I walked back to my room with my mind still spinning from the conversation. Fifteen days with Commander Vex. Fifteen days of recruit training.
It sounded absolutely brutal—but if it meant learning from Theron afterward? If it meant getting even one of his original techniques?
Worth it. Definitely worth it.
But I couldn't forget about my core. B-rank. Low mana capacity. If I stopped practicing my breathing technique even for a single day, it would make everything harder—especially with the kind of training Vex was about to put me through. I needed every advantage I could get.
I sat down on my bed, crossed my legs the way the diagrams showed, and closed my eyes.
Foundation Breathing Art.
The rhythm came naturally now, like my body had already gotten used to it even though it hadn't been that long. Inhale. Pull mana from the air. Hold it in my core. Let it compress on its own. Exhale. Release it through my vessels.
Inhale. Hold. Exhale.
Inhale. Hold. Exhale.
The warmth spread through my chest, slow and steady. My core pulsed in response, a rhythmic beat that felt almost like a second heartbeat. The world faded away little by little until there was nothing left but the breathing and the mana flowing through me.
I didn't know how long I sat there. Time stopped mattering at some point. I just kept going, kept practicing, kept pulling mana in and pushing it out until the rhythm became everything.
Eventually, I felt it—that familiar pressure starting to build. My core was getting close to its limit, the technique pulling in more mana than usual, and for a moment I thought maybe this was it. Maybe I'd finally break through.
Compress.
I focused, tried to squeeze my core tighter like I always did, but something felt different this time. The pressure built and built, and for a second I really thought something might happen—
But then it faded. The moment passed. My core settled back down, not quite there yet, but definitely fuller than before. Stronger.
I wasn't there yet. But I could feel it now, that edge just out of reach. Getting closer.
I opened my eyes.
The room was dark. The mana-lamps had dimmed to their night setting while I was out, and when I looked toward the window, all I could see was black sky.
I looked down at myself and sighed.
Black gunk on my arms. Less than before, but still there, still disgusting. And the smell—gods, the smell. Like someone had left old alcohol and rotten food in a closed room for too long.
I sighed. "Again?"
[Toxins,] Nova said. [You had years of bad decisions stored up in this body. It's going to take time to get all of it out.]
I know, but I still can't get used to it.
But this time, I could feel something different. My core felt... fuller. Stronger. Like it was almost at its limit, ready to push through to the next level. Maybe my rank would increase soon.
[...You're really a monster, Host,] Nova said, and he actually sounded surprised.
[I didn't expect you to reach a breakthrough this soon.]
I tilted my head. What do you mean by that?
[For a normal person to reach a breakthrough, it takes time, Even if someone has a high-rank core, their body still needs to adjust, to get used to the mana flowing through it. It's not something that happens overnight.]
"..."
[But you?]
He continued.
[It's barely been weeks since you transmigrated, and you're already almost there, And that's with a low-rank core and bad mana capacity. It doesn't make sense.]
I blinked.
...Huh.
Now that he mentioned it, that was weird. I hadn't really thought about it before, but yeah — I'd been making progress faster than I probably should have. Faster than made sense, considering what a mess this body was in.
And then it hit me.
The problem wasn't my body. It was me. Or rather, the way I'd been thinking about all of this without even realizing it.
I thought I'd accepted that I transmigrated. I mean, come on — dying and waking up in another world is about as real as it gets, right? I figured I'd made my peace with it.
But somewhere in the back of my mind, I was still treating this like a game. Like I could press a button or find some cheat code to make things easier. Like there was a reset option if I messed up bad enough.
Except there wasn't. There's no pause menu, no save files, no New Game Plus waiting for me. Everything here is real. I'm real. This body, this world, these people — all of it. And in the real world, getting stronger takes time. Effort. Actual work.
No shortcuts.
I sighed. Great. So on top of everything else, I've been subconsciously speedrunning my own life.
[...That's one way to put it.]
Shut up.
But there was no point in thinking about that right now. Like Nova said, I'd get my answers eventually. For now, I just had to trust him and keep moving forward.
I sighed and dragged myself to the bathroom. The hot water felt amazing as it washed over me, steam filling the room while I watched the black residue swirl down the drain. Little by little, I was getting rid of the old Leo's mistakes.
When I finally got out and changed into clean clothes, my stomach growled loud enough to echo off the walls.
I checked my Mana-Phone. 9:47 PM.
Damn. It's late again.
I headed toward the dining hall, not really expecting anyone to still be there. The corridors were quiet, most of the household already asleep at this hour. But as I got closer, I heard something—voices, laughter, the clatter of plates.
I pushed open the door.
Aunt Seraphina was sitting at the table, sipping tea like she had all the time in the world. Lyra sat beside her with a plate of food in front of her, eating slowly. And the twins—Roran and Eira—were still wide awake, poking at some dessert and arguing about something.
They all looked up when I walked in.
"Oh! Leo!" Seraphina smiled warmly. "We thought you'd already gone to bed. Come, sit down. There's still food left."
Lyra started to stand up immediately. "Young Master. Shall I prepare you a plate?"
I waved at her to sit back down. "Stay put. I can get it myself."
