I let out a deep breath and wiped the sweat off my brow.

Finally, I'm starting to get used to it. The improvements in my speed and strength after my Update had thrown me off kilter for a bit.

Remembering how I almost broke that man's wrist with a squeeze made me adamant about getting my new physical abilities under control before another patrol.

Thus, the day after walking with Shakti Varma started like this, some calisthenics followed by practice with my new sword.

Now, a couple hours in, I finally felt in control again. Hopefully there wouldn't be any more accidents.

I let my sword disappear and stretched my arms across my chest, feeling them burn with the satisfying ache of a good workout.

"Oh! You are done? That was a long session." Astraea asked, and I glanced at the small table on the side of the garden where she was sitting, checking over some of my Dungeon reports while having some tea. "Say, I'm curious about something. How old were you when you started practicing with a sword, Shirou?"

I hummed, thinking over her question. "Well, I've done it here and there since I started living with Dad, but that was just a child and old man smacking each other with no skill at all." Astraea giggled at my description. "Then Fuji-nee started coming over and sometimes she'd rope me to join her in her practices. Nothing really serious until a few months ago, though."

"And then?" She asked curiously. "What made you start getting serious about it? Who taught you to fight the way you do?"

I approached Astraea, feeling some uncertainty growing in me.

Like if a dam had been broken, ever since I told her about the Fuyuki Fire, my goddess had been adamant about starting to know more about my life before coming here, and of course I was all too happy to indulge her.

But there was something I was… hesitant about sharing. At first it was because, while I didn't mind talking about it, the topic was admittedly quite the heavy one to drop on her when she had been stressing about Lion… but lately I had another problem.

…How much of a faux pas would it be to talk about your late lover to the woman you were growing to love?

Now, though, seeing the concern that began to surface in her eyes at my continued silence, I felt quite stupid.

If there was someone I could talk freely to, that could understand the pain of losing a loved one, and continuing to love them after that, it would be Astraea.

"It's… kind of a long story, you know?" I warned her, but that only seemed to make her more curious.

"Well, we have time today, don't we? You have your patrol in the evening… and we have a pot full of tea to go through." She answered with a shrug. "Besides, if it's about you, my hero, I feel like I can spend an entire day talking and not get tired."

I huffed, a little amused at her exaggeration. In the end, I sat down in front of her and smiled. "Then, I won't hold back, my goddess."

I took a second to gather my words while Astraea filled my cup. "I learned to fight at first because of necessity. I had gotten involved in a dangerous event and needed every advantage I could have to even survive." Astraea was fixated on my words, her indigo blue eyes not leaving mine. "The whole thing started with, once again, someone saving me from near death."

I still remembered it clearly. The slightly turned face, the quiet green eyes, and her golden hair that seemed to shine in the moonlight. "Her name was Artoria Pendragon, and the night we met is one I will never forget for the rest of my life."

Yes, it was a scene that was seared in my mind.

Even if I end up in hell, I am sure I will still remember it vividly.

That fateful night in which my life changed forever.

Once I started talking, it seemed like my hesitation had been a lie.

I wasn't really thinking about telling her everything that happened in those two weeks, but Astraea had been so interested in the events of my adventure before I met her that I found myself sharing a lot more than I first expected.

I didn't go into much detail, there weren't enough hours in a day to cover the mess that that ritual had been, but the context of the Holy Grail War was needed for her to understand Saber's nature as a Servant and my reason for joining her in the struggle for the holy cup.

The small knowing smile on my goddess' face when I told her I hadn't been interested in a wish, but only in stopping a tragedy from occurring made me flush a little about being so predictable, though.

So I told her of the struggles we had faced together with Saber, and her doing her best to teach me enough for me to survive against our enemies… how we grew closer over time, sharing our ideals and finding a kindred spirit in the other… and how we ended up falling in love, for better or worse.

A smart man wouldn't have fallen in love with a Servant. Hell, Tohsaka had laughed at me at one point, reminding me of the futility of loving someone that had been dead for centuries.

Saber had been a different existence than a normal Heroic Spirit, not quite dead but taken from the last moments of her life, but that didn't change the fact that our meeting had been a miracle facilitated by the Grail… and that, one way or another, our relationship was going to end when it was gone.

Astraea held my hand softly over the table once I told her of Artoria's ultimate fate, caressing my knuckles with her thumb. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have pried so much…" I shook my head, but she continued. "I know it might not help, but I can understand the pain you must be going through… It's never easy to lose someone dear to your heart."

"No, don't apologize. Telling you this… It helped, it's been some time since I talked sincerely about her. Back home, only Tohsaka knew who Artoria really was." I smiled, intertwining my fingers with hers. "Thank you, Astraea."

We fell in silence for a bit, Astraea seemingly deep in thought, probably thinking over the tale I had just finished telling her, while I was just waiting to see if there was anything else she wanted to know… and finding comfort in the warmth of her hand still intertwined with mine.

"Would you tell me more, then? About the woman that shaped you into the man you are now?" She finally asked after a while, some hesitance in her tone. "If she was important enough for your soul to shape a Skill in her honor, then I want to know about her. Could you tell me the legend that elevated her existence to… what did you say they were called? Heroic Spirits?"

I grinned, recalling how interested she had been in the fact that in my world there were humans elevated to pseudo-divinities by the beliefs of the masses. I probably would be answering a lot of questions about that later. Shame that the only thing I knew about that was what Tohsaka told me months ago.

Still…

"The woman who shaped me, huh." I mused, finding myself agreeing with her words.

