The Epic Story of the Heroic Spirit of Emiya Giant Warrior

In the labyrinth city, all production-based familias refused to cooperate with the Dark Faction. Therefore, the Dark Faction's equipment, tools, and medicine were mainly supplied through smuggling from the outside world, besides occasional robbery and limited self-production.

"Two years ago, remnants of the Dark Faction, with the assistance of Cnias, smuggled a large quantity of magic swords and firestones in one go…"

The adventurer team framed by the Dark Faction belonged to the Astrea Familia. All the adventurers of this familia were wiped out in this incident, with Rion being the only survivor.

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69

Chapter 69: The Graves of Swords and Staves.

Their actions were very swift. Magic stones and dropped items were crushed on the spot. They didn't delve deep into the dungeon to hunt monsters, but instead, advanced rapidly downwards along the main road.

And the equipment gifted by Kayanohara Kaguya, a Far Eastern member of the deceased Astrea Familia, the kodachi Futaba, was also placed into its sheath.

The shape was adjusted based on the user's habits. 【Mo Xie】 in Ryu's hand is a white, katana-style longsword.

No monsters in the middle and upper levels could hinder their progress, and they encountered no abnormalities. They quickly arrived at the seventeenth floor.

The seventeenth floor was the deepest level Hestia had explored in the dungeon so far, and he still vividly remembered the battle with the Black Goliath.

Passing through the passage, they entered the safe zone of the eighteenth floor.

First to extend into their view was a large-scale forest landscape.

In the silent forest, numerous crystal chunks diffusely reflected the fine sunlight, dyeing the entire forest with a faint blue. Even the roots of the giant trees rooted in the ground were tinged with cyan-blue fragments along with the moss.

Led by Ryu, Hestia passed through the forest. Gradually, the trees in front thinned out, forming a semicircular exit.

Nature was spread out before their eyes.

The first thing that caught their eyes was a vast grassland worthy of being called magnificent. The lush green land, rarely seen even on the surface, occupied most of their vision.

To the right, the trees stretched endlessly, revealing the vastness of the forest. Directly in front, at a distance in the center of the grassland, stood a giant tree with a clearly visible tree hole.

Ryu, already accustomed to it, walked towards a direction far away from the adventurer city of Rivira.

The origin of this town was a large-scale relay base set up in the dungeon by the Guild in the past to more effectively explore the unreached floors. Later, the plan was thwarted due to intermittent invasions by monsters from other floors, coupled with the huge expenses required for a large number of personnel and defense costs.

In fact, Rivira Town always suffered whenever abnormal situations occurred. Whenever adventurers sensed danger, they would immediately abandon the town and return to the surface.

And far away from Rivira Town, deep within a certain forest on the eighteenth floor, Hestia saw a scene that silenced him.

Ryu, holding a bouquet of white flowers, murmured.

Sticking out of the graves were various weapons, mainly swords and staves, most of which were already rusted and decayed, creating a scene befitting the "Grave of Adventurers" in the beautiful forest.

Ryu lowered her eyes, as if repenting in a proper posture.

Incredibly harsh, incredibly arduous, yet incredibly glorious "past."

"Looking at me now, would you be angry? Would you sigh? Or… would you smile?"

"Kaguya, Laila…"

"Noin, Neze, Astee…"

Always optimistic humans, caring beast-people, and lovable dwarf girls.

"…And, Arishe."

Finally, the name of her infinitely respected and admired "best friend."

"Hestia."

Ryu called out softly, and this time, her voice was answered.

It was the package Shakti had sent yesterday. They had already confirmed its contents: a person.

Also, two years ago, the one who sent a large number of magic swords into the hands of the remnants of the Dark Faction was, in a sense, one of the culprits of the "Astrea Familia's destruction" incident.

Ryu took out the kodachi Futaba. This pair of blades, which were especially outstanding even among Second-Tier armaments, were Kayanohara Kaguya's former weapons, and Ryu had learned the iaijutsu from her friend and rival.

"Let me do it."

Hestia chanted softly:

【Analyze creation concept.

Determine basic framework.

Replicate component materials.

Imitate production techniques.

Reproduce accumulated years.

At this very moment, complete the sword that gathers fantasies───】

The blade had radial small blades, resembling the fangs of a carnivore. Hestia held the hilt of the short sword in his backhand, 【Dominated】 the pair of short swords.

Ryu's eyes trembled, and crystalline tears dripped from the corners of her eyes.

70

Chapter 70: The Throne of Heroes in the Distant Beyond.

He felt incredibly familiar with the weapon in his hand—even though he had only projected it seconds before, and the initial analysis of this short sword had only taken place within the last minute.

He seemed to hear the cunning laughter of the pink-haired pallum girl.

Hestia threw the short sword, piercing the black, huge duffel bag. The "creature" inside struggled, emitting a muffled groan.

The gauntlets of the Amazon warrior, Iska.

Layana's staff, Astee's shield, Neze's claw, Noin's longsword…

And then, Kayanohara Kaguya's iai katana 【Higanbana】.

On the surface, a black-haired woman in a kimono, charming and lovely, but in reality, as soon as you came into contact with her, she would reveal her sharp tongue and coarse nature.

It seemed as if a gust of wind blew past, and Kaguya's black hair and the hem of her kimono swayed gently.

She chuckled and said, "Do it."

He seemed to see Kaguya's phantom open her mouth before disappearing.

