Translator: CinderTL
Perhaps due to his overwhelming anticipation, Roland's eyes snapped open at the first hint of dawn.
He rose, washed, and prepared breakfast.
His gaze swept over his steadily improving cooking skills, and he nodded in satisfaction.
After setting aside the leftovers and leaving a note, he pushed open the door and set off for the Knight Academy.
The morning light was still dim, the sun not yet fully risen.
The sea wind blew in his face, carrying a damp, salty, and fishy scent.
Yet Roland's heart burned hotter with each step, fueled by the prospect of finally obtaining the Knight's Breathing Technique.
Perhaps because Derek had given advance notice, the guards didn't stop Roland when he gave his name. Instead, one of them personally escorted him to the cottage where Nielsen worked.
After quietly thanking the guard, Roland took a deep breath and raised his hand to knock.
Knock, knock, knock!
The crisp knocks echoed clearly through the silent morning of the Knight Academy.
A voice immediately responded from within.
"Come in."
"Good morning, Mr. Nielsen..."
Roland pushed open the door and bowed respectfully to the elderly man behind the wooden desk.
"Mr. Derek instructed me to come here yesterday..."
"I understand. Please sit down, Mr. Roland."
Derek's warning yesterday had clearly worked. Nielsen's demeanor today was considerably more cordial than during their initial meeting.
Roland noticed this shift but didn't dwell on it, his gaze fixed intently on Nielsen's every move.
The white-haired old man deftly pulled open a drawer without a word, retrieved a rolled parchment scroll, gently placed it on the desk, and slowly pushed it toward Roland.
As Roland gazed at the somewhat familiar scroll, his eyebrows arched slightly.
He recognized it immediately—this was the very scroll Graham had promised him after their "little prank."
"Mr. Roland," Nielsen said, noticing the subtle change in Roland's expression and seemingly misinterpreting it. He quickly added, "Although this breathing technique lacks a proper name and appears quite ancient..."
Nielsen himself seemed to find his explanation unconvincing, but he pressed on regardless.
"...But this is Lord Graham's Knight's Breathing Technique, a closely guarded secret never shared with outsiders. Even the most outstanding graduates of the Knight Academy are not qualified to learn it."
"Since the founding of the River Domain Nations, the most exceptional knights to emerge from our academy cannot even begin to compare to Lord Graham's strength. Of course..."
Perhaps sensing Roland's lingering doubts, Nielsen quickly added, "If you're not satisfied, I can exchange it for another..."
"That won't be necessary, Mr. Nielsen. I trust you," Roland said with a faint smile, reaching out to pick up the sheepskin scroll. His fingers traced the weathered patterns etched into its surface by time.
Even if he hadn't personally witnessed Graham using this breathing technique, Nielsen had no reason to deceive him. After observing the merchants of the River Domain Nations for some time, Roland knew that while they were still prone to shrewdness and calculation, they never broke their word once a promise was made.
They valued integrity above their own lives.
Of course, that was assuming there wasn't a sufficiently tempting reward.
"Then, Mr. Nielsen..."
Roland showed no impatience despite having obtained the breathing technique. He rose calmly from his chair.
"May I leave now?"
"Please wait a moment, Mr. Roland," Nielsen replied, relieved to see Roland's composure.
"As I mentioned earlier, this breathing technique is Lord Graham's most closely guarded secret. No one has ever seen it before. Lord Graham instructed that if you cannot memorize it on the spot, you may copy it here and take a copy with you. However..."
He seemed to find this request somewhat awkward, rubbing his fingers together.
"Without permission, he wishes you not to teach it to others. We hope you understand."
"That's perfectly reasonable," Roland said with a slight nod.
Taking the paper and quill Nielsen offered, he quietly sat at the table and began copying the text.
As for Nielsen, the moment Roland unrolled the scroll, he discreetly turned and left the room.
For a time, the silent chamber was filled only with the soft scratching of the quill across the parchment.
As more words filled the parchment, Roland's brow furrowed slightly.
His fingertip traced the vellum as he meticulously copied and studied the Nameless Breathing Technique, word by word, line by line.
Yet the deeper he delved, the greater his astonishment grew.
This was nothing like the "Knight's Breathing Technique" he had imagined.
Based on his understanding from ancient texts, wizards honed their spirits through meditation, guided Magic Elements, and cast profound spells. The core of their practice lay in stillness and contemplation, in constructing their spiritual world and precisely manipulating Magic Elements.
He had assumed that a knight's breathing technique would be something more dynamic, a method for tempering the body and unlocking latent potential—perhaps a unique breathing rhythm synchronized with vigorous movements, or a technique to forcibly stimulate muscle and bone growth.
But the scroll described a practice of extraordinary precision, even possessing a strange, rhythmic quality.
It wasn't simply about deep breathing or coordinating with movements; rather, it seemed to establish a complex energy circulation system within the physical body.
The technique demanded that practitioners control each inhalation and exhalation with an almost impossibly precise rhythm, down to the slightest pauses, transitions, and the "flow" and "settling" of breath within specific parts of the body.
This feeling...
It's utterly bizarre!
Roland's fingertip paused, his gaze lingering on the section describing "Qi Sensation Guidance."
The text detailed how to use mental focus in coordination with breathing to cultivate and manipulate an indescribable "Qi" or "energy" originating from life itself or absorbed from the external world.
This energy, following specific "pathways" illustrated on the scroll—neither blood vessels nor nerves—slowly circulated, accumulated, and refined within muscles, fascia, and even deeper within the bones.
This was nothing like the stereotypical image of the rough-and-tumble knight's path!
The required level of focus, the acute sensitivity to internal bodily sensations, and the precise control over energy manipulation were comparable to the mental investment a wizard would expend when constructing complex spell runes.
He instinctively compared this breathing technique to the meditation techniques he knew.
A mage's meditation technique focused on expanding and condensing mental power, serving as a bridge to the elemental sea.
This breathing technique, however, resembled an equally intricate and highly focused "meditation" conducted within the physical body itself.
A "Physical Body Meditation" that used flesh and blood as its foundation and breath as its engine, refining the fundamental life energy at its core.
"No wonder the strength of knights and wizards can rival each other!"
Roland's mind suddenly cleared.
Previously, he had only seen the knights' formidable physiques, their ability to charge into battle and shatter mountains with brute strength.
He had never considered that beneath the knights' seemingly brute-force power lay a cultivation system requiring immense inner control and precise manipulation.
This was no mere matter of physical strength; it was a path of deeply excavating, meticulously guiding, and ultimately enhancing one's life energy.
Its complexity and depth rivaled that of constructing intricate spell runes in the spiritual realm.
It demanded not just relentless training, but an almost introspective awareness and mastery of the body's internal workings.
The value of this scroll far exceeded his initial expectations!
The rustling sound of his quill resumed, but Roland's writing pace slowed involuntarily, each character now carrying a heavy weight.
He was no longer merely copying words; he began to grasp the profound mysteries of life energy and physical enhancement hidden between the lines.
After an immeasurable amount of time, he finally exhaled deeply and slowly set down his quill.
(End of the Chapter)
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