Sword, Magic and Academic Society

It had been two weeks since the battle with the bunch from Gold Rat.

For the last two weeks, I had been having my fill of doing the standard work of a low-rank explorer like delivery, clean-up, or the odd tasks at the construction sites during the free time I had after school and on the weekends.

In between, there was also no lack of idiots who didn't know the greatness of the <Apple Familia>, so I made sure to teach them that very carefully and gently.

Today, Boss had taken me, and eight other relatively older members of <Apple House> to the grassy fields quite a distance away from the Royal Capital. Our agenda for today was to secure the meat for <Apple House>.

With a prominent city like the Royal Capital that had a high cost of living, it was quite unrealistic to keep the stomachs of kids full when we were running low on funds. It had been especially challenging for <Apple House>, which was also an orphanage, particularly after the members responsible for securing food left together around two months ago.

So once a month, the Boss would make time out of his busy schedule and bring along the other kids who were lacking combat skills for a hunt. It was quite an important event for them since not only did they secure the necessary food supply, but it also served as training for the other kids.

◆◆◆

"Woah, a bow! Can you use it, brother Ren?! Cool~!"

"Teach me how to use it~!"

I had been embraced as one of the true members of the <Apple House> ever since the incident with the Gold Rat. The explorer society worked on the rule of whose fist was bigger, after all.

The two voices that chimed in were from Po and Rina. They were the same kids that Roye-aniki was bringing along that day when he was thrashed by that disgusting fatty. These two in particular came to adore me very much after directly watching the violence I let loose on them when we were facing that grim situation.

Speaking of that fatty, he was apparently a notorious fella in this turf. He swore on his pride that he would surely teach me a lesson and came to fight me many times. Of course, I also made sure to give him a polite reception.

However, he started to become a pain in the ass later. I did think of running away but I feared that it might be taken as a sign of cowardice which in turn would be seen as a weakness of the <Apple House>. It was one of these days when I was thoroughly fed up with the fatty's persistence that I noticed a salve made of Yuk grass that the fatty carried with him. An idea suddenly came to me and I decided to give him a good thrashing, apply the salve, and then thrash him again. Basically, fulfilling two days’ worth of quota in one.

Well, he didn't show up the next day. We did chance upon each other once at the east branch, though he left a tasteless 'What shit luck to see your sorry face, Ren-kun' greeting.

In any case, perhaps it was the impact of this or maybe instilling some politeness in those fools in public was starting to bear fruit, the harassment towards the <Apple House> members noticeably decreased at the work site. Consequently, I, a newcomer, was warmly welcomed by the Familia members.

"Fuhaha. You have a discerning eye if you can tell how cool it is. Unfortunately, I’m still in the learning phase. I only bought it just the other day so today is the first time I’m going to use it practically."

"Boo~ So it was just to show off~!"

"But teach me when you get better, Ren!"

"Why did you choose a short bow though? It's not a problem but Lygo of all things… You really have some strange preferences. Anyway, be careful where you shoot if you haven't used it before. Other brats are loitering around so that may pose a problem... Though you're also a brat."

The one to see the strangeness was of course the Boss. But he was right. It wouldn't be a laughing matter if any of my comrades got caught in the crossfire. Besides, I was only carrying 20 arrows in my quiver today, in contrast to the inexhaustible supply in the Academy's training ground, so I couldn't just go around taking every shot as practice.

With the training that I was doing every day, I could now shoot around 1 arrow every two seconds while maintaining a certain precision rate, or 3 arrows in two seconds if I didn't have to focus on precision that much. With my current stock, I would be out of arrows in roughly 15 seconds if I blindly shot them all.

"Roger. By the way, what are we going to hunt today?"

I asked the Boss who was carrying a sharp spear-like sword.

"Hmm. Our main target is a sheep called Runesheep. Its meat is quite delicious and it is just the season for them to change their fur. Their fur quality is incredible. The brats with us are enough to take down a regular Runesheep, but those that had turned into monsters need someone with strength comparable to a D-rank. Its deadliest move is the charge attack that can easily take a person down so I’ll be dealing with it if it uses that move. Well, it should be a piece of cake for you as well."

