Chapter 8: The Knight King Who Doesn't Understand Love

Although Heracles revealed a somewhat sly side to Shinji, making him seem a bit cunning, he was still Shinji's favorite Heroic actor.

Well, who wouldn't like such an obedient big guy?

Compared to the difficulties faced during the filming at the Emiya residence, the filming set at Einzbern Castle was relatively peaceful.

This is naturally because after a period of adjustment, the rookie drama group led by Shinji has overcome the initial confusion and finally grasped the process and standards of making a movie.

The staff members have gradually found some coordination understanding, and the shooting efficiency of the crew has continuously improved.

Although various problems were encountered during the shooting, such as props, sets, lighting, and so on, compared to the hellish difficulty at the Emiya Residence initially, the operation of the crew has become much smoother during this time in the mountains.

Most importantly, Shinji, a director with only theory and zero experience, is progressing at a very fast pace.

Although Shinji at this time is still only considered a novice-level director, compared to the initial rookie, he now exudes a hint of the demeanor of a great director.

However, as smooth as the filming of the Einzbern Castle part went, the subsequent shooting became quite troublesome for Shinji.

With the completion of filming near Einzbern Castle, the FSN crew divided into two groups.

A small group of people, led by the crew's photographer, went to various locations in Fuyuki City to shoot outdoor scenes.

The remaining majority of crew members and actors followed Shinji into the studio for indoor set shooting.

Shinji's choice was inevitable because, apart from the Emiya Residence and Einzbern Castle, the other main scenes in several movies are public places.

Although it's possible for the crew to rent places like schools, it's simply not necessary.

Because when filming the battle scenes between Saber and Rider, they still needed to return to the studio to set up the scenes.

You can't really have Arturia and Medusa tearing down a school, can you?

Although in Shinji's previous life, he did have dreams of blowing up a school when he was in school, he's already graduated from school now, after all~

As for whether the high school students from the original Homurahara Academy would be angry at Shinji for giving up on filming at the school and potentially missing out on their holidays, Shinji doesn't really care about that.

Students should focus on studying and not think about vacations all the time.

After all, studio shooting is done indoors. The student actors go to school during the day and shoot at night, without affecting their work.

The shooting process hasn't been delayed, and the coordination among crew members has gradually improved. However, the progress of the movie's filming can only be described as mediocre.

The main reason lies with the actors.

Even though Shinji has lowered his expectations for the actors, there are still numerous issues.

The most crucial one is Arturia, the female lead. As the story develops, her character's compatibility gradually diverges from Saber in the story.

Saber in the later part of the Fate route has become a teenage girl in love, no longer the emotionally detached "King of Knights" she used to be.

This has posed a difficulty for the movie's filming, as Arturia can't quite get into the mindset of a teenage girl in love, or more accurately, she doesn't know how to.

Unfortunately, the King of Knights has never experienced love in her lifetime, similar to a certain blond spy which is totally not Twilight, both of them dedicated to their countries like lovers.

Making this woman act like a blushing teenage girl in front of the camera is indeed quite a challenge for Arturia.

Under Shinji's guidance, Arturia has made great efforts to emulate a woman in love, but no matter what, she just can't capture that feeling of being a young girl.

Although the strong woman acting as a weak young girl adds a unique flavor, giving Arturia a new charm, it's clearly not what Shinji, as the director, originally intended.

"Cut! This still won't work."

Inside the studio, Shinji held the microphone and shouted with a very frustrated tone, then he snapped his fingers at the cameraman and the lighting technician.

"Both of you come over here, let's discuss this again."

Hearing Shinji call for a stop, Rin and Arturia, who were lying on the bed together, immediately sprang up and maintained some distance.

Currently, Shinji is shooting the scene where Shirou and the others escape from the castle, and in the middle, Shirou restores Arturia's magical energy.

"It's finally paused."

"Yeah."

Rin and Saber, one sitting at the head of the bed and the other at the foot, maintained a considerable distance. There was no hint that they had just been getting intimate on this worn-out prop bed.

"Sigh, is Master not satisfied again?"

Arturia glanced at Shinji, who was communicating with the crew photographer, and sighed lightly.

Due to her memories of her sister and Guinevere, she felt some aversion to being close to girls. She felt awkward during the shoot just now.

Rin was also not satisfied with this scene. She brushed her hair back and snorted coldly, "Who knows what that guy Shinji is thinking. He might have some peculiar fetishes."

She didn't have any negative feelings towards Saber, but being close and cuddly with another girl still made Rin both embarrassed and a little repulsed.

"Rin," Arturia asked seriously, "Do you dislike Master?"

Rin hesitated for a moment.

"Huh? Why would you say that?"

"Because you always contradict Master."

Upon hearing Arturia's straightforward words, Rin froze.

"Well, it's not so much dislike as it is irritation. That guy has been finding ways to swindle pocket money from me and Shirou since we were five. But..."

At this point, Rin glanced at Shinji, who was still discussing with crew members, and a slight smile tugged at the corner of her mouth.

"It's his obsession with movies. That guy hasn't changed in over a decade."

"Do you like Master?"

