"Do you know him?"
Roland shook his head helplessly.
If the time he had previously spent serving as this noble young master's page was included, they could barely be considered acquaintances.
However, judging from Darko's appearance, he had clearly forgotten completely that the Original Body had once led his horse and wielded his whip for him.
"Then what exactly does Young Master Darko want with me?"
After pondering for a moment, Roland recalled what had happened during yesterday's assessment, and quickly came to a guess.
"Could it be that this noble young master witnessed my talent for smithing and came specifically to recruit me?"
At the thought, he couldn't help feeling somewhat hesitant.
After all, from what he knew, the nobles of the Golden Valley Kingdom weren't exactly known for treating talented people with respect.
Someone like Hawk was already an exception.
After all, based on his observations during the days he'd spent learning from Hawk, the old Blacksmith's smithing skills were extraordinarily refined.
Even with the Profession Panel's assistance, it would probably take him a year or two to surpass Hawk's level.
Could his current smithing skills truly win the favor of those lofty noble lords?
"Forget it. When the boat reaches the bridge, it'll naturally go with the flow."
After giving up on dwelling over it, Roland turned to John.
"Captain John, are you done with your patrol?"
"Nonsense! Otherwise, would I be standing here?"
John rolled his eyes and casually tossed over a shortbow.
"Take it."
Roland caught the shortbow. It was lighter in his hands than he had expected.
It was an utterly ordinary shortbow. The bow itself was made of common birchwood and had received only the simplest polishing. It hadn't even been varnished.
The bowstring was twisted from hemp rope and had already turned somewhat black. There were also several tiny cracks in the wood grain. It had clearly been used for quite some time, though that didn't affect its function.
"What? Think it's too shabby?"
John folded his arms and watched Roland inspect it seriously.
"This was the first bow I used when I practiced archery."
Roland shook his head, his fingers lightly brushing over the bowstring.
"No. I'm just thinking about how to improve it."
His gaze fell on the somewhat rough grip in the middle of the bow. His professional habits had already made him begin working out a polishing plan in his mind.
"What is there to improve? Once you've learned archery, can't you just make yourself a new one?"
"All right."
John patted Roland on the shoulder.
"Go practice archery first. I don't have much free time."
"Yes, Captain John."
Roland pulled his gaze away from the shortbow and followed John along the gravel path through the estate, finally stopping before an open Training Ground.
The Training Ground stood in the estate's northwestern corner. It was enclosed by low wooden fences on all sides, and the ground was covered with fine gravel that crunched beneath their feet.
Several heavily worn targets stood on the eastern side of the grounds. The straw at their bull's-eyes had come loose, clearly having endured the baptism of countless arrows.
Several wooden training swords and shields were arranged on the western side, their edges riddled with tiny chips.
John walked up to the targets, casually took an arrow from a wooden rack nearby, and handed it to Roland.
"Give it a try first."
He pointed at a target twenty paces away.
"Don't try to hit the bull's-eye. First, get a feel for the force needed to draw the bow."
"Uh, Captain John..."
After accepting the arrow, Roland spoke.
"Won't you demonstrate first?"
Having previously used the [Focus] trait to learn Lion Swordplay, Roland naturally wanted to use the same trick again and see whether he could master archery quickly.
"Demonstrate?"
John scratched his head from the side, looking somewhat puzzled.
"Didn't I already explain the essentials of archery to you last night? Besides..."
John smoothly bent the bow and nocked the arrow.
Thump!
With the muffled sound of the bowstring snapping back,
the arrow struck the bull's-eye with perfect precision.
"This is different from other skills. Stance, breathing, fingerwork, exertion—none of them have overly rigid standards. You have to adjust everything according to your own body."
As John spoke, Roland's gaze sharpened again, and a trace of helplessness flashed through his eyes.
John was right.
When the other man had just drawn the bow and nocked the arrow, Roland had quietly activated the [Focus] trait and observed him carefully.
That archery stance looked casual, but in truth, it had no structure at all.
At the very least, almost none of the essentials John had painstakingly taught him the previous night could be seen in the man's movements.
"It seems that, at least for learning archery, I can't use the [Focus] trait to cut corners the way I did when learning Lion Swordplay. But it doesn't matter."
Roland shook his head lightly. There wasn't the slightest hint of frustration on his face. Instead, a smile full of anticipation appeared.
