Chapter 22: Day 6 ⑥

In the living room, I was nibbling on a senbei (rice cracker), a side dish for tea, while watching Lia intently chew on a taiyaki (fish-shaped pastry) and nod her head contentedly.

I had just returned from a round trip to the shopping street in Miyama Town, but I felt almost no physical fatigue from it. Perhaps that’s to be expected of a Servant.

If anything, I was more mentally exhausted from the strange pressure I felt from the two of them, but seeing Lia enjoy her food so much was a cheap and effective cure for it.

I took a sip of tea, washed out my mouth, and took a breather, suddenly remembering something I wanted to ask Lia. Looking at her, Lia had also finished the four taiyaki somehow and was sipping her tea. It was the perfect time to bring up the subject.

"Lia. There's something I wanted to ask. You used your Noble Phantasm on Berserker; is your remaining Magical Energy reserves alright?"

I was concerned about Lia's Magical Energy. Last time, it was used to repair the injury inflicted by Berserker, and this time, to activate her Noble Phantasm. Though the degree of consumption differed, she was using up Magical Energy early on.

After all, the reason for my own previous demise was my lack of power, unable to supply enough Magical Energy to Saber. I should check on this early.

In response to my question, Lia straightened her posture and turned to face me.

"It will not impede our future battles. The activation of the Wind King Barrier is well within my known limits, and I was not seriously wounded."

"That's good to hear."

It was meant only as a quick check of the situation, but it seemed Lia didn't interpret it that way. I, who had thought the conversation was completely over, noticed Lia was looking at me with intense seriousness.

"Is something the matter?"

"...Even though we were forming a joint front, my power was insufficient, and I ended up being protected by Shirou. I will certainly repay this debt someday. Furthermore, as an ally, I promise not to display such a shameful performance again in the future."

"No, I was..."

That wasn't the intention behind my question. I was about to tell her so, but I was interrupted by a voice from outside.

"Lia! Alto! Help me!"

"Shirou!!" "—!"

It was Shirou's voice. A cry for help. As soon as we recognized it, Lia and I moved faster than we could think. We leaped from the living room into the garden and took the shortest route to the detached building in a single bound.

I followed Lia's path, keeping pace with her speed, as the scenery flashed past us at incredible velocity.

"What is the matter, Shirou!!"

It couldn't have taken more than three seconds from the moment of the cry. Lia reached Rin's room a moment before me and threw the door open without hesitation. I arrived right behind Lia and, unable to see inside, peered in from the side.

What I saw inside was a woman straddling a shirtless man on a bed. Two entangled people.

"——Huh?"

Crack, a dry sound of something breaking echoed. Looking down, I saw scattered fragments of senbei. ...Ah, I forgot I had one in my mouth and dropped it when I foolishly opened my mouth.

Ugh, it's pretty finely crushed. The pieces are going to get in between the floorboards, and that makes cleaning difficult. Where did I put the dustpan?

...

That's not it! I was just escaping reality due to the shock.

No, wait. Why is the situation like this?! Calm down, Emiya Shirou. If you panic, you'll botch things up. First, a calm assessment of the situation.

First, Shirou is pinned down on the bed, and what’s more, Rin is straddling him.

One of Rin’s hands is covering Shirou’s mouth. Her other hand is holding down both of Shirou’s hands, preventing him from moving.

Shirou’s top is pulled up, leaving him half-naked. Rin's face is flushed, and she has an expression like, "Oh no, you saw something you shouldn’t have."

Inferring from the above information... Did Rin pin Shirou down and force herself on him?

"What the hec—!?"

My loud exclamation made the other two, who were frozen, flinch.

"Why? What's going on? I don't know anything about this!"

Why are Rin and Shirou in this situation? This kind of situation never happened when it was me. I can say that for certain.

"——It seems we have interrupted a moment of, well, Master-to-Master interaction. Please excuse us."

Lia bowed her head once and tried to pull my arm to leave the room. It seems my voice had rebooted her. I, on the other hand, was completely flustered and confused.

"H-Hold on a second! That's not it!!"

Finally remembering her posture, Rin jumped off Shirou and rushed to confront Lia. Rin's face was even redder than before. Lia stopped and turned back to Rin.

"Well, we are at fault for misinterpreting the situation and barging in, but I still cannot commend Shirou and Rin for engaging in such activities in broad daylight."

"I told you, let me ex..."

"A-And! I would appreciate it if you would refrain from... activities... that would cause Shirou to scream like that."

I noticed Lia's cheeks were also tinged a slight cherry blossom pink. Saying just that, she tried to pull me out of the room, but Rin, frustrated by Lia's refusal to listen, exploded.

