Chapter 6

Episode 6. Your Lower Body is Seriously Weak (1)

Anis’s eyes narrowed.

The young man, smiling slyly, was a handsome figure who stood out even in the crowded streets.

Silver hair and golden eyes. His playful smile and cheerful gestures clearly showed his friendliness.

*Wiggle wiggle.*

The man who had casually entered the training ground waved his hand carelessly as he greeted. Anis’s delicate face twisted.

‘Who is this guy acting like he knows me? I’ve never seen him before in my life.’

Anis tried to recall if he had forgotten something, but it was definitely their first meeting.

‘First of all, that outfit. It’s not something a noble would wear. His gait is utterly lacking in dignity. Did the soldiers just let an outsider in?’

Seeing the guards standing calmly and watching, it didn’t seem like he was an intruder.

But he couldn’t be considered an ally either, so Anis stopped the man.

“Halt. Who are you?”

Yet, the man didn’t stop walking.

What’s this? Did he not hear?

‘Maybe my voice was too soft.’

Thinking his voice had gone hoarse from the grueling training, Anis shouted at the top of his lungs this time.

“Halt! Who are you!”

This time, his voice was loud enough to echo through the training ground. There was no way the other person couldn’t hear it.

But the man still didn’t stop, approaching with a carefree expression.

‘Is he deaf?’

Preparing for the worst, Anis decided to greet the man with an arrow in hand.

The man stopped five steps away. He exuded a strange aura.

‘Weird. I’m sure this is the first time I’ve seen him, but he feels familiar. Huh? Wait. His eye color?’

The bloodline of Sephira has a common trait. Their eyes are a mix of purple and gold.

The man before him had just that.

Gem-like purple pupils, golden irises reminiscent of a sunset over a wheat field. Those were eyes that could only belong to the bloodline of House Sephira.

“Are you Anis?”

The man suddenly asked.

Anis was annoyed by the man’s lack of manners, but someone immediately came to mind, so he held back and asked.

“Are you, by any chance, Keter?”

“Answering a question with a question. You must be Anis.”

Keter, seeing Anis, felt relieved.

Moderately long, reddish-brown hair reaching his ears. Eyes filled with suspicion and wariness, a slightly furrowed face that looked not scary but cool.

Anis, the bow demon who had spent his life chasing strength and was now pitifully exhausted.

Though they had only exchanged greetings, Keter was certain. ‘The Anis of the past life’ and ‘the current Anis’ were exactly the same person.

‘It’s a shame to just confirm and leave.’

His hands were bloodstained, his hair disheveled, and madness gleamed in his eyes… but compared to the future Anis, this one was still ‘human.’

‘The Anis of the past life couldn’t overcome his limits and eventually went mad…’

Keter glanced at Anis’s fingers; all ten were intact. It meant he hadn’t gone completely mad yet.

Keter’s lips curled up.

If the other person needed help, he would help. Even if they disliked it, he would help. That was the way of Ruquer’s Solver.

A service that seeks out clients. That was how Keter made a living at Ruquer.

“How did you know I was here and come find me?”

Keter seemed quite suspicious, as Anis’s voice was filled with hostility.

“Just passing by. Whew~ That shield, did you do that? The power is impressive.”

Anis’s expression didn’t ease.

‘Just passing by?’ That was nonsense, but given his ambitious nature, the latter part bothered him more.

“It must look impressive to you. Don’t disturb me, just leave. I’ll forgive you for coming in here uninvited.”

“Saying it’s impressive isn’t a compliment. It’s just brute force without any finesse.”

“……!?”

Anis, who had been unexpectedly criticized, clenched his fist tightly.

*Crack!*

The iron arrow he was holding bent in half from the force.

“What do you know about archery to spout such nonsense?”

In the Lilian Kingdom, it’s illegal for commoners to possess ranged weapons unless they’re soldiers, nobles, or licensed hunters.

