Chapter 39
Chapter 39
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 39
Chapter Title: Genius Divine Archer Who Became a One-Man Legion
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It was utterly ridiculous consistency.
No matter that it was just practice, where on earth did that level of composure and focus come from? And the speed and destructive power of the arrows flying out from the same distance—what in the world?
In response to his question, Rian gave a curt reply.
“Practice.”
“I’ve probably practiced more than you. Me, I’ve been shooting arrows since I was ten. That’s over twelve years.”
“Did you shoot every single day for those twelve years?”
“……Pardon?”
“Besides, this was just practice for you.”
At Rian’s words, Gerard furrowed his brow slightly.
A month had passed since joining the Arrowhead Unit.
At first, he knew nothing about the place, but the more he learned, the more unbelievable things he discovered.
Especially in the case of the unit commander, Rian—there were so many things that were hard to believe even after hearing them firsthand.
Like how the youngest soldier, who had enlisted just six months prior, had risen to the rank of 100-Man Commander in under a year with nothing but a single bow.
It was no exaggeration to say he was rewriting the history of the kingdom’s army with his feats.
But that didn’t mean he wanted to hear his own past efforts dismissed as mere “practice.”
Gerard pressed Rian.
“Even you, Commander, don’t have much real combat experience, do you? It’s only been a little over a year since you enlisted.”
“That’s true.”
“Then how can you speak of real combat?”
Well, it wasn’t wrong.
But it wasn’t entirely right, either.
“Still, I’ve been through far more real battles than you.”
“What do you…….”
Rian just smirked at those words and turned his gaze back to the target.
“You saw me shoot just now. You’d know. Focus every single time. Like if you miss, you die.”
Kriik.
“Aim in one go, shoot in one go. Don’t stare at the target for seconds on end. Imagine the enemy moving in your head and set your precise aiming point.”
Sheeeeeek—!
Boom!
The arrow shot forward, piercing the target and embedding into the wall behind it.
Gerard could only gape in admiration at the sight.
Rian set down his bow and spoke to Gerard.
“And from now on, after archery training ends, go down and learn the spear. Watch how your comrades train and learn alongside them.”
“Ah, that’s…….”
When Gerard showed a hint of reluctance, Rian continued immediately.
“I’m not saying you have to master the spear. You need to know your opponents to improve your own skills. Figure out how spear and sword users move, how they attack. If you don’t, you’ll be useless in real combat anyway.”
“That’s…….”
“Is this motivation enough?”
“……Yes, I’ll work hard from now on. And…… I’m sorry about earlier.”
“What for?”
“You said you didn’t have much real combat experience. Your ‘practice’ comment got me riled up for a moment, and I was disrespectful. I’m truly sorry.”
Gerard bowed to Rian in apology. Rian patted his shoulder and said.
“Show me with effort, not words.”
“Yes!”
After Gerard left, Rian remained alone in the archery training ground.
Rian slowly began drawing in the mana from the atmosphere.
Swooooooo—
In that instant, it felt like something foreign was seeping into his body.
He still needed more time to fully get used to the sensation of mana.
But now he could handle it quite proficiently.
Wooong!
Rian then infused mana into the ring he was wearing.
A month had passed since forming the unit, and though he’d handled a great deal of work, he hadn’t neglected research on the ring and gloves from Saleron.
And recently, he’d figured out their functions to some extent.
‘So clear…… I can see.’
The ring’s ability was sensory amplification.
It boosted sight, hearing, smell, and so on, with the degree varying based on focus.
In other words, activating the ring and focusing on the eyes improved vision dramatically.
But even after over two weeks of practice, maintaining that focus wasn’t easy.
“Hoo…….”
If it were just channeling mana to his eyes, it would’ve been simpler.
Rian picked up his bow, gazing at the target that now appeared in sharp clarity.
An object nearly a hundred meters away looked as clear as if it were half that distance.
Sheeeeeek—!
Thud!
The arrow left Rian’s hand, tearing through the air, and struck dead center in the target.
“And next, the gloves.”
This one was the real deal.
Rian withdrew the mana from the ring and infused it into the gloves he wore.
In that moment, Rian’s world changed.
Swoooooooo—
It felt like standing at the edge of a high canyon with fierce winds howling.
Rian felt the wind over his entire body and slowly opened his eyes.
Strange sights entered Rian’s vision.
In a bizarre world of white, green, and red lines, Rian observed them calmly.
“The wind…….”
After obtaining the artifact from Rikal’s altar, Rian had scoured ancient texts to investigate Rikal.
The religion worshiping Rikal could basically be considered heretical.
They were vile enough to experiment on humans, after all.
But did that mean the god Rikal himself deserved rejection?
That was where Rian’s questions began. And there, he learned about the god Rikal.
‘The God of Wind, Rikal.’
Rikal’s essence was the wind.
And fittingly, Rikal’s gloves exponentially amplified wind sensation.
No, it wasn’t just sensation.
Now he could see the blowing winds.
By color, he could gauge their strength, direction, and shape.
He could visually grasp the flow of the wind itself.
Though the training ground had too little wind to utilize it properly,
“Shall I head there?”
Rian took the bow Walter had given him and climbed the mountain behind the unit.
