"Eh? Little sister!"
Looking at Shirou, whose eyes were full of seriousness and anticipation, Lefiya shyly asked, "Is that alright?"
Lefiya had no repulsion whatsoever about becoming Shirou's sister. She deeply understood the care Shirou had shown her. She often pondered at night how she could repay his kindness, even if he didn't ask for anything in return. Such feelings indeed gave her a sense of kinship, like siblings.
"Of course!"
"This is exactly what I hoped for."
Shirou answered earnestly. Although it was a spur-of-the-moment decision, Shirou believed he possessed the ability and determination to protect her. He already held the responsibility of an older brother.
Staring at the somewhat excited Shirou, Lefiya tightly clutched her staff, her rosy lips slightly parted.
"Onii-chan!"
Hearing this voice, which sounded like heavenly music, Shirou, feeling his DNA vibrate, gently stroked her head and said excitedly, "I will definitely protect you, Lefiya."
Things like what happened with Miyu will absolutely never happen again.
Looking at the shy yet excited Lefiya before him, Shirou's eyes showed absolute resolve.
"Eh! Lefiya actually became Shirou's little sister!"
The overreacting Tione immediately cried out in surprise upon hearing Lefiya's address for Shirou.
Hearing her shout, the Familia members soon emerged from who-knows-where. However, unlike the loudly exclaiming Tione, everyone offered blessings for Shirou and Lefiya's new relationship. After all, when they became members of the same Familia, they were already like brothers and sisters. Shirou and Lefiya had simply taken that relationship a step further.
Moreover, after this period of interaction, everyone knew that Shirou was extremely good at taking care of others. He often helped his comrades in the Familia. Everyone had nothing but deep blessings for him gaining Lefiya as a younger sister.
"Congratulations, Shirou! This is an important family member!"
"Given Shirou's caring nature, it feels like the two of them are really a good match!"
"I wish I had a brother like Shirou too!"
Hearing everyone's blessings, Shirou also smiled, scratching his head in response to their well wishes.
Just then, Riveria's figure appeared before Shirou. Looking at Riveria, Shirou's expression immediately became serious. As a pillar of the Familia, an Royal Elf, Riveria's opinion was extremely important. Not to mention, Lefiya was her chosen successor. If she didn't approve of this sibling relationship, Shirou's situation would be very tricky.
But Riveria was not such a harsh person. She also gave her sincere blessings to the sibling bond between Shirou and Lefiya.
"With you taking care of her, I feel very much at ease."
Riveria had already understood Shirou's character through his actions within the Familia during this time. She believed that Shirou would definitely take good care of Lefiya. She could feel that this man would absolutely never betray others.
Hearing Riveria's approval, Shirou's previously tense heart instantly relaxed. His serious expression was replaced by a smile again, thanking Riveria for her acknowledgment.
For a moment, the Familia became exceptionally lively.
"Speaking of which, where's Loki? How come she's not here for such a lively occasion?"
After happily chatting with his comrades for a long time, Shirou finally noticed that Loki was nowhere to be seen. At the same time, Ais and the others weren't present either.
"Loki went to attend the Denatus."
Facing Shirou's question, Riveria answered with a slight smile.
The Denatus?
Shirou suddenly remembered something and quickly asked, "Riveria, the so-called Denatus wouldn't be the one to decide the titles for newly ascended LV.2 adventurers, would it?"
"That's right, it's that very Denatus."
Hearing Riveria's confirmation, Shirou immediately grew nervous. When adventurers reached the LV.2 advanced adventurer rank, the gods would confirm their titles at the Denatus. Titles like Ais's 'Sword Princess', Riveria's 'Nine Hell Princess', and Finn's 'Braver' were all bestowed by the Denatus.
In Orario, titles held the important meaning of a second name. However, as an unprofessional naming institution, the titles given by the gods, who were all fun-loving, varied wildly, with many being embarrassing. Although deterred by the Loki Familia's prestige, they probably wouldn't give Shirou an overly offensive title, but he was still a little worried. So much so that his joy of gaining a younger sister was greatly diluted.
After the Familia members dispersed, only a few remained sitting in the Familia's main hall, waiting for Loki's return. As for Lefiya, she had already shyly run back to her room when everyone was praising her.
"Speaking of which, where are Ais and Finn?"
Hearing Shirou's question, Tione said exasperatedly, "You have the nerve to ask? Isn't it all because of your hypothesis?"
"You mean the matter of limiting one's own strength?"
Shirou immediately caught on. After all, to influence Ais, Finn, and the others simultaneously, the only thing Shirou could think of was the self-limitation training method.
"Exactly. Fortunately, you told us beforehand. That child Ais actually planned to go to the Dungeon alone to test it."
"After a reprimand, it was finally decided that Finn and Gareth would take Ais to the Dungeon to try it out. As for Tiona, Bete, and the others, they followed along too."
Shirou had already guessed that Ais would go to the Dungeon alone to experiment, so he had informed Finn and Riveria beforehand. The thought of Ais being reprimanded made Shirou want to chuckle.
Riveria placed the book in her hand aside and continued to explain to Shirou, who had been immersed in teaching Lefiya during this time.
"Regarding your hypothesis, Finn and I thought it over carefully and found it to be very sound. It aligns well with the pattern of our adventurers' strength improvement. If it's confirmed to be true, then Shirou, you will be a great benefactor to the Familia!"
For Finn, Riveria, and Gareth, whose strength had already reached LV.6, their progress had become unimaginably slow. If the practicality of this self-limitation training method could be confirmed, their strength would receive a huge boost.
"These are all things I should do."
Shirou remained humble regarding Riveria's thanks, as it was only his hypothesis after all. However, Shirou still had something he wanted to ask of Riveria.
"Riveria, can you teach me the technique of concurrent chanting?"
Concurrent chanting, meaning the ability to fight while simultaneously chanting. This was an extremely important technique for mages.
In the original story, Ryuu Lion, the LV.4 adventurer from the Hostess of Fertility, was an expert in concurrent chanting. She could successfully chant magic spells even during intense battles with mutated Floor Bosses. This was extremely important for Shirou.
When Shirou chanted the incantation for Unlimited Blade Works, he similarly couldn't move and could only use Rho Aias to block. But if he could learn concurrent chanting, his Unlimited Blade Works would become even more lethal.
"If you are willing to learn, I am very willing to teach you."
Riveria had no hesitation whatsoever in teaching Shirou the technique of concurrent chanting. After all, Shirou was an important junior to her, a pillar of the future Loki Familia, and even a potential candidate for the future captain. Therefore, as long as Shirou wanted to learn, she was willing to teach.
"Then I'm truly grateful to you, Riveria."
--------More Bonus Chapters!!!!
Every 300 power stones = 1 Bonus Chapter