"Haaah-!"
On the fifteenth floor of the Dungeon, an exhilarated shout echoed through the cavern.
Lefiya dashed through the monster horde, a sharp sword in hand, her movements fast and decisive. As she moved, her voice rang out again, full of excitement she couldn't quite suppress.
Fighting as a warrior.
For Lefiya, who had always aimed to become a great mage, this was an entirely new experience.
And it was intoxicating.
It had been a full week since Lefiya abandoned her position as a pure backline sorceress and stepped onto the front lines.
Over that week, the once-green Lefiya had changed dramatically.
From passively enduring enemy attacks.
To actively charging at them.
From wild, panicked swings.
To controlled, deliberate movements.
In just seven days, she had gone from a complete novice in close combat to someone who could already be called a capable close-quarters fighter.
All of it was forged through real combat.
"Lefiya," Shirou called out calmly, "always be aware of your surroundings. Don't leave blind spots."
"Yes!"
Her response was crisp and immediate.
Hearing that voice, Shirou felt genuine satisfaction.
Teaching someone with talent really was a pleasure.
As prana flowed through his body, Kanshou and Bakuya shifted shape in his hands. Under reinforcement, the short swords expanded, transforming into two massive greatswords.
The weight was immense.
The power even more so.
Three Minotaururs closed in around them, forming a loose encirclement.
Shirou didn't retreat.
He stepped forward.
With a light movement, he vanished from his original position and appeared directly in front of one of the Minotaururs.
"You filthy Minotaururs."
"Just die already."
The Pure Love Warrior struck without hesitation.
Both greatswords swung down at full force.
A violent whooshing sound tore through the air.
The blade, carrying overwhelming power, cleaved straight through the Minotaurur's waist, splitting its massive body cleanly in two.
Blood sprayed outward.
Shirou shifted his stance effortlessly, avoiding the splatter as if it had never threatened him at all.
The remaining two Minotaururs attacked from opposite sides.
"Rooooar-!"
One lowered its upper body, horns angled forward, and charged with brutal momentum, clearly intending to crush Shirou outright.
But Shirou was no longer who he used to be.
Now a LV.2 with fully developed stats, he still couldn't overpower a Minotaurur head-on in raw strength.
But the gap was no longer absolute.
Facing the charging beast, Shirou plunged one greatsword straight into the ground, anchoring it firmly.
The Minotaurur slammed into the blade with a thunderous impact.
At that exact moment, Shirou dropped his center of gravity and slid forward, executing a clean sliding kick beneath the monster's body.
As he passed under it, the greatswords vanished.
In their place-
Kanshou and Bakuya reappeared.
Twin flashes of silver tore upward.
The Minotaurur's abdomen split open as its entrails spilled out, its roar cut short.
But the fight wasn't over yet.
One remained.
Using the momentum of his slide, Shirou emerged from beneath the collapsing body and rose smoothly to his feet.
The short swords in his hands shifted once more.
This time, they did not become blades.
A black longbow formed instead.
An arrow was already nocked.
The bowstring was drawn back to a perfect full moon.
Whoosh.
The pitch-black arrow screamed through the air like a cannon shot, smashing directly into the final Minotaurur's upper body.
The impact blasted an arc-shaped wound through its chest.
From target acquisition to complete elimination, the entire sequence flowed seamlessly.
Efficient.
Clean.
Effortless.
This was Shirou at LV.2.
A new Shirou.
At this moment, he had yet to reach the peak he once stood at during the Holy Grail War.
But his future?
Without question, it would surpass that version of himself.
Because now, he was a fully developed, hexagonal warrior.
Sooner or later, he would compare strength with Saber.
Endurance with Berserker.
Speed with Rider.
Prana with Caster.
And with Unlimited Blade Works continuously strengthened within his magic slot by the Divine Blessing-
Surpassing Emiya Hero.
Becoming Grand Emiya.
It was only a matter of time.
"Shirou-san is amazing..."
Having dealt with her own opponents, Lefiya leaned forward slightly, breathing a bit heavily as she wiped the sweat from her forehead.
Her eyes sparkled as she looked at him.
