Fate/Gamer Night – SE 009

[EMIYA SHIROU]
[THE GAMER]
[LV 25 – 1300/25000]
[HP: 2500][MP: 35][MC: 27][ST: 810 ][SP: 10]
[STR: 41][DEX: 42][INT: 22][WIS: 31][CHR: 77]

When Shirou woke up the next morning, Yoruichi was nowhere to be found.

Granted, he expected no less since she was no longer trying to tempt him to eat her while she slept, but only now he realized that he had grown accustomed to having her as a bedfellow.

Even though it was bad for Shirou’s budding hormones, there was something to be said about waking up in the arms of a stunningly beautiful naked woman.

If someone had told him just a few weeks ago that he would have missed even slightly being teased into a puddle, Shirou would have been… skeptical, to say the least.

Well, there was no use mulling over it. Besides he had more important things to think about, namely what Yoruichi had told him about Kiritsugu.

Apparently, his adoptive father had been a sort of boogeyman in the Moonlit World. Not quite a hitman, but at least someone whose appearance made you wonder who would bite it next.

If you saw him coming at all.

The Magus Killer did not discriminate. He killed who he needed to kill, regardless of things such as age and gender. Or even just if said target had it coming, for one reason or another.

Shirou had a hard time reconciling that knowledge with the man who spilled tears of joy at having saved a single life.

He didn’t think Yoruichi had lied to him and had he been any less smart, maybe he would have felt betrayed.

Instead, for the previous few days he was merely contemplative.

He already knew that Kiritsugu had wanted to become a hero, but ended up facing the reality that not everyone could be saved, that no matter how much power you had, you could only save the people you sided with. That even god could only save so many.

He knew that, because Kiritsugu had told him, but how had the man himself found out, if not by trying and failing?

If Shirou hadn’t been told, if he hadn’t known and accepted from the beginning the impossibility of it all, would disappointment and disillusionment have turned him down a similar path, given enough time?

There was no knowing it now, but he decided to believe that his father had been trying his best, even if he could never completely understand his reasoning.

[+2 WIS for accepting what you cannot understand]

“Heh,” he scoffed. Trust his dumb ability to pitch in like that.

Speaking of his ability, lately he had stopped with his morning physical routine. His training regimen no longer bore any discernible fruit. He could spend entire days doing push ups or running and he would maybe get a single point in Strength and Dexterity in the span of a week.

He considered going to a gym, where he supposed he’d have double gains in physical stats just like a library did for Intelligence, but Shirou didn’t think it would be a good thing benching several time his weight in public. Not for a lean-looking ten-years-old anyway.

He considered buying weights and make his own gym in one of the many unused rooms in the house but good equipment cost a lot of money and Shirou’s budget was tight. Kiritsugu had left him enough money to tide over until he was old enough to get himself a job and his finances were of course being watched over by Taiga. There was no way he could justify that kind of expense when joining a gym was so much cheaper.

Maybe he needed to find himself an employment? But who would hire a kid his age? Even if could convince someone to give him a job using his Charisma, it remained the fact that hiring someone that young was flat out illegal.

Of course Shirou wouldn’t want to put someone in trouble with the law for his benefit.

[Presence detected. Distance: 0.2 meters. Direction: 6 o’clock]

“Penny for your thoughts?” Yoruichi silk-like voice whispered right in his ear.

Shirou didn’t jump out of his own skin only because he had received the alert from his [Detect Presence] skill. Still, Yoruichi’s warm breath on his skin shivers down his spine.

“I was thinking about looking for a job.”

Yoruichi sighed. “You ever consider doing something fun sometimes? All I ever see you doing outside of school is cooking, training and helping people around town. Now you want to find a job too? Your hair are going to turn white like an old man’s at this rate.”

“For your information, I happen to enjoy cooking and helping out. More importantly, if my hair are going to turn white anytime soon you’ll be the one to blame.”

“How rude. I’m doing you a favor by hanging around and keeping you on your toes.”

Shirou threw her a glance that said wonders about what he thought of that. Yoruichi chuckled and ruffled his hair playfully.

It looked like that just like Shirou wasn’t getting used to Yoruichi being herself, she wasn’t getting tired of pulling his chain.

“Anyway, if it’s a job you’re looking for, I have just the thing for you.”

“Huh? What is it?”

“Shirooou~!” Taiga called out as she stepped into the living room. “Is breakfast ready?”

Shirou whirled around to stop Taiga and give Yoruichi enough time to hide, only to find that his sister had already stepped into the living room and was looking straight at him, right until she looked down at his feet.

