well, now you know that you didn't survive just by luck or something, but you survived because they gave their lives for you, so... how to put it... fulfill their wish and live with all your might, that's the only thing I can suggest to you… and, about the girl, don't worry about her."
The redhead appreciated the action of the Princess, but he didn't dare to look at her knowing that it might make her angry, "Thank you very much; but what do you mean I shouldn't worry about her? Maybe you have only felt that disgusting sensation, but I am sure there is something dangerous about her."
"Yes, I'm sure of that too, but…" Altrouge returned to her usual smile, "didn't you forget something, silly?"
"From your smile, I guess so."
Altrouge nodded, "She can be as powerful as she wants, but as long as she's human, she's nothing but food to Fou."
Shirou smiled a bit nervous, "I'll try to find a way where no one dies."
"Well, at least she won't be able to do you any harm…"
"Will not be able?"
The Princess shook her head, "That karmic bond metaphysically binds her to you and robs her of her freedom until she pays off her debt. You can almost say that she is subordinate to you, she can still hurt you, but if she tries to kill you, she can never be free. It's also why she must be so obsessed with you, the karmic ties can produce that effect, and she has had it for eight years."
Still, I think she was more or less the same, even without that bond. He kept this thought to himself, "What if he killed me?" the redhead asked curiously.
"I'm not the greatest expert on Buddhism, but according to what that bodhisattva said, his life will probably end if you die, and both of them will reincarnate until the debt is paid, but don't worry, I won't let that happen."
Shirou nodded, "Again, thank you..."
"Now, get ready. We have things to do today."
This confused Shirou, "What do you mean?"
"Oh? Didn't I tell you? Reines invited me to go shopping with other girls."
This did not surprise the redhead. For some reason, Altrouge got along quite well with Reines and Luvia. She didn't get on badly with Rin, but there was a slight animosity between the two. She laughed at Flat's nonsense, like the rest of the class, and, sometimes, debated with the teacher. Some students didn't even approach her, like Matou or Ayaka, although in the case of those two, each had their reasons. And, with the others, she did not relate much.
"I see. I'll fix breakfast so you can go have fun," Shirou smiled.
She smiled back, "Thank you. With all the current problems, I haven't just gone out for fun in a while."
"In that case, take the opportunity to do it. After all, someone told me that, in life, there are more things to do than worry about something we haven't faced yet."
"Oh? Using my words against me, I'm going to remember it, you know…" she said smiling.
He was unrepentant and made breakfast for both of them, and, after they both finished eating, Altrouge said goodbye and left the apartment.
She walked through London until she came to the largest department store in the city, the Camac, and front of it was Luvia, Reines, Gray, and, finally, Rin.
"Good morning," Altrouge greeted.
"Good morning, Lady," Gray greeted.
"Hmn... Good morning," Rin said.
And so on, everyone greeted each other...
"So, do we start?" Luvia asked impatiently.
"Aren't you very excited?" Rin asked, looking curious.
"Not at all, Tohsaka. I want all of us to have a good shopping day. Ohohoho!" Luvia replied, looking offended.
Rin narrowed her eyes but didn't say anything else.
"Oh, come on, we all came here to enjoy ourselves, didn't we? Could we stop the animosity for today?" Reines spoke with her typical aristocratic smile.
Gray kept an awkward smile as he watched the whole scene unfold.
And finally, they all decided to enter the Camac.
With an ostentatious welcome pose, Luvia said, "Welcome to my Camac!"
"Your Camac, Luvia?"
"Yes! I got all the property after Gurdoa's possessions were confiscated," Luvia was proud, "of course, nothing less worthy for the heiress of the Edelfelt family."
"So that's what she called us for…" Rin whispered wearily.
With an awkward smile, Reines spoke, "Well, you know what the defining characteristic of the Edelfelt family is."
"The most elegant hyenas above the ground, isn't it?" said Altrouge, "it's not bad to be proud of such a useful skill, but doing it so blatantly could get her in trouble one day."
Rin smiled, "Well, I hope it's soon if with that she can learn a lesson."
"Did you say something?" Luvia asked after coming out of her reverie.
"Nothing," answered all the others.
After that, they all began to tour the Camac. The stores were so many and varied that it took them the whole morning to visit only part of the department stores. And meanwhile, the Princess was amused by observing the reactions of the other girls:
Luvia and Reines liked luxuries, but they didn't like to spend heavily, accustomed to aristocratic life, which Altrouge agreed with. Rin, on her part, didn't dislike these, in fact, they attracted her, but she was going for more modest things. Gray, on the other hand, fled from anything too showy. And, in the end, all of them avoided appliance stores to a greater or lesser extent, with Luvia avoiding these stores to a lesser extent and Rin to a greater extent.
Around lunchtime, they all decided to eat something at one of the stores.