"He handled three Minotaururs so easily. That's something other LV.2 adventurers wouldn't even dare imagine..."
Over the course of this week, Lefiya hadn't just become familiar with Shirou.
She had come to understand just how terrifying his talent really was.
Outstanding martial arts.
Mastery over countless weapons.
An absurd growth rate, with basic stats skyrocketing.
A calm, mature mindset that never wavered.
Sharp judgment.
Strategic thinking.
And even-
Exceptional cooking skills.
When Tiona and Tione had once found the dried snacks in Ais's room, they had nearly cried from craving.
Later, when Shirou was given free rein in the Loki Familia dining hall, he showed everyone what real gourmet food actually meant.
If Shirou hadn't firmly refused, the position of head chef for the Loki Familia would probably have already been his.
Behind his back, many of Lefiya's close friends quietly referred to him as a "perfect good man."
Some even harbored feelings for him.
Though none dared confess.
Thinking about it now, Lefiya felt genuinely fortunate.
Being able to form a party with Shirou-san.
"Nothing worth boasting about," Shirou replied calmly. "Just basic operations."
The Dungeon's true terror wasn't any single monster.
It was the endless waves.
The constant attacks.
The unpredictable events.
Against an adventurer of the same level, a lone monster was rarely a serious threat-floor bosses excluded.
Of course, that assumption broke down when one person had peak stats for their level while the other had just advanced.
In that case, overwhelming stats were still overwhelming.
But that only applied at lower levels.
At LV.5 and above, even adventurers who had just reached that stage could defeat peak monsters of the same level.
Anyone capable of reaching LV.5 possessed heroic caliber.
Still-
The Dungeon was never meant for solo combat.
It was a relentless killing ground with no end to its monsters.
Hearing Shirou's words, Lefiya's expression froze.
Her mouth twitched.
There it was again.
Shirou-san's "it's only natural."
Over time, the Loki Familia members had learned something important.
Whenever they praised Shirou, he would sometimes respond with a remark that was strangely infuriating.
Without any malice.
Without any compensation.
"Is that all?"
"Just basic operations."
"I'm still too weak. My progress is slow."
Those kinds of comments.
As a result, the Familia members had learned their lesson.
They no longer praised him casually.
"Shirou-san, you're being too modest-"
Thump.
A dense, heavy sound echoed through the chamber.
Lefiya froze mid-sentence.
Then-
From the curved walls around them, dozens of Minotaururs suddenly appeared.
They poured out relentlessly, one after another.
"This is-"
Shirou's expression sharpened instantly.
"An anomaly."
"A Monster Feast."
He pulled Lefiya into his arms without hesitation, placing himself between her and the surrounding monsters.
His vigilance spiked to its absolute limit.
They were completely surrounded.
With this many Minotaururs, even he could be dragged into danger if he made a single mistake.
This was the Dungeon's killing blow.
A Monster Feast triggered after prolonged combat.
Exhaustion.
Overconfidence.
Then annihilation.
"What do we do, Shirou-san...?"
Lefiya's voice trembled.
Looking at the dense mass of Minotaururs closing in, a chill ran through her entire body.
Only Shirou's embrace gave her any sense of warmth.
"Calm down, Lefiya."
Shirou's voice was steady.
"Breaking through this will depend on your magic."
"You haven't chanted even once this past week."
"But I believe the current you is nothing like your former self."
"Mm..."
Lefiya nodded faintly.
Seeing her breathing gradually stabilize, Shirou gently stroked her head.
Then he reached into his backpack, pulled out her staff, and placed it into her hands.
"In a moment, I'll draw their attention."
"You seize that opening and chant."
"Let this Monster Feast be the trial for everything you've trained over this period."
"There couldn't be a better test than this."
He looked at her seriously.
"So trust me."
"I will protect you."
Hearing those words, Lefiya planted her staff firmly into the ground.
Her hands no longer shook.
Her eyes were clear.
Determined.
The timid, flustered Lefiya of the past was nowhere to be seen.
Only the task ahead mattered.
"I've always believed in you, Shirou-san."
--------More Bonus Chapters!!!!
Every 300 power stones = 1 Bonus Chapter