Shinji Matou at Your Service-Chapter 957: You Will Be Happy

From birth through his adolescence, the concept of calling someone mother was entirely foreign to Kiritsugu.

As far back as he could remember, he had only his father. There was no mother in his life.

So when Natalia once talked to him about family, Kiritsugu's first reaction was, "Do you want to be my father?"

Of course, she immediately scolded him.

"Don't mix up the genders, you rude little brat. At the very least, you should say mother."

And that became Kiritsugu's first impression and memory of what a mother could be.

If there was truly anyone who could be his mother, it would undoubtedly be Natalia. There would be no one else.

He had dreamed many times of calling her "Mom," but when the time came to say it, he found himself unable to speak. His awkwardness left everyone feeling unfamiliar with the usually composed Kiritsugu.

"Hey, you can't just stay like that. Show some guts and own up to it," Natalia complained, clearly displeased.

"Where's the decisive kid from back then? Or were you lying when you said I was your family?"

"I wasn't lying!"

"Then say it."

"M..."

"M what?"

"M... Mom..."

After a moment of blushing and hesitation, Kiritsugu finally uttered the two syllables.

"Louder, I can't hear you. Did you skip a meal?"

"MOM!"

Kiritsugu shouted in frustration, giving up on any subtlety.

"Ah..."

Even Natalia was momentarily stunned.

She had waited years to hear him say that. And so had he.

Now, this day had finally come—fate, that mischievous force, had for once played out in their favor.

Feeling both excited and proud, Natalia slammed her hand on the table and said loudly, "Say it again!"

"No way, I'm not letting you mess with me anymore."

By this point, Kiritsugu had regained his composure, his face now cool and detached, a tactic he had always used with Natalia.

Natalia, though only faintly influenced by the succubus blood in her veins, wasn't the type to seduce men left and right. However, it did affect her personality somewhat. She had a habit of spending money lavishly—whatever she earned would be quickly blown in places like casinos or bars. She also tended to tease Kiritsugu whenever she could.

Back when Kiritsugu was still a young boy, he would often flush red with embarrassment, but the more embarrassed he became, the more Natalia would tease him. Eventually, he developed the habit of responding with a cold expression. Seeing Kiritsugu's emotionless face would often make Natalia lose interest, and this time was no different.

"If you won't say it, someone else will—your wife, Irisviel, right? Kiddo just called me mom, so as his wife, shouldn't you also call me mom?"

"Mom?"

Irisviel, who wasn't nearly as shy as her husband, tilted her head in confusion and innocently repeated the word.

"Mom."

"See, kiddo? Learn from your wife," Natalia teased Kiritsugu while nodding approvingly.

"Maiya, you should call her mom too," Irisviel said in her usual straightforward manner.

"M-Me?"

Maiya stammered, clearly not expecting to be dragged into this.

"I-Is that okay?"

"As long as you want to," Natalia replied gently, nodding. She felt a stronger fondness toward Maiya because she saw a reflection of herself in her.

"M-Mom..."

Maiya's reaction mirrored Kiritsugu's. As a war orphan, she had never called anyone by that title, a word so charged with meaning.

At this point, Illya decided to join in on the fun.

"Papa's mom is Grandma. Grandma!"

"Yes, yes!"

Natalia burst into laughter, a laughter she hadn't experienced in a long time.

All the past grudges and unpleasantness seemed to dissolve in that moment of joy.

Next, it was someone else's turn—the person who had influenced Kiritsugu the most, his first love.

"Kerry..."

"Shirley..."

They exchanged a familiar gaze, using the same affectionate names from their childhood. But the eyes that met were no longer the same.

Shirley's eyes were no longer the beautiful amber they once were; they had turned a strange shade of red, a color that once again reopened the deepest scars in Kiritsugu's heart.

Kiritsugu's eyes, too, had lost their youthful brightness, now filled with the weariness of someone who had experienced too much and borne too many burdens. They were the eyes of someone who had matured through endless suffering. This maturity pained Shirley deeply.

"I'm sorry..."

"I'm sorry..."

They spoke at the same time, their words perfectly in sync.

"Why are you apologizing..."

"Why are you apologizing..."

Once again, they were in perfect harmony.

Kiritsugu's earlier denial, and Shinji's verification of their identities, now seemed unnecessary. This level of synchronization could only come from people who had lived together for a long time, and who knew each other intimately.

"You go first."

"Okay, I'll go first."

Finally, they broke the synchronization, but their understanding remained intact.

"I... I couldn't save you. If I had realized your true feelings a little sooner, maybe you wouldn't have ended up like that..."

Shirley was the embodiment of Kiritsugu's purest dream.

Only in front of her could he reveal his softest, most innocent side.

Only in front of her could he be the carefree boy he once was, not the cold facade he later adopted.

"Why are you apologizing? You didn't do anything wrong, Kerry."

Shirley, who still looked like a young girl, spoke softly, her voice as light as the sea breeze from the day they first met.

"It was all my fault. I was jealous of you. I wanted to prove that I could be like you. That's why I stole the teacher's medicine and ended up like that... It was all my fault, caused by my greed."

Kiritsugu's fists clenched tightly on their own.

"Kerry, you don't need to apologize. If anything, I'm the one who should apologize. Because of me, Alimango Island ended up like that. Because of me, everyone died. And I forced you to make such a terrible choice... It's all my fault."

"No, it's not! It's not..."

"It is, so don't comfort me, Kerry. You never were good at that. You're smart; you've known the truth for a long time, haven't you?"

"Ugh!"

Kiritsugu slammed his fist onto his leg, his nails digging into his skin. Just as Shirley said, he wasn't good at comforting others.

"I heard from Miss Natalia. The path you took, the pain you went through—it's all my fault. I wanted to see you again just to apologize. I'm sorry, Kerry. You deserved a brighter future, a better life, and I..."

Shirley's body trembled as she spoke, almost choking on her words, though no tears flowed. Dead Apostles don't cry—they can only shed blood.

"Kerry, blame me, hate me all you want. I just want you to live each day happily, like you used to..."

"Like before..."

Kiritsugu closed his eyes and shook his head.

"I can't go back to that time."

"Kerry!"

Shirley panicked and was about to speak when Kiritsugu continued.

"Even though I can't go back, I can promise you that I'll live happily from now on. I can do that now."

"Yes, you definitely can."

Irisviel held her husband's hand as she slowly relaxed his clenched fist. "You have me, you have Maiya, you have Mom, and you have Sister Shirley—"

"And me too!"

Illya, not wanting to be left out, eagerly chimed in.

"We will be happy."

That pure, innocent wish shattered the cold exterior Kiritsugu had built. Tears—ones he thought had long dried up—flowed once again after so many years.

This content is taken from freeweɓnovel.cѳm.

"Yes, we will be happy."

PS: I've always believed that writing fanfiction is about fixing tragedies in the orignal. That's why Shinji gave Kariya some hope and changed the fates of Sakura and Fujino. And as for Kiritsugu, Shinji wanted more than anything to give him a happy ending.