Two days of hospitalization should have been dull and uneventful. However, Shirou seemed to know a bit too many people, so many that the ward door at Rhodes Island's office had practically been opened loose from constant use.
It was not that many, really. Aside from the people from Penguin Logistics, there were also those from the Fuyuki Shop, mostly coming to help with miscellaneous tasks at the office.
That had been part of the agreement between both sides: Rhodes Island would provide treatment, and in return they would come daily to help with cleaning.
At first, news of Shirou's hospitalization had not spread. But after some children saw him, by the next day almost everyone knew.
Shirou was quite certain it was Phal's fault—he simply could not keep his mouth shut.
Fortunately, most visitors only stopped by briefly to confirm he was fine before leaving. If his situation had caused trouble for others, Shirou would have felt rather guilty.
Aside from that, Shirou himself was not someone who could stay idle. He ended up taking over some of the office's miscellaneous work.
Beyond repairing and maintaining small machines, he mostly handled the daily meals at the office.
As a Rhodes Island branch that provided low-cost or nearly free treatment for the Infected, they often received gifts from patients or their families.
Fruits, meat, vegetables… all kinds of ingredients.
Originally, the children were supposed to handle these, but Shirou had too much free time. Spending all day in bed reading or staring blankly was simply not for him.
His broken phone had been replaced the very next day. Swire had somehow gotten him a new one and it was faster than the previous one with more features.
It looked expensive. Shirou had initially refused, but Swire insisted it was just her old device, so he accepted it.
There were indeed signs of use. Knowing Shirou could tell, she had simply told the truth.
For Shirou, that was acceptable. As long as the phone worked, that was enough.
Other than books and his phone, he had little to do, which was why he took on more work at the office.
Over these past few days, the office's food expenses had noticeably increased. Operators kept bringing in ingredients for him to cook.
Not just operators, even some patients contributed.
Shirou accepted everything, treating it as part of his rehabilitation.
After all, both Penguin Logistics and members of the Guard Department had specifically told him not to wander outside.
He understood they were worried about him, but staying put like that was unbearably boring.
After two days, his body felt no different from usual. If anything, it felt even more responsive when he moved.
Actions that previously required reinforcement magecraft could now be performed naturally with his body alone.
Even his vision no longer needed enhancement to reach the same level as before.
"…Could this be assimilation?"
All these bodily changes had started after the transformation of the shroud.
That outfit resembled the one from that Holy Grail War where Class Cards were used with the difference being the sleeves on different arms.
When that Emiya Shirou used a Class Card, he was gradually replaced by Heroic Spirit Emiya, which granted him immense combat power in a short time.
But that process had drawbacks, it placed immense strain on the body, essentially damaging it for such high level use of power.
"So far I do not feel anything wrong. Compared to assimilation, it feels more like resonance with the remaining mana in the shroud."
After moving around a bit, Shirou still felt nothing unusual. He leaned toward the idea that he was resonating with Archer's residual power, becoming closer to him as a result.
There had been precedent for this. In certain memories, Emiya Shirou gained the ability to use Unlimited Blade Works after fighting Archer.
However, his current self still could not reach that state. He could not grasp that feeling yet.
"Subjectively, nothing seems wrong. The instruments also show I am healthy. It is just these black patterns… I do not know where they came from."
Using his phone as a mirror, Shirou looked at his left arm and from elbow to shoulder where black lines had appeared.
This was the only uncertain factor.
There was no particular sensation, and they even seemed to be gradually fading over time.
When he used projection magecraft, they emitted a dark red glow, reminding him of the black mud of the Holy Grail.
Fortunately, it was only visually similar. There was no magical presence.
"Well, it should return to normal soon. I will just leave it be."
After observing for a while, Shirou decided to ignore it.
As long as it was improving rather than worsening, it was not important.
The marks were in a relatively hidden area. Aside from the medical operators who conducted his examinations, only he knew about them.
To avoid extending his hospital stay and since there were no other issues, he chose not to mention it.
His short-sleeved shirt conveniently covered it.
