The three-day mandatory leave vanished in a blink—like someone hit fast-forward.
And in those three days, the buzz around "Senji Muramasa" in Orario didn't cool down at all. If anything, it got worse—thanks to Hestia's openly provocative "poaching declaration," which turned into prime street-corner gossip.
But while the city's rumors spiraled, the man at the eye of the storm—complete with protagonist-grade plot armor—was already standing at the gate to a "new world."
Dungeon, Floor 19 — The Great Tree Labyrinth
"Wow… the atmosphere changed completely."
Liliruca Arde looked up and let out a sincere gasp.
This floor was nothing like the previous rocky maze.
If earlier floors had that gloomy, oppressive Soulslike vibe, then here the visuals abruptly flipped into a colorful Japanese fantasy RPG: gigantic trees like pillars holding up the ceiling, dense foliage blotting out the sky, and air thick with lush plant scent and damp mist.
Of course—if you ignored the monsters lurking in the shadows, ready to deliver a "first-time death" combo—this place looked like a legendary elven forest.
"Shh—!"
A Gun Libellula tried to ambush them from the canopy. Before it could fire its stone shot, an invisible blade wave sliced it cleanly in half.
At the front, Emiya Shirou casually swung "Otherworld: Kanshou."
The motion was so smooth it looked like he'd merely closed an annoying pop-up ad.
"Level 2… feels very clear."
Shirou clenched his fist.
It wasn't just the jump in strength and speed. The real difference was sensory sharpness. Every leaf tremor fell within his Mind's Eye. That omniscient, total-control sensation was like a player running an effortless speedrun with God-mode perception turned on.
"Emiya-sama! Contact ahead!"
Lili raised her hand crossbow and pointed forward.
"A group of Bugbears—three of them! Their strength can punch rock apart!"
"Three? Perfect for a warm-up."
Shirou's lips curved.
He didn't cast reinforcement. He didn't even take a defensive stance.
He looked like a max-level veteran returning to the tutorial zone to farm newbies.
"Trace—On."
Black-and-white twin blades appeared in his hands.
Then Shirou vanished.
Not teleportation—just movement too fast for the eye to track. His Lv.1 Agility SSS accumulation had converted into Lv.2 potential, pushing his speed beyond the typical Lv.2 limit.
For an instant, the world itself seemed to slow.
If there were narration, you could almost hear:
"The World… stop time."
Shff! Shff! Shff!
Three flashes of cold light.
Shirou reappeared behind the Bugbear pack, slowly sheathing his blades.
Thud…
The three Bugbears froze—then collapsed in unison. Black smoke burst from their necks as their bodies dissolved into magic stones.
They hadn't even realized they were dead.
It was the delayed-death effect—pure "You are already dead" energy.
"…That was… too fast."
Lili gaped, her crossbow nearly slipping from her hands.
"Instant kill?! These are Floor 19 elite monsters! Emiya-sama, isn't your speed a little… unreasonable?!"
"It's not unreasonable," Shirou said with a smile, picking up the magic stones.
"They're just slow."
Lili's inner voice screamed:
This isn't 'good accumulation,' this is the devs handing the protagonist a blatant stat hack! Is balance even a concept anymore?!
A Scream, and the Smell of a Hidden Quest
They kept moving deeper.
The Great Tree Labyrinth was resource-rich—beyond magic stones, it offered rare herbs and timber. As a man with "Housework EX," Shirou was already wondering if he could make a new cutting board out of this wood.
Then, as they crossed a region tangled with massive roots—
"Yaaahhhh—!!"
A piercing scream shattered the forest calm.
It didn't sound human.
It didn't sound like a monster either.
It sounded like a frightened little girl.
"Hm?"
Shirou stopped hard.
His Mind's Eye caught a violently chaotic presence—fear, despair, and… pure survival instinct.
It was so intense it felt like triggering some hidden side quest called "Boy Meets Girl", with the system screaming at the player to reach the marked coordinates.
"That feeling… Lili, keep up! Something's ahead!"
"Yes!"
Under an Ancient Tree — The Dragon Girl
Beneath a colossal old tree, a monster curled up in the roots, trembling.
Her entire body was covered in silver scales—upper body like a human girl, lower body like a dragon.
A Vouivre.
A rare dragon-type monster.
And in the taxonomy of "2D culture," if she's pretty, she's automatically a certified monster girl.
