Chapter 128: The Guild Issues a Bounty—A Deadly Battle in the Dungeon!
Shirou sprinted toward the dungeon with all his might. His head burned with fever, and the searing heat distorted his vision—everything before him warped into a hellish nightmare.
The road ahead looked like a one-way path to the underworld, destined to be a journey of no return.
But his feet never stopped moving. Even if the destination was hell itself, he would never turn back. He would charge forward with all his strength, running straight to death's end!
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"Eh? Isn't that Emiya?" "Is that Lord Emiya?"
Just as Shirou was about to rush into the dungeon, he suddenly saw two unexpected figures.
Aisha of the Ishtar Familia and Yamato Mikoto of the Takemikazuchi Familia had apparently just returned from the dungeon and ran directly into him.
Shirou didn't know why they were together, but he had no intention of interacting with them.
Now that he knew the god Ouranos was watching him, any of his actions could be under surveillance. If he involved Aisha and Yamato Mikoto at this moment, it would only bring them unnecessary trouble and disaster.
"Sorry, I've got something urgent. I'll be going," Shirou said briefly and dashed into the dungeon without looking back.
But Aisha and Mikoto quickly noticed how terrible his condition was. Seeing the sweat pouring off him like rain, they instinctively tried to stop him.
"You're sick, Emiya!" "Lord Emiya, you need treatment immediately!"
Shirou could not accept their kindness—not because he didn't want to, but because he couldn't. Most importantly, he couldn't guarantee that accepting their help wouldn't bring doom to their familias.
So Shirou took a deep breath, then coldly said with an unprecedentedly icy glare: "Don't come near me. If you don't want to die—then leave. Now."
"..."
His frozen tone stunned both women into silence.
Before they could even process Shirou's harsh words, he had already charged into the dungeon, paying them no further mind.
He had to draw a line with everyone. No one else could be dragged into this.
This was the only thought left in Shirou's mind.
He didn't regret showing such coldness to Aisha and Yamato. In fact, he hoped they'd hate him for it—so they would stay away from him, far away.
Only then would Ouranos's wrath not implicate them or their familias.
As for the Hestia Familia, Shirou no longer had the strength to protect them. He could only hope the Loki Familia would have enough freedom to look after Hestia and Bell.
That was his only hope.
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After reaching the dungeon, Shirou rushed down more than ten floors in one go. But his fever-ridden body made his steps increasingly unsteady. The aftereffects from the battle with the Hermes Familia caused his vision to double, and his surroundings to blur.
The dungeon's monsters, which spawned around the clock, were also an obstacle. To get deeper into the dungeon, he had no choice but to fight the monsters he encountered along the way.
As a result, his stamina was rapidly depleted.
Sweat drenched his forehead and dripped into his eyes, rendering his vision nearly useless. Even so, he refused to stop.
If Ouranos truly was targeting him, then even the upper layers of the dungeon weren't safe. He had to reach the deeper layers, where the gods' gaze couldn't reach.
"Trace On!"
Shirou summoned the twin swords Kanshou and Bakuya, instantly slaughtering the monsters before him.
But after that, he no longer had the strength to maintain the projection. The twin swords shattered and vanished into nothingness. His right leg gave out completely, and he collapsed to the ground.
"Damn... this is bad..."
Shirou muttered with a sigh. He hadn't expected his limit to come this soon.
If he collapsed here, who knew what would happen next? Ouranos could easily send pursuers to kill him. And if that happened, no matter what tricks he had left, he'd be cornered with no way out.
So Shirou gritted his teeth and forced his failing body to move forward.
But just when things couldn't get worse, they did. A group of adventurers suddenly emerged from all directions.
And these weren't just any adventurers. Shirou instantly recognized their badges—they were members of the Ikelos Familia, known for hunting Xenos.
"Tch tch... Who'd have thought some idiot would enter the dungeon alone?"
