Watching Raul, who had finally returned to normal, Shirou smiled and tossed his cards aside.
"Raul, take a few rounds for me. I'm going out to get some fresh air."
"Ah, leave it to me!"
Hearing laughter behind him, Shirou stepped out of the tent.
"It seems that aside from the absence of the moon, there's no real difference between down here and the surface."
"Indeed. It's one of the dungeon's many mysteries."
Hearing a voice beside him, Shirou turned to find Riveria standing there.
"Hey, Riveria, what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be giving psychological counseling to the others?"
Before Riveria could answer, Shirou suddenly realized it himself.
"So you were assigned to Raul? You're late."
After dinner, Shirou had noticed Finn and the others acting suspiciously as they headed toward the officers.
He then understood—Finn and the rest were giving psychological counseling.
"That's right. Even though those young adventurers are strong, they are still very inexperienced. Proper psychological support is essential."
"I saw what you said to Raul earlier. Loki was right—when it comes to emotional maturity, none of them compare to you."
Hearing Riveria's praise, Shirou smiled lightly.
"By the way, Riveria, if you're here to speak with Raul, then who's handling the others?"
"Finn is talking to Bete, Gareth is with Tiona, Tione is with Lefiya, and Tsubaki went to check on Ais."
Shirou sighed and nodded.
Bete didn't really need psychological counseling—he had firm principles, clear goals, and a mind far more solid than he let on.
No wonder Finn was handling him. With Finn around, Bete was bound to be motivated.
Tiona, on the other hand, surprised him a bit.
But after thinking about it, Shirou understood.
Because of her foolish little sister—and the fact that Bete and Ais could also be unreliable—Shirou tended to mentally group the four of them together with himself as the "Problematic Quartet" of Loki Familia's high-level combatants.
But in reality, as long as Finn wasn't involved, Tione was actually quite dependable.
Of course, this applied only when she was calm.
If she flew into a rage, she absolutely became the biggest problem child of all.
Still, in this situation, she would probably handle Finn's assignment with ease.
As Riveria watched Shirou stare quietly at the sky, her lips parted several times, as if debating whether to speak, but in the end she remained silent.
Farewells were always too emotional.
"Good luck on tomorrow's expedition."
"You too."
After exchanging a few brief words, the two parted ways.
Gazing toward the entrance to the 51st floor in the distance, Shirou murmured to himself:
"This will be my last expedition…"
---xXx---
The next day.
In front of the entrance to the 51st floor, everyone was enveloped in a tense atmosphere.
Shirou tightened his grip on Kanshou and Bakuya, his fighting spirit blazing.
Under the watchful eyes of their companions, a squad of fourteen assembled—eight front-line fighters, five support members, and one blacksmith.
"Let's go!"
With Finn's order, the group advanced.
Standing before the passage leading into the 51st floor, their hearts burned with excitement.
"Finally back, you bastards!"
Unable to contain himself, Bete at the vanguard practically vibrated with anticipation.
His eyes blazed like fire.
"Ugh! Why do I have to be in the front with Bete?!"
"Shut up, you brainless amazon!"
In this formation, Bete and Tiona held the vanguard.
Ais and Tione formed the central guard.
Finn and Shirou followed behind them.
Gareth and Riveria held the rear.
Of the five support members, two flanked each side.
The last, along with Tsubaki, followed behind Shirou and Finn.
This was Loki Familia's standard expedition formation.
"You two should calm yourselves a bit," Gareth chuckled as he walked behind them, watching Bete and Tiona bicker yet again.
Meanwhile, Shirou was gently consoling the anxious Lefiya.
"Don't be nervous, Lefiya. I'll protect you."
"I understand, brother!"
Shirou patted her head with a smile.
Indeed, his little sister was the cutest thing in the world.
Talking quietly, they passed through the tunnel and entered the 51st floor.
"All right, enough chatting. Prepare for battle."
As they advanced, monsters soon appeared, marking the beginning of the fight.
Countless creatures attacked them relentlessly, spawning at a rate far beyond that of any other floor.
Both the quantity and frequency of monster spawns were unprecedented for Loki Familia.
Yet even under such overwhelming assault, the squad pressed forward with precision under Finn's orders.
"Tiona, Bete—attack!"
"Shirou, handle the horde!"
With Finn's commands, their formation held firm, preventing the waves of enemies from disrupting their line.
Running near the center, Shirou drew his bow repeatedly, his arrows striking down monsters one after another.
Using his Clairvoyance, he kept constant track of their surroundings, easing the pressure on the others.
Tiona swung her large sword with wild vigor, while Bete slashed rapidly with twin blades.
Bodies dissolved into ash all around them, scattered by the wind.
Then Shirou suddenly warned:
"Heads up—the caterpillar-type is coming!"
"Change formation! Tiona, fall back!"
The moment Shirou spoke, Finn immediately adapted.
Ais and Tiona switched positions in perfect sync.
"Tempest."
Facing the incoming variant species, Ais surged forward with the power of wind at her back.
Bete, also empowered by the wind, dashed ahead with her.
Shirou's Muspelflamme arrows followed closely behind.
At the same time, Riveria began chanting in parallel as she ran, weaving her spell.
Shirou continued suppressing the variant species, loosing arrow after arrow without pause.
[Herald of the end, white as snow.]
[Breathe with the wind before dusk.]
[Closing light, earth of frost.]
[Blizzard, three harsh winters—my name is Alf.]
"Everyone, fall back!"
Riveria's parallel chant ended in an instant.
At Finn's command, the vanguard and central guard immediately moved aside.
"Wynn Fimbulvetr!!"
In the next moment—everything froze.
From the front of the passageway to the distant end, the world turned into a field of deep, icy blue.
This was Riveria's magic—
the most powerful mage in all of Orario.
(End of Chapter)