Shirou, who returned from the Fairy Kingdom

Shirou's body was enveloped by a massive surge of magical energy.

His body is now merely a path through which the magic from the Dragon's Furnace passes.

The magic power transformed through breathing travels through the palms to the magic circle, and then is transmitted to the inner side of Ayaka Sajou's body.

Although she may never open her eyes again, Ayaka Sajou's life has been spared for the time being.

For this, we must thank Lion's Robbery Realm.

As soon as Shirou and his crew returned to the surface, Shishigaki provided them with antidote for Hydra venom.

If it had been even a little later, Ai Ge would probably have been beyond saving.

As for why Shishikage possessed the serum of the Divine Serpent...

When accepting the Master's request, this necromancer smuggled formalin containing Hydra larvae from the guild as one of the early rewards for participating in this battle.

Then, after learning that the "black" archer was Chiron and the "red" assassin was Semiramis, he probably anticipated this development and thus prepared the serum in advance.

In the end, the serum saved both Mordred's and Aege's lives.

However, Aege doesn't have the same formidable physique as Mordred (who could stand up even after being hit by a Holy Lance at point-blank range).

In addition, the serum itself has a potency comparable to that of a deadly poison, so even though she was successfully detoxified, Ayaka Sajou did not wake up and her condition continued to deteriorate.

Now she can only barely keep breathing by relying on Shirou to continuously pour powerful dragon magic into her body.

For nearly twelve hours, from late last night until noon today, Shirou stayed by Aika's side, continuously channeling magic into her.

How long can this kind of life extension last...?

“At least go and rest for a while, Mr. Saber.”

A voice came from behind him, but Shirou continued the spell without turning his head.

“...Fiore?”

The girl in the wheelchair said with a worried look, "You haven't rested since you came back last night. Even a Heroic Spirit is probably nearing their limit."

Shirou frowned and said, "You seem to have some misunderstanding about Heroic Spirits. Servants will not be affected even if they don't eat, drink, or sleep."

“That’s true, but isn’t Mr. Saber currently without a Master to provide him with magical energy?”

Fiore emphasized her words.

"It wouldn't be surprising if a Servant who doesn't have a Master to provide magic could disappear at any time."

It's already incredible that you can still exist in the real world, and now you're continuously channeling magic into Miss Aika.

With all due respect, you can only hold on for a maximum of two more hours before your spiritual foundation completely dissipates.

"..."

Shirou knew that Fiore was not exaggerating.

He could feel that the magic he could convert with each breath had become extremely limited.

If he continues to output damage like this, he probably won't last more than a few hours before Shirou's Spirit Origin completely collapses.

However, if Shirou doesn't continuously channel magic into Aika, she definitely won't be able to continue living.

Even if he were criticized for being "unfit to be a savior," he would rather let Aika die in front of him than save the world.

Shirou was mentally prepared to squeeze out every last drop of his magic power.

“Leave this place to us, please go and rest, Mr. Saber.”

New advice has been issued.

Shirou frowned impatiently, turning around to yell at them to get lost, but then he saw an unexpected figure.

—These are the artificial lifeforms that were brought here by Koles and left in the city of Mirania.

Shirou spotted Dul, who was on good terms with him, in the crowd, as well as the android imp he had saved with his sword sheath in the forest.

The one leading the group was not Commander Dur, but another petite, silver-haired girl-type artificial life form.

“Nice to meet you, Lady Saber. My name is Eltsia.”

The girl came over and shook hands.

Shirou noticed that her features were somewhat similar to those of a demon, which is the type of android skilled in magic.

“We have heard about what happened. Please hand Miss Aika over to us and then go and rest.”

We will take turns channeling magic into Miss Aika to maintain her vital signs.

Upon hearing Eltsia's words, Shirou showed a hesitant expression.

What are you hesitating about? Do you not trust our good intentions and think we have ulterior motives?

"No, I didn't mean that..."

"Please understand, even if you are a hero who once saved the world, you are just a novice when it comes to 'being a battery for humanity.' How can you compare to us, who are experienced?"

"Ugh, the magic transfer is so inefficient, so much energy is wasted during the transmission process, it's unbearable to watch... Please move aside!"

"........."

Shirou was overwhelmed by Eltsia's imposing presence and obediently stepped aside.

Eltsia quickly took over his work and began to transfer magic to Aika.

"N-I'm sorry, Mr. Saber..."

