Several days had passed since Shirou was questioned by Wei Yenwu.
Today, Lungmen's weather was still excellent, bright sunshine filled the sky. Under the scorching sun, the streets were full of people dressed in short sleeves and shorts.
However, if one looked closely, there were still some people occasionally walking around in thin long sleeves, appearing rather out of place compared to the rest.
That, however, was normal for summer in Lungmen. Most people were used to it, though they would consciously keep some distance from such individuals.
At this moment, Shirou was walking down the streets of Lungmen wearing a short-sleeved shirt and long pants, with a sling bag over his shoulder.
Today was a rotation rest day for the Guard Department and everyone from Penguin Logistics was at work, so no one was in the dormitory. Before leaving, the three of them had even cleaned the entire place, leaving him with nothing to do.
Originally, he could have gone to the Fuyuki Shop to visit the children but Phal and Jaye suddenly said they were taking the kids out today, so no one would be there either.
"Why does this feel like I am being forced to take a day off?"
Walking along the street, Shirou thought about everything that had happened in the morning and muttered to himself.
Still, it was not a bad thing. He had not had such a relaxing day in quite a while.
Aside from his first month here, he had been putting almost all his energy into other matters. Taking a break like this was not bad.
Over the past few months, he had saved up quite a bit of money, so it was a good opportunity to replace his clothes.
He had grown a bit tall recently and the sets he had just bought were already becoming too tight.
What used to be loose short-sleeved shirts now felt like tight-fitting clothes when worn.
Not just clothes and pants, even his underwear and shoes also needed to be replaced.
And since he knew he might continue growing, he only bought two or three sets to rotate.
As for the old clothes and shoes… he planned to tidy them up and place them at the Fuyuki Shop, so the children could wear them when they grew older.
While he had the chance, Shirou also did not forget what he should be doing. Based on his memory, he replenished the items in the dorm that were running low.
He also bought some small items he often used at the Guard Department, mostly stationery.
There was also instant coffee from the brand Hoshiguma and Chen often drank. Hoshiguma would frequently give him a pack to brew.
If nothing else, it was quite effective at keeping one awake.
Though overall, he still preferred tea.
"Hm, I bought quite a lot."
Only when he came back to his senses did Shirou realize he was carrying several large and small bags.
Aside from one small bag that contained his own items, the rest were not for him.
Even his savings had taken a noticeable hit but he did not mind too much. Money was meant to be spent and he was simply more restrained with his spending.
Most people, after gaining control over their own finances, would first want to buy things they had long desired.
Toys they could not afford as children, luxury goods, cars or phones they could only buy as adults…
In his case, things were more complicated. After Kiritsugu passed away, he had started managing money on his own, so his desire to spend had always been quite weak.
Unless it was necessary, he rarely spent money.
After all, most of that money had been left behind by kiritsugu and he himself had no real earning ability back then.
Considering he would need to attend university later, saving was essential.
As for now… the money he earned himself was more than enough. Spending it on daily needs did not bother him at all.
As long as it was proper spending.
"Hm? Isn't that Shirou? Texas, turn around!"
Sitting in the passenger seat, Exusiai spotted Shirou carrying all those bags. With her sharp eyesight, she immediately noticed that most of them were daily necessities and quickly told Texas to turn the car around.
Today was a rare day where they had reached an agreement with the Guard Department to let Shirou properly relax.
And yet this guy was still out shopping?
Could he not just sit still?
"… "
Hearing Exusiai, Texas made a proper U-turn while following traffic rules.
Although she really wanted to do a drifting turn, she had to restrain herself.
Last time, just for speeding, Swire had dragged her into the Guard Department. She was not going to make that mistake again.
The car pulled up beside Shirou. The two gestured for him to put his things in the car, then drove off.
"???"
Watching them arrive and leave just as quickly, Shirou stood there empty-handed with a confused look.
Everything had happened too suddenly. He had thought they were asking him to put the things in the car and then get in as well.
Instead, the bags were loaded and Exusiai simply shut the door, told him to enjoy his day off and had Texas toss him a box of Pocky before driving away.
Leaving Shirou standing there with his hand still half-raised, completely dumbfounded.
"…Enjoy my day off, huh?"
Thinking about what Exusiai had said before leaving, Shirou sighed.
It was not that he did not want to relax alone. It was just that when he was by himself, he tended to overthink, so he needed things to occupy his mind.
Still, skipping the step of returning to the dorm was not bad.
He had originally planned to head to the slums afterward to check on things anyway.
Even if no one was there, it had been quite a while since he last went.
Because he skipped the step of returning to the dorm, Shirou did not bring his bicycle and could only walk there.
While he was not like Chen, who could memorize every street and alley in Lungmen, by remembering a few well-known landmarks, he would not get lost.
This also gave him one less reason to use his phone. However, after Yith had repeatedly teased him about it some time ago, Shirou had put in some effort to catch up on using it.
Although he could not roam through Lungmen's surveillance network like Yith, normal usage was no problem.
Still, he mostly treated it as a portable music player.
After walking for quite a while, Shirou finally arrived at the slums.
On the way, he passed by Jaye's stall but did not see him there, so he was probably out with the children as well.
Arriving at the shop entrance, Shirou habitually tried to push the door open, only to find it locked.
So he took out the key from his bag and unlocked it. On his keychain, aside from this key, there was only the dorm key.
"It is quite clean."
Looking at the shop, which appeared no different from usual, Shirou commented.
Skipping past the storefront, he did a quick inspection.
There was no one around and everything was unusually tidy.
So tidy that it even felt a bit strange.