At a certain height, an open space appeared, and whooooosh—!
Winds far fiercer than below blew through.
It was Rian’s favorite spot since acquiring Rikal’s gloves.
Rian infused mana into the gloves again.
The lines reappeared.
Rian called them the paths of the wind.
Watching the paths of the wind shattered all previous notions.
Pure freedom.
It made his past self, trying to predict such freely moving winds, feel like a fool.
Swoop.
Rian raised his bow.
‘That stubborn old man’s bow.’
His hand trembled as he drew the string.
It was a bit too much for Rian to handle currently.
But he fully drew it and aimed at the distant sky.
For now, piercing the gaps in the wind’s paths took priority over hitting a clear target.
“Huuuup.”
He slowly inhaled, then held his breath.
His drawing arm trembled faintly, but Rian’s eyes pierced the sky more sharply than ever. And then, release.
Shwoooooooosh—!
As if a gust wrapped around the arrow, tremendous power exploded.
The arrow shot straight, unaffected by the wind.
It had flown precisely through a gap without wind.
If he could shoot like this, he could assassinate distant enemies even in gales.
The birth of the ultimate sniper.
But there was one problem.
Throb!
“Ugh!”
Rian’s head suddenly pounded fiercely, so he hurriedly withdrew the mana.
The ring was milder, but the gloves consumed an enormous amount of mental power.
It was still beyond what Rian could handle.
‘Two shots at most…… in one go?’
But in real combat, it’d probably be just one.
Combat would be impossible in a depleted state.
It was a double-edged sword to use only in truly critical moments.
“No rushing.”
Compared to the start, there was slight progress, however minuscule.
This, too, would improve with training.
Trying to achieve too much at once was bound to cause issues.
Rian descended to the training ground where his unit members were training, maintaining composure as best he could.
Then, a soldier with a familiar face approached Rian.
A soldier sent by Raymond.
* * *
Baritolo, as Ethan’s closest aide, had made assessing the current chaotic situation his primary task.
But lately, Second Prince Byron’s movements were flowing strangely.
“Does this mean he’s finally starting to move?”
“Troop movements from Perol, where the 7th Legion is stationed, keep being spotted.”
“He’s probably siphoning off forces bit by bit to hide them. So he can move without us knowing when the time comes.”
Baritolo furrowed his brow at Dickpon’s words, sitting across from him.
The overall situation was flowing far too unfavorably.
The man at the center, calm-faced, looked at Baritolo.
Artian’s Third Prince, Prince Ethan Artian.
“What of the elders’ council movements?”
“Not good there either. Out of twelve elders, seven have already been swayed by Byron.”
“So they’ve clearly surpassed a majority…….”
Two elders supported the First Prince, his eldest brother.
That left only three who might side with him.
Even if his eldest brother joined him, supporters were lacking.
Soon, political pressure on Ethan would be obvious.
Baritolo vented his frustration.
“It seems they prepared even before His Highness’s illness worsened. Otherwise, they couldn’t ready this quickly.”
“Like…… everything fits perfectly, as if premeditated.”
“Premeditated?”
Ethan’s eyes shook slightly. He asked Baritolo.
“Then, does that mean His Highness’s sudden decline is connected to Byron?”
“We can’t be certain yet. But his illness worsening abruptly is odd, and everything converging to Second Prince Byron like they were waiting—it’s too suspicious.”
If His Highness passed in this state, Byron would naturally inherit the throne.
Military power, political support—all indicators pointed to Byron.
Ethan let out a deep sigh.
“How do we unravel this mess?”
They could check military forces for now, but losing elders and political momentum was hard to recover from.
Then, Dickpon spoke cautiously.
“There might…… be a way to flip those numbers.”
“A way?”
“What is it?”
Baritolo and Ethan’s gazes turned to him.
Dickpon bowed to Ethan, then spoke carefully.
“It’s uncertain info, so I hesitated to mention it to you, Your Highness, but among the elders siding with Second Prince Byron, Count Gereon seems forced into it by blackmail.”
“Tell me more.”
“We’ve been investigating elders who joined Byron recently. Soldiers have been reinforced at Count Gereon’s estate, coming and going inside…… and the one visiting that estate is named Belton.”
“Belton—one of Marquis Dwayne’s close aides, isn’t he?”
“Yes. But Count Gereon had no reason to bolster his guards. Though in the north, it’s far from barbarian or monster incursions.”
“Hmm…….”
“And what’s more suspicious: after that, Count Gereon changed his stance in the council.”
“You think Marquis Dwayne’s using a close aide to hold his family hostage and pressure him?”
“In my humble opinion, that seems likely.”
“Your Highness.”
At Baritolo’s call, Ethan nodded slowly.
It was certainly plausible.
But even if true, they had no way to counter it now.
Just as they knew Byron’s forces, Byron’s side constantly watched theirs.
For something needing secrecy, too much was exposed on both sides.
“For now…… we should confirm it for sure.”
“Indeed. But…….”
Ethan sighed softly. Then he said to Baritolo.
“We need a new blade that can serve as our strength.”
A sharp one that could sever the enemy’s breath in a single strike.
“I’ll find it, no matter what.”
Baritolo’s voice rang with grim determination.