Looking up, Ethan saw Illya sitting there, bored and spacing out, and Artoria sitting beside her, also spacing out.
"Oh? Why the listless look?"
Because Ethan and the others appeared too abruptly, without any warning, by the time Artoria realized there were outsiders present, she could already see that it was Scáthach.
Having seen her before, Artoria didn't immediately switch to a combat stance, but she still maintained a certain level of vigilance.
"Uh... these two are..."
Just then, Shirou happened to walk out carrying a tray with some fruit and drinks, apparently for the two of them.
He didn't panic upon seeing Scáthach. The Shirou of this world hadn't truly participated in the Holy Grail War. Although he had encountered some strange things, overall, he was still a high school student with no combat experience, unlike a true warrior who would remain cautious.
"What? Don't you recognize me?"
To everyone's surprise, the first to speak was the child who looked even younger than Illya. Such a cute child easily drew goodwill, but why did his tone sound so strange?
"Shirou... this child... seems to be..."
As the only Servant with combat ability among them, Artoria was the first to sense Ethan's unusual nature. After observing him for a while with a frown, Illya asked uncertainly,
"Ber...ser...ker?"
"Quick reaction, Illya."
"Huh?"
Shirou's surprised exclamation and Scáthach's quick glance around the room happened almost at the same time, but Cú Chulainn wasn't there.
"Cú Chulainn isn't here?"
"Mr. Cú Chulainn said it's a rare chance to live a relaxed life in the present world, so he wanted to experience what ordinary life feels like. He found a job and said he'll be back after work."
According to Shirou's explanation, because Ethan had severed Cú Chulainn's contract with his Master, Kirei Kotomine, Cú Chulainn didn't want to return to Kirei. Additionally, with the Holy Grail War inexplicably destroyed, he didn't want to go back to the Throne of Heroes for the time being, so he decided to stay at the Emiya residence.
Fortunately, Cú Chulainn wasn't the type to freeload. He went out to work and earn some money, occasionally buying things to contribute to food and lodging costs.
Shirou didn't object or show dissatisfaction. He already had Artoria living there for free, and his sister Illya was quite wealthy, so Cú Chulainn staying there wasn't a big deal.
Aside from Sakura and Taiga, Shirou's guardian, being surprised by the sudden influx of guests at the Emiya residence, they didn't dwell too much on these people's identities.
Only when Taiga learned that Illya was actually Kiritsugu Emiya's daughter did she momentarily lose her composure. Otherwise, everything remained calm.
"So all the Heroic Spirits from this Holy Grail War are just staying in the present world and haven't gone back?"
Sitting in the same living room again, Ethan leaned comfortably against Diana—this was the only benefit of being smaller, being able to nestle in her arms. While chewing on orange segments Scáthach occasionally offered him, Ethan endured the scrutinizing gazes of several people and asked about what had happened since he left.
"That seems to be the case... According to what Tohsaka told me, the few Heroic Spirits I've met haven't left."
Shirou counted. Including Ethan, he had met six of them. There was only one Rider-class Servant he hadn't met yet, so he wasn't sure about their situation.
"Everyone seems to be enjoying a peaceful life. That's a bit surprising to me."
In Shirou's understanding, Heroic Spirits were powerful heroes summoned for battle and bloodshed. With the Holy Grail War canceled, he thought they would have left immediately. He hadn't expected them to enjoy such ordinary, quiet days, seemingly not the bloodthirsty warriors he had imagined.
"After all, before becoming Heroic Spirits, they were people too."
Ethan looked at the somewhat awkward Artoria across from him.
"Besides, not everyone enjoys this kind of life, right?"
The one in front of him was definitely not among those who did. Without the series of events that occurred during the Holy Grail War, Artoria hadn't resolved her inner turmoil. She was still pursuing that distant dream, but because the Holy Grail War had ended so abruptly, she now felt lost, unsure whether it was truly over. She was also protecting Shirou and Illya, considering it part of her duty.
Once she was sure there was no danger, she would ask Shirou to terminate their contract and leave. Ethan had once said that this world seemed to be slowly returning to its original state, which might mean the Holy Grail War could still reappear. She wanted to wait until things recovered, so there might still be a chance to participate again.
