Two years had passed.
Patrick Schneider V.
Over the last two years, his body had grown, and he had learned to steady his mind.
"Young Master. Young Master!"
"Yaaaawn… What is it, Butler?"
"Young Master, you must practice. Sir Erickson is looking for you."
"Tell him I'm resting today because I'm tired."
"Didn't you rest yesterday because you were tired as well?"
"That's different. Yesterday, my body was tired. Today, my heart is tired."
"Young Masteeeer!"
"Ugh, I don't care. I'm resting."
It seemed he had steadied his mind a bit too much.
Patrick Schneider, now five years old.
The little boy who, until two years ago, lived with a constant sigh on his lips had become quite bright in the meantime.
But as much as he had found peace of mind, he had also become equally lazy.
'Well, what can't be helped, can't be helped.'
At five years old, he had realized that agonizing over problems with no solutions was a waste of time.
In the end, it seemed time was the best medicine for most worries.
Thanks to that, his original personality was slowly starting to surface. The one who welcomed this change the most was, of course, his father, Baron Schneider.
"Haha, the lad finally acts like a child."
"My Lord. You've arrived?"
"You've worked hard, Lawrence."
"Not at all, My Lord."
Jacob Schneider.
He was the Lord of the Schneider Barony and Patrick's father.
To be honest, he had been deeply worried.
He had married his wife, and they had struggled for over five years to conceive before finally being blessed with a son.
However, the state of that precious son was quite strange.
From the time he was a mere infant, wouldn't he stare blankly into the air and let out deep, heavy sighs?
Then, wouldn't he suddenly start shouting and getting angry at nothing?
Sometimes, he would even look at his own father with an expression that seemed to say, 'Must be nice to have no worries in the world.'
The feeling he got back then was truly…
Anyway, no matter how he looked at it, it wasn't the behavior of a normal baby.
At first, he had seriously worried if there was something wrong with the boy's mind.
Fortunately, after bringing in a doctor and a priest at great expense, the examinations showed nothing was wrong, and his wife advised him to just wait and see.
As a result…
"Hahaha. The boy finally looks like a child now."
Even the sight of his son running away diligently because he didn't want to train was simply heartwarming to him.
'My Lord, that's not quite it.'
Lawrence the butler shook his head as he watched Baron Schneider.
However, Baron Schneider only wished for his son to grow up healthy and energetic.
"As long as he's healthy, that's enough. I ask for nothing else."
But he didn't know.
He didn't know that his son was someone who absolutely should not be raised with that mindset.
* * *
"Position one!"
"Haaat!"
"Begin!"
"Hap! Hap!"
Brian Erickson, the only knight of the Schneider Barony.
Following his command, the soldiers were vigorously swinging their swords.
To serve as a soldier in the Schneider Barony, which was crawling with monsters, even an ordinary soldier had to be able to take down five or six goblins.
Therefore, though their numbers were small, the soldiers of the Schneider Barony were known as a robust elite force…
"Cute. So cute. They're so tiny I just want to bite them into little pieces."
Or so the rumors went.
But in the eyes of five-year-old Patrick, who was lying sideways eating cookies and watching, they didn't meet his standards at all.
Patrick had said he was skipping training because he was tired, but for some reason, he had wandered over to the training ground anyway.
The problem was his attitude, which showed absolutely no intention of training.
Brian, the territory's sole knight, glanced at Patrick and furrowed his brow.
'He's distracting.'
Seeing the boy lying sideways and watching while refusing to train made it impossible not to notice him. Furthermore…
"My father really is a good man. He actually pays these things a salary and feeds them as soldiers. Oh boy. Look at them toddling around. They'd win first place at a talent show."
When he said things like that, how could one not pay attention?
Eventually, Brian spoke up with a scowl.
"Young Master, what are you doing there?"
"Watching."
Patrick sent him a look that said, 'Can't you tell?' Brian continued.
"The soldiers' training is not a spectacle for your amusement, Young Master."
"You're right. It's rude to watch people training seriously from the sidelines."
"Since you know that…"
"So, when does the training actually start?"
"...."
As Patrick asked with his eyes sparkling with the innocent curiosity unique to a five-year-old, Brian shut his mouth, his face looking like he'd just chewed on a lemon.
'How dare he treat me, the only knight of this territory, like this. He may be young, but he is far too ill-mannered.'
Brian Erickson.
He was a 2-Star Knight and the only knight in the Schneider Barony.
From training soldiers to subjugating monsters, there were countless issues that would arise without him.
Accordingly, he expected to be treated with high regard, and the kind-hearted Baron Schneider did indeed treat him better than an average 2-Star Knight.
There was also the unavoidable reality that it would be disastrous if the only 2-Star Knight left this harsh and barren territory.
Brian had grown accustomed to such precious treatment, but…
"What? Why? What are you going to do about it?"
