"What do you mean by that?"
Shinji frowned, then sighed, showing a hint of emotion. "I was just comforting her earlier. She's a widow, left alone to raise her child after her husband's death, and her business is struggling. What else could I do but offer some words of encouragement to give her hope for the future?"
At first glance, there seemed to be nothing wrong with his explanation, but Rin couldn't shake the feeling that something was off. Then, a thought struck her.
Wait a minute!
Given their earlier conversation, Shinji clearly knew the effects of that barrier!
"Hmph! It was you, wasn't it?" Rin sneered. "How else would you know the effects of that barrier?"
"Emiya told me this morning."
"Ugh!" Rin clicked her tongue. How had she overlooked that possibility?
Ultimately, without any solid evidence, Rin let Shinji go. But not before leaving with a parting threat: "When I find the person who set that insidious barrier that made me gain two pounds of unnecessary fat, they're going to pay dearly!"
Shinji, unable to resist his mischievous streak, raised the bag of food in his hand just as Rin was about to leave.
"Hey, Tohsaka, want a bun?"
Rin stumbled and almost fell, then turned around, gritting her teeth at Shinji. For some reason, she felt he was doing this on purpose.
"No, thanks! And I bet you'd charge me full price again, wouldn't you?"
"No, no," Shinji shook his head, wearing a "how could you think that of me?" expression. "This time, it's free."
"Really?!" Rin's interest was piqued, not by the delicious buns but by the word "free."
...
Having already learned from Ayako earlier that she would be taking Sakura shopping after school, Shinji didn't rush home. Instead, he went to the shopping district to buy some groceries.
After purchasing the groceries, Shinji headed home. As he neared the intersection by his house, he spotted two familiar figures in a small park surrounded by residential buildings—
Shirou, also carrying groceries, and an indignant Illya arguing with him!
...
"Sorry, Illya, but I've already agreed to work with Tohsaka to deal with Caster, so..."
Shirou scratched his head, politely declining Illya's offer.
"But Illya is really strong! And Berserker is the strongest! Working with Rin isn't as good as working with Illya!"
Illya puffed out her chest proudly.
"Even so..." Shirou could only scratch his head and smile wryly. "I've already promised Tohsaka, and if I work with you..."
"What's the big deal? With three people, we can handle Caster even faster, right? Right?"
Illya clasped her hands behind her back, leaning forward to look up at Shirou with big, pleading eyes.
"Well... uh... I don't think Tohsaka would agree... and I also feel..."
Seeing Shirou's embarrassed expression, Illya could guess what he was thinking—he didn't want to drag her into this.
Feeling warmth in her heart, Illya straightened up, spinning around once with her hands behind her back. "I told you it's okay. Wouldn't you be happy to deal with Caster faster?"
"Well, yeah, but..."
"You think so too, right, big brother?"
"Huh?"
Shirou was puzzled, then noticed Illya's gaze shifting to someone beside him. It was his friend, Shinji Matou, who had quietly walked up with a bag of groceries.
"Good grief," Shinji sighed. "I'm not a magician, so don't ask me about things related to magicians or the Holy Grail War. Getting involved in that is a huge hassle."
"I thought big brother was already involved."
Shinji shrugged. "Don't joke. I want to stay as far away from it as possible. If you want to chat, let's change the topic."
And so, Illya did change the topic.
Favorite foods, foods she disliked.
She liked birds, hated cats, loved snow, hated the cold, wanted to play but couldn't, and had a fussy maid she both disliked and liked.
All childish topics.
As Illya sat on the bench, swinging her legs and chatting enthusiastically, Shinji and Shirou exchanged glances.
—She really is like a little girl waiting for her father to come home.
The two of them smiled wryly, then looked away, half-listening to Illya's chatter and responding occasionally.
"... So, Illya isn't here alone?"
"Yeah, I came with Sella and Leysritt. Even though I don't need anyone to keep an eye on me, I do need someone to take care of things, right?"
Sella... no comment for now.
Leysritt, though, piqued Shinji's interest. She was one of the few taciturn characters in this world, and even "taciturn" seemed too strong a word for her.
Seeing the curious expressions on Shinji and Shirou's faces, Illya asked, "Hmm? Are you two interested in where I live?"
"Huh?" Shirou was taken aback, then replied honestly, "Yeah, I'm curious. You always appear out of nowhere, and not knowing where you live makes it hard if you need help."
Seeing Illya's puzzled expression, Shinji sighed and translated for Shirou, "He means if you get hurt or something and need help, it would be a problem if we don't know where you live. That's all. If we knew where you lived, he'd feel more at ease."
"Shinji!"
Shirou's face turned red. Although that was his intention, hearing it stated so plainly...
"I see..." Illya's face lit up with joy. After thinking for a couple of seconds, she said, "Alright, since Shirou is special to me, I'll tell you."
Then she turned to Shinji.
"Shinji, do you want to know?"
"I want to see your maids."
Shinji's response was direct, then he propped his chin on his hand and explained, "We're thinking of hiring some maids at home, so I want to compare them with yours."
"Hmm... okay."
With that, Illya stood up lightly from the bench and placed her small hands on the foreheads of Shinji and Shirou...