Knight: from Apprentice to the Almighty

"Do you know him?"

Roland shook his head helplessly.

If he counted the days he’d spent as a Horse Boy for the young noble, then they could barely be considered acquaintances.

But from the looks of it, Dalko had clearly forgotten all about the boy who once led his horse and held his whip.

’Then what on earth does this young master Dalko want with me?’

Roland pondered for a moment, recalling the scene from yesterday’s assessment. A theory began to form in his mind.

’Could it be that this young noble saw my talent for forging and came specifically to recruit me?’

He couldn’t help but feel a little hesitant at the thought.

After all, from what he understood, the nobles of the Golden Valley Kingdom weren’t exactly in the habit of treating talented commoners with respect.

Someone like Hawke was already an exception.

Based on his observations from studying under Hawke these past few days, the old Blacksmith’s Forging Skills were truly exquisite.

Even with the help of his Professional Panel, he figured it would take at least a year or two to surpass Hawke’s level of skill.

Could his current Forging Skills really win the favor of these arrogant nobles who looked down their noses at everyone?

’Forget it. I’ll cross that bridge when I come to it.’

Giving up on his tangled thoughts, Roland turned to John and spoke.

"Captain John, is your patrol over?"

"Obviously! Why else would I be standing here?"

John rolled his eyes and tossed the Short Bow over.

"Here, take it."

Roland caught the Short Bow. It was lighter than he’d expected.

It was a perfectly ordinary Short Bow. The body was made of common birchwood, given only a simple polish, and wasn’t even varnished.

The Bowstring was woven from hemp rope and had turned somewhat black. There were a few small cracks in the wood grain, a clear sign of long use, but it was still functional.

"What? Too shabby for you?"

John crossed his arms, watching Roland inspect it so carefully.

"That was the first bow I ever used when I was learning Archery."

Roland shook his head, his fingers gently stroking the Bowstring.

"No, I was just thinking... about how I could improve it."

His gaze fell on the slightly rough grip in the middle of the bow. Professional habit already had him mentally devising a plan to refine it.

"What’s there to improve? Once you learn Archery, you can just forge a new one yourself, can’t you?"

"Alright..."

John clapped Roland on the shoulder.

"Let’s get to your Archery practice. I don’t have much free time."

"Right, Captain John."

Roland tore his gaze away from the Short Bow and followed John down a gravel path in the manor, eventually stopping before a wide-open training ground.

The training ground was in the northwest corner of the manor, enclosed by a low wooden fence. The ground was covered with fine gravel that crunched underfoot.

On the eastern side of the field stood several heavily worn archery targets. The straw at their centers was loose, clearly having endured the baptism of countless Arrows.

To the west lay a few practice Wooden Swords and Shields, their edges covered in small nicks.

John walked up to a target, casually plucked an Arrow from a nearby rack, and handed it to Roland.

"Give it a try."

He pointed at a target twenty paces away.

"Don’t worry about hitting the bullseye. Just get a feel for the Power needed to draw the bow."

"Uh... Captain John..."

Roland said after taking the Arrow.

"Aren’t you going to show me how first?"

Having already used his [Concentration] Trait to learn Lion Swordsmanship, Roland naturally wanted to try the same trick again and see if he could quickly master Archery.

"Show you?"

John scratched his head, looking a little confused.

"Didn’t I already explain the essentials of shooting to you last night? Besides..."

John deftly nocked an Arrow and drew his bow.

"THWUMP!"

With the dull thud of the Bowstring snapping back, the Arrow struck the bullseye dead center.

"This thing is different from other skills. Stance, breathing, finger position, how you apply force—none of it has a fixed standard. You have to adjust everything based on your own body."

As John spoke, Roland’s gaze refocused, a hint of helplessness flashing in his eyes.

John was right.

Just now, when the man had drawn his bow, Roland had quietly activated his [Concentration] Trait to observe him carefully.

His archery stance looked casual, but in reality, it was completely without form.

At least, there was almost no trace of the key points he had been so carefully taught last night.

’Looks like I can’t take a shortcut to learn Archery with my [Concentration] Trait like I did with Lion Swordsmanship. But it doesn’t matter...’

Roland shook his head slightly. There wasn’t a trace of frustration on his face; instead, a smile eager to take on the challenge appeared.

’Anyway, I still have my Professional Panel. Worst comes to worst, I’ll just grind it out like I did when I awakened my other Skills.’