"The Camac stores really have quality," Reines said.
Gray nodded, "This is really delicious."
Luvia smirked, "Of course, allowing a shoddy shop to be in the Camac would dirty the Edelfelt surname!" then she looked at the last two, "what do you guys think?"
Rin and Altrouge looked at each other, and, for a moment, they both connected and then they smiled in collusion.
"It's nothing to write home about," Rin said.
"I've eaten better things," Altrouge confirmed.
This dismayed Luvia, and, believing they were saying it to annoy her, she asked them, "Where did you eat better than at my establishment? What food is better than what you will find here?"
Rin and Altrouge said at the same time, "Shirou's food, of course!"
This information shocked Luvia and surprised Gray, and on the other hand, Reines couldn't help but laugh a little, seeing the expression of the heiress Edelfelt.
"W-What? What do you mean!?" Luvia asked.
"Well, as we said, Shirou is an amazing cook," Altrouge said.
Rin nodded, "Without a doubt."
"W-Wait, T-Tohsaka? H-How do you know how good Shero's food is?"
Rin smiled supremely, "He and I are just working on a project together. So, after we're done experimenting, he has offered to treat me to dinner several times, and Luvia assured you that his food is much better than this."
Before an argument broke out, Reines asked, "By the way, what are the best dress stores in the Camac, Luvia?"
"Hmn… we have been through several, but there is a shop that is my preference, why?"
Reines smiled, "It's just that our dear Gray has a date tomorrow, so I was thinking of helping her choose a dress."
"Miss Reines!?" Gray asked in surprise.
"What's wrong, Gray? You're not thinking of going to your date in those clothes, are you?"
"W-Well, I was planning to go in my normal outfit."
However, Reines's gaze told her a clear message: No.
"Oh, who is the lucky one?" Luvia asked, interested.
Gray was about to say it, but Altrouge gestured for her not to say it, knowing what would be unleashed if the tomb warden said so.
"Just someone I know..."
"Hmn…? That makes it more interesting," Rin said, smiling.
Luvia smiled, "Well, in that case, I'll show you a good place."
With that said, the group of girls headed to a specific store. In the end, Reines and Luvia started making the embarrassed girl try on one dress after another.
"So, when do we start?" Altrouge asked.
"I guess we should do it now, right?" Rin said.
"Although it was fun, as a mage, this would be a waste of time if we didn't…" Reines said.
"I guess so..." Luvia spoke.
For her part, Gray said nothing as she was changing.
"So, is a question-and-answer exchange okay with you? Sure, as long as these questions are not about thaumaturgical secrets or family secrets," Altrouge said.
"Sounds good to me," Rin said.
"Well, who starts?" asked Luvia.
"Let me be the first," Reines said, "Rouge, as an apprentice to the Emiya heir, tell me: Do he have any grudges or pending work against the El-Melloi family?"
Altrouge smiled, "Watching your back? Well, you don't have to worry. As I understand it, what happened to the second-to-last Lord El-Melloi was not personal, and at least at present, we haven't received any work that puts in danger your life."
"I see. Thank you very much for the answer. Now, what do you want to ask?"
Altrouge smiled, "What do you know about the previous Holy Grail War? I understand your brothers participated in it."
Reines looked at her in surprise, "You too? It seems that lately, that ritual is attracting attention," then she showed herself more serious, "as I understand it, my dear brother stole the catalyst from my 'brother' Kayneth, forcing him to use a different catalyst. They both participated in the war, but neither of them ever saws the end. My brother Kayneth, as well as his fiancée, were killed by Emiya Kiritsugu and his associates. My dear brother Waver did not see the end of the war either, as he was sadly defeated by a powerful enemy."
"What about the participants? Do you know anything about them?" the Eclipse Princess asked.
"That's the strangest thing, as much as I investigated, I couldn't meet all of them; however, the ones I managed to find are as follows: my brothers, a Churchman, your teacher's father, a participant from each of the three founding families, and, lastly, Lord Animusphere," after saying these words, she showed an expression thoughtfully, "both my brother, Kayneth, and Lord Animusphere died in that battle, but for some reason, no one talks about it... plus, there's something even stranger: the grail didn't choose any members of the Church this time, and however, it is known that a man of the Church became a Master and came out of the war alive."
"I see. I suppose asking you about the servants would be too much."
Reines smiled, "I'm willing to answer as long as you let me ask you another question..."
"No thanks, I already got what I wanted…" she answered, smiling as well.
"Excuse me, girls, b-but I think this dress is not for me," Gray said, half walking out of the dressing room.
Gray wore a beautiful orange-hued dress with red bows, as well as a headpiece.
"Oh!?" the girls said.
"But you look good, Gray," Reines said.
"Even I must admit that you look like a delicate doll," Luvia said.
