Emiya Shirou doesn't want to work overtime

"The Star Palace you created was taken away by the outside world. Something this big can't just be left in the airspace above Misaki City."

"Although they wanted to get your consent, you showed no signs of waking up, so the outside world had no choice but to place the [Starry Night Palace] in a deserted place."

Upon hearing Shana's explanation, Shirou Emiya nodded with some relief.

He himself couldn't use that thing, so handing it over to an outsider was a good option.

"What about the rest?"

"Margery has left. She knew that Silver was inside the Zero Hour Maze, and after waking up, she couldn't wait to leave the outside world to search for its whereabouts."

"Kamsin then cleared away the hidden distortions within Misaki City and left after tuning Misaki City."

"With Rami's help, Yuji Sakai survived using the Zero Time Lost Child you created."

"It seems that the [Masquerade Ball] has terminated your request; it has been a long time since any Crimson World Apostles have come here."

Wilhelmina also left ahead to investigate the movements of the masquerade ball.

"Besides the humans who use this place for daily life, I am the only Flame Haze warrior here."

Shana recounted in detail what happened here while Shirou Emiya was unconscious.

"How long have I been in a coma?"

"Three days. I almost thought you would never wake up again."

Shana looked at Shirou Emiya's pale face, which also revealed her worry.

When those free spirits shook their heads, she was genuinely afraid that Shirou Emiya would remain unconscious.

But now——

"is it?"

Emiya Shirou nodded. It seemed that during the time he was unconscious, things outside had gradually stabilized.

"However, the purpose of the [Masquerade Ball] is not just to take away the Lost Child of Zero."

She could have easily killed all the Flame Haze warriors present, and she could have easily taken her own life.

However, the [Masquerade Ball] did not do that. They simply took the Zero Hour Lost Child and left quickly, refusing to leave even a trace of gunpowder.

This is far too unusual.

But he couldn't immediately figure out what the purpose of the masquerade ball was.

"In any case, this crisis is over."

Alastor responded to Shirou Emiya in a deep voice.

They had discussed this matter with outsiders before, but they had never come to a definite answer.

All we know is that the Zero Hour Lost Child is incredibly important to the [Masquerade Ball], but what they intend to do with it remains unknown.

When the time comes, we can only deal with whatever comes our way, and Wilhelmina and Margot also went to investigate the matter.

"But whatever the purpose of the masquerade ball, I will stop it."

Shana looked ahead with an extremely determined gaze.

"Once you recover, we would like to invite you to travel with us."

Alastor also took this opportunity to tell Emiya Shirou about their plans.

However, Shirou Emiya shook his head with a wry smile.

"No, I may not be able to go with you to investigate the [masquerade ball]."

"Shirou, you come with me—, hey—!"

Shana was taken aback by the answer and stared blankly at Shirou Emiya, who was giving a wry smile.

Chapter 289 Pinky Promise

"I may have to leave soon."

Emiya Shirou could already sense that soon, that mysterious door would appear.

He could even have that door appear in front of him with just a thought.

He simply didn't have any immediate plans to leave this world, which is why the door hadn't appeared yet.

But it wouldn't last long. Shirou Emiya could feel the door's reaction growing stronger and stronger. He feared that once it reached a certain point, the door would forcefully appear and take him away.

This is something Shirou Emiya cannot change. Even if he really wants to travel with Shana to stop the conspiracy of the "Masquerade Ball," he is powerless to do so now.

"leave?"

Shana was stunned, her mind filled with doubt.

Didn't they originally intend to leave Misaki City?

Why can't we leave together?

Is there a reason?

Or is it that Shirou Emiya is interrupted and facing the masquerade ball alone?

Shana couldn't figure out the reason; she didn't understand why Shirou Emiya would suggest leaving at this time.

"Where are you going?"

She was puzzled and stared intently at Emiya Shirou.

I wanted to find the answer in his expression.

"Back home"

Emiya Shirou spoke slowly.

"Isn't your home in Misaki City?"

Shana then realized that she didn't know Shirou Emiya at all.

It wasn't until a chance encounter between Shirou Emiya and Yuji Sakai that she learned Shirou Emiya's adoptive father had passed away.

"No"

Emiya didn't know how to answer Shana, but he still decisively shook his head.

"Then, let's go back to your house to prepare before we go after the [Masquerade Ball]."

She vaguely understood what Shirou Emiya meant by leaving, but a sliver of hope remained in her heart.

"No, I'm afraid I can only go back alone."

Emiya Shirou shook his head, decisively rejecting Shana's offer.

"Crack!"

That was Shana clenching her fists, the sound of her bones clashing.

At this moment, she felt extremely frustrated and distressed. This feeling made her want to vent her anger on the Crimson World Apostle, but she frantically restrained herself.

She didn't understand why, why she was experiencing these emotions.

These emotions disgusted her and made her feel incredibly frustrated.

It felt like having a heavy iron block weighing tens of kilograms pressed against your chest.

"Why!?"

Shana kept her head down, trying her best to keep her tone from being noticed by Shirou Emiya.

"I still have a lot of things to deal with myself."

Shirou Emiya intentionally concealed the matter of that door, not because he was afraid that Shana would react excessively if she knew he was not from this world.

He believed that Shana wouldn't look at him differently just because he wasn't from this world.

However, telling Shana about this would be of no use.

What good would it do to tell her? Shirou Emiya doesn't even know if he'll ever be able to return to this world. Telling her would only add to Shana's troubles.

You should just bear this burden yourself.

"After dealing with those things—"

"Shana!"

Emiya Shirou got off the bed and put his hands on Shana's shoulders.

"I am too weak!"

　Shirou Emiya only gained a slight advantage when he first encountered Harihime and Shuten-Nan.

When Shirou Emiya encountered the evil blade for the second time, he fought against it like a mouse, with almost no power to resist.

If Shana hadn't come to my aid in time, I probably would have been cut in half by the broken blade.

Even when working together with Shana, Shirou Emiya felt a deep sense of powerlessness.

Although that combo did indeed damage Xiudenan, it only damaged him.

If the fighting continues...

Shirou Emiya could imagine that even without the Blade of Destruction, Shudenan would still be able to kill him and Shana easily.

Such a vast difference in strength was impossible for Shirou Emiya not to see.

He could only maintain a power comparable to those Crimson Lords during brief bursts of power.

I am so weak in front of them.

It was the same in that world filled with ghosts, in that empire that devoured people without spitting out the bones, and even more so in my own parallel world.

If I had enough power, how could I be so passive?

"But we can train, we can become stronger!"

Shana retorted somewhat reluctantly, believing that if she continued training, she would be able to defeat those Crimson Lords once she had a more proficient grasp of Alastor's power.