After the after-school supplementary class ended, Limberton headed towards the Schlaphe Hall with arrows slung over his back. He couldn’t hide his excitement, and his steps were light.
‘That instructor… their skills are no joke.’
The fatal flaw of the bow: aura. The bow cannot penetrate or contain aura. However, the chubby instructor said it was possible.
– It’s possible, albeit briefly. Normally, the aura dissipates when it leaves the body. But, it lingers for a very short moment.
Aura is like the flame of a wick. It extinguishes when it separates from the wick, but there’s a moment when the flame lingers in the air.
– Of course, the time the aura lingers is extremely short, so you need to shoot the arrow quickly. You also need incredible strength because you have to use a bow with extremely high string tension. Additionally, the range is shorter. The conditions are demanding, and the advantage of the bow’s long-range effectiveness is halved.
But, there was a significant advantage to this.
– You can pierce even knights enveloped in aura in close combat. Of course, this requires reaching a high level of skill.
This single fact cleared up any doubts about whether wielding a bow was the right choice.
Limberton ran with joy, eager to information with Hersel.
‘I wonder what reaction I’ll get.’
If I tell him that the bow he recommended was actually the right choice…
‘That kid. He must not have known and kept pushing me to use the bow. Wouldn’t he be surprised to know it actually worked out?’
As he rounded a corner, his footfalls echoing, a woman with light purple hair suddenly appeared.
She greeted him with a nasal voice.
“Hi there, Limberton.”
Limberton’s eyes widened in shock.
“I’ve been waiting. I needed to see you because of your Schlaphe Hall friends.”
Silla grabbed him by the collar with tremendous strength. Limberton couldn’t resist and was dragged to a secluded place, his feet barely touching the ground. At that moment, the bow strapped to his back fell.
A minute later, someone reached out to pick up the bow left on the ground. Hersel looked in the direction Limberton had disappeared and smirked.
– Are you going to help Limberton?
– Hmm, the opponent is a woman though.
‘Doesn’t matter. A nasty girl needs to be taught a lesson.’
“See that mountaintop? This time, try bringing ice from there. It looks almost like glass.”
This was said because I thought it would be enough to bring Bellen proper ice.
The Dungeon has a unique water taste. Because of this, adventurers often seek out pubs near the Dungeon for its unique acidity in distilled or fermented drinks.
“If you bring that, she’ll nod approvingly saying it’s good enough for making fermented drinks.”
Bellen not only bought drinks but also made her own, having learned various brewing methods as a wandering knight. Now, her skills were at a master level, and her standards were very strict.
Leana nodded with a skeptical look. She had asked several times how I knew these things. Each time, I had remained silent, and she seemed to have accepted that questioning me was pointless.
“But, I wonder if it’s okay to know these things alone…”
She was unnecessarily honest. I smiled gently for her sake.
“Do you want to back out now? Fine. Because of your inaction, my great aunt will continue living as a recluse for the rest of her life.”
I drove the point home.
“Because of your worthless conscience.”
– Tsk tsk, you look just like someone holding a hostage and making threats.
‘Threats? It’s called motivation.’
Leana reluctantly furrowed her brows and nodded. I turned my back, having accomplished my goal.
But then I heard some bad news.
“By the way, is Limberton okay?”
Leana explained that Silla’s gaze towards Limberton was unusually suspicious.
“I don’t know what their relationship is, but it didn’t seem good. Recently, the Adelle Hall folks have had bad feelings towards the Schlaphe Hall people.”
After the Schlaphe Hall people recently defeated Emeric from the Buerger Hall, the Adelle Hall folks seemed to resent them. To prepare for the upcoming Dungeon practice, they had been training every night, which was not a trivial matter.
Tyrant Abel’s Blessing of Subjugation
= Bow your head. If you don’t want your neck cut by the wielded sword,
Receive 1.2 times the stats when facing the weak. Strength slightly increases upon subjugating an opponent.
Receive double the attack power when striking the neck.