She hesitated for a second, then nodded and sat back down.
I grabbed a plate and filled it with whatever was left—some meat, bread, vegetables. Nothing fancy, but it smelled amazing after hours of cultivating. I sat down next to the twins.
"Big brother Leo!" Eira grinned at me like I was the best thing she'd seen all day. "You missed dinner!"
"I was cultivating," I said, taking a bite.
"Culti-what?"
"Training," Roran corrected her, puffing out his little chest like he knew everything. "He was training. Like a real warrior."
Eira's eyes went wide. "Ohhh."
I hid a smile behind my bread and kept eating.
For a while, we just sat there in comfortable silence. Seraphina and Lyra talked quietly about something—household stuff, probably, the kind of things I didn't need to worry about. The twins bickered over the last piece of dessert like it was a matter of life and death.
Then Eira turned to me again with those big curious eyes.
"Big brother Leo."
"Yeah?"
"Can you tell us about Sir Hops-a-Lot?"
I blinked. "The frog?"
"Mia's frog!" Roran jumped in, suddenly very interested. "She told us about him! He's a brave warrior frog who fights evil and protects the garden!"
I stared at them for a second.
Mia told them about the frog? When did that—
Oh. Right. Last night's call. She'd talked to them for a few minutes before I took the phone back. And knowing Mia, she probably didn't stop talking the whole time.
I sighed and put down my fork.
"Okay. So. Sir Hops-a-Lot..."
I told them the story. About how Mia found him in the garden, small and green and probably just a normal frog. About how he got bigger over time, though honestly I think that was just Mia feeding him too much.
About how Mia swore up and down that he talked to her, that they had whole conversations about life and bugs and the meaning of existence. About the adventures they went on—imaginary, obviously, but the twins didn't need to know that part.
Their eyes got wider with every word.
"...and then Sir Hops-a-Lot leaped across the entire pond in one jump and landed right on the evil butterfly's head, saving the garden from certain doom!"
"WHOA!" Both twins shouted at the same time, their faces lit up with wonder.
Seraphina hid another smile behind her cup, and I could see Lyra's lips twitching out of the corner of my eye.
I finished the story and took a long drink of water.
"That was AWESOME!" Roran yelled, bouncing in his seat.
"Tell another one! Tell another one!" Eira begged, grabbing my arm.
I glanced at the time on my phone. 10:15 PM. Way past when kids their age should be asleep.
"Maybe tomorrow," I said. "It's really late."
They both deflated instantly, their faces falling in a way that almost made me cave. But before they could start begging, I pulled out my Mana-Phone.
"But... I can call Mia. If you want to talk to her instead."
Their faces lit up brighter than the mana-lamps on the walls.
"YES!"
I dialed the number and waited. The phone rang twice, and then—
"LEOOO~!"
Mia's voice came through loud and excited, exactly what I needed after the long day. I couldn't help but smile.
"Hey, Mia. Someone here wants to talk to you."
I handed the phone to Eira, who grabbed it like it was the most precious thing in the world.
"MIA! Big brother Leo told us about Sir Hops-a-Lot! He's so cool!"
Roran crowded next to her, practically climbing over her shoulder to get closer to the phone. "Tell us more! Tell us about the pond battle! Tell us about the evil butterfly!"
I leaned back in my chair and watched them. Three kids, two estates apart, connected by nothing but a phone and a shared love of a frog that probably didn't even know it was famous.
Lyra moved closer and sat down beside me.
"You're good with them," she said quietly, her voice soft.
I shrugged. "They're easy to be good with."
She didn't say anything else, but she smiled. Just a little. That was enough.
The call lasted about twenty minutes. By the end, both twins were yawning constantly, and even Mia's voice on the other end was getting sleepy.
"Okay, Mia," I said, taking the phone back. "Time for bed now."
"Leo..." Her voice was small, tired. "You'll call tomorrow?"
I paused for a second. Then—
"...Yeah. I'll call tomorrow."
"Promise?"
Another pause. Then I smiled.
"Pinkie promise."
She giggled, that bright little sound that always made everything feel okay. "Okay! Goodnight, Leo! Goodnight, Sir Hops-a-Lot!"
"Goodnight, Mia."
The call ended. I handed the phone to Seraphina, who was already herding the twins toward the door.
"Thank you, Leo," she said softly. "That was really kind of you."
I just nodded. "No problem."
She led them out, and the room got quiet again. Lyra stood up from her chair.
"Young Master. Shall I walk you back to your room?"
I shook my head. "Nah. I remember the way. Get some rest, Lyra. You don't have to wait on me all the time."
She hesitated for a moment, like she wanted to argue, but then she bowed. "As you wish. Goodnight, Young Master."
"Goodnight, Lyra."
She left, and I sat there for a little while longer. Finished my water. Stared at the empty table. Thought about the twins and Mia and how strange it was to have people who actually wanted me around.
Then I stood up and walked back to my room.
I lay down on the bed and stared at the ceiling, same as always. Tomorrow my training with Vex would finally start. Honestly? I was nervous. But excited too. Scared and hopeful all at once.
"Goodnight, Nova."
[Goodnight, Leo.]