Ch.1313. Rehabilitation (5)

“I brought it!”

“Thank you.”

She received the bow and skillfully pulled the string to check its tension.

Seeing how it drew back with good power without much difficulty, it seemed the instructor had fortunately selected a bow well-suited for Sione.

Has that person ever handled a bow before?

No, that couldn’t be possible.

Everyone at the shooting range was puzzled by her skillful inspection, so much that the sound of bowstrings being drawn and arrows hitting targets grew quiet.

“What are you all doing? Your hands are idle. Are you going to keep standing around just because I arrived?”

At her words, one or two soldiers began shooting again.

But even so, the soldiers couldn’t completely dismiss their interest in the uninvited guest, Sione Sianella.

Eventually, as if understanding that they would glance at her while doing their work, Sione proudly went to an empty target and began practicing.

The target was a large circular one at 70 meters.

Once again, she used the dead release and pinch draw method.

Having practiced only this for a whole month, her posture had been corrected.

Twang! Thunk!

The arrow shot from her corrected posture struck the center of the target.

And it wasn’t just a tilted arrow hitting the center—it was a solid hit with the arrow shaft perfectly horizontal from the point of impact.

A result possible only with proper strength and aim.

Those watching offered brief comments.

“Oh…”

“She hit it…?”

“…Isn’t that luck?”

As these brief comments gathered, a small murmur arose.

She simply continued to draw the string and shoot the next arrow without reaction.

Sione showed no response to their reactions.

Naturally, as the number of arrows hitting the target increased, their murmurs changed.

“…She seems to be aiming for the center too well to call it luck.”

“And her posture… it looks proper, so she’s not just doing it casually.”

“Has anyone seen Lady Sione practicing before?”

From initially noting that arrows kept hitting the target to finally someone asking if anyone had seen Sione practicing archery before.

As their opinion began shifting from thinking she just happened to hit the center to wondering if it might be actual skill, I spoke up.

“Are you comfortable? With so many people around.”

“…Indeed, it is a bit difficult with so many eyes watching. I feel my body stiffening.”

“It seems those postures have become completely natural to you now.”

“I’ve practiced only these every day, so it would be strange if they hadn’t become natural. How is it, am I doing well enough?”

“Yes, well enough to move on to learning the next techniques.”

“Huh?”

Surprise and joy bloomed together on Sione’s face.

“Is that true?”

“How about practicing different draw methods and the sliding release instead of the dead release you’ve been using?”

“Of course I welcome that! The sliding release is the one where you shoot immediately after drawing the string, correct?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“I’m looking forward to it!”

Realizing how loudly she had spoken, Sione’s eyes widened.

It was quite amusing to see her face redden with embarrassment as she cleared her throat.

To help her get past the embarrassment and become immersed in archery again, I explained the split finger technique and sliding release with my bow.

“I’ll teach you the new technique first.”

“I’m listening.”

“Good. Place the arrow between your index and middle fingers, holding it vertically. Then hook your ring finger on the string like this.”

“Like this?”

“Your index and middle fingers are too far apart. Hmm, if you feel like you’re fixing the arrow tip against your index finger, it will be easier to aim.”

“Ah, I see.”

I confirmed that she had properly copied the split finger position, also called the Mediterranean draw.

It’s still awkward, but… she’ll get the feel of it after a few shots.

“May I demonstrate for a moment?”

“Of course.”

I took the bow from Sione and stood in front of the target she had been shooting at.

Having already shown her the split finger grip, all that remained was to slowly demonstrate the sliding release for her to observe and reference.

“After gripping like this, you pull back…”

Twang!!

“Release the string when your hand reaches your chin, or whenever you feel it’s sufficient.”

Thunk!!

My arrow flew steadily and pierced the dead center of the target.

Is a man shooting a bow really such a spectacle?

Even the women who had been shooting turned to look at me.

It’s not like I’m under a spotlight, why so much attention?

I trampled their interest underfoot and added:

“Or you might try thinking of it as simply relaxing your fingers and pulling your arm back as you shoot.”

“I see. Pulling the arm back…”

“Stand up. I’ll help position you.”

“…You mean that thing where you guide from behind?”

“Is there a problem?”

Sione’s cheeks turned bright red as she looked around.

“Ah, no, but with so many people around…”

“Well, it’s not like you’re going to die. Why are you being so sensitive?”

“I might die of embarrassment… but conversely, doesn’t it bother you at all?”

“Of course not. I’m merely teaching archery, what is there to be embarrassed about? Just take your position.”

While trying it once based on observation is fine, I think it’s more effective when someone directly helps with body movement and timing.

I suspect Sione will completely get the feel after I help her two or three times.

“You really want to take such an embarrassing position here?”

But this superior of mine, whose head seems filled with pink, sweet fantasies, refuses because there are people around.

It’s not like I’m giving her a full back hug—I’m just going to show her the grip and drawing timing from behind.

Why is she being so fussy?

I narrowed my eyes and stared at Sione.

“The more you react like this, the more attention you’ll draw from the soldiers around. Just get it over with quickly.”

“Haah… fine, I’ll do it.”

“A wise decision.”

I moved close to her and corrected her bow grip.

Then I began guiding her arm holding the string.

At the same time, I could feel gazes boring into the back of my head.

