The Noble Phantasms projected by Shirou were quite sturdy. At the very least, those people had not been caught in the flames.
"Hmm… looks like they are all fine."
Seeing that no strange smells were coming from the crossbowmen, Ace concluded that they were probably unharmed.
They had simply been knocked unconscious by the signboard Rosmontis threw.
Fortunately, Shirou had saved them in passing. Otherwise, Rosmontis knocking them out on purpose would have been meaningless.
And they would not have been able to extract any information from them.
As for interrogation, Shirou was not familiar with that, so it was left to the Rhodes Island members.
Originally, Shirou planned to use this time to repair the communicator and reconnect with Chen, but Blaze suddenly ran over carrying a small white "kitten."
"Take care of the little kitten! She used her Originium Arts quite a bit just now and needs some rest."
After setting Rosmontis down, Blaze immediately turned and ran off to join Ace and Amiya, leaving Shiroustill in his Mystic Codeand Rosmontis staring at each other.
"…You worked hard."
Countless possible greetings flashed through Shirou's mind, but in the end, that was all he managed to say.
"Mm… it is not a problem. Blaze and the others are just worrying too much."
Rosmontis either did not notice Shirou's awkwardness, or simply did not understand his expression. She quietly found a spot beside him and prepared to sit down.
"It is fine to rest, but do not sit directly on the ground. You will dirty your clothes."
Seeing her about to sit on the floor, Shirou projected a coat for her to sit on. Then, the red Mystic Code on his body dissolved into blue motes of magical light, reverting him back to his original outfit.
Though compared to before, his clothes were now somewhat tattered.
Still, for Shirou, it was not a big issue. They were just a bit torn and were not damaged to the point of being unwearable.
At least everything that needed covering was still covered.
While he had carefully arranged a proper seat for Rosmontis, Shirou himself did not care much. He simply sat down beside her and began fiddling with the communicator.
After all, the floor might very well have been cleaner than his current clothes.
"Thank you. Are you trying to fix that? Without tools, that would be inconvenient, right?"
Sitting on the coat Shirou provided, Rosmontis looked at him curiously.
"Tools? That is not really a problem."
As he spoke, a small tool appeared in his hand, and he began disassembling the device.
After analyzing it earlier, he found that it was just a small component loosened by impact. He had not had time to fix it during combat, so now that things were calm, he needed to repair it quickly.
"…That is a very convenient ability."
Watching the tools appear in his hand and recalling his earlier combat style, Rosmontis found his Originium Arts incredibly versatile.
It was not just for destruction. It could protect others and even repair equipment.
Unlike her own Arts, which were only capable of destruction.
"Mm… it is indeed convenient, but the consumption is also quite high. You have to manage its use carefully."
Shirou thought for a moment and pointed out his biggest limitation.
Mainly, he did not want Rosmontis to place too high expectations on him.
"I see… I understand."
Hearing his explanation, Rosmontis nodded seriously and began thinking.
She only understood the surface level. She did not know how it actually worked, but it was true that the stronger an ability was, the harder it was to control and the more side effects it tended to have.
Seeing Rosmontis frowning slightly in thought, Shirou chuckled softly.
At the same time, he fixed the loose connection in the communicator, checked it with magecraft to ensure it was working properly, and began reassembling it.
"Mm."
"…"
Watching Rosmontis earnestly trying to understand, Shirou found her somewhat adorable.
A child… was it really right for someone so young to be standing here?
At an age that should have been carefree and innocent, she was instead on a cold unforgiving battlefield.
Shirou understood that this was inevitable.
Just as Blaze had once said, the rights of the Infected must be fought for by the Infected themselves.
He understood it, but it still left him uneasy.
So he tried not to dwell on such thoughts, treating both Amiya and Rosmontis as adults.
But whenever they occasionally showed expressions befitting their age, those thoughts would inevitably resurface.
Shaking his head to clear his mind, Shirou turned on the communicator and spoke:
"This is Shirou. Can you hear me?"
"Yes, I can hear you. The communicator is fixed?"
Hearing Shirou's voice, Chen sounded a bit surprised. She was currently on her way to his location, yet the communicator had already been restored.
"I repaired it during a break. It should still work for a while, but once we get back, it will need to be handled by professionals or replaced."
After a brief explanation, Shirou went straight to the point:
"When I entered the target building earlier, there were no people inside and it was only filled with explosives. The Rhodes Island members are currently… interrogating those individuals to see if they can get any additional information."
Halfway through, Shirou even turned his head to take a look.
Ace, Scout, Blaze, and Amiya were questioning the captives with very gentle expressions. It did not quite look like torture.
"Understood. As long as you are all safe. Hoshiguma, the others, and I will head over to your location shortly. You are still near the target building, right?"
After receiving Shirou's report, Chen sorted out the situation.
Given the current circumstances, it was completely justified for the Lungmen Guard Department to intervene directly in the slums. After all, the enemy had caused such a massive incident.
And it would not just be the Guard Department, people from the slums would definitely come as well. An entire block had been blown up; there was no way no one would come to check.
This was supposed to be a routine operation… how did it become so complicated?
At this moment, Chen could only feel a headache coming on.
At least Shirou's safety helped calm her somewhat agitated mood.
Even though he had reported earlier, that kind of fragmented communication was nowhere near as reassuring as hearing his voice directly.
"Mm. We will regroup here. If there is any new information, I will contact you."