“Ah! Neko!”

Shirou looked down just to see Yoruichi’s cat form sitting between his legs.

“Shirou, where did you find this cat?” she asked as she picked Yoruichi up from the ground.

“It’s so cute.”

The cat look at Taiga impassively.

After a moment Yoruichi jumped toward Shirou who readily caught her, if only because he had lightning fast reflexes.

“What the hell are you doing?” he hissed under his breath.

Yoruichi didn’t answer, being a cat and all. Instead she curled into his arms and started purring up a storm.

Taiga’s eyes turned serious as she looked from the cat up to Shirou and back.

“I don’t think I like this cat, after all. Throw it out, Shirou.”

“Sorry, can’t do that Taiga. I’m… keeping her for a friend that had to leave the country for a while.”

Taiga seemed like she wanted to ask who this friend was, but refrained at the last moment. At that point it time, being renown as someone who did favors to anyone who’d ask really came in handy to justify many odd circumstances without going in too much detail.

“It won’t get any share of my food,” she warned.

“Of course,” Shirou promised. That went without saying. The last thing he needed was an hungry, irritated Taiga on his hands. She was already a handful when she was fed and in a good mood. “By the way, breakfast will be ready soon. Go take a seat and watch some TV until then.”

Still looking impassively at Yoruichi, Taiga retreated and did as Shirou instructed.

At which point Shirou opened his arms and dropped Yoruichi on the ground.

“Seriously?” he asked, arching an eyebrow at her.

Yoruichi just turned her head as cats are wont to do when they don’t want to acknowledge something or someone.

Shirou sighed and resume making breakfast, while Yoruichi softly made her way to the living room, where she curled up on Shirou’s cushion.

Cat and Tiger stared at each other in utter silence.

There was no need for them to say anything, after all. The message was perfectly clear as it was.

‘You’re on!’

A battle of ownership had begun, while their prize was happily oblivious of the storm building up inside his own home.

[br]

“You mentioned a job earlier,” Shirou said after he came back from school, climbing on the rooftop where Yoruichi was sunbathing.

“Oh, yes. You’re still on the weak side, but you’ve got the potential.”

“Can you just stop beating around the bush, please?”

Yoruichi blinked. “… You get worked up about that when I called you weak in the same sentence?”

Shirou scowled. “What are you on about? If I thought my current strength was enough I wouldn’t be training so hard.”

Yoruichi shook her head. “You are the weirdest kid I ever met, I swear.”

“I don’t want to hear that from the nudist sunbathing on my roof.”

“Heh! Anyway, I thought that with a bit of training under your belt, you could easily become a sweeper.”

“I suppose you are not talking about an actual street cleaner.”

“You’re right. I’m talking about someone like me. Our job is to hunt the malicious manifestations of the supernatural that appear here and there. If you agree, I can get you into our organization.”

“I thought you had been cast out.”

“From my clan, yes, not from the larger group we’re part of.”

Shirou rubbed his chin in thought. Fighting was what he was good at, although he didn’t like hurting people. It was completely different if what had to fight were malicious supernatural entities, like the wraiths up the mountain.

“Before I agree to anything, is there some kind of dumbass rule of conduct it that I should be aware of?”

“What makes you think that?” she asked back, frowning.

Shirou rolled his shoulders. “As annoying as you can be, you aren’t a bad person and I think you are smart enough to run circles around most people. If you had to break the law, your hand was either forced by the circumstances or it was something morally debatable from the start.”

The Mage Association had rules like that as well, Kiritsugu had taught him. Murder was a preferable option to exposing Magecraft to the public.

Yoruichi sat up, crossing her legs, staring at Shirou with a bemused expression on her face. Faster than he could react, she wrapped her arms around his head and hugged his face into her bosom.

“HuMmM!” Shirou protested from the valley of her breasts, flailing his arms around wildly.

“I really can’t let my guard down around you, can I? Just when I thought I had you pegged, you do or say something downright adorable.”

Meanwhile, as he struggled with suffocation, Shirou’s brain didn’t know whether it had to send blood to his face or to his crotch. Unable to come up with a decision, it did the only reasonable thing it could and shut down to prevent overloading.

Shirou went limp in Yoruichi’s arms and the naked woman pulled him away, only to find him passed out with his eyes swirling.

“Looks like I really overdone it this time,” she chuckled.

Still, she pondered as he laid him down beside her, Shirou was really one of a kind.

At the beginning she was guarded around him. Because she thought he was Hollow at first, but also because he was abnormal.

