"Wahh... King of Heroes, do you know how hard my life in Camelot was? That Morgan, always bossing me around about this and that. Does she know how much I miss Is?"
Slapping the table, Merlin looked furious.
"This king can understand. Siduri is the same, always watching this king, telling me to do this and that. It's utterly annoying."
Also slapping the table, Gilgamesh looked as if she had found a kindred spirit.
"Right? And they don't know how much I love Is. Really, how old am I? Is it easy to find someone I like?"
"This king is the same. This king is not young either, and in this lifetime, I've only found one person I love."
"There aren't many Succubus left. Is it wrong for me to want to reproduce?"
"The Uruk's royal family only has this king left. This king also wants to expand the royal line."
"They always say I'm lazy, that I cause trouble. I do that to lighten the mood! They just don't understand my good intentions!"
"This king understands. Handling state affairs seriously every day is exhausting. This king greatly needs subjects like you, Merlin, to bring this king amusement."
Wide-eyed, watching Gilgamesh and Merlin getting more and more animated, Kaguya pondered the classic three questions: Who am I? Where am I? What am I doing?
Just a short while ago, the being known as the oldest King had approached with a look of wanting to watch a show. Heaven knew Kaguya's heart had nearly stopped then.
But contrary to Kaguya's expectations, Merlin and Gilgamesh had an eerily strange synergy.
Finding resonance in some bizarre places, the two had started drinking together, simultaneously launching lethal complains at the people around them, leaving Kaguya utterly stunned.
On the other end of the commercial street, the Venus Goddess named Ishtar was wandering around.
"Ishtar, you are a goddess after all. Why are you so keen on going out to have fun?"
Following behind Ishtar, ever since meeting her Servant, Souji had been dragged around the world by this individual.
Her pale golden eyes looked helplessly at Ishtar, who was collecting various shiny objects.
Souji wondered if the Venus Goddess had dragon blood in her veins, otherwise, why else would she be so eager to buy pretty gems?
"Isn't going out to play normal behavior? I am an eternally young goddess, after all."
"Besides, from my understanding of that arrogant Gil and Enkidu, they aren't the type to hide indoors studying tactics. Rather than searching for them aimlessly, we might as well come out and play too."
"Anyway, given Gilgamesh's personality, she'll definitely get bored and come out. Maybe we'll run into them soon."
Listening to Ishtar's explanation, Souji felt her Servant might be delusional. After all, that was the oldest King. Actively coming out to play? Impossible.
"Don't doubt it, Souji. Gil is quite different from the history you know."
Raising an eyebrow, Ishtar didn't elaborate much about Babylon to Souji. Firstly, this Venus Goddess wasn't fond of voluntarily sharing her life, and secondly, Souji wasn't interested in those matters anyway.
"Whatever. As long as we win the Holy Grail War, I won't interfere with anything else. Do as you please."
Watching the bustling crowd on the street, Souji noticed light snow had begun to fall from the sky at some point.
Letting out a long breath, her heart recalled the turbulent era when Ryuya had adopted her.
'Ryu-nii, do you see it? This world... has changed now.'
'People live and work in peace, the Oni have vanished. Your wish has been fulfilled. But where are you? Can you also see this peaceful age?'
Gently brushing the snowflake from the tip of her nose, Souji and Ishtar continued their stroll.
Moments later, she found Ishtar standing motionless in front of a toy store.
"Ishtar, why did you stop...!!!"
Mid-sentence, Souji saw it. She saw the princess happily laughing while sitting on a rocking horse, and beside her, the golden-haired King in a black suit.
"Five little monkeys jumping on the bed..."
As the children's song from the rocking horse played, the combination named Irisviel and Artoria finally encountered the combination of Ishtar and Souji.
…
Time rewinds slightly.
Shortly after completing the summoning ritual for Artoria and Morgan, even before noon...
After briefly showing Artoria and Morgan around the castle and introducing them to the homunculus maids, Ryuya noticed Artoria's gaze seemed a bit distant.
"Lily, hungry?"
He was quite familiar with Artoria's stomach, having watched her grow up.
Understanding immediately what that look meant, Ryuya asked.
"Mmm... I am a little hungry."
Embarrassedly tugging at her hair, Artoria from any era had a hearty appetite. The King of Knights' stomach could not be ignored!
"Iri, Morgan? Let's go have lunch now."
It was still a bit early for lunch, but such a small matter was inconsequential. Ryuya asked concernedly.
"I'm fine. But as for Lily... Is, you'd better make something for her first."
Her perception of Ryuya still lingered on the name Isbel Pendragon. Even knowing Ryuya's true name, Morgan used the old habit.
Morgan looked at her sister beside her and the flustered princess and smiled wryly, feeling like she always had to look after Ryuya's women no matter the era.
"I'm okay... Mmm, actually, Master, I am a bit hungry too."
Usually, her eating habits were quite elegant, befitting a princess.
Apart from occasional 'snacking', Irisviel usually watched her figure carefully and didn't eat much.
But the Servant summoning ritual consumed not only magical energy but also tested physical stamina. The Einzbern Princess had been hungry for a while.
Hearing Ryuya ask if she was hungry, Irisviel felt a bit embarrassed.
If it were just her and Ryuya, she would have started acting coquettishly long ago. Being hungry wouldn't be an issue, and they might even bathe together or do other, more excessive things.
But walking alongside Morgan and Artoria now, feeling the immense pressure, Irisviel knew these two shared a bond with Ryuya even deeper than her own.
Speaking with rare tact and shyness, she thought for a moment and offered to cook, wanting Artoria and Morgan to taste her skills as a welcome for the new friends.