"Melu!" Ilya, who had fully recovered, returned to her bouncing routine, threw herself into the maid's arms and blinked at her, "I'm completely healed now, right?"
"Yes, miss."
"Can I go back to Japan?"
"As long as the eldest miss wants, you can do it anytime."
"Then can Meilu go with us?" When Illya asked the last question, the scene was quiet for a while, which made the little girl's smile fade a bit, and she tilted her head and carefully looked at the maid, " Or... can't you?"
"No, not at all." The blond maid smiled immediately, "I just thought about how to rearrange the castle when I left, and I remember that Einzbern also has a forest suburb castle in Fuyuki City, since I went to It hasn’t been activated for five years after the Holy Grail War ended, maybe it’s time to bring a few maids to stay there and clean it up.”
Illya just wanted to say that it doesn't matter if she stays at the Kiritsugu's house all the time, but after thinking about the Holy Grail War and her already established Master status, she nodded: "Then let Sera and Li Jie Let Lite come with us when the time comes." After she spoke, Sera, who had been standing behind, immediately showed a look of joy.
"Understood." Meilu bowed her head to the master and accepted the order, "Please give me some time, and I will go to Japan with you after I arrange the affairs of the castle."
In this way, the Emiya family reunited in Japan.
Illya is used to living with Kiritsugu and Shirou, so she didn't mean to bring Serra and the others from Einzbern's house into Emiya Mansion, but sent them to the outskirts of the castle. stay, only Melu was left behind.
For this blond maid, she is quite familiar and very welcome from Emiya's house to the next-door neighbor Fujimura's house. The news that she is going to live in Emiya's house with her master Illya has attracted the surprise of Emiya Shiro and Fujimura Taiga cheer.
Regarding Mei Lu's arrival, as the youngest Emiya Shiro in the family, I have to say that he may be the happiest. There is no other reason. One in the family counts as one. The three people from his father to the righteous sister to the neighbor's sister are all useless people in housekeeping. If you count on them, the standard of living can be imagined, so Shirou took on the responsibility at a young age. He shouldn't have to bear the burden in his life—it's also fortunate that he has been cultivated into a good-natured character. Although he is helpless, they are all his relatives and friends, otherwise it would have been a child of someone else's family.
"Why are you so happy, Mei Lu is your sister's maid." The neighbor's sister, who is 8 years older than Shirou, is so fond of this younger brother.
"Because Sister Meilu can do everything and knows everything!" The boy's answer was always simple, "But Sister Teng, don't think I don't know why you are so happy. You have been thinking about the luxurious dishes made by Sister Meilu for a long time, right? ?”
"Brat, talk like you don't care about it!"
Emiya's house was still very lively today, Fujimura Taiga and Emiya Shirou chased and fought, and Emiya Kiritsugu, who had been guarding near the kitchen, was already shouting that it was time to eat and let them serve the food, so the two hurriedly followed After entering the kitchen, only the eldest lady, Ilya, was sitting calmly in the living room drinking tea—with Meilu around, there was no need for her to work, just open her mouth and wait for food.
Although Emiya Shirou respected the maid because of Meilu's omnipotent and profound knowledge like an encyclopedia, when it comes to admiration and admiration, the boy still has such feelings for his adoptive father. In his heart, the adoptive father who saved him in the sea of fire five years ago and always exudes kindness to others is like a hero. He is very amazing and he yearns for it.
Affected by him, the teenager is also very kind, enthusiastic and cheerful, with pure kindness towards everything in the world, so Ilya, who was full of resentment at first, was infected by his open warmth in just a few days, and was easily infected by his openness. The original intention was deviated, and now they are a pair of very good siblings.
only…
Sitting at the dining table, looking at the blond-haired maid helping with the dishes, Emiya Kiritsugu had a complicated expression on his face.
No matter in that cold and narrow castle where people crowded out, or in the old house where the atmosphere is mild and warm everywhere, this girl named Meilu always maintains that gentle and peaceful posture. Emiya Kiritsugu could see that although she was friendly and humble to everyone in the mansion, she actually saw no one else except Illya, and all the maid's behavior patterns revolved around "making the master happy" The principle of acting, and their existence is "to make the master happy", so they are coerced into it by the way.
He tentatively tried to change the maid's mind. No one in this world should only live for others. After several times with little or no effect, he gave up with a sigh.
Perhaps some people's pursuits are inherently strange, just like Meru who only cares for the master, and Kotomine Kirei's pursuit of the world covered in sorrow and pain, while he himself...
"Five years have passed before I knew it."
The moon was very round in the sky, and after taking a bath, the Emiya family sat together on the porch to watch the moon.
"It's been five years in a flash." After Kiritsugu sighed, Emiya Shirou sighed.
"It's been five years..." Ilya, who has long been accustomed to wearing a yukata, also lowered her head, "It's been five years since my mother passed away..."
Soon the little girl's head was gently rubbed by her father: "Ilya, I'm sorry, I failed to protect your mother well."