"Come to think of it, when Hoshiguma told me to take the day off, her expression was a bit odd… could this be her doing?"
Thinking back on the strange events of the day, Shirou felt that Hoshiguma was the only one who could have connected all of this.
Contacting Penguin Logistics would be easy…they were regulars.
As for here, A Xing used to be one of Hoshiguma's subordinates and Jaye also seemed to know her.
So was all of this specially arranged by Hoshiguma?
It felt a bit too thorough. Shirou found it slightly unsettling.
"Ah-choo—"
In the Guard Department office, Hoshiguma sneezed.
Seeing that both Shirou's and Chen's desks were empty, she continued working through the mountain of documents in front of her.
As for Shirou, although he had his suspicions, he did not dwell on it further.
It was not a bad thing, so he decided to accept it with gratitude.
After the shop's operations had stabilized, Shirou had stopped using projection to fill in supplies.
Mainly because his conscience could not quite accept it.
After confirming that everything here was in good condition, he went to a nearby market, bought some ingredients, then returned to simmer a pot of thick soup and left a note behind.
After finishing his inspection, not even half the day had passed.
This was the first time Shirou felt like he had so much time to spare.
"Hmm… maybe I should cook something nice today? And make tomorrow's lunchboxes a bit better?"
Thinking about how everyone had been acting strangely today, Shirou considered how to treat them.
"Hm~ hm hm~"
Elsewhere, a Lupo with silver-white long hair was wandering aimlessly through the streets of the slums.
There was a scar over her left eye but she made no effort to hide it just like the Originium crystals on her body.
When people around her saw her, they sensibly stepped aside.
It was not just because she was infected but also because of the fresh blood still staining the two swords at her side.
If she were walking like this in the main streets of Lungmen, she would have been taken to the Guard Department immediately.
Unfortunately, this was the slums, the most chaotic area of Lungmen.
A place even the Guard Department did not have enough manpower to control.
"Ah, those people are really persistent."
Her Lupo ears twitched slightly, as if she had heard something.
Although she complained about being pursued, there was no annoyance or impatience on her face, she only showed a faint smile.
Paired with the scar on her face, it was enough to send chills down anyone's spine.
Suddenly, her expression froze for a moment, then turned into a wide, genuine smile.
She had caught a familiar scent.
The scent of the person she had been chasing for so long.
And it was close. Even though the air was filled with the aroma of thick soup, she was certain she would not mistake it.
Ignoring the gang members chasing after her, she immediately headed in the direction of the scent.
However, as she got closer, the excitement on her face quickly faded.
The source of the scent was a red-haired person without any racial traits. The hair color alone was enough to tell it was not the person she was looking for.
Not to mention, the person was male.
Still, even if it was not the person herself, this individual might know something about the one she was searching for. Thinking this, her excitement returned.
"Hey… is that you?"
While walking along the street and thinking about which dishes would still taste good after being left for a while, Shirou suddenly noticed that the people around him seemed to be deliberately avoiding something.
Turning his head, he saw a group of people chasing a silver-white-haired infected Lupo.
He did not act rashly. Although he instinctively felt that the Lupo being chased was the weaker party, the blood on the two swords she carried was still fresh.
Combined with the fact that she herself looked clean aside from the Originium crystals, while the pursuers behind her were all injured and battered, Shirou could roughly guess what was going on.
Do not act based solely on subjective judgment. First analyze and think through the situation.
This was one of the rules Chen and Hoshiguma had laid out. Although most people would forget it the moment things heated up, Shirou had taken it to heart.
However, in such a public place, Shirou had no intention of using Projection Magecraft directly. Instead, he slipped his hand into his sling bag and projected the short knife Texas had given him.
"What a hassle…"
There was a simple reason he avoided openly using projection, people already knew about it and some had even tried to use that knowledge to mislead Wei Yenwu.
Not just Yith, even the three from the Guard Department had told him to avoid using Originium Arts in crowded places whenever possible, or it would bring trouble.
Still, if things really got dangerous, his own safety came first.
After all, he could not abandon everything just because of uncertain risks.
Fortunately, he had kept the knife Texas gave him as a birthday gift tucked in a hidden compartment of his bag. Still, he had no intention of rushing in and attacking with it. Rather than a weapon, it was more like a charm for protection.
So he made it look as if he had taken the knife out of his bag. If anything went wrong, he could always retrieve the real one.
"Are you trying to help them stop me?"
Seeing the red-haired man with a familiar scent pull out a somewhat familiar-looking knife, the silver-haired Lupo stopped and placed her hand on her sword.
There was a faintly meaningful tone in both her expression and her voice.
"Uh… I was thinking of stopping the people behind you?"
Seeing that she was about to treat him as an enemy, Shirou felt a bit wronged.
His gaze was clearly on the pursuers behind her and he had even stepped aside to give her room to pass so why was she coming toward him instead?
The path is over there! Just go!
"Tsk tsk, meddling too much is not a good habit."
From his reaction, the silver-haired Lupo immediately understood his intention.
Playing the hero?
She had seen plenty of people like that.
A small number would become indifferent after suffering a few harsh lessons.
But most… paid with their lives.
This land repeated the same story over and over, like a bad drama endlessly replaying on television.
"I know that."
Shirou naturally understood what she meant.
But he just could not control himself. By the time he realized it, the knife was already in his hand.
"Hm~? Well, whatever. I was planning to look for you anyway. Even if you had not interfered, you would have been targeted."
Seeing that the man in front of her did not back down, the silver-haired Lupo's interest was piqued just a little.