To become a king and a magician

However, Merlin was in Servant form at the time, and the breaking of the cage only meant his departure. But Merlin was the real Merlin... No matter how many tricks she had up her sleeve, Natsukawa Torato didn't want to put her in danger.

He didn't want anything to happen to Meryl.

Meili was silent for a while, then smiled gently: "Of course I know it's dangerous, but... the world is about to end, and I want to help in my own way. To be more specific, I want to help His Majesty the King and relieve some of your pressure. Otherwise, wouldn't I seem unworthy of the title of court magician?"

"You're only putting more pressure on me, making me worry all the time about whether something will happen to you over there."

"Hey~~~~~ Do you really think I'm such a frail person who needs your worry? Tiger, why are you acting like a male mom?" Meryl sighed. "Well, I can understand your thoughts, but... how should I put it, my thoughts are the same as yours, Tiger."

"Watching your loved one fight to the death while you can only wait for him to return at home—this feeling is surprisingly bad. It's not just me; Aoko and the others feel the same way. They've all thought about how to help you in their own way."

"Or do you want to get a good scolding from Aoko again? Just like that time in the parallel world a long time ago?"

(Well... that's only about 10%, no, 20% of the reason. The remaining 80% is mainly to see if my involvement can make the situation more interesting.)

"..."

Natsukawa Tora didn't speak, but silently stared into Meryl's eyes. After a long while, he released the materialized chains and said, "You mustn't get hurt—promise me you can do that, and I'll let you go."

Stopping Meryl is useless. Even if Meryl verbally agrees now, she will definitely sneak away later, unless he is willing to imprison her here forever. But even a fool knows that Natsukawa Tiger will not really imprison her.

So in the end, he could only let her do as she pleased.

Getting out of bed, Meili went to Xia Chuanhu, put her arms around his neck and kissed him on the cheek: "Don't worry, I will definitely be fine. I'm still waiting for you, Your Majesty, to kneel down and propose to me in front of everyone after everything has settled down."

"Besides, although it's said that I'm going there, I actually plan to go with Merlin as a Servant. It'll be easier if the two of us go together. I'm not going to do something so tiring by myself. I've also contacted Arcueid, so it's actually a three-way collaboration. And I'll be staying in Avalon watching the show the whole time... Eh? Tiger, why is your face darkening?"

"I was so worried about you, and it turns out you had everything planned out all along?" Xia Chuanhu grabbed Meili's hands that were wrapped around his neck tightly. "So you had all your escape routes prepared from the beginning, and I was worried about you for nothing?"

Meili glanced away awkwardly: "Hmm... well, you could say that, but it's also your fault for refusing right away without listening to my explanation. Besides, you know I like to keep things under control. I guess you were just too concerned—no, thinking about it this way, I actually benefited, since you were so concerned about me. Hmm, I can brag about this to Aoko and the others when we get back."

"......"

After a pause, Natsukawa Tora suddenly took a deep breath—

"Okay, Mary, you go to bed right now and lie down, right now."

"Huh? Huh? Why are you suddenly going into adult content? And it's still daytime, it's noon! And why are your eyes starting to glow red?!"

Before she could finish speaking, Mary's lips were sealed with a kiss.

(Oh no, tomorrow's training will probably have to be canceled.)

This is the only thought in Meryl's mind right now.

33. Limited Time Offer: Magical Little Chef Merry-chan

"Did your brother ask you to go to his room during dinner?"

Inside the dining hall of Chaldea.

Hearing what Fujimaru Ritsuka, who had suddenly appeared here, said, Gray frowned in confusion.

Why would my brother say that?

"I don't know either, that's why I came to ask Miss Gray." Fujimaru Ritsuka leaned on the table in the cafeteria's back kitchen. "Could it be that the club president is planning to do something bad to me? To use his power as club president to force me to submit to him... or something."

"Brother wouldn't do such a thing, Fujimaru, you're overthinking it."

After giving a wry smile at Fujimaru Ritsuka's overly divergent thoughts, Gray put down the cutlery she had just wiped: "But there are indeed some problems. Because you used to attract women for no reason, you've been very careful about your interactions with the opposite sex over the years—did anything happen before you told me this?"

"I don't think so... It's just that I tattled on Ms. Meryl's training because it was so morbid."

"It's related to Sister Meryl? Oh, I see."

Grey, who was initially a little confused, suddenly understood. Fujimaru Ritsuka, seeing this, couldn't help but have even more questions. Why did Grey understand everything as soon as it was mentioned that it was related to Ms. Merry?

"Fujimaru, um... I think my brother probably didn't express himself well. He was probably too preoccupied with his dissatisfaction with Merry. I think what he really meant was, 'Come to my room tonight, and I'll apologize to you properly on Merry's behalf'—that's roughly what he meant."

"As for why you should come over during dinner time, I think your brother wants to treat you to dinner."

Grey knows her brother well. If they had met directly in the cafeteria, some unfounded rumors would probably have started circulating in Chaldea by today, not even until the next day.

Hearing Gray's explanation, Fujimaru Ritsuka nodded: "Hmm... I see. Thank you, Gray. You're really amazing; you were able to deduce all of the minister's thoughts directly from his words."

Amazing, right?

Grey smiled and said, "After all, I've known my brother for almost twenty years. If I didn't even know him this well, I wouldn't be his sister."

“Sister... Miss Grey and the Minister, I don’t think you’re related by blood, right? Your hair colors are completely different.”

"Yes, they are brother and sister, Jiri. I was brought out of the village by my brother when I was about six years old."

Six years old?!

