Chapter Eight:Hidden Strength of Hostess of Fertility

"Bang!"

"Boom!"  

With a quick swing of her wooden sword, the elven girl knocked Shirou Emiya to the ground.  

"Ahhhhhh!!! What are you doing, you stupid useless elf! Shirou's going to die, meow!"  

This whole situation started when Shirou explained to his goddess and captain that he had been saved by the owner of Hostess of Fertility. Hearing this, Hephaestus suddenly suggested that Shirou could go train at the tavern.

"Finding high-level adventurers to spar with is one of the best ways for rookies like you to improve, but in the Hephaestus Familia, everyone is too busy."  

While exploration type familias might have members with free time during non-expedition periods, Hephaestus' familia was heavily involved in business. High-level members were almost always busy. 

This was one of the reasons why the Loki and Freya Familia members could level up so quickly. Receiving a beating from a Level 5 or Level 6 adventurer could easily boost a low level adventurer endurance by dozens, if not hundreds, of points in a single day—assuming they survived the whole ordeal.

"At the Hostess of Fertility, there are many opportunities for you to train." This was what the goddess told him.

Shirou, who already missed the peoples back at the tavern—the kindhearted Mia, the beautiful Syr, the cute Anya, and, of course, Miss Ryuu—

So after spending an afternoon learning blacksmithing from Tsubaki, Shirou returned to the tavern and asked Ryuu to help with his training.  

And then, in the first second of their sparring match, Ryuu sent Shirou flying with a single strike.  

Against the overwhelming speed and strength of a top-tier Level 4 adventurer, no amount of technique in the world could make a difference. And it was obvious that Ryuu, in addition to being bad at waitressing, was not cut out for teaching either, as she had no sense of restraint or self control.

Another failure to add to the useless elf record.

Shirou: I think I saw my life flashing before my eyes...  

"I knew it, Ryuu you're completely useless. Good thing I came to watch, meow." Anya chimed in, mercilessly pouring salt on Ryuu's wounds.

At this point, Ryuu had already lost all her vibrant, turning black and white, squatting in a corner, drawing circles on the ground. "Useless elf... I'm a useless elf..."  

"Anya, you're just here to skip work and slack off, aren't you?"  

"Syr, aren't you skipping too?"  

As the girls bickered, Anya suddenly had a bright idea.  

"Shirou, Anya will help train you! In exchange, you have to treat Anya to some grilled fish later."  

"Eh?" Shirou was stunned for a sec.  

"Anya's Level 4, you know," the catgirl said nonchalantly, as if she didn't just dropped a bombshell.

Both Shirou and Ryuu: "Ahhhhh?!"  

This...this cat is a Level 4? Outside the labyrinth city, an adventurer of that level could single-handedly overthrow the king of a small kingdom.  

So, what level must Mia, who could casually press this dumb cat into a wall, be?!

"From now on, Shirou you're Anya's underling!" Anya declared gleefully. "Grilled fish, Anya wants to eat grilled fish!"  

"Okay, once I finished my training, I'll do my best and grilll Anya you some mouthwatering fish." Shirou replied.  

"Yeah!!! Now, come at me Shirou." Anya's expression suddenly turned serious, and begin to exude a powerful aura, revealing her true strength as a high-level adventurer.  

.

"I heard from Syr that Shirou-kun is really good at cooking."  

"Yeah, but it's such a shame he didn't decide to work here."

"Shirou want to become an adventurer? He's a young man with big dreams."

On the second floor, a group of waitresses, dressed in their uniforms, were leaning out the window, secretly watching the two training in the courtyard below.

The **Hostess of Fertility** was a large tavern, so naturally, Syr and the others weren't the only staff. Shirou had encountered these other employees during his days at the tavern, though the only interaction they had were polite nods.

Anya's strength was at the upper ranks of a Level 4, and she turned out to be a surprisingly good teacher. She gradually trained Shirou's combat techniques, keeping her strength and speed noticeably above his but still at a level where he could barely keep up. 

This balance of challenging while not being completely overwhelming was exactly what Shirou needed to honed his skills. As the pressure mounted, the battle instincts from his previous life slowly began to reawaken, gradually merging with his new body.

"Shirou-kun is amazing, especially for someone who had just become an adventurer."

"I feel like he's going to become someone big in the future."

"Does that mean now's the perfect time to swoop in…?"

The girls gossiped excitedly until one of them suddenly brought up a dangerous topic.

"Speaking of which don't you think Shirou-kun and Ryuu-chan make the perfect pair?"

A tense silence filled the previously chatty air, and soon, chaos erupted.

"Totally! A cool clumsy elf and their kind-hearted young caretaker, it's a match made in heaven! It's all about how they complement each other so well!"

"What are you talking about? The dumb cat and the smart young boy is the real perfect pairing!"

"Although Anya's a dumb cat, but Ryuu is just a useless elf. And right now, Anya is Shirou-kun's teacher, a teacher-student relationships, what a taboo feeling!"

"Ryuu and Shirou-kun came to the tavern together, so clearly their bond is deeper!"

"Ryuu's just a newcomer. Obviously, we should be supporting Anya!"

"This is a matter of principle! It has nothing to do with how close they are!"

"You heretics!"

"You deviants!"

The girls suddenly all turned to the Amazon waitress who had been silently leaning against the window this whole time.

"Hey, who do you support?"

"He he he, beautiful young boy. Young boys are the best. I wished Shirou-kun would step on me, or punch me in the gut.

Oh right, she was an Amazons. Yeah, that race is beyond saving.

"Wait, if we're all up here, then who's working downstairs?" One of the girls asked a seemingly innocent questions.

"I'd like to know the answer to that question as well." A low voice came from behind them, as if they came from the depths of hell. A towering shadow loomed over the now-trembling girls.

The girls: "M-Mama Mia..."

"All of you, get the hell back to work!" Mia roared.

"Yes, ma'am!" The girls scattered in a panic, fleeing in all directions.

"What a bunch of idiots." Mia glanced around the messy loft. Seeing a pool of saliva left behind by the Amazon, she shook her head in disbelief.

She looked out the window, and saw the boy barely blocking Anya's punches.

"…He's growing at such a fast pace. With talent like that, I'm starting to feel a bit of regret."

Because of his personality, Shirou Emiya was completely unsuited for the Freya Familia. After discussing it with her goddess, they both reached similar conclusion.

"That child's soul shines brilliantly, like a majestic sword, very tempting indeed. But sadly, it's not the pure, flawless soul I'm seeking. It's not one I willing to sacrifice my entire Familia to obtain. Since it's not meant to be, I'll have to leave it be."

Seeing Shirou display his natural talent for combat, Mia couldn't say she regretted her decision, but she did feel it was a bit of a shame.

"Kid, don't die in the dungeon." Mia murmured softly.

As for Syr and the others who had skipped work today, she decided to let them off the hook this time, though they would have to make up for the lost time by working extra hard later.

—————

Anya serious

https://danmachi-memoria-freese.fandom.com/wiki/Anya_Fromel?file=Feline_Lancer_Anya.png

Amazon getting punch in the gut

https://danmachi.fandom.com/wiki/Aisha_Belka/Image_Gallery?file=DanMachi_Volume_7_464.jpg#DM_Light_Novel

Just noticed this today but 

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=dy1H0BeNgXs&pp=ygUObWFyaW8gbWFtYSBtaWE%3D