"Choosing to be a hero of justice only for his lover—over the course of battle, his wounds are gradually corroded by the source of the swords, and his memories are affected as well. The same goes for the black Heroic Spirit Emiya. The longer he fights, the more his body cracks and begins to collapse. Moreover, the more he uses his powers, the more severely his memories are impaired. Eventually, even memories from five minutes prior seem like a distant dream, utterly unfamiliar to him."
"However, when that man completely loses his memories—when he forgets even his own existence—he instinctively reverts to the young Shirou Emiya's longing to be a champion of justice. He'll even take the initiative to find companions, to do what a hero of justice should do. Yet, when he's inviting others to help the innocent, he himself can't help but feel a vague, inexplicable sorrow at his own words."
Hearing this, the listeners—Nami, Carina, Gion, and the others—fell silent. Someone who agonized over having no choice but to kill the innocent, someone who burned himself out because of it…someone who, at the very end, forgot who he was but regained the dream he'd once cherished as a boy. How could that not leave them shaken? For the female Marines in particular, Arton's words about the black Shirou Emiya left them speechless.
"Perhaps, when I enter Black Heroic Spirit Emiya Mode, I'll go through a similar issue—memory lapses caused by overusing my powers. It'll be like when I used the younger Shirou's abilities, but more severe this time. So, Carina, Uta, Kaya, Nami…if it really comes to that…"
"Then I'll be counting on your support when the time comes," Arton said solemnly.
Hearing his words, Carina, Uta, and the others nodded, keeping Arton's request in mind.
"Arton, we've already gathered the ingredients and liquor you asked for," Zeff called out from the outer deck of the Baratie. "Do you need us to carry them onto your ship?"
"No need—we can handle it ourselves," Arton replied from the deck of the Sylvan, smiling. "Thanks for going out of your way to provide the supplies, Zeff."
"It's nothing. You helped us deal with the Krieg Pirates, and I got to witness an incredible fight," Zeff said with a grin. "A bit of food and drink is hardly a big deal."
By now, he could almost see the bright future awaiting Arton on the seas.
"Well then, I need to go take care of that Straw Hat brat and Sanji," Zeff continued. "I won't keep you any longer."
With that, he signaled the nearby servers and headed off.
Turning back to Nami, Carina, and the others, Arton said, "Alright, let's go load the food and liquor. And if you're still curious about Shirou Emiya's backstory, I can compile it into a booklet for you to read. Having a detailed description would also help you understand what a Heroic Spirit really is, right? I don't think it'll take me too long to put it all together."
Uta immediately nodded. "Yes, let's do that, Captain Arton. I have a feeling that once I learn more about Shirou Emiya's story, I'll be able to compose some truly amazing songs."
Nami, Kaya, and the others nodded in agreement.
"Alright, it's decided then," Arton said, smiling. Having accepted Shirou Emiya's power, Arton felt it wouldn't hurt to share his story with the people of this pirate world.
Hearing that, Carina and Uta happily jumped off the ship to start hauling supplies, while Nami and Kaya stayed on deck to prepare for departure. Arton himself opened the interface of his sailing-diary system.
Just then, he realized he'd forgotten to turn off the video recording function.
"Oh well, guess it can serve as a record of my life," Arton muttered, shaking his head. He ended the recording but didn't plan to delete any part of it.
Little did he know…
Gion, Doll, and the other Marines, upon seeing this video that lasted well over 30 minutes—and featured Nami, Carina, Uta, and Kaya for at least twenty of those minutes—wore grave expressions on their faces.
Charlotte Smoothie, Whitey Bay, and the others, on the other hand, were green with envy. After all, just a bit of quick mental math was enough for the women to realize how much profit Nami and Carina might rake in from that footage.
Right at that moment, the newest entries in Arton's diary caught everyone's attention, pulling them out of their thoughts:
[Being able to organize my memories visually does make it easier to piece together the stories of each version of Shirou Emiya.]
[But once they're compiled, transferring all that text and artwork into a physical book will still take some time.]
[Oh well, let's just get it all sorted first. Then I can just copy it into a real-world text, following the original pattern.]
[We're on our way to Cocoyasi Village anyway. This'll at least give Kaya and the others something to do while we travel.]
[Come to think of it, these various Shirou Emiya stories could be pretty entertaining for people in this world.]
[Maybe I should find a publisher and release them. Make a little extra Belly to cover living expenses.]
[Uta did say she wants to have my kids. If I don't stash away enough Belly now, I won't be able to afford raising them.]
As he mused, Arton used his Sailing Diary System to quickly comb through his memories of Shirou Emiya, compiling each version's story into his diary.