The Genius Archer Who Became a One-Man Army

Chapter 14

Crash-!

“You scoundrels! You scoundrels!”

“I said hurry up and put your seal on it!”

The thugs who had barged into Walter’s smithy began breaking things left and right. Walter tried to stop them, but he couldn’t handle the gang of ruffians from the back alleys.

“Hey, old man. Should I completely crush your wrists so you can never hammer again?”

“That sounds good. Maybe we should just break one of your fingers. You won’t be needing them once this smithy is gone, anyway. Hehe!”

Eight thugs surrounded Walter, laughing cruelly. They had no way to retreat either.

But then,

Swoosh-!

“Gack-!”

An arrow flew in through the smithy door and struck one of the thugs in the neck.

“I-Ilon!”

But they quickly realized that the arrow had no tip, just knocking Ilon unconscious.

The other thugs, seeing their fallen comrade, turned around furiously.

“Who did this?”

“Are you crazy?”

They shouted towards the crowd gathered outside the smithy. Who dared to challenge them?

From the crowd, someone dashed out, leapt into the air, and kicked the nearest thug in the chest.

Wham!

Lian, landing in front of the thugs, grabbed a longsword hanging on the wall and held it to another thug’s neck.

“Move, and I’ll slit his throat.”

“You brat!”

“Do you think you’ll get away with this?”

Lian’s gaze turned icy cold.

He had come to resolve the situation, but seeing Walter being beaten and ridiculed made his anger boil over.

“Who are you people?”

“Y-you…!”

The thugs flinched at Lian’s question.

No, it was because of Lian’s terrifying gaze.

‘That kid’s eyes…’

‘Do all soldiers look like that?’

Gulp.

The thugs stood frozen, unable to move.

They couldn’t afford to mess up again.

“The one who hired you is someone named Hiltersen, right?”

“How did you know…?”

“Walter, how much do you owe Hiltersen?”

“T-two thousand gold.”

At Walter’s words, the crowd outside the smithy began to murmur.

“Two thousand gold? Those scoundrels.”

“Walter didn’t borrow even two hundred gold!”

“Those swindlers!”

The crowd’s anger grew.

It was expected. Hiltersen was known for such tactics.

“Let’s go. I’ll pay off the debt.”

“…What?”

“Take me to Hiltersen. I’ll pay him.”

The thugs could only gulp and look at each other at Lian’s words.

* * *

“Humming~.”

Hiltersen was in a good mood.

He was humming a tune.

Why wouldn’t he be? He was finally about to take over the thorn-in-his-side Walter’s smithy.

‘Once that old man is gone, I can monopolize all the smithing in Bellotra. Hehe.’

Hiltersen was primarily a moneylender. But he had a knack for various businesses and was involved in many ventures.

Among them, his biggest venture was the smithing business, and Walter had been a constant thorn in his side.

“Hehe! But why aren’t they back yet?”

They had left a while ago.

Were they really having trouble dealing with one old man?

Hiltersen paced nervously around the room.

“Mr. Hiltersen!”

At that moment, he heard someone running towards the room.

When Hiltersen opened the door, a servant breathlessly said,

“Ulte and his gang have returned.”

“Did they get the contract? Did they get the seal?”

“Well, that’s…”

But the servant’s troubled expression made Hiltersen frown.

When he went outside, he saw Ulte’s gang standing with a young boy.

“…Are you the soldier they call the Decurion?”

“My name is Lian. I’ve come to pay Walter’s debt.”

Lian’s firm gaze made Hiltersen’s expression harden slightly.

“Hehe, do you know how much that old man owes? A whopping…”

Clink.

At that moment, Lian threw a small pouch onto the ground.

It wasn’t very large, but the sound it made when it hit the ground made Hiltersen’s expression change.

“…You?”

“Check it.”

At Lian’s words, Hiltersen signaled his servant to check the pouch.

The servant carefully picked it up and looked inside,

“Gasp!”

It was filled with small, multicolored jewels.

Lian continued speaking,

“Walter’s debt is now paid. Do not go near the smithy again.”

With that, Lian turned to leave. Hiltersen stared at him, dumbfounded.

“What the hell is that crazy kid…?”

Did he really just pay off the 2000 gold?

“Let me see that pouch!”

Hiltersen snatched the pouch from the servant and looked inside.

The jewels weren’t top-grade, but they were easily worth a hundred gold each.

And there were twenty of them.

‘What a windfall.’

What started as a scheme to expand his business had turned into a 2000 gold payoff.

Losing the smithy was disappointing, but he could always find other ways to harass Walter.

“Hehe, how lucky can I get?”

Hiltersen couldn’t stop laughing as he thought about his next plans.

* * *

“Y-you gave him 2000 gold?”

“Yes, in jewels.”

“But where did you get that kind of money?”

Walter couldn’t calm his excitement and shouted at Lian.

It was a mystery how such a young boy had so much money, but there was a bigger issue at hand.

“Do you think he will just stop at taking the money? He will probably use that money to commit even more heinous acts.”

