Shirou, who returned from the Fairy Kingdom

The thought that he might have actually lived with a witch kept popping into the girl's mind.

"..."

As Yu-joo looked out the window, a long-lost passion rekindled in her heart.

But—it cooled down very quickly.

There probably won't be a next time.

Starting tomorrow, I will return to my unchanging life.

Returning to that eternal witch abandoned by the times and forgotten by the world—

"Sorry to bother you today too."

The next day, when Kuonji Yuju opened the door, she saw the red-haired boy again.

"Why..." the girl murmured.

Shirou replied, "The holiday started yesterday, so I don't have to go to school."

A hint of panic crept into Kuonji Yuzu's voice: "That's not what I wanted to ask..."

Shirou tilted his head and thought for a moment: "I feel very comfortable in this room, so I came to bother you again."

"Did you come here specifically by Shinkansen?"

"Yes, may I come in? I brought a gift."

As Shirou spoke, he showed the wagashi (Japanese sweets) he bought this morning at a confectionery shop in Fuyuki.

"........."

After a long silence, Kuonji Yuju composed herself and lowered her beautiful head.

"I'll make tea."

……

……

For the next week, Shirou visited the Kuonji Temple on the mountain every day.

He and Yuju Kuonji would quietly enjoy black tea and sweets in the living room or the sunroom.

Sometimes I turn on the TV, sometimes I don't.

This space was created by the tacit understanding between the two of them.

Shirou and Kuonji Aratsume would only exchange a few words occasionally, letting time slowly pass by.

Shirou also helps clean the house.

Watching the red-haired boy bustling around the house, Kuonji Yuzu felt a complex and subtle mix of emotions.

This is probably what happy times are like.

"Amemiya."

Kuonji Yuju closed the book that was on her lap.

"what happened?"

Shirou turned his attention away from the television program.

The girl said expressionlessly, "Let me tell you about what happened eight years ago... How Orange died, you still care a lot about that, don't you?"

"I do care, but I don't really want to hear it," Shirou said.

Kuonji Yuzuru frowned slightly: "Why?"

Shirou tilted his head and said, "Because after Miss Arisu finished speaking, wouldn't I have no reason to continue visiting?"

“……………………”

The witch felt as if something had pierced her heart.

Volume 2, Chapter 120: Aoko's Lolita Radar is Activated!

"……what."

Kuonji Yuzu stared at Shirou in surprise, covering her lips.

Then—her cheeks flushed rapidly with embarrassment.

"Miss Yuzhu?"

Kuonji Yuju lowered her flushed cheeks, looking as if she wanted to say something but hesitated, and continued drinking her tea.

"Miss Yuzhu?"

"...It's all Amamiya-kun's fault for saying such strange things."

Shirou blinked, puzzled: "???"

"Even without a reason... you can come anytime you want."

Kuonji Yuju shifted her gaze to the side and said softly.

"Is it really possible?"

Kuonji Yuju nodded gently: "Mm."

As far as he knew, witches generally had a very strong sense of territory and usually would not allow others to enter or leave their strongholds.

Since Miss Yuzhu said something like that, it must mean that she already considers me a friend, right? That's wonderful.

Shirou said happily, "Then there's nothing to worry about. Please tell me about Aozaki Touko."

The witch from the mansion put down her teacup, composed herself slightly, and then began her explanation.

"My family, the Kuonji family, is not a magic family, but because my mother was a witch, I was born with the qualities of a witch."

Wow! That's amazing!

Shirou asked curiously, "Then, Miss Arisu, could you also write down what happened in a book and then learn it as magic?"

A hint of surprise flashed in the black eyes of the black-haired girl, then she shook her head.

"No, I can't do that right now... that falls under the category of first-level magic."

"It's amazing you know this. Someone who isn't very knowledgeable about witches wouldn't know this."

Shirou scratched his cheek: "Because I happen to know a magician who's good at this kind of... I guess it's called 'fairy tale magic'?"

"Is that the witch that Amamiya-kun knows?"

Kuonji Yuzu stared intently at Shirou, who nodded.

"That's it..."

