The flames of [Agaris Alvesynth] were sealed within the blade, forming an even more extreme and violent flow of magical energy. The intense heat it stirred caused the surrounding air to distort.
The crimson sword blade clashed with the spiraling thunderlight. At this moment, the world-ending energy was finally unleashed, far surpassing the seemingly raging thunderlight in scale.
The rainbow light of the Caladbolg was suppressed, dispersed, and devoured. Blazing flames surged toward Emiya.
"Shirou, this time, I win again," Ryuu spoke, a rare smile appearing on her naturally cool and delicate features.
Her figure flickered as she passed through the terrifying curtain of fire, reaching out toward Emiya's hand.
The Caladbolg in her right hand had already shattered into twinkling specks of light. Emiya also instinctively raised his hand toward Ryuu.
However, just before their fingertips met, both of their movements suddenly changed—
[Agaris Alvesynth] vs. [Agaris Alvesynth]
The same magic bloomed in their hands. Two streams of flame flowed toward each other, intertwining and ultimately flowing back into Ryuu's hands, dispersing into the surroundings.
The firework-like embers drifted about, resembling tiny red butterflies.
In this contest of magical control, the elven girl ultimately had the upper hand.
At last, Ryuu successfully grasped Emiya's wrist.
Emiya no longer resisted, "I thought Ryuu would overlook the fact that I can also use [Agaris Alvesynth]."
As he spoke, he removed the [Crimson Order] hidden behind him. With his magical energy waning, this projected weapon also began to fade.
"I wouldn't overlook anything about Shirou," Ryuu spoke softly.
"Ahh~ In the end, Shirou still got caught, nya~"
Anya and the others ran over. Seeing Emiya fall into Ryuu's grasp, they couldn't help but sigh dramatically.
Today, Ryuu and Emiya had specifically borrowed a training ground from the goddess Demeter for an intensive training session.
Back when Emiya was at Lv.1, he had grown at an unimaginable pace, eventually breaking the city's record for fastest level-up. While his personal talent and opportunities played a role, Ryuu and Anya's help was equally crucial.
Two advanced adventurers at Lv.4 spent a significant amount of time each day sparring with a Lv.1 rookie. Thanks to them, Emiya's stats grew far beyond the average rate. Particularly in the early days, the daily special training sessions had benefited him immensely.
However, after reaching Lv.2, Emiya first had to recover from injuries, then dealt with the Ishtar Familia, focused on forging weapons, and even managed to eliminate the Soma Familia in between. As a result, he hadn't found time for special training until now.
When he brought up the idea of 'special training' to Ryuu, it just so happened that Ryuu and Anya had been thinking the same thing.
Emiya needed training to improve his stats, while Anya and the others still held a grudge over being defeated by the useless elf.
As for Ryuu, while she had adapted to her upgraded body, her magic [Astraea Record], which had an exceptionally high upper limit, still required further development.
Thus, they easily reached an agreement to train together. As expected, their battle training turned into a one-vs-four match against Ryuu.
And when she got serious, she could easily crush [Chariot's Fragment], [Black Cat], [Black Fist], and [Sword King]—all of whom were well-known adventurers in the city.
There was a thick, insurmountable wall between Lv.5 and Lv.4, just like the vast gap between Lv.2 and an unadvanced Lv.1. It far exceeded the difference between Lv.4 and Lv.3 or Lv.3 and Lv.2.
This was why adventurers at Lv.5 and above were referred to as First-Class, enjoying various explicit and implicit privileges.
Becoming a First-Class Adventurer was a powerful bargaining chip, capable of swaying the Guild's decisions. With such an achievement, individuals like [Black Cat] and [Black Fist], who once roamed the underworld, could openly cleanse their past identities.
Just look at the case of [Gale]. This First-Class Adventurer, once infamously wanted for a sky-high bounty, had now openly struck a deal with the Guild.
This was one of the main motivations for both of them to push themselves harder. Even Anya, who lacked ambition, found it impossible to stay idle while the girls around her gave their all.
Not to mention, she wasn't entirely without aspirations.