She was in terrible shape. Wounds covered her body; many scales had torn away, and fresh red blood seeped through.
And in front of her stood a group of adventurers—armed, thick-necked, faces full of ugly greed.
They looked like they had "trash-mob villains" written across their foreheads, grinning as they closed in—exactly the kind of faceless thugs that push a story forward in certain kinds of "adult literature."
"Jackpot! A rare one—and a premium-grade looker!"
"Her scales and claws will sell for a fortune!"
"Don't kill her outright. Half-human monsters like this? Sell her to some noble with 'special tastes' and we're set!"
Their greed wasn't even subtle.
To them, this wasn't a life.
It was walking money.
"Please… help me…"
The Vouivre clutched her wounds. Tears filled her golden slit-pupiled eyes as she let out a broken, terrified plea.
"You there—what do you think you're doing?"
A voice, heavy with authority, rang out from above—an entrance that came with its own BGM.
"Who?!" The adventurers flinched and looked up.
Emiya Shirou stood on a branch, gazing down at them. His red headband fluttered in the wind.
In that moment, his justice-meter hit max.
The "Hero of Justice" had logged back in.
"Who I am doesn't matter."
He dropped down and landed cleanly in front of the dragon girl, twin blades radiating cold menace—like a knight guarding a princess.
"What matters is—this girl…"
"…is under my protection."
"Hah? Who the hell are you?" The leader sneered like Shirou was insane. "That's a monster! And we found the prey first! You trying to steal it?"
"Prey?"
Shirou glanced back at the trembling Vouivre.
Those eyes—full of tears and fear—were nothing like a savage monster.
They were a helpless child's eyes.
"Can't you see she's crying?"
Shirou inhaled slowly. Magic circuits lit along his body. His tone stayed calm—
But the fury inside it was volcanic.
"Bullying something this weak…"
"Doesn't your conscience hurt?"
"Enough talk! If you want to die, we'll grant it!"
The leader roared, planting a perfect death flag.
"Get him! Teach him how the world works!"
Five or six adventurers rushed in.
But to Shirou's Mind's Eye, their movements were so slow they looked like laggy footage stuck at 999ms ping—nothing but openings.
"…Honestly."
Shirou sighed, eyes sharpening.
"If you insist."
"Then I won't hold back."
"Trace—On."
He didn't need to unfold the Inner World called Unlimited Blade Works.
With the projections in his hands, this was more than enough against a pack of combat-power-five nobodies.
Bam! Bam! Bam!
He didn't even cut.
Using the flat of the blades and the spine, he struck pressure points with surgical precision—enough to erase combat capability instantly without killing.
It wasn't a fight.
It was physical correction.
Ten seconds.
Everyone was on the ground foaming at the mouth, huge lumps on their heads, weapons shattered all over the dirt.
The battle ended so fast it was quicker than instant noodles.
"Told you—don't underestimate an Emiya man."
Shirou dusted off his hands, nodded at the pile of "corpses," and looked satisfied.
This was basically musou grass-cutting mode.
"…He's absurdly strong…"
Lili watched, cold sweat running down her back.
This wasn't combat.
It was a max-level boss bullying children.
She once again confirmed: her "gentle-looking" lord, when serious, was absolutely demon-king-tier.
The Headpat That Ends All Hostility
With the trash dealt with, Shirou turned to the dragon girl.
"D-don't… come closer…"
She shrank back in terror, but the tree trunk blocked her.
No escape.
"Don't be afraid."
Shirou put his weapons away, crouched down, and showed that familiar gentle smile—
A smile that felt like it had EX-rank effectiveness against monster girls, instantly melting defenses.
He reached out and softly placed his hand on her shaking head.
This was the ultimate technique carved into anime DNA:
The Headpat (Headpat Kill).
Warm magic flowed through his palm, soothing her panicked soul.
"Pain, pain… fly away."
The dragon girl froze.
That hand was warm.
No killing intent.
No greed.
Just a warmth that made her feel safe—like sunlight in winter.
"U… uuu…"
Her tension snapped.
She threw herself into Shirou's arms and sobbed like a child who'd endured too much.
Even a tsundere would crumble here—never mind a desperate Xenos.
"It's okay. It's okay now."
Shirou gently patted the scaled back, then pulled out a top-grade healing potion.
