Reece Turner, a bow maker, vaguely remembers Isabel Walton being called a Burgundian before she was baptized. For a native of England like him, people from the European continent seemed to be called Burgundians.

When the name began to circulate is unknown to him and others living in Richmondshire. At the moment, all he knew was that this beautiful, intelligent, polite and attractive young woman was a somewhat mysterious foreign woman.

Reese looked at her in surprise and said, "Yes, ma'am." You... Do you also know the famous King Edward I of England? ”

Isabel smiled lightly, nodded and said, "Yes, this Edward I was one of the most important kings of England in the 13th and 14th centuries, and he was also an outstanding king who excelled politically and militarily. Do you know? It was because of his ruthless slaughter of the Scots that he was given the nickname 'Scottish Hammer'. ”

"Well, you seem to know a lot about England."

"I owe it to my Spanish priest and Uncle Sam for teaching me."

Behind Isabel's sincere, friendly smile, "Father Spain" was actually an elaborate concoction by her, and "Uncle Sam" taught her mainly from secondary school textbooks and the Paramount Pictures war film starring Mel Gibson about the unyielding struggle between William Wallace, the leader of the Scottish uprising, and Edward I.

Isabel quickly returned to bow-making and asked the bowmaker, "Is it true that you said that archery is included in education?" ”

Reece looked at the small picture with the arrow stand and said, "Yes, it is because of King Edward I's outstanding military talent that the English army with its longbow troops is almost undefeated, and the probability of the longbowmen dying in battle is very small." ”

"So, the Longbow Force was founded by this Edward I?"

"So to speak. The law now requires all able-bodied men between the ages of 12 and 65 to go to the archery range near the church after Sunday Mass to practice archery. Anyone who deliberately evades archery training is also subject to a fine. ”

"Reese, I'm guessing you're a good longbowman, aren't you?"

"Perhaps, I don't remember much about a long time ago. Ma'am, about this groove you drew on the left side of the back of the bow, I guess it's for aiming, isn't it? ”

Isabel pursed her lips and smiled softly, and asked rhetorically, "Reese, how did the longbowmen aim at the enemy?" ”

"Place the arrow on the back of your left hand holding the back of the bow."

"Will this be able to shoot more accurately at the enemy's vital parts?"

"That's not a good idea. In order to shoot the enemy more accurately, it is necessary to go through many years of training and participating in actual combat. ”

"Reese, it's actually called the Arrow Table, and it's simply designed to shoot enemies more accurately."

Then Isabel took a longbow and a lightweight arrow that Reese had made, and made a gesture of drawing the bow and arrow, and said to Reese, "Look, Reese, the shaft of the arrow is here." ”

Then she made the same gesture of drawing her bow and arrow, and said, "Reese, come and see if the position of the arrow is the same as the first time when I take the arrow?" ”

Reese nodded silently as he watched, and then asked her to pull her bow and arrow for the third time before slowly speaking, "Well, each time you take the arrow, the position will be a little different from the previous one." Ma'am, I've heard about your archery show at the range. So, I won't doubt your incredible idea right now. ”

Isabel put down the bow and arrow in her hand and said with a smile, "Well, since you agree with my idea, how much time will it take you to make this special longbow?" ”

Reece thought about it and said, "Normally, it only takes me two hours to make a fully qualified longbow. However, I can't be sure of this longbow of yours. ”

"It's okay, I'll give you three days, can you make 4 longbows, two arm guards and two pairs of three-finger gloves, and 96 arrows of corresponding length?"

"I think it should be fine. Well, ma'am, do you have any specific requirements? ”

"Of course. Well, the length of the arch must be 5 feet (about 1.52 meters), and I won't receive it for a foot more or less. Isabel said seriously. Then, she told Reese, "The best weight of the hunched back is only 40 pounds (about 36.3 pounds), and it should never be more or less than that." ”

"Another point, the bowstring should use beef tendons."

When she paused to say more, Reece whispered, "Ma'am, I can make the longbow you ask for exactly as you ask." But ......"

Isabel knew he had something to say, so she nodded and listened to the bowmaker, "Based on my many years of experience as a longbowman and in battle, I think that wild hemp fibers are more suitable for making bowstrings than animal tendons. Because bowstrings made of animal sinews or leather are more susceptible to severe effects from water, plant fibers are less affected. ”

"Well, your suggestion is good. So how reliable is this plant fiber? ”

"Reliability is high and tough. Of all the bowstrings I usually make, a 1/8 inch (about 0.3 cm) wide bowstring is more than enough for all situations, and even the best longbowmen with amazing arm strength have not asked me to make a special thickened bowstring. ”

"Okay, then I'll use a flax fiber bowstring. However, my bow is only 5 feet long, so the length of the bowstring should be adjusted somewhat, right? ”

"Yes, not only the bowstring, but also the shafts and iron arrows that you will use in the future."

"Ma'am, I'm sorry, but here I have to explain to you about the material of the hunched back."

"Uh-huh, it's okay, you can say it."

Reece nodded, "Since the bow of the longbow is bent from a single whole, hard and resilient high-quality yew wood, I will not choose ordinary yew wood from England when choosing wood. Ma'am, I will use the best timber that has been shipped from Venice to England. ”

Isabel blinked, smiled, and said, "So, Reese, you mean you're going to use more expensive imported wood from Europe?" ”

"Yes, ma'am. Because only yew wood from Castile, Spain, which is stored in the heart of the wood of Venice, is suitable for making a good longbow back. ”

"No problem, just use imported wood, as long as the bow you make meets my requirements."

Then, Isabel suddenly thought of something, and hurriedly said, "Reese, remember, the cross-section of the back of the bow is a wide and flattened sheet arc, not a cylindrical shape with a similar length-to-width ratio peculiar to longbows. ”

Reese imagined the cross-sectional shape of the bow's back she had requested, and said with a smile, "Ma'am, I've always wanted to try to make a wide and flat longbow, but I didn't expect you to grant my wish today." ”