Friday evening soon arrived, and Shirou had made plans with Rin Tohsaka to visit her house tomorrow.
Now that he thought about it, Shirou had lived in Fuyuki for quite a while, yet this would be his first time visiting the Tohsaka house.
If the Matou residence, with its eerie, sinister atmosphere, was like a medieval vampire castle, then the Western-style mansion standing at the highest point of Miyama Town was like a lord's castle.
Though, well, they were Fuyuki's biggest landowners.
"Senpai, do you want to go shopping in the shopping district together tomorrow?"
At the Amamiya family dinner table, Sakura Matou asked casually.
"Sorry, Sakura. I have to go out tomorrow, so I probably won't be back until evening."
"I see... Mm."
The purple-haired girl nodded, looking a little disappointed, then went to the kitchen to wash the dishes.
Shirou felt somewhat bad for Sakura, but he already had prior plans.
In any case, he should confirm tomorrow's arrangements with Rin Tohsaka first.
After making sure everyone else had left the living room, Shirou dialed the phone.
"...Hello, this is Tohsaka."
"Ah, Tohsaka? It's me."
"Amamiya-kun? Is something wrong this late?"
"Uh... I wanted to ask, Tohsaka, are you free tomorrow?"
"Mm... probably, yes."
"Then, about what we agreed on at lunch the day before yesterday, me coming over to your house... You said it was to repay that favor."
"Mm-hm, sure."
After a brief exchange, Shirou hung up.
Tohsaka had sounded a little slurred and broken up on the other end of the line. Was she all right?
"Are you going to Tohsaka-san's house tomorrow?"
"Eeeeeeek?!"
Shirou screamed. Irisviel had suddenly appeared behind him with a bright smile.
"Did... did you hear that?"
"Mm, just a little. Shirou looked so happy, so I thought it must be Tohsaka-san."
The silver-haired Homunculus narrowed her eyes and giggled behind her hand. "How youthful... hehe~"
"Iri, stop teasing me. It's not what you're imagining."
Shirou muttered, but Irisviel playfully winked at him.
"Don't worry. I'll keep it a secret from Sakura... Have fun tomorrow, and remember to give the Tohsaka family my regards."
"I told you, it's not what you're imagining," Shirou protested unhappily.
"Is that so? Then I can tell Sakura?"
"Please, I beg you, keep it a secret."
Shirou bowed deeply.
Irisviel stroked his hair with a loving expression. "Hehe. That's a good boy~♡"
...
...
Even from a distance, the Tohsaka mansion looked luxurious and imposing. Once he reached the gate, its presence felt even more overwhelming.
Shirou walked over and rang the doorbell while calculating how much time it would take to clean a house this size.
"..."
A long time passed without anyone coming to the door. Instead, Rin's voice came through the intercom.
"Who are you here to see?"
"?"
Shirou had confirmed this with her just last night. Had she already forgotten?
"It's Amamiya... Tohsaka?"
"..."
He heard a faint gasp.
"Ah, sorry... I forgot you were coming today."
"I-I see."
Shirou had never expected the perfectionist Rin Tohsaka to be this careless. Wait... Something felt off.
Wasn't her breathing a little ragged?
Shirou immediately remembered how she had fainted at school the day before yesterday.
"Hey, are you all right, Tohsaka? You sound strange. Did something happen?"
"Strange? Not at all. I'm. Ah...!"
Thud. Something heavy hit the floor.
"Hey, Tohsaka?! Are you all right?!"
"I'm fine... I just tripped... mm..."
Tohsaka's voice disappeared from the other end of the line, followed by the sound of something hitting the floor.
Shirou could tell the receiver had slipped from her hand.
"...Tch."
His suspicion became certainty.
Without thinking, Shirou reached for the doorknob, and then.
"Snap!"
A sensation like an electric shock struck his hand.
The door itself was not locked, but a spell had been placed on it to detect outsiders.
He had grown so used to ordinary student life that Shirou had almost forgotten this was actually a Magus's workshop.