Fujimaru Ritsuka's expression froze instantly: "Um... Miss Gray, how old are you this year?"

"Twenty-five years old."

"..."

She's already 25 years old?!

Although she addresses Grey as "Miss," judging from Grey's appearance, Fujimaru Ritsuka thought she was about the same age as herself... How come the captain and his sister's appearances and ages don't match at all!

Fujimaru Ritsuka expressed her envy, saying that no girl would not want to stay young and beautiful forever.

"However, at six years old... why was Miss Grey taken away from the village by the minister at such a young age?"

"That's a long story..."

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

Time flies.

When Xia Chuanhu opened his eyes in bed, the clock on the bedside table showed that it was 5:30 pm.

(As a result, the entire afternoon was spent satisfying Mary...)

Beside him, Merry, who had woken up from her dream along with Natsukawa Tora, stretched lazily as if she had had a good sleep and didn't care that she wasn't wearing any clothes.

"Hmm~~~~~ I really ate my fill this time. Although it was supposed to be a punishment, it was actually just a reward for others in the end. Your Majesty is really two-faced."

"I want you to manage."

This has become a kind of regular routine between the two of them. Every time Merry gets caught causing trouble, Natsukawa Tiger initially thinks about punishing her, but in the end, it always turns into the two of them rolling around in bed together. And later on, it even happens in his dreams, just like this time.

Sometimes it was Melly who seduced him, and sometimes it was Natsukawa Tora who couldn't control himself... In short, the situations varied, which is probably the fundamental reason why Melly always "humbly accepts but never repents".

After picking up her clothes from the floor and putting them on, and tidying herself up in front of the mirror, Mary turned around and asked, "Speaking of which, you said you wanted Ritsuka to come over for dinner... Could it be that you're finally planning to make a move?"

"Huh? What are you thinking? It's just an apology. You've made her suffer so much, shouldn't I make amends for you? Also, you should apologize to me properly later."

"How boring~~~ Even though that's true, they've really toned it down a lot. They didn't even bring out half of the level they used when they were training you."

"If you were asked to take it out, that would be terrible!"

How was Natsukawa Tora trained by Merry during his student days?

Even now, he finds it a bit excessive to think about it. She would launch sneak attacks at the drop of a hat, and always with the intention of killing him. If this were applied to Fujimaru Ritsuka, she would be on Roman's operating table in no more than half an hour.

However, since it was a direct order from their own king, and it was just an apology, Mary wasn't unwilling: "So, how exactly do you want me to apologize? Do you want people to wrap you up with red ribbons and tie a bow at your chest?"

"What do you take me for... I just made dinner for Fujimaru."

As Xia Chuanhu spoke, he clapped his hands, and the entire room's layout instantly changed, transforming it into a kitchen.

"Using imagination to materialize a kitchen's 'shell' and then fitting it onto the original space? Your Majesty is getting more and more capable, huh? Well then, I'll play along."

After saying that, Mary spun around on the spot, and the robe she had worn for who knows how many years instantly transformed into an adorable chef's uniform. She then gave Natsukawa Tora a peace sign.

"Ta-da~~~ It's the magical little chef, Merry-chan! How is she, my dear? Isn't she cute?"

"You're so cute, I want to marry you."

Natsukawa Tora praised him sincerely.

And at that very moment—

"Brother, are you inside? Fujimaru and I are here."

Grey's voice came from outside.

After tidying themselves up, Natsukawa Tiger and Merry exchanged a glance, then got up, went to the door, and opened it. Like a knight, they gave a very elegant bow to the two people outside.

"Welcome to Camelot Restaurant, Your Highnesses."

34. "Sataka Rei is Working Overtime"

Fujimaru Ritsuka felt like she was dreaming.

Most girls dream of being princesses, hoping to meet a handsome prince on a white horse.

Now, Fujimaru Ritsuka feels that her princess dream has largely come true, and the prince on white horse who appears before her is even more handsome than the one she dreamed of when she was a child.

In the room that had been transformed into a kitchen by the embodiment of fantasy, Fujimaru Ritsuka sat at the dining table watching Natsukawa Toramaru busy at work and couldn't help but feel a little uneasy. A strange sense of tension began to spread through her heart.

"Relax, Fujimaru, there's no need to be so tense."

Grey patted her on the shoulder: "Just like I said, your brother only asked you to come here to treat you to a meal."

"Yes, I know, but... uh, it feels like I've entered a fancy restaurant, which makes me a little uncomfortable. Would it be better if I went back and changed into a formal dress?"

"In that case, someone else can do it for you."

"Alright, Your Highnesses," said Meryl with a smile, bringing over a freshly prepared appetizer. "This is Sun Knight-style mashed potatoes. Please enjoy."

"Thank you, Sister Meryl."

"Ah... thank you, Ms. Meryl."

“You’re welcome, you’re welcome. But instead of that, how about we try what they just said?” Meryl asked. “Although it’s essentially just an illusion that changes the appearance of your clothes, it doesn’t actually change your clothes.”

Ms. Meryl is an expert in illusion. According to her, even the magic king Solomon is no match for her in illusion.

After taking a bite of mashed potatoes, Fujimaru Ritsuka thought for a moment and said, "Then... I'll have to trouble you, teacher."

"OK~~~~Then—"

Meryl produced a huge curtain from somewhere, large enough to cover a person entirely, and covered Fujimaru Ritsuka completely. After drawing a few circles on the top, she gently snapped her fingers.

"Snapped!"

The curtain vanished instantly, and Fujimaru Ritsuka reappeared from within it. Her Chaldea uniform was gone, replaced by a white, form-fitting, off-the-shoulder dress.