"Good morning, Irisviel."
Early the next morning, when Saber entered the dining hall of Einzbern Castle, she did not see the red-haired boy as usual, and asked with some concern,
"Where's Shirou? Is he still resting?"
"..."
A flush spread across Irisviel's lovely cheeks in an instant.
As she smoothed the silver hair over her shoulder, she stammered, "Sh-Shirou went out early this morning. He said he had some things to take care of during the day and wouldn't be back until evening.
By the way... Saber, don't just stand there. Come sit down and have breakfast."
"Thank you. Then I'll gladly join you."
Saber's attention was quickly captured by the lavish meal in front of her, and she temporarily forgot about Shirou. That finally let Irisviel breathe a sigh of relief.
"The milk this morning is as delicious as ever."
"Huh...!?"
Irisviel's eyes widened in surprise as she looked at Saber.
Artoria was holding a glass of milk in her hand, and a faint trace of white still clung to her sakura-colored lips.
Saber blinked in puzzlement.
"Is something wrong, Irisviel?"
"N-no... it's nothing... So you meant the milk. Ahaha..."
The princess of Einzbern once again recalled last night's little "misunderstanding," and her face grew even hotter as shame and agitation welled up inside her.
Aaaah! Irisviel! What on earth did you do last night?!
To actually... guh! I can't even say it!
Even if that child is only eight years old... he is already eight years old!
He's not at the age where he needs something in his mouth to fall asleep anymore, right?!
That kind of behavior is beyond being motherly. It's basically perverted!
B-but... this isn't all my fault, right? Shirou was at fault too, wasn't he?
He did resist at first, but only for a second or two!
He only put up a token struggle at the very start, then stopped holding back and happily went along with it... uuu...
Irisviel was mortified, truly mortified.
But the moment she saw how absorbed Shirou looked, she felt that everything she had done was worth it.
If it was for this child, she would have done anything. And then...
And then, after Irisviel had finally straightened out her nightgown again, Shirou actually looked at her with a completely serious face and said she got it wrong!
What did he mean, got it wrong?! What did he mean, sucked the wrong one?!
Shirou, you idiot! You total idiot!
If you wanted a Command Spell, you should've just said so! Why act so mysterious about it? Of course I was going to misunderstand!
Irisviel ground her teeth in frustration.
In the end, the two of them agreed to completely forget everything that had happened that night and absolutely not tell anyone else.
Even if that's what we said, how am I supposed to forget something like that so easily?!
Just thinking back on what happened last night left Irisviel a little dazed, and her body felt a little hot.
To be honest, at the time, it had actually felt really good to her too...
"Irisviel, are you all right?"
Saber had noticed the unusual look in her Master's behavior and spoke up.
"Mm, I-I'm fine..."
"If you're feeling unwell, then you should rest properly in the castle today."
"Mm, then I'll gladly do that."
Irisviel felt that she probably would not be capable of doing anything else for the rest of the day.
At the very least, before Shirou returned tonight, she had to get herself back to normal and push everything that happened last night out of her mind.
Then she would greet him as if nothing had happened.
If she could not even manage that, then how was she supposed to keep living together with Shirou from now on?
"...Huh."
Irisviel let out a soft sigh.
Just now, without even realizing it, she had imagined a future where she and Shirou lived together after the Holy Grail War was over.
Even though she had no possibility whatsoever of surviving past the Holy Grail War...
Irisviel became aware of a subtle change in her heart.
Just like that [Saintess of Winter], she was supposed to offer up her life for Einzbern's long-cherished wish.
That belief had been instilled in Irisviel for the past eight years. It was the reason for her existence, and her mission.
And yet, now that she had already absorbed three Heroic Spirits, she was starting to feel... a little unwilling to die.
...
...
When Hassan of the Hundred Faces opened her eyes again, the first thing she saw was the face of a boy and a small child right in front of her.
"You're awake," said Little Hassan.
"Good morning, big sis Assassin."
Shirou leaned in happily and pointed at his own face.
"Do you still remember who I am?"
The purple-haired female Assassin nodded.
"Shirou Amamiya... my new Master."
The last thing Hassan of the Hundred Faces remembered before waking was her consciousness scattering away within the torrent of light released by Saber.
At the time, she really had been destroyed, together with her other eighty-some [selves], by The Sword of Promised Victory [Excalibur].
But since she was alive now, that meant her and Shirou's plan had succeeded.
Little Hassan had continued to exist even after Assassin's Spirit Origin was destroyed.