"It suits you very well," Rin said.
"Ihihihihi! It's like they say, good clothes even fix ugly ones," Add said.
At this, Gray stepped out of the changing room, grabbed Add's cage, and shook it hard.
"S-Stop, s-stop, Gray! Please!"
"Maybe you want something less flashy and less brightly colored?" Altrouge asked.
Gray nodded fervently, and with that said, Reines handed the girl another dress, and she returned to the changing room.
Taking advantage of this, it was now Luvia who decided to ask a question, "I also want to ask you something, Miss Rouge."
"Oh? It seems like I'm the center of attention this time, okay, tell me."
"What is your relationship with Shero?" the heiress Edelfelt asked firmly, "you are supposedly his apprentice; but, from your discussions with the professor, I think you know more about Magecraft than he does."
"Of course, I know more about magecraft than he does; we never said I was his magecraft apprentice, did we? Let's say I'm the real teacher, and he the pupil."
Luvia narrowed her eyes, "So that's your relationship? Are you just student and teacher?"
Rin snorted, "Yeah right...they're just a student and a teacher who lives in the same room and shares the same bed..." she whispered.
But Altrouge heard her loud and clear, "So, if you're worried about that?"
"No way!"
"Huh? What are you two talking about?" Luvia asked.
"Nothing important. Regarding your question, I couldn't give you an exact answer."
"Hmm? What do you mean?"
"How to say it... I suppose that, at first, he was like a lifeguard that I found in the middle of the ocean and that I clung to not drowning, but I think that now has changed a little... let's say that... it is now that I've really taken an interest in him, maybe even gotten a little attached to him..." Altrouge smiled, "our relationship isn't exactly defined, so there's no clear answer to your question."
This answer did not completely satisfy Luvia, "Well, I guess I understand."
"Now it's my turn. Is it true that your family has a magecraft trait called ore scales? The concept is something that has been made fairly public, so it's not considered a family secret, is it?"
Luvia laughed at the opportunity to show off, "That's right, although everyone knows it, no one knows how we possess it or how to duplicate it. The scales... can be said to be based on the concept of the twins, they allow me to bond with my reflection, all this in exchange for being perfect as long as we work together; however, we must never forget that we each have a dagger at each other's throats."
"Hmm, interesting..." then she turned to Rin, "are you also going to ask me a question?"
I have a question, but it is Shirou who must answer it. Rin shook her head, "No, none specifically."
"L-Lady Reines, isn't this dress very daring?" Gray asked, coming out of the fitting room.
She wore a light green dress with a white belt without any flashy embellishments, and this was a dress with small straps, exposing her neck, shoulders, and part of her chest before the bust. She also wore a black bow to tie her hair and star-shaped earrings.
"What are you talking about? A magus has to put everything into practice," Reines said with a smile.
"I think this one suits you better than the other one since it matches your eyes," Rin said.
Luvia nodded.
"Yup, that's definitely the one for you," Altrouge said.
"But my face is exposed," Gray tried to cover her face with the curtain.
Reines smirked, "As a magus, you should give it a try, also, you would look cute a lot more often if you didn't wear that hood all the time."
Gray lowered her gaze, trying to cover her cheeks covered by a slight blush, and although hesitating, she decided to buy the dress.
Thus, the girls spent their day enjoying the rest of the time.
On the other hand…
Altrouge had left the apartment a few hours ago and, in that time, Shirou had gone to get a package and had also returned to his residence.
He unwrapped the package and inside was a telescopic sight. The Black Barrel was an all-black rifle with a curved buttstock, and, now, with this accessory, it had become a sniper rifle, being able to use as a medium or long-range weapon.
Finally, he looked at his latest completed projects, a carbon fiber oriental bow, and a sword.
The bow was flexible enough to accommodate different types of projectiles and robust enough not to break easily.
Shirou had been pondering what Rin had told him: being able to shoot swords as if they were bullets. At first, he had thought that it was impossible to modify the shape of these so much to turn swords into bullets, but what if he could? This wasn't possible right now; however, maybe, in the future, he could do it, and using the Black Barrel to shoot was much more efficient for him than using a bow. Thus, he continued to train his archery and transformed his swords into arrows as a preliminary step to being able to shoot the swords with the rifle.
Shirou had thought to modify the Black Barrel and put a blade on it; however, this would have to be a small one, like the Phantom Punishment, but Kiritsugu had the original and it didn't seem appropriate to him to simply add a normal sword to it.
On the other hand, the sword was also not very impressive: it was neither too long nor too short, just the right size for anyone to handle, but, above all, it was light and strong enough not to break easily. The sword had been made for Sieg and was forged so that he could easily infuse it with mana that would easily allow him to reinforce it.