After receiving Chen's acknowledgment, the communicator fell silent again.
Hanging it back, Shirou briefly checked his equipment.
He removed the now tattered Guard Department tactical coat, leaving himself in just a short-sleeved shirt and the red holy shroud wrapped around his right hand.
That shirt was practically ready to be written off after this mission.
"Is that something important?"
As Shirou examined whether the coat was still usable, Rosmontis asked from the side.
Turning his head, he realized she was referring to the red cloth on his right hand.
"Mm, it is something important. Why do you ask?"
Looking at the cloth, Shirou answered.
It truly was important, it was possibly his last connection to the past and also the key to activating his Mystic Code.
Fortunately, it was far sturdier than ordinary clothing. He did not have to worry about it ending up with a hole burned through it like the coat.
"It is nothing. It just stands out so I was curious."
Rosmontis blinked as she spoke.
Given Shirou's current appearance, the red cloth really was quite eye-catching.
"…I see."
After hearing that, Shirou still put the tattered coat back on.
Even if it was worn, it at least provided some cover.
Perhaps it was just his imagination, but Rosmontis seemed a bit more reserved than before.
"Um… Shirou, why did you participate in this operation?"
After thinking for quite a while, Rosmontis finally came up with another topic.
She had been sent here not only to rest, but also to talk with Shirou as much as possible to improve his impression of Rhodes Island.
She did not quite understand it herself, but Blaze had told her that simply talking more with him would be enough.
So she kept trying to find topics to speak with him about.
Which was quite difficult for her.
"Why did I participate…? Well… because it is work for the Guard Department?"
Shirou answered.
"If it is just work, then why are you trying so hard?"
Rosmontis was clearly not satisfied with that answer. After all, Shirou had been pushing himself extremely hard the entire time.
There had to be another reason.
"Is it wrong to take work seriously…? Alright, alright, do not look at me like that. Let me think."
As soon as Shirou spoke, he was met with Rosmontis's steady gaze. Feeling uncomfortable under it, he quickly surrendered.
For some reason, when she looked at him like that, he felt as if his conscience was being poked.
"Why am I trying so hard… mainly because I feel angry at what those people are doing. Taking out their frustrations by oppressing the Infected… that is not right, is it?"
After thinking for a moment, Shirou replied.
"I see… Shirou, you really are a good person."
Watching his expression as he said that, Rosmontis felt he was not lying.
To go this far for people he did not even know, he had to be a good person.
"I would not say that. I am just doing what I believe is right."
Faced with the sudden praise, Shirou felt a bit embarrassed instead.
"Is that so? But from my point of view, Shirou, you are a super super good person, you know?"
As if to emphasize her opinion, Rosmontis even made a very large gesture with her hands.
"…Thank you for the compliment. I will accept it."
Seeing her like that, Shirou smiled helplessly.
"Ahh! What are you two talking about? You look like you are having fun. How about letting big sister join in too?"
Blaze suddenly leaned in and hugged Rosmontis.
"Are you done with the questioning over there?"
Seeing Blaze appear out of nowhere, Shirou glanced toward Amiya's side and noticed that the other three were still hard at work.
Based on his current understanding of Blaze…
Had she handed everything over to Ace and the others because she got bored?
"Not yet! But we have already successfully persuaded them to hand over information. After all, they were treated as expendable pawns and almost blown up. Anyone would be upset about that. They just asked that we put in a few good words for them with the Guard Department later to reduce their sentences."
Blaze answered directly.
"I see. That went quite smoothly. But does that not mean you are slacking off? Is that really fine? Amiya is still working, you know?"
After thinking over Blaze's explanation, Shirou found it reasonable.
Now they just needed to wait a bit longer for Amiya and the others to extract useful intelligence.
As for Blaze… Shirou strongly suspected she was slacking.
"Ahem… I have a feeling you and Amiya would get along very well. You two are quite similar when it comes to pushing others to work… But I was told by Amiya to come over here and rest! I did not come here to slack off on my own!"
Hearing Shirou's remark, Blaze was reminded of all those days at Rhodes Island when Amiya had called her in for overtime.
The little rabbit might be cute, but not when it came to overtime.
And while Shirou looked cool just now when he saved her, she still refused to accept being labeled as someone who slacked off.
"Oh, I see. Then I misunderstood."
Watching Blaze defend herself so forcefully, Shirou nodded.
Whether it was true or not, he did not really know but it was not that important.
"Do not look at me with that suspicious expression! I did get some information earlier. It is just that I got a little too carried away during questioning and ended up roasting someone, so they told me to come over here."
Seeing Shirou's doubtful look, Blaze revealed a bit more of the truth to convince him.
She really did not want to be labeled as someone who slacked off. She genuinely did not slack!
"…Roasted someone…"
Hearing that, Shirou's mouth twitched slightly.
So that meant someone had survived the big explosion, only to be slowly cooked by her afterward?
"That is not the important part. The important thing is that those people never planned to conduct the transaction here. This place was just a smokescreen from the beginning. Their real transaction site is not on the surface."
Blaze forcefully changed the subject and, without waiting for Shirou's response, continued sharing what she had learned.
"Not on the surface…? Then could it be the sewers?"
Hearing that, Shirou immediately thought of that possibility.
"Correct! They are not trading on the surface, they are conducting the transaction in the underground sewers of the Lungmen slums!"
Seeing that Shirou had been successfully drawn into the new topic, Blaze continued.