“Ignore him. That’s just adventurer banter. You’ll have to get used to it if you visit the Guild regularly,” Jack advised, remembering some of the cruel ‘banter’ he’d been subjected to in his past life due to his badly scarred face. “Try again.” He thought of something just as Toma started to pull an imaginary arrow back. “Oh. And if a little banter will put you off a shot, imagine how you’ll fail if a screaming goblin runs at you with a rusty sword!”
Toma’s eyes widened.
Jack’s face tightened as a recent memory passed through his mind. The stink of goblin breath, the flash of chipped iron, and his own heart thudding hard enough to drown out thought. He exhaled slowly. “Always remain calm,” he added, voice quieter but firm. “A calm archer is a living archer.”
Toma nodded, gripping his bow tighter. “Stay calm… got it.”
“Good. Panic will get you killed. Calm keeps you thinking.” Jack gave a small, approving smile. Now I just need to follow that advice myself.
Toma nodded again.
“Okay. Try again,” Jack said.
The boy straightened and pulled an imaginary arrow back with his imaginary bowstring.
“Relax,” Jack chuckled. “You’re not a statue.” He tapped Toma’s shoulder. “Archery’s a dance between tension and looseness. Too tense, and you’ll wobble or jerk your shot on release. Too loose, and you’ll be sloppy.”
The boy’s eyes were shining. “Okay! Okay… what else?”
Jack gave him a thoughtful look. “When you aim, don’t just stare at the target. See the surrounding space. Archery’s as much about feel as it is about sight. Some of the best shots happen when you trust the motion, not when you overthink every shot.” He’d read this advice in one of the books on archery training.
Toma’s eyes widened in admiration. “You sound like a master archer or something!”
“I’m just a Novice Scribe, remember.” Jack smiled, though in his mind he pictured sinking an arrow into the Baron’s heart as an Apprentice Archer. “But I’ve read a lot of books… and had some very interesting teachers in my time.”
Jack felt [Assassin’s Intuition] ping; he glanced around, but there didn’t appear to be any threats. Probably just a passerby watching. That was a potential issue with the assassin skill; at level 0, it could activate for mundane reasons. A passerby might’ve taken exception to what he looked like or what he was wearing as opposed to true negative feelings towards him.
Toma grinned. “You’re really cool, Jack.”
Jack laughed the compliment off. “Keep practising, Toma. Archery’s a lot like life. You miss more than you hit at the start, but every shot teaches you something.” He’d read that advice in a book. And sometimes you get yourself killed trying to assassinate the monster who killed your family…
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Toma shuffled his feet a little, lowering his voice. “Jack… um… can I ask you something?”
Jack tilted his head. “Sure.”
Toma hesitated, then blurted out, “I don’t have any arrows.”
Jack wasn’t surprised. “Was today your first time shooting a bow?”
The boy looked embarrassed. “Took me a month to make my bow. Haven’t been able to make a straight arrow yet. Was gonna borrow the ones in the training rooms.”
Feeling a pang of empathy, Jack glanced at his own quiver. He had ten basic arrows that were cheap and sturdy; perfect for a kid to practise with. He also had a few dozen higher-quality arrows looted from the rat-faced rogue. Without a word, he reached in and pulled out four of his basic arrows, holding them out to Toma. “Here. Take these. I was planning to buy some more soon anyway.”
Toma’s eyes went wide. “Really? Are you sure?”
Jack smiled, feeling good about helping someone. “Positive. You’ll need them to practise at home, right? Or at least to get started.”
The boy reached out, but hesitated for a moment.
Jack nodded. “You can’t practise without arrows.”
Toma took the arrows in both hands like they were precious treasure. “Thanks, Jack! Thank you so much! My dad says there’s no nice people in the world, but he’s wrong.”
He waved him off with a small laugh. “Just promise me you’ll keep practising and not put someone’s eye out.” He grimaced, imagining his mom’s reaction if Toma shot someone by mistake. Damn. She’d blame me for giving a child weapons.
Toma beamed, clutching the arrows close to his chest. “I promise! I’ll practise every day!”
“Make me one more promise,” Jack added with a grin. “If you ever meet my mom, don’t tell her I gave you any arrows. Okay?”
The young teen looked confused but nodded.
Jack chuckled. “Good lad.” He reached out and gave the boy’s shoulder a squeeze. “You’ve got spirit, Toma. That’s worth more than fancy gear.”
Toma nodded and looked ready to start practising right away. “I want to join the Adventurers Guild when I’m sixteen… and then the King’s Army as an archer.”
Plenty of poor kids shared similar goals. Gain a basic combat class, practise as an adventurer for a few years, then join the army for steady coin. If there was one thing the King’s Army understood, it was paying its soldiers on time.
“That’s a good goal, Toma. But remember, being an adventurer isn’t just about skill. It’s about judgement, too. Learn when to fight… and when to walk away.”
Toma tilted his head. “Did you… walk away from fights?”
Jack thought about the altercation in the forest over the goblin ear and loot. I should have left as soon as I heard voices. If he’d left, he could have avoided killing the rogue, the swordsman… and the need to avoid four murderous adventurers. He gave a faint, wry smile. “Sometimes. Sometimes I didn’t. And that’s why I know it matters.” He ruffled the boy’s hair. “Alright, you’d better get home before your family starts worrying.”
Toma clutched his gifted arrows, his grin stretching ear to ear. “Thanks, Jack! Will you be here tomorrow, too?”
“Maybe. I’ve got a lot on, but I might try to train with Nessa and Ella again in the morning. That was fun.”
The boy nodded. “I’m gonna save up so I can do it again. That was so much fun! I can’t wait until I can do it every day. When you got hit in the bum with that blast, I almost peed myself laughing!”
Jack chuckled. “Hey, I think you’re forgetting the most important rule.” He put on a mock-stern face, trying to sound like a veteran adventurer. “What happens in Training Room 13, stays in Training Room 13.”
They both laughed.
With a final wave, Toma ran off down the hallway, light on his feet, already pretending to nock an imaginary arrow as he zigzagged between a group of grumbling adventurers.
Jack watched him go, a small smile lingering on his face. Despite the ache in his shoulders, he felt a little lighter. I should get going too, he thought, remembering the four adventurers he still had to avoid.
With one last glance around the Guild, Jack adjusted his pack, patted his white oak bow, and made his way to the exit. As he stepped out onto the bustling streets of Lundun, the memory of Toma’s grateful smile stayed with him. Warming him against the hidden threats he might yet face.
A PATH OF METAL TO AN AMBER DAWN
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Fantasy LitRPG Adventure Time Travel Progression Crafting Sci-Fi Magitech Reincarnation Genetically Engineered Gamelit
Where flowers wilt, grow metal. Where animals die, build life.
Evelyn Anima has survived for years in the ruins of District Zero, a sealed-off land at the heart of a continent-sized magitek city shattered by a magical disaster that left millions dead—or twisted into monsters.
After countless failed attempts to become a Classer and earn the right to leave the exclusion zone, time is finally running out.
The experimental Core implanted in her as a child threatens to kill Evelyn and the last remnants of her mother's green dream with her.
To fix this broken future and herself, the answer may lie in a distant time. When druids still walked the world, and magic wasn’t trapped in circuits and metal.
But to know history is to live it, and Evelyn may be bringing more of the future with her than she intended.
* A Journey of Hope & Discovery*
Chapter 093 The Smile Of The Beast
