Chapter 17. Deathmatch in the Dark and an Exceptional Ascension!
The nights in Rivira Town were never peaceful. Even from within an inn, one could hear the rowdy shouts of drunks outside and the distant cries of beasts.
Shirou Emiya sat cross-legged on a simple wooden bed, eyes closed. He was not sleeping. The twenty-seven Magic Circuits within his body were operating slowly, refining his internal mana over and over again.
"Phew..."
On the adjacent bed, Lili was hugging her pillow, sleeping soundly with a bit of drool at the corner of her mouth, seemingly dreaming of gold coins and potato puffs.
Suddenly, Shirou's eyelids twitched slightly.
[Mind's Eye (True)]. An alarm blared in his mind without warning.
There was no killing intent. No sound of footsteps. There was only a trace of an extremely faint, unnatural flow of mana in the air.
"A boundary?"
Shirou snapped his eyes open. The air in the room had grown viscous; all sound was being filtered out. This was a "Silence Boundary" specifically designed for assassinations and kidnappings.
"It seems someone doesn't want us to see tomorrow's sun."
Shirou rolled off the bed without making a sound. He walked to Lili's bedside and nudged her gently.
"Lili, wake up."
"Mm... potato puffs... one more serving..."
"Stop eating; we have guests."
Shirou covered Lili's mouth just as she was about to scream and whispered into her ear, "Hide under the bed. No matter what happens, do not come out. That is an order."
Lili was instantly awake. Looking into Shirou's amber eyes, which glowed with a chilling, piercing light in the darkness, she instinctively realized the danger.
She didn't waste words; she nodded obediently and crawled under the bed, clutching her hand crossbow.
The next second—
BOOM!
The wooden wall of the inn was violently blown open. Amidst the rising dust, five dark shadows rushed in like ghosts.
"Move fast! Take the red-haired kid! If he resists, break his limbs!"
The leader in black ordered in a low voice. They were an elite capture squad of Evilus, all Level 2. To capture a Level 1 rookie, this was essentially using a sledgehammer to crack a nut.
However—
"Trace—On."
A cold voice rang out through the dust.
"Wha—"
Before the lead man could even identify his target, a black-and-white flash sliced through the smoke.
Slash!
Blood sprayed. A wound deep enough to see bone appeared on the man's chest, and he was sent flying backward, knocking over the companions behind him.
"What?!" The captain was aghast. "Wasn't he sleeping?! The intel was wrong?!"
"Breaking into someone's room in the middle of the night is quite a rude thing to do."
The dust cleared. Shirou Emiya stood in the center of the room holding twin blades. He was dressed in his signature red-and-white casual wear (actually light leather armor), his gaze as cold as if he were looking at a dead man.
"Is this what you call 'breaking limbs'? Your force is a bit too light."
"Arrogant brat!" The captain roared, drawing a long blade from his waist.
"All together! Just keep him breathing! I don't believe a Level 1 can turn the tide!"
Four Level 2 assassins launched their attack simultaneously. Long blades, daggers, and flail maces—they sealed off every possible space for evasion. If this were an ordinary Level 1, even one with SSS abilities, they would face certain death against such coordinated slaughter.
But Shirou Emiya was no ordinary person. He was a battle-hardened Heroic Spirit.
"Steel is my body."
Hum! Emerald circuits instantly covered his body.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Shirou charged forward instead of retreating. He used Kanshou in his left hand to parry the frontal blade and Bakuya in his right to block the side dagger. As for the flail coming from behind...
Thud!
He took the hit directly with his back, reinforced by magecraft! The heavy strike, capable of crushing boulders, only made him stumble half a step forward.
"Attacks of this level... can't even scratch my skin!"
Using the momentum of the impact, Shirou spun violently, delivering a roundhouse kick that slammed into the face of the assassin with the flail.
Crack! The sound of a snapping neck rang out. The assassin slumped to the floor without even a scream.
"Monster... this guy is a monster!" The remaining three panicked. Withstanding a heavy blow from a Level 2 unscathed? What kind of defense is this?!
"Retreat! The intel is severely flawed! This guy isn't Level 1 at all!" The captain made a split-second decision, throwing a smoke bomb to facilitate an escape.
"You think you can just come and go as you please?"
The twin blades in Shirou's hands vanished, replaced by a pitch-black longbow.
"I am the bone of my sword..."
The incantation was chanted. Mana converged. Even through the smoke, [Mind's Eye (True)] precisely locked onto the location of every enemy.
"Caladbolg—Triple Fire!"
Swish! Swish! Swish!
Three spiral mana arrows pierced the smoke, chasing down the fleeing trio like homing missiles.
BOOM! RUMBLE—!!!
Violent explosions erupted on the streets of Rivira. Flames shot into the sky. When the smoke cleared, only three scorched craters remained on the street, with the unconscious or dead attackers lying within.
The battle was over. From start to finish, it had taken less than a minute.
"Phew..."
Shirou lowered the longbow and let out a long breath. That burst of power just now had drained more than half of his mana.
"E-Emiya-sama..."
Lili crawled out from under the bed trembling. Looking at the carnage outside, her jaw nearly hit the floor. "You... you wiped them all out?"
"I suppose. Though a leader likely got away."
Shirou looked into the deep darkness; his Mind's Eye sensed a presence fleeing rapidly during the chaos. It was the masked figure who had been watching from the tavern.
"Forget it, don't chase a cornered foe. This place is no longer safe." Shirou turned to pack their bags.
"Lili, we're heading back to the surface tonight."