"I see. The monster-ified unit has glossy fur and their mana organ is their horn, right? I’ll make sure to call you if I see one."

"What do we have here, have you seen one before?"

"Never. Though I have memorized pretty much all the monsters that appeared in the Canardia monster encyclopedia."

"...That bulky dictionary… You have to have one heck of a brain to do that."

"Eh, but that's not a huge feat. Anyone can do that as long as they have an interest in it."

"Hmm, and that is the biggest hurdle to cross. Why bother reading about the monsters that you're not planning to hunt when you can just learn about the local one and call it a day, huh…? Anyway, we're now quite far from the vicinity of the capital's perimeter. So talk less and focus on your surroundings for signs of monsters."

After saying that, the Boss gathered everyone in one place.

"Leave the handcart here. Also, let's change the formation a bit since we have Ren with us today. I’ll be vanguard while Amur and Roye will be taking the flank positions with their spears. Ren, you’ll be in charge of the rear. Amur, what do you know about the main points of the monsters in this region?"

Aniki replied unhesitatingly when he was questioned.

"The most dangerous monster here is the B-rank monster Greateus Snake. It usually doesn't make an appearance but given the season, it may be possible for it to come out of its home in search of prey. It reacts to prey's movement so the best way to deal with it is to either let it pass or stay quiet until Pops hunts it down.

In the attribute monster category, those with wide-range magic that can catch all of us in one fell swoop are the most dangerous. The strategy is to spread out in an interval of 20 meters and retreat from there. From there, it will be taken care of by Pops.

And in case Pop judged that we can face a regular monster, we should challenge it with the three shielders and one spearman formation.”

Hearing the explanation, the Boss nodded.

"Correct. Ren, you can follow your own judgment today. Just make sure that everyone is keeping up with the pace from the rearguard position. Also, be especially careful about the other members’ positions before shooting an arrow. That's all. Let's move on to our target, it's that rocky mountain."

After giving his instructions, he started walking steadily towards a rocky mountain located about 500 meters away through a narrow path.

◆◆◆

Upon reaching the rocky mountain, we spotted many Runesheep grazing on the grass here and there.

The two relatively weaker ones were taken down by Amur-aniki and Roye-aniki’s teams respectively. I didn't get a chance to make a move.

When I was watching them drain the Runesheeps’ blood as they hung them on a short tree nearby, the Boss called out to me.

"There's a monster Runesheep over there, take a look at it. I want to see your skill with a bow."

I looked in the direction he pointed out. Certainly, there was one Runeheep with a fur glossier than the others and looked quite strong. Though I don't know if it was because the Runesheep was in the shade, I felt like its fur was actually shining much more than I imagined it to be. I guess I just lack enough experience, huh?

"It seems to be on guard."

That Runesheep was facing us, occasionally sending glances our way while grazing on the grass.

"Anyone will when they see two of their brethren killed before their eyes. It might be a stretch to hit it, so take it easy. I only want to see your aim."

I nodded hearing his words.

The monster Runesheep was around 70m away from where we were, but considering the elevation difference, I think it was barely within my effective shooting range.

I swiftly nocked a wooden arrow, took my aim, and released it in that split second.

The monster Runesheep, however, dodged it by turning its body sideways and immediately made its escape toward the cliff top after seeing the arrow wedging itself into the rock.

I glanced at the Boss and saw him making a subtle expression with his arms crossed.

"I apologize for letting it escape... I didn't know that's how they dodge or I would have adjusted the impact timing and followed up with a second arrow."

"...Is this really your first time? Where were you aiming?"

"Huh? Well, it's forehead… I thought if I wanted to keep its mana organ intact and avoid damaging its fur, the forehead was the spot to aim for. Should I have not done that?"

"...I knew it, it really felt like you were aiming at that 'spot' in that instant… And did you just say you would have made a follow-up attack? Haa, I don't even feel like commenting on your lack of common sense."

Err, so was he angry? Or is he praising me?

"...I will do my best in my next shot."

I couldn't understand it so I just replied with what I thought to be a safe reply.