Yes, if the Fuyuki Fire and meeting dad had given me the base of the person I grew up to be, then being with Saber had shaped my ideals into something truly mine, something I could pursue without feeling a cheap copy of dad.

"Alright." I looked at the sun approaching its zenith. We still had hours until I had to leave for my patrols. "Then, let me tell you about the legendary King of Knights, the wielder of the holy sword Excalibur." I placed a hand on my chest. "And, of course, the original owner of Avalon."

"You have everything ready for today, Shirou?" My goddess asked over breakfast. "You remembered to pack your antidotes, right? I know you have Avalon, but you should be ready for the Purple Moth's poison just in case."

I smiled, a little amused at her fretting. "Astraea, we went over my preparations together last night, and I'm not going to be there for long today, just testing the waters."

Astraea sighed. "I know, just… be careful. I know you are ready for everything, your advisor made sure of that, but I can't help but worry. A small part of me is still thinking that maybe you are rushing too much. Sorry."

I huffed, if anything I felt I was going too slow.

Was I being too overconfident? While exploring the Dungeon had been dangerous, I really hadn't felt that I had ever been in danger of dying. I knew that a mistake there could mean death but after the first or second day, I hadn't felt threatened by the monsters... Then again, considering the risks of the so-called Newbie Killers I would face, I probably should be a little more cautious.

"Want to go over everything again, then? Check one last time if I'm missing anything?" I asked with a smile. It would probably be a bit of a hassle, but if it relaxed my goddess, I didn't mind.

Astraea giggled and shook her head. "No, it's okay. I guess I'm being silly. Say, if you are going to finish early today, want-""Excuse me?" Astraea and I turned when another voice spoke up.

There, in the entrance of the dining room, Ryuu Lion stood, covered in a forest green cloak to keep the chill of the morning away and carrying a wooden crate, awkwardness obvious in her posture.

"Ryuu! You're home!" Astraea exclaimed in happiness. "Good morning~!

"My lady, Emiya. Good morning." The elf replied with a nod, letting a small smile surface on her face. "Sorry to bother you while you're having breakfast…"

"Oh, don't be silly. I told you, this is your home. You're always welcome here, right, Shirou?"

I smiled and stood up. "Of course." This was her home more than mine. It'd be ridiculous for me to deny her. "Want to join us? There's tea, or I can make you a cup of coffee, if you want to warm yourself up while I whip out something fast for you."

"Ah." Lion uttered while looking at the spread on the table with some interest. "... If it's not too much of a bother? I came here first thing in the morning, so I didn't have anything to eat yet."

"Of course. Is tea fine for you then?" She nodded.

"Thank you, Emiya." She called from behind and I shook my head. It really wasn't a bother. "Ah, here, before I forget." she said, offering the crate she was holding to me.

I took it with some curiosity and inspected its contents. A dozen or so of little hemp bags, some small glass bottles and a bigger one made of ceramic. Taking of the bottles and looked at it, I found inside a familiar, dark liquid. My eyes widened. "Is this soy sauce?"

Lion nodded. "And some spices… and that green tea you Far Easterners seem to enjoy so much." She said with some distaste. "Ah, and a bottle of rice wine. Mama Mia said you would enjoy that one."

I looked up in amazement. Ryuu Lion was looking at my expression with some amusement.

"This is… I've been looking all over the place for this stuff. Why on earth…? I mean, I'm grateful, of course!" Was this a house-warming gift or something?

"Because you protected Syr." She answered with a grateful look. "She told us what happened. That she had gotten fed up with an unruly customer and didn't mind her words enough, and that you defended her when he got angry and violent…" I felt a small shiver go down my back at the dark look that took over her expression for a second. "Mama Mia prepared this for you when she heard and I offered to bring it to you to thank you myself. So, thank you, Emiya, for protecting my friend."

"Lion, you really shouldn't have… I didn't-" I began before she raised a hand.

"Look, Emiya, you either accept it now from me, or have Mama Mia come here herself to deliver it." She warned. "And you really don't want that, believe me."

I gulped when I remembered the rather imposing woman that owned the Hostess of Fertility.

I let out a sigh and my shoulders slumped in resignation. Seems I didn't have a choice.

"Then I guess I'll accept. And you're welcome, Lion. I'm happy your friend is okay." Then I shrugged. "Next time, though, just your word of thanks is enough. It's not like I did it to earn something." I smiled softly. "To protect people without expecting anything in exchange… That's what we do, right?"

Lion froze for a second and then, as if spring had started, the coldness in her expression melted like snow… and I found myself entranced by the beautiful, soft smile that she graced me with.

"...You're right, of course." She nodded, her tone full of nostalgia. "That's what we do." she said softly.

A moment passed, and then the clearing of a throat made us both jolt. I looked to the source and found Astraea observing us with a teacup in hand, happiness… and exasperated amusement on her face.

She giggled. "I love that you both are getting along… but your breakfast is going to go cold if you dally too much, Shirou."

I cleared my throat. "Right. Breakfast. Have a seat, Lion. I'll have yours ready in a moment."

Lion nodded, not looking at my face. "Right, thank you." She took a seat beside my goddess and I fled to the kitchen, ignoring Astraea's chuckling.

I sighed, I guess when they said that the elves were the most beautiful race amongst mortals, it wasn't for nothing.

Alf's Lumina.

The Elf's Bright Light.

Its history was a tale of struggle, of the triumph of good over evil, of companionship… and then despair and tragedy. It had accompanied Ryuu Lion for years, it had witnessed the darkest moments of Orario and helped her overcome them… and yet it had proved to be useless against the unfairness of the Dungeon.

