Shichen, breathing steadily, laid the flushed and panting Frieren down on the blanket, brushed the bangs from her forehead, and then stood up to leave.
"Frieren, good night~" he said softly, his head still inside the tent.
"…Mm," Frieren replied with her eyes closed, her voice faint.
His technique had been far too practiced—she hadn't lasted long at all. Even now, she could still feel the lingering touch of his hands on her, her chest hot and tight. She wondered if she really would grow bigger.
Leaving Frieren's tent, Shichen lifted a hand to his nose and sniffed. There was a faint, warm scent—not milky, of course. Frieren was far too small for that. Still, a "massage" left a bit of fragrance on the hands.
Thinking he'd continue next time, he made his way toward Saber's tent. He could faintly hear voices inside.
"Iri, aren't you going back?"
"Hm? Back where?"
"Aren't you sleeping with Shichen?"
"He hasn't even returned yet. Besides, can't I sleep with you?"
"What, you don't want me here?"
"It's not that… I'm just wondering, is it okay? Won't Shichen be unhappy?"
"Why would he be?"
"Well, because he sleeps with you every night…"
"Ahem—and with Ilya and the others, too."
"That's true… Still, you two aren't… doing anything, right?"
"Doing what?"
"What married couples do."
"In front of Ilya and the others? No way. And besides, Shichen and I aren't married."
"So you do want to do it with him?"
"Uh… Saber, why are you curious about this?"
"Eh? Am I?"
"It's obvious! Don't tell me you want to do something with him too?"
"No, no, of course not."
"No need to hold back~ I'm an open-minded person. You don't mind, do you?"
"In our era, it was normal for men to have many women close to them… But Iri, why don't you mind?"
"I'm just an artificial lifeform. Being loved is already enough—how could I ask for more?"
"Iri, you're still hung up on what you are? You know Shichen doesn't care—in fact, I think he likes it more."
"I'm still a woman—how could I not care about that sort of thing?"
"And what kind of reason is that?"
"You'll understand when you're older…"
"Understand what?" Shichen cut in at just the right moment, poking his head into the tent.
It was warm inside, with a faint familiar scent. Nothing indecent—both Irisviel and Saber were in modest sleepwear, one white, one blue.
The two lay side by side, gold hair and silver hair spilling across the pillows in a striking contrast.
Saber seemed startled by his sudden appearance, her right hand twitching toward the blanket as if to cover herself, but she stopped halfway.
"You're back," Irisviel greeted naturally, smiling.
"Mm. Ilya and the others should be asleep," Shichen said, slipping inside.
The tent suddenly felt smaller.
"What are you doing in here?" Irisviel asked, scooting over to make room between her and Saber.
"It's cold outside."
Without hesitation, Shichen stripped off his coat and dropped down between them.
Saber went completely still, her body stiff.
Inhaling the soft scent around him, Shichen awkwardly rolled onto his back so his shoulders pressed against both of them.
"Ahh, warm~"
"Hehe~ Aren't you the one who said you don't mind the cold?" Irisviel teased.
"Of course I mind it—I'm still human."
With nowhere else to put his hands, he kept them at his sides.
"Let me see."
Irisviel took one of his hands—it was icy cold—then set it gently on her stomach.
"Here, warm it up."
"Thanks," he said without reservation, feeling the warmth and softness through her nightgown. Her belly was flat, no extra flesh, yet still pleasantly soft.
"…Isn't it a bit cramped?" Saber asked suddenly, her tone calm.
Shichen looked at her—her face was serious, eyes fixed on the ceiling.
"It's fine. Not cramped at all."
Saber was petite, after all—her body fixed in her mid-teens—and Irisviel was slender as well. Three of them in one tent was more than manageable.
"…," Saber pressed her lips together, falling silent.
"Hehe~ Saber, are you feeling shy?" Irisviel teased.
"Shy? Not at all. Just… not used to it," Saber replied seriously.
"I see."
"Ah, my other hand's cold too," Shichen sighed.
"What?" Saber finally glanced over.
"It's freezing. See for yourself." He lifted it and laid it over Saber's hands where they rested on her stomach.
"…It is a little cold."
She noticed his other hand resting on Irisviel's belly.
…What did that mean? Was he expecting her to do the same?
Meeting his gaze, she saw the anticipation in his eyes.
"D-do I have to do that too?"
"We're all friends here—why not?" he said thick-skinned as ever.
"Mm…"
"I am your Master. You wouldn't want me to freeze, would you?"
A Servant wasn't obligated to warm their Master's hands, but…
"C'mon, we're friends. Just help me out," he coaxed.
"Saber, just humor him. He won't stop otherwise," Irisviel added.
"…Fine," Saber relented. She knew his personality—if he wanted something, he'd push until he got it, or worse. And if she refused, what if he spanked her? She didn't exactly mind, anyway.
"Great. Thanks, Saber~"
Without waiting for her to move, Shichen placed his hand on her stomach.
Through the silk of her nightgown, he felt the smooth, firm plane beneath—just a bit tense.
Not overly defined—no prominent abs—but tight. Smaller than Darkness's, but surprisingly nice to touch. His palm almost covered her entire midsection.
If he moved it upward… well, he decided against it for now. No point risking getting kicked out.
The tent fell quiet. Saber remained tense enough that Irisviel looked like she was holding back a laugh.
Only after a long while did Saber relax.
"Sh-Shichen… your hand should be warm enough by now, right?"
"Is it?"
"C-can you take it away?"
"It's fine. I'm comfortable like this."
"…I'm not comfortable. And… aren't you going back to your own tent?"
"Don't feel like moving. I'll just sleep here tonight," he said shamelessly.
"Eh?"
"Don't worry—I'm not afraid of you doing anything to me," he joked.
"Shouldn't I be the one saying that?" Saber asked, stunned.
"Same difference. If I did do something, it's not like you wouldn't notice."
"But—"
"Alright, alright, enough talking. Let's sleep—it's late." He closed his eyes.
"Saber, good night," Irisviel said, following suit.
Saber opened her mouth but said nothing. It was obvious he was doing this on purpose—and his hand was still on her stomach. How was she supposed to sleep like that?
He didn't do anything else that night, though when he woke, he noticed she was awake too. Hopefully she hadn't stayed up the whole night.
For the next few days, he continued sleeping with Irisviel and Saber. Once it happened once, it became routine. Still, nothing else happened.
A week of peaceful camping passed quickly, and Saber almost forgot about the Holy Grail War—until one night, a massive burst of magical energy erupted from Fuyuki City.
"Shichen!"
"Let's go check it out."
Taking only Saber, he rushed to the source: Fuyuki Bridge.
"KILL—!"
The moment they arrived, they saw a vast army of Heroic Spirits charging across the bridge.
It was Rider's Ionioi Hetairoi—his army of kings.
And standing at the head of the bridge was a lone figure in golden armor: Archer.
Behind him shimmered countless golden ripples, each one spitting forth the head of a weapon.
Gate of Babylon.
Rider and Archer were about to clash.
And when tens of thousands of Noble Phantasms met tens of thousands of Heroic Spirits—what would happen?
Shichen already knew.
Saber, however, could only watch, eyes locked on the scene.
~~~
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