Please Play Fatego With Me

"Just call me Asuna, it's a nickname. That's what all my close friends call me. Since we've already fought together as comrades, there's no need to be so formal." Asuna said with a smile.

"I get it, Asuna. Then you can call me Shirou." The youth agreed readily.

"Now then, please fulfill the Servant's wish." Xiao Da ran out to remind them. If they didn't complete the wish on time, the Servant might punish or retaliate.

"Huh? Swap? I can do that." The girl was startled for a moment, then agreed after hearing a voice in her heart. Her demeanor shifted instantly—from a girl with the makings of a good wife and mother to a big sister overflowing with maternal affection.

The Servant's name was Minamoto no Raikō, her class Lancer. On a Southern Island hosting a summer event in some alternate world, she served as the Shadow Discipline Committee Chair, maintaining order among the bikini-clad girls. Her weapons were the Dojigiri Yasutsuna and the Iron Yo-yo she wielded like a delinquent boss.

Even if she temporarily set aside her maternal instincts, once the battle ended and her body and mind relaxed, her true nature would still emerge—especially toward children who looked pitiful and endearing.

"Oh my, I've seen these eyes before in life. So it was you? I thought back then, these are eyes so strong they make one's heart ache. If I ever found their owner, I'd surely dote on them. Could this be a fateful encounter?"

Raikō blushed and looked at the youth with a gratified expression. "How wonderful. You've grown up well."

"Um, Miss Raikō? Do you know me?" Shirou greeted Raikō & Asuna, who had switched to the Servant-dominant mode.

Come to think of it, when he'd projected Ushiwakamaru's weapon 'Hagoromo' with his Magic Eye the other day, he did seem to lock eyes with a female general of the Minamoto clan. So that was Raikō.

What a gentle big sister. But why was she looking at him so strangely?

"Ahem! Though I'm currently in Discipline Committee Mode, suppressing my maternal instincts, I must say this while I have the chance! Shirou, may I?" The Raikō currently in control took a deep breath, her eyes sparkling as she stared straight at the youth.

"Please, go ahead." Shirou felt there was a demonic maternal love in that gaze, mixed with a hint of possessiveness. It was a bit unsettling.

"Young man! Will you become my son?" Raikō looked at Shirou with loving eyes, her voice so gentle it seemed to melt like water.

Chapter 33: An Incredibly Delicious Dinner

"Huh?" Shirou was dumbfounded, wondering if he'd misheard. He looked at the girl with the light brown hair. Sure, you look like a perfect wife and mother, with the temperament of a Yamato Nadeshiko, but isn't this a bit of a generational leap?

"Will you become my son?" Raikō repeated with a smile. As befitting a battle-hardened General, she was persistent, speaking directly without hesitation.

Raikō gazed at Shirou with maternal affection, not pressing him for an answer, just watching with boundless tolerance. When you see a talented, pitiable youth, wanting to take him home and raise him—isn't that only natural?

"..." Shirou fell silent this time. What did you want him to say? Call Raikō 'Mother'? Or Asuna 'Mother'? No matter how you looked at it, he was a man with a family. Hachiman's mother would cry, you know.

"Starting with that is too high a difficulty," Xiao Da flew out and whispered in Raikō's ear.

"Is that so... Then I'll settle for a head pat," Raikō said reluctantly. As a Lancer, she had strong moral restraint and barely held back her desires.

"Well, just a head pat is fine," Shirou agreed.

"Thank you. Please do consider my earlier proposal," Raikō said as she was satisfied, not forgetting to add as she dissolved into glowing particles.

"Haha, I'll pass on that," Shirou said with a dry laugh.

"Then next time, at least let me use a lap pillow to clean your ears," Raikō shouted at the last moment before disappearing.

With the Servant's departure, the girl with light brown hair lowered her head.

"Then I'll head back too..." Shirou, sensing her awkwardness, spoke up.

The girl suddenly reached out and grabbed both of his shoulders tightly.

"Wait! Shirou!"

"Asuna?" Shirou replied. Why was your grip so strong? His bones were creaking. That was a bit scary.

"Everything just now was the Servant's rampage. So pretend you never heard it. Don't tell anyone, and don't think about it yourself. Okay?" The girl smiled warmly, but for some reason, Shirou felt that refusing would have dire consequences.

"Got it!" Shirou agreed decisively.

"Good. Then do you need me to fulfill the Servant's wish?" The girl released him and smiled gently.

If the Servant was Merlin, did that mean crossdressing and catfishing? Asuna's eyes lit up. She was actually quite interested in cute boys dressed as girls!

She began sizing up the youth's face. Handsome enough, no problem. His build showed he exercised—fit and lean, but not broad-shouldered. Loose, slim-fitting clothes could hide that. His features were a bit sharp, but in a few years, he might grow into a ruggedly handsome man. For now, makeup could fix it.

