C91

Shirou approached Ilya, his face filled with worry. "Are you okay? Did you get hurt?"

Ilya's eyes welled up with tears as she turned to face him. "No, I'm fine," she whispered in a small voice.

Despite her assurances, it was evident that she was still shaken. Shirou reached into his backpack and produced a box of bean paste dumplings, hoping to provide some comfort. "Here, have these. They're delicious,"

Ilya's eyes lit up at the sight of the dumplings, and she looked up at Shirou with an innocent smile. "Is big brother giving these to me?"

"Of course," Shirou replied, his own smile widening.

Ilya thanked him, her smile growing even brighter. She looked like a sprite from a fairy tale, sparkling with joy.

Instead of taking the dumplings, however, Ilya reached into her pocket and took out a black notebook. She wrote something on it with a pen.

Curious, Shirou asked, "What are you writing?"

"Kiritsugu always said to remember the happy things," Ilya explained as she drew pictures in her black notebook. "So I write down all my good memories. Today is April 5th, 1994, and it's sunny. I received my first gift..."

Just then, the door of a black car opened, and a golden-haired girl who appeared only slightly older than Ilya rushed over. "Hey! Is anyone hurt?" she asked anxiously.

Ilya continued writing in her notebook. "The big brother who gave me my first gift is named Fujimaru Shirou..."

"I'm calling you!" the golden-haired girl repeated, growing increasingly anxious.

Shirou smiled and answered on Ilya's behalf. "She's not called 'Hey', she's called Ilya."

Ilya looked up from her notebook, a confused expression on her face. "Big brother, are you calling me?"

Shirou gestured toward the golden-haired girl. "She's the one calling you."

Ilya swiveled towards the golden-haired girl, her expression still curious. "Sister, are you calling me?"

The blond girl's lips twitched as she asked again, "Are you okay? Are you injured?"

"Nope, I'm fine," Ilya responded.

The blond girl then extended her hand, offering a red gem to Ilya. "Here, take this."

Ilya looked confused. "Why are you giving this to me?"

The blond girl's expression grew taut as she tried to mask her frustration. "It's a form of spiritual compensation from the Edelfelt family," she explained with a noticeable edge in her voice. Then she spun around and strode away.

Ilya was left standing there, befuddled and unsure of what just happened.

Shirou smiled and said, "That's a gift from that sister."

Ilya's face lit up. "Oh, now I understand! I got two gifts today. The second one is a bit odd, it's called spiritual compensation."

Shirou took Ilya's hand. "Come on, Ilya. Let me take you to Kiritsugu."

"Okay," She eagerly grabbed Shirou's hand.

Shirou couldn't resist asking, "Ilya, when did you arrive in Fuyuki City?"

With a smile on her face, Ilya replied, "I just got here last night."

Shirou let out a sigh, thinking to himself, 'That guy Kiritsugu must have a big heart to not be worried about his daughter being kidnapped.'

As he held Ilya's hand, she led him toward Kiritsugu.

Along the way, Ilya turned to Shirou and asked, "By the way, does big brother also know Kiritsugu?"

"Of course," Shirou replied, "I know him well and we have a deep connection."

Ilya's face lit up with a smile, "That's great! Then you must be a close friend of Kiritsugu."

"More or less."

Hand in hand, they continued on their way until they reached the entrance of a convenience store.

As Shirou approached, he spotted Kiritsugu sitting at the entrance of the convenience store, a bag of snacks by his side, and sound asleep with a weary expression.

He guessed that Ilya must have taken advantage of Kiritsugu's sleep to chase after her balloon, which was how she and Shirou had met.

"Kiritsugu! Kiritsugu!" Ilya cried out as she ran over to wake him up.

Kiritsugu rubbed his eyes and asked groggily, "What's wrong, Ilya?"

"My balloon burst," Ilya explained with a happy smile, "But I got two gifts instead! Look!" she held up the bean dumplings and red ruby, "One is from big brother and the other is from big sister."

"Well then, you must keep them," Kiritsugu said.

Ilya nodded excitedly.

Kiritsugu turned his attention to Shirou and gave him a nod.

