Chapter 42 : Archer Barnaba (2)

“What’s this?”

I received the five small eggs Cled handed me and examined them from various angles.

“That’s your weapon. You can hide them on your body, so hide all of them.”

“These are just bird eggs.”

“They’re Sojo eggs.”

They weren’t boiled, and they were small bird eggs with a lingering fishy smell. Stained eggs about the size of quail eggs.

‘What kind of training is he going to make me do?’

He gave me a long-sleeved top that covered my wrists and stuffy-looking pants and told me to change, but I never imagined I’d be putting bird eggs in my sleeves.

For now, I followed his instructions and stuffed the eggs into the pockets of my clothes.

“Good. Now, keep the eggs from breaking. If even one remains, I’ll praise you.”

“That’s a piece of cake.”

The moment I said that, his kick flew toward my face.

“Whoa…!”

I reflexively defended with one hand, and the bird egg inside my sleeve burst with a pop.

“What are you doing…?”

My sleeve, sticky from the broken egg, felt uncomfortable.

“It’s training.”

Without giving me a chance to argue, his attacks flew in relentlessly.

At first glance, it seemed like a similar training method to Captain Baekmyo, but he was much faster and more accurate. It felt like he was targeting only the places where the eggs were.

This time, his elbow flew toward my face.

I could easily block it with my right hand, but if I did, the bird egg inside my sleeve would be smashed. Therefore, I was naturally induced to lean my head back and avoid it.

“Your lower body is vulnerable.”

The moment I realized, the bird egg in my pants pocket was hopelessly smashed.

“Concentrate. There are still three left.”

‘It’s uncomfortable, so I can’t…’

It looked like I’d peed myself.

After that, he attacked the eggs several times, and my body was sticky and damp.

“Is this really training…!?”

When I complained to him with a wronged expression, he shrugged and replied.

“What do you think was the factor that caused me to get hurt the most while fighting?”

“…Sarkas?”

“No, the weapons on my body.”

He poured out numerous hidden weapons and blades from his sleeves and pockets onto the floor.

“…!”

“If this were a real battle, what’s on your body right now wouldn’t be yolk, but your blood, Saya.”

Hiding numerous weapons on your body meant that you were more vulnerable to external impacts. The blade hidden for stabbing could accidentally stab you, and if you didn’t choose the right location, it wouldn’t function as a weapon.

‘So that’s what it was…’

Thinking that the place I was hit was a blade, I got chills.

“Since I’m teaching such a dangerous technique, I can’t bear to see my student die from being stabbed by their own weapon.”

The price of turning your whole body into a weapon was that any part of your body could become a weak point.

“For a while, try not to break the eggs. Do your own laundry.”

“…Yes.”

I was worried about how much more of this stickiness I would have to endure.

Luna and Yuri were still recovering, so visits were impossible, and Carne was incapable of normal conversation, so I decided to focus solely on training for the time being.

After that, a 3-minute hourglass was placed during training with Cled.

For 3 minutes, he would try to break the eggs with all his might, and I had to protect them.

At first, I was so focused on defending and avoiding that I often fell down on my own, but at some point, I realized that being aggressive was more efficient.

The more passive I was, the more opportunities I gave Cled to attack.

It was, of course, difficult to risk breaking the eggs and attack, and they often broke, but as I became more aggressive, the time I could hold out gradually increased.

Cled, who seemed so relaxed that he could pick his nose during sparring, also became active enough to sweat a little.

Exactly one week later, when training was in full swing, Cled suddenly stopped moving.

“…?”

Anyone could see that if he had continued his kick, the last remaining egg would have been smashed, but he didn’t continue and just froze in place.

“…You lasted 3 minutes.”

“Eh?”

Come to think of it, the hourglass ran out exactly when the last bird egg remained.

“That’s it for today.”

He left indifferently, and I took out the bird egg that remained in my sleeve and held it.

‘…I finally protected it!’

It was the first egg I had protected in a week.

Excitedly, I held it up high.

Crack.

“…Ah.”

Because I held it too tightly, the egg crumbled hopelessly in my hand, and the liquid flowed down my hand.

It was a particularly peaceful weekend.

Cled was sick in bed due to a hangover from drinking too much last night, and Carne had made a fuss all night and then fell asleep.

I sat in the shade of a tree in the training ground, staring blankly at the clouds passing by.

‘…It’s getting hot.’

I was starting to feel that the sunlight was getting stronger and the days were getting longer.

Was it the countdown to the transition from spring to summer?

Then, with a thud, an arrow embedded itself in the archery target of the training ground.

‘…Hmm?’

Because archery was a fairly niche weapon at the Spirit Academy, I was the only one who used it here, so this was a rare user.

After the arrow hit the center of the first target, the second and third arrows that were fired also accurately hit the centers of the targets.

Accurate and fast—a scary skilled person.

‘Who is it?’

To confirm the person’s identity, I approached the source of the sound.

“…Chris?”

“Oh, you were here, Spirit Master!”

