12th Floor of the Dungeon
As the final floor of the upper levels, the monsters here reach the peak of these levels in terms of strength, number, and spawn rate.
Within the mist, facing the surrounding monsters, Shirou and Lefiya fought relentlessly.
"Hyaah!!!"
Lefiya, wielding her spear ferociously, mastered the so-called "blind cutting style."
Fortunately, Shirou had the idea to extend the spear's tip, allowing even slashing attacks to deal effective damage.
But the most important factor was Lefiya's overwhelming basic stats.
Against the monsters, Lefiya's reckless use of the spear was enough to completely cut down everything around her.
"Calm down, Lefiya."
"You see, they can't withstand a single blow from you. Relax and deal with them with your mind, not your body," Shirou said, effortlessly eliminating the horde of monsters.
It must be said that the power increase from leveling up was truly tremendous.
"Yes, Mr. Shirou."
Lefiya gradually calmed down. After exploring those three floors, she already had a clear understanding of the monsters' strength.
Even wielding a spear, she had slain many enemies.
Slowly but surely, she was growing stronger.
Roar!!
Seeing the orcs approaching, Lefiya gripped her spear firmly.
Though she had never used such a weapon before, her experiences during the expedition taught her how to handle it.
Spears are for piercing!
Raising the weapon and pointing its tip toward the orcs, Lefiya shouted and charged forward.
This time, however, she did not close her eyes. Instead, she firmly engraved the scene in her memory.
"Die!!"
The huge orc was instantly pierced, its body collapsing before gradually turning to dust.
"I did it!"
Looking at the spear in her hands, Lefiya's eyes shone with joy.
Although, as a specialized mage, her strength accumulated over the first two levels was not particularly high, the resulting power increase was still more than a Level 1 adventurer could handle.
Otherwise, defeating a Level 2 monster with Level 1 strength would undoubtedly be a remarkable feat.
Shirou's ability to easily defeat a Level 2 monster, even while still at Level 1, was thanks to Kanshou and Bakuya, as well as his combat skills, which far surpassed those of adventurers of the same level.
Otherwise, a Level 1 with ordinary weapons wouldn't even be able to break the skin of a Level 2 Minotaur.
His techniques allowed him to attack monsters effectively while they couldn't hit him in return.
Simply put: between unarmed Level 1 orcs and Lefiya, a Level 3 also unarmed, she would easily crush them.
After killing the orc in front of her, Lefiya, overflowing with confidence and spear in hand, advanced against the next monster, no longer waiting passively for its attack.
For Lefiya, as long as she maintained her resolve, the monsters on this floor were no match for her.
And that was exactly what was happening now.
Though her spear techniques were still inexperienced, thanks to her level, Lefiya was capable of massacring the enemies in her path.
Watching the scene, after defeating the monster in front of her, Shirou stopped fighting and began observing the still-immature way Lefiya fought.
"Surely... at Level 3, these monsters can barely do any real damage to her."
Shirou sighed, watching Lefiya recklessly charge at the monsters. Even after taking repeated hits, she remained unharmed.
Generally, dungeon monsters have huge physical attributes—but that's all. With superior martial arts, refined skills, and magic, powerful adventurers often overwhelm them.
However, some elite monsters possess capabilities beyond the norm.
Take, for example, the hellhound of the mid-levels.
Without proper protection, a Level 2 adventurer struck by its flames would immediately be reduced to ashes, defenseless.
These are the truly dangerous monsters of the dungeon.
"It seems Lefiya's basic skills are enough for a frontline position, even in the mid-levels... although she needs a new weapon."
Observing Lefiya's fighting style, Shirou concluded that perhaps a sword would suit her better than a spear.
After all, as a mage, Lefiya's future focus would still be magic. Even defense in melee combat wouldn't require excessive effort, but spear training was extremely challenging.
"I shouldn't have given her a spear just because she uses a staff... A sword would have been much better..."
In truth, none of that mattered now.
The most important thing was that she could withstand sudden attacks so she could cast her magic with confidence.
While trusting her companions is important, one's own strength is still more crucial.
Improving one's own strength is never a bad idea.
"My God! Is that really Lefiya?"
Hearing a familiar voice, Shirou turned and saw it was Tiona.
Beside her were Tione and Ais.
"Why are you here? Are you following us?"
Hearing Shirou's question, Tione rolled her eyes, annoyed. Were they really that suspicious?
"We were late because we had to stop by the Goibniu clan to get weapons. We happened to run into you two on the way here."
Ah, so that's it!
Shirou suddenly understood. After all, he had been there yesterday when the three brought their weapons for repair.
"That doesn't matter. What matters is: why is Lefiya using a spear? She's a valuable mage!"
Seeing Tione's expression, Emiya Shirou sighed, acknowledging she was right.
Mages in this world were the true mages of fantasy stories.
Unlike later generations, where mages are just one of many classes due to game balancing, here they possessed truly noble attributes.
In reality, their abilities were formidable.
Compared to Heroic Spirits, most adventurers would be like empty Heroic Spirits—with no inherent abilities or Noble Phantasms.
Some elite adventurers had abilities but specialized in melee combat. Mages, on the other hand, would be like Heroic Spirits who use their Noble Phantasms to unleash destructive power.
Unlike the Caster class in the Type-Moon world, magic in Danmachi was equivalent to a Heroic Spirit's Noble Phantasm—not in strength, but in quality.
In other words, a mage's magical attacks were practically equivalent to Noble Phantasm attacks.
This shows how elevated the status of mages is in this world.
However, Shirou was no fool. After explaining his goal to Tione, Tiona, and Ais, the three fell into deep thought.
"Using melee combat to increase courage? What a bold idea..."
Although it seemed absurd at first glance, Tione recognized it made some sense after thinking it over.
After all, isn't Lefiya the best example of that now?
Looking at the girl who kept fighting without stopping, Ais suddenly smiled.
"Lefiya has gotten stronger."
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(End of 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."