Hearing this apology, Ilya pursed her lips, feeling her eyes were a little hot, but she shook her head: "I don't blame you, I know, it's not easy for you to survive." As Ein The members of the Zbern family, she knows the cruelty of the Holy Grail War better than anyone else, and what happened to her, Illya already has a very clear understanding.
Emiya Shirou on the side looked at them in a daze and at a loss. He knew that his step-sister's biological mother had passed away five years ago, but no one had told him the cause of death, and he didn't know how to comfort him.
Emiya Kiritsugu at the side noticed the adopted son's gaze, couldn't help but smiled, retracted his hands and looked up at the moon in the sky, sighing a little: "When I was young, I always wanted to be a partner of justice."
"What do you mean?" The boy frowned, a little puzzled, "You mean you gave up later?"
The man's shoulders slumped slightly: "Yeah, I almost gave up, because I saw the limit. No matter how hard I try to be a hero, it is still beyond my power, and if I am not careful, I will agree to an irreparable big mistake .”
What the adoptive father said was a bit profound, and the young man couldn't understand all of it, but he still understood some of the meaning: "You said 'almost', which means that you haven't completely given up yet, right?"
"...Well." He nodded, "Before giving up completely, there are still some things that must be done."
Emiya Shirou couldn't understand what Emiya Kiritsugu said, but Illya did. She raised her head and looked at her biological father: "Kiritsugu, do you want to continue?"
"No, Dad just figured out something." Kiritsugu shook his head, "I used to always think about saving the whole world, thinking that there is nothing a hero can't do, but in the end, almost no one can be saved. No matter how much you think about being righteous My partner, what humans can do is limited after all. Dad now just wants to protect you and Shirou, and protect this city."
The cursed body has recovered, and the wounds of the mind are still there after all. Everything he experienced in the Fourth Holy Grail War and the destructive ending caused by his self-righteous "correctness" made Emiya Kiritsugu live like a walking dead for a time, if not Merlu said that the next Holy Grail War will start earlier, and that Illya will not live to be eighteen years old. Even if she is healthy, he may not have the confidence and strength to fight with others.
"That is to say, Dad, do you want to be a partner of justice in this city?" Emiya Shirou looked over excitedly with his fists clenched, "Heroes who protect the peace of a city are also super cool!"
Well!
Emiya Kiritsugu didn't expect his adopted son to think so, but after thinking about it carefully, it seems that it's not bad. The Holy Grail War only happened in Fuyuki City. If he protected Fuyuki City and prevented the Holy Grail from launching "all the evils in this world", it would be equivalent to saving the world. In this way, it seems to make sense to be a hero who only guards one city.
"Yeah." Putting his mind to rest, the man nodded, "If it's just to protect a city, I can still do it."
"Father is amazing!" The boy who adored his adoptive father was also very supportive today.
"Ahaha, it's really embarrassing. Your father and I are already so big."
"What's there to be ashamed of! I want to be like Dad in the future! I want to be a partner of justice! Guard this city with Dad!"
The boy stood up and yelled loudly, causing the sister next to him to complain directly.
"Don't be so passionate at night, you will be laughed at by sister Fujimura next door!"
Amidst the laughter, there was a soft sound of footsteps in the room behind them.
"Sir, Missy and Young Master, the sweet soup is ready, please use it."
Along with the sweet female voice of the maid, there is also the aroma of sweet soup mixed with milk and taro.
"Wow! Thank you, Merlu!"
"Sister Mei Lu, you eat too!"
"Thank you, master."
A few minutes later, the Hougong family and a maid were holding a small bowl, eating spoonfuls with great enthusiasm.
Feeling the comfort of the sweet soup entering his throat and warming his stomach, Emiya Kiritsugu looked at the moon above his head, and couldn't help but look at the maid who was quietly kneeling beside him, and next to him were two children who were fighting with the sweet soup with their heads bowed. The corners of his eyes suddenly became sour.
The cruel reality tells him that saving the world is only a dream after all, and heroes have their limits after all. It is indeed a little late for him to realize these two truths.
But fortunately, God gave him another chance after all, he can still move, and there are things that need to be guarded with his life, everything is in time.
If you have not experienced the cruelty of the world, you will not realize the preciousness of ordinary life. Although you will always quarrel with your own father and cheap brother, and sometimes let the maid cooperate with her to anger the father and son, Illya cherishes being with her family The days of living together in Japan, but the happy time is always fleeting. Unknowingly, her silly brother has also changed from a middle school student to a high school student, and his stature is getting taller.
When Emiya Shirou entered the second grade of high school, Ilya also left Emiya's house with her maid, flew to Germany, and lived back in the frozen castle.
And their father also left Japan under the pretext of traveling around the world and followed his daughter.
The fifth Holy Grail War is about to begin, and it's time to prepare all the cards.
"Melu, what's the situation with the Little Holy Grail?" Ilya, who had been relieved of her developmental delay, now looked like a fourteen-year-old girl, with a pretty angelic face and a serious face.
