A Different Fate - [Rewrite]

Chapter 16:Emiya residence

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As they had planned to do when they came to Japan, Arturia and Illya left the large Einzbern mansion empty and moved into a small but comfortable apartment a few streets away.

It had two bedrooms, a large kitchen that was also a living room and a bathroom. For the two of them, it was more than enough. They didn't have any servants, because Arturia was quite certain that in Fuyuki there were few people that could be trusted, and she didn't want to risk Illya's safety by having unknown strangers in the house.

In Germany, it had been different, because the servants had all been homunculi created by Jubstacheit, and most of them were loyal to the girl.

Aside from the security danger, Arturia also wanted Illya to learn to clean a house and become self-sufficient. The girl was young, but she had been used to a life in luxury, and even if that had not spoiled her, it was best that she learned to be autonomous nonetheless.

There was another reason for which Arturia had decided on such a course of action. More than five years had passed since the end of the Fourth Grail War and, according to the books she and Gilgamesh had consulted in London, after seven years, the time would be right to do another summoning… and they could attempt to destroy the cursed cup once and for all. However, the King of Knights was well aware of the fact that the operation was a very difficult one… and she knew that, even if she didn't doubt her own skill, she might not survive.

Therefore, her objective was to make certain that Illya would be able to manage life on her own. Arturia had made sure that any other legal tutors could not touch the girl's inheritance, and only she and Illya herself – when she would come of age – would have the right to do anything with it.

The two lived together peacefully; Arturia taught the girl how to go through the occasionally tedious chores of a house, showing her how important and often difficult they were. Illya was genuinely curious and eager to learn, and that made the woman very happy, allowing her to feel slightly less worried about the girl's future in case something happened to her.

In a surprisingly short amount of time, Illya became very skilled around the house, working and going shopping together with Arturia and never forgetting to clean up after herself.

The only household chore in which Illya's ability was a bit inferior to Arturia's was cooking. The King of Knights had a humongous appetite, and she had found out, to her own surprise, that she seemed to be naturally talented in the kitchen. And even if the girl was learning to prepare her own meals, she unabashedly admitted that she much preferred her legal guardian's cuisine.

After about two weeks in Japan, Arturia had discussed with Illya the possibility of her going to school.

The girl had been very wary of the idea, mainly because she liked learning with the woman she considered part of her family. Arturia explained to her that they could try with a private school, since her education had been quite different from other teenagers', and see how it went. She also told her it would be useful to begin to talk with other people her age, and not always be around adults like her or Gilgamesh. To that, Illya vehemently protested that she loved spending time with them… and Arturia calmly placated her by explaining that they were not going to disappear if she started to go to school.

So, after debating with herself for a while, the girl agreed to try.

At the private school, Illya had to answer to some tests that she did easily. She was aware of the fact that she appeared younger than thirteen, but she was admitted into a class with people one year older than her nonetheless. Even so, she was accomplished enough to already know most of the classes, therefore she was given a special program, and according to that, she only had to go to school three days a week. Arturia was pleased, because that way the young girl would socialize a little but at the same time be able to continue practice Magecraft and read through other lessons with her.