Of course, if you don’t get caught, it’s fine, but considering the size and presence of a bow, that’s not easy.

So, it’s true that most commoners, including Keter, never even get a chance to shoot a bow.

Keter shrugged.

“It’s not power meant to kill people, right? Unless it’s monsters.”

Keter, despite his attitude, spoke surprisingly logically, causing Anis to frown.

Anis, being naturally competitive, hated losing even in arguments. Naturally, he immediately countered Keter’s words.

“You’re mistaken. I value the power of the bow to make it meaningless even if knights block it.”

Keter immediately shot back.

“Think about it. Why can knights block arrows?”

“Are you treating me like a fool? Obviously, because they can see the arrows.”

“You are a fool. If they can see the arrows, why don’t they dodge instead of blocking? Because blocking is easier than dodging. Now, question again. If you shoot that incredibly powerful arrow, will the knights try to block it or dodge it?”

“……!”

It was simple common sense, but Anis only realized it now. No matter how powerful the arrow, if it doesn’t hit, it’s meaningless.

But it was inevitable. He had seen knights easily blocking arrows countless times.

So, he had mistakenly thought that mastering an ‘unblockable arrow’ was the best way to deal with knights.

Keter drove the point home to Anis, who had just realized an uncomfortable truth.

“All martial artists go through the same trial and error as you. When they face opponents who easily block their attacks, they pursue overwhelming power. But in actual combat, they realize. Even overwhelming power is meaningless if it doesn’t hit. So, what an archer should pursue first is accuracy. Power comes later. How’s that? Did I sound like someone who’s shot a bow?”

The situation with arrows is worse than general martial arts. Once an arrow is shot, that’s it. The archer can’t do anything more.

Moreover, to fully utilize its power, one condition must be met. The archer must be in a safe situation.

On the battlefield, there are high city walls and infantry to protect the front.

But what if the archer is alone?

If fighting a swordsman of similar level alone?

The archer can never win. Unless it’s a commoner, anyone sufficiently trained can recognize the arrow with just their vision and reflexes.

Furthermore, arrows only fly in a straight line. Of course, they can curve, but that’s a predictable path. In other words, there’s no variation.

No variation means it’s simple, without variables. That simplicity can be an advantage at times, but in one-on-one combat, it’s a fatal weakness.

Anis had the idea of overwhelming it with ‘power.’

In certain situations, it might be the right answer, but for House Sephira, politically isolated and without allies, it’s neither suitable nor sufficient as a main strategy.

Anis, struck by Keter’s words, trembled.

Anis already knew this.

It was a fact known to all archers who trained in archery, especially those of House Sephira. In archery, ‘power’ and ‘variation’ cannot coexist.

House Sephira boasts a 300-year history. So why haven’t they solved this problem?

Because they didn’t need to. In the past, when wars were frequent, archers were never isolated. There were always knights risking their lives to protect them, and high, sturdy city walls.

Back then, the family’s reputation was extremely high, and they enjoyed the queen’s favor.

After large-scale wars ended, small-scale local conflicts became the norm only 30 years ago, and losing the queen’s favor and being attacked by nobles happened just 10 years ago.

House Sephira didn’t expect this. Neither the previous lords nor the current lord, Basil.

Realizing too late that the situation was bad, it was too late to develop archery specialized for one-on-one combat. Time, resources, and manpower were severely lacking.

As Anis bit his lip and remained silent, Keter spoke again.

“No matter how powerful, if it’s dodged, that’s it. So stop wasting time on useless training. Spend that time thinking about how to hit knights with your arrows.”

“Grr……!”

Anis’s eyes burned with anger.

How dare this guy, who knows nothing about the family’s situation, belittle his archery and the family’s secret techniques?

If it were just his pride, he could endure it, but he couldn’t tolerate the disrespect toward Sephira.

“Dodge it, you say? Fine. Try dodging this.”

