A pair of legs.
A beautiful pair of legs.
The skin is as smooth and delicate as the finest alabaster. The shape of the legs is also very attractive—long and well-proportioned. A bit less would make them look too thin, while a bit more would make them seem overly plump. The elegant bare feet appeared a bit stiff under the gaze of three people, but this only added to their unique charm rather than detracting from their grace.
Don't misunderstand; the owners of the three gazes are neither foot fetishists nor perverts. They are observing the legs with a very serious attitude.
The three observers are Caules, Shinji, and Chiron. The owner of the legs is Fiore.
Yes, Fiore. It's hard to imagine that someone with a lower body disability would have such a beautiful pair of legs, evoking a sense of deep regret.
The purpose of this scrutiny is to address Fiore's leg condition.
Caules brought Chiron to see Fiore not just for breakfast but for a more important reason—to examine Fiore's legs.
Chiron is world-renowned not only for his archery but also for his knowledge and talents. Legend has it that he is skilled in music, chess, calligraphy, painting, archery, weaponry, hand-to-hand combat, sumo wrestling, and practically everything under the sun, including medicine. The god of medicine in ancient Greece, Asclepius, represented by the constellation Ophiuchus, was one of his disciples.
Although Chiron said Asclepius had surpassed him in medicine, the fact that he could teach a god of medicine speaks volumes about his medical expertise.
Fiore's initial choice of Chiron as her Servant was partly to use his medical skills to treat her legs. Caules was aware of this, which is why he requested Chiron to examine his sister after breakfast.
Fiore, who had been troubled by her leg condition since childhood, naturally agreed, leading to the scene of three men staring at a woman's legs.
After carefully inspecting from her knees to her toes, Chiron softly said, "Excuse me."
With Fiore's permission, Chiron extended his hand and grasped her ankle. His already wise eyes grew even deeper as if trying to see through her skin to her bones and muscles.
After a few seconds, Chiron began to apply pressure, causing a red mark to appear on Fiore's leg. Simultaneously, Fiore's face turned pale.
Noticing Fiore's reaction, Chiron asked, "Is it here?"
Fiore responded with a pained "Mm."
Chiron then used his free hand to grasp Fiore's other foot. This time, he employed a different technique, but Fiore's complexion did not improve.
Chiron withdrew his hands, first nodding, then shaking his head, and finally remaining silent.
"How is it, Archer?" Caules' voice trembled slightly.
"Treatment is possible, but—"
Chiron's serious expression cast a shadow over Caules' heart.
"But what?"
"To heal Miss Fiore's legs, the magic circuits in her legs must be removed."
Upon hearing this, Caules sighed, and Fiore lowered her eyelids, seemingly unsurprised.
Fiore had long known about this form of treatment: if the problem was caused by magic circuits, removing them would resolve it. However, this also meant she would have to give up living as a magus.
Fiore had studied Human engineering and spiritual evocation, mastering methods to replace her incapacitated legs through hard work. She could use spirit descent to allow substitutes to function in place of her legs and could even float in the air on a broom. But ultimately, they were not her legs. Moreover, as the heir of the Forvedge family, she couldn't and didn't want to, abandon her magecraft.
Therefore, she could only place her hope in the miracle of the Holy Grail.
"To regain the function of my legs while retaining the magic circuits—this is the wish I entrust to the Holy Grail."
Chiron expressed his understanding: "I see. Because you don't want to sacrifice either, you have to hope for a miracle."
"Doesn't it sound selfish?"
Fiore felt deeply conflicted. She wasn't lying. She was determined to capture the omnipotent, wish-granting Holy Grail as a magus. There was no need to use fragile words to elicit sympathy.
However, she still timidly and lackadaisically expressed her wish. This was her nature. She hated this about herself, hated that she instinctively displayed an attitude seeking others' sympathy.
"It is quite selfish," Shinji, lying by the bedside, suddenly spoke up.
"Hey, Assassin!" Caules' face darkened. It was bad enough that her Servant didn't comfort his Master, but he even made sarcastic remarks.
"Don't look at me like that. I'm just stating a fact. And being selfish isn't necessarily wrong. How many humans can truly be selfless? Though I can't remember what my wish is, I'm sure it must be selfish as well. But so what? Selfishness is selfish. Aren't we all participating in the Holy Grail War because of our desires?"
Fiore raised her head and looked at her Servant. This unpredictable guy once again surprised her.
She had prepared herself for either comfort, silence, or a change of topic, but she never expected her Servant to blatantly address "selfishness" as a non-negative aspect of humanity and even admit his selfishness.
