After leaving the reception room, Shirou followed Loki's quick strides ahead of him.
According to her, they were heading to the sanctuary to perform the ceremony of inscribing God's Grace.
However, upon arriving at the hall, Loki suddenly shouted, "Everyone! We've got a new member in our family! We'll have a welcome banquet tonight!"
"Wow! A new member?"
"Looks like we're in for a feast tonight!"
Attracted by Loki's voice, a few members of the familia who were gathered in the hall rushed over and surrounded Shirou.
"What a handsome boy!"
"Is he the guy with innate magic?"
"Definitely! Zecke must've been talking about him."
While Shirou had been speaking with Loki in the reception room, all of his information had already spread throughout the Loki Familia. If the main expedition team wasn't away, there probably would've been even more people crowding around him right now.
Feeling the enthusiasm of everyone around him, Shirou, who usually maintained a calm demeanor, felt a little awkward.
They were way too excited.
Seeing Shirou's embarrassment, Loki couldn't help but burst out laughing.
"Alright, alright! Back to your own stuff, people! You can get to know him better at the banquet tonight. I'm taking him to receive God's Grace now."
Finally managing to escape the swarm, Loki led Shirou to the sanctuary.
"Let's begin. Take off your shirt," Loki said.
Without hesitation, Shirou quickly removed his shirt and turned his back to his future patron goddess.
"Once you're granted God's Grace, you'll officially become part of the Loki Familia, understood?"
Shirou, with his back turned to her, replied firmly, "Yes."
Loki opened her eyes, stared intently at Shirou's back, and gently stroked it with her right hand.
"Then let's begin the ceremony," she said with a smile.
She then pricked her finger with a needle and began to write the crest of the Loki Familia onto Shirou's back with her blood.
At the same time, as she inscribed the Grace, she explained how it worked.
"Those with a Falna gain superhuman physical abilities upon receiving it and can accumulate excelia to raise their status and become even stronger."
"The Falna is expressed as what's known as a Status—essentially a system that defines your attributes through various parameters."
"It's composed of basic abilities, development abilities, magic, skills, and your overall level."
"It physically manifests as something similar to a tattoo—text that details all of your characteristics—as well as the crest of your familia. In your case, that's the Loki Familia crest."
Shirou certainly understood what the Grace of the Gods—Falna—was, and it was exactly what he needed.
Not to mention his future self from another timeline… Shirou thought that perhaps the Grace of the Gods could trigger other transformations within him.
For example, strengthening the remnants of Archer EMIYA's powers that he still possessed.
The ceremony to grant God's Grace soon came to an end, and Shirou clearly felt the sensation of Loki writing on his back fade away.
But she remained silent for a long time.
As she gazed at the Status on Shirou's back, Loki's excitement grew more and more intense.
"Ahem! I'll translate your Status into the common tongue for you to see. Also, I'll lock your Status, but remember not to let anyone see your back, since it can be unlocked by other means."
"Understood!" Shirou knew the importance of keeping his Status and abilities secret. He definitely wouldn't let that information leak.
He then took the paper Loki handed him and read it carefully:
---
[Name]: Shirou Emiya
[Level]: LV.1
[Basic Abilities]:
Strength: I0
Endurance: I0
Dexterity: I0
Agility: I0
Magic: I0
[Development Abilities]:
—
[Magic]:
[Unlimited Blade Works]
• Projection Magic
• Reality Marble
• Structural Analysis
Chant:
{I am the bone of my sword.}
{Steel is my body, and fire is my blood.}
{I have created over a thousand blades.}
{Unaware of beginning,}
{Nor aware of the end.}
{Withstood pain with inconsistent weapons, my hands will never hold anything.}
{Yet, my flame never ends.}
{My whole body was still Unlimited Blade Works.}
[Skills]:
--Anima Ignis
• When the user wields a weapon forged by their own hands, the essence of creation resonates with their soul, greatly enhancing the weapon's attributes beyond normal limits.
• Accelerated growth.
• Additional bonuses if the forged weapons are of high quality.
---
(This is my starting Status? I already have one magic and one skill...)
(I expected to have UBW—but what is this 'Anima Ignis'?)
Is Shirou truly destined to live a life of forging weapons? Or is this merely a result of the influence of other Heroic Spirits?
In Fate/stay night and its derivatives, several Heroic Spirits have been linked to Shirou's body—whether through Servant summonings or as manifestations in alternate realities.
The most well-known is Archer (EMIYA), a future version of Shirou who made a pact with the World. But there are also cases like Muramasa, who uses Shirou's body in Fate/Grand Order.
Additionally, Shirou across various routes and timelines—like in Fate/stay night and Kaleid Liner Prisma Illya—develops abilities and powers that align him with Heroic Spirits, whether through projection, reinforcement, or connections to other Servants.
Perhaps this 'Anima Ignis' skill was born from Muramasa's influence?
But no matter the reason, the emergence of this ability would be a huge asset for Shirou.
You must understand—every weapon in Shirou's Reality Marble, Unlimited Blade Works, is actually forged by him. Though created through magic, this fact cannot be denied.
It's possible that every weapon within UBW surpasses its original counterpart.
• Accelerated growth
This was, at the moment, his most important ability.
It would significantly increase his growth rate.
For Shirou, who yearned above all to become stronger, this skill was even more vital than Anima Ignis.
• Buffed bonuses if the forged weapons are high-quality
This one was even more straightforward. If he forged high-quality weapons, his growth rate would soar even higher.
(Looks like I'm being pulled down the path of Sengo Muramasa.) Shirou chuckled mentally.
The corners of his mouth kept rising in a smile as he continued to read the paper with his Status.
Watching Shirou's growing grin, Loki immediately threw her arm around his neck and dragged him toward the exit with her signature mischievous smile.
"Looks like you're pretty hyped."
"In that case, as the guest of honor at tonight's banquet, you'll have to accept every drink offered to you!"
"No, Loki-sama—"
"Don't fight it, Shirou. You have nowhere to run."
With those words, Loki yanked Shirou out of the room.
She was clearly more excited than Shirou.
She was confident that he would become one of Orario's strongest adventurers.
She had never seen a skill that could increase growth rate to such an absurd degree.
Perhaps Shirou could even reach Level 7 before Finn, Riveria, or Gareth.
Maybe he could even surpass Ottar of the Freya Familia.
Thinking that far, Loki couldn't help but let out a sinister laugh.
---
(End of this 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."