His younger brother was moving forward along the path he had once taken, never looking back as he pressed onward.
If he still found himself unable to let go completely and occasionally glanced at the road he had traveled in the past, he would feel disappointed—and relieved.
This is fine.
It was only natural that he found it hard to let go.
It was only natural that he believed he had made the wrong choice.
However, there had been nothing wrong with that choice. There was only an endless longing for what he had abandoned.
Fiore gazed at the red-haired boy and said with a teasing smile, "I feel like I won't be able to sleep even if I return to my room now...
"It's all Mr. Saber's fault for making me drink so much coffee. Why don't I just stay in your room tonight and not go back?"
"Sure."
"...Huh?"
Fiore's eyes slowly widened.
Her cheeks, which had just cooled down, began to burn again.
"W-wait a moment... What did you just say?"
Shirou rose from beside the bed and walked toward Fiore's wheelchair.
If he simply let her return, Shirou himself would feel uneasy.
He couldn't pretend not to care after seeing such a lonely expression.
She'll have nightmares...
"Fiore, stay here with me tonight."
"Ah, all right. Please take care of me... N-no, that's not what I meant!"
Before Fiore could say anything else, Shirou lifted her out of the wheelchair.
"!"
It was the first time the girl had felt a man's arms around her.
He was completely different from his appearance...
He looked no different from an ordinary young man, but the moment their skin touched, she could clearly feel the firm lines of muscle on his body.
As expected of a battle-hardened swordsman. His