What happened next was the real problem. However,

“Don’t worry about that.”

“Don’t worry…?”

“They are already on the move.”

* * *

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

With the rough sound of someone pounding on the door, a servant ran out with a frown.

“What is the meaning of this… Huff!”

The moment he opened the door and saw the soldiers standing in front, he couldn’t hide his surprise.

There were at least thirty soldiers, and at the front stood Bolson, the madman of the Bellotra security force.

“Wh-why has the security force come here…?”

“Search every corner!”

“Yes, sir!”

At Bolson’s shout, the soldiers responded loudly and rushed into Hilton’s house.

Hilton came out hastily at the sudden commotion from outside.

“What, what is this?! Ack! Where do you think you’re going?!”

“Hilton, we received a report that you violated the usury law and have been extorting people. Is this true?”

“What nonsense is this? How can you accuse me of violating the usury law?”

“We will find out soon enough.”

Bolson glared at Hilton with eyes full of fury, making Hilton flinch under his intense gaze.

“Captain! We found it!”

“…!”

A soldier ran out, shouting towards Bolson, while holding a small pouch.

Seeing the pouch, Hilton’s eyes widened in shock.

The pouch that had just entered the house.

‘No way…’

Did they target that…?

A look of panic flashed across Hilton’s face as Bolson reached out and took the pouch from the soldier.

“What is this…?”

The amount inside was too significant to be kept at home simply because of its value.

There were twenty gems, each worth at least 100 gold.

Just as reported.

“Arrest him immediately! We will hear the full story at the security office!”

* * *

“What, what did you say?”

Walter jumped up from his seat.

His eyes were wide as he looked at Lian, and his hands were trembling.

“I sent a letter to the unit. It turns out the captain of the security force here in Bellotra is close to our company commander.”

“What a stroke of luck…”

Walter sank back into his seat.

Even though the issue was resolved, he had been so anxious.

‘He must have gone through a lot.’

Lian could tell just from Walter’s reaction how much he had suffered at Hilton’s hands.

“With this, he will likely face judgment for his past misdeeds as well as the retrieval of the money.”

“That’s a relief… a great relief.”

Lian smiled as he looked at the relieved Walter.

“So, are you going to start again?”

“Yes, I have to start again! You bought all my items, so there’s nothing left in this forge. Hahaha!”

Seeing Walter laugh, Lian turned his head to look inside the forge.

Most of the weapons and armor that used to fill the walls and boxes were gone.

Lian began to work on imbuing the weapons he bought from Walter with attributes. Then,

“I look forward to working with you.”

“I should be the one saying that. Thanks to you, I can start a new life!”

Lian nodded.

‘Now… I head to the Hallotian Temple.’

The last task here.

Lian began to walk.

* * *

Ariel was a priestess at the Hallotian Temple.

Though young, her deep faith had earned her the title of a high-ranking priestess.

As usual, she was praying in front of the statue of Ferros, the god of war they served.

“Priestess Ariel, a guest has arrived.”

“A guest?”

Ariel turned her head to look at the young apprentice priest who had spoken to her.

She nodded.

“Yes, they said they specifically wanted a holy blessing from a priestess of this temple.”

“A holy blessing… Is it a coming-of-age ceremony for a noble’s child?”

“I’m not sure. You should see for yourself.”

“…”

Though curious about the vague response, Ariel followed the apprentice priest to the lobby at the temple entrance.

“Are you the priestess?”

A young boy spoke to her.

Seeing the boy, Ariel’s expression showed surprise.

“You are the one seeking a holy blessing?”

“My name is Lian. I wish to receive a holy blessing.”

“Lian…?”

No last name.

Does that mean he is a commoner?

“I’m sorry to bring this up from the start, but do you know how much it costs to receive a holy blessing?”

“I was informed. I know it requires a donation of 50 gold to the temple.”

50 gold.

Not a significant amount for nobles, but a huge sum for commoners.

Ariel glanced at the apprentice priest beside her.

The apprentice nodded silently.

The fee had already been paid.

“Since you know… please follow this child. Before receiving the holy blessing, you must cleanse your body.”

“Yes.”

Lian followed the apprentice priest, cleansed himself in the holy water they mentioned, and changed into white clothes.

Though he felt awkward with the breeze seeping through the clothes, he soon arrived where Priestess Ariel was.

“Shall we begin?”

‘This is where… the blessing takes place.’

The statue before him was undoubtedly Ferros, the god of war.

A magic circle, drawn in white, covered the floor, and Ariel was dressed in ceremonial robes with white patterns.

“Sit here and close your eyes comfortably.”

“I look forward to your guidance.”

Lian sat down.

Ariel knelt in front of the statue of Ferros and began to pray.

At the same time, the magic circle on the floor started to faintly glow.

‘This is the beginning.’

The reason he came here.

Lian closed his eyes and envisioned the future.

Learning the Child Power Technique, gaining the ability to use Aura, and starting his journey towards becoming the ‘Great General’ from this very place.