Finally, he saw his last two projects: one was another sword, but it wasn't complete, it was missing something, but he had no idea what he could use to fill that gap. The other, and his last project, included Time Manipulation Magecraft as well as creating bounded fields, unfortunately, Shirou still couldn't use bounded fields in the middle of combat, so it was something he was trying to deal with work currently.
Now, in addition to his daily combat training, as well as his forge training, he would add retaking archery practice to his routine.
"If you want it to be useful to her, it must have to do with her nature as a true ancestor or as a dead apostle," Muramasa said.
"I know, but finding something that increases the power of an apostle is... complicated."
"I think that, in the worst case, you will have to find another apostle..."
"That would be troublesome..."
Shirou was preparing to continue with his training, but…
Tin! Ton!
"Hmn?" hearing the doorbell, Shirou went to open the door.
When he opened it, on the other side were Flat, Svin, Caules, and Sieg.
"What's up, guys?" asked the curious redhead.
"Shirou, we've come looking for you," Flat said, smiling.
"Huh? Why?"
Caules responded uncomfortably, "Flat thinks that taking advantage of the fact that on this day we are all free, we should all go out together."
"That's right! Now we can show Sieg the most important parts of London!"
Shirou didn't mind hanging out with the boys, on the contrary, he liked hanging out with his friends; however, due to everything that had happened lately, he hadn't spent as much time training as he wanted. But just as he was about to reject them, Altrouge's words echoed in his head:
There is more to this world than just creating swords.
"Don't even try, you know how he gets when something gets into his head," Svin said, sensing the redhead's inner dilemma.
To Caules and Flat's surprise, the blond's tone of voice did not carry the usual animosity he had when talking to the redhead.
Shirou nodded, "Give me a moment to take my things."
Shirou took his swords and the Black Barrel. Fortunately, he managed to engrave the same runes that his katana had to divert the attention of normal people away from his new weapons so that no one would ask him why he carried weapons with him.
After this, the boys went out to explore London, and seeing Sieg's expressions was extremely funny, for the young man was afraid of everything but himself, and he was surprised by almost anything.
They took him to various places such as the top of The Shard, Westminster Abbey, and the London Eye, and despite his short life, Sieg was able to absorb knowledge like a sponge.
At this moment, the boys were walking the streets of the city. They all had cupcakes in their hands, as Sieg had never tasted one, and Flat wasted no time, so he bought a few.
"Are they good, Sieg?" Flat asked.
Sieg nodded fervently, "Yes, they really are delicious."
"Don't eat them too fast, or you may choke," Caules said.
As the boys strolled through the streets, Shirou stopped to look at the window of a store.
"Hmm? What's up?" asked Svin, who was next to him, looking towards the same window Shirou was looking at, "a suit? Do you want to buy one?"
"It's not that, but sometimes I feel like my clothes don't go with this place."
Svin showed a wry smile, "Strange that you are thinking about it now; you should have thought about it before you met with Lady Valualeta or the Queen."
"What are you watching?" Flat asked.
This revelation embarrassed Shirou a bit, "I-I guess you're right."
The other three approached shortly after.
"A suit?" Caules asked.
Flat's reasoning was simple: In his mind, the image of Kiritsugu with his black suit appeared, then the image of Shirou appeared, he moved the suit of the magus killer to his son and, Jackpot! Flat had understood the whole situation.
Without a second thought, he grabbed Svin and the redhead by the hands and dragged them into the tent.
"I understand! Come on Shirou, Lee chien!"
"W-Wait, Flat! / Do not call me that way!" Both boys said.
Caules and Sieg stayed outside the store since they had not finished with their desserts yet.
Flat made him try on various outfits almost reluctantly, but none of them seemed to convince him, and Shirou didn't know why he was so excited about this matter. Finally, Svin took pity on him and suggested to Flat a formal, but not extremely elegant, suit that the boy could wear to all kinds of gatherings. This was a simple black suit, without relevant embellishments, and comfortable enough to wear on the battlefield.
"Well, now there is only one trench coat missing!" said the excited boy while he went to get something.
"Wait!? Trench coat, that too!?"
Svin smiled, "You better buy it, if you are invited to some party or meeting, then you better have something to wear."
In the end, Shirou ended up buying the simple outfit, as well as a black trench coat with white and blue details.
Flat and Svin waited for Shirou while he paid for the suit, but at that moment...
"Wait! Leave Sieg!" that voice was Caules's...
Flat and Svin looked at each other for an instant, and Shirou quickly told them, "Go! I'll follow you shortly after!"
The two boys nodded and left the store, and what they found in front of the establishment surprised them both.
Caules was being held by two men, as was Sieg.
"Hey! What are you doing!" Svin asked.
"Leave Caules and Sieg alone!" Flat said.
"Don't make such a fuss..."
Someone approached along with two other men at his side, they were all similar; they were homunculi, and he wore black pants and a white shirt under a beige vest, as well as black shoes.
