A guesthouse that was fairly well-known in the neighborhood.
As soon as Father sat down, he spoke proudly.
"Eat whatever you want."
"Really? We're ordering everything?"
"Yes, order it all. Don't worry about the money."
"Well, it is Grandfather's money."
"…You knew?"
"If the son doesn't know his father has no money, who would?"
"Heh heh…."
He must have wanted to hide it as much as possible.
But I don't dislike Father for being poor.
Rather, he filled that emptiness by giving me even more love.
"So don't feel burdened. Ah, but don't forget—I am going to eat a ton."
"Order as much as you like."
Father and I snickered together, and just like that, we ordered every kind of meat on the menu.
While waiting for the food to come out,
I demanded the answer to the unresolved mystery.
"Alright, tell me now. What was the price?"
"What do you mean?"
"Grandfather's money. He's not the type to give it for free."
"…Tsk."
Father smacked his lips.
"You suddenly got smart? Did you eat something strange?"
"Maybe the medicinal ingredients you gave me had an intelligence-boosting effect?"
"If they did, I'd have fed them to you long ago. You were dumb from the age of five."
"That must be because I took after you."
"No, that's because you took after your grandfather."
Father and I laughed together.
"Alright, jokes aside—what do we have to do?"
"He told us to come to the New Year's banquet. Says he wants to see something big from you."
"Really?"
January 1st. At the New Year's banquet, the entire family gathered.
No matter how much one might dislike a son, it's hard to dislike a grandson.
Unlike Father, Grandfather liked me because I'd wanted to become a warrior since I was young.
Of course, after failing to produce results, we eventually grew distant.
"When I told him you were taking the promotion exam, he was pleased."
"Even before I passed?"
"I became a pharmacist, didn't I? He was satisfied that at least you still held onto the dream of becoming a warrior. And if he hears that you passed, he'll be overjoyed."
"I'm not anything special. Everyone passes."
All members of the Cheongsin family entered the military track at fifteen and passed the military examination at eighteen.
In other words, they entered the military track in one go and passed the exam in one go.
"They poured money into it. You passed on your own—that's different."
The reason so many officials came from prestigious families was because they had capable teachers from childhood and trained every single day without fail.
Yet I, who hadn't received proper education even once, produced results beyond expectations.
Even if it was just a promotion exam at a rural academy, it still meant I had passed the minimum standard.
That was more than enough to pique Grandfather's interest.
After joking around like that, Father spoke with a serious expression.
"Seoha, if you don't want to go, you don't have to."
"But we already took the money."
"That's exactly why you don't have to go. Because we took the money."
I couldn't help but admire Father's wisdom.
As expected, my knack for clever thinking didn't come from nowhere.
'Still… the main house.'
Father didn't like going to the main house.
Part of it was Grandfather, with whom he had a distant relationship, but more than that, it was the discomfort of being looked down on by his younger brother despite being the eldest.
I felt the same way.
My cousin, the same age as me, used to test what he had learned by inflicting one-sided violence on me.
When I was young, I would always get beaten and cry in frustration, but there was nothing Father could do.
Because of Grandfather.
He believed that fights between boys were natural and would scold me for not fighting back instead.
Because of that, Father and I hadn't visited Grandfather's house for the past two years.
"Don't feel burdened. I won't say you refused to come."
"No, it's fine. I want to see Grandfather after a long time."
"Well, you've changed a lot too, so it might not be bad to go."
Father smiled meaningfully.
He seemed to think I was no longer the son who would come home crying after being beaten.
I should make that belief certain.
"Don't worry. I'm not the Seoha who gets beaten and cries."
"It did seem that way. Hahaha. Eat more. There's still plenty left."
"I will."
To be honest, I was starting to feel full.
But I had to force myself to eat anyway.
Eating a lot wasn't optional for a warrior—it was essential. I had to eat as much as possible and train to build my external strength.
"I'm going to eat until I'm about to burst."
Something has to go in for something to be made.
'Come to think of it, New Year's…'
There wasn't much time left now.
As I was forcibly stuffing food into myself, Father asked,
"By the way, Seoha. Which academy do you want to go to?"