Asuna sketched an image of Shirouko in her mind and snapped her fingers. That could work!

Though he didn't know what she was thinking, it couldn't be anything good. Shirou refused.

"No need. Merlin seems to have high compatibility with me. Just seeing memories of my daily life seems to have satisfied him."

Because of the possession summoning, many memories were shared between host and Servant. Shirou had learned what Saber looked like in her innocent, childish days, and Merlin could see Shirou's past through their connection. Though why was he watching on his knees?

"Is that so... Then next time..." Asuna said regretfully.

"There won't be a next time," Shirou replied firmly.

At that moment, the streetlights came on. Unnoticed, the sun had set, and the surroundings grew dim. Only a last sliver of gold remained in the sky, soon to be replaced by a pale moon. A black shadow flew overhead—a lone bird, perhaps. It felt somehow lonely.

He'd been summoned just after five, and after the battle, it was nearly nightfall.

"It's dark now. I'll walk you to near your home," Shirou said.

"No need. I just have to cross the street ahead and I'm home. Well then, Shirou! See you at school tomorrow!" Asuna waved at him.

"Yeah. See you." As Shirou spoke, his body glowed, and he stepped into a circle of light.

The sky had darkened. The Service Club's classroom was pitch black and empty. The only light came from the windows of houses outside. Looking out, the school's sports field was deserted—the sports club members had already left. The girls had probably gone home by now, he thought. It was late, and their families would be worried.

The youth stood alone in the empty classroom. A cool breeze blew in through the window, making the already cold room feel even colder. It was a strange chill that seeped through his skin, through his pores, through his bones. As if the cold wasn't in his body, but in his heart. Yet people always endure this cold, and gradually grow stronger.

Then the classroom door behind him slid open.

The black-haired girl at the front entered and turned on the light, looking at him with confusion. "Since you're back, why didn't you turn on the light?"

"Shirou, what are you standing around here for?" Yuihama, carrying something in her hand, looked over and asked.

"Shirou-senpai, welcome back." Mash followed in behind her.

"Ah... I actually thought you'd all gone home, so I didn't react for a moment. Ahaha." Shirou finally snapped out of his daze and laughed.

It was incredible—that chilly, cold feeling vanished the instant the girls pushed open the door, replaced by a warm current in his heart, and even everything before his eyes seemed brighter.

"How could we just leave you behind and go home!" Yuihama puffed out her cheeks and hurled the bag she was holding toward the youth's face.

Shirou reached out and caught the bag flying at him. Feeling that it was still a little warm, he asked in confusion.

"What's this?"

"I thought you were smart before—did you hit your head during the fight?" Yukino asked with a smile.

Yuihama shot Shirou a glance and said, "Hmph! We saw it was getting late and thought it'd be too pitiful if you came back from fighting with an empty stomach, so we stopped by the convenience store and bought you a bento. Now I'm thinking it'd be better to just feed it to Sabre instead."

"Thanks. Now that you mention it, I am pretty hungry." Shirou lifted the transparent lid. It was a typical convenience store bento—a large compartment of white rice, one meat and two vegetable sides. The meat was fried chicken, the vegetables were cabbage and potatoes, and steam was still rising from it. Somehow, his appetite surged instantly.

"If you're not eating it, give it back!" Yuihama reached out to snatch it.

"Of course I'm eating it!" Shirou turned his back to dodge, snapped apart the chopsticks, picked up a piece of fried chicken, and put it in his mouth. A look of pleasant surprise spread across his face, and he followed up by scooping up vegetables with rice.

"This... it's amazing! Did some master chef switch careers to open a convenience store or something?"

"Talking nonsense again. That's just an ordinary convenience store bento. Your own cooking is way better than this." Yukino watched the youth with amusement, finding his dazed expression both laughable and a little endearing.

"That may be, but it really is delicious!" Shirou felt like he wasn't eating enough and bent his head to wolf down the food in big mouthfuls.

It really was ordinary—ordinary cabbage, ordinary fried chicken, rice a bit too hard, meat portions small, vegetables not exactly fresh. But for some reason, at this very moment, the youth found it delicious.

"Geez, seeing Shirou eat so happily is making me hungry too." Yuihama watched the youth's eager eating and swallowed.

"Yuihama, you just ate a meat bun, didn't you?" Yukino reminded her.

"But I split it three ways with Yukino and Mash, right? Hey hey, how about we eat this kind of bento too before heading home?" Yuihama said, her mouth watering.

"Didn't we agree earlier—eat the meat bun, then go home for dinner?" Yukino vetoed.

"Ehh... but it really does look good. The chicken pieces are golden and fried so beautifully." Yuihama stared longingly at the fried chicken in Shirou's hand, like a puppy begging for food, her round eyes full of anticipation, almost drooling.