Anis pulled an arrow from his quiver. Though his words were emotional, his actions were rational as he removed the arrowhead. He was angry but intended to teach him a lesson.

Of course, hitting a vital spot would be dangerous, but Anis had no intention of going that far.

In the blink of an eye, Anis nocked the arrow and aimed at Keter’s thigh, the part where humans feel the most pain.

*Twang!*

An arrow shot at close range.

A speed that an ordinary person couldn’t even react to, but Keter easily dodged it by slightly moving his left foot.

“Too slow.”

“You’ve got the nerve to talk.”

Anis grabbed three arrows at once, removed the arrowheads again, and shot them simultaneously.

Shooting three arrows at once, anyone who’s ever held a bow knows how difficult that is.

Moreover, it wasn’t just shooting. The speed and accuracy were excellent. Keter’s shoulder, abdomen, and calf. Each aimed at hard-to-dodge spots.

If that were all, he wouldn’t be a prodigy of an archery family. Anis pulled out a new arrow, ready to shoot again immediately even if Keter dodged.

But-

*Whoosh!*

Anis’s eyes widened rapidly.

Because Keter moved forward while twisting his body, dodging all three arrows.

Surprised by the flexibility that defied human joint structure, Anis didn’t forget to shoot.

*Twang!*

Anis shot another arrow at Keter, who was now right in front of him. A composure that would be impossible without considerable courage-

*Thud!*

Keter slapped away the arrow shot at close range with his left palm.

“……!”

Immediately, Keter’s right hand grabbed Anis’s bow.

Though it was a quick move, Anis found it ridiculous.

‘Does he want to play tug-of-war with the bow?’

Anis found Keter’s attempt at a strength contest laughable.

An archer’s strength is concentrated in the upper body, especially the arms and shoulders, rather than the lower body. In terms of pure strength, they are at least as strong as, if not stronger than, an average swordsman.

So, there was no reason to avoid a strength contest.

No, he welcomed it.

*Crack!*

The bow bent as if it would break under the force of both men. Anis expected an easy fight. Until his body started being pulled little by little.

Cold sweat ran down his back as he panicked.

‘A commoner… how can he have such strength?’

Feeling the danger of losing, Anis hastily activated his Aura.

The power that transcends humanity, activating Aura at least doubles the user’s physical abilities.

*Crack!*

While Keter proved stronger in pure physical strength, with Aura activated, Anis began to gain the upper hand.

‘That’s more like it.’

But just as the bow was being pulled toward Anis, Keter suddenly released his strength and closed in on Anis.

‘Predictable!’

This was also a move Anis had anticipated.

Enhanced physical abilities don’t just mean increased strength. Reflexes and dynamic vision also improve.

Anis, with his rich combat experience, prepared to counter, aiming a knee at Keter’s abdomen.

‘Did you think an archer would be weak in close combat?’

Anis hadn’t underestimated Keter from the start. Though his speech was crude, his physique was that of a trained warrior. That’s why he showed the decisiveness to use Aura as soon as he was at a disadvantage in the strength contest.

But Anis hadn’t anticipated that Keter’s combat sense would far surpass his own.

Keter reacted as if he had anticipated Anis’s counter.

*Thud!*

Keter extended his right foot and tripped Anis’s left leg.

Anis, who had his right leg in the air to knee Keter, completely lost his balance and fell backward.

‘……!’

Even with his enhanced physical abilities, Anis hurriedly reached out to grab Keter’s collar to reverse the situation, but Keter, as if expecting this, punched Anis’s fingers.

*Thud!*

Anis fell flat on his back.

Anis, always full of competitiveness, tried to get up immediately, driven by the determination to win.

*Whoosh.*

Keter, who had taken the bow while Anis was falling, aimed it at him.

Though there was no arrow, the meaning was clear.

Anis’s complete defeat.

Keter clicked his tongue and said.

“Your lower body is seriously weak.”