From the slightly ajar door came the sound of rustling and intermittent moaning.
"Is it here?"
"Yes, yes, right here, ah..."
"Push harder, a bit faster..."
"Yes, yes, right here, ah..."
"Mm, ah, sugoi~..."
You must think something r18 is happening, right?—No need to deny it; that's what any normal person would think. Next, one might either blush and walk away or quietly hide by the door to peek.
However, in this Millennia City, there aren't many normal people, so upon hearing this sound, a certain valiant visitor directly pushed the door open.
"Master, I saw your door was open—uh, what are you doing, in that position?"
What position?
On the sofa, a man and a woman, with the woman on top and the man below, both turned their heads simultaneously.
"It's Artoria."
"Oh my, do you want to try it too?"
"Oh, it looks kind of interesting."
Artoria, with one arm, crossed over her chest and the other hand under her chin, carefully examined the two.
Don't misunderstand; the chivalrous king, pure and saintly with little difference from a saintess, certainly doesn't harbor any lascivious attributes, nor would her demeanor break the norm. The reason behind this seemingly compromising position has nothing to do with anything illicit, obscene, or impure.
Firstly, the two had not undressed. Although Shinji wasn't wearing his jacket, that was something he had taken off a long time ago. Drawing diagrams while wearing that custom-made white coat from Justeaze was indeed inconvenient.
The so-called "woman on top, man below" position was Shinji lying on the sofa with Reika pressing on top of him, her thumbs pressing against his spine, shoulder blades, and similar areas.
That's right, Reika was merely giving Shinji a simple massage to help him relax.
This is one of the most classic ways to reduce stress, and Reika was particularly skilled at it.
Of course, Shinji wasn't oblivious to Reika's hints.
As Reika had said, he could do as he pleased without any burden if he wanted to.
But he couldn't.
Neither his body nor his mind would allow it.
Justeaze was in enemy hands, and he had no mood for such matters.
Additionally, having worked non-stop for 36 hours, the accumulated fatigue made him somewhat powerless.
For him right now, a massage was the best way to relieve his fatigue.
After about half an hour, Shinji felt refreshed, while Reika was left panting and exhausted, repeatedly saying she couldn't continue. She hurriedly tidied up the tray and left.
When passing by Artoria, she whispered, "I'll leave the rest to you."
She wasn't truly out of strength; she just understood that, like herself, Artoria was also worried about this man connected to both of them.
She had taken up enough of his time; it was time to leave.
To be honest, she was a bit envious of Artoria. Natural, straightforward, and so radiant, spending time with her often made one feel a bit inferior.
The only one who could probably match her was that saint—should she give the saint a little push? Just for a bit of harmless fun?
Putting away her allure and charm, she returned to the increasingly familiar, unadorned state of a woman who had left the life of dust and walked towards the terrace at the top of the castle.
There, a blonde girl was gazing at the silent night sky.
At this moment, she didn't look like the savior of the nation, but simply an ordinary girl troubled by certain things.
...
After Reika left, naturally, only Shinji and Artoria remained in the room.
Still feeling the soreness and numbness from the massage, Shinji didn't get up; he just shifted from lying face down to lying on his back.
Artoria didn't mind her master's laziness. She had seen how hard he had been working lately. Honestly, compared to herself, he seemed more like the one carrying the mission of the Counter Force, which made her feel a bit uneasy.
And this side of Artoria was something he had never seen before—not that he wasn't aware she had this side, as a seasoned king chef, he remembered every version and every demeanor of the Knight King vividly. But seeing it in person was another matter, especially in her rare onee-san mode.
"Master..."
"Artoria..."
Moved by each other's unusual states, they spoke almost simultaneously.
"Ah..."
"You go first..."
This time, even their words were identical.
The two exchanged slightly awkward glances and then laughed together.
"I'll go first then."
As expected, they spoke in unison.
Shinji couldn't help but sigh, "Indeed, we are in sync."
"I think so too. Now, I can proudly say like Mordred, I have the best master."
"Haha, you're making me a bit embarrassed. The best, I'm still far from it."
He raised his hand first, not giving Artoria a chance to speak.
"Don't rush to refute. Just take you and Mordred as an example. As a master, Kairi would surely be right outside the room, concerned about Mordred at the first moment. And me? I've dragged it out until now without asking you—failing as a master."
"Because you have more important things to do—ah, saying this, I too have failed as a servant. You've been so busy, and I couldn't do anything."
At this point, Artoria looked a bit dejected.
"How could that be? When everyone else gave up, you stood by my side and fought alongside me. That's the best support one could ask for."
"Master..."
"By the way, how did your talk with Mordred go? She's just a child, likes to show off, and being not straightforward is normal for her. If she said anything to make you angry, just take it the opposite way, and you'll be fine. Also..."
"It's okay, we've already cleared things up."
Seeing her master, who worried about her and nagged, Artoria felt warmth in her heart, and the stern lines on her face unknowingly softened.
"Cleared things up?"
"Yes, we did. Why she rebelled, why she harbored hatred, why she showed that expression, and her... admiration for me. Honestly, I don't think I'm that amazing. If I had realized Mordred's feelings earlier, perhaps Britain wouldn't have... Looking back, Sir Tristan was right—not understanding people's hearts as a king, I..."
The more Artoria spoke, the lower her head sank, until she was almost burying it in her chest.
Seeing this, Shinji reached out and tapped her on the head.
"Shinji?"
"That melodramatic guy was just venting. Don't believe me? Let's find a way to summon him if we get a chance and see what he says. From what I know, Lancelot and the others have been wanting to beat him up for a while, to stop him from spouting nonsense."
"Really?"
"Absolutely. If you don't believe me, ask Merlin when you get back. There's hardly anything that's happened that he doesn't know about. The Round Table knights like to have you around and are loyal to you, but just like Mordred, they're not straightforward. If only a bit of your straightforwardness could rub off on them. Whatever, it's been so many years, no point in 'what ifs.'"
"Yes, it's been so many years, no point in 'what ifs.'"
Artoria sighed softly. She had long accepted the present world and no longer obsessed over overturning history. Still, some things, when recalled, remained vivid. Despite the bitterness and pain, they were her precious memories.
"Master, there's something I've always wanted to ask you."
"What is it?"
"Why... are you so kind to me?"