In short, the girls trained hard, and Emiya did too. Unfortunately, the gap in strength wasn't something that could be bridged through mere effort.
Numerical advantage meant nothing to a high-speed swordswoman like Ryuu. As long as she didn't want to get caught up in a fight, she could escape Anya and the others' encirclement at any time. But if she chose to engage, no one could escape her pursuit.
Ryuu only needed to break through the siege of the three Lv.4 adventurers, take down the weakest yet most troublesome ranged fighter. Emiya, then turn around to deal with Anya and the others. Victory was hers in an instant.
After several rounds, even Syr, who was observing, found it dull. She then suggested a rules-based battle format.
The rule was a timed pursuit match. Ryuu's goal was to catch the lowest-leveled Emiya, while the others focused on fleeing and providing support.
Emiya could set up the battlefield and use projections in advance. Even if Anya and the others were defeated by Ryuu, they could return to the battlefield after one minute. If Ryuu failed to catch her target within the time limit, she would lose.
This balanced the playing field significantly. Even with these constraints, Ryuu still won multiple times in a row—until now.
"Unfortunately, Ryuu, even though you caught Shirou, time's up," Syr held a pocket watch, smiling brightly as she spoke.
Anya and Chloe were momentarily stunned, then cheered and jumped up together, "Yeah! The cats win!"
"To defeat the monstrous 'Muscle Elf,' this must be a great achievement, nya~"
"How could this possibly be a great achievement..."
Lunoire retorted, though she couldn't stop the corners of her lips from curling up slightly.
"Ryuu, are you okay?", Emiya looked at the elven girl.
Ryuu: "I'm fine, I'm fine. It's just one loss… It's fine…"
She said that, but her dejected tone and the slight trembling in her body betrayed her true feelings.
Elven girls were usually extremely competitive.
Clap~
Syr clasped her hands together, lifting a wooden box, "Everyone must be hungry, right? Come, let's eat. Shirou and I prepared lunch for everyone."
"Oh yay! Shirou's cooking is the best, nya!"
"Wait a minute, Syr, you said—you and Shirou?"
"Yes, one of these meals was made by me," Syr smiled sweetly.
The girls: "…"
The atmosphere froze instantly.
'Who has a high level of [Status Resistance]? Hurry up, help!!!'
[Black Fist] Lunoire frantically blinked at her companions, silently screaming for help.
Having undergone three upgrades, Lunoire gained a development skill each time her level advanced. However, among her three development skills, neither [Status Resistance] nor [Poison Resistance] was included.
Instead, her companions, Ryuu, Anya, and Chloe, all possessed the development ability [Status Resistance], and their levels were not low.
Yet, they chose to ignore Lunoire's desperate eyes, or rather, to leave her to her fate.
Even with [Status Resistance], it was uncertain whether they could withstand Syr's cooking. Besides, refusing Shirou's food in exchange for eating Syr's was simply too great a sacrifice.
"Ryuu, don't you follow the justice of the Astraea Familia?"
"…I'm not that just," Ryuu could endure Syr's cooking, but she absolutely did not want to miss Shirou's lunch.
After a brief exchange of glances, Lunoire realized that no one was going to voluntarily sacrifice themselves. As for the two catgirls, they were utterly unreliable.
Now, it all came down to luck—
Russian roulette, a cruel game. Unlike other gambling games that use cards or dice, Russian roulette's tools are a revolver and a human life.
And right now, the girls were playing such a game. Six food boxes, five of which contained Shirou's prepared lunch, while one...
"Oh my, they're all sandwiches made by Shirou. Did I take the wrong one? Did I mix it up with the one Shirou made for Mama Mia?", The absentminded girl had accidentally left her own cooking back at the tavern.
"Mama Mia, thank you!!!"
The girls had never been more sincere in their gratitude toward Mia the tavern owner.
"Shirou, is today's lunch sandwiches?"
"Yeah, since it's a picnic, I thought sandwiches would be the most suitable."
As Shirou spoke, he opened the wooden food boxes.
Except for Syr's, each lunch contained four generously sized sandwiches filled with fresh vegetables, tender eggs, flavorful ham, and thick tuna.
