MMMS 58

The savory aroma wafted up, breaking through her resistance. "Mmm... smells good though," she admitted, reaching for her chopsticks. "I suppose I'll give it a try."

Just as she was about to take her first bite, he looked up from blowing on his noodles. "Fanatic didn't come back last night."

Arthur and Iri exchanged a silent glance: Who is Fanatic?

Morgan slurped her noodles without pausing. "Got herself killed? Useless trash. As expected, Master only needs me as his servant."

"She's not dead," he said. "Her Saint Graph is stable. But I can't establish contact with her for some reason."

He set his chopsticks across his bowl. "We need to search Fuyuki City for information about her today. She knows too much about our side—it would be trouble if she fell into enemy hands."

"Could our information be exposed?" Artoria asked, piecing together the situation from his words.

He shook his head. "No. If captured, she'd be tortured to death without uttering even half a word."

“…”

"There are four of us, so we'll split into two groups," he continued. "I'll pair with Irisviel to search Fuyuki at night. Caster and Lancer will work together during the day."

"No."

"Absolutely not."

"Okay."

The first two responses came simultaneously from Artoria and Morgan. Both Pendragon sisters immediately turned to glare at Irisviel, who had agreed without hesitation.

"What...?" Irisviel looked between them, genuinely puzzled. She hadn't expected the sisters to have such a bad relationship. Did they really hate being paired together that much?

"Actually," Irisviel plastered on a smile, quickly changing her tune, "I should pair with Lancer instead. We've been working together for days and have good coordination. Lord Ryuuto can go with Caster. How does that sound?"

"Irisviel." Artoria's voice dropped. "Think about this again."

"........."

Irisviel froze, genuinely confused. What exactly did she want? After several bewildered seconds, understanding dawned on her like a cold splash of water.

"S-sorry," she stammered, "I should probably stay home instead. The forest barrier was damaged by Miss Caster last night—someone should repair it."

She straightened her shoulders. "I'll leave the search to you three with combat capabilities. If I may suggest, Lord Ryuuto could go with Lancer during daylight hours, and with Caster at night. That works, doesn't it?"

Seizing the perfect opportunity to get revenge for her sleepless night, she threw Ryuuto directly under the bus with a look of innocent helpfulness.

"Well said, Iri." Artoria nodded with obvious satisfaction. "You no longer have a reason to fight. You should remain in the castle under our protection."

As she spoke, she ran her pink tongue across lips made glossy by the tonkotsu broth. "By the way, if you can't finish your noodles, I'll take half as usual."

"I have no objections either." Morgan nodded, reluctantly accepting this arrangement to share their Master.

With one hand supporting her chin, she stirred her noodles with delicate fingers that somehow made even this simple action look seductive. "Arthur, don't forget that Master belongs to me after dinner."

"Objection!" Ryuuto, who was silent until now, set down his chopsticks with a clack. "Ladies... shouldn't you ask for my opinion first? Am I not a person with basic human rights here?"

After his perfectly reasonable argument, the Britannia sisters silently raised their high heels under the table and delivered synchronized kicks to his shins.

"..."

Only then did he truly understand—in front of these two queens, he had absolutely no say in household matters. Before he became these women's henpecked husband, he'd better find Fanatic quickly.

…

…

Artoria walking down the street was like watching a celebrity pass by—every single person turned to stare. Unlike before when she'd hidden herself in men's clothes while guarding the princess, today she was with Ryuuto dressed in women's clothing that showed off exactly who she was.

Her water-blue cashmere cardigan hugged her curves perfectly, the soft fabric clinging to her full breasts and highlighting the sensual lines of her waist. The fitted skirt she'd chosen for easy movement accentuated her hips, while her long, shapely legs were wrapped in sleek black pantyhose. Her golden hair caught the sunlight in her high ponytail, and London boots clicked confidently with each step.

No wonder the entire sidewalk stopped to stare—Artoria blended modern sex appeal with an obvious royal presence that turned the ordinary streets of Fuyuki into her personal runway.

"Someone's been staring at me non-stop," she said, eyes narrowing slightly.

He nodded. "Can't blame them. Japanese guys have zero chill around beautiful women. I'm different though..."

"I meant you," she cut in.

He froze.

"You're not even denying it," she said, her lips curving into a knowing smile. "I'm starting to see why my sister fell for you. Speaking of which, after seeing her again... she's changed so much. Like she's become a different person. Is that your doing, Master?"

Her haughty tone rubbed him the wrong way. Instead of answering, he flipped the question back at her.

"What about you?"

"What about me?"

"Your reason for liking me," he said with a playful smirk. "Let's be honest—it's pretty obvious. The noble King of Knights suddenly paying special attention to some guy she just met? My charm isn't good enough to make you fall for me in a day."

"Is that what you think, Master?"

"If this is about competing with your sister, I'm telling you now—stop. Consider that a warning."

She turned to look at him, her composed expression faltering for a moment. Something vulnerable flickered across her face.

After a long pause, she spoke softly. "You're right that I approached you because of my sister. But not for the reason you think."

She let the words hang in the air.

He frowned, genuinely confused by what she was trying to say.

"Maybe seeing Morgan change has made me... restless too." Artoria's eyes dropped to the sidewalk. "My cold, tyrannical sister suddenly acting like a normal woman? What exactly did you do to cause such a transformation in her?" She looked up, meeting his gaze. "I became curious about you."

Her lips curved into a small, apologetic smile. "I'm sorry, Master. I'll be more careful with my words and actions from now on." She let out a soft laugh that didn't reach her eyes. "Even I know my limits. A boring woman like me—even if I tried to copy my sister's approach with men, I'd just end up making them uncomfortable."