Today's Dinner

"Hey, don't be so stingy. Kagami's always generous with Mikiya," Touko muttered, which earned her a glare from Shirou.

"That's because Mikiya's different from you—he's the kind of person you can trust without a second thought. And who do you think got him into this mess in the first place?"

"Looks like I'm fated to be fleeced. Hey, kid, make sure you cook plenty—I'll definitely get my money's worth!"

As one of Japan's famous gluttons, Touko was undeniably a foodie. When Shirou told Mikiya he'd handle the latter's meals from now on, Touko's first thought was of Shirou's cooking.

In a word, Shirou's culinary skill level was equivalent to Touko's puppet-making skill level—no exaggeration whatsoever.

"Even Miss Touko says so... Is Shirou's cooking really that good?" Though he knew about Shirou's diet, Mikiya, who had never seen Shirou cook, still found it hard to imagine what that looked like.

"Let me correct you—this isn't a matter of good or bad. If that kid's doing the cooking himself, you can rest easy. Across all of Kanbiko City, his culinary skills are top-tier," Touko told Mikiya.

"Huh? That impressive? Really?"

"Absolutely. Truer than cash."

With Touko saying that, Mikiya had no choice but to believe her. For a moment, he felt a sudden "Wow, so my friend's a god of cooking!" sensation.

"In that case, I'll leave this month to you," Mikiya said solemnly to Shirou.

"No, it's nothing. Just think of it as me doing it on a whim," Shirou replied casually.

This kid's still as twisted as ever! Touko thought. Having stayed at the Emiya Family for half a year, she'd gotten to know some of Shirou's personality through their interactions. For instance, around strangers, Shirou was always impeccably polite, but with acquaintances, he'd rather have his name written backwards—Emiya Dirt-Dog—than be courteous.

Next was his all-around domestic prowess. On that front, Shirou and Touko got along well, since Touko was completely clueless about housework.

Finally, there was his twisted goody-two-shoes nature. It was a genuine twist, not the tsundere kind of "mouth says no but body says yes." When Shirou wanted something, he was usually straightforward—take it if he could get it, or give up and think of another way. So tsundere was out of the question; that would never happen.

"Ah, sorry, sorry, I'm late." Despite the words, the speaker didn't sound apologetic at all.

Dressed in a gray kimono with a red jacket over it, the newcomer was Garan no Dou's newest employee, Ryougi Shiki, who had recently learned to use the Mystic Eyes of Death Perception.

"To be precise, Touko's underground office here starts work at eight sharp. It's only seven fifty-five now, so you're not late yet, Shiki," Shirou said, downing his coffee in one gulp.

"Is that so? Guess I'm lucky!" Shiki said, holding up a handbag and asking Shirou, "Hey, Emiya, know what's inside this?"

"What is it?" Shirou asked reflexively.

"Probably something like a blade. Shiki's a fifth-dan in kendo and was the captain of the kendo club in high school," Mikiya guessed.

"Bingo, Mikiya's right. But this isn't just any blade. Ever heard of Kanesada? Emiya," Shiki said.

Kuji Kanetsune. This wasn't some three-star XP craft essence from a game with no stats. In this world, it was a unique existence—after centuries of accumulation, in the world of mystery, it was the bane of all Barrier Masters.

"Kanesada? That Kuji Kanetsune?"

"That's right, that one." Shiki gave a sly smile. "How about it? Want to open it and take a look?"

Seeing Shiki act like a kid showing off a new toy, Touko immediately sensed danger. She quickly stopped her: "Hey! Don't open it here—the barrier will be cut apart in an instant!"

"Tch! So stingy!" Shiki muttered quietly and dropped the subject.

"By the way, Shiki, we're all planning to have dinner at that kid's place tonight. You should come too!" Touko pointed at Shirou in a vengeful tone.

"Hey, Aozaki, I only invited Mikiya tonight. You're not part of this!"

"What's the difference? Cooking for four or six is the same. Just leave it all to you, kid!" Touko said with a grin.

"Geez, I can't do anything with you!"

Hearing that, Touko's smile widened. She knew that when Shirou said that, it meant he'd agreed. "Heheh! Hey, Shiki, and Mikiya, looks like we're in for a treat tonight!"

"Hey! That's enough, you bastard!"

The Emiya Family's house in Kanbiko City wasn't actually bought by Kiritsugu—it was a safe house from his teacher and foster mother, Natalia, during her long mercenary career.

Since renting was too much trouble, and Natalia wasn't short on cash anyway, she bought it on a whim. After Natalia left, the house sat empty until three years ago, when Kiritsugu came to Kanbiko City looking for Touko Aozaki and reactivated it. For the past month, it had served as a home for Shirou, Fujino, and Kirie, who had just moved in.

Since he needed to host Mikiya and the others for dinner, Shirou had notified Fujino and Kirie in advance, asking them to buy fresh ingredients from the supermarket and meet up downstairs at Garan no Dou. Though Shirou's cooking was excellent, great dishes still required quality ingredients.

At the front of the house, Shirou and the others ran into other members of the Emiya Family—

"Shirou~"

Illya's soft, sweet, and adorable voice reached Shirou's ears from afar. Following the sound, he saw the tiny Illya waving at him energetically.

Touko had only fixed the structural flaws in Illya's design as a homunculus; her growth rate remained unchanged. Kiritsugu had considered removing that too, since a growth rate half that of a normal person was absurd. But Touko said adjusting that would affect Illya's lifespan, so Kiritsugu had no choice but to put up with Illya's painfully slow growth.

With Illya came the current head of the Emiya Family, Kiritsugu Emiya. Having given up being a mercenary, Kiritsugu had gone into business, selling daily necessities like vegetables and fruit. But he had no talent for it—his income was poor—so he handed the business over to the Fujiki Group and stayed home with his daughter.

A commercial failure—that was him.

If you can't find the book title, try searching for the author—maybe it's just been renamed!