I almost wanted to avert my eyes, having delved deeply in a tale I had no business knowing, but I knew it was useless. This wooden sword would be forever remembered in my mind, in my soul. Its history was like an open book to me… as it was its creation.

Taken from the holy tree the elves of Ryumilua Forest had venerated for thousands of years, the branch the sword had been made of had been processed in a way I could only describe as bullshit.

Somehow, instead of carving it, the smith of the Goibniu Familia had worked on the branch like it was metal. Hammering imperfections away, shaping it under extreme heat, and quenching it in magic-rich water, the forging process had been the same as if the blacksmith had been working on iron.

Was it the Blacksmith Development Ability that allowed him to work like that?

Impossibly tough, and incredibly conductive to magic -to elven magic-, the wooden sword was the strongest weapon I had seen since I came to this world, and was perfect for a magic swordsman like Ryuu Lion.

It was a masterpiece.

And it was coming straight to my head in a downward slash.

I instinctively raised my sword and braced myself. If I don't use my full strength, I won't be able-!

Like it was made of glass, my sword shattered in thousands of pieces.

"KUHAA!" A combination of air, saliva and probably bile exploded from my mouth when the leather boot that had destroyed my sword continued unimpeded and buried itself in my gut, shooting me like an arrow across the garden we were in.

"Naive!" Ryuu Lion's sharp voice said, and I had no argument against it, rolling in the grassy ground as I was. "Did you really think that flimsy piece of metal would be enough to stop a high class Adventurer?"

I finally stopped some distance away, almost vomiting what was left of my breakfast on the grass. I heaved and gasped, trying to get my breath under control.

I looked up, meeting my captain's cold blue eyes, and struggled to stand up.

"You got too used to fighting against monsters, Emiya. That was sloppy." Lion remarked, placing Alf's Lumina on top of her shoulder. "Feints exist, you know."

I huffed, and looked at the remains of my traced sword before letting go of it and making it disappear into the ether.

"I know, I know." It was true, after fighting so many monsters in the Dungeon, I had begun to forget what it was like to fight against someone with a modicum of intelligence.

Stupid, letting myself be distracted by the sword, especially when an Adventurer's body was as dangerous as a weapon.

I hissed, sharp pain coming from my stomach when I straightened up. "Ouch, I think that's going to bruise tomorrow." I said with a pained smile. "You weren't lying when you told me you were bad at holding back."

Her eyes narrowed for a moment. "Want to stop?" She asked, and I swear I could hear some concern in her voice, but then a tiny smirk grew on her face. "A shame, and here I was about to finish shaking off the rust I had accumulated over a year of retirement." She mocked my words from the other day.

Petty woman. I grumbled in my mind, and focused inwards. With a strike of the hammer of a gun, I opened a couple of magic circuits and let the magic energy flow to my body. The green glow of my reinforcement was subtle in the daylight, but I could see her looking at the effect with some curiosity.

"Trace on." I closed my fist once more and grabbed the red leather grip of another copy of my red sword after it appeared in my hand. I took a deep breath. "Let's continue, then."

"Don't you think you went a little overboard, Ryuu?" I groaned when the voice of my goddess brought me out of unconsciousness. I tried to open my eyes but then I winced, having to put a hand in front of them to cover the glare of the sun. "Was it necessary to hit him on the head until he fell unconscious?" I turned my head, and took a deep breath, feeling Astraea's flowery scent invading my senses.

I let out a small sigh of relief. The soft and warm cushion my head was placed on did wonders to alleviate my headache.

…it didn't do a lot for the pain wracking all over my body, though.

My shoulders and arms felt like lead, and my torso was probably going to be covered in bruises come morning.

"Please don't blame me, my lady! He wouldn't stay down!" Ryuu Lion complained. "It was either that or breaking something to stop him! And I'm not sure a broken bone would have worked. Does he have a Skill? Something that bolsters his Endurance?" She wondered.

My goddess sighed, and I could feel her fingers racking through my hair. "I'm afraid that there was nothing like that involved. My Shirou is just that stubborn, aren't you, mister?" She asked with a giggle.

I opened my eyes and was met with the sight of Astraea hovering over me, her expression a mixture of amused and concerned.

Ah. Isn't this… I blinked. My eyes wandered from her beautiful blue eyes, to her chest and then down her stomach. I felt my throat go a little dry.

A lap pillow.

If this is my compensation for getting beaten all over the place… then I probably need to thank Lion for going overboard.

"Ah." Damned concussion. Feeling a little stupid for the thoughts crossing my head, I took a deep breath, and shook my head. "Sorry. I must be heavy. I'm fine, my goddess." I smiled apologetically and tried to stand, only for Astraea to place a hand on my chest and the other on my forehead, stopping me.

"I don't mind, silly. Please just lay down until you get your bearings back." She smiled softly, care shining in her eyes. "Hard as your head might be, that was quite the hit." she added with a little grin.

I huffed and settled back down, feeling some embarrassment when she returned to her caresses without caring that her other child was there.

And speaking of said child, the less I thought of the sharp frown on my captain's face, the better.

"You look pained there, Emiya." She said with little inflection, the softness she had spoken to me with an hour or so ago nowhere in sight. "I can heal you, if you want." So you get out of her lap. She didn't say it, but her disapproving expression told me everything.

Right, healing. I'm really out of it… I sighed and closed my eyes, opening my magic circuits one by one, and then fueling Saber's sheath with my energy.

I didn't see it but, by Lion's gasp, I knew that the glow of Avalon as it treated every little ache and bruise and filled me with relief was not ignored.

