Chapter 180: Eirin: I Don't Bully Children
"Right here," Haruto announced, planting a foot on a patch of earth. "Help me dig a big pit. The opening doesn't need to be too wide, but make sure the bottom is nice and spacious. I'm going to use it to store fish."
"You wanna be a Sea King or something?" Marisa asked, scratching her head in confusion.
Beside them, Reimu had already rolled up her sleeves and started working. She didn't care if Haruto wanted to play at being some 'Sea King'; he was the Lord God who had single-handedly dragged her out of poverty. If he asked her to be one of the fish in his new ocean, she'd probably just ask what kind.
"Sea King my ass!"
Haruto brought the side of his hand down on Marisa's head in a swift, practiced chop. The force was perfectly calibrated—just enough to make her see stars without causing any actual brain damage. "I just want to build an underground river. You know, for fishing and stuff later."
After leaving Marisa and Reimu to their excavation project, Haruto set off for Eientei.
If Ye Tian hadn't brought it up yesterday, he would have completely forgotten his promise to supply potions to the 'Staring God'. As it happened, Eientei always had a surplus of discarded yet perfectly usable potions to process at the end of each month. It was far better to sell them off. He could make a little money, prevent waste, and the buyer would walk away happy. A perfect three-birds-one-stone scenario.
Arriving at Eientei, Haruto found Yagokoro Eirin and explained his purpose. Since it was the end of the month, a pile of potions was indeed waiting for disposal. She even threw in a box of freshly brewed minor healing potions as a bonus.
Haruto accepted the box but took half a step back, his gaze turning subtle. "Sister Eirin, you're not actually going to charge me, are you? How cold! Besides, this is coming out of my and Kaguya's joint account!"
Several veins throbbed on Eirin's forehead. "It's not about the money," she said, her voice strained with forced patience. "There's something I'd like your help with."
"Help with something?" Haruto echoed, puzzled. What on earth could the great Sage of the Moon possibly need his help for?
Eirin didn't answer immediately. Instead, she just quietly sized him up, her analytical gaze sweeping over him.
The cardboard box hit the ground with a soft thud. Haruto warily took another half-step back, crossing his arms protectively over his chest.
"Let's get one thing straight," he declared. "I sell my skills, not my body. And while you are exceptionally beautiful, Sister Eirin, the answer is still no."
Eirin's lip twitched. Before she could form a response, Haruto had already changed his tune.
"However... if you're willing to lend me that bow of yours for, say, ten or eight years—"
His voice died in his throat. He immediately scrambled back two more steps, ducking behind the doorframe to peek his head out. "What are you doing? Thinking of getting violent, are we? You've got such a temper! And just so you know, that shrine maiden is at my house right now!"
Eirin had already produced her slender wooden bow, her hand resting lightly on its grip. A flicker of helplessness crossed her usually tranquil features. She let out a soft sigh.
"I don't bully children. If you want to learn, I will teach you."
Once he was certain the immediate danger had passed, Haruto sidled back to her side, a beaming smile on his face as he took the longbow from her.
"I knew it! How could a gentle soul like you be like a certain someone, Sister Eirin?"
"Didn't you just call me hot-tempered?" she asked dryly.
Haruto didn't even have the grace to blush. "That was then, this is now. You can't compare the past to the present," he said, his heart rate perfectly steady. He examined the stringless wooden bow in his hands. "So, how do I use this?"
"Close your eyes. Use your youkai power to condense a bowstring. The feeling is similar to when you form a Magic Cannon, but it requires far more delicacy, more focus..." Eirin began to guide him step by step.
Haruto closed his eyes as instructed. His youkai power slowly coalesced into the shape of a string, but the moment his fingertips brushed against it, the energy dissipated like mist.
"Make it more solid. Imagine you're kneading a piece of dough."
He mobilized his power again, this time using five times the previous amount. The string formed, but it was incredibly taut and hard, refusing to be drawn back.
"Don't let it dissipate. This level of tension is just right," Eirin said.
Haruto frowned. "But Sister Eirin... it's too tight. I can't pull it."
"This is the optimal density I calculated based on your physical strength. Play with it more, and you'll get used to it," she replied, giving his arm a gentle pinch. "Next, condense an arrow. The method is similar, just a different shape. The density of the youkai power at the arrowhead should be twice that of the shaft."
Haruto took a deep breath and channeled his power according to her instructions. After several failed attempts, he finally managed to condense a shimmering arrow of light. It was only thanks to the recent surge in his youkai power and the training he'd received from Hakikyou that his control had improved enough to manage it; otherwise, this would have been a complete non-starter.
A flash of approval passed through Eirin's pale blue eyes.
"Now, shoot this arrow at me."
"Shoot you?" Haruto was stunned. He shook his head vigorously. "No way. How could I shoot you, Sister Eirin? If I'm shooting anyone, it should be Kaguya."
"Just shoot. Right here."
"...Fine."
After a moment's hesitation, Haruto raised the bow, aimed at Eirin, and let the arrow fly. The instant it left the string, however, it felt as if it had plunged into high-density seawater. It rapidly lost all momentum and fizzled out of existence.
"You can wrap the arrow shaft in a protective film of youkai power," Eirin explained, her tone perfectly steady. "And use more force when you draw the string. Use seventy percent of your strength. Don't worry about the string breaking."
Haruto did as she said. He closed his eyes, concentrating as he formed the string and arrow once more. Aiming at her, he pulled the string back with a full seventy percent of his might.
Whoosh—!
The arrow tore through the air like a bolt of lightning. Although Haruto was confident that a fledgling youkai like him couldn't possibly harm Eirin, a knot of nervousness still tightened in his stomach.
The whistling sound came to an abrupt stop. Eirin had caught the arrowhead perfectly between two fingers. With a slight exertion of pressure, a soft crack echoed in the room as the arrow of light shattered into motes of energy.
Clap, clap, clap...
Haruto applauded, then gave her a thumbs-up. "Awesome." A thought suddenly struck him, and his eyes lit up. "Your arrows rely on the flow of spiritual power around the outer layer to maintain their stability, right? So if I can disrupt that balance, I can break them?"
"Theoretically, yes," Eirin confirmed, the approval in her eyes deepening. "But I wouldn't recommend it. The spiritual power on the surface of my arrows rotates at an incredible speed, making it difficult for ordinary means to interfere., that rotating layer isn't just for stabilization; it also increases precision and power. The arrow's velocity is extreme. Instead of wasting time trying to disrupt it, it's far more practical to simply dodge or block it."
Haruto nodded in understanding. When he saw Eirin extend a hand toward him, he frowned in confusion, then opened a gap in space and pulled out a lollipop, placing it in her palm.
"...I want my bow," she said, visibly suppressing the urge to shoot him on the spot. She placed the lollipop on a nearby table and held out her hand again.
Haruto warily took half a step back. "Didn't you just say I'm only a child? Surely you wouldn't take things from a kid—hiss!"
Before he could finish his sentence, Eirin's hands had already formed a bow out of thin air. This time, she had condensed the entire weapon, bow and all, from pure spiritual power. Drawing the string to its absolute limit, she released an arrow of soft light that flew out and smacked squarely against Haruto's forehead.
Haruto clutched his chest, his eyes filled with grief and indignation, and collapsed to the floor with a dramatic thud.
Eirin's eyelid twitched. She stepped forward, retrieved her wooden longbow, and handed him a smaller, simpler one in its place.
"The arrow I used had a soft tip, and I clearly hit your forehead. If you're going to clutch something, it should be your head."
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