"Argh! Listen to what people are saying! I was just trying to check the condition of Shirou's Magic Circuits!"

"Is that so? However..."

"IT IS SO!!"

Ah, so that's what it was. Yeah, that makes sense. Shirou and Rin together is just a joke.

Hmm? It's awfully quiet. Wait, one person seems to be in an unusual state.

"Um, Rin. What's wrong with Shirou?"

Shirou was still lying face-up on the bed. He was breathing heavily, his face was bright red, as if he had a high fever, and he seemed unconscious.

"Ah, I might have overexcited him a little. I should have kept him as quiet as possible."

"S-So, is Shirou alright!?"

Lia pressed Rin, who spoke casually as if she'd just remembered, with a look of panic.

"Well, he's probably fine. He should calm down by tomorrow morning. Probably."

"...Probably," she says. Well, I suppose he'll be fine. For now, if he's safe, it's best to let him rest quietly.

"I see. In that case, should we move Shirou to his room? You won't be able to sleep if he occupies the bed, Rin."

"It's fine as it is. He'll wake up tomorrow at the latest, and I can just sleep in Alto's room for a day. It'd be too much trouble to move him, right?"

"No, it wouldn't be any trouble for me, really."

"It's fine, it's fine. Come on, Shirou is sleeping, so let's go to the living room."

"Y-Yes."

Rin clapped her hands and left the room with us.

Hmm, I think he's passed out rather than sleeping. He seems to have a fever, so maybe I should check on him later and bring a wet towel.

Time flies fast, and the short hand of the clock was pointing at the number 5. Since there was nothing much else to do, I started preparing dinner.

Today is Japanese food, as Shirou requested. With plenty of time, I should be able to make something moderately elaborate. The menu would be Isaki (Chicken grunt) Karaage, Taro Stew, and Shiitake and Shishito Pepper with grated daikon radish.

First, I washed the rice and put it in the rice cooker to steep.

I filleted the Isaki, the main dish, removed the belly bones and small bones, and lightly salted both sides.

Next, I peeled the taro, blanched it, and added salt, sugar, and soy sauce before simmering it over low heat.

I cut the stems off the shiitake mushrooms, removed the caps and seeds from the shishito peppers, and grilled them until they had grill marks. I grated the daikon radish and seasoned it with soy sauce and vinegar.

Hmm, I have some shishito peppers left over, so maybe I'll deep-fry them before frying the Isaki. It's really best to fry them right before eating, but the oil will get flavored.

I pressed the start button on the rice cooker, which concluded the first stage of preparation. The rest could wait until just before serving.

Well, it's still too early for dinner. I might as well go check on Shirou. He requested Japanese food, but will he be able to wake up for dinner?

I knocked before entering the room, but there was no answer.

Opening the door, I saw Shirou lying on the bed, sweating and breathing heavily. He didn't seem to be recovering.

I placed a washbasin on the nearby desk, wrung out a towel, and put it on Shirou's forehead. Then, I just stared blankly at Shirou.

The reason Shirou had collapsed this time was to create a switch for his Magecraft. The reason for this was to slightly strengthen his combat capability.

However, I, as Alto, would prefer to avoid Shirou fighting as much as possible. After all, he's a Magus who only possesses Reinforcement and Projection. Among the four of us here, Shirou is undoubtedly the most vulnerable to the enemy.

His Reinforcement wouldn't last even a few exchanges against a Servant. Projection is useless unless you project something meaningful, and Tohsaka had warned him that projecting a Noble Phantasm was dangerous. Even if he ignores the danger and projects a Noble Phantasm, he doesn't have the ability or the skill to fully utilize it. For Shirou, who only has such combat capabilities, participating in a battle is like committing suicide.

But, knowing Shirou, if Rin or Lia were in danger, he would throw himself in front of an enemy Servant without hesitation.

This is more troublesome than I thought. To prevent it, I must not give Shirou an opportunity to fight and, at the same time, not expose Lia or Rin to danger.

No, thinking about it the other way, if I can prevent those things, he won't be reckless. In other words, we just need to keep winning without struggling in combat.

But if I could do that, I would have done it from the start. If you ask me if I could defeat the Berserker and Lancer I fought as Archer without struggling, I have to say no. In the first place, whether I can even defeat them is questionable.

However, the theory is not wrong. If Lia's and my struggles decrease, Shirou's opportunities to step forward will decrease. This means I have no choice but to formulate countermeasures in advance and cooperate with Lia and Rin to do our best.

