How Did This Guy Become a Heroic Spirit? / Time to Head Out?

How Did This Thing Become a Heroic Spirit?

Earth was battered by thunder and rain.

Fourteen-year-old Fu Yuan had curled up beneath his blankets. Born with exceptionally keen senses, he always felt as though the thunder outside bore him ill will. Fortunately, Fu Yuan was already a big boy. At the very least, he would not be scared into tears.

Fu Xuan, who had come over to check on his son, sighed. Then, as he looked at the weather outside, his gaze gradually turned cold. Strangely enough, after Fu Xuan entered the room, the thunder in the sky gradually quieted down.

Fu Yuan poked his head out from beneath the blankets, still looking fearfully at the weather outside.

"It's all right now, Xiao Yuan."

"But Dad, I keep feeling like they're about to strike me."

"They wouldn't dare!"

"Hehe~ Dad's bragging again."

"...Remember this, Xiao Yuan: don't go to remote places alone in the future."

"Why, Dad?"

"Dummy. When boys go out, they need to learn how to protect themselves."

"Ugh~ Don't knock on my head. It'll make me stupid!"

"Can't you do something, Fu?"

"It's fine. Once Xiao Yuan comes of age, it'll be all right. He won't be able to cause much trouble."

"If anything happens to Xiao Yuan, you can sleep on the couch for the rest of your life."

"Haha! With me here, nothing will go wrong."

Two years later, Fu Yuan joined the Transmigrator Army. Fu Xuan, devastated!

Once the video Kiritsugu had recorded from afar finished playing, everyone's expressions gradually turned serious.

"Saber, what do you think of this battle?" After Saber's earlier fight with Lancer, Kiritsugu had fully recognized Fu Yuan's combat ability, so he wanted to hear Saber's opinion.

Suddenly called on, Fu Yuan gathered his wits and stopped bickering with Senior Sister. He then put on an extremely solemn expression. His childish little face paired with that serious look was somewhat comical.

Then Fu Yuan said something perfectly fitting for his identity.

"I think the video quality is pretty bad."

Kiritsugu: ...I really am an idiot. I actually had hopes for you.

"Ahem, A Yuan, be serious. This isn't a trivial matter." Irisviel reminded Fu Yuan earnestly. After all, a single piece of information could turn the tide of battle.

When Illya heard that this was not a trivial matter, her little ears quietly perked up again.

Kiritsugu's hopes rose once more. Saber was a Heroic Spirit, after all, not some Problem Child.

"Hmm... I watched it sitting down." After pondering for two seconds, Fu Yuan gave an answer that was entirely factual.

"Oh! You can do that?" Illya seemed to have learned some profound knowledge. When Little Illya encounters questions she can't answer in the future, she'll do that too. I've learned it wrong! Learned it wrong!

Crack~

Expressionlessly, Kiritsugu tossed the cup he had crushed into pieces into the trash can.

At the same time, he realized something. Better to rely on yourself than ask others. The ancients truly had been wise. (?ω?)

"Ahem, just kidding, just kidding." Seeing the crushed cup, Fu Yuan suddenly felt a chill down his spine and hurriedly straightened his expression in explanation.

Fu Yuan looked at Kiritsugu's utterly calm face and felt a little guilty. He had been too busy bickering with Senior Sister earlier and had not watched it at all.

Still, Fu Yuan had some experience dealing with this kind of situation. First, he needed to project confidence. Then, he had to speak with absolute certainty.

"First, they're strong. Second, they're not easy to mess with. Third, they..."

Crack~ Kiritsugu crushed another cup that had just reached his hand. He looked at Fu Yuan with an utterly calm expression and said nothing.

"I think we can form an alliance with the Matou Family." Fu Yuan spoke extremely quickly, immediately voicing the opinion he had originally intended to save for last.

"Mm." Kiritsugu nodded, reasonably satisfied, then asked in confusion, "But how did you know one of those two sides belonged to the Matou Family?"