The Ikelos adventurers swept their eyes over Shirou with sneering expressions. Clearly, these poachers had no shred of humanity. When they saw an injured adventurer, their first instinct wasn't to help—but to treat him as prey.
"Well, we don't usually hunt humans, but once in a while doesn't hurt. Should be fun."
From within the group, a man stepped forward. He wore sunglasses, a leather jacket, and held a long spear.
Shirou recognized him immediately. This was the man who had once hunted Lefiya and the others during the artificial labyrinth incident.
Back then, Shirou had managed to shoot an arrow through his chest, but the man escaped before Shirou could land the killing blow.
To think they'd meet again here.
And judging from his demeanor, he must be the leader of the Ikelos Familia.
And Shirou's assumption was spot on.
This man in sunglasses was none other than Dix Perdix, the captain of the Ikelos Familia.
After helping the Thanatos Familia resist the Loki Familia's assault, Dix had been severely wounded by Shirou's arrow. He had spent days recovering deep within the dungeon.
Originally, he had intended to resume hunting Xenos to vent his anger—but fate brought Shirou right to him.
"Wait... you're that guy!?"
Dix's memory wasn't bad—he recognized Shirou at a glance and immediately recalled that this was the man who had shot him.
He burst out laughing and shouted:
"Hahahaha! This is too good! I never imagined I'd run into you here, Emiya Shirou! I didn't even have to look for you—you just showed up yourself! This must be fate!"
Dix harbored a deep grudge against Shirou.
The pain of that arrow from the Red Plains Hound had nearly pierced his heart—and he remembered it vividly.
Now, it was time to repay that debt with interest.
"Let me tell you before you die! I am Dix Perdix, captain of the Ikelos Familia! Remember that name well in hell!"
With that, Dix didn't waste any more time and ordered his men to attack Shirou.
Surrounded by enemies, Shirou's body could no longer support effective combat. But even so, he gritted his teeth, pulled out Caliburn, and with the last of his strength—he fought back!
"Splurt!"
The holy sword forged from gold pierced through a hunter's chest. Shirou then swung his sword in a backhanded motion and immediately decapitated another Icarus Familia poacher!
"Oh ho, pretty impressive." Seeing his men being slaughtered, Dix showed no extra emotion; instead, it was as if he were enjoying a good show. "For a Level 3 adventurer, that's already quite decent. But looking at you... how much longer can you last? Hahahahaha!"
"..."
Shirou didn't even have the strength to respond to Dix's words.
His consciousness was growing ever more dim, his vision completely stripped away. He was no longer relying on his senses to fight, but on pure instinct — his "mind's eye" — to engage with the enemies before him.
Just like that. One... two... three...
Before anyone realized it, the number of Icarus Familia members present had steadily decreased.
A mountain of corpses piled up on the ground, forming a literal hill of bodies.
"How... how can this be!?"
For the first time, Dix's expression showed panic.
He had never expected that a mere Level 3 adventurer could kill so many of his subordinates — and among them were adventurers above Level 3. The combat strength Shirou displayed made even Dix himself break into a cold sweat — deep down, he felt a genuine fear.
"This man must be killed!" Dix took a deep breath. "This has nothing to do with revenge — he must die here!"
Finally, Dix stepped forward, intending to personally end Shirou.
Shirou, however, had reached his physical limit. Both hands leaned against his sword — like a candle in the wind. But still, he did not fall. He did not give up.
I can't die! I can't die here! I still have something I must accomplish!
In that instant, Shirou used every last ounce of strength to swing his golden sword of certain victory, slashing straight at Dix.
But the strike was blocked directly by Dix, a Level 5 adventurer. With a light push of his spear, he sent Shirou flying, then unleashed a barrage of terrifying consecutive strikes.
"Ah! Ah! Oh!"
Shirou used his "mind's eye" to block all of Dix's attacks, but in the end — due to his complete exhaustion — he was run through the shoulder by Dix's spear.
