Emiya Shirou doesn't want to work overtime

A sturdy figure shielded Bell behind him. The boy, his hair stained red with blood, weakly brandished his blade, facing the surging monsters without flinching, his eyes filled with unwavering determination.

Even knowing that he might die here because of it.

The monsters, seemingly unaware of fear, roared violently and surged towards Shirou Emiya like madmen.

Amidst the splattering blood, one corpse after another turned to ashes and vanished into the air.

Is it really worth risking everything for a complete stranger?

However, Bell no longer had time to think about these things.

"Tear—!!"

A tearing sound, like ripping silk, suddenly rang out.

The boy's already mangled chest was torn open again by the claws, and the blood seemed to drain away completely. Even with such a horrific injury, no blood splattered.

He seemed impervious to pain, appearing incredibly weak yet undiminished in his power as he slashed at the monster before him.

But how long can the boy hold on? A few minutes, or tens of minutes?

Given the severity of his injuries, every second could be the last moment of his life.

"Bell, what are you waiting for!?"

"What are you waiting for?!"

"Are we just going to stand by and watch him get devoured by the monster?"

"Are we just supposed to do nothing and wait for death to come?"

Watching the figure constantly fighting in front of him, Bell kept questioning himself. He understood perfectly well why this person was standing in front of him, and why he was stuck in the same place even though he could move forward.

He was waiting for himself; he was waiting for himself to stand up.

She was already so weak that she needed to use all her strength to speak, as if she would collapse to the ground and lose consciousness at any moment.

But he remained where he was, waiting for himself, even in his frail state, in his role as a burden.

All of this is because of myself, because of my arrogance, because of my lack of any reverence for the dungeon.

If it weren't for him, he probably would have left long ago!

No, I must not do that. If I simply stop at the same place when I encounter setbacks and difficulties, how can I meet God's expectations?

How can one become a hero?

stand up!

Stand up!

Stand up!

These useless legs!

These legs are trembling with fear!

Even just keeping up with him would be good.

Even if all I can do is hide behind him in fear, that's fine too.

Never lie on the ground doing nothing and die such a pathetic death!

Even under such circumstances, he never gave up hope of living. Bell, how could you give up on yourself?

Stand up!

"Ah ...

Fear filled Bell's eyes.

Despair constantly hovered around Bell.

A chill gradually crept up Bell's spine.

A mournful wail that echoed throughout the entire floor roared from Bell's mouth.

His legs were trembling.

His body was trembling.

His hand, which was tightly gripping the dagger, was trembling.

Like an elderly person in their eighties, every part of their body was trembling.

He was afraid, afraid of the attacks from these monsters.

He was afraid, afraid of losing his life.

"Roar----!"

The roaring monster stomped the ground and swung its claws, which gleamed with arcing light, as it lunged fiercely at Bell in front of it.

The incredibly clear sound of something cutting through the air echoed through the air.

"Aa ...

A mournful cry echoed at that moment.

"Qiang——!"

With a crisp clanging sound, the blade and the claws collided heavily, causing the impact force to ripple outwards from the point of impact, rubbing against the air and instantly disrupting the surroundings.

The powerful force knocked the dagger out of Bell's hand and sent it flying against the wall.

"Snapped!"

With a crisp sound, the claws suddenly changed direction in mid-air, tearing through the air as they reached for Bell's head.

He could clearly see the monster's ferocious eyes, its heavy breathing, and the deathly aura emanating from it.

The greatness of mankind lies in its noble stance in the face of fear.

"Ugh... Ahhhhhh!"

Overwhelmed by extreme fear, Bell was unable to utter a single word, only able to scream in an attempt to calm himself.

The next second————

With a terrified expression, Bell, his trembling body and trembling hands, gripped the arm of the claw that was swinging towards him.

Without dodging or retreating, he used all his strength to pull the attacking claws to the sides.

Then——

"boom--!"

A heavy impact reverberated violently at that moment.

Bell mustered all his strength and rammed his forehead against the ground.

At that moment, a wound appeared on Bell's forehead, and blood slowly trickled from it.

How can a human's forehead compare to the hardness of a monster's forehead!

But the werewolf grunted and backed away, staring intently at Bell in front of him.

"Roar--!"

An angry roar rang out from in front of Bell at that moment.

However----

"Aa ...

Bell had no time to pay attention to the wound on his forehead. Shouting, he charged at the werewolf the moment it let out an angry howl.

In the face of life and death, Bell unleashed unimaginable power.

Suddenly, he leaped up from the ground and landed on the werewolf, grabbing its neck tightly.

Due to the unbalanced forces, the two of them suddenly fell to the ground.

"Roar--!"

A disdainful roar came from the werewolf beneath Bell.

How could a human possibly strangle himself to death by simply choking himself?

The claws once again transformed into a cold, crescent-shaped gleam, tearing through the air as they lunged towards Bell.

"Pfft!"

The sound of blood splattering rang out at that moment.

The next second, the dagger in Bell's hand flashed across the werewolf's neck, slicing open his trachea.

The werewolf's howl stopped abruptly.

Blood spurted out and splattered onto Bell's dazed face.

At that moment, at the instant his forehead slammed into the werewolf, Bell saw it—he saw the short knife that had been flung against the wall by powerful claws and slid behind the werewolf.

Chapter 508 The Hero Returns

Four days have passed since Shirou Emiya left the palace.

Although only three days have passed since the expedition returned to Orario.

However, Finn and his group rested for half a day on the 18th floor, so in reality, four full days had passed since the day Shirou Emiya left.

Not to mention facing such a terrifying number of monsters in the dungeon, even without facing all of that, there are few people who could endure going four days without food or water.

Eina stared blankly in the direction of the underground city.

How she wished she could see Shirou Emiya emerge from the dungeon unharmed.

However, such a miracle is almost impossible to occur.

In just four days, even the corpses would probably have been devoured by the demons.

Eina no longer expects anything.

But she still couldn't help but look towards the underground city.