Chapter Fourteen: Embrace Darkness or Take the Machete—Choose One

Chapter Fourteen: Darkness or the Cleaver—Choose One

“Eh? Wait, that’s not right! Why are you living in our house?” Shirou Emiya felt that if he didn’t protest immediately, things would spiral out of control.

“Where’s my room? If there’s no preparation, I’ll just pick one myself,” Rin Tohsaka said, surveying the empty guest rooms as if she were choosing a guest room in her own home.

“Ah... wait, hold on, um…” Shirou wondered if there was some scheme at play. Could it be possible? Rin Tohsaka was the school idol, after all. Just having someone like her living in his house would throw him into a panic. If she stayed, he might lose his mind—or worse, get killed by Fujimura-san. Could she be planning to drive him insane so that one less Master would remain?

“Ah, should we also prepare rooms for them? Saber and my Archer definitely need space, so they’ll need places to sleep. But if you want to share a room, that’s fine too. If you want, Archer can even lend you his room,” Rin said after selecting a room and placing her suitcase inside.

For a moment, Shirou glanced over at Lolita, who still wore a pitiful expression, and felt a flicker of hope. But recalling her terrifying combat ability, he quickly calmed down. Damn it, is she trying to lure me into a trap? I’m not falling for it.

“N-no way, you idiot! It’s one thing for Rin and Archer to share a room since they’re both girls, but I could never do that! Saber is a girl, after all!” Shirou exaggeratedly waved his arms as he spoke.

“You hit the key point, but Saber, Shirou, are you really okay with changing how you address me so quickly? I don’t like sharing a room with girls,” Rin said to Shirou with a teasing smile.

“This is troubling, Shirou. A Servant must protect their Master. The time when you sleep is when you must be most vigilant. If we’re not in the same room, I can’t protect you,” Saber said, suddenly appearing behind Shirou at the doorway with a complicated expression.

“That just makes me more troubled! What are you all thinking? How can that be considered ‘female’?” Shirou retorted.

“...” Rin Tohsaka was speechless.

“...” Saber, who ignored gender distinctions, was silent.

“...” Lolita, who had just been startled by Shirou, was also silent.

I say! Why do you three silently stare at me at a time like this?

Shirou Emiya, after all, was not a scoundrel. Even though he had only recently become acquainted with these girls, he couldn’t bring himself to share a bed with any of them, no matter how much they insisted.

“Hmph, a Servant is just a Servant. There’s no need to treat them as human. But I guess it’s useless to say that to Shirou?” Rin said, preparing to argue further. But Shirou suddenly realized where this strange feeling had come from.

“Wait, Rin. Since when did you stop using honorifics when addressing me?”

“Huh? Is that so? I hadn’t noticed. Haven’t I been like this for a long time?” Rin replied with a sly grin...

“It’s fine, do as you like. Just get used to hearing ‘Tohsaka’ from now on.” Shirou knew he would lose any argument with Rin, so he stepped back at that moment.

“Is that so? Then so be it.”

“Rin, I hope you won’t interrupt. We haven’t yet reached a conclusion about the room arrangement for me and Shirou,” Saber interjected.

“Oh, I see. But from the looks of it, Shirou sharing a room will be difficult. Even if we treat Servants as humans, it’s not a good thing. If Shirou dislikes it, then we should just give up, right?” Rin said to Saber.

“No. Shirou said he’s troubled, not that he hates it,” Saber insisted.

“Aren’t those two words basically the same here?” Rin retorted.

“Shirou, what do you think?” Saber turned to face Shirou.

“...” Under their piercing gazes, Shirou felt the pressure mount immensely.

———

The room arrangements took a long time to settle. After over an hour of argument between Rin and Saber, Shirou firmly insisted that Saber stay in the room next to his. Lolita and Illyasviel would stay next to Saber, and Rin would be next to Lolita.

The two had worn Shirou out completely. He was nearly on the verge of collapse. Saber was one thing, but Rin—she was definitely enjoying herself by stirring up trouble!

Biting down hard on a piece of meat, Shirou shot a furious glare at Rin beside him.

Sensing this, Rin smirked provocatively, her gaze flicking meaningfully between Saber and Shirou.

Damn that sly vixen. If Saber ends up living in my room, I’m certain Fujimura-san wouldn’t hesitate to kill me.

Lolita sat nearby eating, with Illyasviel clinging tightly to her as she had all day, refusing to let go. Seriously, she’s been attached all day long! Is it really okay for her to cling even when walking? Loosening Archer wouldn’t make him disappear!