He was way too mature for a child, even a Magus one. Perhaps being the son of the infamous Magus Killer could explain it, but the boy expressed none of the ruthless pragmatism his father was known for.

He was straightforward and honest as one would expect from a kid his age, yet he was focused and driven in a way only a few adults could be.

It was jarring how difficult it was for her to look at him and think ‘this is a kid’.

He had a presence that seemed to draw her in. Few people, much less men, managed to hold her interest for an extended period of time. Most fell into easily predictable patterns, particularly where she was involved.

Not Shirou.

Although he was as transparent as a window, she just couldn’t figure him out completely.

Under the right circumstances, she could understand why an older woman would want to be involved with him. Romantically, if not sexually.

Yoruichi had little difficulty believing that someone who already lived an existence removed for ordinary humans, like Saeko, could throw away her social mores and just ravish him, age be damned.

What surprised her, was that it had been Saeko of all people. The woman was wound up so tightly that it was only a matter of time before she exploded.

How in hell Shirou had managed to defuse that ticking time bomb, Yoruichi couldn’t begin to fathom.

Was it a wonder then, that she would find him interesting as well?

Briefly, she wondered if that was how it had started for Saeko. A budding curiosity for a mysterious existence that eventually devolved into a sordid affair.

Maybe it was only a matter of time before she too ended up having the hots the kid.

“As if something like that would ever happen to me,” she laughed to herself and resumed her sunbathing next to the unconscious Magus.

She should have known better than to needlessly tempt fate.

[br]

When Shirou woke up on the roof, Yoruichi was gone. Of course she would just disappear when he wanted something from her.

He wasted no time looking for her. She would show up when it suited her. Besides, it was time for him to head into town and do Quests.

After the commotions of the past few days, he expected the afternoon would be entirely dull and unsurprising.

[br]

That evening

[Your cooking has reached Lv. 45]

Shirou put down the knife and glanced at the message prompt.

‘Again? I leveled it up just this morning…’

Sometimes, Shirou didn’t understand how leveling worked. Progression was supposed to be relatively linear (when accounting for the law of diminishing returns). Yet sometimes some of his skills would level up way sooner than his most optimistic estimations.

Cooking was one such skills. Even though it was one he practiced little, just a few minutes three times a day, it leveled up fairly often.

Sure enough, with each higher level he tried his hand at increasingly complex recipes, so it was only natural but it fluctuated too much. Sometime he only gained a level per week and some other times two levels in the same day.

There had to be some other factor, he decided as he resumed chopping vegetables. If he could figure it out and replicate it elsewhere it would be great.

He inclined the chopping board and pushed the diced vegetables into a plate, then placed both the chopping board and the knife into sink.

‘It can’t be a random roll of some kind,’ he mused, ‘There was never any indication of such things as far as leveling is concerned. What kind of obscure parameter could be at play?’

He felt he was on the cusp of a realization of some kind. Something nudged at this mind, but he couldn’t quite put it into focus.

At that point, he caught his reflection on the knife he had just done washing.

“…”

He looked intensely at the knife, almost as if it held the solution to the mystery.

[Presence Detected. Distance: 0,2 meters – Direction: 6 o’clock ]

“Narcissist much?” Yoruichi whispered in his ear.

“Just thinking,” he replied, lowering his knife into the sink again.

“You do that an awful lot,” the dark skinned woman said amusedly.

“Someone under this roof has to,” he retorted, ” and I don’t see you volunteering.”

Yoruichi smiled. “I’ll make comedian out of you yet.”

“I’ll pass. I wouldn’t want to steal your role.”

“Ha! To think that you can switch from being an adorable little thing to a snarky midget in the same day. You are just full of talents, aren’t you?” she ruffled his hair.

“What do you need, Yoruichi-san?” he sighed, pushing away her hand and choosing to drop the antics. It’s not like he would ever win against her. Not with words, at least.

“I got in touch with my organization and I set up a meeting for you. Go to this place tomorrow for an interview.”

She gave him a slip of paper with an address in the city he didn’t recognize.

“What kind of interview are we talking about?”

“That would be telling, Shirou-chan” the cat-aspected woman purred while she stroked his cheek.

Blushing and slapping her hand away, Shirou narrowed his eyes. “I’m bringing a sword then.”

“If it makes you feel more confident, then by all means.”

He narrowed his eyes even further.

“Armor too,” he decided at which Yoruichi burst out laughing wholeheartedly.