"Here. Drink this. It might taste a little bitter."
Lili lowered her crossbow, watching the scene with an expression too complicated for words.
"Emiya-sama…"
She sighed and pressed a hand to her forehead.
"Are you building a cross-species harem? Lili doesn't mind more rivals, but isn't this preference system… a bit too advanced?"
Still—watching the dragon girl cry safely in his arms, Lili couldn't help smiling.
Yeah. My lord is hopelessly, irredeemably "yasashii"—the classic kind-hearted protagonist.
In the Shadows — Observers
In the deep forest shade, a large black figure—Asterios (the Black Bull)—and a cloaked skeleton—Fels—silently watched everything.
"He did it," the skeleton rasped.
"A human… embraced a Xenos. Is this what they call… 'a recovered flag'?"
"…That feeling."
The towering shadow clenched a fist, beast-like eyes burning with a fire that said I don't understand, but I'm deeply moved.
"I want to try it too."
And at that moment—
The gears of fate clicked audibly into place.
Some dangerous switch had just been flipped.
-------
My : pat*eon*com/RuneA
I, Herta's Fiancé, the Universe's Number One Male Fist (114 Chapter (Simulpub-Full) )
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Succubus in Sixth Street (400 Chapter)
Reborn in Type-Moon, My Sister is Aoko Aozaki (254 Chapter)
MyGO!! A Story Voiced by Me (140 Chapter)
BLEACH: Blade of Purification (158 Chapter)
Konoha: Starting the Game as Yoriichi (400 Chapter)
My Real Job is Spying on Konoha, but I'm Also its Hokage (140 Chapter)
The Pinnacle of the Navy! Starting from Being Captured by Garp (172 Chapter)
Watching Yu-Gi-Oh! short videos is making the veteran players lose...(80 Chapter)
Uma Musume : The Trainer Who Just Wants to Live (200 Chapter)
Zenless Zone Zero The Random Kamen Rider (200 Chapter)
Genshin Impact: It All Began With Me Being Stepped On by Arlecchino (120 Chapter)
Naruto: I Can Synthesize Summoning Beasts (96 Chapter)
Demon Slayer: The Great Swordsman's System, Disciple of Yoriichi (140 Chapter)
My Wife is a General, but I'm an Emanator of Abundance! (160 Chapter)
Type-Moon: My Nine-Fold Path (140 Chapter)
Uma Musume: They're Peeking at My Diary, and All of Tracen is Panickin (Ending)
The Wild History of Type-Moon world (70 Chapter)
Reborn in Conan, But I Refuse to Be the Bad Guy (80 Chapter)
Ruan Mei is begging me to go back? But there's no going back anymore (140 Chapter)
Just a Slacker at Tracen Academy (165 Chapter)
Survival in Blue Archive (70 Chapter)
Kimetsu no Yaiba: Doma Wasn't Hated Today, Either (100 Chapter)
The Vibe of This Chat Group is a Little Off (100 Chapter)
Heartbreak Simulator: I Broke Them and Made Them Cry (80 Chapter)
The Talentless Trainer Doesn't Want to Restart (80 Chapter)
A Journey Starting as a Quincy (80 Chapter)
Uma Musume: The Master of Romance Obstruction (80 Chapter)
Uma Musume: You Can't Be a Hero Without a Little Chemical Enhancement (40 Chapter)
Honkai Impact 3rd Your Boyfriend is Really Amazing (40 Chapter)
Warhammer 40K: My Fiancée, Fulgrim (180 Chapter)
Classroom of the Elite: Trying to Capture Me! (120 Chapter)
Genshin Impact My Named Senji Muramas (150 Chapter)
A Chef, the Vice-Captain of the Rocks Pirates? (160 Chapter)
Naruto : My Uchiha Girlfriend is Too Tsundere (130 Chapter)
Type-Moon: Reincarnated in a Lostbelt, I Became the Alien God (90 Chapter)
The Way These Horse Girls Look at Me Is Terrifying! (160 Chapter)
Naruto: Tsunade's Deskmate (130 Chapter)
I Just Want to Live a Normal (50 Chapter).
