Chapter 4: Sione Sianella (4)

“What?”

Shione growled fiercely, just like when she called out Sion’s name.

Even so, the threatening vibe felt more like a bulldog barking than a fierce beast like a lion or tiger, so it didn’t seem all that intimidating.

The threat from someone who had never been a wild beast didn’t resonate with me at all.

Of course, perhaps due to her elevated status, my heart felt like it was racing a little more than usual.

However, I had no intention of giving up on this quest for something as trivial as a bit of increased heartbeat.

It could be quite a stimulating challenge, but the main point of this quest wasn’t some trivial reward like her affection. It was the acceleration of Shione’s collapse if I failed.

Her collapse, as seen in the quest details, would likely lead to her being consumed by self-loathing and becoming an even worse wreck than she already was. The fate of this world, as well as my return to Earth, depended on whether she could withstand her self-loathing.

At the very least, she shouldn’t crumble under the weight of such feelings.

Since I had already started with a provocative statement to stimulate her, it would be best to push forward with that momentum.

I put on a thick face and spoke without hesitation.

“There’s no need to insist on wielding the same sword as Lady Siaebel, is there?”

“How absurd. To think you would be so ignorant as to not even know what our Sianella family is like, given your lowly birth.”

I was well aware that the Sianella family was a prestigious martial family that had produced outstanding knights from its inception to the present.

Even if they lacked other talents, those who inherited that bloodline were at least exceptional swordmasters.

Thus, Sianella had become synonymous with swords and knights in my mind.

At least until the previous generation.

“I’ve heard that even Sion Sianella has excelled not as a swordsman but on the path of a priest. There’s no need for you to cling to the sword just because of your bloodline, Shione.”

Sion, one of the current generation of Sianella, had talents as a priest.

Moreover, I wasn’t sure of the exact details, but I had heard that while she excelled in divine powers, she didn’t have much talent with the sword.

With someone like Sion around, it wouldn’t be fair to assume Shione lacked other talents.

To me, the notion that history dictated there were no alternatives to the sword sounded like utter nonsense.

I found Shione’s fixation on the sword quite displeasing.

“No one is born without talent. You simply have yet to discover the talent that has been given to you, Shione.”

“…”

“Have you ever tried training in something other than the sword, Shione?”

Shione looked up at me for a while before gulping down the water I had poured into my cup.

Gulp, gulp.

Clank.

The cup, emptied in one go, was slammed down onto the table with considerable force.

As she set the cup down on the table, she spoke nervously.

“After giving up the sword, I once picked up a spear. However, the day when the spear, just like the sword, would smoothly glide through my hands never came.”

“Eventually, after putting down the spear, I tried to learn magic. But unlike Sion, I found that divine powers and ultimately magic didn’t suit me at all.”

“Yet I thought it was too early to give up. Realizing that I didn’t fit with dynamic things, I entered the library to accumulate static knowledge by reading books.”

However—

Shione’s shoulders trembled slightly.

Her pupils rippled.

I could tell from her wavering gaze that Shione was recalling memories from the past.

Taking a moment to catch her breath, Shione suppressed her heightened emotions as much as possible.

“I didn’t expect any support. I just wanted everyone to understand and wait until I found my own path. But everyone was too busy comparing and belittling me when I entered the library to read books.”

“That’s fortunate.”

“…You must be mistaken, right?”

In an instant, Shione’s gaze turned murderous as if she wanted to rip me apart.

Her reaction was, of course, understandable.

As I had said, such words did not fit at all in this atmosphere.

However, there’s a saying that you should listen to someone’s words until the end.

For me, what mattered was not just digging into Shione’s painful spots but what would follow.

I maintained as much composure as possible while being stared at by the bulldog’s fierce gaze.

“I’m glad that there are still things I can teach you.”

At my words, Shione wore a dazed expression as if she didn’t even feel the need to get angry anymore. She simply stared at me blankly, as if my words didn’t make sense.

“Have you ever pulled back a bowstring?”

“What on earth are you trying to say? If you’re trying to rattle me for no reason, isn’t this enough already?”

Shione’s voice began to tremble.

“I think it would be good for you to set aside some time to practice a little starting tomorrow. What do you think?”