Lolita ate her meal in a foul mood, with Illyasviel eating in her arms. It wasn’t that Lolita couldn’t throw Illyasviel out of her lap—throwing her out only resulted in the little silver-haired girl wailing and sobbing, her pitiful, tear-streaked face breaking Lolita’s heart. This fragile image shattered any resolve Lolita had to crush the fantasy within this little girl that her mother was still alive. So Lolita decided to play along as her mother for a while, slowly guiding Illyasviel to let go and then leave.

“By the way, Shirou, don’t lay a hand on Mom, Rin, Saber, or me tonight!” Illyasviel suddenly looked up and said.

That girl’s definitely doing it on purpose! Shirou glared angrily at Illyasviel. But Rin suddenly burst out laughing and sprayed food all over Shirou’s face. Saber simply didn’t understand Illyasviel’s words.

“Here, Mom, eat some meat!” Illyasviel stuffed a piece of meat into Lolita’s mouth, who had been frozen by Illyasviel’s words.

“Ugh,” Lolita’s eyes glistened with unshed tears as she chewed.

After wiping his face, Shirou and Rin exchanged confused glances. Could it be that Archer was like this because she had never been cared for like this before? Or was she recalling some past sorrow?

Illyasviel was indeed filial, that much Lolita knew and accepted. But ugh, no more fighting from now on. From now on, I’ll just KO the enemy outright, reduce them to rubble, and leave without looking back. What kind of cursed fate is this? The great eighth-rank warrior Redona Lolita is stumped by a silver-haired little girl not even ranked at one! How am I supposed to bear this? Ugh...

———

Shirou couldn’t help but glance repeatedly at Archer and Illyasviel, recalling what Rin had said that morning: “Listen carefully, Shirou. That girl’s mastery ability is on a different level from mine. Berserker-class Servants are generally weak and uncontrollable after entering a berserk state, even for their original Masters. But Illyasviel summoned a top-tier Servant and can fully command him even in his berserk state. If we come into conflict with her, we will lose. Although Illyasviel suddenly called Archer ‘Mom’ and spared us for some unknown reason, there’s definitely something wrong here. We could have dealt with her that very night without fabricating such a clumsy lie, but we mustn’t lower our guard easily. Maybe Archer just happens to look like Illyasviel’s actual mother, causing the confusion. In that case, we should pray she never finds out Archer isn’t her mother; otherwise, if Berserker suddenly goes berserk, we won’t be able to handle it. Of course, Archer can handle Berserker, but I’m not sure if she’d strike at Illyasviel…”

“I’ve already told Archer to stay close to Illyasviel at all times, watching her and doing her best to play the role of ‘Mom.’ Of course, this kind of deception is fragile, especially since the girl is so... well, let’s just say don’t expect too much from Archer. Also, always keep Saber nearby. That way, if Berserker attacks you, Saber can hold him off just long enough for me and Archer to arrive.”

Thinking this over, Shirou silently apologized to Rin. He had softened when he saw Illyasviel clinging desperately to a terrified Archer and allowed her to stay. But the consequences were severe. Although he was certain she could have easily killed them the previous night, he had let her stay with a “damned if I do, damned if I don’t” attitude. Now that the immediate danger had passed, he couldn’t help but start thinking about how to break free from Illyasviel’s control.

Though Archer could kill Berserker instantly, he couldn’t be sure if Illyasviel and Berserker might team up. Rin had mentioned that Archer could survive independently without relying on Master’s mana.

Ugh, this is so frustrating!

“Well, Shirou, don’t worry too much. If it comes to that, Archer will be the first to kill Illyasviel,” Rin suddenly whispered close to him.

You’re lying. You’re definitely lying. As a Servant, there’s no way Archer would be able to strike. When Saber brought Illyasviel home last night, she kept suggesting the same thing. To think like oneself—Archer, also a Servant, must be thinking the same.

But “after a Master dies, unless the Servant’s mana is depleted, they do not immediately vanish.” Just during that time, Berserker could have killed us. Rin, you told me this yourself...

Damn it, Saber and I are in serious danger. What should I do?

Perhaps Shirou was a hopeless saint, but he was no fool.

When threatened, even a saint would take up a cleaver and deal with the brat himself. Don’t think darkness is exclusive to girls! Men’s descent into darkness can be even more terrifying!

Illyasviel’s presence indeed threatened the safety of both him and Saber. In a fight they couldn’t win, she absolutely could not remain in the Emiya household.

In that case... there was only one option...

*Ding dong.*

“Shirou~ I’m here for dinner~”

Fujimura’s footsteps clicked as she arrived.

“Huh?!!! It’s Saturday, so why is Fujimura-san here?” Shirou’s mind suddenly went blank.

“Shirou, dinner…”

Shirou felt that today might be a very unlucky day.

P.S.: The title refers to Fujimura-san!