Smiling, Shirou asked, "Are you planning to stay in Fuyuki City?"

"Yes, I will stay here," Kiritsugu confirmed. "I owe too much to this city to simply leave. I can only live here, be its companion, and watch it grow and change."

"The greatest reward is having someone to share it with," Shirou said. "By the way, I heard that you've changed careers and become a light novel writer. Can I borrow one of your works to read?"

"Of course," Kiritsugu replied with a hint of hesitation. "But I have to warn you, the protagonist in my novel is based on a fictionalized version of you."

Shirou shrugged, "It doesn't matter. While that memory may not be a pleasant one, I've learned to accept my flaws and imperfections. I'm curious to see what story you want to tell now."

Kiritsugu reached into his pocket and pulled out a novel, handing it to Shirou.

Shirou glanced at a few pages before asking, "There's no pen name on this. What's your pen name?"

"Urobuchi Gen," Kiritsugu replied.

Shirou's hand stiffened, and he rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. "I have a pretty good idea of how it will end now, but I'll still read it."

Grabbing the book, Shirou started to walk away, but then stopped and looked back at Kiritsugu. "This time around, don't forget to appreciate the happiness in your life!"

As Kiritsugu watched Shirou walk away, he gave a nod of his head. Ilya grabbed Kiritsugu's hand and asked, "Are you very close with that big brother?"

"Definitely," Kiritsugu replied. "He is my hero."

Ilya tilted her head in confusion, "Hero?"

"He is a hero of justice, and I consider myself one too," Kiritsugu explained.

Ilya's eyes widened, she blinked and asked, "So, there are two heroes of justice now?"

Kiritsugu chuckled and replied, "Not just two. As long as individuals hold on to their passion, anyone can be a hero of justice. The potential to become a hero of justice resides within everyone."

Ilya's eyes widened with excitement as she asked, "Can I become a hero of justice too?"

Kiritsugu smiled and replied, "Absolutely! As long as you keep your pure heart."

He lifted Ilya up and placed her on his shoulder, eliciting a happy squeal from her. She raised her hand with a beaming smile, "Oh! I can become a hero of justice too!"

Thus, a small ray of happiness shone into the distant future.

...

"I'm home."

Shirou heard the sound of sobbing as he entered the living room. There, he saw his mother sitting on the sofa and wiping away tears while watching Tokyo Love Story.

Knowing that he was about to be pulled into the drama, Shirou quickly decided to make a quick escape.

"Shirou, you're back!" she exclaimed. "Come, watch Tokyo Love Story with me."

"No, I have homework to do," Shirou quickly replied as he turned to make a run for it. He had no interest in getting caught up in the quadrilateral love-torture drama.

When Shirou entered his room, he saw Sakura and Rin sitting at his desk, busy with something.

"Hey, Rin, are you here to see Sakura?" he greeted Rin.

Rin, however, was not in a particularly talkative mood. "I've told you several times already, don't call me Rin. It gives me a strange, creepy feeling, like I'm being talked to by an adult instead of someone my own age." Rin shuddered. "Please, just call me Redubbed Machine Rin or something. Don't call me by my name, you black-hearted Fujimaru."

Shirou nodded casually. He then noticed Sakura slipping something into her pocket and couldn't help but ask, "What are you two doing in here? Is this my birthday gift?"

It was April 5th and in ten days, it would be Shirou's birthday. Sakura had mentioned wanting to prepare a surprise for him.

"Hehehe... I won't tell brother!" Sakura said with a playful smile.

"Well, I'll just have to look forward to it then," Shirou replied, smiling as he put his backpack down on a nearby stool.

Rin then spoke up, "Oh, by the way, Fujimaru. Are you ready for the pole vault competition at next week's sports festival? Us Hachigata will make sure you Tsukimou lose, so don't you dare cry," she teased, poking Shirou in the nose.

Several months had passed since the Fourth Holy Grail War had left the Miyama district in complete ruins. Tall buildings that once stood tall had been rebuilt, but the lack of accommodations due to ongoing painting and decoration meant there were still relatively few places to stay.

