Opening the lunchbox, Shirou found a carefully prepared meal—
meats and vegetables balanced beautifully, with fresh fruit as garnish.
> "Looks pretty good."
He let out a sigh of relief, a little embarrassed for having assumed it might be poisoned.
At the very least, it looked perfectly edible.
> "Of course it does! I spent the whole morning making it!"
Lisephyr raised her chin proudly.
> "Wait… you made this yourself?"
Shirou blinked, surprised.
The proud heir to the prestigious Animusphere family, a future Lord of one of the Twelve Families—
and she could cook?
> "I-I didn't make it!"
Lisephyr's ears flushed bright red. She immediately shook her head in denial,
but it was painfully obvious she was lying.
> "What a tsundere little loli…"
Shirou muttered in his heart.
He picked up his chopsticks and took a bite.
Surprisingly, it tasted even better than he expected.
If the rest of the class saw this scene—Lisephyr, the haughty noble girl, making a bento for someone—
they'd be consumed with envy.
> "So? How is it? Is it good?"
Lisephyr tilted her head and asked.
> "Yeah, it's really good."
Shirou nodded sincerely, then held up a piece of grilled meat, seared on the outside and juicy within.
> "Want a bite?"
Lisephyr's cheeks flushed again.
That was food touched by Shirou's chopsticks…!
A-Aahhhh!!
Still, she opened her small, pink mouth—
At that moment, she no longer cared about how the food tasted.
> "She's acting weirder every day…"
Shirou was confused.
> "We're still just kids… so why does it feel like I'm in a romance drama?"
---
> "My Lord!"
The sweet moment was cut short by a voice.
A magus from the Yorifis family appeared, having likely tracked Shirou down in the library.
Upon spotting Lisephyr Animusphere, he paused briefly,
then quickly corrected himself with a more respectful but discreet tone:
> "The family has something to discuss with you."
His manner was still courteous.
Addressing a six-year-old as "Lord" would be far too conspicuous.
So when outsiders were present, the Yorifis servants had been trained to speak differently—
a precaution Shirou himself had instructed.
> "Got it. Lisephyr, why don't you head back to class for now?"
> "Alright, but you better eat it all, okay~?"
She skipped off cheerfully.
---
In a secluded corner of the library, only Shirou and the magus remained.
> "Let me guess… this is about the matter I asked you to look into in Fuyuki City?"
Shirou asked, cutting straight to the point.
The Yorifis magus couldn't help but be impressed.
> "As expected, he's no ordinary child. He saw right through it instantly…"
No six-year-old should possess this level of sharpness.
> "That's right."
The magus nodded.
He then reported the news from Fuyuki:
The Tohsaka family had decided to send their second daughter to the Matou family,
who intended to raise her as their heir.
From Tokiomi Tohsaka's point of view, the Matou offer was more appealing than Yorifis'.
> "Tokiomi… You truly love your daughters, I know.
But what you've done is shove Sakura into a pit of hell."
> "No wonder you've become Fate's favorite punching bag."
Shirou sighed inwardly.
Many in the Yorifis family were still puzzled over the strange attention their lord gave this "Sakura" girl.
Sure, the Tohsaka lineage was talented, but there were many gifted children in the Clock Tower.
Why did she matter so much?
> "Book me a flight to Fuyuki. I'll be going there in a few days."
Shirou's tone turned cold.
Since diplomacy had failed, he would now intervene personally.
He would never allow Sakura to fall into Zouken Matou's hands.
He was ready to face him head-on.
> "You mean… you're going in person?"
The magus was stunned.
He had severely underestimated how much this girl meant to the young lord.
For him to take action himself?
> "Should I notify Lord Luvreyus?"
> "No. We're not starting a war. Just a quiet intervention.
Make the arrangements, and follow my instructions."
Shirou didn't want to make this look like a direct move from the Yorifis family.
It was better to act in shadows.
Being dragged into a feud with the Tohsaka or Matou families would be too much of a nuisance.
---
Back at the Yorifis estate…
> "Time to get started."
Shirou murmured, launching into full prep mode.
He had learned a great deal of magic in a short time, and now he was going to use it to disguise himself.
In his room, black cloak in hand, he began etching magic circles into the fabric.
These were for defensive wards, aura concealment, and more.
No one could know his identity—
otherwise, his long-term plans could collapse.
---
Later, he summoned Luveluce Yorifis.
> "You summoned me, Lord?"
The old magus bowed with noble grace.
> "Show me your collection of relics and magic weapons."
Shirou's tone allowed no refusal.
> "At once."
---
The underground vault of the Yorifis estate was thick with dust.
It seemed no one had entered in decades.
Old-fashioned lanterns lit the chamber, revealing shelves of sacred artifacts and enchanted arms.
Luvreyus had assumed the boy wanted to pick out something to use.
But to his surprise, Shirou merely observed, taking nothing.
Suddenly, Shirou walked straight toward a dark corner of the vault.
There, covered in dust, lay a black longsword.
He picked it up.
Dust scattered as he shook it—
revealing a blade with an inky black edge and a hilt inlaid with golden engravings.
> "That sword… It's said to belong to some legendary hero, though no one knows who exactly.
And the spells carved into it—none can be activated."
Luvreyus explained.
He still remembered the basic history of each relic.
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