Before escaping…ahem, before walking out of the tent, Shirou first checked on everyone's condition.
Only after confirming that neither Illya's magecraft nor the other him's magecraft had caused any lasting effects on the group did he finally let out a sigh of relief and prepare to leave.
Before heading out, he projected a red-and-black coat and put it on.
It served not only to cover his tattered clothes but also to keep him warm.
Ursus winters were still quite cold, and he was currently a patient.
"...Illya, huh? If possible, I would still like to see her again someday."
The moment he remembered that Illya had personally guided everyone through his memories, a chill ran straight from the soles of his feet to the top of his head…
And then all the way back down again.
Shaking his head, Shirou tried to forget about it.
A futile attempt to escape reality.
Still, if he ever had the chance, he genuinely wanted to meet Illya again.
Unfortunately, that was impossible.
The other him had already explained everything clearly.
Shirou understood that much.
It was regrettable, but there was nothing he could do except accept it.
Her concern.
Her feelings.
Her wish.
He had received them all.
At first, she had probably wanted him to abandon that ideal and live the life of an ordinary person.
But after gradually coming to understand this land, she had stopped insisting on that.
"So she wants me to do what I want to do, huh?"
Walking along the road, Shirou muttered to himself.
He completely failed to notice the astonished expressions on the faces of the people around him.
Most of them were members of Reunion.
A few belonged to Rhodes Island.
Their first reaction upon seeing Shirou was confusion.
Then came shock.
Unfortunately, Shirou was walking too quickly.
By the time they reacted, he had already gone far away.
At the moment, Shirou did not have anywhere in particular he wanted to go.
He simply intended to take a walk around the tents and loosen up his body.
Perhaps because of the sword rampage, he still felt slightly out of sync with himself.
After moving around for a while, that uncomfortable feeling gradually eased.
"Shirou?"
After he had walked for some time, a voice suddenly called out from behind him.
"Hm? Ace? Scout?"
Hearing someone call his name, Shirou instinctively turned around.
It was Ace and Scout.
The clothes they were wearing were different from the Rhodes Island combat uniforms they had worn during battle.
Now they were dressed more like medical personnel from Rhodes Island's medical department.
Between the bloodstains, dirt, and their disheveled hair, Shirou almost failed to recognize them.
If not for Ace's trademark beard and Scout's sunglasses, he probably would not have.
"Your condition... is it really okay?"
After confirming that the person before them was indeed Shirou, Ace and Scout exchanged glances.
Then Ace stepped forward and spoke.
"I am fine. There are no major problems at the moment. I just need some time to recover."
"Do you need help with anything?"
Shirou glanced around at the busy surroundings as he answered.
He had been so occupied thinking about Illya and the other him that he had completely failed to notice how busy everyone else was.
That was not good.
Still, it was not too late.
As he spoke, he rolled up the sleeves of his coat, ready to get to work.
"Uh... I think you should keep resting."
"You really do not look like someone who is completely fine."
After a moment of hesitation, Ace stopped him.
"Huh?"
Shirou paused mid-motion.
What exactly did Ace mean by that?
He felt perfectly fine.
He had thoroughly checked himself before leaving the tent.
There should not have been any problems.
"If you are talking about those things that were sticking out of my body, that issue has already been resolved. Everything is fine now."
After thinking about it, Shirou assumed they had been frightened by the sight of swords erupting from his body.
So he gave a brief explanation.
At the same time, he stretched a little to demonstrate that he was truly fine.
"..."
Seeing that Shirou genuinely seemed unaffected, Ace and Scout fell silent.
"You dealt with those things a long time ago."
"We know that."
"But..."
After a moment of thought, Scout finally spoke.
The objects protruding from Shirou's body, which resembled neither Originium crystals nor anything biological, but rather metallic weapons and blades had disappeared quite some time ago.
The only thing left behind was the darker coloration of the skin around the wounds.
Compared to how he had looked before, that was hardly a serious issue.
As for Amiya, Blaze, Rosmontis, and the others suddenly falling unconscious, a mysterious note had appeared explaining the situation.
However, they were currently in the middle of a crisis.
Losing both Amiya, the leader of Rhodes Island, and Talulah, the leader of Reunion, at the same time had created no small amount of trouble.
Fortunately, they still had the Doctor.
Even with their memory loss, being forced into the situation had brought out their abilities.
The Doctor had continued making remarkably stable and reliable decisions despite the circumstances.
The Doctor had it especially rough.
Ever since being rescued after awakening, they had not closed their eyes once, spending every moment working nonstop.
"But...?"
Seeing that Scout seemed to want to say something but was having difficulty putting it into words, Shirou looked confused.
