Jobless Reincarnation: Emiya the Great Hero Must Show His True Skills

Page 253

"No, no need, I believe you."

Shirou silently replied, "The fact that you can casually unleash a twenty-fold slash proves that you are indeed the true form of the Northern God."

"Oh, you actually know my moves? Did you also learn the Kitakami-ryu style?"

Alexander was very pleased, and he seemed quite delighted by Shirou's approval, which left Shirou himself speechless.

After all, the opponent is the Northern God, a powerful figure on par with the current Water God and Sword God, and also the seventh on the stone tablet of the Seven Great Powers.

Although it is only ranked last, being on the list of top contenders is enough to demonstrate its strength.

Normally, Shirou should be full of respect for him, so there's no reason for him to care about him so much.

Of course, he didn't voice his thoughts aloud. He just sighed silently in his heart before saying, "I did learn the Northern God Style, and if I'm not mistaken, I learned it from your father."

"Have you met my father?"

Alexander was even more surprised by this.

Shirou did not hesitate and directly recounted his encounter with the Second Northern God in the Sacred Land of Swords and how he had been taught by him.

"Hey, that guy said something like that."

Surprisingly, Alexander didn't seem to have much affection for Bei Er. He frowned and shook his head. "He's still the same as before, always saying things that are incomprehensible. Even when he handed over the title of Northern God to me, he conceded defeat without my consent, even giving me the King Dragon Sword along with it. Before that, he had never let the King Dragon Sword leave his side..."

"Wang Long Sword?"

Upon hearing Alexander's words, Shirou immediately showed a concerned expression.

He had heard the legend of the Northern God long ago, which said that the Northern God had killed the Dragon King of the Dragon King Mountain Range and handed over the corpse to the Demon Blacksmith to forge the strongest demonic sword—the Dragon King Sword.

However, the Second King of the North Gods stated that the King Dragon Sword was not on his person.

When Shirou heard this, he had already basically guessed that the whereabouts of the King Dragon Sword should be in the hands of the Northern God III.

"Hehe, it seems you know about Wang Longjian."

The Third Northern God patted the exaggerated greatsword on his back, which was taller than him, and said, "This sword on my back is the King Dragon Sword that my father passed down to me. It was after obtaining this sword that I truly inherited the name of the Northern God."

"..."

Upon hearing Alexander's words, Shirou couldn't contain his curiosity and wanted to know exactly what kind of weapon the King Dragon Sword was.

But Alexander did not seem to have any intention of displaying weapons.

The other party shook his head helplessly and said, "This is no ordinary sword. If it is not in a battle against a truly powerful opponent, it should never be drawn. Otherwise, the mere existence of this sword would be enough to harm innocent people. That is not the act of a hero like the Northern God."

"I see."

By now, Shiro had a basic understanding of Alexander's character.

Overall, the other party fits the broad definition of a "good guy." Although their goal seems to be merely to pursue fame and public approval, a wise person judges by actions, not intentions. As long as the other party is willing to do righteous things, even if their purpose is somewhat off, there shouldn't be any problem.

Having confirmed this, Shirou finally nodded and said, "Alright, I agree. With a strong person like you joining us, our chances of successfully conquering the transfer dungeon will be much higher."

"Huh? Really? That's great!"

Alexander acted like a pure teenager, and immediately showed an excited expression after hearing Shirou agree to let him join.

This reaction undoubtedly surprised Shirou.

Because he had absolutely no idea why the other person was so happy.

After all, as the Third King of the North God, if the other party really wanted to conquer the Transfer Labyrinth, all he had to do was reveal his identity, and a large number of adventurers would immediately be willing to follow him.

People generally prefer to follow the strong.

Alexander seemed to notice Shirou's expression, and a bright smile appeared on his face as he said, "Heroes need companions, and heroes' companions are not just anyone; they should share the same aspirations and goals as the hero, and be willing to give everything to achieve the ultimate purpose. If I want to surpass my father, I must not only be stronger and greater than him, but the companions I gather must also be stronger and more determined than my father's companions."

"Huh? You mean?"