After adjusting his clothes, Shirou got out of bed and tidied up his things.
It was five in the morning and with nothing much to do over the past two days, he had been waking up early.
And most importantly, he was being discharged today.
After being cooped up for two days, Shirou could finally leave the Rhodes Island office.
The people here were nice, but staying in a hospital for too long always felt a bit off to him.
"Hm? Shirou, you are awake?"
Pulling aside the curtain, Shirou saw Minmin busy at work nearby.
One person, one night, one cup of coffee, just enough to keep her teetering on the edge of collapse.
Looking at the densely packed data on the screen, Shirou felt his scalp tingle.
"Are you okay?"
Pulling his gaze away from the computer screen, Shirou asked.
It was just a polite question. She looked like the kind of person who could collapse at any moment.
He mainly wanted to use it as a lead-in to his next sentence.
"Do you want me to make you something to eat?"
If he remembered correctly, there was still some soup left from yesterday, and there were always noodles stocked here.
Making a simple bowl of soup noodles would not be a problem.
"Yes, thank you."
Hearing that, Minmin agreed without hesitation, then watched Shirou head toward the back.
After that, she returned to organizing and refining the data in front of her.
What she was working on right now was Shirou's data. If not for him, she would not be pushing herself this hard.
The main issue was how shocking his blood test results were.
The Originium crystal density in his blood was zero.
Zero.
Unlike the cell-Originium fusion rate used to determine whether someone was Infected, blood Originium crystal density always had at least some trace amount.
That was because Originium dust existed in the air.
While being cut by Originium could cause infection, the more common cause was insufficient protection, breathing in large amounts of Originium dust, increasing the crystal density in the blood until infection occurred.
Simply put, anyone who breathed should have at least some Originium components in their body. The amount might be tiny and not enough to cause infection but it should exist.
At the very least, even the lowest would be around 0.01. After all, people cannot live without breathing.
And yet Shirou had even been caught in an Originium explosive blast, not becoming Infected was already a miracle.
But his blood showed zero density?
Minmin was smart enough to understand how serious this was. She had privately spoken to Shirou about it and warned him not to tell anyone.
This kind of case was extremely rare. If the wrong people took interest…
It might not be outright dangerous, but it would definitely bring him trouble.
After hearing her explanation, Shirou understood the gravity of the situation and agreed to keep it secret.
What she could do was prevent other organizations from finding out.
However, Shirou's case was far too valuable for research. So Minmin secretly took two tubes of his blood to preserve, planning to send them to Rhodes Island's main ship along with the compiled data.
She could guarantee that Rhodes Island would not cross any ethical lines.
Shirou did not mind. They had worked together for quite some time, and he had a good impression of the Rhodes Island operators especially the people at the office, as well as Rosmontis and Blaze.
So Minmin continued organizing the data in her spare time.
About ten minutes later, she caught a faint aroma, and soon saw Shirou walking in carrying two large bowls.
"Soup noodles are ready. The broth is leftover fowl soup from last night. I added an egg and some chopped scallions."
Placing one bowl in front of Minmin, Shirou briefly explained what he had added.
"Thank you… ah—hot"
After thanking him, Minmin picked up her chopsticks and began eating.
Normally, she either skipped breakfast or just had some bread. Only these past two days, with Shirou around, had her meals become more regular.
The children sometimes came by, but only at noon and in the evening.
Breakfast was still something she had to handle herself.
In just a few moments, she finished the entire bowl.
After working through the night, finally having something in her empty stomach eased the discomfort of staying up late.
"Just leave the bowl there. I will clean it up later."
Watching how quickly she finished, Shirou wanted to say that eating so fast on an empty stomach was not good.
But seeing her immediately return to work, he found it hard to say it.
He would just teach the children to make easier-to-digest food later.
"Thanks. You are being discharged today, right?"
Setting the bowl aside on an empty table, Minmin glanced at his neatly arranged bed and recalled that he was leaving today.
So this life of having three meals a day taken care of, plus fruit after meals, was coming to an end…
It felt a bit regretful.
