Type-Moon's Problem Child from Collapse

Fu Yuan felt someone nudge him twice. Reluctantly, he opened his eyes and looked around in a daze.

Kiritsugu Emiya and Kariya Matou were discussing something, with a hint of argument.

Maiya dutifully recorded beside them, chiming in occasionally.

Berserker stood nearby in a daze, no red light flickering from his helmet—suspected of dozing off.

Illya and Sakura were sprawled on top of him, sleeping soundly.

Irisviel—Irisviel was pushing him. Oh, so you're the culprit disturbing my sleep!

Fu Yuan glared at Irisviel with some displeasure, hoping she'd offer an explanation. Otherwise, otherwise he'd get angry!

"A Yuan, Kiritsugu and the others are discussing the battle plan for later. I was wondering if you'd like to offer some input." Irisviel looked at Fu Yuan, who was clearly still grumpy from waking up, and spoke a bit awkwardly.

It really was awkward. While Kiritsugu and the others debated, the kids were sleeping, Berserker was clearly unmanaged in that state, and she couldn't chime in—leaving her stuck. So she chose to wake A Yuan. At least she had an excuse ready: pooling wisdom!

"Battle plan? Do I need to write a report?" Fu Yuan, still half-asleep, asked in a dazed, silly tone at the unfamiliar phrase.

Then he gradually snapped awake. Hearing that all-too-familiar term, he jolted upright. No way—he wasn't writing that stuff again.

"Report? Why..." Irisviel looked at him in confusion, not understanding why his mind jumped there.

"No!! I'm not writing it!!!" Fu Yuan suddenly shouted, then curled up, clearly recalling his days writing battle reports at St. Freya Academy.

"Hey, A Yuan, calm down." Irisviel was flustered by his sudden outburst.

"Wah... Irisviel, I don't want to write reports." Fu Yuan's eyes suddenly welled up as he looked at her, his voice pitiful, his whole demeanor aggrieved.

"Irisviel, what did you do to Saber?" Kiritsugu, drawn by the shout, looked at Saber on the verge of tears and a bewildered Irisviel, question marks practically popping over his head.

Irisviel was completely at a loss. This—this was totally unexpected! Way too sudden!

"I don't know either! I just asked A Yuan if he had any thoughts on the future battle plan. How did it turn into this? I want to know too!" Irisviel was lost in confusion. Had she said something wrong just now?

"Just asking for thoughts? No report writing?" Fu Yuan lowered his voice, noticing the two little girls about to wake up, still sounding a bit wronged.

Kiritsugu watched the scene. He felt like he'd seen something similar before in an Eastern country—among high school students, maybe—but not with such an extreme reaction as Saber's.

"No report writing needed! Don't cry, A Yuan." Irisviel quickly latched onto the keyword in Fu Yuan's words and scrambled to fix things.

"Oh." Fu Yuan realized he'd made a fool of himself. Embarrassed, he lowered his head, his eyes still red, looking pitiful.

After that episode, Fu Yuan had no desire to sleep. He sat there sulking, listening to them discuss the plan.

Hey! Look at that—Irisviel at least achieved her original goal! Irisviel, you scoundrel!

"So, we should keep our alliance hidden, at least to launch a surprise attack on Archer." Kiritsugu frowned. After Saber's earlier explanation, he'd specifically looked into the King of Heroes, and the intel he got was unsettling.

"Yeah, fine. No objections there." Kariya perked up the moment he heard it was aimed at Tokiomi Tohsaka's Heroic Spirit.

"Wait, I think fighting is a last resort!" Fu Yuan suddenly spoke up with his own idea, once his eyes weren't so red.

"Oh! Saber, you actually have an opinion?" Kiritsugu looked at him in shock. This—this was unbelievable!

"Mmph! Master, what kind of look is that?!" Fu Yuan felt their astonishment and felt a pang of sadness. That wasn't the kind of shock he wanted! Damn it!

"Then what's your idea, Saber?" Kariya asked curiously. After all, his curiosity about these legendary heroes was immense—since Berserker couldn't satisfy it.

"Hmph! Of course! As Military Strategy says: 'The inferior strategy attacks men; the superior strategy attacks the heart!' The main goal is to strike at their morale!" Fu Yuan wiped his eyes and declared proudly.

He stood on the chair, tilted his head toward the ceiling, and used his magical energy to scan the surroundings. Unfortunately, he didn't see a fan—but no matter, he could temporarily project one with magic.

World-famous painting: Stargazing (Shorty Looks at the Sky) [Durandal ∪ Fu Yuan Limited Edition]

Irisviel clapped in perfect coordination.

Kiritsugu's pupils contracted sharply. He understood that principle well, but he had no idea how to execute it. Now that Saber had brought it up, he was stunned—it felt like a dream, too unrealistic!

Kariya also stared at Fu Yuan in awe. As expected of a legendary hero! Though unreliable usually, he didn't slack off on matters like this. It kind of satisfied his childhood fantasies.