For an ordinary person without a divine blessing, even a strong adult male would struggle to eat such a large portion in one meal. But for adventurers, it was just right.
With bodies far surpassing normal humans, their ability to digest and absorb nutrients was several times greater, especially under high-intensity activity.
Syr's portion contained only a vegetable sandwich. She claimed she was on a diet and blamed her recent weight gain on Shirou's cakes.
Although Shirou hadn't noticed any changes in her figure compared to before, worrying about weight was probably an instinct for girls her age.
He gathered some dry branches and leaves, using the magic [Agaris Alvesynth] to ignite them—this reminded Ryuu of the past.
Alise had once tried using magic to toast bread. Because she failed to control her magic properly, she burned the bread to charcoal and nearly set Kaguya's hair on fire. In the end, Kaguya forced her to eat the charred bread as punishment.
Thinking back, that disaster happened purely because Alise was an idiot. Instead of doing it like Shirou, using magic to light the wood and then leisurely grilling—she insisted on holding the bread directly in her hands to burn it…
"Ryuu, you're smiling," Shirou, watching the elven girl sitting by the fire, hugging her knees and lost in thought, felt an unexpected sense of peace in his heart.
Above the fire, a simple grill was set up, and the sandwiches were placed on top to warm. The slightly roasted bread emitted a nutty fragrance.
Though it seemed like a simple meal, in some ways, it was more precious than any delicacy.
The bread was personally baked by Goddess Demeter, whose greatest joy was cooking for her Familia children. The extra portions had been given to Ryuu, who lived with them.
The rich fillings inside the bread were Shirou's handiwork, carefully chosen to match the girls' tastes: vegetables for Ryuu, ham for Lunoire, fish for the two catgirls, and nutritious eggs.
Anya: "Hey~ Ryuu, can I trade my vegetable sandwich for your fish sandwich, nya?"
"No," Before Ryuu could answer, Shirou spoke first, "You can't just eat what you like. You need a balanced diet of vegetables and meat to get proper nutrition."
"Anya, you hardly ever eat vegetables, do you? You always leave behind green peppers and carrots."
"Ugh, cats don't like the taste of vegetables, nya…", Anya pouted but obediently picked up the warm vegetable sandwich and took a bite, "Shirou is too strict, nya."
Syr, sitting to the side, glanced at Shirou's profile and couldn't help but chuckle.
"What's so funny?"
Syr giggled as she said, "I just feel like, even though Shirou is the youngest, he's unexpectedly like everyone's 'mom.'"
"Oh~ I love Mama Shirou, nya! Shirou is way gentler than Mama Mia, nya!"
Shirou chuckled, "Speaking of Mama Mia, you all made sure to ask her for leave today, right?"
The girls: "…"
Aside from the meticulous Syr and the now-retired-to-bodyguard-duty Ryuu, the expressions of the other girls instantly turned unnatural.
"Lunoire, you remembered to ask Mama Mia for leave, right?"
"Huh? Wasn't it agreed that you'd do it?"
"Wait, I remember we settled it with rock-paper-scissors, and it was Anya who lost…"
The catgirl, who had been hanging her head since earlier, suddenly looked up, tapped her forehead lightly with one hand, and threw a wink: "Ehehe, I forgot~"
"…Aaaah, stupid cat! We're doomed because of you!"
The girls erupted into noisy chaos, while Shirou and Syr calmly continued eating lunch.
Syr pulled out pre-prepared lemon tea, and Shirou projected [Skadi of Ice], lightly touching the glass bottles with the sword blade. A swirling chill spread, instantly turning the room-temperature fruit tea into an ice-cold drink.
"Here, have some tea and cool down~"
Syr said with a playful smile.
———
In a distant part of the forest—so far that even Ryuu and Shirou couldn't sense any hostility or gazes. A white-clothed, golden-haired elf lowered a magic tool with the [Far Sight] function.
[T/N: If you're liking this story, I just started a new one: "Pokémon: Gardevoir Harem with Tag System." As evident from the name, a Pokemon fanfic, OP MC and OP system, check and throw some Powerstones while you are at it. Have a great read 🥳]
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