Chapter 161 Shirou's Great Crisis
The sky gradually shifted from azure to indigo, the setting sun casting golden clouds that seemed frozen in a painting. The boy and girls on the Ferris wheel were exactly one hundred meters above the ground. At this moment, the surroundings grew quiet, distant from the amusement park's clamor, and even the high-altitude wind seemed to have stopped.
It was the final moment. If she didn't speak her mind now, there would be no second chance. The girl, hands resting on her seat, clenched her fists tightly.
"Um… Shirou! What do you think… of me?" At the last moment, Mor-chan lowered her head, summoning courage to ask the question she had long worried about.
"What do you mean by 'think'?" Shirou looked at the suddenly quiet girl in confusion; it didn't feel like Mor-chan's usual style.
Annoyed, Mor-chan lightly kicked him and then lowered her head again.
"I mean… how am I as a Servant? Compared to Father… am I competent?" Mor-chan asked, her head lowered, resembling a child yearning for approval, waiting for praise.
"You're great," Shirou said, reaching out to pat her head reassuringly. "As a Servant, you're undoubtedly excellent. We've trusted each other all the way, fought side by side, and you even taught me how to ride a horse. So I can honestly say, Mordred, you're my great partner—you don't lose to Artoria! Keep this momentum up, and you'll become even more outstanding."
"Really… really…" Mor-chan's lips curved into a secretive smile. She raised her fist and tapped Shirou's chest—one punch, two punches, three, four… each punch faster and harder than the last. By the tenth punch, she was practically slamming it into him.
"Wait, wait… stop!" Shirou cried out in pain, halting her.
Their foreheads collided as the rebellious knight Mordred raised her head to meet Shirou's gaze. Her eyes burned with determination, a brilliant smile forming.
"Shirou! I've always thought that just picking up something Father used would make me happy. I truly adore and admire Father… but that doesn't mean I don't have a bit of resentment! The best treasures, after all, I want to take them for myself! At least I can't let her monopolize them."
"Eh? What treasure? I don't think you should fight Artoria over it. If you want, I could try projecting one for you," Shirou suggested.
"It has to be the real thing!" Mor-chan blushed but, having made up her mind, smiled brightly. She stood and leaned toward Shirou.
A gust of wind rocked the Ferris wheel cabin, and Mor-chan lost her balance, tipping toward him.
Shirou was caught off guard and couldn't steady her.
Their foreheads slammed together.
"Ouch!" Mor-chan cried, tears forming at the corners of her eyes as she covered her forehead.
"What exactly do you want?" Shirou, also holding his forehead, was at a loss.
At that moment, Mordred began to glow.
"Looks like it's time, Shirou! Remember to come find me at Chaldea!" Mor-chan waved cheerfully.
"Eh? You're really not planning to live here?" Shirou asked.
"No way! Who'd want to study here?! Bye~!" Mor-chan crossed her arms, pouting.
"Alright, bye," Shirou replied, knowing that with Artoria around, Mor-chan would inevitably keep trying to come over anyway.
"Eh? Sir, weren't you with a blonde girl in a red jacket just now?" A freckled young male attendant, opening the cabin door, peeked in and looked behind Shirou in confusion.
"Sir? What are you talking about? I was alone the whole time," Shirou replied, wearing his usual serious expression.
Apologizing silently in his mind, Shirou ignored the attendant's horrified stare, his face turning pale as he hurried away.
At the hamburger shop ahead, Artoria sat enjoying snacks, with over a dozen empty burger wrappers on the table.
"Has that child already left?" Artoria looked up at Shirou.
"Hmm, aren't you going to say goodbye to Mor-chan?" Shirou sat across from her, asking softly.
"She's stubborn. She'll find another opportunity and pester us again soon enough," Artoria said casually.
Meanwhile, Mor-chan returned to Chaldea and ran straight to Da Vinci's workshop.
"Da Vinci, this is for you! Then teach me!" she called out.
"Good work! Hehe, I knew you'd say that, so I printed everything for you," Da Vinci said, handing her the Holy Grail and patting a mountain of workbooks, exams, and textbooks—from first to seventh grade.
"So high!" Mor-chan gasped, sweating nervously at the pile.
"No problem. If you finish all of these, you'll be ready to attend school with Shirou," Da Vinci encouraged.
"Eh? Just finish this and I can go? You're not going to make me do some weird extra task?" Mor-chan asked in surprise.
"Cough, cough. I've always taken care of Chaldea's members. This is a special reward for your hard work. But once there, you must help Mash and Shirou as well."