His identity was Chris Barnaba, Princess Isabel’s new escort.

I had left the crossbow for repair a week ago.

“I looked for you for a long time because you weren’t in the dormitory. Would you like to see the parts I fixed?”

When I received the crossbow I had left with him, it felt much lighter than before. Above all, a handle had been added.

“This is?”

“First, I replaced the rotten parts and changed the string. I dug out the inside, so it should be lighter. And, you can load it more easily than before by using the handle.”

“…”

“…Ah, I’m sorry if you’re upset that I modified it without permission…!”

“No, I’m rather grateful…”

I just left it for repair, but it came back in a much more advanced form.

From the parts that focused on weight reduction, I could feel his love for weapons.

“I’m glad if that’s the case. When I touch these things, I unconsciously become serious.”

I fixed the crossbow he returned to my hand.

“Can I test it right away?”

“Of course! It’s an honor.”

Then I’ll try it right away without hesitation.

I pulled the handle, which was the new loading method, fixed the bolt, aimed at the target, and fired.

And I immediately reloaded the arrow and fired at the next target.

‘…It’s much easier!’

Unlike before, when I had to fix the crossbow on the ground and pull it up with all my strength to load it, the addition of the handle made continuous firing possible.

Chris, who was watching my shooting, pointed to the end of the crossbow from behind and said.

“If you want to increase the power, you can also load it by hooking a string on this back part. Of course, it will take a lot more strength than normal loading.”

Looking at the 180-degree changed crossbow, I could only marvel.

“Thank you. I didn’t expect you to care so much.”

“No problem. I’ll only charge 100 gold for the repair.”

“What!?”

I was surprised and looked at him, and he was smiling innocently.

“I’m kidding, Spirit Master.”

Because he said it with a serious look, I was startled, thinking he was really charging me.

Come to think of it, he was a person who liked to joke.

“This is the atmosphere of the academy. I’m kind of envious. Everyone.”

“Envious?”

I thought that at that age, being the imperial family’s archery instructor would be the envy of everyone, but it was surprising that Chris said that.

“I’ve been an archer ever since I enlisted at the age of 14. So, I’m a little envious of people of similar age gathering together and learning something together.”

“Ah…”

“…If it’s okay with Spirit Master, could I come here every weekend? All I’m good at is shooting arrows, but if you’re interested, I’ll teach you wholeheartedly.”

“Really? Is that okay? What about your escort duty to the princess…”

If an elite like this teaches me archery, I’d welcome it with open arms, but as an escort, is it okay to be away from her?

“Except when the princess goes out, she is always protected within the palace. Rather, she seems to prefer to be a little apart from me during normal times.”

“…Well, she’s a very free-spirited person.”

“And, I have some worries…”

‘Worries?’

He scratched his face and couldn’t keep his gaze still.

“You know that there will be a ball at the Spirit Academy soon, right? Actually, the princess is planning to attend it…”

Come to think of it, the day of the ball was approaching.

The fact that the ball was approaching also meant that the original novel was approaching its final chapter.

“…So?”

“So… um… at the ball…”

Judging by his gaze and gestures, I could tell at once.

I see.

“You want to be the princess’s partner at the ball?”

“S-Spirit Master…! If you say that out loud…!”

“What’s wrong? It’s just the two of us here.”

Seeing him flustered with a red face made me realize that he was also a boy in the midst of puberty.

“…Since Spirit Master is a woman, I thought you could indirectly tell me about that part… So…”

So, the person he found for love advice is me.

“I’m sorry, but I think you’ve found the wrong counselor. I’m a man…”

“…Man?”

I immediately realized my slip of the tongue and quickly changed my words.

“I have no experience… with men!”

“…Ah. I, I see. Spirit Master, you too…”

I almost confessed the fact that only I know in this universe.

Come to think of it, it wouldn’t be bad to help him.

I didn’t like the idea of Isabel dancing with a sleazy man, and Chris was a much better guy than those guys.

“…Still, I’ll help you as much as I can. As a woman, there might be something I can tell you.”

I’m a woman now, but it was so awkward to introduce myself as a woman.

“Really? Thank you, Spirit Master!”

I sent him off with excitement, and worries about accepting the request came over me.

‘…I wonder if I’ve gotten involved in a more complicated problem than I thought.’

It’s true that I’m worried, but since I’ve already accepted, I have to do what I can.

The next morning, as usual, I bought cheap alcohol and went to Cled.

“I brought the tuition.”

“I’d be really happy if you showed the same passion as the first day.”

‘It’s not passion, it’s the price…’

After receiving the bottle, he handed me the eggs to use for training this time.

“…Cled?”

“What is it?”

“The eggs seem a little bigger than before.”

What he handed over this time was not the same bird eggs as before, but yellow eggs used for cooking.

“Is there a problem?”

“Even if there is a problem, you’re just going to proceed, right?”

“You know me too well.”

I don’t know how much more I’ll have to shower with yolk, just because I thought I’d made a small step forward.