Emiya Shirou doesn't want to work overtime

Before Shirou Emiya could even eat, half of the food he had prepared had already been devoured by them.

After all, this is cooking skill that both Hephaestus and a certain unnamed, non-cooking god of the hearth praised.

"You didn't arrive that late today."

A cool yet slightly gentle voice came from beside Emiya Shirou.

Before anyone knew it, Ryu brought a steaming hot meal to Shirou Emiya's side.

"Stop teasing me about that day. I haven't come back to Orario that late since, have I?"

Emiya Shirou took the chopsticks Ryu handed him and responded.

Ryu spoke again after Shirou Emiya finished eating.

"Has no one teamed up with you yet?"

"Well, without forming a team and having to collect materials and magic crystals along the way, I can only reach the sixteenth floor right now."

Emiya Shirou answered Ryu's question honestly, since it was indeed a fact.

Unless he chooses to abandon those materials and magic crystals and chooses to go straight through, he should be able to directly enter a deeper area.

However, at this stage, he still needs these things to sustain the large amount of energy consumed during his forging process.

Emiya Shirou wasn't in a hurry about this. If no one wanted to team up with him, he planned to stop collecting magic crystals and materials in the two weeks before he left this world and head directly to the deeper parts of the dungeon.

And now, he can sense that he still has a long time ahead of him.

During this time, Shirou Emiya preferred to receive Hephaestus's teachings rather than explore the dungeon.

Under the guidance of the gods, his forging skills improved rapidly.

Even Hephaestus couldn't help but admire it.

Of course, this refers to sword forging. If it's something like forging spears or armor, Shirou Emiya's skill level is basically only barely passable.

It wasn't that it was barely passable in Hephaestus's eyes, but rather that it was barely passable for someone who had studied forging normally for several years.

Even if such spears and armor were given to adventurers for free, they might not want them.

"is it?"

Ryu nodded as she watched Emiya Shirou put away the bowls and chopsticks, seemingly deep in thought.

"Emiya, don't you understand what Ryu means?"

At that moment, a clear and loud voice came from beside Liu.

She was a girl with long, light gray hair that hung down in a ponytail.

She has eyes that match her hair color and a face as white and delicate as milk.

Her playful and cute face, combined with her clear and crisp voice, gives people the feeling of a girl next door.

“Hill—”

Ryuna's voice, both indifferent and slightly gentle, rang out.

"Yes, shall we team up?"

Emiya Shirou looked at the girl named Hill with some suspicion.

Shirou Emiya comes to the "Abundant Mistress" for dinner almost every day, so he is naturally very familiar with the waiters there.

"Of course, Ryu is a Level 4 adventurer!"

Hill proudly introduced herself to Shirou Emiya, as if she were the LV4 adventurer.

"Won't this interfere with your tavern's operations?"

Emiya Shirou did not inquire about Ryu's strength, what techniques she possessed, or how much help she could provide him.

Instead, his first thought was what kind of trouble Ryu would cause to the tavern's operations if she went to the dungeon with him.

After all, the business of "The Abundant Mistress" is always booming, and she is often extremely busy.

When he's busier in the evenings, Shirou Emiya will also help out.

Whether it's handing over ingredients to them or assisting in preparing food.

These tasks were a piece of cake for Shirou Emiya, who often worked part-time. If he was busy until late at night, Shirou would even help clean the tavern.

If some adventurers get emotional and accidentally break the tables and chairs.

Shirou Emiya was even able to repair the tables and chairs almost perfectly.

He can be described as a very warm-hearted person.

It was thanks to Shirou Emiya's enthusiastic help that their work became much easier, and Mia smiled more often.

Although Shirou Emiya is not an employee of "The Fertile Mistress", in a sense, he is one of the employees of "The Fertile Mistress".

He simply doesn't have a formal position, nor does he receive a salary from Emiya Shirou.

Some people have asked Shirou Emiya why he was willing to waste his time helping them with these things.

After all, for adventurers who are constantly exploring dungeons, this kind of thing neither relaxes their tired mind and body, nor improves their skill proficiency, and may even make them more tired because of helping.

It can be said to be a completely thankless task.

"I just saw that you needed help, so I helped you. I hope it didn't cause any problems?"

That was his answer.

They were thinking that Shirou Emiya was doing something completely pointless.

Shirou Emiya, however, was worried that his actions might affect them.

From the very beginning, Shirou Emiya never considered himself.

They could truly sense from Shirou Emiya that he did these things without any other purpose than simply helping them when he saw they needed it.

Perhaps that's why they're so worried about Shirou Emiya's safety in the dungeon.

For them, Shirou Emiya was more than just a regular customer.

He is also a trustworthy friend.

Chapter 438 Meeting

"It's nothing. Emiya, you've helped us so much, not to mention you've improved so many dishes, which have been praised by our customers. Of course, we'll do our part as well!"

Hill quickly waved her hand in response to Shirou Emiya.

"Moreover, it was Ryu's own idea to offer assistance."

Hearing Hill's words, Shirou Emiya turned to look at Ryu, who was standing to the side.

"I haven't been to the dungeon for a while, and I still need to maintain my combat skills from time to time."

Ryu nodded in agreement with Emiya Shirou's question.

However, she never let her guard down.

“Arigato—!”

Emiya Shirou also clasped his hands together to express his gratitude to Ryu.

The reason Shirou Emiya didn't hold Ryu's hand to express his gratitude was because he knew Ryu was a spirit.

Through his conversation with Hephaestus, Shirou Emiya also learned that spirits only allow those they acknowledge to touch their skin.

He has always maintained a considerable distance from Ryu.

Even when taking over the chopsticks, Shirou Emiya kept a certain distance from Ryu.

However, if two people go to explore the dungeon, their efficiency in both clearing monsters and collecting items is far greater than that of one person alone.

If that's the case, I should be able to see what the deeper underground city is like in advance.

Although Shirou Emiya has become more composed than before, it doesn't mean that his curiosity has disappeared without a trace.

It's just that Shirou Emiya cares about many more aspects than simple curiosity.

If the goal is to acquire more materials and magic crystals, this is sufficient for Shirou Emiya at this stage.

Those deeper materials are available for purchase in Orario.

Otherwise, Shirou Emiya wouldn't need to spend so much money if he only needed materials up to level 16.

However, given Shirou Emiya's current financial resources, he no longer needs to explore those materials further.

Money can buy almost everything.

"So you agreed?"

"Exploring dungeons will definitely be easier if you have a team!"

Emiya Shirou nodded in response to Hill's question.

"That's good. When do you plan to go to the dungeon next?"

"the day after tomorrow!"

The night eventually comes to an end.

As the stars disappeared, the sky gradually began to brighten.

Even before the sun had risen in the east, a few adventurers were already heading towards the dungeon.

Some vendors have already found their own stalls and are starting to prepare what they want to sell today.

Meanwhile, on the horizon, a curtain of light had already descended, and dawn was about to break.

The birds’ calls echoed clearly and loudly.

The dewdrops on the leaves slowly fell, shimmering with a fluorescent glow.

A faint, refreshing chill, only present in the morning, permeated the air, enveloping the perfectly circular city.

Shirou Emiya was one of these early adventurers.

It's not because Shirou Emiya is preparing to go to the dungeon right now.