"What did you say?!"
"I mean... I heard from the auntie downstairs that you've always been single." Realizing she had overreacted, Illya tried to backpedal. In truth, she had no idea who lived downstairs; surely, among so many apartments, there was bound to be at least one middle-aged woman. "You and your girlfriend probably haven't known each other long, right? Isn't it all moving a bit too fast? Yes, that's right."
"She's my fiancée now." Facing a furious Illya, Jiang You feigned confusion. "We're both adults, so it's natural for us to have certain... requirements. It's not that fast."
"Actually, it hasn't happened yet." Melusine pulled out a pregnancy test, which showed only a single line. Even Jiang You hadn't expected her to be so eager.
Staring at the pink device, Illya's face flushed a deep crimson—partly from embarrassment, and partly from sheer rage.
Ignoring the tension, Melusine pointed to the test and declared, "So, we'll be keeping up our efforts tonight. Since it's not easy, we'll be doing it every day from now on."
Illya's expression darkened as she racked her brain for any possible excuse to make this woman's behavior seem even remotely normal.
In the end, Illya forced herself to swallow her words. She strongly suspected Jiang You was deliberately trying to provoke her, but she had no proof.
Illya looked left and right at the couple. The two of them had already started eating, leaving her no chance to speak. Overflowing with resentment, she angrily picked up her paintbrush.
Well, since things have come to this, let's eat first.
Sourness and fragrance instantly exploded on her taste buds, followed by a familiar, numbing spiciness. It felt as if a volcano were erupting on her tongue. The heat in her mouth nearly crushed her brain, almost making her faint. Illya's facial features twisted once again into a ">_<" shape.
"Hahahaha! Sorry, I wasn't sure if you foreigners could handle spicy food." The triumphant Jiang You couldn't help but laugh. He had specifically asked for this dish to be extra spicy. He himself couldn't actually stomach the heat level of this place, but he could actively block out the excessive spiciness and keep it within a tolerable range. Facing Illya's resentful gaze, Jiang You produced a bowl of milk from somewhere. "Can't help it, this dish only tastes right when it's spicy. Here, this stuff can neutralize the heat."
Too spicy to even think, Illya hastily dunked her tongue into the milk. The warm, gentle touch quickly soothed her. Just as she was about to say thank you, she realized Jiang You was staring at her with a knowing smile.
The scene was identical to before, which made Illya freeze. She began to suspect that Jiang You was doing these things on purpose.
Which meant...
"Illya, you really can't get used to numbing spiciness, can you?" Jiang You figured it was about time. Even after all this, the idiot still hadn't figured it out. He had to be the one to say it.
"You... You!" Just as Illya was about to get angry, her exposed tongue immediately felt the stinging burn of the air. She quickly dunked it back in.
Facing Illya's resentful gaze, Jiang You smiled and snapped his fingers. Illya soon found that her perception of the spiciness had vanished.
"Not spicy anymore?"
"I just temporarily blocked your perception of spiciness. There are probably better ways, but this is the simplest." Using Consciousness Infection to affect the world still required energy. The more complex the effect, the more energy it needed. Although Jiang You could draw upon all energy without limit, it was like breathing. Once he became conscious of the specific action, it switched to manual mode and became troublesome.
"When did you learn Suggestion Magic?" Illya's mind clearly hadn't caught up yet.
"According to you, it should be called a spell. But at this point, isn't it normal for me to know a few spells?" Jiang You snapped his fingers again, dispelling the Disguise Spell on Illya. The silver-haired loli appeared before Jiang You in her original form.
"So you already knew." Illya puffed out her cheeks. Jiang You knew the truth but still bullied her, what an utterly shameless Servant. Unfortunately, now that Jiang You knew the truth, she could no longer use Command Spells to order him, though the Command Spells wouldn't have worked much anyway. "I was even trying to cautiously guide you. It seems I was winking at a blind man after all. When did you find out?"
"It happened just now. Even a game constructed by the Counter Force has its loopholes." How could I possibly say I discovered the truth of the world because of a breeding act? Jiang You used a vague explanation to gloss over it.
"The first thing you did after learning the truth was bully me, huh!" Illya pounded Jiang You's chest with her fists, but she wasn't using much strength. With Jiang You's current physique, it felt no different from being tickled.
"Who told you to talk about me behind my back?" Jiang You lifted Illya by her armpits, letting the angry girl kick and flail in midair.
After Illya calmed down, Jiang You pulled the still-pouting girl into his arms. "But I'm really grateful to you for going to such lengths for me. I love you the most, Illya. We have a long future ahead of us, so please take care of me from now on."
Illya couldn't react to Jiang You's sudden shift to such affectionate words. After blinking a few times, her face flushed red. Although she had acted out this role many times before, this was her first time facing such a situation in real life, and she still felt shy. Aside from magic, she was actually only about ten years old in other aspects: "I'm not that easy to coax... You'd better keep your word. No matter what, I must be the number one person in your heart."
Facing the couple suddenly getting all lovey-dovey in front of her, Melusine said nothing, but she felt... as if she were getting excited.
The thought of having stolen Illya's lover made her body temperature rise, and she even wanted to go out and fly a few laps.
"Of course." Jiang You knew Illya meant she didn't want to monopolize him. She understood that with Jiang You's current abilities, she had no means to restrain him, and perhaps Jiang You's previous behavior had been a bit too unconstrained. Jiang You wouldn't be like this at a time like this. "By the way, I have now surpassed the limits of what the Holy Grail can achieve. You can try making a wish to me. Whether it's the Root or finding your mother, I can help you achieve it. Your own mother, not Irisviel from a parallel world."
"Oh, you." Illya was still very happy about this, but she didn't immediately agree. "It sounds as if I wanted you for the sake of a wish. You're not the Holy Grail. Besides, Minamoto no Raikou's situation needs to be handled first."
Illya was obviously quite troubled by Minamoto no Raikou's personality. When Irisviel actually returned, Minamoto no Raikou would probably try to kill herself again.
"Before that, there should be something more important, right?" As she spoke, Illya whispered in Jiang You's ear in a soft, delicate voice, "Want to replenish my magic?"
Facing Jiang You's astonished gaze, Illya showed her bottom line: "Don't get me wrong, I have to fulfill my responsibilities as a Master, right? Besides, you belong to me, so your first time must be with... What's with that expression! ... You were just trying to make me angry with your previous words, right?"
Jiang You's gaze began to wander, speaking volumes without saying a word.
"You bastard!!!!"