In the narrow, winding passages of the Dungeon.
After cutting the final monster cleanly in half with a single sword, Shirou finally let his body relax. He leaned back against the cold stone wall and slid down to the ground, breathing heavily as exhaustion caught up with him all at once.
A considerable amount of time had passed since he entered the Dungeon.
Inside this place, time was vague and unreliable. There was no clear distinction between morning, noon, or night. After a brief calculation, Shirou decided it was time to return to the surface.
Today's harvest was not small.
From a resource perspective alone, his backpack was already half full. Magic stones, monster drops, materials-everything neatly collected.
More importantly, his combat experience had grown noticeably.
The techniques he inherited from Archer-EMIYA-were primarily meant for battles between humans. Clean exchanges, feints, predicting opponents' intentions.
The Dungeon was different.
Here, almost everything he fought was a monster.
Beasts with irregular movements, overwhelming strength, or bizarre attack patterns.
After an entire day of combat, those differences had begun to sink in. His movements had grown steadier. His decisions had become calmer.
Experience accumulated quietly.
"Time to go back."
Feeling the flow of magical energy inside his body, Shirou confirmed that only about two-tenths remained. Continuing would be inefficient and risky.
When it came to magical energy, Shirou was in a strange position.
He depended on it.
And yet, he didn't.
He depended on it because every weapon he used was projected through magic. Without magical energy, he would be unarmed.
At the same time, projection itself didn't consume much magical energy. Once a weapon was created, it could be used continuously without further drain.
That convenience, however, came with a downside.
It wasn't good for training his magical energy.
If he spent the entire day fighting with a single projected weapon, his magical energy consumption would be too low. Growth would lag behind the improvement of his other attributes.
If that imbalance continued, it would eventually affect his leveling speed.
That was unacceptable.
Shirou would not allow a flaw like that to persist.
After a quick cleanup of the battlefield-collecting magic stones and gathering the dropped materials-he slung his backpack over his shoulder and began heading back.
The return trip was uneventful.
No sudden ambushes.
No unexpected monster swarms.
He followed the familiar route and emerged safely onto the surface.
"...It's already evening?"
Stepping out of the cavern, Shirou looked up at the sky dyed in warm orange hues. He let out a small chuckle.
"I really got absorbed in the fight."
He found this rhythm unexpectedly comfortable.
Simple.
Clear.
Entirely different from his previous life.
"First stop, the Guild."
"I'll exchange the magic stones for Valis."
After a brief moment of reflection, Shirou headed straight toward the Guild. At the exchange counter, he handed over all the magic stones he had collected.
The result came quickly.
20,000 Valis.
Looking at the sum in his hand, Shirou couldn't help but sigh.
"Adventuring really is a profession for getting rich fast."
Then he added, almost immediately.
"But it's also a profession where money disappears even faster."
The scene from the Hephaestus Familia's weapon shop resurfaced in his mind.
Weapons casually priced at tens of millions of Valis.
Even the cheapest ones made his wallet ache just thinking about them.
Compared to that, his own magic felt like a blessing.
Not needing to buy weapons was simply too good.
"...Still."
As he walked back toward the Familia compound, Shirou's thoughts shifted.
"I also need to learn forging."
The skill [Hundredfold Forging] wasn't just strong.
It was fundamental.
According to its effects, the stronger his forging characteristics became, the faster his growth would be-and the stronger his weapons would be as well.
This skill was his core.
The foundation of everything he planned to build.
But forging characteristics could only be obtained by blacksmiths.
Which meant learning forging techniques was mandatory.
And because forging characteristics were tied to level advancement, this was something he needed to handle before reaching LV.2.
The sooner, the better.
"So..."
"Where do I learn forging techniques?"
Shirou searched his memory carefully.
After sorting through the information he knew about this world, the answer became clear.
He needed an introduction.
And the best place was the Hephaestus Familia.
The relationship between the Loki Familia and the Hephaestus Familia was excellent.
The two head gods were close.
The Familias themselves cooperated frequently.
In future Dungeon expeditions, when monsters that corroded weapons became a serious problem, the captain of the Hephaestus Familia-Tsubaki-even brought high-ranking blacksmiths along.
That alone spoke volumes.
"...Looks like I'll need to ask Loki properly tonight."
Thinking of that, Shirou smiled wryly.
He already felt like Loki was taking especially good care of him.
-
Evening.
After dinner, before Shirou could even go looking for Loki, a message reached him.