Shirou made a contract with Little Hassan, then used the Command Spell he had fleeced from Irisviel to revive one of the personalities.
When Hassan of the Hundred Faces first heard the plan, she had been so shocked that she could not speak.
Although she also believed Shirou's plan was theoretically possible, that was all it was. In practice, it should have been absolutely impossible.
For example, how was he supposed to make the cautious Tokiomi Tohsaka gather all of the Assassins?
Those seemingly impossible problems, one after another, were all resolved by Shirou.
The entire situation had developed exactly in the direction Shirou intended, all under his control.
Throughout the process, Hassan of the Hundred Faces sincerely admired him, and also cooperated with him to complete the final step of the plan.
Now, she had broken away from Tokiomi Tohsaka's camp, gained her freedom, and become a hidden shadow in the Holy Grail War, one no one knew about.
Although she had lost the other eighty-six [selves], she had gained complete magical energy in return.
Hassan of the Hundred Faces was finally free to act without restraint. But before that...
She rolled her eyes.
"...Why are my hands and feet tied up?"
Hassan of the Hundred Faces was lying on a hotel bed, with both her hands and feet tightly bound behind her by chains she could not break free from.
"Is this some kind of special play?" the purple-haired female Assassin said with a cold, mocking smile.
Shirou explained, "I was worried big sis Assassin might have lost your memories.
If you attacked me the moment you woke up, that would've been a problem. So I had no choice but to tie up your hands and feet before waking you."
Little Hassan looked proud.
"I tied them up."
...
...
Although the plan had succeeded, a few unexpected complications still came up.
Because Shirou's own abilities as a Magus were so poor, and because Hassan of the Hundred Faces and Little Hassan counted as his second Servant, the flow of magical energy between Shirou and Assassin was far from smooth.
Even though their number had dropped from eighty-eight all the way down to two, Assassin's total Mana had not increased at all. In fact, it had decreased drastically compared to before.
"Kirei Kotomine may not be on Tokiomi Tohsaka's level, but he's still a competent Master."
"Sorry for being such an incompetent Master."
Shirou walked back toward the inn with Assassin, now changed into modern clothes, and Little Hassan. All three of them were carrying plastic bags of various sizes.
Since Assassin could not receive enough Mana from Shirou, the only option was to replenish it through food.
Shirou noticed a long line outside a small shop by the street.
"Ah! They're selling Chinese meat buns over there, and they're pork-filled too! Want one, Assassin big sis?"
Assassin frowned.
"...Are you picking a fight, brat?"
"Come on, you're already a grown-up and you still have picky eating habits?"
Shirou stuffed the plastic bags in his hands into Hassan of the Hundred Faces's arms, then took the little purple-haired girl's hand beside him.
"If you're not eating, then I'm just buying one for me and the little one."
Shirou took Little Hassan with him and lined up to buy two large meat buns. Then the two of them returned to the sidewalk and ate as they walked.
"Shirou, what are you planning to do next?"
Assassin asked, "Are you still thinking of dealing with Tokiomi Tohsaka first?"
Shirou thought for a moment before answering, "I was a little too active last night. From here on, I want to keep a lower profile.
More specifically, I'm going to wait and see how the other two sides move before deciding what to do."
Assassin nodded.
"I see. That works too... At this point in the Holy Grail War, you already have an overwhelming advantage, don't you? The initiative is in your hands now."
Shirou answered modestly, "It's hard to say. Rider and Archer are both extremely powerful enemies, and I still don't know the full extent of what they can do.
Especially Gilgamesh. After fighting him once, I understand very clearly just how strong he is...
Even though a whole night has passed, just thinking back to last night's battle still makes my hands and feet tense up.
I'm confident I won't lose to him, but if I could learn his trump card before we fight, that would be even better..."
It was a trait Shirou had developed during his campaigns in the Fairy Kingdom.
Even though he possessed [eyes] and [intuition] far beyond ordinary people, he also had a strong tendency to prioritize gathering information.
Perhaps that was exactly why Shirou had pulled Assassin in as his very first ally.
Hearing the boy say that, Hassan of the Hundred Faces frowned.
"Archer's trump card. You mean that Anti-World Noble Phantasm?"
"...Huh?"
Shirou froze.
"You know the strongest Noble Phantasm in the [Gate of Babylon]?"
Hassan of the Hundred Faces nodded.
"Mm."
Shirou was speechless.
"Why didn't you tell me earlier?"