"Goredolf Musik, is it not?"
The boy nodded, "I'm part of the Clock Tower Policy Department. I've only come to get back what belongs to us, that homunculus is clearly part of the Musik family, and that traitor stole it from us!"
"That's a lie Goredolf, I got him with some contacts with the Einzbern," said Caules.
"Exactly, Svin and I can ratify it!"
Goredolf smiled, "And with what so-called contacts did you manage to get in touch with the Einzbern family? They are a hermit family, totally focused on their research. It was almost impossible for us to obtain a small piece of their research, so how could your family, with such a poor heir, contact them and obtain one of their homunculi?"
The three boys fell silent, not knowing how to respond.
"That was thanks to me," Shirou said, coming out of the shop.
"Who are you…? No, wait, you are the protégé of Lord Valualeta, the son of the magus killer, right?"
Shirou nodded, "That's right."
"And what relationship do you have with the Einzberns?"
"My father had a relationship with a member of the Einzbern family, and with her, he conceived a daughter, that is, she is my stepsister, and, currently, she is the sole heir to the Einzbern family. Unfortunately, the bond between our families was broken; however, I was fortunate to maintain a good relationship with my sister, which is how I was able to bring Sieg to help Caules."
"It is true that the magus killer was with the Einzberns for several years… But there is nothing to guarantee that this is true!"
"And there's nothing that says he that he's part of the Musik family! So, do you really want to become my enemy by attacking my friend for something like this!?"
The boys came to a standstill, and they both stared at each other for a few seconds.
But, finally, Goredolf signaled to the rest of his homunculi to release both Caules and Sieg, then he turned around, not without looking at the redhead one last time, "I'll take care to verify this."
With that said, the squad and the heir left the scene.
"You guys okay!?" Svin asked the two.
Flat, on the other hand, helped them up, and Shirou made sure that the Musik had left and did not return.
"Y-Yes," Sieg replied.
Caules also nodded.
Then, after the four made sure the Goredolf didn't come back, they decided to go back to their bedrooms.
"Is what you said true?" Svin asked.
The redhead smiled awkwardly, "W-Well, the part where I have a stepsister in the Einzbern family, yes, but the part where we get along, or the part where we meet…" Shirou sighed as he lowered his head and whispered, "I just hope this doesn't impair me in the future..."
The boys talked until they had to separate.
Before Shirou parted ways with Caules and Sieg, he handed over the sword he had forged.
"What's it for…?" Sieg asked confused, as he held up the sword.
"We won't always be able to defend you, and there will be times when we won't be able to be with you, and sometimes your life will be in danger... that's why I want you to have this, killing is not something you should do in this life, but this world is too dangerous for you to live without any protection."
The boy looked at the sword and then looked at Caules, who had his head bowed, biting his lips and with his clenched fists, and then he looked at Shirou and nodded, "I get it."
"Don't misuse it, it is a weapon to defend yourself, but it is also a weapon to kill," said the boy, paraphrasing his father's words.
Then the redhead turned to Caules, "Relax, everything will be fine," Shirou smiled. Somehow…
Caules smiled slightly, "Yes, I hope so..."
After this, the two boys left.
Shirou was worried about Caules, and after analyzing it for a bit, he realized that the young Yggdmillennia had a huge inferiority complex towards his sister.
When he met Caules, it seems that, for his classmate, it was like having met someone similar and on whom to lean, but, after his actions at Aylesbury, the brunette must have felt that he was lagging.
Shirou was looking for some way to help him before the boy did something crazy, and yet the redhead didn't know how to do it, but he knew he had to think of something.
Finally, Shirou arrived at his apartment, and after entering, he was reunited with the apostle.
"Oh, you returned," Altrouge said.
He nodded, "I wasn't planning on going out today, but, in the end, I ended up getting dragged."
"I sense Flat was involved."
Shirou smiled and nodded, "I see you had a good time with the others," he said after seeing several bags.
She smiled, "I was able to buy several dresses, now my wardrobe is a little more up-to-date, want to see?"
Without caring, he nodded, "Sure," the young man began to explore the contents of the bags.
"Oh? Did you buy clothes too?" said the Princess looking at the contents of the bag that the redhead brought.
Shirou nodded.
"Oh! You bought a suit! You thought about what to wear to your date with Gray; that's great progress."
This confused the boy, "Eh? No, I was thinking of using it for formal situations. Tomorrow Gray and I are just going to walk around the Camac, and I will take the opportunity to ask her about her relationship with Avalon."
For a moment, Altrouge thought of smacking herself across the face with the palm of her hand in frustration, but now that she remembered, Gray wasn't planning on buying a dress for tomorrow either, so the boy's idea wasn't one-sided.
"Shirou…"
"Hmm?"
