Sending the Bow

"Are you going to Bennett Castle now? It isn't safe outside," Knight Marshall said. He didn't want Abel to leave under the current circumstances, not even with guards. All the orcs that had appeared this time were at least level six, and the guards couldn't withstand even one orc's attack. Abel was only a level-five Rookie Knight, with extremely low attack power.

"Uncle Marshall, I have to go. You saw the power of the bow I made. I need to deliver the newly made bow to Bennett Castle," Abel explained to Knight Marshall.

"Why does Bennett get one without even asking, while I have to ask you before you'll give me one?" Knight Marshall said, sounding slightly jealous.

"This attack has made me very uneasy about Bennett Castle's safety. I have to go there and deliver the bow," Abel said firmly to Knight Marshall.

"I'll go with you." Knight Marshall was somewhat helpless. Compared with the castle's safety, he was more concerned about Abel's safety now. The castle had already killed most of the attacking orcs, and he believed no orc would dare come back to seek death.

"Uncle Marshall!" Abel knew it was extremely difficult for Knight Marshall to leave the castle at a time like this. Although they were going to another nearby castle, if anyone discovered him, he would lose his territory for abandoning his post. Besides, the castle's defenses also required Knight Marshall's command.

"It's fine. I'll change clothes and go with you. We can make the round trip on horseback in half a day." Knight Marshall knew what Abel was worried about, but his thinking was simple: they could lose the territory, but they couldn't lose Abel. As long as Abel was there, everything would come with his growth, including a larger territory and a higher title.

It was already afternoon. Abel changed into leather armor and mounted a warhorse, while Knight Marshall took off his flashy armor and changed into inconspicuous leather armor. He even put on a hat with a veil, covering all his long golden hair. He left his own warhorse behind and mounted an ordinary one instead.

Both warhorses were fed oats to bring their stamina to its peak. Without telling anyone, Abel and Knight Marshall quietly left the castle amid everyone's cheerful celebrations.

They didn't take a detour. The two horses galloped straight toward Bennett Castle. By then, there was no sign of human life in the lord's territory between Bennett Castle and Hari Castle. During wartime, all the villagers gathered inside the castles, so Abel and Knight Marshall didn't encounter anyone along the way.

Two hours later, Bennett Castle appeared on the horizon. Abel couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief. Bennett Castle stood quietly in the golden setting sun, its gates tightly shut. The guards could vaguely be seen on the battlements. Everything indicated that Bennett was perfectly safe and had not been attacked.

The arrival of the two horses set off urgent bells inside the castle. Archers could already be seen holding their bows behind the battlements above the main gate.

"I'm Abel! Open the gate!" Abel shouted.

"It's Young Master Abel!" someone shouted loudly.

"Open the gate." Knight Bennett's deep voice rang out, and the castle gates slowly opened.

Abel and Knight Marshall had barely entered the castle when the gates quickly closed again.

"How dare you come to the castle at a time like this?" Knight Bennett said reproachfully to Abel.

"Father, could we find somewhere quiet to talk?" Abel glanced at Knight Marshall, who was completely covered beside him, and spoke softly.

Knight Bennett naturally knew that Abel must have something important to come to the castle at a time like this. Otherwise, he wouldn't have risked coming here.

Knight Bennett gave the mysterious knight beside Abel a suspicious look, led them into the reception room, and instructed everyone not to disturb them.

"Father, this is..." Abel was just about to reveal Knight Marshall's identity.

"Marshall, are you insane? Leaving your territory at a time like this?" Unexpectedly, Knight Bennett had recognized Knight Marshall at first glance.

"Heh heh! Do you think I wanted to come? Your idiot son insisted on coming over. How could I not follow him?" Knight Marshall took off his hat and shook out his golden hair, which had been suppressed for so long. He replied in an extremely bad mood.

"You... If anything happens, you'll be crying." Knight Bennett helplessly shook his head, then turned to Abel and asked, "What was so urgent? How could you be so thoughtless? If someone discovers that Marshall left his territory, we'll be in trouble."

"Father, I came to give you this." As he spoke, Abel handed over a composite bow.

Knight Bennett took the composite bow and played with it in his hands for a moment before asking in surprise, "You risked coming here just to deliver this?"

"What do you mean, 'this'? This is the Hari Bow. That's the name I gave it." Knight Marshall was highly displeased by Knight Bennett's attitude toward the Hari Bow.

Abel couldn't help covering his face. Knight Marshall had named the bow without consulting him, and had even used Abel's surname. Although Abel now shared that surname, he was certain Knight Marshall had chosen the name that way solely because his own surname was Hari.

"Come on, try shooting an arrow." Knight Marshall enthusiastically took out an arrow and handed it to Knight Bennett. He eagerly instructed Knight Bennett on how to aim and use the release aid. "Just shoot at the wall." Knight Marshall pointed toward the opposite wall.

The reception room was spacious, nearly forty square meters. Knight Bennett stood more than twenty meters from the wall Knight Marshall had indicated. He said nothing, simply released the string. The arrow vanished from the rest, followed by a sharp sound. The three of them looked toward the wall and saw that the arrow had already embedded itself in the surface of the granite wall.

Knight Bennett stared at the arrow in astonishment. He hurried over to the wall and knocked on it several times, as though confirming that it was real. It seemed he had forgotten that this was his own reception room.

He forcefully pulled the arrow from the wall. The arrowhead had sunk two inches into the stone, and the iron tip had deformed from the tremendous impact.

"This bow?" Knight Bennett looked toward Abel.

Abel was just about to speak when Knight Marshall took over. "You know, Abel is a master blacksmith." Knight Marshall paused after saying this.

Ever since learning that Abel had become a master blacksmith, Knight Bennett had deeply regretted giving Abel to Knight Marshall as an adopted son. Now that Knight Marshall had brought up Abel's status as a master blacksmith right in front of him, Knight Bennett's expression immediately darkened.

Apparently failing to notice Knight Bennett's expression, Knight Marshall continued, "He designed and made the Hari Bow so I could withstand the orcs' attacks. Today, I used the Hari Bow to effortlessly kill twelve orc cavalrymen, all of them level six or higher, you know."

Knight Bennett couldn't help staring in surprise at the Hari Bow in his hands. By now, he understood why Abel had risked so much to bring it to him. As for Knight Marshall's words, with his understanding of Marshall, believing half of them would already be generous.

Still, his old friend Marshall truly spared no effort for Abel. He had gone this far for Abel's safety. Knight Bennett believed that, if he were in Marshall's place, he would probably have found it difficult to make such a decision.

Knight Bennett drew the bowstring again. He had already discovered the bow's advantages. It took considerable effort to draw, but holding it required little strength, making it easier to aim properly. Its power was also terrifying.

Knight Marshall watched Knight Bennett with schadenfreude and a grin. "I forgot to tell you, Cessi. You mustn't dry-fire the Hari Bow."

As Knight Bennett channeled his battle qi and returned the bow to its original state, Knight Marshall was already laughing so hard he could barely stand upright. He seemed to have forgotten that he himself had dry-fired it.

Abel and Knight Marshall didn't stay any longer. After instructing Knight Bennett on how to use the Hari Bow, they quickly set off again and left Bennett Castle.

It was already dark, but the two of them knew this road extremely well. Knight Marshall, in particular, had traveled it countless times. Guided by the moonlight in the night sky, the two warhorses maintained a decent speed.