**Chapter 14: The First Breakthrough**
Four weeks passed in a blur of agonizing routine.
Every single day began with the same relentless cadence: Ten thousand meters of screaming lungs, hundreds of grueling repetitions that tore his muscles to shreds, and hours spent in the sun-baked courtyard swinging a wooden blade until his arms felt entirely disconnected from his shoulders.
The change was slow at first—almost imperceptible under the sweat-soaked linen shirts. But by the end of the month, the floor-length mirror in Lucien’s grand bedchamber reflected a completely different man.
The soft, bloated double chin had vanished, replaced by the sharp, angular line of a defined jawline. The heavy roll of belly fat had receded, revealing a solid, compact frame that carried itself with quiet, erect posture rather than a slouched, exhausted stoop. He was still broad-shouldered, but now it was the breadth of dense, functional muscle carved out through sheer willpower.
Lucien wiped a line of sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand, breathing steadily after finishing his morning ten-kilometer run. His pulse was a slow, controlled rhythm; he wasn't even hyperventilating anymore.
‘Ada,’ Lucien called out in the quiet sanctuary of his mind, popping open the top button of his collar. ‘Show status of only results of training last months .’
A crisp, translucent blue window shimmered into view against the backdrop of the courtyard.
[ Host Status ]
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Name: Lucien Alexius Valerian
Level: 1
Strength: 14 (+9)
Agility: 11 (+8)
Stamina: 16 (+11)
Mana Reserves: F-Rank (Dormant)
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[ System Alert ]
Condition Met: Host has successfully completed 30 consecutive days of physical conditioning.
Reward Unlocked: High-Tier Mana Breathing Technique — [Void-Heart Pulse]
Lucien blinked, his pulse suddenly spiking. "Void-Heart Pulse?"
[ Correct, Host, ] Ada’s cheerful, synthesized voice rang out in his mind. [ Your physical vessel has reached the minimum baseline required to process raw mana without suffering internal organ rupture. Would you like to assimilate the technique? ]
"Do it," Lucien commanded without a second's hesitation.
In an instant, a sharp, icy sensation flooded his chest, right where his heart beat. It wasn't painful, but it felt as though someone had poured liquid nitrogen directly into his bloodstream.
Intricate diagrams, glowing energy pathways, and rhythmic breathing patterns burned themselves directly into his mind's eye.
Unlike standard breathing techniques taught by the elite noble academies—which relied on pulling atmospheric mana through the lungs—the Void-Heart Pulse forced mana directly into the cardiovascular system.
It used the heart itself as a natural pump to circulate raw, unfiltered mana into every cell, bone, and muscle tissue simultaneously.
Lucien dropped into a cross-legged position right there on the damp grass, closing his eyes to the world outside.
Inhale for four beats. Hold for two. Force the mana down into the core. Exhale.
Thump. Thump.
Ambient mana—invisible to normal eyes, floating in the morning air like faint specks of starlight—began to draw toward him. It pooled around his bare skin like mist before being forcefully pulled inward with every breath he drew.
His veins throbbed with a soft, pale blue illumination visible beneath his skin. The heavy, stagnant feeling that had weighed down his body since he first awoke in this world shattered like thin glass.
"What in the world...?"
A low, gravelly voice echoed from the edge of the courtyard.
Sir Brandon stood near the weapons rack, a heavy iron broadsword resting in his hand, staring at the young lord in sheer disbelief. As an elite knight, Brandon was hyper-sensitive to the subtle shifts in atmospheric mana.
For the past month, he had watched Lucien transform from a lazy, obese lump into a quiet demon who trained until his knuckles bled.
Brandon had respected the kid's sheer grit, but he knew grit alone couldn't bridge the gap for someone born with pitiful mana reserves.
Or so he had thought.
Right now, the sheer density of ambient mana gathering around Lucien was terrifying. It wasn't the chaotic, wild mana of a novice; it was compressed, forced into a tight, rhythmic vortex that centered around the boy's chest.
‘He’s awakening his mana circuit?’ Brandon thought, his jaw tightening as the hairs on his arms stood on end.
‘No... he’s not just awakening it. He’s mastering a breathing rhythm I've never seen in all my years of service. Who taught him this?’
After ten minutes, the blue glow faded back into Lucien's skin, leaving behind a subtle, radiant warmth.
He opened his eyes. The world looked crisp, hyper-detailed. He could hear the faint rustle of leaves fifty yards away and count the individual dew drops glistening on the grass blades near his leather boots.
He stood up smoothly, picking up the heavy wooden training sword leaning against the stone bench.
He didn't swing wildly this time. Guided by the new current of mana coursing through his veins, he held the blade in a clean, effortless mid-guard stance. He channeled a tiny, focused thread of mana into the wood.
Swish—CRACK!
He executed a simple, fluid horizontal slash. A shockwave of condensed air burst from the tip of the wooden sword, snapping a thick, reinforced training dummy ten feet away clean in half.
The top half of the dummy thudded heavily onto the grass.
An eerie silence fell over the courtyard.
Lucien looked at the severed dummy, then down at his hands, feeling the silent power humming under his skin. A slow, dark smile spread across his face.
‘Not bad for a side character,’ he thought.
He turned his head slightly toward Sir Brandon, who was still staring at the broken dummy in stunned, wide-eyed silence.
"Instructor Brandon," Lucien said calmly, slinging the wooden blade carelessly over his shoulder. "I think I'm ready for real steel."