Ryu's vision was blurred by tears. She desperately called out her friend's name.

Finally, a sword.

Especially magical swords like these. Aside from the high-level blacksmiths of Labyrinth City Orario, only a few factions such as the magical kingdom of Arute, the sword-making city of Zoringen, and the war nation of Rakia possess the ability to mass-produce them.

Ryu gripped the letter tightly.

"Not long after, a 'nightmare'-like tragedy occurred…"

The remnants of the Dark Faction set a trap deep within the dungeon, ambushing and slaughtering a squad of the Astraea Familia, nearly wiping them all out in one fell swoop.

"Shirou, would you accompany me to the dungeon?"

The next day, before dawn, with only a sliver of light appearing on the horizon, Emiya and Ryu ventured into the dungeon together.

They cut down any monsters in their path with a single strike. Ryu did not use her usual weapon—the Holy Blade made from the sacred tree branches of the Fairy Forest, which had a high affinity with elven magic and possessed the "wand" attribute, the wooden sword Elf Lumiere.

Ryu was currently using 【Moye】, borrowed from Emiya.

Emiya, on the other hand, was using the longsword-shaped black sword 【Kanshou】. 【Kanshou and Moye】possessed extreme anti-monster properties. The original Noble Phantasms even had the power to destroy sea monsters and Gorgons, so using them to slay monsters in the dungeon was naturally more than sufficient.

At this time, less than ten days had passed since they had slain the Black Goliath, the solitary king of the labyrinth. Not to mention Black Goliaths, even ordinary Goliaths had not yet respawned. On the other hand, the path from the seventeenth floor to the eighteenth floor had already been cleared.

Emiya looked up and saw a circular dome formed by branches and a large number of green leaves. A few beams of sunlight filtered through the gaps in the leaves, casting a warm glow on his cheeks. Deep within the layers of leaves, he could faintly make out hints of blue.

Both mysterious and full of fantasy. Listening closely, he could hear the murmuring of flowing water; a stream ran through the forest.

Having just crossed the boundary between the dim forest and the outside world, he was enveloped in a dazzling light.

To the left was a huge pool of water, so large that calling it a lake would be more appropriate than calling it a pond.

The eighteenth floor, a safe zone, a subterranean world overflowing with crystals and nature, also known as 【Labyrinth Paradise (UnedrResort)】.

Compared to the seventeenth floor, the contrast in scenery was simply too stark. Emiya, arriving here for the first time, was struck by the sight.

Rivira Town is a town built by adventurers on the 18th floor, a safe zone.

However, a group of adventurers took it upon themselves to take over and develop the area, turning it into the present-day 【Rivira Town】.

Despite being a safe zone where monsters do not spawn, this is still the dungeon after all, and no one can say for sure when a sudden anomaly might occur.

To date, Rivira Town has undergone a cycle of destruction and reconstruction over three hundred times, yet it continues to maintain its vitality.

A grave, a grave made of weapons.

"…Everyone, I'm truly sorry for visiting you so late after last time."

The object of her apology was none other than that grave.

The grave did not contain the remains that should have been there. Knowing this, Ryu still spoke to the weapons they had left behind.

"During this time of year, I always feel like running away from you all… I often wonder, do I, who am unworthy of bearing the name of justice, really have the right to visit this place? Do I really have the face to see you all?"

Of course, no one answered her.

So, Ryu called out the names she would never forget:

The eccentric rival, the snarky dwarf.

"Layana, Celta, Iska, Marie…"

The senior and junior mages, the Amazon who loved to dress up, the senior who was like everyone's older sister.

After a long while, Ryu turned around, her expression a mixture of sadness and resolve.

A large black duffel bag was dropped on the ground by Emiya.

A person who was still alive, but would not wake up after today, the former leader of the now-defunct Soma Familia, Charnice Lustra.

Shakti Varma, the leader of the Ganesha Familia, the maintainer of order, had defied the law to deliver this person into the hands of Ryu and Emiya.

Ryu did not return these weapons to the grave on the 18th floor but left them as relics to fight alongside her as her only choice.

"Wait."

Emiya stopped Ryu's actions.

He looked at the grave filled with various weapons, mainly swords and staves, reflected in his eyes.

Shared growth experience.

Surpassing, completing numerous projects——

"Projection, start."

The first things to appear in Emiya's hands were two silver short swords.

"【Reverse Tooth Swords】, these are, Laila's weapons…"

Ryu said softly, the image of her pink-haired, cute-faced dwarf companion appearing before her eyes.

Emiya gripped the 【Reverse Tooth Swords】 in his backhand, and an indescribable surge of emotion welled up in his heart.

It felt as if he had been learning how to use these custom-made short swords for a long time; as if someone had taught him the weapon's usage methods completely, hand in hand.

"Projection, start (Trace on)."

Emiya continued the projection.

The human healer, Marie's war hammer.

The human blacksmith, Celta's heavy hammer.

As he wielded the various weapons, the images of those girls he had never met became clearer and clearer in his mind.

The vice-captain of the Astraea Familia, the powerhouse known as 【Yamato Nadeshiko】.

Emiya could already see every detail of her body clearly. In his vision, Yatsukano Kaguyahime stood before him, tilting her head slightly.

Emiya swung the katana, slashing down. The creature in the duffel bag no longer moved.

As if saying: "Thank you for taking care of that good-for-nothing."

"Kaguya…"

"Projection, start (Trace on)."