Chapter 248: Winter Has Only Just Passed
"So after obtaining a physical body, the capacity for change and growth increases significantly? Just like the current Artoria and Jeanne?" Shirou nodded as he spoke.
Both girls were constantly attempting to come into contact with new things, learning new knowledge, and changing themselves to accept the society and systems of a brand-new era.
Artoria, following her own thoughts, was trying her hand at being a maid—standing outside the role of a King to view the world from the perspective of serving others (though in her Alter state, she wasn't actually prepared to truly "serve" anyone).
Meanwhile, Jeanne was studying writing, progressing from practicing her signature to being able to understand French and English, even if mathematics still seemed quite troublesome for her.
Da Vinci looked at Shirou with a serious expression and reminded him: "Exactly. And right now, by borrowing the power of the Holy Grail to come to this world, they are essentially just girls with some combat capability. After gaining physical bodies, they actually have more weaknesses than they did in spiritual form. If the physical body suffers a fatal wound, they will die from it. So, Shirou, you must cherish them properly."
"Of course. I've always felt that way. Since Artoria and Jeanne have come to my world, I will naturally take responsibility for looking after them. Fighting against blackened Heroic Spirits and demonic beasts will be hard work, but if everyone works together, we'll find a way," Shirou agreed straightforwardly.
"Mm, that's good!" Da Vinci nodded with a satisfied smile, but she kept one thought to herself. She cast a slightly worried glance at the youth, thinking, 'It's the same for you, Shirou.'
Da Vinci tucked her expression away and turned to look inside the shop, exclaiming, "Speaking of which, it's quite lively in there."
"Hm? What's wrong?" Following the gaze of the holographic Da Vinci, Shirou looked toward the girls trying on clothes in the shop. At some point, they had actually started picking out swimsuits.
Komachi was holding up pure white and water-blue bikinis against Mashiro to measure them. The dazed girl allowed Komachi to dress her as she pleased and was eventually dragged into the fitting room.
With his excellent eyesight, even standing at the shop entrance through the glass, Shirou could clearly see the interactions of the girls inside.
Holding a bikini that was clearly two sizes too large in front of Artoria to mock her, the silver-haired girl was currently wearing an incredibly wicked, taunting smile.
Then, Artoria directly reached out with both hands, possessing the momentum of someone about to crush a coconut, and lunged toward the silver-haired girl's chest.
Jeanne, of course, wasn't going to let her succeed. She tossed the bikini behind her—where it snagged on something—and reached out with both hands to intercept Artoria's incoming palms. A smile full of battle intent appeared on her lips.
Artoria also wore a smile, though it was as cold as a final farewell to an enemy on a blood-soaked iron battlefield.
She exerted her full strength as if trying to snap the other's hands, causing both of their arms to tremble uncontrollably from the strain.
Without a single word, the two had fallen into a contest of raw strength. Their violent movements within the warm clothing store generated a chilling wind pressure.
"Ha! I was kindly helping you pick out clothes. Is it because it's too small? Would it just fall off even if you put it on? Perhaps we should just go look in the children's section next door!" Jeanne mocked the girl before her, an utterly villainous smile on her face.
Since entering the shop and seeing these swimsuits, Jeanne had realized one thing. That's right! She could beat the Cold-blooded King right here! In this domain hung with all sorts of light, airy swimsuits, she could achieve an absolute, overwhelming victory!
Having understood this, Jeanne naturally wouldn't let such a good opportunity to reclaim her dignity slip by, and she continued her provocation.
"Ho? Assault Woman, are you actually saying you want me to slice off those two pieces of redundant fat on your chest right now? Does someone who wets their pillow even while sleeping really have the face to talk to me like that?" Artoria looked coldly at the silver-haired girl, her voice full of suppressed anger.
"Hehehe..." Jeanne's eyes were full of a sense of superiority, her mind thinking: 'I'll burn you!'
"Fufufu..." Artoria would never bow her head to anyone, let alone this annoying Assault Woman. She thought with a mix of shame and annoyance: 'That bright red bikini doesn't suit my tastes at all, and it's not like I have nothing there, okay! I'll crush her!'
A shop assistant who had intended to help—now standing there with a bikini draped over her head from Jeanne's throw—could only maintain a professional smile, break into a cold sweat, and remain silent. She could only pin her hopes on the customers coming out of the fitting rooms: 'Guests, please help persuade your friends!'
Komachi surveyed the surroundings. The female clerks here were all like clothes racks, then she looked at Mashiro beside her, recalling the bouncy sensation when she held her while helping her change earlier...
Even as a fellow female, she had accidentally been "drawn in" and almost became addicted. Although it was a good thing, she still couldn't help but feel frustrated in her heart.
"Damn it! Mashiro! You're on 'the other side' too..." Komachi lowered her head in sorrow. Despite being in the bustling Shinjuku district, for a moment, she couldn't find a single ally...
"?" Mashiro tilted her head in confusion.
"Damn it... in that case... Go! Go! Do your best! As a friend, Komachi hopes everyone can get along with Brother! But! Just this once! Let them know! JK flat chests are justice!" Komachi raised her fist and shouted.
'Eeeeh!!! You're egging them on instead?!' The shop assistant held her face in her hands, screaming internally.
In other areas of the store, colleagues turned their heads away. Those more familiar with her gestured wildly for her to leave that dangerous "site of right and wrong" immediately.
But if the merchandise was damaged, it seemed the only way to stop this was to rely on herself. The clerk trembled, gathered her courage, and said weakly, "Um..."
"Hah?!" x2. Artoria and Jeanne, still locked in their power struggle, turned their heads and glared at her simultaneously.
"No! It's nothing..." The clerk backed away silently. Though she still wore a smile, it was only because her facial muscles had frozen from excessive tension.
She thought, her mind on the verge of collapse: 'No! So scary! It's like they're actually trying to kill each other! I want to go home and drink a beer to calm my nerves.'
"Artoria and Jeanne are as close as ever, I see. But winter has only just passed; isn't it a bit too early to be buying swimsuits?" Shirou remarked with a dry, humorous shrug.
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