Loki had summoned him.
The destination was the gods' chamber.
The moment he entered, he barely had time to react before Loki pushed him down onto a chair.
"Quick, take off your clothes and sit properly," she said briskly. "I want to see just how insane your growth rate really is."
Her tone was impatient, practically buzzing with excitement.
She had never personally seen a growth-accelerating skill before.
And she wasn't about to miss this.
"I'm telling you," Loki continued while pressing him down, "we're a big Familia. A lot of people need their Divine Blessing updated every day."
"On average, being able to update once a week is already good."
"If everyone wasn't out on an expedition, how do you think you'd get the chance to update your Blessing again in just three days?"
She clicked her tongue.
"Such a good opportunity, and I still have to push you."
While complaining, she didn't stop working.
Divine power flowed.
Numbers shifted.
Before long, the update was complete.
"...What?"
Loki froze.
Her eyes widened as she stared at Shirou's back.
"What kind of growth rate is this supposed to be?!"
She leaned in closer, disbelief written all over her face.
"If this keeps going..."
"You'll meet the requirements for LV.2 in less than a month."
Even as shock flooded her expression, Loki forced herself to calm down. She translated the information into the common tongue, printed it, and handed the paper to Shirou.
[Name]: Shirou Emiya
[Level]: LV.1
[Ability Values]:
• Strength: I67
• Endurance: I51
• Dexterity: I58
• Agility: I63
• Magic: I86
[Development Abilities]:
• Magic
[Magic]:
• "Unlimited Blade Works"
- Projection Magic
- Reality Marble
- Structural Analysis
- Chant:
- I am the bone of my sword.
- Steel is my body, and fire is my blood.
- I have created over a thousand blades.
- Unknown to Death, Nor known to Life.
- Have withstood pain to create many weapons.
- Yet, those hands will never hold anything.
- So as I pray, Unlimited Blade Works.
[Skills]:
• "Hundredfold Forging"
- Weapon properties improve when wielding self-forged weapons
- Self-forging, accelerated growth
- Greatly enhances the above effects due to forging characteristics
-
"...Isn't this a pretty normal change?"
Shirou looked over the paper, then glanced at Loki's frozen expression. He spoke lightly.
He knew how abnormal his growth was.
But teasing Loki was too tempting.
As expected, she exploded.
"This is 'normal'?!"
"Do you even understand what this kind of progress means?!"
She jabbed the paper angrily.
"An adventurer's basic abilities from 0 to 999 are divided into ten ranks: I, H, G, F, E, D, C, B, A, and S."
"As long as one basic ability reaches rank C or above, you qualify to level up."
"Don't underestimate that 999 cap."
She leaned back slightly, voice growing serious.
"The fastest person in all of Orario to reach LV.2 right now is Ais from our Familia."
"And even she took a full year."
Loki pointed at Shirou.
"And you?"
"One Dungeon trip."
"Your total stats increased by over 300 points."
"Your magic alone jumped more than 80 points."
"At this pace, you'll hit LV.2 in a month."
She crossed her arms.
"When that happens, every god in Orario will have their eyes on you."
"Schemes. Calculations. Endless nonsense."
"And you're telling me this is 'not much'?"
Seeing how worked up she was, Shirou smiled.
"What, Loki-sama."
"Are you scared?"
He knew better.
If Loki talked about schemes, she was already thinking ahead.
Sure enough, her shocked expression twisted into a sharp grin.
"Scared?"
"I'm Loki."
"When it comes to scheming, I've never lost to anyone."
She slapped Shirou on the shoulder, laughing.
"You've done very well."
"I'm extremely satisfied with this growth rate."
Then she added casually.
"Oh right. Your skill needs forging characteristics, doesn't it?"
"I've already talked to Hephaestus."
"You can go to her place and learn forging techniques anytime."
Shirou paused.
He hadn't even brought it up yet.
Warmth spread through his chest.
"...Thank you, Loki-sama."
Hearing that, Loki wrapped an arm around his neck and pulled him closer.
"What are you thanking me for?"
"We're family."
She laughed.
"You just need to keep growing."
"Grow fast."
"And shock those other gods half to death for me."
"I can already imagine their jealous faces."
Looking at her exaggerated grin, Shirou straightened slightly.
"Yes."
"I understand."
"I'll work even harder."
--------More Bonus Chapters!!!!
Every 300 power stones = 1 Bonus Chapter