"I got it! Doesn't matter if it's one mountain or two, I'll finish it!" Mor-chan gritted her teeth and prepared to carry the stack of materials, taller than herself.
"Mor-chan, why not invite Little Jack, Little Nursery, and Little Jeanne to study together? I will teach them in an easy-to-understand way," Da Vinci said, adjusting his glasses.
"No! They're just kids!" Mor-chan said disdainfully.
"Then maybe include some older students? Jeanne and the others might need extra tutoring—especially in math. Chaldea has too many overly muscular Servants; it's tough to provide proper education," Da Vinci said, holding his chin.
Though the Holy Grail grants knowledge necessary to live in the real world, it doesn't include textbooks. If a Servant is summoned independently, without a host, they can read texts related to the Holy Grail War, understand their Master's instructions, but may not know basic writing.
For example, a Servant skilled enough can operate a plane like riding a horse, using instinct aided by skill—but can't teach others the underlying principles.
Mor-chan glared at Da Vinci. "You want the Saint and that troublesome panda girl to learn what from you? Preach and burn houses? Forget it. I'm going to my room."
Carrying textbooks and exams taller than herself, Mor-chan relied on her inherited intuition to reach her room without incident.
"Just you wait, Father! Shirou!" Mor-chan sat at her desk, diving into first-grade exams. As a Servant, she could study nonstop without eating or sleeping. Mordred would become a top student starting today!
Meanwhile, Shirou and Artoria left the amusement park and found a nearby self-service BBQ restaurant.
Shirou cooked; Artoria ate.
Artoria ate like a tyrant, focusing solely on meat, while Shirou demonstrated his culinary skills, efficiently grilling meat, bacon, sausages, and reserving space for chicken and pork requiring more time.
Even so, he couldn't keep up with her appetite. Using magic, Shirou secretly enhanced the grill, increasing flame temperature and adjusting it flexibly, maximizing efficiency.
An hour later, the restaurant's afternoon supply was gone—every piece consumed by Artoria.
The owner, despondent, photographed them as a "Do Not Enter" warning for others. Out of pity, Shirou allowed it.
"This area's off-limits now, huh?" Artoria lamented.
"Have you eaten all the buffet restaurants near the Bristol branch?" Shirou asked.
"No way! Once I eat on a street, photos spread to nearby restaurants. So I only eat once per area. We've almost finished all streets within a hundred kilometers," Artoria explained.
"Haha, with your appetite, any shop would go bankrupt in a week," Shirou said.
"But these are places meant to eat freely until full, right?" Artoria countered.
"Yes… indeed," Shirou agreed, though her stomach could convert food into mana. With the heart of a red dragon, she could store energy indefinitely, no matter how many restaurants she visited.
"Anyway, forgive the owners—they need to make a living. Now that we're full, where to next?" Shirou asked.
"Hm… let's go to your place, Shirou. I can help clean!" Artoria switched to her maid outfit, grabbed her mop, and said excitedly.
They returned to the hotel near the Bristol branch. Just as they arrived, Hiratsuka Shizuka came out, stunned, pointing at Shirou.
"Shirou?! You've only been out half a day, and you brought a girl back? And a maid? Uniform temptation?"
"Ah, she's my dad's acquaintance's child from England. Just happened to meet her, so I brought her up," Shirou explained.
"Eh? Isn't the Hikigaya family just ordinary working-class elites? Your dad worked abroad too?" Hiratsuka asked.
"Yeah, something like that. Just minor business relations," Shirou replied, forcing the explanation.
"Haha, I see! Then I'm relieved. You kids talk; I'll go smoke. Shirou, make sure you take the girl home at night!"
"Understood, teacher," Shirou watched Hiratsuka leave in the elevator, sighing in relief once it closed.
"Wait! Even so, you can't bring a girl into your room!?" Hiratsuka, entering the elevator, realized the problem and screamed.
"Sorry Artoria, I asked you to lie for me," Shirou said to the girl.
"No problem. But Shirou, I think this is pointless," Artoria replied.
"Huh? Why?" Shirou asked.
"That's the teacher who came with you. Ms. Yamanaka submitted a request to be replaced yesterday. Starting tomorrow, a new female teacher will live in the girls' dorm to supervise exchange students," Artoria explained.
"Then everything about last night in the girls' dorm… will be exposed?" Shirou shouted.
Once Ms. Hiratsuka moved in, the gossiping classmates and seniors would tell her everything. Once she knew, the whole class would know. If the class knew, the entire school would know.
What a blunder… Shirou held his head, too terrified to think further.
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