Dungeon — Floor 10.
This layer was perpetually shrouded in thick fog. Visibility was terrible, and hulking half-orcs and imps wandered the mist like predators.
For freshly minted Level 1 rookies, this place was usually a forbidden zone with a single name:
Nightmare.
But today, the monsters of Floor 10 were about to meet something far worse.
"ROOOAAAR—!"
A Silverback—over two meters tall—burst from the haze with a thunderous bellow. Its arms, thick enough to pulverize stone, lifted high, ripping the air apart as it swung down at the scrawny red-haired human in front of it.
Shirou Emiya didn't draw his sword.
He didn't retreat.
Yesterday, against a brute like this, he would've projected a long blade to block and disperse the force—or backed off and kited it with a bow.
But today was different.
Inside him, the incantation granted by that Grimoire was already echoing.
"Steel is my body."
Hummm—!
In an instant, emerald magic circuits surged through his entire body. A nearly imperceptible metallic sheen spread across his skin as his muscle fibers hardened under dense mana.
[Structural Reinforcement — Activated].
"BOOM!!!"
A heavy impact shook the corridor.
The Silverback's strike—powerful enough to smash an adventurer's skull—landed squarely on Shirou's raised left arm.
But the expected crack of bone never came.
Instead, the Silverback shrieked in pain.
To it, the blow felt like smashing into a solid adamant alloy plate. The recoil tore through its wrist like a knife.
"I see…" Shirou measured the force through his arm, satisfied. "The impact still transmits—but the actual physical damage is reduced by at least ninety percent. With this hardness, I could probably tank a Level 2's full-force hit head-on."
This was his new magic:
Replacing the concept of flesh with steel.
"Defense test complete…" His gaze sharpened. "Now—goodbye."
Shirou clenched his right fist.
No need for refined technique. Under Structural Reinforcement, his body itself was the ultimate blunt weapon.
"—Hah!"
A plain, direct straight punch.
The Silverback's thick chest caved inward as if hit by a siege ram. Its massive body launched backward like a cannonball, slammed into the rock wall, and dissolved into black smoke.
A violet magic stone clattered to the floor.
"Whew…"
Shirou released the magic and shook out his arm, which was already beginning to ache.
"Works perfectly. The only problem is the mental drain really is brutal."
He picked up the stone, then frowned at the loot scattered around him. Besides the Silverback, seven or eight half-orcs and imps lay in the process of dissolving.
"Collecting drops alone is such a waste of time…"
As a "hero of justice," his hours should be spent swinging blades and saving people—
Not bending over to pick up rocks.
"I need to find a supporter. But Loki Familia's supporters are usually assigned to fixed squads…"
While he was packing up his spoils, sharp, ugly voices suddenly carried through the fog ahead.
"Run? Where do you think you're going?!"
"Hand over the money! Quit pretending—you hid a magic stone in your shoe, didn't you?!"
"You little brat. Looks like you won't learn Soma Familia's rules unless we paint you a new color!"
Along with the shouting came the dull thud of heavy blows landing on flesh—and suppressed sobbing.
Shirou stopped.
Mind's Eye (True) let him perceive what was happening even through the fog.
A cluster of malicious "red-name" presences were beating down a weak, defenseless life-sign.
"…Honestly."
He tossed the stone into his pack. The mildness vanished from his eyes, replaced by calm, chilling clarity.
"No matter the world, there are always people this disgusting."
…
At the corridor's bend—
A small Pallum girl was curled on the ground, arms shielding her head as boots and fists rained down on her.
On her back was a pack larger than her whole body.
A supporter's pack.
Liliruca Arde—at this moment, drowning in despair.
She'd tried to hide a single tiny magic stone so she could trade it for something decent to eat.
They found it.
"Stop… please… I really don't have any more…" Lili cried hoarsely.
"Shut it! Strip her and search—no way it's only one!" snarled a bald, thick-necked adventurer, reaching for her collar.
Lili squeezed her eyes shut.
Someone save me. A god…? No. Gods only brew that maddening wine. They don't care if we live or die.
The bald man's hand was about to touch her—
"Um… sorry to interrupt."
A gentle voice—polite, but carrying weight—cut in.
"Even if the Dungeon's outside the law… beating up a little girl is still pretty pathetic, isn't it?"
The bald man froze and whipped around. "Who the hell—?!"
The fog parted.
A red-haired boy in light leather armor stepped forward. Hands in his pockets, a deep-red short sword at his hip, an innocent smile on his face.
"Loki Familia. Shirou Emiya. Just a rookie passing by."
"Loki Familia?" The bald man blinked—then sneered as he sized Shirou up. "So you're that 'trick newbie' people talk about. What, you came alone to the tenth floor to die?"
The Soma Familia thugs exchanged glances. Greed flickered in their eyes.
A lone rookie. Even if he was Loki Familia—people died to "accidents" in the Dungeon all the time.
