To become a king and a magician

"Hold hands, go hold hands, Lydia! How can you be twenty-eight years old and still be as shy as a high school teenager?"

Seeing Mary's disappointed expression, Grey couldn't help but advise, "Um... Mary, you're attracting other people's attention by doing this. Try to tone it down."

"It's alright, it's alright. I used illusion magic to completely conceal the two of us. To outsiders, we just look like we're leaning against a telephone pole."

Meryl waved her hand dismissively, her gaze still fixed on Natsukawa Tora and Lydia walking among the crowd.

Invite Natsukawa Tora to a date.

Although she eventually managed to drag Natsukawa Tora out of the room under the pretext of "taking Lydia out to see the surroundings," looking at the two people in front of her who were keeping a certain distance, Meryl wished she could push Lydia aside herself and demonstrate to her what a real "date" was like.

Meanwhile, on the other side, Natsukawa Tora and Lydia...

(I have absolutely no idea what to say, this is a little awkward...)

At this moment, Natsukawa Torato's mind was filled with the image of Lydia sleeping that he had accidentally stumbled upon. Although rationally he wanted to forget it, his brain honestly preserved that scene and kept replaying it on a loop.

This has led to Natsukawa Tora now glancing at Lydia frantically from the corner of his eye, even when he's not looking directly at her.

"Have you seen enough?"

Suddenly, Lydel leaned slightly toward Natsukawa Tora and whispered in his ear.

Was discovered.

"Uh... that... I..."

"If you haven't seen enough, is this distance enough? You should be able to see it more clearly now, right?" Lydia chuckled. "You've been glancing at me out of the corner of your eye since earlier. This isn't like you. We've been shopping together like this so many times, and you're only now getting smitten? Aren't you a little slow?"

"No, it's just a personal matter. I had some dreams that were not suitable for children last night."

Lidel's teasing made Natsukawa Tora relax involuntarily and crack a small joke in return.

"But to my surprise, you actually wanted me to take you out to see the surroundings. I thought you were already familiar with this place over the past few years."

Because she would go shopping with Natsukawa Tora every time she came back, Lydia would often come to the area near the apartment.

Lidel paused briefly in front of a shop, bending down to look at the necklace displayed as an exhibit.

"I wouldn't say I'm familiar with it, I just remember how to get there. But I'll be living there for a long time, so knowing how to get there isn't enough—what do you think of this necklace?"

Looking at the necklace decorated with pink hearts, Natsukawa Tiger said bluntly, "Excuse me for being blunt, but you're almost thirty, so stop pretending to be a little girl."

"How rude of me! Although it's true that I'm turning into an old auntie, I still feel like a young girl."

"If we only consider appearance and personality..."

Because of her good maintenance and her skill in making potions, Lydia still looks no different from a girl in her early twenties. Even if she wore a school uniform to school, probably no one would suspect anything.

"To be honest, I think you're just using the excuse of getting me to go shopping with you, right?"

"You're only realizing it now?"

"Didn't we just go shopping in Karnak yesterday? Why do you women love shopping so much?"

Regardless of the world, Natsukawa Tiger always felt that women had a strange obsession with shopping. Even women who were usually so delicate that they couldn't run two laps would have inexhaustible energy once they started shopping.

It's just outrageous.

After a moment of silence, Lydel approached Natsukawa Tora, turned her head to the side with the classic Shinbo angle, and smiled, "Well, rather than saying I like shopping, I like the atmosphere of doing things with people. With my best friends, or with men I like. If I go shopping alone, even I get bored very quickly."

"So why don't you go find your best friend? Lily's got nothing better to do, right? At the very least, don't you have many friends at the Clock Tower?"

(Is this guy genuinely stupid or just pretending?)

The process of elimination! Using the process of elimination, you can see why I brought you along! How could you even ask such a question?! Where's your usually incredibly sharp brain? It needs to step up its game at times like this!

Seeing Natsukawa Tora's face filled with reluctance, Lydia felt a wave of exhaustion.

"Merry said she had to clean, and as for the people in the Clock Tower... it was less about shopping with them and more about scheming against each other. I tried not to bring politics into my daily life."

After telling a half-truth, Lydel looked at Natsukawa Torato and asked, "Speaking of which, is there anywhere you'd like to go?"

"No. Besides, wasn't it you who wanted to come out?"

"That's true, but I'm also curious about where you usually go. Come to think of it, even though we've known each other for a long time, I don't really know you that well. I'm a little curious."

You can roughly guess a person's preferences by where they often go. In addition to the usual fan service, gift operations at specific times are also necessary - this is Merry's brilliant plan!

Natsukawa Tiger recalled the places he usually frequented: "I basically go back and forth between my apartment, the supermarket, and the clock tower. When my hair gets long, I go to the barbershop, and occasionally I go to bookstores and amusement parks."

"You really don't have many hobbies..."

“After all, I have so much to do every day, plus the preparations for the sacrificial ceremony, where would I find the time—oh, right, speaking of which, it’s been a while since I’ve been there. Lydel, are you busy next?”

"It's nothing. What's wrong, is there somewhere you want to go?"