"Sorry, Tohsaka. I'm going to be a little rough."
For now, he broke the spell on the door. Rin would probably scold him later, but saving her came first, so he could not worry about that now.
"Tohsaka! I'm coming in!"
He pushed open the front door.
The honor student who would normally be saying something sharp about all the noise was nowhere to be seen.
He passed through the elegantly decorated hallway and finally found her.
The girl in red casual clothes was lying on her back on the sofa in the center of the room.
"Hey, Tohsaka, stay with me."
Shirou shook her shoulders while checking for any signs of Mana running out of control.
"...Mm... ah... huh?"
Rin Tohsaka shook her head and woke up in Shirou's arms.
"Why is Amamiya-kun... here...?"
"We agreed I'd come visit your house today. Remember?"
"Ah... right. I was planning to prepare lunch before Amamiya-kun arrived... but then..."
Rin Tohsaka's eyes were unfocused, but her expression showed apology. She still tried to stand up again.
"...Your body hasn't actually recovered yet, has it?"
Shirou touched her forehead. It was alarmingly hot.
With such a high fever, of course she would faint if she forced herself to move around.
"I was fine this morning... This little illness, as long as I pull myself together..."
Rin Tohsaka struggled to get up again.
It was the third time she had tried.
"Don't push yourself. Come on... just rest properly."
"But... I told you to look forward to today... How can I let it turn out like this...? W-what are you doing?!"
Rin Tohsaka let out a flustered cry.
"What do you mean? I'm carrying you back to your bedroom. It's not the first time anyway."
Shirou decided there was no point arguing with her any longer and simply picked her up.
Of course, it was the same princess carry as the day before yesterday.
"Uu..."
Rin Tohsaka looked displeased, but she still meekly accepted Shirou's help and wrapped her arms around his neck.
"This is the room, right?"
"Mm..."
Shirou pushed open the door and gently laid the girl on the bed.
"Rest here properly. I'll go make you something to eat. You haven't eaten anything since this morning, have you?"
"Mm, no need... I usually don't eat breakfast."
...He felt like he had just found the reason this girl fainted so often.
"What happened?"
Shirou sat down beside the bed and asked.
Rin Tohsaka seemed to have recovered a little clarity.
She said that today was not backlash from her Magic Crest, but simply a cold and fever.
Shirou frowned. From Touko to Iri to Tohsaka, were Magi really creatures who caught colds this easily?
But when he thought about it carefully, Magi were ancient species living in the modern world.
With blood from hundreds of years ago flowing through their bodies, it was only natural that their resistance to modern viruses was poor.
Shirou, who had no inherited Crest, did not have that problem.
"I'd meant to repay the favor I owed you, but now I've ended up owing you another one... I really took a loss here."
Rin Tohsaka covered the lower half of her face with the blanket and gave him a faint, resentful look.
Shirou smiled wryly. "Don't keep such strict track of gains and losses."
"Aah~ I hate this... Fainting in front of Amamiya-kun twice is so embarrassing..."
"That's not right, Tohsaka."
"What do you mean?" The girl blinked.
Shirou said, "Actually, this is the third time. Did you forget that I saved your life?"
Rin Tohsaka had once been attacked by Ye Sizhen, a Magus who invaded Fuyuki, and in the end, Shirou had rescued her.
So, in truth, this was the third time she had been saved by Shirou.
"Aaaaaah, why did you have to remind me of that?! Idiot Shirou!!"
The twin-tailed girl was so embarrassed and furious that she pulled the blanket over her head and curled into a wriggling, twisting caterpillar.
She seemed a little more energetic, but Shirou knew she was only forcing herself to act tough in front of him.
Whenever it involved him or Sakura, Rin Tohsaka had a habit of pushing herself too hard.
"You should sleep for a while, Tohsaka."
"I know that without you telling me, Amamiya-kun... Um..."
"?"
Rin Tohsaka stared at Shirou with a red face.
