"Be careful?"
Tilting her head, Irisviel suddenly remembered something Ryuya had once told her.
"Iri, I don't know what kind of Servants will be summoned in this False Master War. But if there's any possibility, maybe among those Servants will be people I know."
"If I'm not by your side for some reason, try calling my name to them. It might work."
Before summoning Artoria and Morgan, Ryuya was worried about unforeseen accidents, like the Yukinoshita Sisters and Irisviel ending up in a fight.
Having confirmed the other False Masters were the Yukinoshita Sisters, Kaguya, and Souji, he gave Irisviel an insurance policy.
Thinking of this, Irisviel suddenly felt her confidence surge.
Walking out from behind Artoria's protection with an air of righteousness, she strode right up to Souji and Ishtar.
"You two, do you know who I work for?"
Fragments of gangster novels she'd read inexplicably surfaced in her mind, and Irisviel got a bit too into character.
"Huh? Who you work for is none of our business."
Looking at Irisviel acting all high and mighty based on someone else's power, Ishtar sneered.
"Hmph, I work for my Master."
"Who your Master is has nothing to do with us."
This time, not only Ishtar, but even Souji thought this enemy Master might be an idiot.
"Ah... It doesn't work?"
Seeing that Ishtar and Souji were completely unfazed by her tactic, Irisviel began to doubt her life choices.
Silently taking two steps back, she wisely retreated behind Artoria.
Ishtar: "..."
Okita Souji: "..."
Artoria: "..."
Feeling helpless about Irisviel's behavior, the three facepalmed and sighed.
"Fine, never mind that. It's time for our battle..."
Just as Ishtar was about to find a place to fight Artoria, Irisviel's voice sounded again.
"Stupid Master, rotten Master. He said reporting his name would work, but they're not scared at all."
"Damn Ryuya, wahhh..."
Hearing Irisviel's soft muttering, Souji and Ishtar froze simultaneously.
Their breath hitched for a moment, and they couldn't believe what they had just heard.
"You there, say your Master's name again?"
Step by step, Ishtar approached Irisviel until Artoria blocked her path. Divine power surged around Ishtar, clearly serious now.
"Ah? Master said if I encounter enemies, I should report his name. Master's name is Ryuya."
Seeing Ishtar's reaction, Irisviel, who had changed her approach, suddenly thought Ryuya was amazing.
'As expected of Master! Just his name alone could scare the opponents like this. What a learning experience!'
"Gil, Enkidu and the others are at the pet shop, right?"
The commotion caused in the sake bar made it impossible to stay. Giving Morgan an apologetic look, Ryuya promised to make it up to her properly tonight.
Arriving at the pet shop entrance where Enkidu and the were, accompanied by Gilgamesh, Merlin, Shinomiya Kaguya, and Morgan, Ryuya looked at the Female Gil beside him.
"Hmph."
Turning her head away tsunderely, Gilgamesh remained silent. She was still jealous, still angry.
"You, Gil..."
Shaking his head with a smile, Ryuya could already sense the magical energy emanating from Enkidu.
Standing at the pet shop entrance, he spotted Enkidu at a glance, holding a bunch of reptilian pets and observing them without a care for looking girlish, and the Yukinoshita Sisters talking nearby, seemingly discussing something.
"Yukino, how are things between you and Ryu now?"
Inside the pet shop, seeing her sister Yukino's apprehensive look, Haruno knew it stemmed from the insecurity cultivated since childhood.
Under these circumstances, there was one way to alleviate the situation.
First, there was Yukino before age nine. The little girl would often shut herself in her room, not speaking or eating, just sitting there dazedly, as if that closed-off bedroom was her only world.
Second, there was the world after age nine. After Ryuya arrived, Yukino, who finally opened her heart, would only return to normal when Ryuya was around.
It wasn't so much that Yukino no longer wore a mask, but rather that the current Yukino only reverted to her true self when Ryuya was present.
Watching her sister spaced out, Haruno asked with concern.
"Me and Brother? I... love him."
Blinking, Yukino stated frankly. In her view, as long as Ryuya acknowledged this feeling, nothing else was a problem.
"I see. Then, have you and Ryu..."
Before she could finish, Haruno saw her sister suddenly look outside. The hair acting as the 'Ryuya Detection Radar' trembled slightly, as if locating the person she sought.
"Ryu? How could it be..."
Following Yukino's gaze, Haruno saw Ryuya approaching with Gilgamesh and the others. Through the glass, she seemed to hear Ryuya's voice.
"Are you both alright, Haruno, Yuki-chan?"
Gently pressing his hand against the glass, aligning with Yukino's hand inside, that miraculous feeling was palpable even through the barrier.
Letting out a long sigh of relief, the Yukinoshita Sisters were the people Ryuya worried about the most.
After all, compared to everyone else, only they existed entirely in the ordinary human world. Even Kaguya, having experienced over a thousand loops, possessed a mindset far beyond ordinary people… wasn't it clear that Merlin and Kaguya's positions were reversed?
Seeing the two sisters safe and sound put Ryuya's mind at ease.
"Onii-chan..."
Seeing Ryuya arrive, Yukino's previously anxious heart instantly settled. She rushed out of the pet shop in a few steps, ready to throw herself into his arms, but a green figure was far quicker, its agile pace almost dizzying.
"Ryu!"
The moment she sensed Ryuya's presence, she charged out immediately.
Tears welled in her eyes as she gazed in disbelief at the figure she hadn't seen for a millennium. Enkidu never imagined she would see her lover at a time like this.
This was truly... wonderful!