His consciousness was cut off, plunging into a bottomless void.
"Phew... That was way tougher than expected!"
Dix exhaled, strangely feeling like he hadn't defeated a Level 3 — but rather felled some kind of terrifying beast.
As that thought crossed his mind, he approached Shirou — only to suddenly sense that Shirou's body temperature had risen to an inconceivable level. When he touched him, Dix even felt like his own hand had been scalded on the spot.
"W-What the hell?! What is this guy!?" Dix was terrified. "Did he seriously kill so many of my men and block my attacks with a fever this insane? Is this guy even human?! If he was in full condition..."
Dix didn't dare continue the thought. His only instinct now was to kill the man before him — this monster that didn't seem human at all!
But just as he was about to act, a violent gust of wind swept in from the side.
From the shadows stepped out a girl with long black hair, fully wrapped up and wearing a mask.
"The Masked Phantom?" Dix recognized her identity the moment he saw her. "Enyo's group hasn't had any cooperation with us lately. Why are you here?!"
"By Lord Enyo's order. I'm here to take that man."
The masked girl spoke coldly, her tone leaving no room for argument.
"You've gotta be kidding me!" Dix roared in fury. "That's my prey!"
"Then you can die."
The masked girl didn't even raise her head — she simply stepped forward in an instant.
Dix couldn't even register her movement before her slender hand grabbed his throat and lifted him into the air.
"Cough! I surrender! I surrender!"
Dix, ever the pragmatic man, realized the overwhelming difference between him and this Level 7 girl. Without the slightest will to resist, he immediately gave up.
The masked girl didn't dwell on it either. She simply flung Dix aside like trash.
The black-haired girl then slowly walked to Shirou, and upon seeing his face, a complex expression surfaced beneath her mask.
But that expression soon disappeared, replaced by a cold, mechanical attitude — like a machine that only executed commands.
She gently picked up Shirou — but instead of taking him back to Orario, she began to carry him deeper into the dungeon, as though heading toward the abyss…
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Labyrinth City, Orario.
Shirou's disappearance quickly drew the attention of the Hestia Familia. They soon learned from Aisha and Yamato Mikoto that Shirou had gone into the dungeon.
Yes — Aisha and Yamato were not shaken by Shirou's cold attitude.
The moment they sensed something was wrong, they immediately reported it to the Hestia Familia.
Hestia, of course, was gravely concerned. She tried to find out what happened immediately — only to receive shocking news the following morning.
The Guild had issued a wanted order for Shirou Emiya — because someone had witnessed him slaughter nearly the entire Hermes Familia!
Currently, only the Hermes Familia captain, Asfi, was barely clinging to life.
She was receiving treatment under the Dian Cecht Familia but remained seriously injured and unconscious.
Because of this crime, Shirou was swiftly placed on the Guild's wanted list.
The incident also caused public opinion about the Hestia Familia to drop sharply.
But the Hestia Familia didn't care what others thought — what they truly worried about was Shirou's safety.
Hestia repeatedly protested to the Guild but received no response.
With no other option, she turned to other gods for help — only to find that none of them were willing to get involved.
Even Hephaestus, Loki, and Freya — those three goddesses — showed no signs of movement on the matter.
Or perhaps, they were unable to act.
In particular, the entire Loki Familia was officially frozen by the Orario authorities.
For two whole months, they were forbidden from taking any action — effectively placed in solitary confinement.
This abnormal incident made the atmosphere in Orario turn ice-cold.
Almost all gods and adventurers realized that the environment in the labyrinth city was rapidly deteriorating.
A storm was brewing.
And at the very center of this storm — the eye of the hurricane — was none other than the man named Shirou Emiya.
His very existence was shaking the foundation of Orario itself. He was endangering the city's very survival. And because of that, he had incurred the collective backlash of the entire Labyrinth City…
He was destined for destruction.
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