Arturia tilted her head and continued to ask.

"Li-Like him?! Ab–Absolutely not!! How could I like him!" Rin slapped the bed, vehemently denying, "Why are you asking this?"

"Because I don't know what love is?"

Arturia said somewhat dejectedly, "Master wants me to portray the appearance of a teenage girl in love, but I really don't know how to."

"Is that so..."

Rin didn't know how to respond. Being single since birth, she didn't have much more experience in love than Arturia.

"Cough, would you like to read some manga and novels?"

After pondering for a while, Rin could only come up with this suggestion.

"Manga and novels?"

"Yeah, love-themed manga and novels. They describe love in great detail, and I think they might help you."

Then, Rin mentioned the names of a few shoujo manga and romance novels.

"Oh, I see."

Arturia nodded repeatedly and jotted down the names.

"Rin, you're really amazing."

"It's not a big deal, just something minor."

Rin lifted her head proudly.

"But why do you know so much about manga and novels? Don't top students like you have to read these too?"

Arturia looked curious, and being unfamiliar with modern education, she asked straightforwardly.

"Well... how should I put it..."

Caught off guard by Arturia's question, Rin became somewhat tongue-tied. She didn't know how to answer.

Fortunately, at this moment, Shinji came over to save the day.

"Alright, ladies."

Shinji walked over to Rin and Arturia, clapped his hands to interrupt their conversation.

"For the next scene, we'll be using some small props."

Saying that, Shinji placed a beaker on the bed with a "snap". Inside the beaker was a blob of gelatinous substance that resembled jelly, but the intense black color immediately made it clear that this was definitely not jelly.

"What is this?"

Rin poked it with her finger out of curiosity.

"It's a little gadget developed from the magecraft attire of the Matou Family," Shinji explained seriously, "It's made using modern industrial technology and activated through magecraft. It has excellent flexibility, malleability, and breathability, almost a perfect product. The only downside is that it's a bit expensive to produce, otherwise, I could've gotten rich just by selling these."

Rin cut off Shinji's speech directly, "Enough with the blabbering, what's the use of this thing?"

"Body shaping, chest enhancement," Shinji explained succinctly, "It feels better than existing silicone breast enhancers, the texture is more realistic, and most importantly, it has great breathability. You won't feel any discomfort when you wear it."

"Why would anyone need to wear something like this! You pervert!"

Rin raised her fist, looking ready to deliver a punch that seemed to say, "If you don't explain clearly, I'll show you why the flowers are so red."

"Because the previous shots didn't look good, the clothes' structure couldn't support them at all, and it looked very unattractive."

Even though both Arturia and Rin were stunningly beautiful young women, their figures...

It was fine when they were standing, but a little flaw would be exposed after some movement.

If it was just a fleeting shot, it wouldn't matter, but the scene where Rin and Arturia were embracing was crucial, so Shinji had to take it seriously.

"You're just trying to weasel out of this!" Rin retorted unhappily, "The whole 'big chest' thing– it's just your dirty thoughts at work."

Arturia, who had been listening on the side, suddenly spoke up, "Rin, I agree with Master on this matter."

"Ah?!"

Rin was utterly astonished, staring at Arturia, who was supposed to be on the same side as her.

"Although you are his Servant, you're still a girl, right? Shouldn't we stand together in times like this?"

Rin pointed at Arturia, her face filled with indignation.

"Well, let's see."

Arturia crossed her arms and tapped her head in a self-assured manner.

"Speaking objectively, Rin, your chest is neither here nor there. It's neither as flat as mine nor as ample as Sakura's. It's like a half measure, and it's only natural that it doesn't look good when filmed like that."

"Wh–what?!"

Rin's gaping mouth could probably fit two eggs.

While Arturia's words weren't very hurtful, they were extremely insulting.

Shinji subconsciously glanced at both of them, and he couldn't help but admit that while Arturia's argument was pure nonsense, it did have some merit. Rin's chest did indeed fall into that category of being above flat but not quite reaching a full B-cup.

In comparison, Arturia was purely undeveloped and flat.

"Ah? No, no. You've misunderstood." Shinji waved his hands in denial, "It's not for Rin to use. She's above you, and it didn't affect the filming. The one who needs to use it is you, Arturia. You lying there is like a steel plate, completely flat. It looks really bad on camera, so we need something to support it."

"Ho—how could this be!! Master, how could you do this!"

This time, Arturia had the same expression as Rin did earlier.

"What the—oh, I see now! Hahaha!"

Rin rubbed her head, a look of relief on her face.

"You don't have to be like that, Rin. If you want, I can give you some too."

Shinji patted Rin's shoulder.

"This thing is safe, non-toxic, and of high quality. It's the best option for improving your figure. If you're worried about people accusing you of chest enhancement, you can start with a little bit. Then, if someone asks you, you can say you're trying a new method."

"After that, you just need to gradually increase your size according to your age, and there won't be any inconsistencies. How about it? If you really want it, as childhood friends, I'll give you a special price—"

"Shut up! You perverted freak!!"

Frustrated and furious, Rin's fist landed on Shinji's face.