And they'd heard he carried valuable gear.
"Kid, if you don't want to die, piss off. This is Soma Familia business." The bald man drew a heavy blade and waved it threateningly.
"Business?" Shirou glanced at Lili.
Her eyes were full of fear—dead, empty, resigned.
Something in his chest tightened.
"If I've seen it… I can't ignore it."
He exhaled once and stepped forward.
"Let her go."
Then, calmly—
"Get out."
"Looking for death!" the bald man roared.
A mere Level 1 rookie—acting like this?!
"Get him! Kill him! We'll say monsters did it!"
At his order, three adventurers rushed Shirou at once. Two longswords and a dagger stabbed toward his throat, heart, and lower abdomen—clean, practiced killing thrusts.
"Watch out!" Lili screamed reflexively.
Shirou didn't dodge.
He didn't even draw the sword at his waist.
He just stood there, lips barely moving.
"Trace—On."
Humm—! Emerald circuits flared again.
"CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!"
Three crisp metallic impacts rang out.
The blades that should've pierced leather armor bounced off Shirou's skin as if striking a steel plate—violently repelled.
One dagger tip snapped clean off from the recoil.
"W-what?!" The three attackers stared at him in disbelief.
Not even a white mark remained.
Was this a human body?
Even heavy armor wouldn't look that unbothered.
"Too weak," Shirou said flatly. "You hit softer than the half-orcs on this floor."
The next second—
He moved.
"—BAM!"
A knee strike drove into the lead attacker's stomach. The monstrous force granted by Structural Reinforcement erupted, and the man flew like a cooked shrimp, slammed into the wall, and dropped unconscious without even managing a scream.
A spinning kick followed.
The second man's arm twisted at an unnatural angle; his sword went skittering away into the mist.
"M-monster…!" The remaining bald man's legs went soft.
This wasn't a "mage."
This was a minotaur wearing human skin.
"You said you were going to strip her," Shirou said, stepping in close.
He looked down at the bald man.
His amber eyes held no anger—only a suffocating, absolute calm.
"N-no—! I was joking! Big bro, please—!" The bald man threw down his blade and dropped to his knees.
"Take your people and leave," Shirou said coldly. "Next time I see you doing this…"
His voice didn't rise.
It didn't need to.
"I'll throw you into a monster pack."
"Y-yes! Yes! We're gone!" The bald man yanked his unconscious companions and fled, crawling into the fog like a rat.
Silence returned.
Shirou released the reinforcement spell and rubbed his temple, exhausted.
This kind of "solve it with overwhelming force" approach was satisfying—
And brutally tiring.
He turned to the Pallum girl still slumped on the ground.
"You okay?"
He extended a hand, the chill in his face dissolving back into warm gentleness.
"Can you stand?"
Lili stared blankly.
What she'd just witnessed hit her like a hammer.
A body that weapons couldn't pierce.
Terrifying strength.
And a man who showed evil no mercy.
"Why…" her voice trembled. "Why did you save me? Are you an idiot?"
"Ah," Shirou sighed, smiling weakly. "Someone called me an idiot again."
He crouched.
But instead of grabbing her right away, he produced something from his coat like a magic trick—
A rice ball wrapped in oiled paper.
"I don't know what you've been through," he said softly, "but you can't think properly when you're hungry."
He offered it to her.
"Special fried shrimp onigiri. Still warm."
Lili looked at the rice ball—then at Shirou's unguarded smile.
In that instant, the dark, calculating part of her heart began pounding wildly.
This man was strong.
Very strong.
And he was a complete soft-hearted fool.
If I can use him… if I can make him my shield…
Her lashes lowered, hiding the flash of sharp light in her eyes. When she looked up again, her expression had transformed into pitiful gratitude.
"Th-thank you, Lord Emiya…"
She took the rice ball and bit carefully. Tears ran down her cheeks—half acting, half because it was genuinely delicious.
"Um… are you exploring alone?" she asked timidly. "If you don't mind… could Lili be your supporter? Lili is weak, but I'm very good at picking up magic stones and carrying baggage!"
"A supporter?" Shirou blinked, then broke into a bright, genuinely relieved grin.
"Really? I was just thinking I needed someone to help collect drops! If you're willing, that's a huge help!"
"Thank goodness!" Lili beamed through tears.
Inside, she sneered.
Hooked.
This absurdly durable "meat shield" would be her money tree.
Once she squeezed him dry, she'd steal that magic sword and sell it—
"That said," Shirou smiled, reaching down and pulling her gently to her feet, "it's a pleasure, Miss Lili."
At that moment, he didn't know that the "obedient" supporter he'd just recruited was already drafting a hundred ways to ruin him.
But he did know something else.
The instant his hand clasped hers, Mind's Eye caught the faint signal buried deep inside her—
A desperate cry for help, like someone drowning.
Want to use me? Shirou thought, amused.
Then use me.
Until the day you can smile for real.
-------
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