Seeing Saber staring intently at Gilgamesh, even without her sword drawn, the tension in the air was palpable. Gilgamesh, meanwhile, glanced briefly at Illya with evident displeasure. Shinji realized that if he didn't intervene, the shop might be in jeopardy.
"Hey, I'm responsible for the shop while the usual staff are out, so I'd prefer if you didn't fight here."
Gilgamesh withdrew his gaze from Saber's face, scoffing, "Hmph! Even now, knowing the truth, you still yearn for the Grail? How foolish, Saber."
"You...!" Saber was immediately enraged, and if Shirou hadn't held her back, she likely would have attacked.
"Shinji, you met that guy yesterday, right?"
"Hmm?"
Shinji was surprised that Gilgamesh seemed uninterested in Saber.
"Who? Angra Mainyu?"
Seeing Shinji's indifferent expression, Gilgamesh laughed heartily.
"Hahaha! Interesting! Very interesting! Although this war did not meet the king's expectations, it has indeed selected a person worthy of being ruled by the king!"
"Gilgamesh, I'm not your subject."
"Addressing the king by name is a privilege granted by the king! By exercising this privilege, you are already a subject of the king!"
How is this different from tyranny? Shinji thought, wishing he could just call him "Goldie" without fearing repercussions.
Saber sneered, her mocking tone sharp, "Is this your so-called rule, Archer? It's truly unimpressive."
"It matters not, Saber! For this is how the king rules! I am the first and only king of this world!"
Seeing that they weren't going to fight but would rather continue bickering, Shinji turned his attention to Illya, who was making cute faces at him.
Smiling, he leaned closer and whispered in her ear, "Illya, you don't qualify as a 'loli' for me."
"Huh..." Illya's smile froze, and she puffed her cheeks in mock anger, "You thief! And stingy! I helped you yesterday! It was Einzbern who covered up the magical disturbance at Ryuudou Temple for you! I took the blame!"
"Really?"
Shinji was genuinely surprised. He had thought he might be discovered and had to train his body more often, but someone had already taken the fall for him.
"Wait..." Shinji frowned, "Did you say Einzbern..."
"Oops!" Illya quickly covered her mouth.
"So, the old man knows?"
Realizing she had been caught, Illya crossed her arms and turned away, "Hmph! He knows, and Acht wants you to join Einzbern!"
"Seriously?"
Shinji's first thoughts were of the beautiful homunculi created by Einzbern. Which man could resist such temptation?
"What? Do you want to join Einzbern?"
"Just kidding, I don't like magic."
"Then, will you share your research with me?"
Seeing Illya trying to act cute again, Shinji ruthlessly waved her off, "It would take years to write it all down, it's too much trouble."
"But it's magic! A true miracle of this world!" Illya tried to entice him.
"Illya, I'm not interested in magic or miracles, especially things I've already figured out. So..."
Bending down and grinning, Shinji whispered, "It's better to give up now. And tell that old man to give up his hopes and avoid making futile efforts. Otherwise, I might have to turn off his power myself."
"You... you know about Acht's power..."
Shinji didn't answer. Instead, he glanced at Shirou, who was trying to mediate the growing argument between Saber and Gilgamesh. With a sigh, he turned back to Illya.
"No matter how much you struggle, Einzbern's imposed sense of responsibility has ended. Struggling further will only reveal more ugliness. That old man should know this by now. It's time for him to step back."
"And you, now free from your family's burdens, don't you have anything you want to do? If not before, how about now?"
Illya remained silent, staring at Shirou.
"Thank you for not revealing Sakura's past."
"No need to thank me. You're a good brother," Illya said softly, still looking a bit sad. "I really envy Sakura."
Shinji then called out to Shirou, "Shirou, could you make something to eat? I haven't eaten all day, and I'm starving."
"Huh? But the ingredients..."
"Don't worry, I'll pay. Just consider it part of your job."
"Alright, then."
"Shirou! I want some too!" Saber called out.
"Me too, me too!" Illya said, excitedly flipping through the menu.
"Alright, alright."
Shirou, feeling a bit overwhelmed, then glanced at Gilgamesh, unsure if he should offer him food as well. "And you, your majesty? Do you want anything?"
"!?"
Saber's hair stood on end. "Shirou! How can you address that man as 'your majesty'! Take it back!"
"Hahaha! Saber, your servant has betrayed you! Hahaha..." Gilgamesh laughed heartily.
Shirou, under Saber's intense glare, could only awkwardly scratch his head. "It's not about betrayal, I just..."
Unable to come up with a good explanation, Shirou finally conceded.
"So, both of you, do you want to eat something?"
"?!"
Seeing Shirou inadvertently draw the ire of both kings, Shinji could only shake his head in exasperation.
