To become a king and a magician

"Looks like I'll have to cook for you for the rest of my life."

"Thanks for your hard work."

"Can't there be some real reward? Verbal gestures feel so perfunctory."

Actual reward?

He paused briefly in his eating, thought for a moment, then Natsukawa Torato picked up a piece of egg roll and stuffed it into Sajou Aika's mouth: "Like this?"

"Ugh...is that a foul?" Ayaka Sajou's face flushed slightly. "Feeding me the bento I made for you, that can't be considered repaying me, can it?"

"How about another one?"

"No, no need, you eat. I was already full before you came."

If it happened again, I probably wouldn't be able to calm myself down for an entire afternoon.

Seeing that Aika Sajou had turned her head slightly away and blushed, Natsukawa Torama suddenly reached out and quickly scratched the corner of her mouth.

"Huh? What's wrong?"

"There are bits of egg roll residue, probably from when I put it in your mouth just now." Natsukawa Tora said, licking the residue from his fingertips. "Well, if that doesn't count, how about I make extra omelet rice for you tonight? Or should I buy you a new outfit this weekend? It's almost summer anyway."

"Hmm...hmm, I have no objection. Tiger, you can do whatever you want."

For some reason, Aika Sajou's face became even redder, even turning red to the roots of her ears.

This is really going to be tough. I'm so happy and joyful, I probably won't be able to calm down for even an afternoon. I might be so happy all night. How am I going to be able to sleep tonight?

Now, Ayaka Sajou's mind was completely filled with the two intimate acts she had just witnessed, and it was playing them on a loop.

Therefore, she didn't notice, nor did Natsukawa Torama, that Artoria was standing in the gap of the rooftop entrance that Natsukawa Torama hadn't completely closed, watching the two of them while eating bread.

——————————————————————————————————————

School usually ends at 4:30 pm, after which various clubs begin their activities.

If it were last month, Natsukawa Torato should be going to the archery club to participate in club activities, but unfortunately he has already left the club and has now returned to the home club.

The same goes for Ayaka Sajou. Unlike Torata Natsukawa, she never joined any clubs from the beginning. In her own words, joining a club would reduce the time she would spend with Torata Natsukawa, so she didn't join any clubs. Even if Torata Natsukawa joined a club, she would only go there and watch him train from the sidelines.

Therefore, now that Natsukawa Tora has withdrawn from the archery club, the two of them naturally don't need to stay at school after class; they can simply pack their bags and go straight home.

However, today, because they had promised Aika Sajou that morning they would make her omelet rice for dinner, the two of them did not go straight home, but instead headed towards the supermarket.

"Let me think... what are all the ingredients I need to make omelet rice... eggs, chicken, mushrooms, ketchup, broth cubes..."

"Tiger, have you even forgotten how to make omelet rice?"

Pushing a shopping cart behind Natsukawa Tora, and watching him look up omelet rice ingredients on his phone, Sajou Aika couldn't help but feel a little helpless: "How about I make it tonight?"

"It's been so long since I've made it, it's normal that I don't remember how to make it. The last time I made omelet rice was probably last year. The last time I went into the kitchen, I made scrambled eggs with tomatoes."

"I have a feeling we won't get enough to eat tonight?"

Sajo Aika wasn't questioning Natsukawa Torama's cooking skills, but as he himself said, cooking was something he rarely did, and if he didn't do something for a long time, his proficiency would naturally decline.

(Maybe I should go buy some ingredients, just in case Tiger fails to make it?)

As this thought crossed her mind, Ayaka Sajou couldn't help but look at the vegetable section not far away, and habitually pushed her cart over to examine today's vegetables.

But just after she pushed the cart over, she spotted a somewhat unexpected figure next to a shelf in the corner of her field of vision.

6. Who is the person who is always hungry?

"You are... Pendragon?"

"Huh? Oh, it's me."

Hearing the voice behind her, Artoria quickly turned around and replied, "I remember you are... Sajou-kun who sits diagonally across from me, right?"

"Hmm, what a coincidence to run into you here. Are you also here to buy ingredients for dinner?"

"Uh...I guess so."

Artoria's answer was somewhat abrupt—she certainly wasn't there to buy ingredients for dinner. As a conscious being, she didn't feel hungry. She was only there to check on Natsukawa Torato and Sajou Aika.

Although Sajou Rei has said that Sajou Aika did not intend to do anything dangerous to Natsukawa Tora, and Artoria is willing to believe her, it does not mean that there is no danger in this world of consciousness.

Since Natsukawa Torama is currently powerless, Artoria believes it is necessary to stay by his side at all times to ensure her Master's safety.

In fact, ever since school ended, she had been following them closely, using various terrain features and buildings to conceal her tracks. It was the same now; while she appeared to be selecting items from the display case, she was actually glancing at Natsukawa Tora's direction the whole time.

"You're acting like a stalker or a pervert, Lia."

[As expected of my father, he was able to handle the situation calmly even after being caught following them.]

This should probably be reported to the police...

Ignoring the teasing from her friends and family in her mind, Artoria asked Sajō Aika, "Did you come alone, Sajō-san?"