"I plan to enroll in Seongmu Academy."
"Seongmu Academy?"
"Yes. Seongmu Academy, no matter what."
The plan I had devised was divided into two parts.
A plan that had to succeed no matter what, and a plan that could be abandoned depending on the situation.
I called them the mandatory plan and the optional plan.
And entering Seongmu Academy was an absolutely mandatory plan.
Father tilted his head and spoke in a flustered voice.
"Really? Is that even possible?"
"That's harsh. Your son says he wants to dream big."
"No, dreams should be at least somewhat realistic for me to cheer you on. Even you have to admit it's ridiculous."
"It's completely realistic. I'm a genius, after all."
Seongmu Academy (聖武學館).
An academy run directly by the kingdom, and the undisputed most prestigious academy.
Talents recognized nationwide gathered there, and only thirty were selected among them.
A place only the chosen could enter.
Saying I would enter such a place—it was only natural for Father to react that way.
'Even starting preparations now, it's barely enough.'
The entrance exam was at the end of February next year.
That meant there were only about four months left.
"So I have a favor to ask. Please keep making medicinal concoctions. If possible, prepare about twice as much as before. I'm going to train properly starting today."
"More than now?"
"I have to. I need to enter Seongmu Academy."
Father chuckled and nodded.
"Alright, alright. If you're doing it anyway, go all out. I'll support you properly."
"As expected of my father. But the money will still be borrowed from Grandfather, right?"
"Having a rich father is also a father's ability."
"Then let's say it's my ability to have a rich grandfather."
Smiling, I put the last piece of meat into my mouth.
From here on out, hell would begin.
To enter Seongmu Academy, building external strength was important—but that alone wasn't enough.
From now on, internal energy training also had to be considered.
"I can't let my guard down just because I did well at a rural academy."
The difference between the countryside and the city was like heaven and earth, and the difference between the city and Seongmu Academy was like heaven and the moon.
A place you couldn't even step into unless you were a genius, no matter how hard you tried.
That place was Seongmu Academy.
"Let's start making a training partner."
Training was a lonely path.
Just exchanging opinions with someone and sharing hardship could give you the strength to keep going.
"Alright. It's done, Jonsun."
That was why I resurrected Jonsun.
Jonsun was a good conversational partner and a reliable friend.
After all, he never talked back.
With Jonsun by my side once more, I sat down in the lotus position.
To increase internal energy, the first thing to do was to clear the paths through which energy would flow.
There were countless mental cultivation techniques related to this, but to my eyes, they were all outdated.
So I chose something no one knew at present—a product of the future: the Shinro Mind Method (身路心法).
War advanced weapons, and for humanity, weapons were martial arts.
Thus, one day during a brutal war, a genius gathered only the strengths of various mind methods and created a flawless one.
"Luck's on my side. That genius even became my master."
Thanks to that, I mastered the Shinro Mind Method and escaped my cursed body.
That fated encounter should be the same this time as well.
'Before, I learned it too late to see much effect. But not this time.'
Building the body was like digging a lake.
Just as a wide and deep lake can hold more water, only a body with a solid foundation could contain vast internal energy.
Of course, there were people born like the sea—vast beyond measure.
But someone lacking talent like me had to polish the basics to the brink of death just to chase after geniuses from behind.
"So the most urgent task is building the body."
The Shinro Mind Method was divided into three stages.
The first was Cheonro (闡路).
It meant "illuminating the path."
To gather internal energy in the dantian and use it properly, the energy channels had to be opened without obstruction.
I slowly closed my eyes and observed my inner self.
Even the faintest energy was guided to move slowly throughout my body.
After sitting still and opening paths for about an hour—
I achieved a more positive result than expected.
"A good start."
I hadn't illuminated every path, but I had completed a full circulation of sorts.
And since the human body tends to return to its original state, the channels would close again, meaning they had to be opened repeatedly.
Even taking that into account, it was encouraging.
Before regression, it had taken a full three months just to complete one circulation.
"Good. I'm doing well."
When I first learned the Shinro Mind Method, it felt like walking a dark road relying on a single torch.
