"Building her confidence through direct combat with monsters was… an unexpected idea."
Riveria's eyes gleamed with satisfaction as she regarded Shirou, seated before her.
Although Lefiya's situation had indeed been dire, the solution he'd found was highly practical. For adventurers, so long as they survived, they could be considered victorious.
"As I thought, asking you to help Lefiya was the right decision, Shirou."
"It was only because you trusted me," he replied humbly to her thanks. After all, he was already planning to ask her for something in the future.
Since they were part of the same family, Riveria would certainly help him if he asked. But there was a world of difference between helping out of goodwill… and helping out of obligation.
Clang.
With the sound of the door opening and closing, Lefiya — now freshly washed after her bath — appeared before them once again.
"Lefiya!" Loki immediately lunged at her.
"Ah!" Lefiya cried in alarm, startled by Loki's sudden pounce. Unfortunately, the frail elf stood no chance against her. Within moments, she was pinned down on the sofa, where Loki began to play with her to her heart's content.
Watching the scene, Riveria could only sigh. She was powerless before Loki's peculiar hobby — after all, she herself was often a victim of the goddess's "attacks."
Catching Lefiya's silent plea for rescue, Riveria quickly returned to the matter at hand.
"I fully support your idea. I'll leave Lefiya in your care. If you need anything, just tell me. Consider it a favor I owe you."
With that, Riveria stood and made to leave. But as she reached the door, she suddenly turned to the Amazon sisters, who had been sitting quietly until now.
"And why are you two still here? You didn't think you were getting away with it, did you?"
As expected, Shirou knew Tiona and Tione would not escape unscathed.
At Riveria's words, their faces darkened instantly. They had anticipated this outcome on the way back and thought they'd gotten lucky when Riveria hadn't brought it up earlier.
But in the end, the inevitable came. With resignation, they bolted for the door.
"Loki-sama, stop that!" Lefiya cried in despair.
Only Shirou, Ais, Lefiya, and Loki remained in the room. Despite Lefiya's desperate cries, she revealed nothing at all. That was… normal.
"Lefiya, take tomorrow off. I need to forge your new equipment based on your condition today. Although I'm still just an apprentice blacksmith, you'll have to cover the cost of the materials."
"I-I understand, Sh-Shirou-san…" Lefiya stammered, still pinned down by Loki.
Shirou simply nodded and rose to leave. Seeing this, Ais — who had been quietly seated the whole time — followed after him.
In the corridor of Twilight Manor, Shirou glanced back at her and remarked with a faint smile:
"My room's just over there. I'm pretty sure the women's dorm isn't in this direction."
"I have something I want to ask you."
Hearing Ais's restrained tone, Shirou smiled as if he'd already been expecting it.
"Well then, since we're at my door… come in."
He opened it, and Ais entered without hesitation. Shirou calmly closed it behind them.
Unbeknownst to him, ever since Ais had stepped into the men's wing, many watchful eyes had been tracking them. And when she walked into his room with him, the entire Familia erupted into chaos.
"No one usually comes here, so I don't have extra chairs. You can sit on the bed. The sheets and blankets are all new."
While tidying up the space for her, Shirou brought out some snacks and drinks. All of them had been prepared by his own hands — from the treats to the juices — a testament to his skill as a master of domestic arts.
Not long after arriving in Orario, Shirou had researched the local ingredients. Compared to those from his previous world, these were superior in both flavor and quality.
Naturally, he had delved deeper into the art of cooking. The snacks and drinks were the fruits of that exploration.
"Please, try them. I made these myself," he said, offering her a plate.
Ais took one delicately, placed it in her mouth, and chewed slowly. The flavor spread warmly over her tongue.
"Delicious… absolutely delicious!"
Her eyes narrowed with delight as she praised the taste without reservation. Then she took a sip of the drink — and was once again surprised.
"Amazing… both the food and the drink are wonderful."
Shirou smiled at her words. For a cook, sharing good food was one of life's greatest joys. Honest praise was the fuel for his passion.
If it weren't for the fear that Loki would become addicted and demand he cook all the time — interfering with his Dungeon expeditions — Shirou would have shown off his culinary skills far more often.
But hearing Ais's praise was enough to satisfy his chef's heart.
"I'm glad you liked them. But now… I'd like to know why you came to see me."
At that question, Ais stopped chewing. She quickly swallowed the snack and took another sip of her drink to avoid choking.
After setting the cup down, she asked with a look of expectation:
"How can I become stronger?"
Shirou had already suspected this was what she wanted to ask. Throughout all the training with Lefiya, he had noticed Ais's curious gaze on him.
Faced with her question, his expression grew serious.
"In essence, the blessing of the gods — or rather, the Falna — is a catalyst. It's meant to unlock your body's potential. So, increasing your base stats isn't directly tied to whether or not you fight monsters."
"I've thought a lot about this. For example — you, Ais, took one year to go from Level 1 to Level 2."
"But now you've been at Level 5 for three years… and you still haven't reached Level 6. Why do you think that is?"
"Why?" Ais asked, puzzled, waiting for the answer.
"I believe it's because you're no longer under pressure."
"In the past, you were weak — no magic, no skills, no swordsmanship, no battle experience. Facing even a single goblin was extremely dangerous."
"But now… you're far too strong. Not even the monsters of the lower floors — except for Floor Bosses — can truly put pressure on you."
"Do you know why fighting monsters is more effective than training alone? It's because of something called pressure. In a life-or-death crisis, human potential is drawn out to its fullest. That's what accelerates growth."
"So your difficulty in advancing isn't because you're weak…"
"…it's because you've become too strong."
---
(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."