First Battle in the Dungeon

Unexpectedly bright—that was Shirou Emiya's first impression of the dungeon.

Everywhere were narrow passages, branching paths, and oddly shaped chambers. The combat environment here was extremely unfriendly to adventurers who used long weapons.

"Fighting in an environment like this really is harsh on newcomers. The oppressive atmosphere and the constant threat of monsters appearing at any moment—anyone with weak mental fortitude would probably lose their combat ability quickly."

But that was for ordinary newcomers.

For Shirou Emiya, who had experienced the Holy Grail War and crossed blades with legendary heroes, there was nothing left to fear.

His body might still be flesh and blood, but his spirit and will had long been tempered into those of a warrior of Hundred Refinements.

A mere dungeon environment—how could it possibly have a negative effect on him?

Crack—

With a strange sound, cracks suddenly appeared in the walls around Shirou Emiya.

Through these cracks, newborn monsters tumbled out one after another.

Freshly born, they spotted Shirou Emiya's upright figure standing in the middle of the passage. Howling, they began to surround him.

"So this is what they call a living dungeon?"

Watching the dungeon mother give birth to monsters, Shirou Emiya recalled the descriptions he had read in books.

The dungeon was alive.

The monsters born in the upper floors were mainly Goblins and Dwarves.

And now, appearing before him, were the legendary Goblins.

They had sharp claws and jagged fangs. A careless new adventurer could easily be injured by them.

"So these are monsters? Finally feels a bit like an adventure world."

With a flick of his Twin Swords, Shirou Emiya charged at one of the Goblins. He had no intention of waiting to be surrounded.

At present, Shirou Emiya's physical abilities were nothing special. In fact, he lagged far behind beast-human races in that regard.

What allowed him to surpass other adventurers was his rich combat experience and mature fighting methods.

As for magic—once he used his Reality Marble, how much mana would he have left?

The dungeon was a war of attrition. This was something he needed to adapt to. He was no longer in the days when Miyu supplied him with mana.

Reaching the Goblin, Shirou Emiya raised his blade and brought it down, ending its life in an instant.

How fragile. But that was the nature of Goblins.

Even a newcomer, with enough caution and courage, could easily defeat them.

Therefore, for newcomers, the most important thing was still their mindset.

After killing this Goblin, ignoring the monster that turned to ash, Shirou Emiya turned and charged at the others.

If he could simply take them all out one-on-one, why bother with the extra effort of fighting multiple at once?

Goblins weren't fast. The closest to Shirou Emiya were two that had already gathered together.

Rushing forward, timing it right, Shirou Emiya kicked one Goblin away and hurled a weapon at it.

After cutting down the remaining Goblin with a single sword stroke, the one he had kicked was already pinned to the ground, turning to ash.

"Trace on!"

Without bothering to retrieve the thrown weapon, Shirou Emiya projected a new one to replace it.

Looking at the last three Goblins, Shirou Emiya charged forward calmly.

He swiftly eliminated them all.

"As expected, the first floor is just for new adventurers to get used to the environment. This isn't the battlefield I need."

Picking up the six Magic Stones from the ground, he carefully placed them into the backpack behind him.

This was money, after all!

In this world, with the popularity of magic stone products, Magic Stones were almost synonymous with currency.

Magic Stones were also the main income for adventurers. By hunting monsters and obtaining Magic Stones, they could exchange them for Valis at the Guild on the surface.

Therefore, Magic Stones were money.

"These six Magic Stones should be worth about a thousand Valis. That's enough for a meal."

Shouldering his backpack, having cleaned up the battlefield, Shirou Emiya set off again deeper into the dungeon. For him, the first floor was far too simple—it couldn't even serve as training.

Although the Divine Blessings of this world resembled a game-like status panel, they didn't work by gaining experience from killing monsters.

The basic ability values of the Divine Blessings were divided into Strength, Endurance, Dexterity, Agility, and Magic.

To increase Strength, one had to exert force.

To increase Endurance, one had to withstand attacks.

To increase Dexterity, one had to move the body.

To improve agility, one must run at full speed.

To improve magic power, one must use magic.

Daily training can also raise these attributes, but it is far slower than the gains from fighting monsters in actual combat.

Between life and death lies great terror.

Only a true life-or-death battle can bring out an adventurer's full potential.

For Shirou Emiya, the monsters on the first floor were no different from training in the Familia. Therefore, he needed to delve deeper into the dungeon.

The eighth floor of the dungeon.

This was the territory of the Killer Ants, and also the area where they spawned in the greatest numbers.

In the dungeon, sometimes the same type of monster would appear across several consecutive floors, but as one descended deeper, both the number and frequency of monster spawns increased steadily.

And the eighth floor was where Killer Ants spawned in the highest numbers and at the greatest frequency.

"Clang--!"

Crossing his Twin Swords, he blocked an attack coming straight at him. Shirou Emiya, who had been constantly scanning his surroundings, kicked the attacker away, then slashed at another Killer Ant that had already closed in from his side.

A swift sword stroke severed its arm. Ignoring its screeching cry, Shirou Emiya pursued with a follow-up combo. The two short swords danced in his hands like a juggler's act, striking from bizarre angles, and he swiftly took its head.

But it wasn't over yet. Shirou Emiya twisted his body and charged toward two more Killer Ants on his flank. Surrounded by a swarm of Killer Ants, he showed no panic or fear, calmly facing the monsters before him.

Rushing up to the two Killer Ants that were close together, Shirou Emiya used his left sword to block an attack from one, then closed in and pierced the other with a single thrust.

Without any pause, he leaned backward, slamming his back into the Killer Ant behind him. As he collided with it, he withdrew the left sword he had used for blocking and stabbed it backward in a reverse grip.

"Bam!"

The Killer Ant that Shirou Emiya had slammed into the wall had no chance to fight back before he pinned it to the stone with his sword.

As he pulled the left sword free, the Killer Ant behind him had already turned to ash.

The only sound that followed was the clatter of Magic Stones hitting the ground.

Scanning the remaining few Killer Ants around him, Shirou Emiya, slightly out of breath, decided to finish things quickly.

With a light step, he charged at the Killer Ants again, easily reaping the isolated monsters.

Only the ones clustered together required a bit more effort.

Facing a Killer Ant that leaped at him, Shirou Emiya jumped forward as well. Spinning his body in midair, he hurled both of his weapons, piercing through the bodies of the two monsters.

Then, projecting new weapons in midair, he slashed at the last two remaining Killer Ants from above.

A flash of Sword Light, and the two Killer Ants were cleaved apart, dissolving into ash.

Shirou Emiya, now crouched on one knee, slowly stood up. Turning back to survey the battlefield he had just left, he saw the dim corridor littered with gleaming Magic Stones.

"Looks like today will be a pretty good haul."

Leaning against the wall on one side, breathing lightly, Shirou Emiya smiled with considerable satisfaction.