It looked as though she wanted to say something but was too embarrassed to speak.
After thinking for a moment, Shirou asked, "Do you want me to help you change and wipe off your sweat?"
"That's not it... What are you thinking, you pervert!"
Then what did she want?
Shirou put on a formal tone. "Please tell me if there is anything you require, Lady Tohsaka."
"..."
Rin Tohsaka was silent for a while, then hid half her face behind the blanket and asked timidly.
"You won't leave while I'm asleep, will you?"
Shirou smiled. "No, I won't. I still need to borrow the kitchen and make lunch."
"Mm..."
Hearing that, Rin Tohsaka seemed to reluctantly accept it and lay back down properly.
"But first I have to go outside and buy cold medicine."
"You don't need to. We have a cold remedy passed down in the Tohsaka family.
After taking it and resting for half a day, the cold should mostly clear up.
Also, because the Leylines in this house suit me very well, if there's an emergency, I can go to the basement and."
"All right, all right. Save the lesson for after you've recovered. Where's the cold medicine?"
"In the first-aid kit, in my mother's room."
Only then did Shirou remember Sakura once telling him that Rin lived with her mother, the wife of Tokiomi Tohsaka.
Rin's mother did not seem to be home, which must have been why Rin had collapsed in the living room.
"Got it. Leave it to me."
"Mm."
Rin Tohsaka nodded and closed her eyes. Shirou gently closed the door behind him.
Thinking this might be the last time in his life he would ever see Rin so obedient, docile, and dependent, he could not help stealing a few more glances.
...
...
Although Shirou, who lived in the Amamiya residence, had no right to say this, the Tohsaka mansion was as large and complex as a luxury hotel.
Shirou went from the first floor to the second and found the room where Rin Tohsaka's mother lived.
"The cold medicine should be here."
Just as Shirou pushed open the door.
A half-naked woman was standing inside.
She had long, dark green hair and a mature, dignified, elegant air. Her delicate beauty bore some resemblance to the Tohsaka sisters.
She stared at the sudden intruder, her widened eyes filled with fear and surprise.
Her curves were full and alluring, her skin fair and translucent. The only thing the woman wore was a pale green pair of lace panties with a decidedly adult charm.
As for the upper half of the matching lingerie set, she had already undone it with her own hands.
"..."
Shirou froze for a moment, and his brain short-circuited along with him.
Why... was there a woman changing clothes in Rin Tohsaka's mother's room?
Could she be...
"Oh no."
Before covering his eyes, Shirou hurriedly cast Silence Magecraft.
It worked by emitting sound waves of the same frequency to cancel out surrounding noise.
"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!"
The Tohsaka sisters' mother, Aoi Tohsaka, screamed as she hugged herself and dropped onto the floor.
Shirou never could have imagined that his first meeting with Sakura and Rin's biological mother would turn out to be such a cliched scene straight out of a romantic comedy light novel.
The location was still Aoi Tohsaka's room.
On opposite sides of the coffee table sat Shirou and Aoi Tohsaka, who had already finished dressing. Both of them looked deeply uncomfortable.
"I-I'm so sorry! Aunt Tohsaka, I really didn't mean to!"
Shirou apologized sincerely, his forehead nearly touching the coffee table.
Aoi Tohsaka hurriedly waved her hands. "N-no, it's all right. I'm at fault too for changing underwear at home without locking the door."
"No, no, Aunt Tohsaka, you did nothing wrong at all. I'm the one at fault! Who walks into someone else's room without knocking?"
"No, no, no, I'm more at fault..."
Aoi Tohsaka shook her head. "I clearly knew Shirou-kun was coming to visit today, yet I didn't pay any attention to that sort of thing... I'm just too used to living with Rin, so... This was my fault. I'm sorry!"
"I'm the one who's even more at fault! I'm always too casual at home and often walk in on the girls in the bathroom... No, never mind."
In the end, the two of them kept taking the blame onto themselves, bowing and apologizing back and forth.