Nice! That's the look of admiration! Give me more!

"So what's the specific plan?" Kiritsugu suppressed his quickening breath, his gaze burning as he waited for Fu Yuan to elaborate.

"I dunno! (Spelling intentional)" Fu Yuan looked puzzled at the question. Wasn't this about pooling wisdom? Wasn't he just supposed to throw out an idea for them to build on?

"...? You just said you don't know?" Kiritsugu wondered if he'd misheard. You were so confident, so cocky just now, and now you're telling me you don't know? What's wrong with your brain?!

"Yeah, isn't it about pooling ideas? I just offered my own thought!" Fu Yuan's voice weakened as Kiritsugu's glare turned hostile. He slumped back into his chair, buried his head on the table, and didn't show his face.

Well, before sitting, he patted the chair and brushed off the dust.

Kariya looked at Fu Yuan in bewilderment. Was this some new kind of game? Then he glanced at Kiritsugu, who looked like he'd eaten something foul, and had to reluctantly admit—Saber was, how to put it, really special. Very, very special.

Kiritsugu stared at Fu Yuan's confused expression, confirmed he genuinely didn't know, and slapped himself in the face to apologize for his own foolishness.

He actually thought this Saber might be useful?

So close—so close! He'd almost let his intelligence drop to Saber's level.

He silently warned himself to be careful, not to panic. At most, he'd just avoid chatting with him from now on.

Yeah, Irisviel could talk to Saber more—for the sake of future family harmony.

This move? This move was recycling waste!

Fu Yuan suddenly sensed a wave of malice—well, it came from that dumbass Master again. This time, he couldn't even be bothered to lift his head; he was used to it by now.

Chapter Twenty-five: Unreasonable but Confident

After waiting for a long time, they were still discussing. The situation seemed to have reached a fever pitch, completely oblivious to their surroundings.

Fu Yuan lifted his head, his mood somewhat low. He cast a dull glance at them, then silently retreated to his room. His movements were very light, as if desperately trying to erase his own presence—somewhat pitiful.

Seeing this, Su Mei inside the Stigma suddenly felt a flicker of displeasure. She furrowed her brow and silently used Soul Impact.

"Ow." A soft cry went unnoticed amidst the quarreling voices. Fu Yuan tried to keep his voice down so as not to disturb them, quickening his pace. The door was right in front of him; as long as he pushed it open, he could return to his little nest, safe from the storm.

But the observant Kariya Matou noticed this scene. A pang of reluctance struck him, and he felt he should do something. So he reached out and called:

"Saber, put Sakura down!"

The massive hand formed by energy controlled by Void Sword Qi suddenly stopped moving. Along with it, Fu Yuan, who had been quietly sneaking upstairs, also halted.

Fu Yuan sensed that everyone in the living room had turned their gazes toward him. There was no point in hiding any further, so he canceled the Conceal Breath he had learned while comprehending the Five Aggregates of Void Sword Qi.

He planted his hands on his hips and glared at Kariya Matou with clear dissatisfaction. You're so annoying!

"Are you a bloodhound or what? Don't you know I'm treating her?" Fu Yuan said, unreasonable but brimming with confidence. A faint hint of pain flickered across his face—that last hit from Senior Sister had been no joke.

"I get the logic, but why do you have to do it at night, and why do you have to take Sakura to your room! Damn it!"

Kariya Matou looked at Saber, who somehow seemed to have the upper hand, utterly baffled. But after living so many years, he quickly snapped back to his senses and lowered his voice in displeasure.

"Mmm~ Don't you understand time is tight! Do you know what it means to use time wisely! Do you get saving time or not!" Fu Yuan felt a twinge of guilt, but quickly regained his confidence and pressed on. Hmph, a technician is always confident.

Kariya Matou choked on his words. What the hell is this guy's deal! Does he think I'm an idiot!

He had already experienced the treatment effect himself today, and now this guy was saying time was tight! If you're going to lie, at least pick a better excuse!

Kariya Matou took two deep breaths. As much as he wanted to argue, he couldn't use that reason—after all, Fu Yuan was the one doing the treating now. Whatever he said went.

Seeing Kariya Matou suddenly go silent, Fu Yuan lifted his head proudly. Hmph.

But the next moment, he doubled over, clutching his head, his expression twisted as if he had put on a Pain Mask.

'Hmph!'

"...Then treat me first tonight." Kariya Matou suddenly said with tragic indignation, his face like that of a man marching to his death.

Kiritsugu Emiya, Irisviel, and Maiya watched the farce unfolding before them with some surprise. They wanted to intervene but didn't know where to jump in.

After a long while, Fu Yuan weakly straightened up, still holding his head, clearly suffering from lingering pain.

Then his mind slowly processed what Kariya Matou had just said. He went into horizontal analysis, vertical analysis, deep analysis—and finally, his little face stared at him in shock.

'This guy's lost his mind!' The thought suddenly popped into Fu Yuan's head.