It took one month just to get a feel for it, and two more months to find the correct path and complete one circuit.
But now, it felt like walking a familiar road I could navigate even with my eyes closed.
Everything was going smoothly.
"Jonsun, at this rate, won't I become the strongest under heaven? Hahahaha!"
Spinning around while hugging Jonsun.
It was truly a joyful training session.
"Still, I felt I had no face to show you… but Seoha has grown quite well."
Sangwon muttered to himself while preparing medicinal concoctions.
In the apothecary where he had always been with his wife.
It had been over ten years since he was alone, yet he still spoke as if continuing a conversation with her.
"He trains diligently too. It's nice seeing him find his own path."
Even as he poured the finished decoction into a bowl, Sangwon kept talking to himself.
"He must be smart like you. That's a relief. I was worried he'd take after me until now."
Smiling bitterly, Sangwon turned his head toward one side.
There, his son was dancing joyfully.
"Jonsun, at this rate, won't I become the strongest under heaven? Hahahaha!"
He had even drawn a face on a rock and was calling it Jonsun.
Watching that, Sangwon said blankly,
"This can't be. My son has gone mad."
Sangwon covered his mouth.
"No wonder he has no friends. He's been playing with things like that. Sob. Dad will work harder."
It seemed he would have to feed him even more good medicine.
A month passed in a blur.
Every day, I woke at myosi (5 a.m.) and trained the Shinro Mind Method for four shijin.
After that, I honed my external strength for another four shijin, and when haesi (9 p.m.) came, I went straight to sleep, maintaining a model routine.
This lifestyle was only possible thanks to Father's support—providing daily medicines that restored vitality and decoctions that repaired muscles.
At some point, an extra decoction appeared that I hadn't ordered, but since he said it was good for the body, I didn't pay much attention.
After nearly two months of training, I had finally developed the physical abilities worthy of being called a warrior aspirant.
Of course, there was still a long way to go to enter Seongmu Academy.
It wasn't a place that selected solely based on strength—it was filled with geniuses.
To ensure the plan didn't go awry, I couldn't let my guard down for even a moment.
And as I continued training every day with renewed resolve—
The New Year was finally approaching.
"We depart tomorrow. Are you ready?"
"Of course. What do you think I trained for?"
"Seongmu Academy?"
"That too, but more than anything, it's to be acknowledged by Grandfather."
In the past, the Cheongsin family was just an ordinary warrior family.
They occasionally produced high-ranking warriors, but that alone wasn't enough to be called prestigious.
The one who elevated the family to its current status as the greatest prestigious house was Grandfather.
Ironblood (鐵血) Lee Gangjin.
A nickname earned for handling matters calmly no matter the situation.
Seeing how he obeyed the king's orders without exception, people even called him the king's sword.
But a kingdom built by a single person is bound to crumble the moment that person disappears.
That was why Grandfather devoted himself more than anyone to cultivating a successor.
Of course, it hadn't gone well so far.
'Father's generation ended at high-ranking warrior.'
Despite having numerous masters, Uncle and Younger Uncle never surpassed the level of high-ranking warrior.
Coldly speaking, they were failures.
To be recognized as a true prestigious family, they had to continuously produce outstanding transcendents.
Naturally, Grandfather's attention shifted to his grandsons.
They had more potential than sons already in their mid-forties or mid-thirties.
"If you're ready, let's depart."
The main house was near the capital.
Grandfather, who had been granted a vast mountain, turned the entire area into his estate.
"Do we not need to buy a gift?"
"Even if we do, he'll just ask why we bought it. There's nothing his house lacks. And bringing you is the gift."
Father said it jokingly, but it wasn't entirely false.
There truly was nothing lacking at Grandfather's house.
Even so, Father had prepared a gift of his own.
"What's that decoction?"
"It wouldn't feel right to go empty-handed. People will be watching. Besides, even if I'm a pharmacist's son, I should still prepare a tonic for my father."
Even if relations were strained, they were still father and son.
After loading the luggage onto the horse, Father said,
"Let's go."
It was a visit to the main house after a long time.