“Are you saying I should go outside this room and shoot a bow? Ha, I can almost hear the knights’ laughter echoing in here.”

Shione let out a bitter, self-deprecating laugh.

“How can you say you’ll teach me, when it’s obvious that if I follow you out, I’ll just become a laughingstock again? Why would I want to make a fool of myself like that?”

“Although I was born into a lowly status as a slave, I am a man with mana. From the moment I was born, it was decided that I would be sold as a noble’s plaything under the pretense of being a knight, so I learned some basic swordsmanship and archery.”

“……”

“I learned superficially to fit the role of a noble knight… but I can at least teach you how to properly hold a bow and shoot.”

Who am I?

I’m Park Shinwoo, the top-tier hunter in Korea, just shy of reaching S-rank with the bow as my main weapon.

Given my background, I could confidently say that no one in this territory could teach archery as seriously and effectively as I could.

Additionally, the original owner of this body had also received various educations to be sold as a noble’s plaything, among which was definitely archery training. I could leverage that to teach her.

Now, everything was perfectly set up to lure Shione.

It was time to drive the nail in firmly.

“If you’re worried about others laughing at you, don’t be. If the target is too dark to see, it would be a problem, so we can go out just as dawn breaks and return before others arrive. I can wake you up when the time comes.”

“Ha, haha.”

Shione laughed as if she couldn’t believe what she was hearing.

I merely waited for Shione, who was chuckling helplessly, to stop and speak.

“You say you will teach me how to shoot a bow. Are you sure you can take responsibility for that?”

“Of course.”

“I’m curious where that confidence comes from. It’s been a while since I’ve heard something so amusing. Now stop the nonsense and go outside.”

Thud, thud.

Shione stood up and headed back to her bed.

I turned my body towards her.

The power of the wedge I had was insufficient.

If I didn’t take this chance now, I might not get another opportunity like this.

Should I just close my eyes and take a gamble…?

As soon as I had that thought, my mouth, unable to hold back, spoke up.

“If I bet everything I have, will you trust me?”

Shione’s footsteps halted right in front of the bed.

She turned halfway to look at me.

As expected, she wore a look of disbelief.

“It’s obvious that what you have is just a meager salary and your body. You’re going to bet everything on this piglet?”

I felt like I had just been hit on the head with an unexpected and straightforward remark.

How could she call herself a piglet?

If I hastily agreed with her, it would be like openly agreeing that I saw her as a piglet.

I hesitated for a moment before answering.

“…Yes, that’s correct.”

“Why are you so keen on sticking to me like that?”

A reason to cling—

Her words brought to mind the image of Shione, who had been self-reproaching just moments ago, and how she could do nothing but quietly suppress her anger after hearing Sion’s words during the day.

Now, hearing her complaints, I found it slightly, no, quite a lot, disturbing to see Shione so openly disregarded in such a powerless state.

I was afraid of failing the quest, but at the very least, I wanted to use my only skill to help her regain a bit of her strength.

I didn’t want to shake my shoulders anxiously while saying such things.

On the first day, I had been so eager I could barely contain myself.

It was also laughable to try to appeal to the fact that I was a villain with a backstory at this point.

I didn’t want to see her sulking alone in her room anymore.

Since it felt wrong to simply turn a blind eye, it was unavoidable.

“No servant enjoys seeing their master being disregarded. If such a servant exists… then they are already those who have turned their hearts to someone else.”

“…….”

“I won’t mock you.”

Shione made no response and continued to move.

Stagger, stagger.

Thud.

Shione sat down on her bed.

Unlike usual, she didn’t immediately lay down but instead pondered deeply.

I could sense her thoughts shifting through the numerous changes in her expression.

Knowing she needed time to sort through her own thoughts, I quietly waited for her response.

After a moment, the deep shadow faded, and Shione raised her head.

“I need to prepare to go out, so wake me up before dawn.”

“That means…”

“It means I accept your wager.”

As I quietly gazed at Shione, she added in a low voice.

“…This will be the first and last time I grant your request, so keep that in mind.”

Having shown such an absurd side of herself, she didn’t seem to feel embarrassed at this point.

I couldn’t help but think that Shione was unexpectedly a colorful person.

“Thank you.”

For now, I simply expressed my gratitude quietly.