For an adult, the strip of cloth was only long enough to wrap around both arms, but on an eight-year-old child, it could cover the entire upper body.
Shirou looked at his reflection in satisfaction. Mm, now I don't have to worry about being cut in half.
"Mm-hm... Shirou, I have something to give you too."
Irisviel called the boy over, then pulled a golden scabbard from her chest.
"Avalon...?"
Shirou froze for a moment. Didn't you already give it to Saber to keep? Why is it inside your body?
Irisviel briefly explained what had happened.
At the time, she had been feeling unwell after Rider's defeat, and Saber had half-forcibly shoved the scabbard of the holy sword into her body.
That seemingly careless action had allowed Saber to leave behind her strongest Noble Phantasm before it was taken away from her.
"I see. Looks like we weren't completely without luck, either."
"Shirou, shall I help put Avalon inside your body?"
"No, there's no need."
"What do you mean?"
"Let Irisviel keep the scabbard. You should be the one protected by it."
Shirou said, "If Saber were still here, she would think the same."
At those words, Irisviel bit her lip. "But... how are you going to fight Archer and Saber without the scabbard?"
"To be honest, getting Saber, now our enemy, to fight without the scabbard is already the greatest gain we could have hoped for."
Even after activating Dead Count Shapeshifter, Shirou had no confidence that he could defeat a Saber supplied with both the holy sword's scabbard and mana from the Holy Grail.
The strongest defensive Noble Phantasm in this world, combined with a holy sword cannon with infinite mana... Just thinking about it made Shirou's back prickle with dread.
The scabbard really ought to remain with