"Yeah, it's a bit far. If I go now, I probably won't be back until evening. Also, I need to buy some things before I go."

Want to buy something?

Visiting a friend?

With a hint of doubt, Lydia smiled and said, "It's alright, we can keep each other company today. Wherever I want to go, you'll come with me, and wherever you want to go, I'll go with you."

"Something about what you're saying sounds weird."

"Is there?"

6. Revisiting an old haunt

Glastonbury.

The sleeping place of a certain king.

After preparing lunch and buying some things, Natsukawa Torato and Lydia arrived at noon.

"Glastonbury...this is the place you wanted to come to?"

Looking at the lawn in front of her, which was crowded with tourists and pedestrians, Lydia looked at Natsukawa Tiger with some confusion.

What are you doing here?

Ignoring Lydia, Natsukawa Tiger simply bought a bouquet of flowers from a roadside vendor, then proceeded to the somewhat dilapidated building inside.

No.

To be precise, we arrived at a simple tombstone.

HicjacetArthurusRexquondamRexquefuturus (The Eternal King Arthur rests here)

"King Arthur's tomb?"

Looking at the epitaph, Lydia turned her attention back to Natsukawa Tora.

"You've come to pay respects at King Arthur's grave?"

"In terms of the outcome, I guess so, although I was just here to visit a friend." Natsukawa Tora chuckled, then bent down and placed the flowers in front of the grave. "Long time no see, Arthur. I've been very busy lately, and I was in Japan for the past six months. I'm sorry I haven't been able to come—even if I said that, you wouldn't hear me, would you?"

Talking to oneself? Talking to thin air?

Lydia frowned but didn't say anything. Her intuition told her that it was best not to disturb Natsukawa Tora right now.

Natsukawa Tora's soliloquy didn't last long. After talking about his own affairs and some things that happened in his daily life, he led Lydia to sit down next to a big tree not far away.

Holding a sandwich, Lydia sat on the picnic blanket, gazing at the peaceful surroundings.

The weather is great today, a sunny day. Although it's a bit chilly, it's not cold at midday. Sitting under the tree, feeling the breeze on my face, is surprisingly comfortable.

"This is a really nice place."

"Right? If possible, I'd like to settle down here when I'm seventy or eighty years old and become an old man."

"You're only twenty-one and you're already thinking about things so far into the future? Try to be a little more positive," Lydia chuckled. "So—what were you doing just now? Were you communicating with a spirit? Summoning the soul of the deceased King Arthur to speak with him?"

"No, no, no, that's not how it is at all. I was just talking to myself. If I had to put it in a way, it would be a one-sided outpouring of my feelings."

Xia Chuanhu took a sip of water as he spoke.

"Didn't I mention to you before that I participated in the Holy Grail War? Before I came to the Clock Tower."

"correct."

That happened two years ago. On the plane back to London from Paris, due to unforeseen circumstances, Natsukawa Torato explained some of the events that occurred during the Holy Grail War.

"I remember you summoned Saber."

“That was actually King Arthur,” Natsukawa Torama laughed. “I summoned King Arthur, became his Master, fought alongside him, and ultimately survived. You could say that the reason I became a magician was because of my encounter with him. He changed my life.”

"I consider our relationship to be that of comrades who can trust each other and the most important friends. So after coming to the UK, I would occasionally come to see him like today and talk about some of my experiences. Well, it's a way of reminiscing about the past."

Looking at Natsukawa Tora's unprecedentedly relaxed smile, Lydia remained silent for a moment, then arched her legs and leaned on Natsukawa Tora's shoulder.

Before Natsukawa Tiger could say anything, Lydia spoke first: "So, are you still fixated on your past with him?"

“How could that be?” Natsukawa Tora shook his head. “The Holy Grail War was indeed a very important experience in my life, but even if the Holy Grail War is over, life goes on. Time is not forgiving enough to allow me to stay in the past forever.”

“He has saved me many times. So I’ve decided that for the rest of my life, within the reach of these hands, I will use this life I’ve saved to help others as much as possible.”

"So, that means... [Partners of Justice]?"

Lydia's analogy made Natsukawa Tiger laugh: "Hahaha, no way, I don't have such grand ambitions. All I can do is respond to people who ask me for help, or help those in need. In the end, that's all I can do."

Lying on his back, Natsukawa Tora stretched out his hand towards the sky.

(This choice, surely it won't be in vain for the life you gave me, Arthur.)

Just as Natsukawa Tiger was thinking this, Lydia suddenly reached out and grabbed Natsukawa Tiger's hand.

"Lydel?"

"Your words are definitely fine."

Looking at Natsukawa Tora with gentle eyes, Lydia chuckled and said, "I don't know why, but I just suddenly felt like saying that."

"Huh, what's this all about?"

"I find it quite strange myself."

After laughing twice, Lydia stood up and patted her skirt: "So, are we going back? Considering the return trip, we should be able to have dinner when we get back."

"Okay."

He stood up as well, packed away the picnic blanket and the sandwich box, and was about to walk down the path with Lydia when a figure walking towards him suddenly made him freeze in shock.

That was a woman.