"Take a look for yourself."
Ace simply picked up his terminal and turned the screen toward Shirou.
Shirou: "...Huh?"
"Archer? No... wait, that is me?"
Looking at the white-haired person displayed on the screen, Shirou's first thought was that it was Archer.
But he quickly realized something was wrong.
The person on the screen was moving.
That was what made him realize it was actually himself.
So had his hair turned white because of magecraft?
Or was it because of the card he had used?
Well...
That probably was not very important.
The other him had already mentioned that there might be a few minor aftereffects.
They would heal naturally with time.
Perhaps the white hair was one of them.
It did not really affect anything.
If Ace and Scout had not pointed it out, Shirou probably would not even have noticed.
"It is just a tiny side effect caused by magecraft. Nothing serious."
After confirming that this was what the two were worried about, Shirou gave a brief explanation.
"...Alright."
"If you say so, then let us go see the Doctor."
"We can also fill you in on what happened while you were unconscious."
Realizing there was no way they were going to persuade him otherwise, Ace and Scout decided to stop trying.
Besides, even if the two of them teamed up, there was no guarantee they could physically stop him.
Other than the obvious change in hair color, Shirou had grown noticeably taller, and his physique had become much more muscular.
Scout's opinion on the matter was simple:
I am a sniper. It is perfectly normal for me to lose to Shirou in close combat.
Overall, Shirou now resembled Nameless even more than before.
The difference was that his face still carried that warm, reassuring smile.
For Rhodes Island, Shirou waking up was undoubtedly excellent news.
After all, he was someone capable of dispersing a Catastrophe.
Just having him around made people feel safer.
As they walked together, Shirou gradually learned what had happened during his unconsciousness.
First, he had not been unconscious for very long.
Just one night.
As for Amiya and the others, they would likely wake up soon.
Second, regarding the Catastrophe—
Shirou had indeed destroyed it.
However, the Originium meteorites that had already fallen and the rain contaminated with Originium dust had still caused considerable damage throughout Chernobog.
At present, Rhodes Island and part of Reunion were assisting with disaster relief efforts.
Because Shirou had eliminated the Catastrophe itself, the natural disaster had actually ended up being the lesser problem.
Most of the damage stemmed from human actions.
For some reason, Chernobog's defensive forces had been unusually sparse.
That was why only a portion of Reunion's forces had been enough to reduce the city to its current state.
"...You have all worked hard."
Listening to the situation along the way, Shirou could tell just how much everyone had been through.
"It is nothing."
"It is what we are supposed to do."
Ace and Scout answered at the same time.
The three looked at one another.
Then all of them laughed.
"The Doctor is inside dealing with paperwork."
"Since they have been awake all night, they are a little irritable right now."
"So please be understanding."
When they arrived at a particularly large tent, Ace pointed toward it and gave Shirou a warning.
Meanwhile, Scout entered first to report that Shirou had regained consciousness.
"I understand."
Hearing Ace's explanation and catching a glimpse of the interior through the open entrance, Shirou nodded.
He was not particularly familiar with the Doctor.
In fact, they had barely exchanged a few words.
Still, looking at the mountain of documents piled on the desk and the dark circles visible beneath the black mask, he could completely understand why the Doctor might be in a bad mood.
Rin and Taiga were not exactly pleasant people when they had not slept either.
That was something he was very accustomed to.
Since Ace and Scout still needed to serve as the "strong laborers" of the medical team until Rhodes Island's reinforcements arrived, they quickly excused themselves.
The only reason they had accompanied Shirou this far was because they happened to be heading this way anyway to collect supplies and report to the Doctor.
There was also a tiny desire to slack off for a few minutes.
Working under a group of understaffed doctors who had been awake all night was a stressful experience.
Still, both men knew what was important.
Once their business was finished, they immediately left.
"...Shirou?"
Inside the tent, Doctor looked up at the man who had just entered.
Their expression shifted from confusion...
To complete disbelief.
Doctor had slept for an unknown amount of time and suffered severe physical deterioration as a result.
Meanwhile, Shirou had taken a single night's sleep.
Aside from his now-white hair, he had become noticeably broader, significantly taller, and looked exceptionally energetic.
The comparison was almost absurd.
The difference was just too ridiculous!
The Doctor was genuinely jealous.
"Yes. I have a general understanding of the situation now. Is there anywhere you need my help?"
Shirou got straight to the point.
He was not particularly familiar with the Doctor, and judging from their current state, they did not seem to be in the mood for small talk.
It was probably best to skip the pleasantries.
"Oh... right, right. I understand. Scout already explained things."
