Danmachi,The Legend of Emiya

Shirou Emiya arrived at the Tower of Babel for the second time. Beneath this towering structure lay the entrance to the dungeon. The last time he was here, he was with members of other familia and hadn't taken the time to observe his surroundings. Now, he finally noticed details he missed the first time he was here.

The grand hall was decorated in blue and white, with black stone monuments engraved with the names of adventurers scattered around the space. Thick, tall pillars were arranged at regular intervals, too numerous to count at a glance. Looking up, one could see the vast ceiling painted to resemble the sky—a sight so majestic it felt as though a real piece of heaven had been taken from the sky and placed upon the land.

At the center of this temple-like space was a massive opening, with a spiral silver staircase leading downward. This was the entrance to the dungeon—a passage into the world of monsters. But despite the dungeon's abyss lying on one side of this great hole, the other side was filled with the hustle and bustle of life. The circular plaza surrounding the entrance was incredibly spacious, capable of holding several thousand adventurers, yet, it stilled felt very crowded.

"Adventurer, do you need a supporter? I have the 'Artel Assist' skill, perfect for supporting! Please, give me a chance—"

"No, thank you," Shirou politely declined the third supporter who had eagerly approached him. Evading her disappointed gaze, he wove through the crowd. As people saw the volcanic and forge hammer emblem on his cloak, they instinctively made way for him.

"Supporters found here in the plaza can't be trusted. If you need one, it's best to choose someone from your own familia or a friend, or hire a reputable one from the Guild. It'll cost more, but at least they'll be reliable."

That advice came from Raul, a senior from the Loki Familia, during Shirou's first dungeon expedition. A supporter is the foundation of a team; they need to be trustworthy. Theft of loot was a minor concern compared to the risk of a supporter conspiring with other adventurers, which could lead to serious trouble.

But Shirou didn't need to worry about any of this—he didn't require a supporter at all, just as Hephaestus had said.

Spare weapons? He had his Unlimited Blade Works to project them. Potions? He could carry those himself. And as for loot? He didn't need it at all. Whether it was goblins or orcs, magic stones or dropped items, he would simply leave it all behind.

As Hephaestus had put it, "If Shirou wants to make money, you can craft a single sword in the workshop and earn tens of thousands in minutes. You lose money every time you waste your time collecting magic stones and drop items of the upper floors monsters!" Shirou couldn't argue with that logic.

Tsubaki's newly crafted magic sword, the Spiral Sword, was estimated to be worth at least a hundred million valis, and the actual price would likely be even higher. Even the most rudimentary magic swords, only capable of casting a small fireball, could fetch around ten thousand valis. The Spiral Sword, with its record-breaking magical capacity and power, was on an entirely different level.

Tsubaki and Hephaestus planned to advertise the magic sword and hold an auction among the familias wealthy enough to bid on it. Twenty percent of the final price would go to Shirou. Tsubaki insisted on this division, feeling that if it weren't for the massive upfront research and production costs, Shirou deserved an even larger cut.

If the sword sold for one hundred million valis, Shirou would pocket twenty million—a small fortune. For comparison, Ryuu's bounty as a top class fugitive was set at eighty million valis, meaning Shirou would earn the equivalent of 0.25 "Ryuu" in one go. If the sword fetched two hundred million valis, his share would rise to 0.5 "Ryuu" and above four hundred million valis, he would earn enough to exchange for one"Ryuu".

So no, he didn't need a supporter, nor did he need to bother with loot. Shirou Emiya's only task was simple: fight and kill monsters.

With the two newcomers from the Ganesha Familia having joined their own fixed party, and Lefiya staying with the Loki Familia to continue her magic training with Riveria, Shirou decided to embark on a solo expedition into the dungeon. Only by going alone could he truly fight at full capacity.

....

"Whoosh!"

On the fourth floor of the dungeon, Shirou pulled back his bowstring and released an arrow. A vibrant flower of blood bloomed from the right eye of a goblin.

The goblin horde that had been charging forward suddenly froze in their tracks. With their limited intelligence, they couldn't immediately comprehend the reason for their comrade's death, but their instincts screamed at them about the danger of the cloaked figure before them.

However, the speed of the arrows was faster than their reactions.

"Right eye, right eye, right eye-" The arrows successively pierced through the right eye sockets of the goblins, the rhythm as light and swift as a gentle spring rain. Even though goblins were very weak and pose little threat, mere fodder monsters, Shirou could still use them as practice targets to hone his archery skill and exp to increase his Dexterity stat.

Emiya Shirou didn't waste any opportunity to improve himself.

Several goblins fell to the ground, crimson blood gushing out of their eye socket, though not a drop managed to touch the distant Shirou. 

As the life left their bodies, the goblins' corpses began to rapidly decompose. Ignoring the magic stones and potential drop items like the [Goblin's Fang], Emiya Shirou turned and continued his hunt on the fourth floor.

In deeper floors, such behavior might bring risk. If monsters consumed uncollected magic stones, it could lead to the creation of "strengthened species." However, up to the fourth floor, this wasn't that big of a concern. Many adventurers explored this area, and some made a living collecting the discarded magic stone fragments of others.

Once beyond the fourth floor, though, destroying the magic stones would become necessary, but it was still less time-consuming than carefully digging them out.

It hadn't taken Emiya long to clear the first three floors, but he decided to stay on the fourth floor for a little longer. From the seventh floor onward, monsters like the Killer Ants, small but heavily armored, appeared in large numbers, making bows less effective. He would soon need to switch his main weapon to swords.

Thus, he hoped to use the goblins and kobolds here to hone his archery skills.

Encountering a lone kobold, he didn't hesitate-one quick arrow shot pierced the monster's left eye. Goblins for the right eye, kobolds for the left. Emiya Shirou moved through the labyrinth, raining death from his bow.

The projected arrows faded with his movements, leaving only the corpse of the monsters behind, eye staring blankly at the ceiling, each with a bloodied hole where an eye once was.

At the same time, a blonde girl, carrying a sword and a huge backpack on her back, also entered the dungeon alone.