The Male S*ave of the Count Sianella Family

---

It’s already been a month since my master, Shione Shianella, started exercising properly.

When I first saw her, I thought, “This girl is really something,” but now I’m quite surprised in a different way.

Shione has been consistently working out every single day.

During the day, she does simple cardio or full-body workouts in her room, and on her way to and from the shooting range in the early morning, she jogs around.

She’s even asked the kitchen to prepare a diet that reduces her usual food intake and helps her lose weight.

And of course, she didn’t eliminate meat dishes. If she’s going to work this hard, she might as well have some small rewards, right?

Thanks to that effort, the Shione of today is remarkably different from the one a month ago.

The little piggy who used to stuff a handful of cookies into her mouth when she was awake is nowhere to be seen.

Now, I see her sitting in a chair, munching on just one apple and taking a break.

It’s truly amazing how someone can change in just a month.

Thinking that I played a part in this transformation makes me feel a bit proud.

Knock, knock.

I knocked on Shione’s door and slowly entered the room.

Unexpectedly, the Shione I thought was still sleeping was perched on the edge of her bed, looking at me.

“You’re here.”

“Yes, what made you wake up so early today?”

“Perhaps I didn’t move around as much yesterday, so I’m feeling spry. I think that’s why.”

The Shione I saw speaking now is not the same grumpy little boulder I met before.

If I had to describe her, I’d say she’s more like a stone that a sculptor has just begun to shape.

In any case, she’s steadily becoming more human.

People who haven’t seen her much might not notice it easily, but since I’ve worked with her every day, I can clearly see her gradual transformation.

Moreover, it seems she’s becoming aware of her own changes lately, getting all excited and even taking the initiative to do things I haven’t asked her to do.

This little brat, I can’t help but feel proud.

A faint smile crept onto my lips.

“Then, we need to increase your workout intensity so you can sleep more deeply from now on.”

“Stop that nonsense. I think it’s good just to wake up as fresh as I did today.”

“I’ll arrange that after you lose a bit more weight. Your body, being trained from swordsmanship, is losing weight quickly, so it won’t take long.”

“I wish you had said that a month ago…”

“Yes?”

“Done. I’m ready to go now, so let’s get going.”

I followed Shione out of the room.

We did some light stretching together.

I’d thought she was going to collapse when she twisted her ankle while jogging the last time.

Who would have thought I’d end up dragging that heavy Shione along?

Since then, we make sure to stretch before we begin to prevent such a thing from happening again.

“It’s getting quite warm. It’s neither cold nor too hot at this time.”

“If you warm up properly, it shouldn’t feel cold at all.”

“That’s true.”

And then we started jogging.

Running straight to the shooting range feels a bit short, so we head toward the garden and then circle back to the range.

“Huff… huff….”

Shione’s breathing started to grow rough.

“Do you want to take a break?”

“Huff… I’m fine…! Haah… let’s keep going!”

“Got it. But let’s slow down a bit.”

Shione nodded, finding it difficult to answer.

I matched her pace and wondered how much longer we would run.

Before long, we arrived in front of the shooting range.

I cooled my ragged breath and rolling beads of sweat with the refreshing morning air.

It took a bit of time before I felt my breathing settling down and really enjoying the feeling.

When I turned my head to the side, I could see the joyful expression of Shione.

“I definitely feel lighter. Finally, I could run all the way here without stopping today!”

“It’s all thanks to your effort, Princess Shione.”

“I appreciate the compliment. And…”

She hesitated for a moment as if she was about to say something.

“I’m also grateful that you go out of your way to help me every time.”

Wait, is this really the same girl who warned me not to bother her back when we first met?

Her changed attitude feels surprisingly pleasant.

“Please don’t worry about it. As I always say, it’s only natural for me to do what I should as your attendant.”

“Mm.”

A slightly awkward atmosphere fell over us.

It felt a bit uncomfortable to remain in this state.

Shione seemed to feel the same way as she hurriedly quickened her pace and turned towards the shooting range.

“Ahem, let’s hurry inside. We don’t have much time to shoot.”

“Yes, understood.”

Now accustomed to the routine, Shione and I entered the shooting range and picked up a bow and arrows.

Shione stood in front of the target, and I took position beside her.

Somehow, it has become a custom for us to check each other’s archery skills at the start of each day.

Shione locked her eyes on the target.

I too turned my gaze toward the target she was aiming at.

Her target had recently been changed from a wooden round target to a scarecrow.

Despite the reduced practice time in archery due to her morning workouts, her accuracy with the round target was impressive.

It was quite admirable to see her skills improve day by day.

“Hmm….”

Shione drew back the bowstring.

With her split finger technique and dead release, she focused her aim at the target about 50 meters away.

Her aim was likely either the head or the torso.

As I followed the path of her gaze and the arrowhead, I realized her ultimate goal was not just to hit the target but to pierce between the eyebrows.

Thwang!!!

The bowstring snapped back into place with a satisfying sound.

As unnecessary tension left Shione’s arm, the bow tilted forward, and her right arm was pushed back.

Her sharp gaze followed the graceful arc drawn by the arrow.

Thwack!!

The arrow hit its mark.

“Ah….”

A sigh of disappointment escaped Shione’s lips.

Instead of scoring a hit to the brow, the arrow had landed off-target, lodged in the neck area.

It seems she wasn’t satisfied with the result.