The witch pinched her delicate chin, lost in thought.

Shirou said cautiously, "Um, Miss Arisa, the topic seems to have gone a little off track..."

"—It didn't go astray."

Kuonji Yuzu glared fiercely at Shirou.

She seems angry...

"I'd better not interrupt," the boy thought.

"In short, my mother was a witch who could use 'fairy tale magic' to summarize stories as magic."

In the world of witches, she is called "Mainster," the highest-ranking witch.

My father was the eldest son of the Kuonji family. He met my mother while studying in England.

Because of the mother's witch identity, their marriage could only end in tragedy, but the father still married the mother, and the two moved to Japan after their marriage.

At this point, Kuonji Yuju looked around the living room with a nostalgic expression.

This Western-style house was where her parents lived when they were in Japan.

Shirou understood immediately, but he wasn't foolish enough to ask, "Why haven't I seen your parents these past few days?"

The black-haired witch continued.

"My mother died after giving birth to me to fulfill her responsibility of passing on the witch's lineage, and I was raised by my father from a young age."

Then my father passed away more than ten years ago—this mansion is the legacy my parents left me.

After inheriting the mansion, I embarked on the same witch's path as my mother.

Then, at the age of seventeen, I had my first disciple—

That person is Aoko, Touko's biological younger sister.

"How is this going?"

Shirou astutely identified the problem.

Aozaki Touko is already a renowned genius magician who has made her name throughout the Clock Tower, so why is her younger sister also learning magic from Arisu?

And it just so happens that she was 17 years old... almost an adult.

Kuonji Yuju said, "That's right, just as Amamiya-kun thought—"

Orange was the original heir to the Aozaki family's magic, but the heir was later replaced by Aoko.

Because magic is passed down through a single heir, Aoko received no magic training from a young age and was not officially recognized as the successor until she was 15.

Orange, on the other hand, was suddenly disinherited by her younger sister, who was four years her junior and had never been involved in magic before.

"So that's how it is, therefore..."

The fights only happen between the sisters of the Aozaki family.

Then, in the succession dispute, Aozaki Aoko killed her sister.

"The situation of the Aozaki family is rather unique."

"What exactly do you mean?"

“The Aozaki family is a lineage that inherits magic.”

"magic……"

Even before the Holy Grail War began, Shirou had already heard about magic from Machiri.

The magicians of the Age of Gods were able to perform magic that modern magicians cannot perform. Although they are seen by modern magicians as miracles that are infinitely close to magic, they are not true magic.

No matter how powerful a magician from the Age of Gods is, they cannot be considered a magician. There are only five people in the world who can be called magicians.

One of them came from Japan... So it was Aozaki?

Kuonji Yuzu narrowed her eyes: "Do you understand now?"

No matter how outstanding Orange's magical talent may be, it's all insignificant compared to the magic of the Aozaki family.

Next, Kuonji Aratsumi talked about the Aozaki sisters' childhood.

In order to raise Orange as the successor of magic, the two sisters lived separately from a young age.

Aoko was raised by her parents like any other girl, while Touko lived with her grandfather in a magic workshop deep in the mountains and never went to school until she was eighteen.

Although the two sisters often meet and talk, the older sister is a genius girl who doesn't even know the common sense of the outside world.

Even so, she can be considered a good older sister, willing to listen to her younger sister's troubles and offer advice.

Up until this point, they could still be described as a warm and loving pair of sisters.

Compared to Touko, Aoko's abilities are too ordinary, so she doesn't need to be associated with magic. She grows up in the loving care of her gentle parents.

Just as she was preparing to leave the small town for Tokyo to celebrate her youth, she was suddenly told, "Well, the heir of the Aozaki family is still Aoko after all."

Aoko was thus forcibly brought into the world of magic, where she trained as an apprentice magician in the witch's mansion.

On the other hand, Touko severed ties with the Aozaki family and joined the Clock Tower after killing her grandfather.

Orange, a prodigy, quickly rose to prominence in London, achieving the highest de facto rank in the Clock Tower, "Brand," within just a few years.

There are even rumors that she is aiming for the "Grand" rank.