C376

After finishing the chores in the living room, he went to Miyu and Gray's room.

The room was originally designed for guests, so it had complete furnishings, although it appeared relatively plain, with no wallpaper on the walls.

He entered the room where there was a large bed big enough for Gray and Miyu to sleep on together.

Gray was busy organizing her clothes, while Miyu diligently made the bed.

"Knock, knock, knock," he gently tapped on the door.

Both girls turned their attention towards him.

"Are you satisfied with the room?"

"It's... it's perfectly fine. Please don't worry, Fujimaru-sama," Gray twiddled her hands in front of her chest, looking somewhat nervous and stuttering. She wasn't familiar with Shirou and wasn't used to responding to other people's kindness.

Miyu said, "It's okay, please don't worry, um... um..."

She hesitated, troubled expression on her face. She didn't know how to address Shirou.

"You can call me Fujimaru-niisan or Shirou-niisan. No need to be too formal."

She nodded and readily accepted his suggestion.

Shirou's gaze shifted towards Gray, and he gently spoke, "Gray, could you accompany me for a moment?"

"Eh...?" Gray pointed at herself, shrinking back slightly, and cautiously asked, "Me... me?"

He nodded in affirmation.

Gray hesitated for a moment before responding, "Oh, okay..."

She put down her chores and followed him out.

Miyu glanced over at them before lifting her gaze to the moon outside. She pressed her lips together momentarily before resuming her task of making the bed.

She wondered if this place could mark the start of her new life.

Well, it wasn't all that bad. At least in this world, her brother didn't reject her and was actually willing to take her in.

Shirou walked out of the room with Gray.

He slightly lowered his head and looked into Gray's emerald green eyes, "Gray, tonight, let Artoria use your body."

"Ah? Oh... okay..." Gray nodded, but a moment later she said, "I'm sorry, but Her Highness, the King of Knights doesn't want to possess me."

He furrowed his brows and commanded, "Artoria, come out and face me!"

No sooner had the words left his lips than Gray's body convulsed violently, and her eyes fluttered open.

In that instant, her emerald green eyes shimmered, radiating a pure and sacred azure hue.

"Kn-Knight, Artoria, I humbly greet my king!" she knelt before him, her head bowed so low that she dared not raise it to meet his gaze. Her voice quivered, and her entire body trembled.

He glanced at her and asked, "So you finally decided to show yourself and greet me?"

She remained with her head bowed, incapable of raising it or uttering a word, trembling all the while.

Indeed... the all-knowing king had arrived to administer her punishment. She was prepared to face the consequences, yet a flicker of hope remained that the king would not strip her of her knighthood.

But deep down, she knew it might be wishful thinking. She had committed a grave betrayal against the king who had placed his trust in her, and she had failed to protect the kingdom he had poured his heart and soul into building.

Shirou's voice softened as he spoke, "You can get up now."

"Huh?"

Contrary to her expectations of punishment, his tone turned unexpectedly gentle, catching her off guard. Hesitantly, she rose to her feet.

"How much longer do you plan on possessing Gray's body?"

Pausing for a moment, she replied, "I... I don't plan on staying for long... It's just that, at the moment, I have no means of departing from Gray's body."

"There is an empty vessel created from your records that you can use."

"An empty vessel created from my records?" she was taken aback.

He took out the Eternal King Class Card.

"This...!" Her eyes widened as she stared at the Class Card.

She could sense the power of her king within this card!

Shirou explained, "There's this group of magi who managed to steal the cards made from the records of Heroic Spirits on the Throne of Heroes. These cards have the power to manifest an empty vessel, like a container, for the Heroic Spirit to occupy. And right now, there's one of these empty vessels created from your stolen records in Fuyuki City. If you enter that vessel, you'll be able to exist in this world without taking over someone else's body."

"I... I understand, my king!" she nodded.

He grasped the Class card tightly, preparing himself for the process of "Installing."

"Um... my king..." Artoria's face was filled with remorse, her expression on the brink of tears.

He noticed her distress and asked, "What's wrong? Why do you look so upset?"

"In the Fourth Holy Grail War... I... I'm sorry... I deeply apologize... I failed to recognize you... and I... I..." she struggled to find the right words, her heart burdened with regret.

She had unknowingly raised her sword against the very king she admired above all others, the king she held deep affection for!

"Just seeing that expression on your face is enough to make up for it."

Turning away, he added, "Back in that war, I wasn't your king, so there's no need for you to feel so burdened by regret. The important thing is that I held no grudges against anyone during that time. Not against you, not against Kiritsugu, and certainly not against Gilgamesh. So, let's skip the tears. I don't have such a weak knight!"

"Yes, my king!" she replied with a nod, her gaze fixed on his back.

The King had always been there to soothe her doubts and troubles whenever she felt lost or troubled. There had never been a single instance when the King had failed her.

The King's continued display of support only intensified the guilt gnawing at her heart.

Slowly, her hand tightened into a fist.

"Install: Eternal King!"

Shirou activated the Class Card in his hand.

The class cards that fell from parallel worlds to Fuyuki City were hidden in the Mirror World and couldn't be seen with the naked eye. Therefore, the only way to locate them was to enter dreams and use the Eternal King's records within those dreams, using his "Clairvoyance EX" and the Second Noble Phantasm to search Fuyuki City.

However, this method was too inefficient.

That's why he decided to directly use "Install" and eliminate all the class cards in one night.

In a dazzling flash of white light, the young Shirou stood before Artoria once again.

"Hmm? It seems my magical energy isn't enough to manifest my adult form." The young Shirou sighed, but his face still wore a gentle and heartwarming smile.

The template for the Eternal King was quite unique. What set it apart the most was the way his magical energy wasn't fixed.

His magical energy could vary anywhere between E and A+++, which was quite a wide range. It was only when his magical energy reached the A rank that the adult form of the Eternal King could actually manifest.

In order to fully unleash the Third Stage of his First Noble Phantasm, the Eternal King needed his magical energy to be replenished to the level of A+.

The same requirement applied to the complete release of his Second Noble Phantasm.

Following his previous "Install," Shirou had absorbed the accumulated "Evil" of hundreds of thousands of people in London. However, his magical energy had only been restored to approximately the level of C+. Therefore, he was unable to summon his adult form as a result.

But even in his youthful form, the Eternal King would be more than enough. He would still rank among the most powerful!

"Let's go, Artie," the young Shirou smiled.

Looking at the gentle and radiant smile on the young Shirou's face, she nodded seriously and said, "Yes—!"

No matter what, she absolutely couldn't cause any more trouble for the King!

"Let me take a look... where those class cards are... Hmm... huh???"

The young Shirou suddenly froze, and his bright smile faded, replaced by a somewhat gloomy expression.

"W-What's the matter, my king?"

The young Shirou remained silent, his expression growing cold as he approached the door to Ritsuka's room. Summoning Merlin's staff through his Second Noble Phantasm, he activated the records of Merlin, casting a spell to unlock Ritsuka's door.

The room was empty, except for a bottle of milk on the table, and the open window let in a cold breeze that rustled the curtains.

The evening breeze was chilly, but it couldn't match the coldness on young Shirou's face.