C301

"Fujimaru Shirou... Is he someone Uncle knows back in Fuyuki City? But he doesn't strike me as a magus; he looks like an ordinary guy."

Seated comfortably in the back of a sleek, black extended Rolls-Royce Ghost, Reines El-Melloi Archisorte peered through the window at the young man standing at the intersection.

With his shoulder-length black hair and donning a black coat over a white shirt, he exuded a polished and professional aura.

Yet, there was nothing particularly remarkable about him. Reines couldn't sense any hint of magical energy radiating from him even with Mystic Eyes.

"Basically, he's just a regular guy with no real use to us. Isn't that how it is, Gray?" Reines turned her head and directed her gaze at the girl sitting across from her.

Dressed in a black cloak and matching boots, the girl, with her delicate features and silver hair, appeared somewhat timid, radiating an air of inferiority.

Faced with Reines' question, Gray quickly waved her hand nervously and stammered, "Uh... um, Miss Reines, well... I... um..."

She found herself caught in a dilemma. On one hand, she couldn't fully agree with Reines' words as they didn't sit right with her. On the other hand, disagreeing might risk incurring Miss Reines' anger.

"Oh my goodness, look at Gray. She seems really troubled," Reines chuckled with amusement. "But you know what? I actually find your troubled expression quite endearing."

"Hehehe, Gray, Miss Reines is teasing you like a little mouse. Gray, the little mouse. Hahaha!" A peculiar cubic box sat in a cage beside Gray, carved with eyes and a mouth, taunting her with a mocking laughter.

Gray kept her head down, too scared to make eye contact with Reines or say anything. She inwardly grumbled, wondering why Add had to make fun of her at a moment like this!

She seemed restrained and cautious, carrying a strong sense of inferiority. And that box, she called it "Add," was a Mystic Code that took on a humanoid head shape and could converse with her. But let's not focus too much on the cube's personality—it could simply be described in four words: absolutely awful.

Its mouth was particularly venomous, constantly making snide remarks to anyone it encountered, often leaving Gray feeling incredibly embarrassed and compelled to apologize on her behalf.

Reines smiled, refraining from teasing the reserved girl any further. Instead, she turned her gaze towards the boy standing at the street. Her eyes narrowed slightly, resembling a cunning and sly fox.

In her eyes, that boy was simply an ordinary and unremarkable person.

But a magus's friend can only be another magus, especially her uncle, who was known as a "prodigy" and had quite the ego.

Her uncle asked her to pick up a boy named "Fujimaru Shirou" and made it clear that she should treat him with respect.

The fact that her proud uncle entrusted her with taking care of this boy suggested that he had some extraordinary qualities.

However, she couldn't see anything special about him, not even with her Mystic Eyes. Although her eyes were still developing and uncontrollable, they failed to detect anything exceptional about him.

"If there's something worth using, then let's put it to good use." she squinted her eyes and stepped out of the car.

...

"Hello, may I ask if you are Fujimaru Shirou?"

Shirou looked at the smiling Reines and nodded, "Yes, that's me, Miss Reines."

She couldn't help but be surprised and asked, "Do you actually know who I am?"

"Kenneth mentioned you to me."

"My uncle..." she nodded and pointed towards the car, saying, "My uncle wanted me to bring you to the Clock Tower."

He nodded appreciatively, "Thank you."

Glancing around, she asked, "Although I shouldn't pry too much, the phone conversation mentioned two people. Could you let me know where the other person is?"

"The other person is just here to enjoy sightseeing in London, so there's no need to worry about her."

"Oh," she nodded, understanding the situation.

Shirou and Reines made their way towards the car, oblivious to the pair of crimson eyes peering at them from a hotel window, filled with resentment.

Of course, any child would feel upset if they were excited to go out and have fun, only to be held back by their parents, right?

And Arcueid was no exception. She had woken up early in the morning, eager to spend time with Shirou, but he insisted on leaving her behind.

"If he doesn't want to play with me, then fine! I'll just play by myself!" she pouted unhappily.

Shirou stepped into the spacious car, his eyes scanning the interior. As his gaze shifted slightly, he caught sight of another girl sitting in the car, and there, under the hood, he recognized a delicate face that felt both familiar and unfamiliar.

—My King!

In that instant, a surge of memories flooded Shirou's mind, and he instinctively recalled the voice of his knight from over 1,500 years ago.

For a moment, he stood there, completely stunned.

"What's wrong, Fujimaru-sama?" Reines, who was already seated, turned her head and looked at Shirou curiously.

"It's nothing,"

He settled into his seat inside the car, preparing for the journey to the Clock Tower.

As the vehicle started moving, Reines, already sipping her tea, turned towards Shirou and smiled, curiosity gleaming in her eyes. "By the way, Fujimaru-sama, how did you come to know my uncle?"

"Miss Reines," he began, his tone calm and direct. "Let me be honest with you. I'm not a magus, and my purpose in London is solely to meet someone. I have no intention of staying or getting involved with anyone's affairs. I won't be a hindrance or a help to anyone, so there's no need to probe me."

Reines couldn't hide her surprise at his straightforwardness.

And...

She just start speaking, why did he suddenly seem to read her thoughts?

Even if he did, why did he have to point it out so directly?

Could it be...

He's just an awkward and socially inept teenager?

After a moment of contemplation, she smiled, "Fujimaru-sama, I believe you're overthinking things."

