IBHJ Chapter 684 (Patreon)

Since Irisviel was bound to Einzbern Castle early on, the black mud only ravaged the castle and surrounding forest, without causing any other damage or casualties - except for Shirou, who was burnt all over by it.

Scathach used her Primordial Runes to heal him and save his life, restoring his skin. However, having only [Mortal Awakening] at the age of six, and after being ravaged by the black mud, his lifespan would surely be greatly shortened.

But again, this was just an odd dream completely unrelated to the real him.

However, he had killed both the black mud and Angra Mainyu, so why hadn't this dream ended yet?

Or rather, who created this dream in the first place? And what was their aim?

Shirou pondered this in his mind. But in this bizarre dream, there was still one more thing he had to do. He had to say goodbye to Scathach.

The Holy Grail War was over, so as a Servant she'd have to leave this world.

Just as he was about to say goodbye...

"There's no need for goodbyes, Shirou. I'm not going anywhere," she said with a smile.

"Huh?"

Scathach stretched her body and moved around a bit, looking quite satisfied. "It seems that black mud has incarnated my body."

"In other words..."

"In other words, I can't leave this world like a regular Servant now that the war has ended. If you want me gone, you'll have to kill me first," she said with a laugh. "What's wrong? Does my student want to kill his teacher and make her disappear?"

"No, I don't plan on doing that," he shook his head.

"Well, being able to stay is good too. I'm still worried about your body, Shirou. After all, you're my dear student. And this way I can train you properly as well," she said with a smile.

So this dream wasn't over yet? There was more to follow?

Damn it! Where was he going to find so much time to waste here? He couldn't even sleep peacefully now?

Shirou felt a headache coming on. Although it was great to be dreaming about Scathach. But dreams weren't real. In the real world, people were still waiting for him to come back!

So where exactly was the exit from this dream?

He was stumped.

Seeing his expression, Scathach found it quite amusing and couldn't resist teasing him a little. She reached out and playfully pinched his nose, smiling as she said, "From now on, let's enjoy our time together in this world, Shirou."

"Yes, shisho," he nodded and responded with a smile, though he felt troubled inside.

Shirou and Scathach stood amidst the scorched wasteland on the city outskirts.

In the old forest outside Fuyuki, the centuries-old Einzbern Castle had burned alongside the towering trees surrounding it. Fortunately, the fire only reached the edge, so just a small area was incinerated. In a few years, new shoots and saplings would sprout again on this charred land.

Leaving the wasteland with Scáthach, Shirou figured the next part of this bizarre dream would involve daily life with the incarnated woman.

He wondered how to wake himself up from this vivid dream. As he pondered this problem, a shout abruptly rang in his ear.

"--- Eternal King, Eternal King!"

Who's calling me? He reflexively turned towards the sound, seeing only a swirling vortex. Then his consciousness and vision sank into endless darkness.

...

“Eternal King...Eternal King!”

Dazed, Shirou drifted in a semi-dreamlike state, unsure how much time was passing. As his mind slowly cleared, he heard an icy shout pierce through the haze before fully regaining consciousness.

Blinking his eyes open, he saw snow softly falling from the sky, met by Salter’s intense golden gaze peering down at him.

Seeing those golden pupils, clarity finally washed over him. He tried standing up, only to find his body still encased in the black mud sleeping bag.

He shed the slick casing and gripped Salter's slender shoulder to steady himself, his eyes never leaving her face.

Salter flinched, her petite body tensing as she asked, “What are you doing, Eternal King?”

"Don't move."

She became still. Since Eternal King said so, there must be something wrong with her.

Shirou gazed into his reflection in her golden irises—seeing a youth with a fiery gleam in his eyes looking back.

He examined his body as well. Brimming with magical energy, every Noble Phantasm intact. Nothing out of place.

"So I've...awakened from that strange dream?" Shirou muttered, stroking his chin.

Then what on earth was that dream all about? Could it be that deep down, he truly lusted after Scathach's body, leading to the erotic dream?

“Um, Eternal King, can I move now?” She couldn't help but ask.