I sighed. That was… easier than before. The updates to my Falna were working. Whether it was the potency of the magic energy or the amount of control I could now exert on my Magic Circuits, I realized it was getting easier bit by bit to use the sheath

I opened my eyes once more, clarity having returned to my mind, and stood up. This time Astraea didn't stop me, entranced as she always was when seeing the effects of Avalon in person.

"...what was that?" Ryuu Lion asked, her eyes wide. "Why did that feel like…" the grip on her wooden sword's handle shook slightly. Ah, did the holy energy from Avalon remind her of the tree her Alf's Lumina was made from, or was it something else? "What are you, Emiya? That glow, and your magic… Are you someone blessed by spirits?"

Spirits, huh.

Would the Fae be considered spirits by this world's definition? They are, after all by my understanding, beings that were born from the Planet itself, just like the spirits here.

In any case, the answer would be… "No, I'm not." I glanced at my goddess, who was looking at me encouragingly. You can trust her, her eyes seemed to say. I smiled. "But I have a healing artifact made by beings like them, and one of my Skills allows me to use it. It's still cumbersome to use in battle, but it gets the job done afterwards."

"...I see." I still could see the curiosity in her eyes, and it was only the fact we didn't know each other well that stopped her from asking more. "So, I guess I don't need to hold back as much next time we train, then." She smirked. "After all, after today your Endurance will be all the more annoying."

In spite of the slight taunting tilt to her voice, I felt myself grow excited. In the hour or so we trained today I felt like I had improved my swordsmanship in leaps and bounds compared to the previous few weeks.

Flaws I didn't know I was developing were ruthlessly taken advantage of and I had no choice but to improve.

"I'm looking forward to it, captain." I told her with honesty. "Speaking of more training… I heard that elves were good at archery. You think we can also practice with bows? I'm a rather good shot, but I can't say I have much real combat experience."

Ryuu Lion raised an eyebrow. "Rather good shot, huh? I'll be the judge of that, vice-captain."

I stood up and brushed my pants. "Ah, but before that… what do you think, do I have your approval?"

"Hm?" Lion looked at me strangely.

I tilted my head. "You know, for the fifth floor." When Lion heard over breakfast that I was going to try my luck going down there, she offered to test me to see if she felt I was ready.

Thus, our battle just now.

"Ah, uh." she floundered for a second. "... I'd say you're ready, yes." I raised an eyebrow at her unconvincing tone.

Astraea's tinkling laugh filled the garden. "Oh my, you got so into it that you forgot why you were fighting, Ryuu?" She asked mirthfully.

"Of course not! I was just…" she trailed off, flushing from her cheeks to the tips of her ears. Ah, had she been lying? To a god?

Astraea's giggles answered that for me.

I grinned at her mortified look.

"... should we continue with archery? I still have some time until I have to leave." And I did have one bow I've been waiting to try after rummaging through my memories of Saber's life.

To her chagrin, though, the speed in which she agreed to my olive branch only made our goddess laugh even more.

CLANG!

"Kiih!" The screech was barely heard over the noise of the mandibles clashing and grinding along the length of my sword.

Sparks jumped from the friction as I let the Killer Ant slide harmlessly until its side stood open in front of me.

I braced myself and shoved, my reinforced strength easily separating the monster from my blade, then I took a step forward and slashed down.

I tried not to feel satisfaction at the way my sword parted the ant with ease, leaving two twitching halves fallen on the ground.

Then, I dodged to the side, my new armored greaves scraping against the floor of the Dungeon, letting mandibles as big as my hand pass through the space I had been just occupying.

The other Killer Ant let out a screech when it only bit air and made to turn around, but I was already completing my own spin, my sword turning into a red streak as it advanced unerringly towards the space on its neck where the chitinous plates of its exoskeleton were thinner.

In a shower of yellowish green blood, the ant's head separated from the rest and fell to the ground with a thud, the body following a second after and twitching uncontrollably.

I grimaced, and delivered another strike, and then another to the first one, just in case.

Not even decapitation was enough to truly stop these monsters. No, if anything it made them more dangerous. A dying Killer Ant attracts others. Get distracted after delivering a seemingly killing blow to one of them, and the only thing awaiting you is a painful reminder of the paradigm shift after the fourth floor.

And speaking of distractions… I looked to the side, ignoring the sight of the other two ants rushing to attack and focused on the one about to reach Atticus, who was distracted fighting a War Shadow.

Newbie Killers.

I didn't ignore those words when Fannett used them to describe the monsters that resided in these floors, especially so when Astraea remarked it. But seeing them now, fighting them? I could see why they earned such a moniker.

The main reason many Adventurers don't go past the upper floors, either because they heard about those monsters and held back until they were stronger, or because they either didn't hear or care about the warning… and they got swarmed by them, unprepared.

Their numbers, their strength, their durability. These monsters were a world apart from the goblins that had given me quite a bit of trouble a couple of weeks ago.

I extracted my blade from the now dead body of the giant insect and flicked it, cleaning the blood off the edge, before rushing forward, strength filling my muscles once my Skill activated.

I dodged the snap of the mandibles of one of the Killer Ants in my way, which left me in the path of the other one. I fed more magic energy to the reinforcement in my legs, carefully filling the gaps until the golden glow of my spell became apparent.

And I kicked it.

My steel greaves pulverized the head of the overgrown bug, and I continued, leaving it behind.

A mistake, some would say. Leaving my back open for a counter attack.

