Fate: Emiya the Host

Chapter 214 - 214: The Curse

"Too slow, Shirou, Bedivere!"Just returned, drunken Arash said, "I've already drunk twenty jin, as punishment for shirking booze, you must each drink thirty cups!"

"Haha!"

Bedivere humbly picked up a cup, "My fault indeed deserves punishment, but Shirou, sir, let him off, he's unsuitable."

How could the man the King favors be mixing in a place like this drinking?

Not allowed, Bedivere absolutely would not allow it.

He would guard the King's consort.

This was also a tiny way this unfaithful knight could atone.

"Unsuitable?"

Arash, still groggy, muttered, "What's so unsuitable about that?"

"Oh, right!", Arash laughed, "Because this guy is a brat, he can't drink yet."

Bedivere: "?"

"Lord Arash."

Bedivere put on a stern face, "Forgive my frankness, you are drunk!"

"Not yet! Am I or not, Fujita old bro?"

Arash snatched the meat he'd just roasted.

"…", Tawara Tota: "Lord Arash really isn't drunk, because—"

"Woooo!"

A wail rose from the children's circle; Xuanzang Sanzang used her staff as a microphone, "Da da da da… la la la."

Shirou commented that her singing wasn't as good as Umu's monster-song.

"Completely just a child."

Touta shook his head helplessly.

"I'm not a child!"

Xuanzang Sanzang suddenly appeared behind them.

She giggled, thinking to herself, "Speaking of which, just now there were three people who could be my disciples. Let's see, Shirou cooks the best, so he'll be the eldest disciple Wukong; between Touta and Arash, who will be Wuneng?"hing to perfection:

"'Old Men in the Mountain' refers to the pinnacle of contemporary assassins; to earn that title one must possess an 'archetype' no one else can imitate."

"Do you, Lord Shirou, know what 'archetype' is?"

Shirou nodded; "Rather than 'archetype,' I think 'craft' fits better."

"That's not wrong."

Cursed-Arm continued, "In appearance, it's a talent that can split personalities, tranquil poisons… and so on."

"I don't possess such talent. If it were Lord Shirou, even if your presence concealment isn't top-class, your craft alone could reach the pinnacle of assassins!"

Cursed-Arm Hassan sighed, "Unlike me, lacking talent yet still yearning for the title 'Old Man in the Mountain.'"

"Looking back, perhaps I was simply too young. I wanted to become someone sung about by posterity."

The rash pride of youth.

"But I had no sufficient talent… if I forcibly had to say what remains, perhaps it's this utterly ordinary body."

"If one lacks innate talent, then let something with special power become part of your body."

"So, this right arm is no longer a human arm; it is the arm of the demon Shaitan."

"The end result."

Cursed-Arm Hassan's tone was complex, "It's like this now, abandoning everything, throwing away everything, to obtain the title 'Old Man in the Mountain.'"

He summarized in a voice that was not exactly regret but not not regret, "To be honest, I never imagined the price would be turning into something neither man nor ghost. So I hope this serves as a warning to Lord Shirou, there are many ways to gain power; please do not take the wrong path."

Shirou, who had listened quietly, said, "Assassin, thank you for your advice. I will remember it."

"…Is the topic a bit heavy now?"

Cursed-Arm Hassan said, "But now, aren't you and I the only ones not wholeheartedly enjoying the feast?"

"Therefore, I have one favor to ask, Lord Shirou."

"I understand."

Shirou stood, "I'll stretch my limbs a bit."

"You understand, that's wonderful."

Cursed-Arm Hassan spoke with admiration, "Rather, Lord Shirou's will is truly admirable. Despite being someone who most enjoys feasts and good food, you're willing to run about for the village's safety and for strangers."

"To receive your help is truly a great blessing to me, Hassan."

"It's not like that."

Shirou shrugged, then saw Fujimaru Ritsuka and the others laughing and talking in the crowd, "Calling them strangers is a bit much, they're at least friends."

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