“Let’s put it this way,” she told him between bouts of laughter. “Either way it goes, you’ll definitely need protection.”

There was some kind of joke in her words, but he couldn’t figure it out. Needless to say, it didn’t reassure him at all.

Whatever retort he was about to come up with was interrupted by the doorbell ringing.

Taiga would just let herself in and besides she wouldn’t be coming for dinner today since she had a PTA meeting.

It was almost time for dinner so who could it possibly be?

When Shirou wasn’t looking, as usual, Yoruichi changed to her cat form.

She let out a meow that seemed to ask what was he waiting for.

Shaking his head at her antics, he went to answer the door. It was the last person he would have expected to see.

“Good evening, Shirou.”

“Saeko? What are you doing here?”

“Oh? Can’t I make house visits to my only disciple? Even if it’s swordsmanship, I’m still your teacher,” she smiled coyly.

“It’s not that,” he shook his head. “You are always welcome, I just wasn’t expecting you to drop by. Please, come inside.”

“Thank you,” she said walking past him and into the entrance, where she exchanged her shoes for a pair of slippers he provided.

“What a delicious smell,” she said, tilting her head as if trying to grasp it better. “Were you already dining? If so, I can return at another time. I wouldn’t want to impose.”

“No, no. I was preparing and besides I would be happy if you joined me for dinner. No imposition at all.”

“Preparing?” she tilted her head. “Can you cook, Shirou?”

“I’d like to think I’m a fair hand at it, yes,” he replied humbly. Technically, the description of his [Cooking] skill at the current level said that he was above the average professional chef.

“Well then. I would really like to see how good my disciple is outside of the dojo. Besides what you have already shown me, of course.”

Shirou’s face turned red. “Uh, about that… there isn’t exactly only the two of us here today.”

“Your guardian is coming over? I believed that all teacher were having PTA meetings today.”

“Well yes, Fuji-nee won’t be coming by today… Wait, why do you know about my guardian being a teacher? For that matter, why do you know about the PTA meeting? They aren’t held on the same day for high-schools.”

It was Saeko’s turn to become flustered, but before she could say anything another voice answered for her.

“Because she wanted to take advantage of your guardian’s absence to ravish you in your own home, Shirou-chan. That much should be obvious.”

They both turned to look at Yoruichi, who was back in human form and of course in all of her naked glory.

“Yoruichi-san!” Shirou cried in dismay. Wasn’t she supposed to stay hidden? Granted, she knew Saeko but Shirou would have wanted to break the news of her presence a bit more gently.

“You!” Saeko hissed, stepping protectively in front of Shirou. “What are you doing here, you… you pervert?”

Yoruichi looked around, searching for said pervert

“Oh, I’m sorry. Are you talking to me?” she asked innocently. “How strange. Last I checked I wasn’t the one getting boned by a ten-years-old kid.”

“I- I don’t know what you -Shirou?”

“Yoruichi-san,” he said firmly, stepping in front of Saeko. “Saeko is my lover and there’s no point denying it. However, inside this house you are both my guests and I expect a certain level of respect and decency by everyone. Saeko, please refrain from name-calling. Yoruichi-san, if you intend to be in polite company you’ll either keep to your cat form or get dressed. These are my rules. Abide by them or get out.”

There was a moment of stunned silence, though the reasons differed for each woman.

Yoruichi was taken aback, because Shirou might have grumbled, but ultimately she let her get away with anything. At first, she thought he was standing up for his lover, but instead she reprimanded Saeko first and only then turned on her. He was being a fair host and she could respect that. More importantly, she never expect he had it in him to be this firm around others.

Saeko on the other hand had the ground swept from under her feet when Shirou boldly called her his lover and she didn’t have the presence of mind to protest when he asked -demanded her to be polite to that woman. She then lost the will to say anything at all when he doubled down on Yoruichi’s behavior and laid down his ultimatum.

She had gotten so used to be on top with him that she had almost forgotten how unrelenting he could get with the right motivation. It made her heart flutter.

As for Shirou, he didn’t like laying down the law, but he knew that asking nicely wouldn’t get him anywhere. They were both powerful and headstrong women, apparently with a bone to pick with each other. If he allowed them to build up momentum, forget about politeness, he’d have to pry them from one another with a crowbar. It was much better to put down his foot from the start.

He who seize the initiative wins.

“Never thought I’d see the day I’d when I’d get scolded by a kid,” Yoruichi grumbled. “Fine, I’m going to get something to wear.”