I didn't care. After all…

"Focus on the Shadow, Atticus! I've got your back!" I exclaimed, consuming the distance between the two of us, readying my longsword for a lunge as I approached.

"Appreciate it!" In a show of trust I didn't think I had earned, but certainly appreciated, Atticus just nodded and kept his focus on keeping the War Shadow's claws from passing through his guard.

Even as I rushed forward, I could hear Ashe striking the ant I left behind, its screechs filling the room as she took ruthless advantage of it being distracted following me to cut through its weak spot.

…I have someone watching my back.

"Ah! Not again! Stupid dagger!"

… it's okay, she still has the original. I thought as I realized that the dagger I gave her had broken once more.

Trusting Ashe to handle herself, I lunged.

A moment before I hit, the ant seemed to take notice of me and tried to move away.

But it was too late.

In a blur of silver and red, my sword pierced through the side of the abdomen of the ant, burying itself until it burst through the other side in an explosion of blood and guts.

I didn't stop. I braced myself and twisted my waist, my Skill giving me the strength to easily cut through the monster's body.

Crack! I grimaced when the Ant exploded in ash and I almost lost my balance. Dammit! I destroyed the magic crystal!

I shook my head, not the time.

I was about to try and help Atticus with the Shadow when Ashe's voice called me. "Shirou! Behind! Purple Moth!" I let go of my sword, letting the traced blade disappear in motes of green light and focused. Two magic circuits filled with magic energy started to thrum with a spell.

"Trace On!"

Beautiful as it was deadly, the yew bow that appeared in my mind was made with the image of its owner in mind. An entrancing sight that could take your breath away with just the flick of a finger.

Something this pretty could not be called a weapon of war, an instrument of murder, and yet in its history I could only find the sorrow of hundreds of deaths.

Was it the bow that never missed or the bowman that was infallible?

Was there a difference, when the weapon in my mind had become so intrinsical to the owner's legend? There wasn't a doubt in my mind that, had Sir Tristan been summoned as a Servant, the weapon in his hands -his Noble Phantasm- would be this.

Failnaught.

I turned around, the space in my empty right hand filling with light and expanding. I closed my right fist on the ivory grip of the black bow and then I pulled the almost invisible string with my left hand's fingers, an arrow appearing on them as I did so.

"Wouldn't it be faster for you to form your arrows as you pull the string?" Obvious in hindsight, but it took Lion asking me to realize that I had been wasting precious moments by tracing an arrow and then nocking it, instead of doing it all at once.

Moments that could spell death in the Dungeon.

I gritted my teeth, my muscles straining with all their divine enhanced might to pull on the delicate string. I glanced up, quickly finding the purple wings fluttering against the brown backdrop of the Dungeon.

I aimed-

After what felt like an eternity, but was less than a fraction of a moment, I felt the fletching of the arrow tickle my nose.

-and let go.

A blink.

Wind howled as the arrow cut through the air and, in the time it took me to blink, pierced through the flying monster, leaving a hole the size of my fist and then striking the ceiling with a CRACK!

I watched the moth fall for a moment, confirming what I already knew.

It was dead.

I let out a breath.

Letting the Purple Moth spread its poison around would have been a costly mistake. We each had antidotes, but they were not miraculous. Just the after effects of the poison would mean we'd have to cut the exploration short. For that reason, they were my, the only one with a ranged option of attack, priority target whenever they appeared.

I glanced around, another arrow about to appear in my hand, and then my shoulders relaxed.

No enemies in sight.

Atticus was kneeling on ground, probably picking up the magic crystal from the War Shadow and Ashe was doing the same with one of the ants near her.

I better do my part as-

Drip. Drip.

I glanced down, and frowned when I saw the blood dripping from the torn skin on the tip of my fingers.

I clicked my tongue.

Just the string grazing me as I let go of it was enough to do that. I still cannot compare, it seems. Not even with the blessing of a goddess.

The Knights of the Round Table had been ridiculous.

"You okay there?" I looked up and met Atticus' yellow eyes. "Not the best place to get lost in thought."

I huffed. "Right, sorry." I let the bow fade and rummaged through my pouches, looking for a potion.

I could have used Avalon now that the fight was over, but Astraea advised me not to show it off too much. If word of such an artifact existing disseminated, I could say goodbye to my easy life.

Ashe approached and hissed when he saw the state of my fingers. "Uh, should you keep using that bow, Shirou? You end up like that every time."

I sprinkled some of the potion over the wounds and let out a slight sigh of relief. "It's fine, I can still fight even if it's like that and, besides, it heals easily." I smiled comfortingly.

Ashe looked at me strangely. "Right, but doesn't it hurt?"

I shook my head. "A bit, but I'm used to it." A small thing like this did not compare to the pain of shoving a hot steel rod down my spine. It probably worked wonders on my Endurance, though. "After my next update it probably won't damage me anymore." I grinned.

Ashe looked at me with some concern. "...okay, if you say so." she fiddled a little with the hilt of the broken dagger in her hand.

With a flex of my will, the dagger disappeared. "Trace on." And another appeared floating in front of her.

"Ah! Thanks… again." She said with some chagrin as she took it.

"You are being reckless with your weapons. Just because Shirou's here to give you a replacement doesn't mean you can be careless." Atticus admonished her while inspecting his arm, closing and opening his silvery fingers. "Don't get used to it. It's dangerous."

"I know, I know!" Ashe explained. "Sorry, Shirou. I didn't mean to take advantage of you and your magic."

I huffed and then smirked. "I don't mind, it makes for good Magic practice. Please break a few more for my progress." My smile widened when Ashe let out huff.