Then he looked reluctantly at Sakura, who was lying quietly beside him, her expression serene. He wavered.

Soon, he doubled over again, clutching his head. This time, he couldn't hold it in and let out a pained groan.

"Ow, ow, ow, I was wrong, Senior Sister, I was wrong."

After another long pause, Fu Yuan slowly stood up, leaning against the wall. He looked down at the people below, gritting his teeth and forcing out each word with a mix of 'tragic indignation'—not from unwillingness, but purely from pain.

"No, need!"

The massive hand formed by magical energy began to lower the little princess, finally stopping in front of Irisviel.

Kariya Matou looked at Saber, who had suddenly changed his tune, a little confused. After all, everything depended on what Fu Yuan said—he didn't understand the details. But why had he suddenly backed off? Had his conscience kicked in?

Looking at his gritted-teeth expression, it didn't seem quite like that.

Whatever the reason, the outcome was good. Kariya Matou naturally moved to take Sakura. But as he was about to enter his room upstairs, Fu Yuan caught a glimpse of this from the corner of his eye and suddenly spoke up in displeasure.

"You're not thinking of sleeping with Sakura-chan, are you? Are you a pervert!"

Completely forgetting his own actions moments ago, he spoke with righteous indignation, though his expression was odd—three parts envy, five parts jealousy, two parts dissatisfaction, and ninety parts pain.

After saying this, he weakly stumbled into his room, and the door was shut by some unknown force.

Down in the living room, Irisviel suddenly hugged Sakura tightly and stared warily at the approaching Kariya Mataya, as if guarding against a thief.

Kariya Matou silently cursed Saber's family in his heart. He scratched his head awkwardly. What else could he do? Under these circumstances, there was no way he could take her back!

"Mmm~ What is everyone doing? Why is Mom holding Sakura-chan?" Little Illya, who had been forgotten on the sofa, was woken by the commotion. She rubbed her eyes drowsily and looked at the people in the living room with confusion.

Irisviel froze for a moment, a little embarrassed, not knowing what to say. Ah! How could I forget Little Illya just now! I'm such a terrible mother!

Then she glanced guiltily at Kiritsugu, thinking, Well, I'm not a great mother either, so I'll forgive him for now.

But then she saw Kiritsugu's equally dumbfounded expression and twitched her lips. Never mind, I'm not forgiving him.

Kariya Matou, who was closest to Illya, suddenly reached out and patted her head. He didn't say anything, but his expression was strange.

Illya stared blankly at this uncle she had only met today, confused. She shook her head in mild dissatisfaction.

At her young age, Illya couldn't quite understand that expression called pity.

"Then Sakura and Illya will sleep with me. The three of us will take the master bedroom," Irisviel suddenly said. She took the initiative to come over, grabbed Illya's little hand, and headed upstairs.

Then she locked the door tightly, leaned back against it, clutched her chest in pain, and took deep breaths.

"It really hurts!"

Then she quickly composed her expression and caught up before Illya realized her mother had fallen behind.

She gently patted Illya's little head, and seeing the puzzled look on the girl's face, her own mood eased a bit.

"It's nothing. Sleep."

Little Illya hadn't slept enough in the living room earlier. Though she didn't quite understand why her mom was acting strange today, she obediently lay down and fell asleep.

In the living room, Kariya Matou stared at the two remaining people in utter confusion. The waters ran deep—what a tangled, noble household this was!

Kiritsugu listened to the deliberately loud sound of the door locking, fell silent, and instinctively reached for a cigarette from his pocket before remembering he'd smoked them all that afternoon.

The group in the living room suddenly fell quiet, until Maiya finally broke the silence.

"Get some rest, Kiritsugu."

Maiya's tone turned unexpectedly gentle, and her usual aloof expression softened into something shy. Her eyes darted around the room, but kept stealing glances at the man with the melancholy face.

Kiritsugu Emiya suddenly wanted to slap himself. At a time like this, what was he even thinking? Could he really tell Irisviel he only loved her now? Was he trying to have his cake and eat it too?

Then, with resolve, he stepped over and wrapped an arm around Maiya's slender waist, preparing to head toward her room.

"Ahem!" Kariya Matou coughed twice, reminding them that someone else was still here.

Kiritsugu Emiya's built-up momentum instantly deflated, and he shot Kariya a resentful look.

"Uh... where do I sleep?" Kariya knew it was shameless to ask, but he'd rather be shameless than sleep on the couch!

Kiritsugu's resentful expression froze, and he let out an awkward chuckle before making amends.

"The second floor has rooms ready besides the ones already occupied. They're unlocked—just push the door open and sleep. The keys are inside."

Einsbern Castle was truly massive, so there was no shortage of empty rooms, nor any lack of funds to maintain them.

"Then have fun, you two." Kariya relaxed once he got the answer he wanted, a teasing grin spreading across his face.

As for why he didn't say something more refined—he was hurting! He was still a single man!