Like Dellerger, who became lazy due to a blessing, ‘Tyrant Abel’s Blessing of Subjugation’ tended to make one’s personality more hot-tempered.
Especially towards the weak, if they gave a reason to get angry, the latent sadism would awaken. Normally, this trait would shine in large-scale battles, but not now.
If Limberton, who had decided to train seriously, were to be ruined, it would be a significant loss of strength, especially with the Dungeon practice a month away.
“Thanks for the info.”
I spoke briefly and then ran to find Limberton’s usual route. I found the bow on the ground while running along the sidewalk and soon saw Limberton being dragged away in the distance.
“Doesn’t it bring back memories? We often met in similar places.”
In a secluded backyard, Limberton stood frozen, staring at Silla. Silla approached and compared their heights by placing her hand on his head.
“Wow, I’m still taller. Your growth plates must be as stupid as you are.”
Silla boasted about a mere 1-centimeter difference. Limberton barely managed to calm his trembling insides. The incident at the court ball was long past, but Silla’s voice, tinged with a sneer, brought another vivid memory to life.
“Remember? During the summer camp at our house, you were always crying pathetically.”
The swordsmanship lessons hosted by the Lionhart family were attended by nearby families who couldn’t afford excellent swordsmanship instructors. Of course, he didn’t want to go. But his father, unaware that the humiliation at the ball was Silla’s fault, forced him to attend.
‘All that awaited me were the expected pranks and torments…!’
Yet, Limberton summoned his courage and looked into Silla’s eyes, thanks to Hersel’s words that came to mind. He remembered Hersel’s words when he was scared, seeing a woman dragging a corpse at the corridor’s entrance.
– Now you know, Limberton. Which side are you on? Will you continue complaining and stay passive, neither here nor there?
He came here to change and to make a girlfriend. If he remained pathetic, he would live and die alone.
Limberton forced a smile and spoke.
“I cried? When you get snow in your eyes, of course, you cry.”
As soon as he finished speaking, Silla’s foot swept his ankle. He lost his balance and fell.
Silla glared down at Limberton with a vein throbbing on her forehead.
“Who gave you permission to talk?”
Limberton smirked. Though Silla wasn’t very feminine, she was biologically a woman. He relaxed and spoke tauntingly.
“Wearing a skirt instead of pants would’ve been nice. This is a great angle to see your underwear.”
“Have you gone mad since I last saw you? I guess I need to re-educate that rotten head of yours.”
“In heat? Well, this is awkward. I wasn’t being sincere. Even if I was, it’s hard to see you as a woman now.”
That seemed to snap something in Silla’s head.
“You know, Limberton, here, even if I beat you half to death, the professors won’t care. I’m from Adelle Hall, and you’re just a bug. Because of you guys, I had to suffer for a month. But I’m kind-hearted enough to only punish you. Isn’t that fair?”
Silla’s voice was filled with rage as she grabbed his collar and lifted him. Despite this, Limberton kept his nonchalant demeanor.
“Rough with the skinship?”
“This isn’t rough, you idiot!”
Silla’s fist struck his face.
The brutal punch nearly knocked him unconscious. Silla smiled blissfully, trembling slightly with satisfaction.
“Hehe, should I mark your eye with a bruise? Feel free to report me. Getting beat up by a girl is your shame!”
A heavy blow to his eye followed. Next was a burning pain in his solar plexus.
After just three hits, Limberton almost lost consciousness. However, his body, remembering the terror, went limp, losing all will to resist. As he lay with his cheek pressed to the ground, Silla clenched her fist. Limberton forced out his voice.
“You… you won’t find a guy because of your personality.”
Her fist smashed into his cheek. Limberton’s consciousness faded. Silla looked down at him regretfully.
“What, it’s already over?”
She then kicked his bent arm straight.
Silla raised her right foot high.
“I was only going to break one arm, but it seems I’ll have to. You’ll need someone to feed you for a while.”
Just as she was about to stomp down and break his arm, she heard footsteps from afar.
A low voice followed.
“What do you think you’re doing to our archer?”