"Perhaps," he responded, his gaze shifting to the window.

It became evident to Reines that he truly was an awkward and socially inept teenager. She analyzed the situation and mentally labeled him accordingly, deciding to remain silent for the time being.

If he was just an awkward teenager, then indeed, there wouldn't be much value in using him.

Shirou's gaze shifted towards the window before turning to rest on Gray.

To be precise, he was looking directly at her face.

Their eyes met.

This made Gray feel incredibly uncomfortable, prompting her to nervously pull her hood lower, attempting to conceal her features.

Reines chuckled softly. "Fujimaru-sama, it's impolite to stare so intently at a lady's face."

"Apologies," Shirou sighed, "It's just that this young lady bears a striking resemblance to a friend of mine."

"Oh?" Reines narrowed her eyes and said, "It appears that Fujimaru-sama is also a participant in the Fourth Holy Grail War. Your friend looked like Gray... then you must have encountered the King of Knights who manifested in that war, am I correct?"

He nodded in agreement. "You're right."

"In that case, your connection with my uncle must have been forged during that same Holy Grail War."

"You're quite sharp, Miss Reines."

"Thank you for your kind words, Fujimaru-sama," she smiled gracefully and followed up with a question, "I've noticed that my uncle's report on the Holy Grail War doesn't mention your involvement. Could you shed some light on this?"

"That's because I'm nothing more than an ordinary person who happened to get involved in the Holy Grail War," he explained. "And let me emphasize once again, Miss Reines, there's no need to keep probing me. It'll only be a waste of your time and energy,"

"Fujimaru-sama, it appears you're quite cautious around me."

"Well, it's natural for anyone, except for magi and those with ambitious motives, to be wary of someone who assesses others based on their usefulness," he calmly remarked.

He saw right through her! Reines was taken aback. She couldn't believe that despite their brief interaction and minimal conversation, this man had already discerned her true intentions!

She felt somewhat bewildered. She had never come across someone like him before, someone who could see through her façade even when she thought she was hiding it so well.

After a brief moment of contemplation, she spoke up, "Fujimaru-sama..."

"No need to worry about sugarcoating things, Miss Reines. It's pointless."

Reines: "..."

"I have a feeling you're anything but ordinary., Fujimaru-sama. You've this undeniable presence about you."

"I was just a company owner for a few years, nothing too noteworthy."

Reines smiled and remained silent.

In that moment, Add, who stood beside Gray, couldn't resist chiming in, "Hey, hey, hey! Why'd we change the subject? Shouldn't we be talking about this sly guy here, who is lusting after Gray's beauty?"

Gray shivered all over, grasping the birdcage that held Add tightly.

"Hahaha! Looks like little Gray's getting all bashful. Let me tell you, Gray, this sly guy..." Add was about to continue with its teasing, but Shirou shot it a pointed look.

With just that glance, Add, who had been mocking with gusto moments ago, fell into silence.

Gray found it strange. Once Add started teasing, it usually wouldn't stop. So why did it suddenly go quiet now?

Gray gently shook the cage and whispered, "Add?"

Add remained silent, but its eyes were locked onto Shirou's face. There was an almost palpable intensity within Add's gaze, as if it desired to unleash venomous words but found itself unable to articulate them. In the end, it could only manage two words, "...how strange!"

And with that, it sealed its lips.

Shirou pointed at Add and asked, "May I take a closer look at this Mystic Code?"

"I-it's possible. But, Add..." Gray lowered her hood, bowing her head and tightly covering her face.

"Don't worry. It won't have any adverse effects on me," he reassured calmly.

Gray handed Add over to Shirou, who gently took Add out of the cage and examined it closely.

Add couldn't help but feel utterly bewildered. As it was held by Shirou, a strange sense of familiarity washed over it, along with an inexplicable sense of belonging.

What on earth... is this feeling?

Add found itself at a loss, unable to comprehend the emotions stirring within.

"I see," Shirou saw through Add's true nature.

It turned out that this small box, Add, actually housed his Noble Phantasm, Rhongomyniad. However, it was sealed with a staggering thirteen layers of constraints, and those constraints on Rhongomyniad felt oddly familiar.

Merlin must have had a hand in this, he surmised silently. With that thought in mind, he carefully returned Add to the cage and handed it back to Gray, advising, "It's an incredibly unique and dangerous Mystic Code, but be cautious not to let its overwhelming power consume you."

"Okay... okay," Gray responded, bowing her head as she accepted the cage.

Reines turned to him and asked, "Do you recognize this Mystic Code, Fujimaru-sama?"

"It's the Lance of King Arthur, Rhongomyniad."

"Yes," she nodded in agreement before adding, "But Fujimaru-sama, you've made the same mistake as most people."

"Oh?"

"King Arthur possesses the qualification to wield Rhongomyniad, but the true owner of the weapon is the Eternal King. However, this is a fact that many people are unaware of," she explained, shedding light on the lesser-known truth.

"I see," he nodded, his expression devoid of surprise.

She furrowed her brow and couldn't help but question, "Aren't you surprised, Fujimaru-sama? This knowledge goes against the widely held beliefs in both the world of magi and the ordinary world. It's commonly accepted that Rhongomyniad belongs to King Arthur."

"Is it necessary for me to be surprised?" he responded with a question of his own.

Reines carefully observed his face and thought to herself, "There's something strange about this guy!"