"I'm not that bad."

"Still, you should see about making a new one. That dagger's good, but these ants are tough." I remarked.

Ashe sighed. "Yeah, I know. I'm just waiting for a nice drop to get started on one…" She then perked up "Speaking of! That moth left a wing behind!" She exclaimed with a grin.

Oh! That meant…

Atticus smiled. "That's five, correct? We're done with the quest then."

"Good work, guys!" Ashe raised both hands. I smiled and raised my own. The resounding CLAP! of our high five filled the empty room, and then we both looked at Atticus.

He let out a huff and muttered something like 'Too old for this' but he also humored the pallum with a softer clap. "Now what? We keep going? Go back?"

I hummed. It would be close to six hours since we entered. "I can keep going. You? How's the arm?"

Atticus looked at his silver hand and closed a fist. He nodded. "Feels fine, no sluggishness at all. I can probably add armor to it later and the range of movement won't suffer." He then smirked. "You make good work, my friend."

I huffed. I still felt a little guilty for pretty much stealing Airmid Teasanare's client by copying her own work, but that faded a bit once I remembered just how expensive not only the arm but also its maintenance was.

And according to Atticus, it wasn't even the most expensive one!

Now the original was safe in his forge alongside a couple of spares, so he had to only focus on paying for it.

"Say, can we hunt some Kobolds for their claws? I heard that the ones from this floor were quite good for daggers." Ashe interjected.

"Oh, that's a good idea." Atticus nodded. "Do you mind, Shirou?"

I shook my head. "Of course not." I focused and a copy of my red longsword appeared once more in my hand. "Shall we, then?" I smiled.

Both smiths smiled back and we ventured once more into the cavernous rooms of the Dungeon.

I needed to squeeze in as much training as possible today that I had company. Especially for my Magic.

Having a sword that could take on everything the Dungeon threw at it meant that I had to keep dispeling it to train my Basic Ability.

I stopped for a second and my grip got tighter.

Everything the Dungeon threw at it? I almost wanted to scoff, remembering how easily Lion shattered it.

I glanced at the longsword in my hands, feeling some irony when I remembered her words.

A flimsy piece of metal, huh.

I had just gotten this sword and I truly thought it was an amazing weapon… but I wondered if, after learning from Hephaestus I could make something even better.

I liked Rose Fannett.

Not… romantically, of course, no.

I was smart enough to realize that if I wanted to keep our professional relationship intact, trying to be more than a friendly acquaintance to her was off the table.

Not that I would consider doing that, of course. I had enough on my plate in regards to matters of the heart.

No, I liked the dedication she put into her work and, in spite of the dry and downright uncaring front she liked to put, I was aware of the kindness and concern she felt for any Adventurer under her care.

The amount of time she spent teaching me the ins and outs of the Dungeon and making sure I was properly prepared for any eventuality was one of the reasons I had been able to explore as efficiently as I've been doing.

She didn't sugarcoat anything. Death rates in every floor, dangers of underestimating each monster, even the risks of being ambushed in the Dungeon by desperate Adventurers.

She wanted me to be ready for anything.

Tough love borne out of her years in the job?

I didn't really know how old she was -Twenty five? Thirty? I'm not dumb enough to ask.- but considering the amount of respect the other employees showed her, I gathered that she must have been working as an advisor for a long time.

How many people had she lost over the course of her career, I wondered.

Still, if there was something I disliked about having her as my advisor it would be…

"You're popular as always, huh, Fannett?" I said, feeling a smile grow on my face at the slight twitch on her eye my words caused.

"I'll pretend I'm not hearing amusement in your tone, Emiya." Fannett said dryly while signaling to one of her coworkers to approach. "But only because you being here means I don't have to deal with that."

I glanced over my shoulder to the long line of men and women that were glaring daggers in my direction.

If there was something I disliked about having her as my advisor it would be the vitriol I received each time I took her away from her place on the desk for my advising sessions.

She did tell me it was quite rare for her to advise a rookie Adventurer, but this level of envy is ridiculous. I thought with some chagrin.

"You called for me, Rose?" A pink-haired Guild employee asked cheerfully.

"Flott, I need you to take over. My ten thirty is here."

"Eh!? Take over? Here?" Flott exclaimed, looking at the line behind me with trepidation. "But there are so many! Can I call Eina for help?"

Fannett just raised an eyebrow at the whining. "It's time you get used to handling this kind of thing on your own." Then she sighed. "Besides… it won't be as bad once I leave."

Even as she said that, I could see quite a few of the people in line leaving with disgruntled expressions.

"Uh, I don't know if I should feel relieved or insulted."

Fannett huffed. "I'd be relieved. Waste of time, most of them." She grumbled under her breath. "Let's go, Emiya. I have a booth ready."

I shrugged and followed after the werewolf, ignoring the other girl's grumbling.

"Right, have fun with your young, hunky boyfriend and leave me with the busywork. Thanks, Rose. Yes, yes~! Next person, please~!"

Yeah, not going to pay any attention to that. Fannet's ears twitching and her annoyed sigh told me that she wasn't as successful.

"Apologies for that, both the long line and… my coworker's comment." she said as she took a seat in the booth. I shook my head, not really caring, and sat in front of her. "Right, we have quite a bit to catch up on. It's been a few days, Emiya."

I nodded. Almost a week, in fact. "Yeah, I've been keeping busy with my patrols."

"I heard. Congratulations on your debut, child of Astraea." Fannet said with a small smirk.