"What I mean is, I really believe in you, Shirou. Come and become a hero with me!"

"..."

Alexander's words left Shirou speechless, and he finally realized what the unease he had been feeling throughout his conversation with Alexander was.

For a moment, he even felt that he could use a popular term from his previous life to describe the other person's personality—chuunibyou (middle school syndrome).

Yes, the other person's personality can be described as pure chuunibyou (middle school syndrome), completely immersed in the illusion of wanting to become a hero.

Of course, unlike typical chuunibyou (middle school syndrome), Alexander wasn't actually indulging in fantasy.

Because the other party truly possesses the ability to realize their fantasies.

The other party's strength is sufficient to allow them to change reality into the way they want it to be.

Thinking about this, Shirou couldn't help but regret agreeing to let Alexander join the team. After all, no one could imagine what outrageous things a chuunibyou with boundless strength could do.

But what's done is done, and there's no point in regretting it now.

Shirou could only keep a close eye on Lord Kitakami III, trying his best to prevent him from making any exaggerated moves, and then take it one step at a time.

……

Shirou quickly told Paul and the others that Kitakami III was willing to join the dungeon exploration team.

Paul and his team were undoubtedly very surprised by this.

Putting aside the fact that Alexander was actually the Northern God, which was already exaggerated enough, the fact that he was willing to join his team was something that was so shocking that people didn't know what to say.

Of course, after the initial shock, Paul and the others were naturally very happy.

With such strong reinforcements arriving, conquering the shifting maze shouldn't be too difficult.

Alexander himself didn't seem to have any particular attitude towards joining the team, and he held a certain air of superiority over most of the people besides Shirou.

In other words, it was filled with the majesty of the Northern God.

Just by standing there, he exuded an aura befitting the current Northern God, which made Rudeus feel genuine admiration.

This made Shirou feel very strange, as he had no recollection of the other person acting this way in front of him before.

He then tried to strike up a conversation with Alexander.

As soon as he opened his mouth, Alexander reverted to his previous easygoing attitude, leaving him unsure of what to say.

Shirou could only voice his question in the end.

"You ask me why I treat them differently?"

Alexander, upon hearing Shirou's words, replied quite frankly, "Of course they can't be the same. Shirou, you are someone I acknowledge, a companion who will embark on the path of heroism with me in the future. I'm willing to treat you with the attitude befitting a companion. But they are different; they are just extras and supporting characters in a group of stories. Have you ever seen a heroic tale where extras and supporting characters are given too much plot and screen time?"

"..."

This guy is definitely not right.

Shirou couldn't help but sigh deeply; he was increasingly regretting letting Alexander join the project.

……

The team's rest period lasted about a day.

After Loki finished resting and regained her fighting strength, the group continued their exploration of the maze.

This is normal, since Senis is still trapped in the deepest part of the transfer maze, and no one knows when she will encounter danger.

Everyone naturally hoped to rescue Senis as soon as possible.

Before setting off for the maze, the group held a strategy meeting.

However, before the strategic meeting began, Luo Qixi stepped forward first, bowed to everyone, and apologized:

"Everyone... I really caused you trouble before, I'm so sorry, and I'm very grateful for your help."

Her actions elicited a variety of reactions. Some people put their arms around Loki's shoulders and told her not to worry about it. Some nodded and replied that saving people was only natural. Others took a sip of their drink and then handed her the bottle. Shirou didn't say anything, but just smiled at Loki.

"Thank you so much, everyone..."

Luo Qixi showed a touched expression and officially returned to the team.

Rudius witnessed the whole thing and was so moved that he shed tears, which made everyone else smile wryly.

Immediately afterwards, the team members began to discuss the next battle, specifically regarding formations and teamwork, as well as how to proceed when reaching later levels to prevent casualties.

Shirou thought Alexander would be uninterested in this kind of meeting, but to his surprise, the other party listened very attentively.

After he asked the question, Alexander replied with a smile, "Because I am very strong, I never need to cooperate with a team. This is the first time I have heard of a meeting about teamwork. How should I put it, I find it quite interesting?"