Fu Yuan:! You guys don't know yet? What happened to that huge intelligence network of yours? Didn't you already know in the original story?!

Oh! You only knew the Masters. Then it's fine!

"I think there's no need to dwell on such a minor issue!" Fu Yuan stood on the chair, waved his little hand, and looked exceptionally bold.

Then, feeling Kiritsugu's death glare, his voice involuntarily grew quieter.

"Anyway, it isn't that big a problem, right?"

Though Kiritsugu wanted to investigate further, he ultimately restrained his curiosity. It would not benefit their cooperation, after all.

Then he looked at Irisviel, who still had no idea what was happening, and Illya, who might as well have had "I'm an idiot" written across her face, and sighed. Fortunately, Maiya had probably noticed something was wrong.

But just as Saber had said, this was not a major problem.

"An alliance... would he agree?" Kiritsugu once again turned his gaze toward this little girl—no, little boy—who seemingly knew some confidential intelligence.

"Probably?" Anyway, I can accomplish whatever they want. Fu Yuan nodded with considerable uncertainty.

No one could be certain about something like this. All his intelligence had come from novels, so it might not necessarily be true. Though Archer, Rider, and Berserker's current behavior did not differ from what he remembered from the novel.

Hearing that uncertain answer, Kiritsugu sighed inwardly.

How did this thing become a Heroic Spirit?!

"Oh, right, Irisviel, what kind of extracurricular homework was Illya going to buy?"

"Hmm... Let's buy a few more sets of practice papers."

Little Illya's eyes instantly widened. How had this gotten dragged back to her?

The next day, Irisviel was extremely excited because she could go out and have fun again. So she got up early, only to discover that A Yuan, who had been diligently studying last night, was curled up beneath his blankets with absolutely no sign of waking.

Standing at the door, Irisviel thought it over several times before deciding to wake Fu Yuan anyway. I'll just say it's to buy practice papers for Illya! Yes, that'll do.

What she did not expect was that the instant she entered, Fu Yuan woke up. Like a corpse suddenly springing to life, he sat bolt upright, looked at the person entering through the doorway, and said, "Oh, it's Irisviel. Then it's fine." Then he lay back down and pulled the blanket tighter around himself.

Seeing Fu Yuan turned into a little silkworm cocoon, Irisviel found it amusing, but she still dragged the unwilling Fu Yuan out of bed.

"Get up, A Yuan. It's time to eat."

Fu Yuan opened his eyes groggily. He looked completely blank and followed Irisviel out of the room with a confused expression.

Huh? Why does a Heroic Spirit like me need to eat?

But he had already gotten out of bed and did not really want to climb back in. Thinking this, he glared adorably yet fiercely at Irisviel ahead of him. "Ugh~ Too sneaky, Irisviel."

Kiritsugu Emiya, seated at the head of the table in the hall, looked at Saber, who seemed like he could be lured away with a lollipop, and felt his head ache.

"Big Brother, where are we going to play today?" Illya jumped up excitedly and asked with a beaming smile.

Fu Yuan had yet to accept the fact that he was awake, so he answered without thinking.

"Irisviel, haven't you bought Illya's homework yet?"

Illya: ???!!!

Could you please act like a human?! Having only just gained a preliminary understanding of what homework was yesterday, Illya instantly became unhappy.

I call you Big Brother, and you hurt me like this!

Feeling that resentful gaze, Fu Yuan finally snapped fully awake.

Feeling the lazy emotion from earlier, he thought, Is this also a negative effect of the Spirit Core? Terrifying!

Su Mei, who had spent the entire night researching the Spirit Core and this world's rules within the Stigma: ???

"Ahem, Saber, you aren't going out merely to have fun this time."

"If you're confident, try to settle the alliance today."

Seeing Fu Yuan come to his senses and immediately look expectant, Kiritsugu felt that he had probably guessed what Saber was thinking.

"Tch, what is this feeling of raising a child?"

Fu Yuan: That was offensive!

