"Ooh ooh ooh!"
Violent roars echoed endlessly through the cavern.
Faced with the weak adventurer who dared challenge it, Goliath flew into a rage. Its massive fists slammed down again and again, striking toward its tiny enemy with overwhelming force.
Yet it gained nothing.
The opponent seemed to read its intent every time, slipping past its attacks with near-perfect timing.
And answering each miss-
Were Noble Phantasms.
Sacred weapons tore through the air, streaking toward Goliath like divine punishment.
Unlike the blunt magical bombardment of Fantasy Breakdown, these projected Noble Phantasms carried sharpness. With each hit, Goliath's body accumulated more wounds.
Scarlet blood poured down its frame.
Still, its movements did not slow.
"Bang!"
Feeling the pressure of wind brush past his ear, Shirou glanced at the iron fist that barely missed him. He rolled along the ground without hesitation, using the momentum to rise and project several more weapons in the same breath.
The gap in levels was enormous.
In raw attributes, the giant far surpassed him.
Especially speed.
If he hadn't been able to predict its attacks in advance, he would have been smashed long ago.
But there was no if.
Not being hit meant exactly that.
Shirou gripped the greatsword in his hand and slashed fiercely at the iron fist beside him, carving another deep wound into Goliath's body.
His attacks weren't fatal.
But wounds were still wounds.
And even the smallest injuries, once accumulated, could bring down anything.
"Let's see how long you can hold out!"
Shirou surged forward again, a dozen newly projected Noble Phantasms flying alongside him.
"So strong! Shirou is so strong!"
Tiona's excited voice rang out without pause.
No one found it annoying.
On the contrary, heads nodded unconsciously in agreement.
"If his opponent wasn't a Floor Boss like Goliath, but a LV.4 adventurer," Anakitty said with a complicated expression, "he probably would've won already."
As one of the strongest second-tier adventurers in the Loki Familia, the Noble Cat felt lingering fear.
Those attacks were terrifying.
The last time the main force encountered Shirou, she hadn't been present. As a core member of the second unit, she and Lefiya had followed another route.
She had heard plenty afterward.
But hearing and seeing were two completely different things.
Now that she was watching it firsthand, she was completely captivated.
Dodging Goliath's attacks with ease.
Charging forward.
Simultaneously firing dozens of divine weapons.
That fighting style was overwhelming.
And she wasn't the only one.
The other girls of the Loki Familia stared at Shirou with open admiration. There was always something about him-something compelling, something that drew people in.
Perhaps this was the curse of a natural lady-killer.
Shirou himself was completely unaware.
"A LV.2 adventurer suppressing a LV.4 Floor Boss," Riveria said quietly. "Finn, could you do that?"
"No," Finn replied with a faint smile. "I couldn't."
He admitted it openly.
Watching Shirou fight stirred something within him as well. He felt the urge to find a strong opponent and battle freely, just once.
"Yes... who could've imagined this?" Riveria murmured. "This man truly deserves to be called a hero."
Her eyes sparkled.
The girls beside her were even more engrossed.
Lefiya clutched her staff tightly, staring at her brother with shining eyes. This was the first time she had seen him fight at full power.
The image burned itself into her heart.
Beside her, Ais tightened her grip on her sword.
She wanted to become strong.
Strong like him.
"Shirou... so strong."
...
"Ooh ooh ooh!"
The roaring giant.
The young man wielding a greatsword.
The countless flying weapons.
Together, they formed a scene that etched itself deeply into the hearts of every member of the Loki Familia.
Shirou continued projecting weapons while closely observing Goliath's condition.
"To be honest," he thought calmly, "my compatibility with a giant like this isn't ideal."
"My fighting style is better suited to humanoid opponents."
After all, he lacked a decisive finishing move.
Projection magic allowed him to recreate almost any Noble Phantasm, excluding divine constructs.
But his prana reserves placed limits on what he could truly wield.
Even after being strengthened by the Divine Blessing, anti-fortress Noble Phantasms were still a strain.
However-
Against a giant-
He had another option.
"Ugh... ahhh!"
Shirou raised his head, eyes burning.
"Watch closely, Goliath."
"This is my full power."
"Come forth-Caladbolg II!"
Immense magical energy surged outward.
A Noble Phantasm took shape.
Though it was only a shell, a sword over ten meters long materialized in Shirou's grasp.
"What... is that?"
The Loki Familia froze.
A sword of that size wasn't meant for humans.
It was an armament fit for gods.
Even with his enhanced analytical ability, Shirou still couldn't analyze divine constructs.
This projection wasn't analysis.
It was a miracle.
Pulled from the template of his past memories.
Even as an empty shell-
It was enough.
Guided purely by magic, the colossal sword shot forward.
"Ooh ooh ooh!"
Caladbolg II pierced straight through Goliath's body, pinning it to the cavern wall.
The giant roared in agony, struggling desperately. It grabbed the hilt with both hands, trying to pull the sword free.
Shirou didn't allow it.
"Projection start!"
Magic surged again.
In his raised right hand, an axe-sword resembling a massive stone axe formed.
Smaller than Caladbolg II, yet still as tall as a man.
Shirou reached out with his left hand, gripping the hilt as well.
Single-wield shifted to dual-wield.
He stomped forward.
In an instant, he closed the distance.
"Can that durability of yours handle this?"
His eyes blazed.
He swung with everything he had.
"Nine Lives Blade Works!"
The air screamed.
Nine strikes landed in an instant.
Behind Goliath, from the ground all the way up the cavern wall, nine massive sword marks were carved deep into the stone.
Their sheer scale testified to the power of that blow.
"Clang!"
Goliath's enormous body crumbled into ash.
A massive magic stone fell heavily to the ground.
Shirou didn't even look at it.
He turned around.
Facing his companions, he raised his voice.
"Everyone-"
"I did it!"
--------More Bonus Chapters!!!!
Every 300 power stones = 1 Bonus Chapter