"Here, miss." The blond maid came just in time with a tray, on which was placed a beautifully shaped golden cup that looked like a trophy, "The Great Holy Grail has already selected the participants, and it has successfully hatched. "
"Very good." She nodded, turned and walked forward, followed by Emiya Kiritsugu and Meilu.
The three of them came to a church-like room, where servants had already prepared the magic circle and related holy relics for summoning the heroic spirits.
"This day has finally come." Standing in front of the magic circle, Ilya's face was a little complicated, "Mom..." The biological mother died on this kind of battlefield, and she will soon appear as a participant in the battle.
The top of the head was patted lightly at this time, and the father's generous voice sounded in the ear: "Illya, don't be afraid, Dad will protect you this time."
"I don't want your protection!" The girl slapped her father's hand away, and turned her head to stare at him angrily, "I survived with great difficulty, why don't you cherish your own life? You must follow me to die! I'm not a good-for-nothing like you, Dad, who only has a little bit of magic circuits, and the Holy Grail War is about to begin, and I'm the strongest magician on the land of Fuyuki!"
"Okay, dad won't talk anymore." Faced with his daughter's hair-destroying pattern, Emiya Kiritsugu raised his hand in surrender. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of the smiling maid holding the tray, and suddenly sighed tiredly.
The daughter is extremely talented, has a high position and authority, and the most important thing is that there is such an unfathomable maid backing her back, how the situation will develop is completely out of his control.
When the old man was worried about the development of the Holy Grail War, Illya had already chanted the spell to summon the heroic spirit.
"Declaration, your body listens to my orders, my life is with your sword, and I respond to the call of the Holy Grail. If you are willing to obey this will and this principle, then respond..."
In the empty and solemn room, the activated light of the magic circle almost filled the entire space.
A few minutes later, the three of them stood in place, looking up at the giant who was about to break through the ceiling. Both Illya and Emiya Kiritsugu were shocked by its size and momentum.
"Is this the Heroic Spirit that exists in mythology? Is this Hercules, the God of Hercules in Greek mythology?"
"Class, Berserker!"
Berserker, a class that sacrifices rationality in exchange for great strength. It is a powerful heroic spirit summoned by the most cost-effective holy relic that can be found in Einzbern's current resources—well, all the good things before were all ruined by my father in the Fourth Holy Grail War. There is no way, otherwise the previous patriarch would not have promoted the strongest weapon developed by Illya, who is the little holy grail, as the master.
Although it was summoned by Illya herself, the master, who is used to beauties, refused to see this mythical hero's black, ugly and tough guy with tangled muscles.
"It's so ugly." The silver-haired girl turned her head and complained to the maid, "Melu, can I summon it again?"
"Miss, it's wrong to judge someone by their appearance." Melu replied with a smile, "Have you forgotten the days we used to suffer in the castle? No matter who it is, it will always be sad to be rejected because of appearance. Master Berserker is willing to respond to you It means that he likes you, and hurting someone who likes you is a very bad behavior. Besides, once a heroic spirit is summoned, there is no rule for re-summoning except for defeat."
"Well..." Illya was a little confused, thinking back to the days when she was completely isolated and excluded, it was really uncomfortable, and she also knew the rules of the Holy Grail War in her heart, so she nodded in compromise, "Okay, I was wrong just now, Big man, let's get along well in the future."
If it was Miss Jiao's character before, Illya may not be willing to extend her hand to Berserker like now, but these years, she has been hanging out with her own father and silly brother, and the little girl has calmed down a lot.
When he was summoned before, he was disliked by the master. Feeling lost and depressed, Heroic Spirit immediately stretched out his hand happily when he heard what Illya said. One of the giant's fingers was bigger than Illya's open palm. Both sides They touched each other cautiously. Ilya found that the feeling was not as bad as she had imagined. She raised her head and looked at the giant again. Seeing that his body was not in line with the giant's cautiousness, she burst out laughing.
"Berserker!" She called out the giant's class name, "Let's win the Holy Grail together!"
Emiya Kiritsugu couldn't help but heave a sigh of relief seeing his daughter getting along harmoniously with the servants she summoned. Although it is not a Heroic Spirit of the upper-tier three series, the relationship between the master and the servant is still very important. For example, although he summoned Saber, one of the upper-tier-three series, the two have completely different styles of acting. Ai Li was mediating in the middle, and she didn't know what the trouble would be.
The King of Knights...
Recalling the shock and despair on her face when he swung the sword ten years ago when he used two Command Seals to forcibly order Saber to chop the Holy Grail, Emiya Kiritsugu felt apologetic flashing in his heart.
He owed the king girl an explanation.
At this time, Father Kiritsugu never expected that after they had prepared everything and boarded the plane back to Japan, they would receive a panicked call for help from their adoptive son as soon as they set foot on the land of Fuyuki.
"What!? You were attacked at home, and when you escaped to the warehouse, you accidentally summoned a blond girl who called herself Saber!? Now you live at the house of your classmate Tohsaka Rin!?"