Glancing back, I saw women who had forgotten their practice and were watching us, looking at Sione with what seemed like envy and admiration.

What remarkable people.

I quickly turned my attention back to focusing on assisting Sione.

As her arm pulled back tautly without stopping,

When the string was drawn back and enough power had gathered to reach the target, I tapped her arm.

“Keep pulling your arm back while releasing your fingers from the string.”

Twang! Thunk!

After confirming the arrow hit the target, I asked:

“Shall I guide you once more?”

“Ah, no. Please step away quickly.”

Sione waved me off.

Her ears had turned bright red, showing how embarrassed she was.

In that state, she even glared around with a frown on her face.

Under her fierce gaze, those who had been watching us had no choice but to look away.

After taking several deep breaths, Sione nocked another arrow to the string.

“I’ll try what you taught me now, so tell me immediately if you see any flaws.”

“Understood. Shoot at your ease.”

She began shooting calmly as I had taught her.

As the number of arrows increased, the speed of her sliding release improved.

Sione pulled her arm back smoothly and shot in one motion.

Although the bow shook momentarily and didn’t hit the center of the target, she was smiling.

“It’s good to shoot carefully and deliberately, but shooting freely like this is enjoyable too. And this technique feels more comfortable than the previous one.”

“I’m glad the new technique suits you. Ah, your arm is tilting slightly diagonally when drawing the string. Please keep that in mind.”

“I’ll try my best.”

Her practice continued until her stamina was depleted.

Sione put down the bow and began to rest.

I approached her and asked:

“How do you find shooting at this time of day?”

“I regret not coming at this hour sooner. It’s really nice.”

“In the future, if you have questions, it wouldn’t be bad to consult the archers nearby.”

“…I don’t particularly enjoy initiating conversations with others.”

“You speak well with me, a man, so wouldn’t it be easier to talk with women?”

“Hmm…”

She lowered her head.

“You’re… different.”

“Pardon?”

“N-never mind. It’s nothing important.”

…Her voice was so tiny I couldn’t hear properly.

Unfortunately, even if I asked again, Sione didn’t seem willing to repeat herself.

Well, she said it wasn’t important.

“Well, if that’s how you feel… how about practicing archery at this time instead of dawn from now on?”

“Yes, let’s do that.”

The corners of my mouth turned up.

But they quickly fell again at Sione’s next words.

“From now on, let’s just do light exercise in the morning instead of archery practice. That’s fine, right?”

No, seriously, let’s just sleep in the morning. Please.

* * *

The warm spring days had given way to summer.

Sion had left for the academy as the semester began, and Sione, who had been consistently going to the shooting range, showed remarkable progress.

She became close enough with her sister Siabel to exchange normal greetings, and even developed enough social skills to converse with some of the female archers.

To think that Sione, who used to shut herself in her room and only torment her servants, could change this much.

Thanks to this, at least at the shooting range, Sione’s reputation had improved compared to before.

Amidst these changes, we consistently woke our bodies with light exercise in the morning and burned calories by shooting arrows and doing full-body workouts during the day.

If we couldn’t live on just mugwort and garlic for 100 days, we had no choice but to become human through more exercise than eating mugwort and garlic.

I watched Sione drinking water and resting after finishing her morning jog.

“Those fat lumps were killing me.”

Sione, having lost weight, regained beauty comparable to her mother’s.

Unlike Siabel with her cold, sharp impression, and Sion with his beautiful decadent charm, Sione was a beauty with an innocently cute feeling.

It was truly annoying to the point of driving me crazy, but I’m glad there was value in waking her up every morning and running with her.

“Good work today. Let’s go in and rest now.”

“As you wish.”

“Ah, by the way, I have a favor to ask. Could you bring me something sharp? A small knife would be best.”

“A sharp knife… you say…?”

“…Why are you looking at me like that?”

“You shouldn’t have bad thoughts.”

“Am I that untrustworthy…? I have a specific use for it, so don’t worry.”

“Hmm… then I’ll bring what you’ve requested. Please go to your room first.”

“Thank you.”

Sione and I turned our backs and walked away from each other.

Her room was that way, and the training ground was this way.

Afterwards, I found a short sword with a sharp edge at the training ground and returned to Sione’s room.

If she was going to ask for this, she should have told me to bring it when we passed by the training ground.

So inconvenient.

Knock knock.

After knocking on the door, I immediately heard a response.

“Come in.”

I entered her room right away.

Somehow, entering Sione’s room with a knife made me feel like a treacherous minister plotting rebellion.

“I brought this sharp blade as requested… is this acceptable?”

“Let me see.”

Sione examined the blade I handed her.

“Perfect. Thank you for your trouble.”

With those words, she brought the blade to her long platinum blonde hair.

“…Lady Sione?”

“Just watch.”

Without hesitation, Sione cut off her hair.

Thud.

Most of that hair, which had grown down to her waist after years of neglect, fell to the floor.

My expression stiffened as I looked at Sione, who had gone from long hair to a bob cut.

Of course, I wasn’t stiffening because she cut her hair.

…I’m going to have to clean up all this fallen hair.

She’s creating work for me so I won’t get bored.

“Hehe, that feels refreshing.”

Truly, Sione smiled purely and innocently.

Like someone who had completely shed her stifling past.