“I aimed for the head again, but it slipped and ended up going low this time. I felt good about it, so it’s even more regrettable.”

“No need to be disheartened. The scarecrow didn’t give up its head; you hit the neck instead, didn’t you? If it were one of the enemy foot soldiers instead, they would have lost their life.”

“To aim for the head of an enemy foot soldier and be lucky enough to hit the neck is the real issue here.”

“In the end, practice will resolve it. The fact that Princess Shione is complaining about this after just a month of holding a bow is already quite impressive.”

“Yeah, I guess it’s amazing by my standards too.”

“…That’s a bit annoying.”

“Hehe, I know.”

As Shione chuckled at her own joke, I took two arrows and slung the quiver containing three more arrows on my back.

Having shot her arrow, now it was my turn.

I gripped the bowstring.

Instead of using my fingers, I pushed the arrow with the base of my thumb resting just above the lifeline of my palm.

Then, I quickly knocked an arrow and drew it back.

Using the Mediterranean technique and split finger method, the arrow cut through the air with a smooth sliding release.

As soon as the first arrow was off, I swiftly followed suit, firing the second arrow in the same manner.

Thwack! Clunk!

The arrow struck the scarecrow between the philtrum and just beside the right eye.

“Quickly, now let’s hit the other parts.”

I reached for another arrow from the quiver.

Knocking it while drawing and releasing simultaneously.

With just three swift motions, three arrows pierced through a single scarecrow.

One after the other, they punctured the forehead, torso, and abdomen.

Each one would be a lethal hit in any real combat scenario.

I had learned these techniques battling against gate-breaching marauders and humanoid monsters.

“…Your skill is hard to believe. Are you really a man?”

“Of course. Should I unbutton my shirt to prove it?”

Whack!

At my cheeky joke, Shione’s cheeks turned bright red in surprise.

I couldn’t help but chuckle and lowered my head.

“This is just a joke.”

“…You have a terrible sense of humor.”

After that moment of levity, we returned to practicing.

Shione and I took aim at different scarecrows.

Thwack!!

As Shione shot her arrow, she broke the silence.

“I have one question.”

I nodded readily.

“Is it really possible to knock out an expert knight with just one arrow?”

She looked down at the arrowhead in her hand.

“The arrowhead isn’t very big. This little iron tip seems like it wouldn’t be able to penetrate a knight’s aura and would probably break instead.”

“Are you still asking after having a thorough beating just a month ago?”

“…I don’t know, sh-shut up. And I’m a sword user, not an expert!”

Shione’s face turned red again.

If she’s embarrassed, it shows on her face and speech.

It’s quite entertaining to tease her a bit.

I answered her question.

“You just need to concentrate a denser aura into the tip and fletching, and as long as you shoot from a distance where the knight’s sword can’t reach, it should be fine. What’s difficult about that?”

“But this…”

“As long as you achieve the speed to make the knight’s sword miss or deflect the arrow, the knight could easily be made a pincushion.”

It was a personal anecdote.

I had once defeated an expert-level hunter—a gate breacher—using this method.

“…”

“You just need to keep improving until you’re stronger than any knight. Ultimately, the outcome is determined by the skill of the weapon wielder, not the type of weapon.”

I released another arrow.

It buried itself into the heart of the scarecrow.

“The sword can cut a bow, but the bow can pierce its wielder.”

“Well… you certainly know how to talk.”

Shione seemed to chew on my words, nodding as she fell into thought for a moment.

Then she slowly raised her bow again and began shooting quietly.

Her actions had taken on a sense of determination.

Time passed gradually.

Just as the chilly winds began to subside, and the gentle breeze of late spring and early summer started to mingle.

I began to feel an odd sensation creeping in.

It felt subtly hidden, but unmistakably, something unusual was around us.

“Something feels off.”

I immediately channeled my mana to heighten my senses.

The previously faint unease began to take shape.

And the clearer the outline became, the more distorted my expression grew.

“Oh no.”

I sensed the presence of a person outside the shooting range.

At this hour? Someone comes all the way to the shooting range just to watch us?

Up to now, we had never encountered anyone while practicing at this hour.

This was a quiet time when everyone was deep in sleep, not a vigorous time for training with swords and bows.

The soldiers, who had just trained hard yesterday, should be sleeping so deeply right now that the world could be ending, and they wouldn’t even notice.

I quickly moved beside Shione, drawing an arrow from my quiver.

“Um? Why the sudden change?”

Her voice echoed in the now quiet shooting range.

At the same time, footsteps began to echo towards the entrance of the shooting range.

As those footsteps drew closer, I caught sight of what appeared to be the hilt of a sword hanging at their waist.

“…Is there a visitor at this hour?”

“Visitor? You know there’s no way there could be.”

“Is there someone who holds a grudge against Shione that you might be aware of?”

“…Not really.”

“Really?”

Shione nodded slightly.

“Just in case, stay close to me.”

I drew the bowstring, aiming at the unknown entity lurking.

Just in case; after all.

Honestly, it wouldn’t be that strange if Shione’s reputation had taken a slight dip. It had changed a bit, but having one or two people harboring ill intentions about her wouldn’t be unusual.

After all the efforts it took to turn her from a brat into someone capable…

Even if it’s not concerning returning to Earth, if something goes wrong and I flub it, I’ll likely have a nightmare for life.

“I will protect you.”

For the time being, I’ll just have to keep my guard up.