Honestly, she didn't know what to say, but she did feel a lot better.
"Indeed, as Assassin said, my wish is also filled with selfish desires," Chiron agreed with Shinji's view.
"What is it?" The Forvedge siblings were both curious. What wish could this wise sage have?
"I want to retrieve something I entrusted to the gods."
This is Chiron's most famous legend. Both of his parents were gods, and Chiron possessed an immortal body. However, one day, he was caught in a conflict between his disciple Heracles, and his fellow centaurs. His knee was accidentally struck by one of Heracles' Hydra-poisoned arrows.
The Hydra's poison was the deadliest in Greek mythology, said to be incurable. Because he was immortal, Chiron couldn't die and had to endure the constant torment of the poison. Eventually, unable to bear the daily agony, Chiron entrusted his immortality to Zeus to be transferred to Prometheus, finally finding peace. Zeus, reluctant to let him go, turned him into the constellation Sagittarius.
"I don't reject death, but my immortality is a gift from my parents. If I discard it, I wouldn't be the true Chiron."
The man quietly expressed his longing for his parents.
"But Archer, you—"
Fiore realized she had misspoken and hurriedly closed her mouth.
Having collected Chiron's catalyst, Fiore had researched all the myths and legends related to him. Because of this, she harbored doubts and, because of this, she realized her slip of the tongue.
Continuing would have been an insult to him. According to the legend, Chiron's father, Cronus, transformed into a horse and united with his mother, the nymph Philyra. Afterward, Philyra, seeing Chiron's half-human, half-horse form, lamented deeply and transformed into a linden tree.
In other words, Chiron's parents never bestowed any love upon him in the first place, something he was more aware of than anyone.
His expression remained serene, but his words carried a hint of guilt:
"Indeed, I am not loved by my parents, but I still want to reclaim that symbol of my lineage. I admit it is selfish. After all, regaining immortality now would be meaningless. But even so—"
—Even so, to Chiron, it was a faint bond with his parents.
Silence once again enveloped Fiore's room. Nobody knew how to comfort Chiron. Even Shinji was at a loss for words. Helpless, he decided to change the topic.
"Caules, everyone else has shared. Why don't you tell us your wish?"
"My wish..." Caules pondered for a moment before weakly saying, "Actually, I haven't decided yet."
His sister glared at him, while Chiron and Shinji also wore surprised expressions. Why would someone without a wish participate in the Holy Grail War?
Caules scratched his head apologetically. "It's not that I don't have one. Despite how I seem, I'm also a magus. Of course, I have the desire to reach the Root. But I feel like I have other wishes as well."
Even if the Holy Grail is omnipotent, could it make reaching the Root that easy? This was a major doubt for Caules. Naturally, taking the first step towards that goal should be possible, but the path seemed far too long.
"In any case, it's impossible to understand until you're in a specific situation. For example, if my sister were to sacrifice herself, wouldn't I need to use my wish to revive her after the war ends? That would override my wish. To me, my sister right in front of me is more important than reaching the Root, which might be achieved someday."
"Caules, you—"
His declaration plunged Fiore into internal conflict yet again. On one side was sibling affection, and on the other was the cold, rational education she had received as a magus since childhood. She asked herself, if her brother died, could she abandon her original wish?
While Fiore was torn, Shinji picked up the conversation.
"So, you're a sister complex, huh? I get it. Fiore is smart, beautiful, and kind. If I had a sister like her, I might turn out just like you."
"Assassin!" Caules' face immediately turned red as he glared furiously at Shinji.
Shinji glanced sideways. "Oh, did I hit a nerve? It looks like you want to punch me. Do you want to fight? I'll let you use both your hands and feet."
"Do you think it makes sense for a Master to fight a Servant?" Caules retorted.
"Why not? Isn't it normal for an Assassin to give their Master a hard time?"
"You—!" Caules was momentarily speechless but quickly found a way out, thanks to his quick thinking. "I can't beat you in a direct fight, but on another battlefield, you might not have the upper hand against me."
"What battlefield?" Shinji was intrigued.
"The battlefield of young people in this era—video games. Do you dare to compete with me?"
"Why wouldn't I dare?"
Shinji maintained a composed exterior but was laughing inwardly. Compete with him in video games? Against a seasoned otaku?
P.S.: The relic Fiore gave to Caules was the arrow that Heracles used to shoot Chiron in the knee. In theory, both could summon him, but considering the blood of Chiron on it, the likelihood of summoning Chiron was higher.