“Shirou, why is she here?” Saeko asked, but answered her own question before Shirou could. “No, I already know that. She was in need of help and you provided it. I should not have expected any less from you.”

He nodded in gratitude for her understanding. Their relationship was odd. They had never spoken of commitment to each other, in fact he turned her down immediately when she made him the equivalent of a proposal. However, to find a naked woman in the house of your lover was bound to be ground for jealousy.

In fact he’d rather not think about a situation when the roles would be reversed. It made him quite nauseous.

‘She’s mine,’ he thought fiercely and almost recoiled to the intensity of that feeling. He shouldn’t be thinking like that. He neither could nor would stop her if she wished to be with someone else. Still, that didn’t mean he’d like it.

“By the way, Shirou?” she called as they walked toward the living room.

“What is it, Saeko?

“Just now, you’ve made me fall for you all over again, you know?”

As his face acquired an interesting shade of red, Shirou told himself that he didn’t feel supremely satisfied about it.

The first requirement to be a Magus, after all, is being able to thoroughly believe your own delusions and when it came down to that, no one would ever surpass Emiya Shirou.

[br]

Yoruichi came back a few minutes later wearing a green strap shirt over black shorts.

“What?” she asked when Shirou looked at her strangely.

“Nothing. I just thought that those clothes suits you.”

“I swear, you are the first guy so adamant about getting me into clothes instead of wanting me out of them.”

“Because Shirou is a respectable person,” Saeko commented. “Unlike some.”

“Don’t be too hard on yourself, Saeko-chan,” she said right back. “You aren’t that bad.”

The two women glared at each other. Actually, Saeko was doing all of the glaring while Yoruichi was doing all of the grinning.

“It’s not really any of my business,” Shirou cut in, “but why do you hate each other so much?”

“I don’t hate her,” Yoruichi objected. “I rather like Saeko-chan. She’s easier to rile up than you are.”

Shirou’s eyebrow twitched. “Should have figured it was something like that.”

“I don’t hate her either,” Saeko answered. “It’s just that she has been persona non-grata for the Busujima clan for over a century.”

“Excuse me?” Shirou blinked rapidly, then turned to stare at the woman that didn’t look any older than twenty-five.

“Now, now, Saeko-chan. Going around revealing a woman’s age is just rude.”

Shirou’s mind was reeling. This gorgeous woman… was over ten times his age?

“Are you some kind of vampire, Yoruichi-san?”

“Naah,” she shook her head. “I just age veeeery slowly.”

“Yeah, I can see that,” he agreed. “It’s too much hoping you would just explain your circumstances, right?”

“Not a chance in hell,” she confirmed.

“Figures. Anyway, dinner’s going to be ready in a minute. Take a seat with Saeko and don’t kill each other.”

Yoruichi did as instructed and took a seat opposite to the scowling swordswoman.

“So, Shirou eh?” she asked ironically with a voice that couldn’t be heard from the kitchen over the sounds of Shirou cooking. “How did that happen?”

“It’s none of your business, Yoruichi.”

“I mean, he’s a remarkable kid, exceptional even, but I would have thought he’d be a bit too young for your tastes.”

“Does age matter when you are standing on the edge of the abyss?” she asked, scowling. “Does it matter when he keeps me from falling into it?”

“… Holy shit, he’s really got you good,” Yoruichi said in amazement.

“Hmph!” Saeko scoffed.

Yoruichi had expected a sordid carnal affair, a mutual scratching of itches, with the age difference partially excused by Shirou’s exceptional maturity, but it wasn’t the case.

Saeko was heads over heels for Shirou.

She glanced to the kid, no, the young man who was standing on a stool to better reach the stove.

What had Saeko seen in him that she had missed? What could he have done to evoke such a devotion in the most stubborn, wound up woman she had ever met?

‘Color me impressed, Shirou.’

“Alright, it’s ready,” he announced, oblivious to the exchange that took place in the next room.

He came out of the kitchen carrying two trays covered in plates, juggling them effortlessly.

Both women’s eyes widened at the variety of plates displayed. They both thought he was whipping up an ordinary dinner, something simple that even a child could make, but this looked like an high quality buffet.

“O-oi Shirou… when did you order take-outs?”

“Huh? What are you on about, Yoruichi-san?” he asked.

“You can’t expect me to believe you made this stuff.”

“I thought I told you I like cooking. I have been doing it three times a day for over five years now. Besides, you’ve been living here for weeks. Even though you never came for meals, how did you manage to never notice?”

Embarrassed, Yoruichi scratched her cheek sheepishly. “I wasn’t exactly interested in your cuisine, you know?”