His friend's emotional intelligence was truly low. After spending so much time with him, he was still this dense.
How did this guy end up being a harem king?
Before Shinji could ponder further, Shirou, now buckling under the gaze of the two kings, looked to him for help.
"Well, I'll have an omurice with black pepper fried rice inside."
Turning his chair to face the hall, Shinji patted Shirou on the shoulder, then picked up a guitar hanging on the wall.
"Shh—"
He signaled for silence, then began tuning the guitar.
"Take off your shoes, let your feet bathe in the dappled sunlight under the trees..."
(Translation note: Song title: "The Old Man and the Sea")
As Shinji sang, the two kings fell silent, each sitting at separate tables with their backs to each other.
...
"Towards that distant place, across the sea of clouds, chasing after that faraway dream..."
...
Hearing the familiar song coming from the shop, Rin, passing by, felt a sense of nostalgia. Without waiting for Archer, who was carrying a load of bags, she gently pushed open the door.
Seeing Rin enter, Shirou, busy behind the counter, wiped his sweat and greeted her with a smile.
"This is..."
Seeing the scene inside the shop, Rin was a bit puzzled but found a seat due to a certain person's presence.
Archer, reluctant to share the space with Shinji and Gilgamesh, could only follow suit and sit at the same table.
"I believe everything is beyond the sea."
"Not bad! Here's a reward!"
Seeing the large gold bar Gilgamesh tossed out, Rin was stunned. She only snapped back to reality when Shinji casually pocketed the hefty gold bar.
This is too extravagant!
Shinji then said with a smile, "You can pay to request songs."
"Hmm..."
Gilgamesh thought for a moment, then took out two more gold bars and tossed them over.
"Wake."
"Uh... that song with just a guitar is..."
Shinji looked troubled.
"No problem! The king owns everything in this world!"
With that, Gilgamesh produced a set of gold-plated speakers.
Seeing the gold bricks on the table and the flashy speakers, stars shone in Rin's eyes.
Archer, noticing this, began to worry that Rin might be easily swayed by wealth.
"With accompaniment, it's fine!"
Pocketing the gold bars, Shinji began to sing "Wake" as soon as the accompaniment started.
"At break of day, in hope we rise..."
As Shinji sang, another two familiar faces entered the shop, attracted by the sound: Bazett and Lancer.
"Not bad, kid."
Illya handed over a black card, requesting "Something Just Like This" and "World's Number One Princess."
Shinji realized that many of today's visitors were his fans.
As he finished the song, Sakura, returning from shopping with Ayako, was drawn in by the familiar voice.
Seeing her brother casually accepting tips, she couldn't help but ask, "Brother, has our family's financial situation become so bad that you need to busk to support us?"
Hearing Sakura's question, Shinji was stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter.
Seeing Shinji laugh uncontrollably, Sakura called out again, "Brother?"
Finally composing himself, Shinji said, "Sorry, it's just that I haven't felt this relaxed in a long time. I might have even forgotten what it feels like to truly relax."
"Huh?" Sakura was puzzled.
"No, it's nothing."
Shinji shook his head, glancing at Saber and Gilgamesh arguing over Shirou's cooking, one calling it "delicious" and the other "barely edible."
Then he looked at Archer and Shirou, discussing cooking techniques while Archer criticized Shirou's methods.
Rin was eating leisurely, lost in thoughts of gold bricks.
Bazett had finished her omurice, while Lancer considered asking the owner about a job.
Illya, who had looked worried earlier, now happily demanded more desserts.
"Well..."
Shinji closed his eyes, thinking for a moment.
"Sakura..."
"Yes?"
Smiling brightly, Shinji suddenly said, "Let's go on a trip."
"Really?!"
Sakura's loud exclamation drew everyone's attention. Realizing her mistake, she blushed.
"Yes, I did promise you. We leave tomorrow."
"Okay!"
"Shinji, skipping school is one thing, but taking Sakura with you?" Rin scolded.
"Exams are coming up soon, Shinji!" Shirou joined in.
"Life is about spontaneous adventures, after all."
"What kind of logic is that?" Shirou's eye twitched.
"See you all in a month! Bye! Let's go, Sakura!"
Rin immediately chased after them, "Wait! You haven't dealt with the mess from the Grail War yet! You can't just leave!"
Shirou shouted, "Hey! Don't run in the shop! Be careful not to..."
"Who spilled juice on the king's head?! You want to die?!"
Archer: "How disgraceful."
Crash!
"Everyone, stop!" Shirou yelled, finally halting the chaos.
Seeing the omurice on the floor, Saber's hair drooped...
"Not my fault!"
Shinji ran off, pulling Sakura along...