Shirou was covered in sweat, so I used the towel to wipe around his neck and forehead. The cold towel must have been comforting, as his distressed expression softened a little. I felt that Shirou's fever was also subsiding as I wiped him.

—Speaking of which, being alone with the unconscious Shirou reminds me of that feeling of shared connection I felt when Shirou was pierced by Lancer at school.

I think... yes, the moment I touched Shirou's arm, I felt that sensation.

With that thought, I grabbed Shirou's flung-out arm. However, there was no change, and only Shirou's heavy breathing echoed in the room.

...It's no good. Well, that sensation only happened that one time, so perhaps it wasn't about the touching itself, but related to a being of the same nature being on the verge of death.

Hmm, speaking of which, is he alright after being pierced through the heart? When it happened to me, a noticeable sense of discomfort remained, and I felt sick if I moved too vigorously.

I let go of the arm I was holding and reached out to Shirou's chest. His shirt was wet with sweat, but Shirou's body was hot, so I didn't feel cold.

Oh...? A shared connection... yes, that strange stirring of the heart, as if Shirou and I were resonating, the feeling I had back then.

But it's not unpleasant. It's more like my body is gradually warming up; the spread of that warmth is comforting, and strangely, my heart is settling down. However, it's not as strong as what I felt before. Does it have to be direct contact?

Thinking so, I rolled up Shirou's jacket and placed my hand on his chest this time.

The palm of my hand touching Shirou felt hot. It was similar to concentrated Magical Energy, but it was definitely a different kind of heat. To confirm that heat, I gently stroked Shirou's chest with my palm. The more I touched him, the stronger this mysterious sensation became.

Oh, it seems this is better...

"W-What are you doing, Alto!!"

I turned around at the sudden loud voice. Rin, whose face was flushed crimson, was standing there. Lia was right behind her.

"Huh?"

"I wondered where you went, so I followed you..."

...You two followed me?

"No, I wasn't doing anything in particular."

"Oh, come on. Rolling up Shirou's shirt and fiddling with his chest, and you say you weren't doing anything—"

Rin walked right up to me and challenged me. Even if she says that, I still don't fully understand this phenomenon myself. Well, I know that's not what Rin is talking about.

"Oh? —Rin."

"Hmm, what is it, Lia?"

Lia was somehow standing next to Shirou. Not only Rin but I, too, turned my gaze towards her.

"Shirou's condition..."

"—Has returned to normal?"

As Rin and Lia said, Shirou's face, which was red just a moment ago, had returned to its usual color. Furthermore, the sweat was gone, and he was breathing regularly in his sleep. Although the remnants of the night sweats remained, now he just looked like he was sleeping peacefully.

"No way, but... The Magical Energy from the jewel hasn't been completely eliminated, yet the side effects from the Magical Energy overload are only being alleviated? Alto, what exactly did you do?"

Rin, after a brief examination of his condition, turned back to me and stared intently. Lia shifted her gaze from Shirou to me. The air in the room suddenly grew heavy.

"No, as I said before, nothing in particular. I just felt something 'connected' when I touched Shirou."

"'Connected'—I thought maybe it was a Line—but that doesn't seem to be the case."

Rin placed her hand on Shirou's chest, but apparently, she didn't feel what I did. She was deep in thought. Lia was also tilting her head while touching Shirou's chest.

What is this situation? Two women, no, including me, three women... no, that doesn't matter. I don't even want to think about it.

Anyway, what is it about girls gathering around and touching a boy's chest?

"...Hmm? Wait, Lia! Tohsaka! What are you doing?!"

Ah, Shirou is awake. He immediately noticed Lia and Rin touching his chest and started panicking.

Amidst this, Lia calmly and nonchalantly walked back beside me as if nothing had happened.

"Wait, I know! Lia! Alto! It's a misunderstanding!"

What is?

"No, I mean, Tohsaka and I aren't like that! She was going to check my Magic Circuits!"

"Ah, ah. It's fine, Emiya-kun."

"Why?"

"Because we just explained that."

"Just now? ...Wait, it's already six o'clock?!"

Ah, the tense atmosphere in the room was lightened by Shirou's cluelessness. Was he unaware that he had passed out in the first place?

"Shall we go to the living room for now? It must be time for dinner soon."

"Ah, alright."

"Right. We can talk about this later."

Lia started walking towards the living room. How should I put it, she's very self-paced.

"Alto, we can't complete dinner without you."

"O-Understood."

Pressured by Lia's dominance, I quickly scurried back to the kitchen.

Dinner was a great success. It seemed that the self-reflection and trial-and-error I engaged in after being inspired by Tohsaka during my time as Emiya Shirou was not in vain.