"In that case, shall we call it even?" Aoi Tohsaka decided to put an end to the chain of self-reproach.
Shirou nodded hesitantly. "All right, since you say so."
"Thank you, Shirou-kun... You know, I've actually wanted to meet you for a long time."
"I-it's an honor."
"Hehe. Shirou-kun is just as kind as the rumors say."
Aoi Tohsaka's gentle smile shot straight through Shirou's chest like an arrow.
Was this what one should expect from the mother of the Tohsaka sisters?
Even though she was nearly forty, she was still a flawless beauty, and her figure was wonderfully maintained...
Suddenly remembering the alluring scene he had witnessed a few minutes ago, Shirou grew a little embarrassed and looked away.
"Not at all..."
"Ah, I'm sorry. I called you by your first name right away..."
"It's fine. I don't mind at all."
"Hehe... You really are a good boy. Then I'll keep calling you Shirou-kun, all right?"
Aoi Tohsaka's voice was so gentle it seemed to melt, tickling Shirou's ears.
...What was going on?
Shirou felt a strange itch in his heart.
"Speaking of which... boys really are amazing."
Mrs. Tohsaka stroked her cheek and looked him up and down.
Shirou froze. "Wh-what do you mean?"
"Shirou-kun, you have such a good physique. Oh my, do you exercise regularly?"
Shirou nodded honestly. "Um... y-yes. I train every morning and night."
Aoi Tohsaka smiled. "I thought so. Rin has actually been training her muscles in the basement every night. It must be because of your influence, Shirou-kun."
He felt as if he had caught the honor student's weakness.
Shirou desperately pushed down the corners of his mouth and kept a solemn expression. Then something she had said earlier suddenly struck him. Huh... She knew I was coming today?
"Aunt Tohsaka, do you often hear about me from Rin?"
Aoi Tohsaka answered with a question of her own. "Do you think that child would talk about such things?"
Shirou shook his head. "No."
"Exactly. When a child is too outstanding and independent, it isn't easy for the parent either."
Mrs. Tohsaka sighed. "I do wish she would rely on her mother a little more."
"You're right. Then... did Sakura tell you about me?"
"Sakura..."
At the mention of that forbidden name, Aoi Tohsaka's expression instantly stiffened.
Oh no, he had stepped on a land mine!
Shirou had seen Sakura and her older sister getting fairly close at school and at his house recently, so he had assumed she had also reconciled with her mother... But apparently, that was not the case at all!
"If you'd like, I could bring Sakura a message from you next time," Shirou said, mustering his courage.
Aoi Tohsaka froze.
"Huh... Could I ask you to do that?"
Shirou nodded deeply. "Of course. Even as an apology for offending you earlier, Aunt Tohsaka."
The beautiful green-haired woman's brows drew together faintly as she murmured to herself.
If it's Sakura's beloved Senpai Shirou...
"No, I'd better not after all."
"I see."
The relationship between mother and daughter really was not something an outsider like Shirou could meddle in.
Wait. That raised a question.
If it was not through Sakura or Rin, then how did Aunt Tohsaka know about him?
"Are you curious, Shirou-kun?"
The mother of two, nearly forty years old, gave him a teasing look.
Seen like this, she really was just a grown-up Rin. They were mother and daughter, all right.
The red-haired boy scratched the back of his head. "A little. Ah... It's fine if you don't want to say."
"Hehe. It isn't anything that serious."
Aoi Tohsaka smiled and beckoned Shirou to sit beside her.
He nervously moved over and sat down.
She smells so nice...
The green-haired Yamato Nadeshiko leaned close to Shirou's ear and whispered, "I'm friends with Mrs. Irisviel, and I heard about you from her.
It was only later that I learned Shirou-kun was the [big brother] who had been taking care of Sakura all this time. I was truly surprised."
The mystery was solved.
The corner of Shirou's mouth twitched. So that was what Irisviel meant last night when she said, "Remember to say hello for me."