Fu Yuan felt underestimated, so he lowered his head and focused on eating. To be fair, this tastes pretty good.

Watching Saber turn completely into an eating machine, Kiritsugu had many more things he wanted to say, but they all caught in his throat.

Kiritsugu Emiya: So gluttonous. Even among the legendary Hall of Heroes, he must be one of a kind. Kiritsugu suddenly missed the King Arthur he had failed to summon. At the very least, she couldn't possibly eat this much.

"Irisviel, keep an eye on him."

"Okay, leave it to me!" Seeing Kiritsugu's helpless expression, Irisviel wiped the grease from the corner of her mouth and replied with complete confidence.

Kiritsugu Emiya: Why does that sound so unreliable?!

Kiritsugu Emiya looked over the people in the hall again. Maiya would act with him. Saber... did not need supervision. Irisviel... was not particularly reliable either. Illya... Why had he even thought of Illya for something this important?

Suddenly realizing something was wrong with his train of thought, Kiritsugu rubbed his head and looked despairingly at Saber and Irisviel. Sure enough, I can only rely on myself.

Seeing that Master seemed to have a headache, Fu Yuan stopped eating and asked considerately.

"Hey, Master, are you having a fit or coming down with something? Hmm~ They seem pretty much the same."

Kiritsugu Emiya: ...

Deep breaths, deep breaths! Don't get mad, don't get mad!

"Kiritsugu, we should investigate the recent movements of Holy Relics. We should be able to identify the True Names of one or two Heroic Spirits." Seeing Kiritsugu's awkwardness, Maiya spoke considerately.

Kiritsugu packed his things and prepared to go investigate, partly to clear his head. Out of sight, out of mind. I actually thought this Heroic Spirit was reliable at first. Ridiculous!

Fu Yuan: "...True Names? Ask me! I know them!"

Heading Out?

Kiritsugu: ...

Maiya: ...

"You know their True Names?"

"Isn't that obvious?" Fu Yuan looked somewhat confused himself. Hadn't they thought he came from the future before? With parallel worlds as a safeguard, was it not perfectly normal for him to know one or two Heroic Spirits?

Kiritsugu looked calmly at Fu Yuan and suddenly felt emotional. Is this what making use of waste feels like?

Having eaten the final bite in his bowl, Fu Yuan stood atop the chair, ready to show them what he was useful for and make them stop underestimating him.

Then he suddenly sneezed, as though someone were cursing him behind his back.

"Who cursed me?!"

Kiritsugu: That's so... magical...? Idiot, glutton...

Kiritsugu was about to continue imagining a few more insults when he saw Fu Yuan's resentful expression and abruptly stopped.

"Master~"

"Ahem, we should discuss serious matters." Kiritsugu Emiya spoke solemnly, as though he had not just been insulting Fu Yuan in his head.

That's so magical! Kiritsugu suddenly realized that Saber's sensory abilities had their merits. At the very least, he could not imagine how sensitive one's perception would need to be to sense the good and evil in someone's heart.

As for why Saber did not sense actual thoughts—if Saber had that ability, then... well, forget it. No excuses. He just looked down on Saber a little.

"Berserker's True Name is Lancelot. At this point, he should be in the berserk state after his defection. Of course, there might also have been a problem during his summoning." Fu Yuan put it conservatively. Otherwise, if something turned out different, would that not be embarrassing?

"You can tell from Archer's behavior that he should be the legendary King of Heroes, right? The oldest fat tiger among humanity—no, the King of Heroes."

"If nothing unexpected happens, Rider should be the King of Conquerors Iskandar, just as he said. As for why he's so tall, I think that's perfectly normal. History is written by people, after all." Besides, he's an A-rank handsome young man!

That was particularly worthy of complaint. How had an A-rank handsome young man ended up looking like this?

"If the information you gave is accurate, it will be of great help to our future actions." A gratified smile appeared on Kiritsugu's face, as though his daughter had finally become sensible.

Fu Yuan wore a thoroughly baffled expression. This thing was helpful?