Patrick's reaction to him was the epitome of a brat.
'You insolent brat. Even your father doesn't treat me so carelessly…'
Baron Schneider was of a frail and gentle disposition, so how did he produce such a rogue of a son?
Judging by his words and actions, even though he was only five, his potential was not just bad—it was a full-blown disaster.
If it were up to him, he would have corrected the boy's manners right then and there, but…
'Tsk, too many eyes watching.'
He couldn't get into a scuffle with the sole heir of the territory in front of all the soldiers.
Especially not when that heir was a mere five-year-old child.
"If you aren't going to train, stop interfering and get lost."
"Get lost?"
"Yes."
"…Me?"
"You heard me."
At Brian's words, Patrick looked up at the sky, let out a deep sigh, and muttered.
"Master, this is how I'm living now."
Brian probably thought the kid was talking nonsense again, but Patrick was currently savoring the bitter taste of his five-year-old life.
It had been a truly long time.
In fact, he thought it might be the first time in this life he'd heard such a thing.
Get lost?
How long had it been since someone had dared to say such a thing to the great Radiant Dragon Hero, Jincheon?
'What should I do? Should I? Or not?'
Five years since being born into this world.
At first, he was flustered, not knowing how to accept the confusing reality, but even during that time, he had consistently practiced his internal energy cultivation.
Actually, as an infant, there wasn't much else to do. However…
'Too small.'
He looked down at his hands and feet.
He was eating well and growing, but the limbs of a five-year-old were too short and stubby.
At the very least, fighting that greenhorn with this body was unreasonable.
No, well, if they fought, he'd win.
He would win.
No matter who the opponent was, if it went to the end, he would definitely win.
But the Radiant Dragon Hero had his pride; how could he grit his teeth and get into a dogfight with such a low-level amateur?
'Sigh, it can't be helped.'
"Are you not going to leave?"
"No. I'm going. I said I'm going. I'm leaving."
Patrick sauntered away, leaving the training ground behind.
'Haaa… What a humiliation. A total humiliation. That I, the Radiant Dragon Hero Jincheon, have to back down against a mere greenhorn like that.'
If his friends from his past life saw this, they would be deeply saddened…
'No, they wouldn't.'
[Bwahahaha! Look at that guy. Just look at him.]
[Tsk, tsk, tsk. He lived his life recklessly and ended up like that.]
[How embarrassing for him.]
[I've got to spread the word.]
They were the type of guys who would clutch their stomachs and mock him instead.
The few friends he had were all like that.
For a moment, Patrick reflected belatedly on whether he had lived his past life a bit too recklessly.
Leaving the training ground, Patrick headed back to the manor.
He couldn't teach the territory's soldiers anything right now.
At the moment, Patrick himself was in a tight spot.
However, there was one person.
One person Patrick had to make sure practiced consistently from now on, no matter what.
That person was inside the Baron's manor.
"Mother, how are you feeling today?"
"I told you, didn't I? I've been feeling much better lately."
Ava Schneider.
She was the Baroness Schneider.
And she was the only person Patrick could call "Mother" across both this life and his last.
Leaning sideways against the bed, she looked a bit thin and haggard, but she possessed an elegant beauty that anyone would admire.
In truth, she was originally a commoner.
She had been an ordinary village girl in the territory, but Baron Schneider had fallen in love at first sight and wooed her passionately until they finally married.
With her easygoing and kind nature, wise intellect, and graceful beauty, she was such a perfect noblewoman that no one would believe she was a commoner who had never received formal education.
If there was one flaw, it was that her body was too weak.
She had always been of a frail constitution, but after giving birth to Patrick, her health had steadily declined, and now she spent most of her day lying in bed.
And Patrick knew the reason why.
"Mother, did you do the breathing exercises I told you about?"
"Of course. Since you were the one who asked. I've been doing them every morning and evening, just as you said."
"You're doing well. You must keep doing them consistently."
"Don't worry. Didn't I promise you?"
The Baroness smiled warmly at Patrick.
Patrick moved behind her and said, "I'll give you a massage."
"Thank you. My son is so kind."
Patrick massaged her shoulders with his small, fern-like hands, while simultaneously sending his Ki into her body to check the flow.
'She's doing the cultivation method well. She's much better.'
The Baroness felt better as Patrick's warm energy entered her body.
"It's truly strange. My body feels so much more comfortable just from my son giving me a massage."
"...."
"You don't know how happy and grateful I am for this time you spend thinking of your mother. My dear son."
"...."
At the Baroness's heartfelt words, Patrick bit his lower lip and said nothing.
No, he couldn't say anything.
This was an emotion far too unfamiliar to him.
'A mother…'
This was a relationship he had never had before.
In his past life as Jincheon, Patrick had been a total orphan.
Before his Master took him in, he had no one he could call family, and he didn't know what parents were or what kind of existence a mother was.