"Because whenever that person has the chance, she brags about you, Shirou-kun," Aoi Tohsaka said with a hint of envy.
"You can only believe about one-tenth of what Iri says," Shirou said awkwardly.
"That's not true at all. Shirou-kun really is a wonderful and outstanding boy! Sakura and Rin both trust you very much, don't they?"
"Wait... Rin!"
Because he had been chatting so enthusiastically with Aoi Tohsaka, Shirou had completely forgotten about the patient. She was still waiting for him to bring her cold medicine!
He hurriedly told Aoi Tohsaka about Rin catching a cold and collapsing. She immediately panicked and quickly took the special cold medicine from the first-aid kit.
"Here, Shirou-kun."
"Aunt Tohsaka, aren't you going to check on her?"
Shirou asked in confusion, because although Aoi Tohsaka was clearly worried sick, she showed no intention of going with him.
"I... won't go..."
Aoi Tohsaka lightly bit her lip.
"That child... is now the head of the Tohsaka family..."
"What does that matter?! You're her mother!"
The woman shook her head. "It isn't like that. Rin is more serious and hardworking than anyone.
In order to put me at ease, I don't know how much hardship she's endured in private... A girl like that surely wouldn't want to show weakness in front of me..."
Aoi Tohsaka walked over and tightly clasped Shirou's hand, speaking in a pleading tone. "Shirou-kun, please take care of Rin for me."
"...Yeah. Leave it to me."
"Hehe. Thank you."
Aoi Tohsaka smiled, both happy and sad.
"Then I'll go ahead... Um, Aunt Tohsaka?"
For some reason, Aoi Tohsaka had not let go of his hand.
"What is it?"
"Um..."
A vivid blush unexpectedly rose across Aoi Tohsaka's beautiful face.
Her slender fingers clasped Shirou's hand tightly. She lowered her lovely head and stammered, "About what happened earlier..."
Shirou frowned. What did she mean?
"You know..."
Aoi Tohsaka's cheeks reddened even further, making her look just like a maiden in love.
What on earth was she talking about?
Shirou lowered his head to observe her expression, and out of the corner of his eye, he unintentionally caught sight of Mrs. Tohsaka's full, proud chest.
Ah... He understood.
"Shi... Shirou-kun, about you seeing me changing my underwear just now... Please don't tell that child, all right?"
Aoi Tohsaka looked up at the boy, who was the same age as her daughter, her dignified face filled with pleading.
"I'll keep it to myself."
Shirou said seriously, "Whether it's Rin or Sakura, I won't say a single word.
This will be a secret that belongs only to me and Aunt Tohsaka. I'll take it to my grave...
Oh, right! I won't tell Irisviel or Uncle Tokiomi either. I'll absolutely keep it secret!"
"Mm..."
Hearing Shirou swear so solemnly, Aoi Tohsaka finally let go of his hand in relief.
"Then I'll go over first. I'll come back to see you after I deal with Rin."
Leaving those words behind, Shirou rushed out of the room like a gust of wind.
So that was the Shirou-kun Irisviel often mentioned.
The child who defeated all the Masters in the Fourth Holy Grail War and brought an end to the Two-Hundred-Year Vow of the Three Founding Families.
Aoi Tohsaka could tell that, just as Irisviel had said, he truly was an upright and outstanding young man.
He was the one who had extended a hand to Sakura when she had fallen into that den of demons.
For that alone, Aoi Tohsaka felt boundless gratitude toward Shirou Amamiya.
However, she was a cowardly woman.
She did not dare face the daughter she had abandoned. She did not dare admit the sins of her past. And so, she could not express that gratitude to Shirou.
She could only pray silently in her heart.
She hoped that Shirou and her daughters would have smooth lives from now on and live happily and peacefully.
After gathering herself, Aoi Tohsaka rose to tidy up the clothes scattered across the floor. She still had to properly entertain Shirou-kun later.
"Come to think of it... why did he mention that person's name?"
Aoi Tohsaka thought to herself, I divorced Tokiomi years ago.