"Do you trust me?"
"Yeah…"
"Then wear the suit tomorrow..."
"…"
"Shirou, did you hear me?" Altrouge turned to see Shirou and, after seeing the scene, she smiled.
Without making a sound, she snuck up behind him, then the Princess put her arms around his shoulders and whispered in his ear, "Oh, yes, I also bought those... do you like them...?"
At this moment, the redhead had a pair of lace panties in his hands. Quickly, Shirou released himself from her grasp, handed them over, and said, "I-I'm going to make dinner," Shirou flew out of the living room and into the kitchen.
"Hey! You didn't deny that you liked them!" Altrouge yelled, and a knock, and the occasional fall of various dishes, were heard from the kitchen.
After the magus apprentice made dinner, they both ate dinner while talking about how their respective days went, and then the two of them went to sleep.
And after a few hours...
"You do not plan on sleeping?" Altrouge asked.
Even though several hours had passed, Shirou still hadn't fallen asleep.
"I cannot…"
"Did that dream really affect you, didn't it?"
Shirou gripped one of his arms tightly to prevent it from shaking further, "Being cornered by the mud with no possibility of escape, and, after seeing how it swallowed me, I remembered everything, and the feeling of helplessness was horrible."
"I guess I can understand you."
"Can you really understand how I feel?"
The Princess nodded, "The dead apostles seek to achieve perfect immortality, and on the other hand, the true ancestors were created to keep humanity in check, and thus maintain balance on the planet," Altrouge smiled bitterly, "now, imagine that suddenly the World starts to die, you're involved, and there's nothing you can do about it, I felt like I'd been thrown into a turbulent sea with no way to swim."
"What did you do not to worry? Ever since I've known you, I've almost always seen you happy."
"Did you see me happy? Maybe that's how you thought I looked, but you're wrong: I was laughing so I wouldn't cry. I was... desperate... so much so that I repeated the same ritual that caused all this destruction, only to understand what the hell had happened the first time."
"And what did you do? You get over it, right?"
Altrouge nodded
"Well, let's say I found a board floating in the middle of the turbulent sea, it seemed that I would sink even if I clung to it, but I still did."
"And…?"
"I'm not sinking yet," then she smiled, "so do the same as me, hold on to the life-board in front of you, at least I can promise I won't let you sink into that mud, we're in this together now."
Shirou smiled slightly, "Thank you, really… thank you very much."
That night they both slept much longer together. Shirou didn't know that Altrouge had such a side, but it was logical since it should be impossible for a person to always be joking and in a good mood, as he had known her.
We are in this together, those words meant a lot to him. Now, he was sure he had to thank her, he didn't know how, but he was going to forge that sword at her.
The next day flew by, and Shirou didn't know why, but for some reason, what should have been just an outing between friends turned into something bigger, and Gray's strange behavior told him so, since after the last class, instead of leaving together, for some reason, they both agreed to meet in front of the Camac.
Shirou went to his bedroom, and following Altrouge's advice, he decided to get dressed in his new suit. He felt strange, in his old clothes, he didn't feel like a part of London, however, in his new clothes... well... he felt a bit uncomfortable, in the sense that he didn't feel like himself.
He said goodbye to the Princess. Altrouge had told him that he was going to sleep for a while.
Thus, he left his bedroom straight to the Camac. He made sure to arrive before the scheduled time, but he did not know how he had ended up in this situation: he was only supposed to go out with his classmate to talk about some things; so how had she ended up wearing a suit in front of the largest department store in town? And more importantly, why did he feel so nervous?
He waited around fifteen minutes until...
"Wow…"
Shirou was not able to recognize her at first, as Gray, who normally dressed in shades of gray and hid her face with a hood, was now wearing a pretty light green dress with straps.
For her part, Gray also felt uncomfortable. In the end, Reines forced her to wear her dress in exchange for giving her more information about the Holy Grail War. She couldn't find out much, but something was better than nothing, as for some reason the Lord was reluctant to talk about his relationship with his servant.
At first, she encouraged herself by saying that it wouldn't be a big deal to wear the dress, after all, she had bought it for a reason apart from Lady El-Melloi's manipulation, but she had been wrong, she was not used to dressing this way, and besides, her dress did not allow her to hide her face, so, suddenly, this appointment had become really difficult for the young gravedigger.
Fortunately, she was not the only one in this situation. When she arrived at the Camac, she was able to see him and was surprised to see him dressed in a suit. She had never seen him wear anything formal before, although she wasn't going to deny that his suit suited him and, what was more reassuring, he seemed to be just as restless as she was.
"G-Gray…?"
"Y-Yes?"
Shirou didn't need to be an expert reading the environment to know that this had turned into a true date that, somehow, neither of the two main ones involved knew how it had turned into one.
