At the same moment, in Fuyuki City, Miyama Town.
In the living room of the Emiya Residence, the warm yellow light dispelled the chill of early winter.
A boring variety show was playing on the television, and the host’s laughter echoed through the spacious Japanese-style room, yet it could not mask the subtle awkwardness in the air.
The low table was filled with a sumptuous dinner.
Golden, crispy tempura, tender and flavorful beef and potato stew, and miso soup that gave off a rich aroma.
Emiya Shirou, wearing an apron, was walking out of the kitchen carrying the final dish.
“Sorry to keep you waiting, I made a bit extra today.”
He set the plate down and smiled as he greeted the two girls sitting at the table, “Dig in, it won’t taste good if it gets cold.”
Rin sat on one side of the table, chopsticks in hand, but hesitated to pick up the fried shrimp she usually loved most.
Her gaze was somewhat unfocused, and a lingering blush remained on her cheeks.
Especially when facing Emiya, it always reminded her of what happened that afternoon.
She didn’t know if she should feel guilty toward Emiya; after all, they didn’t have any relationship yet.
Anyway, it was all the fault of that scumbag, Shinji.
Across from her, Sakura appeared much quieter.
She was wearing loungewear from the Emiya Residence, her long purple hair draped softly over her shoulders.
Although her expression looked as gentle as usual, there was a little less of the usual gloom in those purple eyes.
“Let’s eat.”
The three of them put their hands together and began to eat.
“Mmm…
This potato stew is really good.”
Rin took a bite, trying to break the silence, but her tone sounded a bit stiff, “Emiya-kun’s cooking is still so good.
Whoever marries you in the future will be lucky.”
“Cough, cough!”
Shirou almost choked on his soup and scratched his head helplessly, “Tohsaka, let’s not joke about that while we’re eating.”
“Who’s joking with you?”
Rin muttered, poking her rice bowl fiercely with her chopsticks as if stabbing someone’s face, “Compared to some scumbag who spouts nonsense, you’re practically a saint.”
At the mention of that person, the atmosphere at the dinner table froze instantly.
Sakura’s fingers trembled slightly, but she quickly covered it up.
She kept her head down, sipping her soup in small mouthfuls as steam misted her eyelashes.
“Is Sister still angry?”
Sakura asked softly.
Was this a little scheme of hers?
In her own opinion, it probably didn’t count!
“Angry?
Why would I be angry at a jerk?”
Rin, like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, immediately retorted, her voice involuntarily rising a notch, “I just, I just think it let him off too easily!
That was twenty billion!
And besides…”
And that jerk actually dared to force a kiss on me at the end!
These words were stuck in Rin’s throat, unable to come out.
Just thinking about that scene, that cold yet incredibly arrogant kiss, made her heart race inexplicably.
That feeling was less like anger and more like shame and annoyance.
Her, Rin, with her reputation, had actually been teased by that universally acknowledged loser at the very last moment?
What made her even more irritated was that she hadn’t actually blasted him to smithereens the moment it happened.
“And besides what?”
Shirou looked at Rin with some curiosity.
He always felt that Rin’s reaction today was a bit over the top, “Did Shinji do something strange at the hospital this afternoon?”
“N-nothing!”
Rin shoveled a mouthful of rice into her mouth and said vaguely, “It’s just that guy’s attitude was too terrible!
Absolutely atrocious!
It’s a good thing he left, otherwise I really wouldn’t have been able to resist finishing him off with a Gandr.”
Shirou smiled gently and poured some hot tea into Sakura’s cup.
“Regardless, it’s a good thing the matter is resolved.
Sakura can live with peace of mind from now on.”
Shirou looked at Sakura, his eyes full of concern, “Sakura, if you need any help, just tell me anytime.
You are always welcome here.”
Sakura looked up, meeting Shirou’s clear eyes, and a warm feeling surged in her heart.
“Thank you, Senpai, and thank you, Sister.”
She knew that these two had gathered together to have this dinner with her specifically so she wouldn’t feel lonely.
Just then, an abrupt ringtone broke the warm atmosphere.
It was the phone Sakura had placed on the corner of the table.
“Buzz—buzz—”
The screen displayed an unfamiliar landline number.
Rin’s body instantly tensed up.
She subconsciously put down her chopsticks, staring fixedly at the phone as countless thoughts flashed through her mind.
Could it be that guy had changed his mind?
Or…
did he want to call to brag about that kiss?
“If it’s inconvenient, you don’t have to answer.”
Rin’s voice was a bit dry.
Sakura looked at the two of them, took a deep breath, picked up the phone, and pressed the answer button.
“Hello, this is Matou.”
The room was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop.
Shirou also stopped eating and watched Sakura with some worry.
A professional female voice came from the other end of the line.
Sakura listened quietly, her expression shifting from initial nervousness to surprise, and finally settling into calm.
“Is that so?
I understand.
Thank you for your trouble.”
Sakura hung up the phone.
“Who was it?”
Rin asked impatiently, leaning forward until she was almost across the table, “Was it that scumbag Shinji?”
Sakura shook her head, her hand holding the phone dropping to her lap.
“It was the nurses’ station at Fuyuki Central Hospital.”
She looked up, her gaze sweeping over Rin and Shirou, and said softly:
“They discovered during their rounds that the hospital room was already empty.”
“Empty?”
Shirou’s eyes widened in surprise.
“Yes.”
Sakura nodded, “The nurse said he had already completed the discharge procedures half an hour ago.
It’s said that a private helicopter came to pick him up.”
“So fast?”
Rin was stunned.
She had originally thought that, given Shinji’s hedonistic nature, after getting the money, he would at least show off around Fuyuki City for a while, or at least stay a few more days to recover from his injuries.
But he left.
He left so cleanly, so decisively, without even giving them any time to react.
It was as if he couldn’t wait to shed the identity of Shinji and cast off all his past with them.
“It’s better that he left.”
Rin leaned back into her chair and exhaled a long breath.
The heavy stone in her heart had dropped; the anxiety about her secret being revealed vanished, but what followed was a faint, lingering sense of loss.
That guy who always buzzed around her like a fly, annoying her, making her angry, and finally teasing her—had he really just disappeared from her world like that?
That arrogant smile, and that phrase, “I really like…”
“What a confusing jerk.”
Rin muttered to herself, picked up her chopsticks, fiercely grabbed that piece of fried shrimp, and bit off half of it in one go.
“Since he’s gone, this whole matter has truly come to an end.”
Shirou raised his teacup as if to make a concluding remark, “To Sakura’s new life, cheers?”
“Yes, cheers.”
Sakura showed her most genuine smile of the night.
She raised her cup and clinked it gently against Shirou’s and Rin’s.
Outside the window, the night was deep.