Shirou glanced at Artoria beside him. To this day, he still couldn't figure out what the young-looking female swordsman usually thought about. Most of the time, she just sat there quietly. Aside from slight changes in expression during meals, she was like a statue.
When he learned that Artoria had participated in the previous Holy Grail War as Kiritsugu's Servant, he had wanted to ask her more about Kiritsugu. But every time he brought up the topic, he noticed her expression turn unpleasant, so after the first couple of times, he stopped mentioning it.
He had also been curious about her identity because the true identities of the other Heroic Spirits he had met were no longer secrets—one of them was even his future self, who didn't seem to like him very much.
Although unbelievable, he had accepted that fact and was curious about who his own Servant really was.
An unknown hero? A hero from the future? Or a well-known legend?
Unfortunately, he still didn't know the answer.
Listening to Shirou explain that Cú Chulainn had already worked three short-term jobs in half a month and had even found a relatively long-term temporary job before one ended, it seemed he had adapted very well to modern life.
Medea was living with Sōichirō Kuzuki, who was also diligently learning swordsmanship from Sasaki Kojirō when not working.
His future self, Emiya, was living at Rin's house. Rin, who already had a strong "ojou-sama" (young lady) aura, now had a tall, butler-like figure following her, which made her aura even stronger.
Additionally, everyone's Magic Circuits had recovered. Although they still couldn't cast magecraft, they could feel their magical power again, suggesting that the rules distorted by Ethan were close to being fully restored.
Despite this, the Servants had no intention of fighting again and continued living peaceful daily lives.
"This is quite nice, isn't it? It's rare to 'come out' like this. Isn't it good to enjoy a different kind of peaceful life? Don't you agree, Artoria?" Ethan looked at her as she calmly opened her eyes and met his gaze. "Or should I call you Arthur Pendragon?"
"Pfft!"
"Pfft!"
Two people spat out what they were eating or drinking in shock at Saber's identity.
One was Shirou, her Master and the owner of the house.
The other was Diana, whom Ethan was leaning against. She sprayed orange juice all over Ethan's head. Ethan suspected she did it on purpose. How could such a small shock cause such a big reaction?
Shirou, on the other hand, was genuinely startled. Even Scáthach beside him showed a hint of surprise—she hadn't expected the legendary King Arthur to be such a young girl.
"You really know my identity."
"Of course."
Wiping his hair clean with the towel Shirou handed him, Ethan sat up straight. He wondered if it was his imagination, but after he sat properly again, the sense of dissatisfaction directed at him seemed to lessen.
"Presumably, you also know my actual situation."
"Yes."
Ethan's answer caused Artoria's hands, which had been resting on her lap, to clench tightly. She wasn't nervous because her identity was revealed, but because she wanted to ask Ethan a few questions. She hadn't terminated her contract with Shirou, not just for the reasons mentioned earlier, but mainly because she had been waiting for Ethan's return.
"Then do you think... my wish has a chance of being fulfilled?"
"That depends on what your wish actually is." Ethan casually fiddled with the pile of orange segments in front of him, arranging them like puzzle pieces, as if completely uninterested in the topic. However, his words still caught everyone's attention, so no one minded his apparent distraction. "Are you hoping to save the Britain you once ruled, or are you hoping to save Britain?"
"Is there a difference?" Artoria didn't quite understand what Ethan meant.
"If it's just Britain, I'd say it's doing quite well and doesn't need you to worry about it."
Without waiting for Artoria to ask, Ethan continued.
"If it's your Britain, although that country fell into chaos, you didn't die. Although you were close to death, healing isn't that difficult. So you could completely rely on your own strength to solve those problems. Once everything was settled and the country was back on track, wouldn't that be saving Britain?"
"No... I think..." Artoria seemed to lose all her strength at once, sitting there with her head down. "I think... I can't do it."
"So you're willing to trust a cup, but not yourself?"
Artoria fell silent. Meanwhile, compared to saving Britain or anything else, the others were focused on another point.
"Didn't die?"
(To be continued.)
◇◇◇
◇ I'll be dropping two bonus chapters for every 10 reviews.
◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 100 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on Pat if you're interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves (Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)