John, completely unaware of Roland’s strange reaction, just tapped his own temple with his index finger and gave a mysterious smile.

"And more important than all that technique is... the feeling!"

"The feeling?"

Roland frowned in confusion.

"That’s right, the feeling!"

John nodded decisively, even though it sounded incredibly abstruse.

"As long as you get the feeling right, even with your eyes closed..."

As he spoke, he actually closed his eyes and expertly nocked an Arrow.

"...you can still hit the target!"

"WHOOSH!"

With the sound of something slicing through the air, the Arrow once again embedded itself precisely in the bullseye.

Seeing this, Roland couldn’t help but be slightly stunned.

He hadn’t expected that "the feeling" John spoke of was actually real.

"Alright, now it’s your turn to try!"

Roland nodded lightly, then took a deep breath and nocked the Arrow on the Bowstring.

As the principles of archery he’d learned swirled in his mind, his posture became increasingly standard.

"THWUMP!"

But with the dull thud of the recoiling Bowstring, the Arrow flew straight down, burying its head in the sand a few paces short of the target.

"Hahaha!"

John burst out laughing.

"You’ve got good Power, but... it looks like your ’feeling’ needs a lot more practice."

Roland rubbed his slightly numb arm and could only nod lightly.

"And your body was too stiff just now!"

"Archery relies on muscle memory and instinct. Overthinking it is actually a bad thing."

John walked up behind Roland and adjusted his stance.

"Left foot a little more forward... yes, just like that. Relax your shoulders, don’t be so stiff."

Roland adjusted his posture as instructed and found that it did feel much more natural.

"Now, don’t stare at the bullseye."

John’s voice sounded in his ear.

"Look at the whole target. Let your body memorize this distance."

Roland tried to do as he was told. Strangely, when he stopped deliberately aiming, his arm naturally found the correct position.

"Release!"

The Arrow shot through the air, this time grazing the edge of the target. At least it had hit it.

"Improvement!"

John nodded in approval.

"Remember this feeling. Keep practicing until the moment you raise your arm, you know exactly where to shoot!"

For the next few hours, Roland repeated the motions of drawing, aiming, and releasing over and over again.

Sweat soaked his back, and the fingertips of his right hand were rubbed raw by the Bowstring.

After every failure, he would gradually integrate the techniques John had taught him the night before into his practice, constantly adjusting and refining them to better suit his own body.

By the time the sun began to set, Roland’s Archery was starting to show results.

Out of ten shots, at least three or four could hit the target.

Although they were still far from the bullseye, John was very satisfied.

"Not bad, kid."

The old soldier gently patted Roland’s shoulder.

"At this rate, you’ll catch up to a fresh batch of New Recruits in less than a month!"

Roland asked while shaking out his aching fingers.

"Captain John, what was it like the first time you shot a bow?"

John grinned, revealing a few yellowed teeth.

"Way worse than you. My first Arrow went right past the instructor’s scalp!"

He rubbed the stubble on his chin.

"The old guy chased me all over the training ground."

The two of them burst out laughing, their shadows stretching long in the setting sun.

"Alright, kid..."

John dusted off his clothes.

"I’ve taught you everything I can. From here on, you’ll have to rely on yourself to get the hang of it."

"You can train here without any worries. I’ve already spoken to the patrolling Guards!"

"Thank you, Captain John!"

"You’re always so formal, kid..."

Seeing Roland’s humble posture as he bowed, John couldn’t be bothered to say any more. He just waved his hand and left the training ground.

Looking at the sky, which had not yet completely darkened, Roland took a deep breath.

’It’s still early. I’ll practice a little longer and see if I can achieve an Awakening for Basic Archery!’

With that in mind, he brought a bundle of Arrows, placed it by his feet, and once again drew his bow.

As a series of whooshes rang out one after another, Roland’s movements became as smooth as flowing water, and his shots landed with increasing precision.

It was as if he finally understood that "feeling" John had talked about.

He didn’t know how much time had passed, but just as night was about to fall,

a line of golden text suddenly appeared before his eyes.

[You have mastered Basic Archery. Current Level: Level 1]

[Analysis complete. You are eligible for the Basic Profession: Hunter.]

[Requirements: 1 Power, 2 Agility, any Level 1 Archery-related Skill, two survival-related skills (0/2)]

[Host does not meet the requirements for this Profession.]