“No, I came with Tiger. He’s cooking tonight. He’s over there.” Sajou Aika pointed to Natsukawa Tiger, who was picking out meat ingredients not far away.

"Natsukawa-kun is cooking... Do you two live together?"

"No, they're just neighbors. It's just that our parents are often away from home, and it's a bit lonely for one person to be alone, so we usually eat dinner together. We used to eat at my house, but since Tiger is cooking today, we'll eat at his house."

Does eating at the house of the person who cooks the meal mean you eat there?

"Speaking of which, Pendragon, what are you planning to eat tonight? This shelf... is it... fast food bento boxes?"

"Well....."

Artoria glanced hastily at the shipping container behind her, then grabbed a bento box: "After all, I'm not very good at cooking. If I buy ingredients and cook for myself, I probably won't be able to eat it, so I usually eat this."

"I remember Pendragon moved here because of his family's work, right? Don't your family members cook?"

"I live alone, um... they're usually not here because of work."

The description of the somewhat familiar living conditions made Ayaka Sajou fall silent, then she grabbed Artoria's hand: "Well... Pendragon, would you like to come over to our place tonight and have dinner with us?"

"Huh?"

"Like Tiger, I'm also alone at home, which is why we're having dinner together. Since Pendragon is in the same boat, why don't you join us? Even the best food tastes bad when you're alone."

Artoria was taken aback by Ayaka Sajou's sudden invitation.

(Merry, should I accept this invitation?)

[Sure, there's no harm in agreeing. It'll also be a good opportunity to see how His Majesty the King is doing these days. Maybe we can find some clues to help him regain his memories. Plus, it'll be a chance to get close to him. It's all good and bad.]

(I see.)

After receiving an affirmative answer, Artoria immediately asked, "Is it okay? What if Natsukawa-san disagrees?"

"Then let's go talk to him now."

"What do you want to say to me—eh? Pendragon?"

Carrying a bag of groceries, Natsukawa Torato approached Sajou Aika. Just as he was about to ask a question after overhearing their conversation, he noticed Artoria standing to the side and was slightly surprised: "You're here to buy groceries too?"

"Tiger, can Pendragon have dinner with us tonight? She lives alone, just like us."

"I don't really care, I can just buy more ingredients... By the way, Pendragon, where do you live? If we eat at my place, is it a bit far to get back?"

"I don't think so, I live in the Fukayama-cho area."

After thinking for a moment, Artoria revealed the address of the base in reality. Upon hearing the address, Aika Sajou and Torato Natsukawa exchanged surprised glances.

"This...isn't this near my house?"

“I remember it only takes about two minutes to walk there, what a coincidence, Pendragon,” Aika Sajou said with a smile. “But this way, just omelet rice won’t be enough. I’ll go get some other ingredients and make a few more dishes. Toratana, you stay here and keep an eye on things.”

"Buy less, we can't finish cooking too much."

Watching Ayaka Sajou walk away quickly, Natsukawa Tora sighed helplessly: "Sorry, Pendragon, that's just how Ayaka is. She's a little too enthusiastic towards people. Don't mind her."

"It's okay. Compared to some people I've known before, this is quite normal for her. Besides, I'm the one who should apologize. I'm sorry for causing you trouble tonight."

"It's good to have one more person. As Aika said, eating alone can be lonely. Both she and I can relate to this. So, if we were in the same situation as you, I would say the same thing to you."

"Natsukawa Tiger said with a smile."

That was a smile that was somewhat unfamiliar to Artoria. Even in the real world, when looking at Natsukawa Tora smiling like that through Artoria's perspective, Meli and the others also felt a little unfamiliar with him.

So this is how Natsukawa Tora smiled during his student days?

There's a naivety about him that he doesn't have now, unlike the mature and reliable person he is now.

"Speaking of which, you've been quite normal this time."

"Normal? Does that mean I was abnormal before?"

Natsukawa Tora's sudden words made Artoria frown.

"I should have always acted normally."

"Oh, I meant... that time at noon, didn't you say a bunch of weird things to me? You didn't say anything to me this time."

"About the monsters? I was perfectly normal back then, Master. If I had to say, from my perspective, it was you who was abnormal. Of course, I know you had your own situation, so I can understand."

It's started again.

Natsukawa Tora gave a wry smile: "Yes, yes, yes, a monster, right? The one that will appear tonight. I just said you were normal, and you've started acting like a chuunibyou again."

"This isn't chuunibyou, Master. You wouldn't believe me if I told you now, so I'll explain the details after the monster appears tonight and we defeat it."

"Are you starting to give me the role of a comrade-in-arms? Sorry, I'm not interested in chuunibyou or anything like that."

"This is not chuunibyou (middle school syndrome)."

"Yes, yes, whatever you say, Miss Knight."

7. Who are these people who look like a couple?

Xia Chuanhu is now filled with regret, deep regret, extreme regret.

Inviting Artoria to his house for dinner—if he could, he would love to go back in time and strangle the younger version of himself who had agreed to that request.

"Excuse me, Xia Chuan, could you please have another bowl?"

Looking at the rice bowl that was once again placed in front of him, if Natsukawa Tiger remembered correctly, this was the thirtieth time that Artoria had said this.

She ate thirty bowls of rice all by herself!