She used to hear the children say Shirou was like a "mom," and thought they just meant he was important to them.
Turns out they meant it literally.
"Yeah. There is nothing really wrong with me, so staying here feels like I am just taking up a bed."
After swallowing his food, Shirou replied.
"That is not really an issue. When we are tired, we just lie down on empty beds anyway."
Originally, Minmin wanted to say, "Please keep taking it, it is fine," but in the end she did not.
He had his own things to do. It would not be right to hold him back over something like this.
Even if she did feel a little reluctant.
Just a little.
"It is good as long as it does not cause any trouble."
Hearing Minmin's words, Shirou felt a sense of relief.
He had thought that by occupying a bed like this despite being perfectly fine, he might have caused inconvenience to others.
"There is no need to worry too much. After all, you even contributed research materials, and everyone really likes the food you cook. You also helped repair some appliances…"
Noticing that Shirou seemed to feel some psychological pressure over this, Minmin added more examples of the things he had helped with, trying to make him worry less.
She had seen people like this before.
They feel that they have done something wrong, so they keep doing various things to make up for it. Even if they have already done a great deal, their mindset remains the same, and only when they stay busy can they forget about it.
Although this is not necessarily a bad thing but from a doctor's perspective it was quite dangerous.
It falls under a kind of psychological condition.
In this regard, Shirou showed a slight tendency.
Minmin briefly recalled Shirou's past behavior.
Well… perhaps it was not just a slight tendency. However, Shirou seemed to genuinely enjoy doing these things, which made him different from those who treat their actions as self-punishment.
She was not a specialist in this field, though. If one had to say, the professional would be the ship's psychotherapist.
"Thanks. I will go make you another cup of coffee."
Listening to Minmin continue speaking, Shirou understood that she was being considerate of his feelings.
So he suggested making another cup of coffee, intending to step away for a moment and interrupt the conversation.
He was still not very good at handling this kind of discussion. Leaving directly was the best option.
After taking the empty bowl to be washed, he returned with a cup of hot milk mixed with coffee. By then, Minmin was already immersed in her work.
This method worked quite well.
After reminding her, Shirou placed the coffee on the table and left.
"Hmm… did I bring everything?"
After leaving the ward, Shirou briefly checked to make sure he had not forgotten anything.
The projected Chixiao had already been taken back by Texas for safekeeping. Aside from a few sets of clothes, he only had the holy shroud wrapped around his right hand and the phone in his pocket.
He had not brought his wallet while working, so it was still in his locker at the Guard Bureau. It had not ended up as battered as his original phone and communicator.
"Ah, there is also this?"
While checking his belongings, Shirou took out an orange cloth strip from his pocket.
He had taken it from one of the men and If he remembered correctly, this should be a symbol of Reunion.
Back on the snowy plains, members of Reunion all wore orange cloth strips tied to them.
"Perhaps it is just… imitation?"
Comparing the two, Shirou found it difficult to associate those who wanted to drag ordinary people into chaos with the people he had met on the snowy plains.
After all, the infected there had merely been struggling to survive, fundamentally different from these rioters.
After thinking for a moment, Shirou put the orange cloth strip back into his pocket, then continued to find things to do while waiting for Penguin Logistics to come pick him up.
Meanwhile, on the Ursus snowy plains.
A woman with silver-white hair stood there, a longsword tied at her waist, and an orange cloth strip bound to her left arm.
"Talulah, are you already up? You could rest a bit more."
Seeing the figure in the snowfield, Alina softly called out her name.
Hearing Alina's voice, Talulah turned around as she spoke.
"Black Snake has already begun to act. If he continues committing evil acts in the name of Reunion, Reunion will truly become nothing more than an infected mob organization."
"I need to find a way to stop him"
Aside from the orange cloth strip on her left arm, there was also a red cloth strip tied to her right arm.
"Not I but we."
Walking out of the tent, Alina also had a red cloth strip tied to her right arm.
"…Yes, we."
Hearing the correction, Talulah nodded.