Hassan of the Hundred Faces looked even more speechless than he did.
"...You never asked."
And so, Shirou learned about the [Anti-World Noble Phantasm] from Hassan of the Hundred Faces.
Hassan of the Hundred Faces did not know the exact details either. She only knew that it was supposedly a Noble Phantasm that had existed since an age older than either humanity or the planet itself.
Back when human civilization did not yet exist, and weapons such as swords and spears had not yet been born.
A [sword] created when the gods swung it to open up the world, the embodiment of the concept of the separation of heaven and earth.
The thing that split apart the heaven and earth at the beginning of this planet.
It tears through the void to create the sky, then pierces through the sky and returns to the void.
Stored in the deepest part of Gilgamesh's treasury, it was the supreme Noble Phantasm that symbolized the power of both beginning and end.
Normally, offensive Noble Phantasms are classified according to their nature as [Anti-Unit], [Anti-Army], or [Anti-Fortress].
However, the supreme Noble Phantasm possessed by the King of Heroes had a different nature and purpose. It was [Anti-World].
The moment Gilgamesh released its true name, no matter whether the King's enemy was a single individual or an entire group, it would destroy the world to which they belonged along with them.
After hearing Hassan of the Hundred Faces's explanation, Shirou fell silent in thought.
"Well? Did that help?"
Shirou nodded.
"At least I understand one thing now."
Hassan of the Hundred Faces asked curiously, "What?"
"That thing might be a problem. That Noble Phantasm could very well be my natural enemy."
"That's discouraging."
Hassan of the Hundred Faces's shoulders slumped. She had actually been hoping Shirou would be able to defeat the King of Heroes. Had that been too unrealistic?
No, Shirou was already amazing enough. It was just that Archer was far too absurd.
"Should I start preparing to assassinate Tokiomi Tohsaka?"
Shirou frowned.
"Didn't I already say it? Archer is my prey. Don't make a move on Tokiomi Tohsaka."
Hassan of the Hundred Faces said, "But... didn't you just say the King of Heroes is your natural enemy?"
Shirou replied, "I never said I'd lose, did I? If anything, after hearing your explanation, I'm even more convinced that I'm the only one who can beat him."
Seeing the confidence written all over the red-haired boy's face, Hassan of the Hundred Faces blanked for a moment, then smiled.
Shirou suddenly shivered all over.
"What's with that sudden smirk? That's creepy..."
Hassan of the Hundred Faces snapped back angrily, "Sorry for having a villain's face!"
After returning to the inn, Shirou used the inn's kitchen to cook a lavish lunch for the two Hassans.
All three of them ate their fill, but Hassan of the Hundred Faces's Mana recovery still was not very ideal.
In her current state, infiltration would not be a problem, but asking her to fight or investigate the other Assassin would be somewhat difficult.
After lunch, Hassan of the Hundred Faces sat with Little Hassan and watched TV, enjoying a rare stretch of peaceful rest.
[Big sis Avalon, is there any way to help Hassan of the Hundred Faces replenish Mana quickly?]
Using telepathy, Shirou secretly asked the Magus of Flowers, who had been following him around all day while hiding herself with illusion.
[A shortcut suitable for a third-rate Magus like Master... Hehe, yes, there is.]
[There is?]
[Mm-hm~]
Lady Avalon said in a cheerful tone, [And it's a method that only boys and girls can use!]
Shirou asked, [What is it?]
Lady Avalon replied, [Mana Transfer. In other words, exchange of bodily fluids.]
Shirou froze.
[Sorry, what did you just say?]
"..."
Perhaps because Lady Avalon, hidden by illusion, had leaned close to his ear, a faint fragrance drifted into the boy's nose.
[Simply put...♡]
Lady Avalon explained to Shirou what Mana replenishment meant.
His stock of strange knowledge had increased again.
"What's wrong, Shirou? Your face is really red."
Hassan of the Hundred Faces turned around and asked with a strange look on her face.
"N-no, it's nothing. I think I should get going now! I'll contact you later with the communicator!"
With that, Shirou hurriedly stumbled to his feet and made his escape.
[Eh! You're not going to do it?] the female Magus asked, sounding quite disappointed.
[Like I'd ever do that!] the red-haired boy shouted, blushing furiously in embarrassment.
All of a sudden, Shirou remembered something from long ago, back when he was still in the Fairy Kingdom.
That little bottle of [Mana Potion] Morgan and Melusine had fought so fiercely over back then. Could it actually have been my...