In the world of Type-Moon, it all begins with becoming Morgan's husband!

It's been so long since I've had insomnia.

Ian stood up and walked outside without making a sound.

He never expected that as soon as he came out, he would see Artorius walking by carrying a bucket of water—he had changed into a thicker set of clothes and looked even more masculine.

"Mr. Ian!"

Artorius, carrying a bucket of water, looked surprised.

"Why are you awake? Did I wake you?"

“No, that’s not true.” Ian smiled calmly. “I just woke up early.”

"Is it because the place you're resting is too bad that you woke up so early?"

“No, Artorius, you don’t need to doubt it.” Ian stopped Artorius from overthinking.

"I just wake up early."

"Or rather... why did you get up so early?"

"Get to work!"

Artorius raised the bucket in his hand.

"I usually get up to work around this time."

"..."

Ian glanced at the few iron buckets still beside the well.

"Then let me help you."

[You weren't born a royal knight, so you're quite familiar with these farm chores.]

You helped Artoria complete her task ahead of schedule very successfully.

The two of you should rest under a tree.

"Mr. Ian, here you go."

Artorius handed a glass of water to Ian.

"Thank you." Ian took the water.

“I didn’t expect you to know these things, Mr. Ian…” Artorius couldn’t help but exclaim. “I thought someone like you wouldn’t know anything like this.”

"But you did it even better than me!"

“Artorius, I feel like you’re looking down on me.”

“No, that’s not true!” Artorius shook his head repeatedly. “Mr. Ian, I didn’t mean that.”

"I know, it was just a joke."

"Yes, really?"

Artorius blushed slightly, glanced at Ian beside him, and whispered.

"Um, Mr. Ian, I changed the strap. Does it look good?"

"..."

Ian glanced at Artorius's hair and nodded.

"Yeah, it should have been done a long time ago. Taking a piece of cloth before was just outrageous."

"Yes, yes..."

Artori covered her ponytail, looking a little embarrassed by the compliment.

However, she quickly seemed to remember something and spoke again in a low voice.

"Mr. Ian, you'll be taking those wounded knights back soon, won't you?"

Ian nodded.

"Well, that's right."

"Then... will we have a chance to meet again in the future?" Artorius looked up, his eyes filled with worry.

"It will happen, but it's hard to say when."

"That--"

Artorius pointed a finger at Ian.

"Mr. Ian, could you please come over here for a moment?"

"..."

Although Ian didn't know what Artorius wanted to do, he still moved closer to her as she asked.

Mua——

The girl's lips gently left a sweet and soft, moist mark on her weathered cheek.

"Artoria, you..."

"I was just giving it a try! Mr. Ian, please forget about this and what happened that day! There will be someone better like me to do these things in the future!"

"Please be careful on the road!"

After saying this, Artorius hurriedly covered his mouth and ran away.

With a crash, he accidentally kicked over an iron bucket.

Silence returned.

Ian was left alone, covering his face.

50. The owner of an object is still an owner.

The knights gradually awoke.

They greeted you.

You responded to them one by one, but what you were thinking was something else entirely.

You find that Atolis's kiss stirred something within you.

You realize this is not the right emotion.

You decided to keep it hidden in your heart, never to show it to anyone.

[Kai ultimately agreed that you are a good person.]

He gave you his horse, which he had raised for a long time, as a return gift for your giving East Starion to Atolis.

Before you left, Kai sincerely apologized to you.

He hopes you can forget all the unpleasant things that happened before.

You look at him and find it somewhat amusing—because you don't take him seriously at all.

But you also realize that this is an older brother's concern for his younger sister.

You continue your hypocrisy, politely telling him that you never cared about these things at all.

This made him think you were a magnanimous person, and he felt even more guilty about his previous suspicions.

Artorias didn't come out to see you off.

But you know she's just shy because of the previous kiss.

Sure enough, you soon spotted her hiding behind a tree, watching you.

She also noticed that you noticed her.

You exchanged a smile and said nothing more.

You left the village with these knights returning from the front lines, amidst farewells.

You have gone far from the village.

You have come to the foot of a forest—a forest that does not appear to be frequently visited.

You stopped in the woods.

"Lord Ian, what's wrong?"

The knights were all puzzled when they saw Ian stop.

Ian turned around and placed one hand on the blade of the sword at his waist.

"nothing."

"I just want to ask you for a favor."

"what's up?"

"that is--"

Ian drew the sword from his waist and pointed it at the group of wounded knights before him.

"Please, can't you just die here in peace?"

"what?!"

You killed all the knights who accompanied you.

[This shouldn't be difficult for you—after all, these are all wounded knights. We didn't attack earlier to prevent other defeated knights from witnessing it.]

But in this forest, there's no need to worry about that.

Your reason for doing this is quite simple.

[You're unsure if Morgan's magic will affect these "newcomers." Rather than risk letting them return to the capital and witness everything you and Morgan have fabricated, it's better to kill them all here before then.]

Everything was for Morgan, but at the same time, everything was for yourself.

Ian bent down, pulled the blade from the last knight's chest, and dragged the blood-soaked corpse aside to hide it.

I've done this kind of thing many times before, and my inner edges have long been worn away, leaving nothing behind.

But to say that he felt no guilt at all would be a complete lie.