"I'm not sharing with you." Shirou smirked, turned his back to the girl, and ate in big mouthfuls.

"Stingy! Just give me one piece!" Yuihama puffed her cheeks, jumped up, and lunged at the youth's back.

"Cough, cough, cough!" Shirou felt the girl's body press against him—warm and soft—and his throat immediately choked up.

"Eat slower. And Yuihama, stop messing around." Yukino exasperatedly pulled Yuihama down and gently patted the youth's back.

"Here, Shirou-senpai, have some tea." Mash quickly handed the youth a cup.

"Cough... thanks." Shirou took the tea, gulped it down, and finally caught his breath.

After that, under the dumpling-haired girl's resentful gaze, the youth finished the bento.

"Thanks for the meal." Shirou picked up the cup, took a sip of green tea, and felt completely satisfied in body and mind.

Since the night had grown deep, the four of them walked out of the school together. Starlight spilled over the youth and girls, streetlights paved a path before them, and the wind gently pushed them forward.

"Then we'll go into the details tomorrow."

"See you then."

"Goodbye, Shirou (senpai)!"

Shirou waved, watched the girls disappear into the subway as it departed, and then headed home himself. It suddenly struck him that the bento had tasted so delicious not because of the food itself, but because someone had been there to eat with him.

[Explosive Liver Challenge: I Swear I Will Never Bow to the Crossdressing Faction!]

Since the app recommended this, we're entering daily double-update mode, with a challenge running alongside the double updates.

①, 100 blades (10,000 reward) + one extra chapter. First appearance of a title big shot adds another chapter. First Winner, Sage, or Big Shot each add one chapter.

②, Starting from 1,000, every additional 500 recommendation tickets + one extra chapter.

③, Also, if we can make it onto the rankings, one extra chapter per day on the list. The new book monthly ticket list is worth fighting for. (Excluding the update ranking.)

(Currently, there's a first Winner [Indiscriminate Shirou Fan], so I owe two chapters. If the first Moe Lord appears, that's another 11 chapters owed.)

PS: As a newbie making my first moon landing, please bear with me. If there are any poison points, speak up—I'll fix them.

[I'll pay it all off by the end of the month! I can do it! How could I give up the challenge just because I'm afraid of crossdressing! Liver burst! Liver burst!]

Chapter 34: Asuna's Joining

The next day at noon, the youth and girls gathered one after another in the Service Club.

"By the way, Shirou-senpai, did the battle go well yesterday?" Mash looked at her senior and asked.

"Mm, the monster was tough, but the partner who called me over was super strong, so the fight went smoothly." Shirou recounted the previous battle to the girls.

Asuna's Servant, Minamoto no Raikō, was indeed powerful, but it wasn't just the Servant that was strong. Asuna herself, tangling with the monster, displayed combat awareness, calm decision-making, and decisive action beyond the ordinary, allowing her to bring out the Servant's strength almost perfectly.

Even if the Heroic Spirit Minamoto no Raikō herself were summoned here, she probably couldn't be much stronger than this possession-summoned form.

"Amazing! This is an incredibly powerful new partner. Is she a student from somewhere? Or a working adult?" Mash asked excitedly. She had long been hoping for a strong companion like Saber or old man King Hassan to show up.

"So I've already invited Asuna to come over at noon today," Shirou said.

"Asuna?" The three girls looked up at the youth in unison. Another girl from somewhere?

Just then, a knock came at the door.

"Excuse me." The door opened, and a girl with light brown hair and a gentle, wife-and-mother aura stepped inside.

"Come in! This is Asuna Yuuki. You've all heard of her from the same grade, right?" Shirou smiled as he introduced her to the companions.

"Yahallo~! Yuuki-san. I never expected you to be a veteran player," Yuihama said in surprise.

"Yahallo! Yuihama-san. Are all of you companions?" Asuna looked at the many girls, a little taken aback.

"Yes, though they were initially dragged into this by me, now everyone's decided to help out! You know Yuihama, and this is..." Shirou began, preparing to introduce each companion to Asuna one by one.

Asuna waved her hand and smiled. "No need, I recognize these few. Yukino-san, Mash-san, hello. I'm Asuna Yuuki, and my in-game name is Asuna."

"Wait? Yuuki-san, you're this Asuna?" Yukino asked in surprise.

"Yes, what's wrong?" Asuna replied, puzzled.

"I once asked you to provide me with monster data from FGO," Yukino said.

"Ah! Then you're Mr. Aipan's Snow Cat!" Asuna's eyes lit up with realization, and the cold girl suddenly felt much more familiar to her.

"Huh? Really? Then that makes you the Flash group admin! I'm Don't Run, hehe, seems like we're super fated!" Yuihama hugged Asuna affectionately.

"Indeed. Come to think of it, so many people in our group are from this school," Asuna said, also feeling amazed.