In the world of Type-Moon, it all begins with becoming Morgan's husband!

"I understand, I will work hard to repay it."

"You actually believed that?" Ian was momentarily at a loss for words when it came to what to say about Artorius.

"How could such a thing possibly be true?"

"The city walls have been in disrepair for years, and the people who climbed them almost lost their lives because of it. This is a disgrace that we knights should remember. How could we possibly ask you to compensate for it?"

You thought that giving this explanation would put Artorius at ease.

But you find that he has fallen silent because of what you said.

You sensed that he probably had something he wanted to say.

“Artorius, just say what’s on your mind,” Ian said directly. “Keeping it to yourself won’t get you any answers.”

"..."

Artorius raised his head and looked directly at Ian in front of him.

"Has the situation in Britain become that bad?"

"Even the maintenance of the capital's city walls has been neglected..."

The smallest details can often reveal the true nature of things.

The collapse of the city wall was not simply due to years of disrepair—it reflected a series of problems such as a lack of manpower and insufficient resources.

It's like when you find one cockroach, there are probably already a hundred cockroaches lurking nearby.

Artorias was clearly aware of this.

This made Ian realize that despite his seemingly impoverished appearance, he must have received a good knightly education.

However, Ian did not answer the question directly.

He simply patted Atolis's head and then said with a smile:

"Artoria, do you realize your hair is disheveled?"

"Eh?!"

Atolis touched the back of his head and realized that the thing covering his hair was gone.

"This..." He seemed a little flustered.

Seeing Artorius like this, Ian calmly pulled out a piece of cloth from the pile of things he had bought for Artorius.

He neatly tore off a piece from it and handed it to the man in front of him.

"Here, use this for now."

"Thank you, thank you..."

Somewhat embarrassed, Atolis took the torn piece of cloth from Ian and then skillfully wrapped it around his head.

Her originally messy long golden hair was quickly gathered into a ponytail.

"I'm sorry," Artorius apologized, having finished tidying up. "Mr. Ian, you saw me in such a disheveled state."

"Fortunately."

Ian did not intend to delve into it further.

His attention was still on the question Artoria had just asked.

"However, I want to tell you that the situation in Britain right now may indeed not be so ideal."

"But all of this will definitely change."

"Something has changed?"

“Yes.” Ian nodded. “One day, Britain will surely change under the leadership of a king. I have always believed that.”

"Under the leadership of a certain king..."

Artorius nodded as well.

“Mr. Ian, you are right.”

"At some point in the future, Britain will certainly change."

30. Farewell at Sunset

From that day on, chatting with Artoria became a part of your daily routine.

He is also very happy to see you and share many things he hasn't mentioned before.

For example, he was skilled in swordsmanship and often sparred with his elder brother; also, he was extremely hungry the day he entered the city.

You have confirmed that he did not see anything related to you.

You're glad you didn't kill him outright.

You find being with him very easy and haven't noticed a significant change in the way he looks at you.

Good times always pass too quickly.

It's time for you two to part ways.

As agreed, you arrived at the city gate.

"Time flies, Artorius."

Ian gazed at the setting sun hanging over the mountains in the distance and sighed.

Are you really leaving tonight?

“Yes, Mr. Ian,” Artorius replied very politely, “if we don’t leave now, we won’t be able to get back on time.”

“In that case, my elder brother and father will surely worry about me.”

“I see…” Ian nodded.

"Okay, it's best if you have your own reasons, but the road at night is not easy to travel."

"How about this--"

Ian untied the longsword from his waist and handed it to Artorius.

"This sword is for you."

"this……?"

Atolis looked at the sword Ian handed him, almost unable to believe his eyes.

He quickly waved his hand in refusal: "No, I can't accept this sword! It's been your companion for so long, hasn't it? I absolutely cannot accept it!"

"There's no such thing as partners."

Ian said with a smile.

"A sword is a weapon, and swordsmanship is nothing more than a trick to kill."

"No matter how beautiful the language used to conceal it, this is still the truth."

"Would you consider something that kills as your ally?"

"This……"

Although he knew this was a way for Ian to get him to accept the sword, Atoris was still hesitant about whether to accept it.

Seeing this, Ian thought for a moment, then pretended to be a little angry and said:

"What? Artorius, you don't mean you're disgusted by it just because I used it, do you?"

"No, no, no!" Artorius quickly waved his hands and said, "That's not true! Mr. Ian, I don't mind this sword at all!"

"If that's the case, then why not accept it?"

"..."

Artorius had been successfully lured into a dead end from which he couldn't refuse, and he had no choice.

He could only reach out his hands and take the blade from Ian's.

“Mr. Ian, I really don’t know how to thank you for your help these past few days.”

“There’s no need for thanks.” Ian crossed his arms. “I believe every knight in the capital would make the same choice as me; it just so happens that you’ve encountered me.”

"By the way, there's also this."

You brought out a large bag of food rations.

You moved it onto Atolis's little wooden cart.

[Under his astonished gaze, you smiled and gently patted his head.]

"We've prepared quite a lot this time, so if you want to distribute them to the refugees along the way, it shouldn't be a problem."

“But I’ll say it again,” Ian said, gently stroking Artorius’s hair, “do what you can, and don’t do anything beyond your capabilities.”

“If you go back hungry, your brother and father will probably think there is a famine in the capital.”

"So, do you understand what I mean?"

"Hmm, oh..." Artorius seemed still immersed in the shock of the large bag of rations, appearing somewhat dazed.

"Well—you don't need to worry about the city wall either. I've taken responsibility, so it won't be your fault. Just go back without worry."

"Mr. Ian."

Artorius looked at the man who was touching his head.

"Why are you so nice to me? We didn't even know each other before."

[Your mind conjures up the image of Atolis after he radiated that energy, an image somewhat resembling Morgan's.]

You can say you know the answer to the question perfectly well.

Of course, you definitely wouldn't say these things out loud.

You chose to use "apologizing for the rudeness during the body search" as your reason.

Atolis had no doubt about you whatsoever.

[And then she seemed to remember something; after saying "Wait a moment," she turned back and began rummaging through her little wooden cart.]