"..."

Shirou understood that the other person's mindset was like a human observing the division of labor and cooperation among ants.

This made him realize more clearly the fact that Alexander was not a normal human being.

Meanwhile, Paul and his team quickly arranged their formation.

With the addition of Loki and Alexander, the team's composition is more reasonable. Elina Liz and Alexander serve as midfielders, Loki and Rudeus are arranged in the middle as mages, Keith is responsible for overall control, Tarhand is responsible for the rearguard, and Paul and Shirou serve as roaming forwards and strikers.

After completing the formation, the team officially set off for the transfer maze.

On the way to the labyrinth, Loki sought out Shirou and thanked him for saving her earlier.

"No, it's nothing, it's what I should do."

"But I'm still very grateful."

When Luo Qixi spoke, she seemed to avoid looking at Shirou, and her face inexplicably flushed.

Shirou noticed all of this, but could only pretend not to see it and silently look away.

He wasn't a fool who didn't understand other people's feelings, but he also knew that people's feelings were influenced by many things and weren't necessarily genuine.

The reason why Luo Qixi developed feelings for him was only a false admiration and longing that arose from being rescued by a hero.

That's not real.

And even if it were real, he wouldn't be able to accept the other person's feelings.

For Shirou now, there are still too many things to do, and countless dangerous developments. He really doesn't have the confidence to have the leisure to dabble in his love life under such circumstances.

So he pretended not to understand anything and silently shook his head.

The team continued to move forward.

The group was mostly silent, except for Alexander, who appeared quite composed, as if he were going on a picnic rather than challenging the maze.

Before they knew it, the group had arrived at the entrance to the transfer maze once again.

Having learned from previous experience, this time everyone entered the maze without hesitation and strode straight in, reaching its depths.

Chapter 330: The Shura Field Between the Third Prince of the Northern Gods and Luo Qixi?

After entering the transfer maze, the adventurer team made great strides and reached the third floor, which they had reached before.

Compared to the last time, this process was much easier.

Not only because Lokishi successfully rejoined the team, giving them another king-level mage, but also because of Alexander, the current Northern God.

Even though Alexander never drew the greatsword from his back and only used the scabbard to attack and fight, he still displayed amazing strength, sweeping away almost all the monsters that appeared.

During the exploration, Shirou and Paul, the two swordsmen responsible for clearing out the monsters, often didn't even have a chance to make a move, and could only watch helplessly as Alexander swept across the battlefield with his overwhelming power.

Of course, since they already knew the other party's current identity as the Northern God, the team members were not too surprised.

Upon reaching the third level, both the number and quality of the attacking monsters increased further.

The enemies are no longer just ordinary Crimson Spiders and Steel Crawlers, but also include many powerful monsters such as Skeleton Monsters and Mud Giants...

These enormous monsters possess incredibly exaggerated defensive capabilities.

Even attacks from higher-level magic have little effect on it.

If Shirou were to wield the Blade of Light, he could certainly tear the monsters apart, but given the sheer number of monsters, he couldn't possibly abandon the main force to hunt them alone. He had to stay behind to protect the rest of the team, especially Rudeus and Loki, who lacked close-combat skills.

Moreover, the monsters on the third floor include clearly boss-level monsters. These boss-level monsters possess higher intelligence than ordinary monsters and are even able to command weaker monsters in battle.

Therefore, the monsters no longer acted instinctively in battle, but instead became orderly, launching attacks in groups.

When Paul and his companions were attempting to conquer the third floor on their own, they encountered an overwhelming number of monsters, and the sheer number of them was overwhelming. Loki, who was the main attacker, was unable to finish the battles alone, and her magic and stamina were constantly being depleted. Ultimately, she made a fatal mistake and stepped into a teleportation trap.

Upon arriving at the third floor again, Luo Qixi had made thorough preparations and vowed not to make any mistakes this time.

But to her utter surprise, once the battle began, the actual situation was completely different from what she had imagined.

"boom!"

Upon reaching the third level, Alexander suddenly burst into laughter, and then, as the vanguard, he charged directly into the monster horde.