The Male S*ave of the Count Sianella Family

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What is a male knight in this world?

I’ve heard that in the fantasy novels here, there’s always at least one male knight who serves as a companion or husband to the protagonist, making them incredibly popular among women.

Having awakened my mana in the past, I found the merchant’s sincere words about selling this body’s former owner as a male knight to be believable.

Reading that memory, I just couldn’t understand why male knights were so popular.

‘What’s so great about them?’

Is it simply because they’re stronger than ordinary, weak, and introverted men?

No. If it were merely about strength, the male slave named Lint in the adjacent cage should have been sold off long ago.

That guy has decent looks, and he’s like a regular dude from Earth, not at all what you’d expect from the overly calculated men here.

But considering that Lint wasn’t sold and had no visible popularity, it doesn’t seem like just being strong is enough.

Why exactly do women in this world adore male knights so much? What strikes a chord in their hearts?

After some deep contemplation, I reached this conclusion.

‘It’s a distorted obsession with strong men…’

The merchant who once owned me came to mind.

‘A male knight must outwardly be incredibly handsome, pleasing to the eyes of anyone who sees him, while internally being as loyal as a devoted husband must be virtuous in every way… But most importantly!’

‘For the sake of his lord, he must always be ready to draw his sword, bravely cutting down even the strongest woman!’

…What a remarkable belief.

From her crazed words, I could be sure of one thing.

Liking male knights is indeed a warped obsession with strong men.

‘Well, there were those back on Earth who particularly liked knights too…’

It doesn’t seem all that different from that, and after being sold off to Shianella, I thought no more about male knights.

Now that I gaze upon this male knight brought back from the slave auction, I can’t help but feel a mix of feelings.

I wish people would stop talking about me like that; their whispers are impossible to ignore.

‘But I’m glad Shione is here.’

The fortunate thing is that Shione is directing a hostile gaze toward those staring at me, effectively putting them on edge.

As her distinctive glare swept through the crowd, the piercing stares that had pricked at my skin disappeared.

Once the gazes settled down, Shione finally relaxed her expression.

I asked her, “So, being Shianella’s male knight… it seems that the rumors have attracted quite a bit of attention.”

“He’s the man who defeated Arachne. It’s juicy gossip for those who just swing swords all day.”

“That’s true, but…”

Given my looks and having caught Arachne with this very arm, it fits perfectly into what these women call a male knight.

Thinking about it, it’s not surprising to have such a nickname.

Though, the sudden influx of attention feels a bit overwhelming.

In the midst of it, I decided to ask Shione one thing.

“Do you also like male knights, Princess Shione?”

“Uh, why do you ask that all of a sudden…?”

“It seems most women have a fondness for male knights, so I was wondering what you think.”

“Well… a male knight…”

Shione fumbled with her words, seemingly lost in thought.

It looks like she might also have some fantasy about male knights.

Watching her reaction made it rather enjoyable to tease her.

“I suppose I admire them a little.”

“I see.”

It must be a bit embarrassing for her to say that in front of me, who now carries the title.

I thought it could be fun to push a little further, so I put on a calm expression.

“Then what about me?”

“What do you mean by that?”

“You called me Shianella’s male knight, didn’t you?”

“Th-that…”

Gulp.

Seeing Shione’s face turning bright red, I couldn’t help but burst out laughing.

“It was just a joke.”

“…!”

Shione, who looked like she had so much to say, simply chewed her lips before sighing at my laughter.

“Let’s not mess around here; let’s start shooting.”

“I will follow your lead.”

I trailed behind the flustered Shione as we entered the shooting range.

It seemed the rumors about me had spread among the archers inside the range, as eyes concentrated on me for a moment.

But soon, Shione’s cold demeanor diffused the tension.

As Shione took her place, she began to shoot arrows slowly.

Unlike when she first learned, her arrows flew with a very stable posture.

She easily hit the target’s center.

“Well, since you’ve been standing still, let’s practice shooting while moving now.”

“Moving?”

“If a monster pops out next to you, you can’t just stand still and shoot your bow, can you? It’d be best to get used to shooting while slowly moving.”

“Ha! I’ll give it a try then.”

Following my instruction, Shione walked sideways as she shot.

Pew!

An arrow struck the edge of the target.

She aimed for the center, but her expression cooled as it didn’t go as planned.

“I made a mistake for a moment.”

She pulled the bowstring back again.

The result didn’t change much.

Though it was closer to the center than before, it was still a ways off.

“…Just one more time.”

“I’ll do it one more time.”

“…Just one last time.”

Seeing Shione’s annoyed expression showed she thought she needed to hit it right this time.

I thought it would be good to help her out, so I approached her from behind.

Shione flinched at my sudden closeness, where I could hear her breathing.

“…Ray?”

“Adjust your stance. I’ll help you this time.”

I leaned my face close to Shione’s shoulder.

This was to help her zero in on her target even better.

But Shione seemed startled by the sudden closeness, going rigid as her eyes darted around to catch my gaze.

“Draw back the string.”

“…Isn’t this a bit too close?”

“Didn’t I tell you like this before?”

“Even so, a man being this close with all these eyes around… doesn’t feel right.”

“I’m only here to teach you. Do not worry.”

As I said this confidently, Shione finally drew the bowstring back.

I placed my right hand over hers, which was holding the arrow and bowstring.

“I’m just Shione’s male knight, teaching her archery, nothing more.”

“U-uh…!”

As my hand rested over hers, Shione let out a surprised sound.

Having gotten used to such reactions, I simply smiled back.

“When I pull away my hand, you can release the arrow.”

“…Got it.”

I walked alongside her.

We moved slowly together so she could adjust the direction and height of her aim.

When it felt right for the arrow to fly straight to the center, I released her hand.

“Shoot.”

With my words, the arrow flew and struck the target.

The arrow lodged itself right in the center, and all the distractions in Shione’s eyes fixed on the target.

“…I’ll shoot once more by myself.”

“I’ll be watching from behind.”

Shione shot again as if enchanted.

It appeared she had finally found her rhythm, as her arrow was much closer to the center than before.

With a few more days of practice, she’d likely adapt to shooting while moving at that speed.

What remarkable talent.

Seeing her improve rapidly with each suggestion filled me with anticipation.

That’s when I thought.

‘Maybe I should start teaching her how to infuse mana into her arrows too.’

What if I had her practice infusing mana into arrows instead of swords?

To penetrate a monster’s tough exoskeleton and hide, that little arrow would surely need the power of mana.

This sort of training was an essential step towards reaching a higher level of skill.

Just like a knight’s sword aura, the technique to strengthen a weak arrow is similar.

Having already reached the level of a sword user, Shione should know a bit about infusing mana into her weapon.

With her talent for archery accelerated through quests, I thought it was the perfect opportunity to teach her.

After concluding my brief musings, I looked at my lady.

Shione was confirming that her arrows were landing nearer to the center, a smile lighting up her face as she gazed at her bow and hands.

Since this had to do with mana, I knew to be cautious as many eyes and ears were around.

I approached Shione and whispered in her ear.

“Can we come to the shooting range tomorrow at dawn, just the two of us?”

“Just like before?”

“Yes, exactly like before.”

I nodded at her questioning gaze.

“I have something to tell you privately.”

“…Just the two of us?”

“That’s right.”

With her enthusiasm for archery, I thought she might have a great reaction.

Shione cocked her head in curiosity about what I might teach her.

But I wanted to see her reaction when she finally received the answer, so I simply smiled back.

“You’ll probably enjoy it.”

After that, Shione frequently gave me expectant glances.