"Fuuush~"
He let out a long sigh. Standing atop a rooftop, Shirou slowly raised the bow in his hand, the string fully drawn.
It was exhilarating.
The moment the monster appeared, he had already drawn the string, aimed at it, and was ready to take its life at any second.
"Omae wa mou shin—" Shirou began, but was interrupted by Riveria.
"That child needs more experience. With us here, she won't get seriously hurt, so let her handle this on her own."
"After all, we can't always protect her. She needs to grow on her own."
Convinced by Riveria, Shirou took no action and simply watched, though he couldn't help but click his tongue mentally at not being able to finish his sentence.
"It's rude to prevent someone from finishing a signature line."
Touching his still-throbbing heart, Shirou turned and complained to Riveria beside him.
He noticed she was sweating nervously too.
'Are you more worried than I am?'
Sensing Shirou's strange gaze, Riveria said timidly, "I didn't expect that monster to react to magic."
That was exactly why Riveria had been concerned.
After all, when she had asked Shirou not to attack, Tiona and Tione were suppressing the monster's relentless assaults. At that moment, Lefiya could have simply stood still and chanted a spell.
But she hadn't expected the monster to react to magic and attack Lefiya directly.
Unlike Shirou, who knew Lefiya was fine, only slightly injured, Riveria had no idea if the attack could kill her.
The thought of causing Lefiya's death filled her with dread.
That was the source of her embarrassment.
"It's fine, I understand. This monster really is sinister."
Seeing Shirou's understanding, Riveria let out a sigh of relief and whispered, "Don't tell anyone about this."
She didn't want anyone else to know about her situation today.
"I understand. We'll keep it a secret between us."
"Hmm!"
After that, the two fell silent, unsure what else to say.
Bang!
Another explosion echoed, and two more faceless snakes appeared before their eyes.
"More?"
Riveria was surprised to see two more monsters appear and immediately prepared to destroy them.
At that moment, a flash of golden light shone, and Ais appeared in the square.
"Ais!"
Tiona and the others exclaimed upon seeing her.
"Leave it to me."
Faced with Ais's challenge, the two snakes raised their upper bodies, looked to the sky, and suddenly opened wide.
"They're not snakes… they're flowers!"
Indeed, the monsters bloomed.
Their heads unfolded like petals, revealing huge mouths filled with sharp teeth.
"Ooooh!"
Confronting the monsters, which roared toward the sky, Ais unleashed all her magical power, charging forward in an instant.
But at that moment, her weapon could no longer withstand the terrifying force and shattered instantly.
'Ah, no… I'm going to get scolded,' Ais thought, looking at the borrowed sword in her hand.
"Get out of the way!"
At that moment, Shirou's voice rang out from afar.
"Looks like you'll need my help after all!"
Observing the two monsters howling at the sky, Shirou drew his bow again.
This time, however, he wasn't nocking a normal arrow but one of his magical arrows!
Watching Ais and the others retreat quickly, Shirou pulled the string to its maximum and murmured, "Múspellsflamme…"
Bang!
With a gust of wind, the arrow streaked crimson, imbued with his magical energy, striking the monster.
BOOM!!
An explosion followed, obliterating the monster's head.
Watching the small cloud of smoke rise slowly, Shirou sighed deeply.
Loki, rising from the ground, looked at the dust cloud and brushed herself off.
Though she had heard many times of Shirou's powerful magical arrows, seeing one firsthand was still a revelation.
The power of the attack genuinely impressed her.
"Are you alright, Loki?"
Hearing Riveria's familiar voice, Loki quickly said, "Riveria, why didn't you protect me?"
"There was nothing to do. There was a child in the square at that moment, and Shirou asked me to get them out of there first."
Looking at the nervous girl beside Riveria, Loki instantly felt calmer.
"It's fine. That child is truly more important."
"Goddess Loki!"
Before the two could exchange more words, Tiona and the other four approached, followed by guild staff.
After handing the girl to the guild staff, Riveria asked the four, "Are you okay?"
"Yes, we left as soon as Shirou reminded us."
Seeing everyone safe, Riveria looked seriously at Lefiya and said, "I was watching your fight. It was very good. You've grown a lot, Lefiya!"
"Thank you for the compliment, Lady Riveria."
Hearing Riveria's personal praise, Lefiya's expression returned to being shy.
"By the way, you still haven't dealt with the other runaway monster, Ais?"
Loki's reminder suddenly made Ais nervous, but she had no weapons at hand.
"Leave him to me. Hunting is my specialty, after all."
Guessing that Bell's fight was nearly over, Shirou offered to handle the remaining monsters.
"Then I'll leave this to you, Shirou!"
"Don't worry!"
With that, Shirou waved to Ais and leaped into the air.
From a high vantage point, observing the surroundings with keen insight, Shirou quickly located the remaining monsters.
He drew his bow, pulled back the string, and released his arrow.
In a smooth motion, with exceptional skill, two arrows shot through the air instantly, striking the monsters, which died immediately.
Only two arrows remained embedded in the ground, which soon began to vanish, along with a fallen magical stone, witnessing his presence.
Nine Ganesha clan monsters had escaped. Ais destroyed six of them, and Shirou took down two more.
The last monster, drawn by Bell, entered Dedalo Street.
Due to the buildings obstructing the path, if Shirou fired his arrow, it would likely also destroy the surrounding structures.
It would be a waste of effort.
"Forget it. Let's take a look. I'm sure Bell is almost done with that monster, but I still need to play my part."
With that, Shirou ran along the side of the house.
Then, he saw the scene with his own eyes.
The story of the frail young boy who bravely charged at the monster and then triumphed.
A truly dazzling scene!
---
(End of Chapter)
"Hmph. If you really want to be useful, then entertain me, try to throw those pathetic power stones at me. Let's see if even your insolence can amuse a king."