"Y-Yes!"
.
.
.
The next morning, the Twilight Manor.
When Shirou and Lili, smelling of gunpowder and smoke, returned to the Familia headquarters, they happened to run into Loki, who had just woken up.
"Yo, back early, aren't—wait, what's with the smell of blood?" Loki narrowed her eyes, her nose twitching.
"Did you two visit a slaughterhouse?"
"Ran into some trouble." Shirou briefly recounted the previous night's events (omitting the details of Mind's Eye, of course, and attributing the discovery to luck).
"Evilus... Hmph, those sewer rats dared to lay a hand on my Familia." A flash of violent red light crossed Loki's eyes, but she quickly reverted to her usual playful self.
"Whatever, since you're in one piece, we'll settle that debt later. Now, more importantly..."
Loki grabbed Shirou's wrist as if touching a rare treasure.
"Quick, quick! Come to my room! I need to see your Status!
After a deathmatch like that, your 'vessel' should be completely overflowing!"
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The Goddess's Room.
Shirou lay face down on the sofa, feeling Loki's fingertips trace across his back.
"Hahahaha! I knew it! I knew it!"
Loki's laughter erupted from behind him, sounding positively manic.
"SSS! They're all SSS! You even broke the legendary limit!"
"Emiya! You were born to create history!"
Loki slapped a freshly transcribed parchment in front of Shirou.
[Name]: Shirou Emiya [Level]: 1 [Status]:
Strength: SSS (1350) Endurance: SSS (1400) Dexterity: SSS (1280) Agility: SSS (1300) Magic: SSS (1450)
All attributes surpassed 1200, with Magic nearing the theoretical limit of 1500! This was "Strongest Level 1" data unseen in the thousand-year history of Orario.
"The accumulation is sufficient; in fact, it's overflowing by a landslide." Loki took a deep breath to steady her excitement.
"Defeating that squad of Level 2 assassins last night is more than enough of a 'Great Feat' for a Rank Up. Emiya, are you ready?"
"Ready for what?"
"To greet a brand-new realm, you idiot!"
Loki pricked her finger and dropped a bead of ichor containing divine power onto Shirou's back.
"Rank Up!"
VROOOM—!!!
An unprecedented heatwave swept through Shirou's body. It was a metamorphosis of the soul. The shackles binding his flesh were shattered, his vessel expanded, and his life force underwent a qualitative leap.
Shirou could clearly feel his vision becoming sharper, his Magic Circuits becoming wider, and even those sluggish Heroic Spirit memories seemed to integrate more smoothly.
[Rank Up Successful] [Level]: 1 → 2 [Development Ability]: Due to frequent use of Projection and Smithing at Level 1, along with overflowing Magic, the following options have awakened:
A. Mage (Increases Magic, strengthens magic effects)
B. Blacksmith (Increases quality of manufactured weapons) C. Spirit Healing (Accelerates mana recovery)
"Oh? Three options?" Loki rubbed her chin.
"Usually, you only get one... but your magic eats mana like crazy. 'Mage' and 'Spirit Healing' both suit you. As for 'Blacksmith'... you don't seem to need the skill to churn out god-tier gear, do you?"
"I'll choose Mage."
Shirou did not hesitate. For Shirou Emiya, the quantity and quality of mana determined the scale of "Unlimited Blade Works."
"Alright! 'Mage' it is!"
With Loki's manipulation, the sacred text on his back changed again.
[Name]: Shirou Emiya [Level]: 2 [Status]: (Reset to 0 after Rank Up; original values serve as hidden bonuses)
Strength: I (0) Endurance: I (0) Dexterity: I (0) Agility: I (0) Magic: I (0)
[Development Ability]: Mage (I)
[Magic]: (Original Magic omitted)
Unlimited Blade Works: Unlock rate increased. Mid-scale deployment possible (Sword Rain range expanded).
[Skills]: (Original Skills omitted)
New: Mind's Eye (Fake) [B]: Not only allows one to see through current openings, but also permits the evasion of future danger through instinct. Completes the Mind's Eye system.
"Phew..."
Shirou dressed and clenched his fist. Although the stats were back to zero, it was a "Level 2 zero." His basic physical condition was already more than twice as strong as it was yesterday.
"How does it feel? The world of Level 2?" Loki asked with a grin.
"It feels... wonderful." Shirou gave a confident smile. "I believe I can make you an even grander feast now, Loki."
"Yay! I want to eat that thing called 'Sukiyaki'!" Loki cheered, then her eyes turned sly. She seemed to recall something fun and leaned in close to Shirou, her red eyes gleaming with anticipation. "By the way, Emiya. Since you've leveled up, it means you're about to become famous."
"Famous?"
"That's right." Loki pointed to the sky outside. "In a few days, it's the Denatus (Gods' Assembly). According to the rules, all adventurers who Rank Up must be given an Alias (Title) by the gods during the assembly."
"A title, huh..."
Shirou had a bad feeling. In this world, the titles gods gave adventurers were often... hard to describe.
"Hehehe, don't worry! I'll definitely win you a super flashy name!" Loki promised, slapping her chest.
"I won't let that pipsqueak Hestia or that man-eater Freya steal your thunder! How about 'Red-Haired Mother'? Or 'Infinite Blacksmith'?"
"...Please, just pick something normal."
Shirou sighed, already planning whether he should cook something special to bribe this unreliable primary deity. However, regardless of the title, he had truly stepped onto the ladder of the strong.
"Level 2... this is only the beginning."