"Hm?"
Noticing Shirou Emiya's gaze, Jeanne turned toward him curiously.
"Is there something on my face? Why are you smiling at me?"
"No, it's nothing."
Shirou quickly waved his hand, dismissing her concern.
"Are you sure?"
However, his overly earnest denial only made Jeanne more suspicious. She instinctively reached up and touched her face, wondering if something was truly there.
Shirou didn't know whether to laugh or sigh at the sight of Jeanne patting her own cheeks so earnestly.
"Ah, there's a little bug here—"
Feigning seriousness, Shirou gently reached out toward Jeanne's cheek, pretending to pluck something away before theatrically releasing the imaginary "bug" into the air.
"You could've told me sooner instead of secretly smiling like that. If the vendor noticed, I'd have been really embarrassed."
"..."
The vendor remained silent, thinking quietly to himself. Weren't you just asking me for prices? What exactly are you two doing now?
Besides, there clearly hadn't been anything on the girl's face. Was this some new flirting method young people used nowadays?
I don't understand, but it's certainly impressive, thought the vendor, deeply shaken.
"Cough! Cough! Cough!"
The vendor coughed three times loudly to regain their attention. Jeanne's striking beauty, combined with the saintly aura radiating from her entire figure, had already attracted a small crowd. She stood on the street like a beacon, unintentionally drawing the attention of numerous passersby. Although good for business in theory, none of the onlookers actually bought anything—leaving the vendor awkwardly wondering how to handle the situation.
"..."
Realizing what was going on, Shirou quickly finished his purchase and departed with Jeanne.
"Emiya-san, if you don't mind me asking, what wish brought you to this Holy Grail War?"
Holding a large bag of groceries effortlessly in one hand, Jeanne posed her question to Shirou. Everyone who entered the Holy Grail War had their own reasons, their own deeply held desires. Even someone as noble as Shirou surely must have a wish he hoped the Grail could fulfill.
"Ruler, please just call me Shirou. It feels weird having you call me 'Emiya-san' when you're older than me."
Shirou scratched his head awkwardly as he spoke. Fiore's formality had never bothered him, perhaps because he saw her as the next head of Yggdmillennia, but having Jeanne use the same formality felt oddly uncomfortable.
"Shirou…?"
Jeanne softly tested the name on her tongue, finding it indeed more natural than 'Emiya-san.'
"I actually have no wish I want from the Grail," Shirou admitted frankly. "If I had to choose something, I'd say my wish is simply to put an end to the Holy Grail Wars."
His answer surprised Jeanne.
She hadn't expected Shirou's sole motivation for joining the Grail War to be the ending of Grail Wars themselves.
But wasn't winning the war—and thus gaining the Grail—the only real way to stop it? Jeanne partially understood but couldn't fully grasp Shirou's intent.
Does he mean he wants to win in the end? Jeanne wondered. Yet Shirou doesn't seem like someone driven by a thirst for victory.
She remained puzzled.
"The Holy Grail War causes too much destruction, to both people and their surroundings."
Walking through the streets, Shirou gazed towards the direction where the recent battle had taken place. His eyes filled with resolve—and sadness.
Though Jeanne and the magi of Yggdmillennia had done their best to repair the battlefield, in truth, they had only concealed the damage through magecraft. The seemingly lush, green plains were actually pockmarked with deep craters and scars of intense combat. Magecraft wasn't powerful enough to fully restore that land—it could only disguise the damage, not truly reverse it.
If total restoration had been that easy, Fuyuki City wouldn't need constant "gas explosion" cover-ups; they'd just repair everything afterward. Clearly, such full restoration remained beyond even advanced magi.
Not to mention the nearby town on Trifas's outskirts, now completely obliterated, leaving hundreds dead.
Shirou Emiya didn't want those innocent people dying in vain, nor did he wish to see such destruction again.
"The Holy Grail War is convenient only for magi. For ordinary people, it's nothing short of a disaster—whether measured in lost lives or destroyed property."
Life was never easy. Losing one's belongings to such senseless violence was like seeing Superman casually toss your newly financed car at some villain.
"I want to put an end to all Holy Grail Wars," Shirou clarified firmly. "I want this Grail War to be the very last one."
Shirou wasn't merely aiming to end this Grail War, but to end every Grail War in existence, permanently stopping these meaningless conflicts.
He was well aware many smaller, subspecies Grail Wars existed; Darnic had explained a few things about them already.
Subspecies Grail Wars undoubtedly existed elsewhere too.
"I see…"
Jeanne finally understood Shirou's true intention. When she'd heard about all the deaths in that small town, anger had overwhelmed her as well.
But she couldn't just storm into Trifas in broad daylight to confront Assassin. She couldn't risk exposing the Holy Grail War and endangering even more innocent lives by openly fighting during the day.
Daytime was when residents were most active; an open battle would inevitably cause further casualties.
Only at night—when most people were asleep or safely indoors due to subtle magecraft influence—could Jeanne fight without holding back.
Nighttime operations significantly reduced the risk to civilians compared to daylight engagements.
"What about you, Ruler?"
Shirou turned the question back to Jeanne. Having known Jeanne only through history books, Shirou was genuinely curious about the Heroic Spirit's own perspective.
"Please call me Jeanne, Shirou."
Since Shirou had asked her to call him by name, Jeanne hoped he would stop using her Servant class title as well. After all, her class wasn't who she truly was.
Even though, to Shirou, 'Saber' had long since exclusively meant Artoria Pendragon.
"I have no wish for the Holy Grail," Jeanne answered seriously. "If I had any personal wish, the Grail would never have summoned me. After all, the Holy Grail would never select a Ruler whose own desires could influence the fairness of the war."
Jeanne spoke resolutely. As Ruler, summoned explicitly to ensure fairness, she could harbor no private wish or bias.
Of course, she recognized that true impartiality was impossible. She wasn't a machine, and each decision inevitably reflected her own personal judgment, making perfect fairness difficult.
Still, she genuinely had no wishes that required the Grail's fulfillment. Jeanne had no regrets about her life. Even her tragic ending was something she had long since accepted wholeheartedly.