"Y-You, you look r-really, really amazing..."
"T-Thank you… y-you too."
Somewhat unsure, he offered her his hand, "Shall we go in?"
A little embarrassed, she held his hand, and they both entered the Camac.
What neither of them noticed was how the two Princesses were watching them in the distance: Altrouge and Reines.
"Did they come in?" Reines asked.
"Yes," Altrouge replied.
A little confused, Reines asked, "Are you really okay with this?"
"What are you talking about?"
"Aren't you worried that he and Gray are on a date?"
Altrouge smiled, "Lady El-Melloi if a woman appeared in your dear brother's life, would you feel threatened?"
"Of course not," the young woman answered quickly and firmly, then with a smile, and as if it were the most normal thing in the world, she declared, "my dear brother, it is mine and nobody else's. Literally, he must serve me for life to pay off his debt."
"Well, you could say the same is true of me. Besides, I have more dangerous enemies than Gray," Altrouge smiled, "if we're honest, the fact that the two of them are on a real date is more our fault than theirs. And I only did it to see them embarrassed and uncomfortable."
Reines smirked, "Was it worth it?"
She smiled back, "Oh yeah…"
They both entered the Camac, and it was obvious that they were both nervous because they had both left their comfort zone. Still, after considering the situation they were in, the two of them decided to do their best so that they could both enjoy the date. Fortunately for them, the fact that their outfits were no different from what the other people inside the Camac wore went a long way to reassure them.
At the Camac, Gray had a certain advantage, since she had been in the department store yesterday, so she was able to guide the date, and at a certain point, they both began to care less about their appearance and more interested in the things than the establishment had to offer them. And, even though she had been to the Camac yesterday, Gray was able to enjoy the shops once again since she had only seen a part of them yesterday.
"Really this place is amazing…" Shirou said.
Gray nodded, "I've been here twice, and I still discover new stores."
They both continued to observe various stores until...
"Want one?" Shirou asked.
Gray was looking at a candy store, "N-No, I was only looking at the candy, they look pretty good."
The redhead smiled, trying to be nice, "Come on, I want to try more of the English sweets too."
She nodded happily.
That said, the gravedigger got carried away, and they both ended up buying some sweets at the store.
After seeing many stores in the Camac, they both decided to walk around the city. The two of them had been living in London for over a year, but during that time, they were both mostly confined to the area of the World of Magecraft of the city, that and what, well, there was also the fact that the city was huge, therefore, now they were walking around the normal part of the city, just enjoying a stroll.
Shirou was enjoying his time with Gray, but, even so, he knew he had to find a moment to talk to her, so using the experience that he gained the day before, Shirou decided to invite her to the London Eye.
And that's why they were both sitting in this place today. The two were in one of the cabins of the Ferris wheel. Besides, they had just arrived at sunset, so the sky was tinged with shades of orange, and Gray was looking in surprise at the view from the altitude of the cabin of the Ferris wheel.
"It's really beautiful," Gray said.
"It really is a great sight," Shirou confirmed.
The redhead tried to be as delicate as she could, but Gray didn't seem to like showing her face, and this was almost identical to King Arthur's, or Altria's, in this case, so maybe she didn't like the King of the Knights.
"Gray, do you remember when I told you there was something I needed to talk to you about?"
"Yes."
Since he was going to ask her a question that might be personal, he would also have to open up to her a bit by telling her something personal about him. Give and take.
"You see, Gray, when I was a child, I got caught in a terrible accident and was about to die. That disaster was the same one that ended the previous Holy Grail War..."
This surprised the girl, "Is that why you are so interested in that ritual?"
Shirou nodded, "I lost a lot of things that day, but what I want to talk to you about is how they saved me because I... was at the epicenter, I was about to die... no... in fact, perhaps, in a sense, I died."
She became concerned and asked, "H-How did you survive?"
"It was thanks to a certain sacred relic, and it was implanted within me by my father, was the sheath of an ancient and legendary sword: Avalon, the sheath of Excalibur, the forever distant utopia."
"…" Gray didn't add anything; she just kept listening.
"The sheath saved my life back then, but this one has one condition: it only works when the King of Knights is around. That time the King was summoned as a servant, and that's why it worked, but when I was fighting Shinji, it shouldn't have activated, and yet, it did..."
Gray didn't speak this time either...
Shirou sighed, it seemed like the only option left for him was to ask, "Using my structural grasp, I was able to see its story, and I was able to see her, the King of Knights..."
"…"
"Gray… that your face resembles that of the King of Knights, it's not a coincidence, is it?"
Gray tried to hide her face even more.
Seeing this action, Shirou understood that she did not like to look like the King of Knights, and now that he remembered it, the first time he saw her fight, the redhead could not help but compare his classmate for a moment with the majesty of that legendary King, but it was only for an instant, for him, the two were clearly different.