“Go ahead,” he nodded.

“Phew—” She let out a sigh of relief, moving her body around, then asked, “Was there something strange on me just now?”

“Nope.”

She asked strangely, “Then why'd you ask me to stand still?”

"Because I wanted to use your eyes as a mirror to see what I looked like right then," Shirou was an honest man, so he confessed bluntly.

Salter: "......"

Why did she suddenly feel like punching him?

"By the way, why'd you suddenly come to the Jotunheimr Gate?"

"You guys didn't come back last night, so I came to check on you and brought some blueberries for you to eat."

"I see, thanks." He smiled.

"I left them with Thrud. Let's go eat together!"

"Sure," he nodded, slapping some dirt from his body.

He suddenly noticed a book lying on the ground.

This was the one he had picked up earlier in Fuyuki, dropped by Kiara Sessyoin.

He couldn't just throw it away - it might be important to Kiara. He picked it up and glanced reflexively at the characters written on it.

He'd seen these words before, but looking at them now, he couldn't help but freeze in surprise.

The words...they looked so familiar!

“Eternal King, what are you doing over there?” Salter shouted from afar.

“Oh, coming!” He tucked away the book and hurried to catch up.

The heavy snowfall soon erased and covered up any imprint left by Shirou lying there.

Afterwards, the ground was pristine white again, as if nothing had happened...

...

Shirou came to the entrance and the first thing he saw was Thrud standing on the wall, gazing off into the distance.

The giants were still attacking the gate day after day, tirelessly. However, their offensive was doomed to fail. The gate was formed by Skadi’s divine power. Unless Skadi herself collapsed, the gate couldn't be breached.

On the snow-white wall, there were two baskets of blueberries, apparently brought by Salter. Shirou waved to Thrud, then plopped down next to the baskets without hesitation. He plucked a blueberry from the basket and popped it into his mouth.

The sweet blue juice filled his mouth with the unique taste of blueberries, a little sweet and quite delicious.

He glanced at Salter as he nibbled on a blueberry, "Aren't you taking too many? I don't think the village makes that many."

"The villagers kept asking me to bring some for you. If I didn't take them, they wouldn't stop pestering me about it," Salter explained as she sat down next to the baskets. She popped a berry in her mouth and looked over at Thrud, who was gazing out into the distance.

Shifting her eyes back, she took another bite and added, "But it seems Thrud doesn't want to eat."

Seeing her enjoy the berries with such relish, he curiously asked, "Didn't you already eat on the way here?"

"Of course I did," she replied, before continuing to nibble on the berries.

Well, it was stupid of him to ask her that question.

Just then, the green twin-tailed Valkyrie walked over, blankly eyeing the basket of berries. In a flat tone she asked, "May I take two? Valkyrie 11475 asks politely."

Shirou nodded. "Go ahead."

Salter didn't object either. While normally protective of her food, these were meant to be shared.

The Valkyrie plucked two berries from the basket and offered one to the red haired Valkyrie next to her. "This one is for you, sister. Valkyrie 11475 displays sisterly authority and generously says."

"Thank you, 11475. Valkyrie 224 took the blueberry but didn't acknowledge Valkyrie 11475 as her sister."

Shirou nibbled on a blueberry as torrents of black mud occasionally surged out from his jet-black armor.

Salter set down her berry, eyeing the strange mud. "I've been meaning to ask for awhile now, Eternal King - what is that mud-like stuff on your body anyway?"

"This?" He gestured to the black mud. "It's my avatar, and my most reliable partner."

As he spoke, the black mud surging from his body formed a hand, giving a thumbs up as if to affirm his words.

Seeing the animated mud make such a gesture, Salter felt her patience wavering. The whole scene looked utterly ridiculous no matter how she looked at it.

However, as Shirou said, this "Evil" was the avatar imprinted with his spirit and his most reliable partner. That bizarre dream where he destroyed Angra Mainyu and All The World's Evils had left him feeling sick. But having broken free from that dream, there was no need to dwell on it anymore.