“Yeah, no kidding,” he snorted. “Dig in before it gets cold. Itadakimasu.”

“Itadakimasu!” the two women echoed before getting their own shares of food.

No words were exchange afterwards. Dinner proceeded in religious silence, although it couldn’t be said there was peace either. In fact, a silent war was going on between Saeko and Yoruichi to get the most food onto their plates without looking like they were gorging themselves. That’s how good Shirou’s cuisine turned out to be.

Shirou took the silence as a sign of approval and enjoyed his own meal without knowing exactly how impressed his guests were.

Half a hour later, two thoroughly satisfied women sat nursing their stuffed stomachs.

“It was all exceptional, Shirou. Thank you very much,” Saeko complimented.

“Yeah, I guess that all the time you spent in the kitchen wasn’t wasted”, Yoruichi agreed with a toothpick held between her lips.

Before he could acknowledge their gratitude, they heard the front door open and close, followed by loud steps approaching rapidly.

“Ohayo, Shirou!” Taiga greeted cheerfully. “I have finished early. Oh? Who are these people, Shirou?” she asked, tilting her head quizzically.

“Ah. This is Busujima-sensei and her friend, Shihōin-san. They were passing by and I invited them to stay for dinner since.”

“Pleased to meet you both,” Taiga bowed. “Thank you for taking care of Shirou, Busujima-san.”

“Not at all,” Saeko smiled politely. “It was my pleasure to have Shirou as my disciple.”

Yoruichi chortled, and nearly burst out laughing when Saeko glared at her.

“That’s a relief. Shirou is a good kid but he can be unreasonably stubborn at times.”

“You are one to talk,” he mumbled but only Yoruichi heard him. It did little to placate the laughter she was suppressing. “Since you are home early, Taiga, have a seat. I’ve saved your share.”

“Oooh? I knew I could count on you,” the ecstatic teacher praised, sitting next to Yoruichi. A moment later, she was happily eating through her dinner.

“Hm, Busujima-san,” she said between mouthfuls, “how is Shirou doing? He’s very reserved and he’s always vague when I ask.”

“Is he now?” Saeko asked, giving him an amused look. “There’s already nothing left I can teach him. For all intents and purposes, his swordsmanship has already surpassed mine.”

Taiga nearly choked on her food. “Wha-? Seriously?”

“That’s not true, sensei,” he objected. “You are still much stronger than me.”

“That’s because I have the advantage of a longer reach and greater height, but if we are talking about pure techniques I am no longer your match.”

“Whoa! Shirou, that’s incredible,” Taiga said, completely flabbergasted.

“And how is Shirou doing in school?” Saeko asked in turn. “I hope he’s not letting his grades slip because he’s too focused on his training.”

“Well, no,” Taiga blinked, “actually he’s the top student in his year.”

They were all staring at him now and he couldn’t help but blush under the combined attention.

“So,” Yoruichi drawled, somewhere between impressed and amused, “top student, genius swordsman and professional level cook. You sure don’t do things by halves, uh?”

Even Saeko who knew just how talented and drive he was looked suitably impressed.

“Can we talk about something more interesting?” he pleaded, clearly uncomfortable. His fidgeting made the gathered women grin.

His reactions were just too cute. One couldn’t help but wanting to tease him even more. An impromptu alliance was made at the expense of the hapless aspirant hero, which culminated in a hour of merciless discussion about him and his quirks.

Nothing was said that couldn’t be considered as praise by most people, but by the end of it Shirou felt like he had come down with a fever from how long he had been blushing.

“Well, it has been nice but I should really get going,” Yoruichi decided after a while. Don’t bother getting up, Shirou.”

“Thanks for dropping by, Yoruichi-san.” he nodded.

“Eh. Thank you for dinner. I’ll see you around. You too Fujimura-san.”

“I should get going as well,” Saeko agreed. “It was nice meeting you, Fujimura-sensei. Thank you for the excellent meal Shirou. I will see you again soon.”

“Have a safe trip you two,” the teacher waved cheerfully. “Man, where did those beauties come out from, huh?”

“Did you say something?” Shirou asked as he stood up to put away the last dishes.

“… no, nothing.”

Shirou shrugged and went about his business. Talking to herself was the less weird thing Taiga could do, so he didn’t pay it any mind.

However, while Shirou wasn’t looking, Taiga sized her own breasts and let out a disappointed sigh.

“A defeat on all fronts, huh?”

In the end, some battles weren’t meant to be won, no matter how hard one struggled.