Shirou even asked, "Can you teach me the recipes next time?" This alone made all the effort worthwhile.

Fuji-nee, who had appeared out of nowhere, even asked me with half-serious eyes, "Alto-chan, will you marry into our family?"

After everyone had taken their baths, and after Fuji-nee had devoured a scandalous amount of mandarin oranges and gone home, we all gathered in the living room.

I placed a cup of green tea in front of each person. Somehow, I've gotten used to this role lately, or rather, I'm completely becoming the errand boy.

"So, getting straight to the point, about what happened earlier. Shirou, is your body really okay?"

"Yeah, absolutely no problem."

"Absolutely?"

"Yeah. The nausea and the pain that was left in my body are completely gone."

"Hmm, I see..."

Hearing Shirou's reply, Rin seemed to ponder. Then she looked up and faced Shirou again.

"Did you get a grip on the switch sensation?"

"Yeah, vaguely."

"Then, can you Reinforce this for me?"

Saying that, she pulled a lamp out from beside her. ...When did she get that?

"Alright."

Shirou took the lamp, held it between his two hands, and closed his eyes.

The room immediately fell silent.

"—Trace On."

Shirou's unique incantation echoed in the living room. Immediately, I could sense Magical Energy being generated in his body.

"—Structural Grasp."

The emitted Magical Energy searched the inside of the lamp. Was this what it felt like to detect the use of Magecraft?

Though I couldn't see it, Saber's senses were aware of the Magical Particles in the surrounding air.

"—Structural, Comp—"

Mid-chant, the glass part of the lamp shattered with a high-pitched crack.

Although I would need analysis to know for sure, it was likely an overload of Magical Energy. I also had trouble successfully Reinforcing glass objects myself.

"Sorry, I failed."

Glass fragments were scattered all over the desk. I quickly gathered them with the dustpan I had prepared, wrapped them in newspaper, and put them in a supermarket bag.

"Ugh, maybe forcing it open with the jewel was a mistake? But there's no abnormality, right? Is it a problem with the Circuits?"

Rin put her hand on her chin and pondered, and in response, Shirou scratched his head sheepishly.

"Ah, well, I've only succeeded at Reinforcement once recently, so this is pretty much the expected result."

"...So, what does that mean? Emiya-kun's Reinforcement Magecraft is 'unlikely to succeed'?"

"Mh. Well, that's harsh to hear."

"And, were you able to confirm the switch?"

"Ah, yeah. I think practice is necessary, but it seems fine for now. ...Say, Tohsaka? Are you angry about something?"

"——"

"Tohsaka?"

"Of course I am! I heard you could only use Reinforcement, but if you can't even use Reinforcement properly, you're utterly useless!!"

I instinctively covered my ears, but it seemed I was a little late. Rin's loud voice made my ears ring.

"Ugh, sorry."

"...Hah, fine. I wasn't expecting much anyway. Now then, um, Alto."

"Yes?"

"Touch Shirou like you did before."

"Understood."

"Wait, what are you trying to do?"

"Just you be quiet!"

"..."

She said "fine," but she seems quite upset. Shirou is completely intimidated by her anger.

Anyway, I shouldn't take too long, so I'll get this over with quickly.

"Please excuse me, then."

I casually rolled up Shirou's shirt and put my hand inside. Perhaps my hand was cold, as Shirou's body flinched the moment I touched him.

"W-W-What the—!?"

"Emiya-kun, how is it?"

"Huh? H-How, you ask? Ah. —I feel like I'm being warmly enveloped. It's hard to describe, but it doesn't feel bad."

"Hmm..."

Rin put her hand on her chin and thought again.

"Did you figure anything out?"

"............Not at all. I don't know what's reacting. It's just something happening between Shirou and Alto. Alright, next is Lia."

"Very well."

Lia also followed my lead and placed her hand on Shirou's chest.

"How is it?"

"Hmm... It's not as strong as Alto's, but I feel the same sensation."

"Hmm, honestly, what could this mean? I don't understand why the tendency is stronger with Alto than with Lia, a Servant."

"Huh? What are you talking about?"

"Maybe if we dissected him, we'd figure things out, but we obviously can't do that. Since there seems to be no harm in it for now, let's put a pin in it."

I agree.

"Alright. It's getting late, so let's go to sleep."

"Yes."

"Wait, Tohsaka? Hold on a minute. Lia? Alto! I have no idea what's going on—"

Ah, it was a full moon tonight.

As we walked towards our respective rooms, Shirou was left standing dazed in the living room, his shirt still rolled up.