But this life was different.
He had a mother who trusted and loved him unconditionally.
Thinking from her perspective…
As an infant, Patrick was absolutely not normal.
How must it have looked to the adults around him when a baby rarely cried and just stared blankly into space while mumbling to himself?
It wouldn't have been strange if they thought he was mentally challenged or a fool.
Yet, despite those concerns, his mother had always smiled at him and cared for him with unwavering devotion.
He was able to poignantly realize what "maternal love"—something he had never felt in his past life—truly was.
And after he had found enough peace of mind to look around him, he realized the cause of his mother's illness.
'Nine Yin Blocked Meridians. It was absurd. How did I not notice it while being right next to her?'
Nine Yin Blocked Meridians.
Even in the past life Patrick lived, this was a serious illness.
Until two hundred years ago, that is.
Those born with blocked meridians were brilliant and possessed exceptional looks, but in exchange, they could not escape a short life.
Thus, blocked meridians were called a "Heavenly Curse."
However, the situation changed two hundred years ago after a man named the Eccentric Doctor of the East perfectly established a method to treat blocked meridians.
To the people of the Jianghu, the Nine Yin Blocked Meridians actually became a blessing.
Originally, those with the Nine Yin Blocked Meridians constitution were born with beautiful features and brilliant talent.
Furthermore, since the treatment process involved reconstructing the body into one advantageous for practicing martial arts, how could it not be good?
In the era Jincheon lived, there were even crazy people who researched whether they could artificially block blood vessels to create a blocked meridian constitution.
In any case, while blocked meridians were a terrifying disease, they were also something that could definitely be cured if one knew the method.
Patrick had earnestly persuaded his mother, the Baroness, and passed on an internal energy cultivation method under the guise of a "healthy breathing technique."
Of course, how to teach her was his biggest concern.
What parent would obediently learn something from their young son who had just started toddling around?
Still, the situation was urgent.
In the end, Patrick chose a direct approach.
He told her he knew a health technique that would cure her illness and begged her to follow it.
[A health technique? Where did you learn such a thing?]
[…I just, overheard it.]
It was a very poor excuse.
But what else could he do?
No matter how much he racked his brain, there was no other way.
He decided he just had to be thick-skinned and insist on it. As Patrick pushed his point, the Baroness gazed at him for a moment before speaking with a gentle smile.
"Tell me when you feel like telling me."
"...."
The Baroness knew that what Patrick was saying was a lie.
Even so, she trusted that there was a reason for what her son was doing.
That attitude of the Baroness actually became a greater burden for Patrick.
"So, what do I need to do?"
"First, the posture… No. Put your legs like this and your hands…"
'Let's focus on the treatment first.'
Patrick decided to focus on the cure.
And she faithfully followed her son's instructions.
She took the postures he told her to take and practiced the breathing method he told her to do.
That was already a year ago.
And now.
'Now energy has formed in her Dantian. If she practices just a bit harder, she'll be completely cured.'
In Patrick's view, his mother's condition had improved significantly.
To begin with, her symptoms were on the milder side among those with Nine Yin Blocked Meridians.
Even with the Nine Yin Blocked Meridians, it was rare for all nine meridians to be blocked from the start.
Usually, it started with two or three, and gradually more meridians would block until finally, all nine were blocked, leading to death.
Because Patrick had discovered the Baroness when only four of her meridians were blocked, the treatment had proceeded smoothly until now.
"That's enough for today."
Patrick, withdrawing his Ki and taking his hands off her shoulders, spoke.
"You must continue the breathing exercises consistently from now on."
"Then of course I must do as my son says."
She truly felt that her physical condition had improved significantly since she started the breathing exercises Patrick taught her.
Breathing had become easier than before, and recently, her condition had improved enough that she could take light walks.
Her physical state, which hadn't improved no matter what the doctors did, had clearly gotten better.
She looked at her son with loving eyes and said, "Would you stay with Mother for a while? I'll bake the cookies you like."
"No. I'm busy today…"
"I see. Is that so?"
"Let's do it later. When you're a bit healthier, Mother."
"Yes. Let's do that."
Seeing the Baroness's disappointed expression made Patrick feel restless.
Other than his Master, this was the first time someone had loved and cherished him so blindly.
Could someone really pour out such infinite love and trust just because he came from her womb?
A mother…
'It's hard. Fighting is much easier.'
To Patrick, this was a very difficult emotion.
He didn't know how to accept this feeling or how to return it.
As a result, every time she approached, he would keep his distance and end up running away for no reason.
"I'll just go do my own training."
Aside from treating his mother's blocked meridians, his own training was also important.
He had to get stronger as quickly as possible.
'Brian, that bastard is dead meat.'
A man with a goal is bound to get stronger.
Though it would be a very unfortunate thing for the person who became that goal.