Chapter 35: Shirou Plans to Pick Up Medea

"Berserker, I'm sorry," On the way back, Illya rubbed against Shirou like a little cat.

"Why apologize all of a sudden?" Shirou asked.

Illya pressed hard against him, "I said such harsh things before, and even abandoned Berserker. I'm really sorry!"

"It's fine. After all, you're Illya," Shirou held her a little tighter.

Illya peacefully fell asleep and the two disappeared into the wind and snow.

———

"You're finally back."

Sella, who had been waiting outside ever since the two had left, and Liz, both clearly sighed in relief when they saw the striking red hair from afar.

Jubstacheit silently turned and left.

Since the trial was passed, Illya and that talking Berserker would represent the Einzbern family in the Fifth Holy Grail War. Also the last one.

After settling Illya into a room, Sella gently stepped out. Shirou stood like a soldier, guarding the door with Liz.

The scene gave off a strangely familiar feeling.

"How is she?", Shirou asked.

Sella shook her head, trying to erase the memory of their kiss that day, "She's fine, just a bit tired. She may need a round of calibration."

Shirou nodded.

After a brief hesitation, Sella asked, "Berserker, can you tell me what happened during the trial?"

"Don't worry," Shirou reassured, "everything has been taken care of."

"That's good," Sella chose to believe him.

"Since Berserker said it... then surely, it's fine," Liz stood behind him.

Shirou turned around, "Please take care of Illya, I'll go cook."

Neither of them objected and Shirou walked away.

———

Though he hadn't been in the kitchen for several days, his hands were not rusty at all.

He simmered a pot of porridge.

Illya hadn't eaten for some time, so making porridge would be gentle on her stomach.

Unfortunately, there were no red dates, so he made lean meat porridge instead.

Beyond expectation... Illya didn't wake up all day, and Sella sent her for calibration.

After about two rounds of calibration, Illya's condition stabilized.

———

In a European-style room, Shirou sat by the bedside, watching Illya's quiet sleeping face, lost in thought.

Before the Holy Grail War began, he had to solve the problem of Illya being the Lesser Grail.

Otherwise, it would be impossible to save her no matter what.

Even the system seemed helpless.

The Einzbern's artificial alchemy had nearly 900 years of history, continuously innovating and evolving, ultimately reaching near perfection.

According to the system's assessment, Illya's existence as a homunculus had already surpassed the A-rank level.

Just like the system couldn't create a Grail, it also couldn't solve the issue of Illya being the Lesser Grail.

From this perspective, the only method left was to "pick up" this war's summoned Caster, the magician from the Age of Gods, Medea.

The woman who claimed she could craft the Holy Grail by hand.

Hopefully, she wouldn't disappoint Shirou.

Having come to this tentative plan, he needed to consider how to improve his strength.

First of all, according to the system's explanation, even as a Servant, as long as he trained daily, he could still improve stats like Strength.

This was an advantage other Servants didn't have.

Secondly, to avoid looking too similar to the Emiya Shirou in Fuyuki City, he needed a disguise to hide his identity.

He already had an idea for that.

Finally, regarding martial arts and combat, the Einzbern weren't good at fighting, and they didn't have much combat knowledge to inherit.

So Shirou would have to rely on the system for guidance.

Two months wasn't much time, and there was so much to do.

Time was tight.

All of this was to ensure there were no flaws in this Holy Grail War. Increasing combat power, finding Medea, hiding his identity, he couldn't afford to skip any of it.

He should be glad that, being summoned as Berserker, he gave off a fierce presence, with black aura wrapped all around him, and no expression on his face.

In other words, besides that eye-catching red hair, his features as Emiya Shirou were the same as Archer's. People who didn't look closely couldn't tell.

That was exactly why Shirou hid his identity on purpose. Otherwise, he'd be recognized as Shirou at a glance.

Once he went to Fuyuki City, he'd definitely be exposed, so what would be the point of hiding it then?

"Berserker?", Snapping out of his thoughts, Shirou saw Illya looking at him innocently, very close.

"You're finally awake," Shirou relaxed and opened the pot of porridge he cooked every day.

"Did I sleep for a long time?", Illya, freshly awake, looked very obedient.

"Three days and three nights," Shirou fed her.

Illya sipped in small mouthfuls, "Yummy!"

"You can eat a little more."

"Okay!"

After finishing the porridge, Sella came over to clean up, "Illya-sama, how do you feel now?"

Illya closed her eyes. After a while, she opened them, "I'm fine now. Thank you, Sella, and Liz."

That's right, Liz was also there. Not only did she walk lightly, but she also never talked. Her presence was extremely thin.

The key was, she loved standing behind Shirou.

Like right now, Shirou didn't even dare to turn around. Because if he did, his visual field would definitely take a hit.

'Too outrageously well-developed.'

"Illya-sama?", Sella held the tray, looking shocked.

This was the first time Illya thanked them. Before, she always thought they were just following orders, so she disliked them.

"What?", Illya asked, slightly firm.

Her tone didn't change, and Sella felt slightly reassured, "No, it's nothing. Illya-sama, please rest well. We'll take our leave first."

She meant herself and Liz. Shirou would stay.

Click!

The door closed gently.

Inside, it was so quiet only the two of them remained.

Illya, whose strength had mostly recovered, jumped out of bed, sat on the edge, patted beside her, and looked at him with anticipation.

"Berserker, come sit here. Illya wants to sleep on your lap."

"..."

"You really are impossible," Meeting Illya's eyes, Shirou gave in, "But only for a while, then I need to get up."

"Why?", Illya grumbled, already resting her head on Shirou's lap.

"So comfy," Illya rubbed her face on him.

"Don't you want to build a snowman?"

"Build a snowman," Illya sat up. She didn't want to build a snowman, but, With Berserker?

"No," Shirou calmly replied, "I'm going to train. You can play with Sella and the others."

"Boring," Illya said that and flopped back down, looking up at Shirou's chin.

"Don't worry, I'll be nearby."

Illya frowned and thought hard. Finally, when Shirou stroked her hair, her expression softened, "Then fine, but you have to stay by Illya's side."

"Yeah."

———

The next day, the snowfall was light.

Shirou practiced archery. Very steady. Very accurate.

This was something he clearly felt during the trial, as long as he wanted, he could definitely hit the target.

The system assessed his Archery skill as A-rank, and Cu Chulainn(Lancer)'s Protection from Arrows was B.

Which meant, as long as he wanted, even if Cu Chulainn had Protection from Arrows, he could still hit him with a bow?

'Is that how it works, System-san?'

["No."]

The system replied.

["According to judgment, Protection from Arrows, in practice, is not a passive skill."]

'What do you mean?', Shirou was confused.

["Protection from Arrows refers to an evasion skill. As long as the eyes can see the attack, the user can dodge any projectile, no matter how it flies. Even if they can't see it clearly, they can still handle most projectiles, even Noble Phantasms. But that doesn't mean projectiles are completely ineffective."]

'So much nonsense. Just tell me, can I hit him or not?'

The system fell silent.

["With your current stats and techniques as a Servant, it won't be difficult."]

'Should've said that from the start,' Shirou rolled his eyes.

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