The Shinto officials, understanding the situation, had allocated funds to prepare classrooms in the local Shinto school to accommodate interspersed students studying in Miyama at the time. As a result, most school activities were now being held on one campus.

The spring school sports festival was just around the corner and was to be held jointly by Tsukimou and Hachigata Elementary Schools on the same campus. One of the events on the schedule was the dangerous pole-vaulting competition, open to students of all grades.

Shirou had written a letter of suggestion to the school administration, proposing the cancellation of this event, but his proposal was not accepted. Despite this, younger students were too afraid to participate, leaving only Shirou's class, a group of boys who were fans of "Dragon Ball", eager to take on the challenge and bring glory to their school and class.

As a result, Shirou, who appeared to be around 12 years old, was forced to participate in the pole-vaulting competition.

When Rin made a seemingly provocative statement, Shirou replied with frustration, "Did anyone from Hachigata sign up for pole-vaulting too? Why would the school allow such a dangerous event for elementary school students?"

Rin asked skeptically, "Is this the main issue?"

"Isn't it?" Shirou retorted.

Overwhelmed, Rin exclaimed, "Ah~ ah, ah! So strange! So strange! I can't talk to you anymore! Sakura, let's go, let's play in your room." With that, Rin grabbed Sakura's hand and left Shirou's room, leaving him behind.

"Um, big sister, are you and brother fighting?" Sakura asked, her innocent eyes wide open as she was pulled out of the room.

Rin replied with frustration, "No, we're not fighting. It's just been strange for the past five months. Not only has dad become strange, but even Fujimaru has become even stranger." Rin explained, "Every time I talk to him, I feel like he's treating me like a child. It's uncomfortable and strange! I'm not a child!"

Sakura looked at Rin, who was holding her head in frustration and blinked.

...

Shirou sat at his desk, pulled out Kiritsugu's book from his bag, and estimated that the book would have a catastrophic ending. He flipped through a few pages.

"Hmm? Is it a story about an ordinary person getting caught up in a war?"

As he started reading, he saw the protagonist getting caught up in the war and the death that resulted from ignoring the situation around him.

Shirou's mind couldn't help but recall his own involvement in the Fourth Holy Grail War and he smiled.

The truth was that many things had happened in the months following the Holy Grail War.

First, Aoi visited to transfer the guardianship of Sakura completely to the Fujimaru family. Although Shirou wasn't sure if Tokiomi had noticed anything, the outcome was positive. At least the Fujimaru couple got a well-behaved daughter and Shirou got a lively and lovable younger sister. Rin also frequently visited the house to play with Sakura.

If Tokiomi had noticed something, Rin's expression was natural, it meant that Tokiomi had not told anyone about the events of the Fourth Holy Grail War. However, Shirou was afraid that the troubles of the Fourth Holy Grail War would always linger in Tokiomi's heart.

And he suspected that this was the same for everyone who was involved in the war. Most people survived the Fourth Holy Grail War, but no one had forgiven anyone, not even Shirou.

He couldn't forgive Kiritsugu's assassination or Kayneth's pursuit. But now, it was best to just move on and forget about it.

Not forgiveness, but forgetfulness.

Shirou smiled wryly as he remarked, "The final outcome of the novel is indeed total annihilation."

He let out a deep sigh, feeling a mix of frustration and awe for the novel. The writing was still rough in places, but the ideas and themes were intriguing and the plot was gripping. The novel was like a gorgeous lotus blossom, alluring and dangerous, leading readers down a path of self-destruction. As the debut work of Urobuchi Gen, it was a must-read, but at the same time, he couldn't help but question the ending of the story.

Closing the book, Shirou said, "Alright, I think I'll blacklist this author's works from now on. While the middle of the story was engaging, the ending was a downward spiral into darkness, which is not the kind of reading experience I'm looking for."

He then turned his attention to his own life. In just ten days, it would be his seventh birthday. He was born in 1994 and was already starting to think about his future.

Rubbing his chin, Shirou mused, "Maybe I should use Golden Rule to make some money and lay the foundation for my future."

The thrill of living life as a gamble had passed, and he knew it was time for him to focus on his own life.

...

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