"Let me think about where we are short on manpower."
Snapping out of their moment of envy, the Doctor picked up a stack of documents and quickly flipped through them.
After a moment, they pulled out one file and handed it to Shirou.
"Rhodes Island is short-handed, but we are still functioning well enough."
"Reunion is a different story."
"With Talulah, Frostnova, and Alina all suddenly falling unconscious, everything is currently being held together by that gentleman called Patriot."
"Officially, they said they do not need assistance, but I think it would be better if we sent some support anyway."
"The problem is that ordinary operators would probably have a difficult time fitting in over there."
"If I remember correctly, the two children who were always following Alina around seemed to know you."
"So I would like you to go."
The Doctor spoke rapidly while pointing toward a nearby crate filled with medical supplies, clearly indicating that Shirou should bring it along.
"The two children... Ino and Sasha?"
Balancing the folder against his arm, Shirou projected a rope, wrapped it around the crate, and effortlessly lifted it with one hand.
"Yes."
"Ino possesses healing Arts and should currently be helping treat the wounded."
"You can deliver these supplies to him while you are there."
Seeing that Shirou already knew who she was talking about, the Doctor added information about their current location.
Just as Doctor had said, Reunion was in slight disarray due to the disappearance of Talulah and the other two leaders.
What the Doctor did not mention was that many Rhodes Island operators had previously fought and been injured by Reunion rioters.
As a result, a fair number of Rhodes Island personnel still held less-than-positive opinions of Reunion.
Under those circumstances, there were not many people Doctor could send to assist them.
Up until now, Reunion members had been coming over to collect supplies themselves.
It was not really Reunion's fault.
But reality was reality.
Doctor could not force Rhodes Island operators to suddenly accept those people.
Fortunately, nobody had died because of the conflict.
Things had not yet reached the worst possible outcome.
Perhaps some time spent working together would improve relations.
Or perhaps not.
The Doctor honestly did not know.
For now, Doctor could only take things one step at a time.
There were more urgent matters demanding thier attention.
And with Shirou available, this particular problem no longer required her involvement.
From what Doctor had heard from Alina and several Reunion members, they not only knew Shirou but held him in fairly high regard.
Given that fact, sending him was the optimal solution.
"Understood."
Shirou nodded.
Then he picked up the crate and left the tent.
Upon entering the section of the camp housing the wounded, he saw numerous people wrapped in bandages stained with traces of blood.
Some had suffered even more severe injuries.
The wounds had been tightly bound with bandages to stop the bleeding.
Most of them immediately focused on the medical supplies Shirou was carrying.
Their expressions changed the moment they saw the crate.
But after recognizing who was carrying it, those thoughts quickly vanished.
The reason was simple.
They knew perfectly well that they could not take it from Shirou.
And if they tried, there was a good chance they would be expelled from the camp.
In weather like this, being thrown outside was essentially a death sentence.
Ursus winters were no joke.
And there were likely still infected rioters lurking beyond the perimeter.
Naturally, Shirou noticed the way they were looking at him.
Rather than reacting, he merely adopted a more serious demeanor.
If he could discourage trouble before it started, all the better.
The less unnecessary trouble, the better.
He needed to conserve his strength.
There might still be another battle waiting ahead.
The peace currently surrounding Chernobog existed only because the infected rioters had temporarily hidden themselves from the Catastrophe.
And Shirou remembered something very clearly.
Among those infected rioters wearing Reunion uniforms, there had also been people wearing Ursus military uniforms.
The implications behind that fact were significant.
Very significant.
But it was not something he needed to concern himself with right now.
Transport supplies.
Preserve his strength.
Prepare for whatever came next.
Those were his priorities.
Based on what Ace and Scout had told him, as well as the reactions he had received when reporting the situation earlier, Shirou already understood that what had happened in Chernobog went far beyond a simple case of infected rioters exploiting a Catastrophe.
The reality was likely much uglier.
Perhaps it extended all the way to the upper levels of Ursus.
Or perhaps to the rulers.
If his opponents were enemies like the ones he had faced before, Shirou could confidently say he would find a way to handle them.
But if the enemy became the nation of Ursus itself...
Then his first thought would probably be to find an escape route.
It was not because he could not fight them.
At that level, however, raw combat strength was no longer the issue.
As Yith had once told him:
Once matters reached this scale, they became problems that no single person could solve.
For now, though, as long as he stood in the right place…
As long as he acted alongside Rhodes Island…
He would probably be fine.
Because compared to him, Rhodes Island had far more reason to worry.
They were the ones in danger of being swept into whatever conspiracy was unfolding within Ursus and becoming yet another casualty caught between larger powers.