Genshin Impact: A Hundred Confessions? It's Just a System Task (70 Chapter)
OnePiece : Starting as a Veteran of the Roger Pirates (60 Chapter)
Uma Musume : I Have Special Horse Taming Techniques (190 Chapter)
Uma Musume : My other self is a Horse Girl (130 Chapter)
Jujutsu Kaisen : All Affection Stats Maxed Out (200 Chapter)
Satou Kazuma's Decision to Live by Swindling, Starting from Re:Zero (60 Chapter)
Bleach : Ichigo! Take Over the Soul Society (89 Chapter)
Crossover Anime: The Master of Plagiarism with a 'Love Obstacle (140 Chapter)
Arknights Succubus Nurturing System, But I'm a Quiet Office Worker (90 Chapter)
Genshin Impact: Using My Personas to Break the Hearts of Players (50 Chapter)
One Punch Man : i am King? (150 Chapter)
Genshin: My Stats Are Irresistible (70 Chapter)
Naruto: Master of Dream Fulfillment! (70 Chapter)
Why Are All My Chat Group Friends Spin-Off Characters? (123 Chapter)
Arknights : Batman System (30 Chapter)
Chat Group: Swapping Bodies with the Bad-Ending Herta from the Start (80 Chapter)
DanMachi: Why Did My Dungeon Turn Into a Soulslike Game? (110 Chapter)
Losing Money on Uma Musume...What Do You Mean You Actually Won? (120 Chapter)
I'm Gotou Hitori—Who Are You? (40 Chapter)
Were You Ever Even a Uma Musume? Stop Making Things Up! (780Chapter)
Moon Project: A Full-Time Love Adventure for the Lobotomy Corporation (75 Chapter)
The Leisurely Days of the Hyuga Main House (65 Chapter)
Arknights : A Draco Surviving in a Matriarchal Terra (165 Chapter)
Arknights: What if My Luck Is Too Good? (115 Chapter)
Honkai: The Romance System Only Shows Up After I Marry Mei (55 Chapter)
Arknights: Who Are You Calling Repressed, X?! (125 Chapter)
The Chat Group Only Arrived After I'd Cleared the Game (102 Chapter)
Gojo Satoru Flat-Out Refuses to Admit He's a Supporting Character (40 Chapter)
Chat Group Isn't Supposed to Be Like This! (30 Chapter)
If You're Moriarty…then Who Am I? (120 Chapter)
Uma Musume: Since I "Can't See," They Take Turns Stealing My Underwear (50 Chapter)
Arknights: Why Are All My "Brothers" Girls? (54 Chapter)
Danmachi: Start Training Haki (59 Chapter)
Emiya Shirou's Rebirth (30 Chapter)
I Can Get Stronger Just by AFK'ing—So I Joined a Chat Group (50 Chapter)
Endfield: I Can Always Pull Out One Yuan (54Chapter)
Limbus Company : I Started a Company in Project Moon (50 Chapter)
Lobotomy: Do Cooks of Alley 23 Dream of Bloodfiend Knights? (50 Chapter)
DanMachi: Freya Familia's "One-Blade Shura" (60 Chapter)
DanMachi: Emiya, the Great Hero Becomes the Protagonist (76 Chapter)
TYPE-MOON: One Special Instance Every Week (40 Chapter)
From Danmachi: The Abundance Apothecary (63 Chapter)
Lord Shadow Descends on DanMachi (83 Chapter)
Fuse with Me, Exusiai! (41 Chapter)
Honkai: Star Rail — After I Die, I Forge Their Madness (50 Chapter)
DanMachi: The Last Zeus Familia (70 Chapter)
Endfield: Arknights Heroic Spirit Summoning (70 Chapter)
Toyokawa Family Finances (80 Chapter)
Starting From DanMachi to Become Stronger (75 Chapter)
DanMachi: My Familia Is Made Up Entirely of Heroines from Every World! (60 Chapter)
Arknights: My Intel Refreshes Daily (80 Chapter)
Digimon : I Never Meant to Do Evil, Even Though I Wasn't Chosen (40 Chapter)
Miss Holmes Could Never Be the Losing Heroine! (40 Chapter)
Takayama Gamu at Tracen Academy (40 Chapter)
Legendary Trainer Takes on MYGO (40 Chapter)
Arknights : Yandere Game: The Operators Have Come Knocking (60 Chapter)
Arknights: This Dating Sim Is Seriously Wrong! (40 Chapter)
If there's a particular novel you're enjoying on Patron, please give it a 'like' so I know to focus on it