The kid looked apologetic, while Duer crossed his arms and wore a slightly mocking expression.

"Let's go, let's not stay here and get in their way."

Duer led Shirou out of the room.

With the help of the androids, Aika could easily survive for a week, she assured Shirou.

"Thank you."

Duer shook his head: "Saber, you don't need to thank me. We are all saved because of you, and that's why we are standing here."

This kindness can never be repaid, and this is hardly a repayment. At least let us do something for you in our final moments.”

At this point, Duer revealed a very complicated expression.

“I really want to do something for Saber... but unfortunately, as a combat-type android, it seems I can’t help at all.”

"........."

Shirou didn't know how to comfort her.

She might have been useful in the previous Holy Grail War, but now that Shirou's enemy has become an angel, the combat-type homunculus has lost its meaning.

"I am already relieved to see that you, Duer, are still alive."

Shirou gazed at the distant sky fortress.

The pitch-black witch's abode has been dyed white, and tens of thousands, even hundreds of thousands of angels fly around it, forming a halo like a satellite ring.

"You're still alive, which at least proves that all my battles so far have been worthwhile."

"Yes, yes..."

For some reason, a slight blush rose to Duer's cheeks.

"Saber, you're so kind, even to a homunculus like me... Waaah!"

"Oh, right! You haven't eaten since last night, have you? Please go to the cafeteria quickly, eat your meal, and then get some rest!"

Shirou was forcibly taken to the cafeteria of Yggdrasil by Doll, who then said she had other work to do and then ran away as if she were escaping.

It was a little past one in the afternoon, and there were hardly any people in the cafeteria, even though it was past lunchtime.

However, this is actually a good thing for Shirou.

He walked through the hall and went straight to the kitchen to prepare his own lunch.

"Hmm? Are there any other people here?"

Upon hearing Shirou's voice, the people in the kitchen poked their heads out.

"Sa...Mr. Saber!!"

The blonde girl's eyes widened, and she put down the things she was holding and rushed towards Shirou, throwing herself into his arms.

"That's wonderful! Really, really... wonderful! I thought I'd never see Mr. Saber again!"

"Well……"

Shirou was at a loss and hesitated for a long time before placing his hand on the blonde girl's shoulder.

"Calm down, Ruler, when did you wake up?"

No, wait... could it be Leticia?

The blonde girl looked up, forcing a smile through her tears.

"Yes, this must be the first time we've met. I am Leticia."

really--

Although they look identical, or rather, they share the same face, Laetitia and Joan of Arc have very different temperaments.

Leticia's expression was somewhat unreliable, and she seemed unable to calm down.

The unease in her eyes revealed that she was indeed an ordinary young girl.

As expected, she should have woken up soon after returning to the ground, and came to help out in the cafeteria because she had nothing else to do.

“Mr. Saber, this must be our first conversation, right? It’s so nice to be able to talk to you.”

Because I've only been able to observe from the sidelines so far... well, that sounds a bit disrespectful to the Holy Maiden.

The girl was somewhat excited, after all, so many things had happened while she was asleep.

The only person she could rely on and trust (Joan of Arc) also disappeared.

Laetitia could only suppress her inner unease through labor.

It wasn't until she saw Shirou again that she finally felt relieved, which is why she showed such a positive attitude.

"Me too, I've been wanting to talk to you for a while, but more important than this..."

"Laetitia, could you prepare something to eat for me?"

Shirou said somewhat embarrassedly that he hadn't felt hungry before entering the cafeteria.

The girl rolled her eyes, then said cheerfully, "Okay! Leave it to me!"

I've been so busy I haven't had lunch yet, let's eat together later!

"Oh, okay, I'll help too..."

"Mr. Saber, please go to a seat outside and rest!"

He was kicked out of the kitchen.

Fifteen minutes later, Leticia came out carrying a large pot of stew.

"Awaited."

"Actually, we didn't wait that long."

"Because I heard that Mr. Saber has a big appetite, I specially prepared a big pot... There will be more if it's not enough."

"No, that's enough."

Shirou clicked his tongue as he looked at the enormous cauldron, which resembled a witch's cauldron.

"That one, the one rumored to have a huge appetite is probably another Saber."

He pictured Xiao Mo devouring food in the cafeteria.

"Huh...is that so? Oh, I'm sorry...I made a mistake."

"It's okay, I'll try my best to finish it."

Please don't force yourself.

Leticia said with a frustrated look.

During lunch, Shirou learned some things from Leticia.