"They both shine with their own light…" Shirou whispered.
"Huh?" Gray exclaimed.
"You and the King of Knights, despite their physical similarity, both are completely different people. You both shine with their own light," Shirou smiled, "at least I see it that way."
The young gravedigger looked surprised, then she smiled slightly, "W-When… when I was a child, I was treated like the second coming of King. You see, Shirou, the village I was born, had one goal: to preserve an ancient mystery from Arthurian legends; however, to preserve that ancient mystery, it took someone capable of handling it, and that was not someone other than the King of Knights herself. That is why they made it their goal to revive King Arthur in flesh and spirit. However, their attempts so far had been continuous failures."
This surprised the apprentice magus, "W-Wait! Does that mean you…?"
"Yes," Gray nodded, "at first, I only looked like her a bit, but after one day eight years ago, and overnight, my face changed to the way it is now. After that, everyone started to treat me as if I was the King and as if I wasn't me anymore. So, I isolated myself from the rest of the people, until one day..."
"Until one day…?"
Gray showed a really sad expression, "I only had the body, I didn't have her soul or her mind, and to get them they would need something like the Third Magic of the Einzberns. So, they came up with participating in the false holy grail wars to invoke the King, but these rituals almost always end in massacres, and the Church has them well guarded, so the times they tried, they failed. So, after several failures, either because they were killed before being able to participate in the ritual, because the enforcers discovered them trying to alter it, or simply because the ritual was not powerful enough to summon the King, they gave up on these as the rituals became less and also fewer people were willing to try it. Finally, they tried one last method: performing a ritual to call deities, or the fae, to bring the soul of the King and infuse it into my body, even if this meant that my soul would be lost forever."
"WHAT!? That's crazy! They didn't think about you at all!?" Shirou was quite angry. Now he understood why Gray was so sad when she realized that the magi only see their children as mere possessions. She had experienced it firsthand.
She tried to smile, but that only underscored the pain she was feeling, "I guess, after trying for hundreds of years, they didn't think much about what they should sacrifice."
Those words only angered the redhead more.
"But then the Sir came to my village," Gray laughed a little, "when he saw me for the first time, he was really surprised, and I expected him to treat me like the rest of the villagers; however, what he said really surprised me."
"What did he say?" the boy asked curiously.
"He said, 'What the hell are you talking about? You told me that would look like King Arthur, but she is clearly a girl, and the King Arthur I knew was certainly a man,' amid the villagers."
"Seriously…?"
She laughed a little when she saw the shocked face that her classmate showed, "I know, I looked at him that way too. In fact, I think I called him disgusting back then. But..." Gray smiled happily, "his words really helped me. He managed to get me out of the village and made them accept me as his apprentice," then she sighed, "it seems that, due to the state of our world, a ritual where it is necessary to invoke the gods is impossible. This information made it easy to convince the villagers."
"I see… Sorry to remind you of those bad times. For me too, you are just you."
Until now, the boy had seen the girl smile faintly, but for the first time, he saw her smile openly, "Thank you. So far, the only ones who know about this are you, the Sir, and maybe Lady Reines. Only you and the professor have ever met King Arthur and yet accepted me as my own person, and I am truly grateful for that. I don't really hate my face, but I can't help but feel a bit insecure towards this one after what happened."
Seeing her beautiful smile, the boy couldn't help but say what was going through his head, "You are also pretty when you smile."
This surprised and embarrassed the girl, "T-Thank you…"
Shirou felt the need to apologize when he realized what she said, but after seeing how she thanked him, he felt that it wasn't necessary.
"Gray, do you want Avalon back?"
"Ah?" the surprised girl exclaimed.
"I don't know how I'll do it; I think it has merged with me after so many years, but... well... whether or not you are the second coming of King Arthur, the reason why Avalon works is certainly because of you. So, between you and me, I think you have more of a right to possess it."
Gray thought about it for several minutes, then she shook her head, "I think better not. For some reason, you always end up getting into disaster after disaster, so I feel like it will be more useful to you than to me."
"I see, then I'll keep it for you..."
They both stared at the sunset until the Ferris Wheel finished its turn, then the two of them slowly walked toward their bedrooms. And, since Gray was staying in the Norwich Dorm; and Shirou in the Valuay, the two were forced to separate before finishing their date.
Finally, he reached his dorm. The last few days had been exhausting, and Shirou hoped the rest of his second year would be easier, but his E rank luck would give him a not-so-pleasant answer sooner rather than later.
Author's Notes:
Well, I didn't remember how long this chapter was, and the next one is even longer. Still, I enjoyed writing it or translating it, in this case.
Guest: It's a possibility, but I don't promise anything.
Without more to say, I appreciate your comments and hope you enjoyed the chapter, see you in the next one.