"After all, I still have the Profession Panel. At worst, I'll just grind away like I did when awakening my other skills."
John failed to notice anything strange about Roland. He merely tapped his temple with his index finger and revealed a mysterious smile.
"And compared to those techniques, the most important thing is... feeling!"
"Feeling?"
Roland frowned in confusion.
"That's right. Feeling!"
John nodded emphatically, though the statement sounded incredibly mysterious.
"As long as it feels right, even if you close your eyes..."
As he spoke, he actually shut his eyes and skillfully drew the bow and nocked an arrow.
"...you can still hit the target!"
Whoosh!
With the sound of something ripping through the air, the arrow once again embedded itself precisely in the bull's-eye.
Seeing this, Roland couldn't help staring blankly for a moment.
He hadn't expected the feeling John spoke of to actually be real.
"All right. Now you try!"
Roland nodded lightly, then took a deep breath and nocked the arrow onto the bowstring.
As the essentials of archery continuously revolved through his mind, his posture became increasingly standard.
Thump!
But with the muffled sound of the bowstring snapping back, the arrow flew straight downward and buried itself in the sand several paces short of the target.
"Hahaha!"
John burst out laughing.
"Your strength is pretty good. But... it seems your feeling still needs more practice."
Roland rubbed his somewhat numb arm and could only nod lightly.
"Also, your body was far too stiff just now!"
"Archery relies on muscle memory and instinctive reactions. Thinking too much is actually a bad thing."
John walked behind Roland and adjusted his stance.
"Move your left foot a little farther forward. Yes, like that. Relax your shoulders. Don't stand like a piece of wood."
Roland adjusted his posture according to the instructions and found it indeed much easier.
"Now, don't stare at the bull's-eye."
John's voice sounded beside his ear.
"Look at the entire target and let your body remember this distance."
Roland tried to follow his instructions. Strangely enough, once he stopped deliberately aiming, his arm naturally found the correct position instead.
"Loose!"
The arrow shot through the air. This time, it flew past the edge of the target, at least making contact with it.
"That's progress!"
John nodded approvingly.
"Remember this feeling. Keep practicing until you know where to shoot the moment you raise your arm!"
For the next several hours, Roland repeated the motions of drawing the bow, aiming, and loosing the arrow again and again.
Sweat soaked through his back, and the fingertips of his right hand had been rubbed red by the bowstring.
After every failure, he gradually incorporated the techniques John had taught him the previous night into practice, constantly adjusting and refining them until they fit his own movements better.
By the time the sun set, Roland's archery had begun to show results.
Of ten arrows, at least three or four could hit the target.
Although they were still far from the bull's-eye, John was extremely satisfied.
"Not bad, kid."
The old soldier lightly patted Roland on the shoulder.
"At this rate, you'll catch up to those newly enlisted Recruits within a month!"
As Roland shook out his somewhat sore fingers, he asked,
"Captain John, what were you like when you first shot a bow?"
John grinned, revealing several yellow teeth.
"Nowhere near as good as you. My first arrow went straight past the instructor's scalp!"
He stroked the stubble on his chin.
"That old bastard chased me around the entire Training Ground."
The two of them burst out laughing as the setting sun stretched their shadows long across the ground.
"All right, kid."
John brushed the dust from his clothes.
"I've taught you everything I can. From here on, you'll have to rely on yourself to become proficient."
"Just train here without worry. I've already spoken with the guards on patrol!"
"Thank you, Captain John!"
"You're always so polite..."
Seeing Roland bow respectfully, John couldn't be bothered to say anything more. He waved his hand and walked straight out of the Training Ground.
After glancing 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 whether I can awaken Basic Archery!"
With that thought, he fetched a bundle of arrows and placed it by his feet before drawing the bow and nocking another arrow.
As one whooshing sound after another rang out, Roland's movements became increasingly smooth, and the arrows landed with greater and greater precision.
He seemed to understand the feeling John had spoken of.
No one knew how much time had passed. It was only when night was about to fall that
a line of golden text suddenly appeared before his eyes.
[Basic Archery mastered. Current level: Lv.1] [Detection complete. Basic Profession Hunter available] [Requirements: Strength 1, Agility 2, any Lv.1 archery-related skill, two survival-related skills 0/2] [Host does not meet the requirements for taking the profession]
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