"Thanks, Fannet. I haven't done much yet, but it's nice to know that word began to spread, after all." Before I spoke to Varma, I didn't care much about my reputation, but now I wanted my goddess' Familia to reach the same level of fame it had before. For everyone to feel safe when they saw the Sword and the Wings of Justice.

"But I don't want to waste your time listening to me talking about that. We're here for a reason."

"Of course." She nodded, opening a folder. "Now, last time we met you told me you had arranged to party with some members of the Hephaestus Familia…" She eyed me with some curiosity, but was professional enough to not ask how that came to be.

Especially when the proof of how… profitable that relationship had been for me was gleaming on my chest.

The freshly-forged steel half-plate armor Atticus made for me was quite the improvement compared to my previous iron piecemeal one. Really, the only thing I kept was the gauntlets Ann made for me, and those I covered with vambraces.

Not only that, but… "Yeah, it went great, I think. We partied a couple of times, but it's amazing how much faster you can explore and gather crystals if you are in a group. I probably made more Vali in one day with them than during the whole first week."

Hundreds of monsters in a day between the three of us. The fact that one of us could harvest while the other two kept guard made it all the more efficient. Even divided between the three of us, I had made quite the haul those days.

The difference between one week and the other stood out starkly in my reports.

Ah, speaking of…

I placed a couple of sheets of paper on the table and slid them to her side for her to look over. Reports of the past few days of explorations. How deep I went, the kinds of monsters I faced and how I faced them -omitting the particulars of my abilities, of course-, and a few handmade maps.

Probably stuff the guild had mountains of, but it never hurt to offer them just in case something was looked over.

Fannet smiled with some satisfaction once she realized what I gave her. "Hm, if only more rookies acted like you. There's a reason I only take experienced Adventurers." She started to go through my reports and make some notes in the pages of the folder. "You don't know how much we have to ask most beginners for their… reports."

I raised an eyebrow when she trailed off. Her brow furrowed and she seemed to be reading the same page over and over again.

"Emiya." Fannett said frostily. "Remind me which floor you had reached the last time we met." I felt a slight shiver go down my back when her sharp yellow eyes turned to me.

I swallowed, trying to moisten my suddenly dry throat. "Four…?" I answered, knowing why she was asking me that question.

"And which floor you reached now, less than a week after that?"

"To be fair, Fannet, I was in a party with two more experienced Adve-" I stopped once she raised a hand.

"Which. Floor."

"...Nine."

The exasperated sigh that followed my answer said a lot about what her image of me was like.

I wasn't sure I liked it.

Leaving the Guild Headquarters, properly chastised once more for ignoring the sensible warnings of my Advisor, I began to head in the direction of the Ganesha Familia home, I-Am-Ganesha.

Yes. That was the name.

Ignoring the ridiculousness of the deity's naming conventions I began to head in the direction of Babel Tower, to then go around to the district number two.

Luckily, It wouldn't be more than a twenty-thirty minute walk from Pantheon.

"Hey, what part of 'fuck off' is so hard to understand?! We already told you no, creep!"

Of course, it wasn't even a couple of minutes later that I came across trouble, when a young woman's loud voice caught my attention.

I found the source a moment after in between the crowds, and when I did so, I instantly started to walk in their direction.

Nothing good could come from four men accosting two young women.

Especially when those four men were adventurers.

I felt my Skill activate, strength filling my body, and I activated my magic circuits. "Trace on." In a flash of gold, the blue half-cape my goddess had gifted me appeared on my shoulder, her symbol clear for everyone who'd see it. And then, just in case, I started to reinforce my body.

I could feel some eyes turn to me due to the light show but I ignored them, my sight locked in the group arguing in the middle of the street as I approached.

The two girls were around my age, more or less. The one who had yelled had deep red hair cut short, sharp yellow eyes, and had one hand extended in front of her, held by one of the men.

Did she try to slap him and he stopped her?

The other girl was hiding behind the first, hugging herself with shaking hands, her eyes almost hidden behind her long dark blue hair.

"-seem to know the honor you are being offered." The slender man who held the redhead's hand, the one seemingly in charge- no, it only took a look at his sword to confirm it, he was the one in charge- was smiling confidently, his beautiful features softening what would be an arrogant look. "Besides, it's not you who we are interested in. It's her, you are just a nice bonus. Cassandra, was it? My god was clear in his desires, you are to be his."

Cassandra, as he called her, whimpered, and hid even more behind her friend, who was gritting her teeth, her expression pained due to the strength of the man's hold.

Reading the history of his weapon, I wondered for a second if I was getting a little over my head. The man was a Level Two Adventurer… and the Apollo Familia captain.

But then I realized I didn't really care.

And that he was a man who'd soon be bereft of a hand if he didn't remove it himself.

"I think it'd be better if you left them alone." I interjected, drawing the attention of the group to me. I placed one hand on the pommel of my longsword and glared at them. "They clearly want nothing to do with you."

"Hm?" He glanced me out of the corner of his eye. "I don't see how that is any of your business. Stay out of it, trash. Do you even know who you are talk-"

"You are Hyakinthos Clio." I interrupted his tirade, and his eyes narrowed in contempt. "I know and I don't care. What I care about is that I've been tasked to keep the peace of the city." I took a step forward. "And from where I'm looking, you're breaking it."

"You. Who are you? Ganesha's?" His eyes narrowed, and he let go of the girl's arm and turned to me. "No, that symbol…"

"I am Shirou Emiya, the vice-captain of the Astraea Familia."

The two girls looked at me with shock and then exchanged looks, and the three men behind Hyakinthos looked at their leader anxiously. He, however, reacted differently.

"Ha!" Letting out a mocking laugh, covering his mouth with a gloved hand, Hyakinthos Clio grinned at me. "A rookie from a Familia of has-beens thinks that he can order me around? Please, don't make me laugh." My fist clenched. This… scum thinks he can insult my Goddess' Familia? "Leave, you don't want to be known as someone that interrupts a Familia recruiting members, Has-been. These girls are my Lord Apollo's"

And that's where the red haired girl exploded.

"We are no one's! We told you we are not joining you! You've been harassing us all week!"

"D-Daphne, wait!"

I looked to the side and saw the girl, Daphne, winding back her fist, intent on hitting Hyakinthos while he was distracted… and then I saw the sick smile on the man's face. My eyes widened in alarm.

WHAM! CRACK! "DAPHNE! NO!"

Before Daphne could even react, Hyakinthos' gloved hand went from covering his face to hovering an inch in front of her face, clenched in a fist. It was such a fast movement that the wind that resulted from it fluttered Daphne's red hair.

"Huh? I'm not…" She muttered, her face pale.

Of course, he didn't stop because he intended to, no.

The hateful glare he sent me once he saw my hand stopping his attack made the pain of doing so worth it.

"You… I'm beginning to grow tired of you. Do I need to teach you a lesson in manners?" He hissed. I felt a sharp smile grow on my face.

He had been fast, and there was no mistaking the strength in his strike… but after facing Ryuu Lion? He was nothing.

And I still wasn't using my full reinforcement.

I was about to answer when another voice spoke up. "How about you cool it down before I arrest you, Fuckboy Apollo?"

Hyakinthos turned with a snarl. "It's Phoebus Apollo! Who dares-" And then he froze, because in front of him stood Ilta Farna, the Ganesha Familia vice-captain.

The red-haired amazon grinned at him. "I dare. You were saying?"

Hyakinthos looked at her, then at the crowd that was beginning to gather with the commotion. "Tch! I've lost interest in this. We're leaving." He hissed at his companions and tore his fist from my grip before turning around and leaving with them in tow.

I let out a breath when they were out of sight and then allowed myself to hiss after closing my fist slightly. "Thanks, Farna. Things were getting out of hand."

The amazon grinned. "Psht. Don't worry, kid. Big Sis told us to lend you a hand if you needed, so I wasn't about to leave you hanging once I saw you." She shrugged. "She probably meant in the patrols, but eh. Who cares about the details? The guy was clearly going overboard. Speaking of… Nice work in protecting them, kid. I got a little hot seeing you there." She… leered at me.

"Ah, uh. Thanks, I guess?" I replied awkwardly, feeling some heat gathering in my cheeks. I shook my head, and then I turned to the two girls who were whispering amongst themselves, not in an attempt to forcibly change subjects.

No, of course not.

"Hey, you okay? He was holding your arm quite tightly." I asked the red haired one, Daphne, who was holding her right wrist with her left hand. "I have some potions if you are in need."

"Uh. I'm fine, I think. Just a bruise." She said with some awkwardness. "Thanks for the save at the end… I didn't even see it until you stopped him. Is your hand okay?" I smiled and shook my head.

"Don't worry about me, I'm okay." It would take a second to heal this, either with a potion or Avalon. "So, was there a reason you were being accosted by them?" 'Recruitment', according to Hyakinthos Clio, but he wasn't exactly the most trustworthy individual.

"A-ah. That would be because of their god…" The other girl, Cassandra, said softly. "Lord Apollo… he wants to recruit us to his Familia…" She hugged herself and shivered. "Those men began bothering us since we came here a week ago… Daphne always managed to get us out, but today…" She shook her head, her voice breaking. "It was my fault… I just… I felt like I needed to come here today, so I convinced Daphne to accompany me." She felt she needed to come here? What? "That's how they found us "

I sighed. It didn't matter. I turned to Ilta. "Is there something we can do about that? They shouldn't be able to harass people into joining them." I grimaced. I had gotten complacent after meeting Astraea and then Hephaestus. I should have known, considering what I knew of the deities from my world, that some Familias would be led by... Assholes.

Ilta sighed. "Fuckboy was an asshole, but he was kinda right. We in the Ganesha Familia try not to interfere in Familia business until we're sure they are in the wrong… Let's report it to Big Sis, and she'll determine what we can do." She turned to the girls and grinned reassuringly. "You'll be safe in our home until then if you want, girls. I'm sure Shirou won't mind keeping you company, right, kid?"

"Of course not."

The girls exchanged looks and nodded. When they turned back to us their expressions were determined.

Daphne nodded gratefully "Please, we'd really appreciate it if you could do something, anything about them. We just want to be left alone." She said through gritted teeth. "I always worry about Cassandra when I leave her alone to do some shopping, it'd be nice to be able to relax for once." She smirked slightly when Cassandra whined at her words and then whispered conspirationally. "She is quite the airhead."

"I'm not! I-I just follow my dreams and they are often correct!" Cassandra complained. "It's just today that it didn't work."

Walking amongst the crowds, the girls' banter continuing all the way to the Ganesha Familia home, I frowned when a thought crossed my mind.

Why do the names Daphne and Cassandra sound so familiar? Especially in relation to the god Apollo…

"Right, right, your totally believable dreams." Daphne said, rolling her eyes. "What was it today? You would find me a legendary weapon or something? See how that turned out."

"I-it wasn't a legendary weapon! It was nothing so unrealistic!" Cassandra whined. "I just dreamt we would find a nice sword that would protect us!"