"One, two…"
A year and a half had passed.
At the moment, Sai was performing a unique set of exercises he had developed in his previous life called Lifebound.
Lifebound consisted of a specialized sequence of movements combined with a precise breathing technique designed to train every muscle in the body. The exercises were meticulous and demanding, targeting not only the major muscle groups but also the smallest and most overlooked ones.
From the tiniest muscles in the back to even the muscles around the nose, Lifebound trained them all. The system was comprehensive in a way few physical disciplines could match.
Even Sai's internal organs were affected by the training. The breathing patterns forced them to strengthen and adapt, gradually improving their efficiency.
However, there was one area he had not yet perfected.
His head.
Sai had experimented with extending the training technique to his brain, but he remained cautious about it.
His brain was delicate.
That was reason enough not to rush experimentation.
"Haaahhh…"
Sai released a long breath.
The air shot across the room with surprising force, traveling far enough to shake a cup resting on a table several meters away. The cup rattled lightly before settling back into place.
He observed the result quietly.
"Guess I'll leave it at that for today."
Naturally, he did not want to stop. His body still had the stamina to continue. But he had already been training continuously for four days straight.
At this point, his parents would most likely be worried about him.
After all, Sai was currently training in one of the most dangerous locations within their territory.
The Ever Silent Graveyard.
Part of the reason their family mansion had been built near this place was to support the resources required to conquer and explore the dungeon located there.
The dungeon was vast and mysterious.
Its true depth remained unknown.
So far, only thirty-two floors had been successfully explored by adventurers and explorers.
"…Though I'm currently on the fortieth."
Sai muttered the words casually, but that did not mean he believed himself stronger than everyone else.
Not at all.
His martial arts specialty was not overwhelming strength or destructive power.
It was running away.
And hiding.
As the saying went, if you couldn't defeat your opponent, then the best option was simply to run away and hide until the day you could.
Sai firmly believed in that philosophy.
"The monsters here are pretty dangerous."
Even without actively looking around, his instincts were constantly sending him warnings.
They told him clearly that even the weakest monster roaming this floor would easily be able to kill him.
There was no doubt about that.
"But it's not like they would ever come here. After all…"
Sai lifted his head and looked upward.
Hanging from the ceiling far above him was a massive behemoth, its enormous body resting in deep slumber.
The creature was gigantic. Its presence alone dominated the entire space.
Sai was certain the beast had already noticed him a long time ago.
But it clearly had no interest in doing anything about it.
It was probably too lazy to bother stamping him out.
The situation reminded Sai of something simple.
It was similar to lying down to sleep while a small, irritating insect buzzed nearby.
You knew the insect was there.
You could kill it easily.
But you were simply too tired to care unless it did something foolish enough to provoke you.
That was exactly the situation Sai found himself in.
It annoyed him a little.
But at the same time, the presence of the sleeping behemoth meant no other monsters dared approach the area.
Which meant he had a perfectly safe place to train.
That alone made the situation acceptable.
"I'll be heading back now."
Sai casually waved toward the sleeping creature before turning around.
Then he quietly left the area while suppressing his aura to the absolute maximum and hiding his presence as carefully as possible.
Roughly half an hour later, he returned to the mansion.
After entering his room, he began changing his clothes.
Just as he finished buttoning the final button on his shirt, the door suddenly burst open.
His mother rushed inside with panic written clearly across her face.
"Oh, it's nice to see you, Mother."
Sai finished adjusting his clothing and gave her a slight bow.
"Sai!"
Before he could react further, something wrapped around him.
Less than two seconds after calling his name, she had already grabbed him and lifted him completely off the ground.
"Where did you go?! You made Mama so worried, you know!"
She hugged him tightly and rubbed her cheek against his while speaking.
Sai simply accepted the affection without resistance.
"I went to a graveyard," he explained calmly. "I thought I could get in some good training there."
About half a year earlier, Sai had told his parents about the fact that he had memories from a previous life.
Surprisingly, they had accepted the revelation rather easily.
Since that day, his mother's pampering had noticeably increased.
It was as if it had received a dramatic boost.
Mama power, increase.
"Don't go to graveyards," she said firmly. "What if a ghost gets you?"
She finally set him back down.
Sai inhaled deeply, enjoying the oxygen he had been temporarily denied during the tight embrace.
He pulled a chair forward for her to sit on.
"It's fine," he reassured her. "I found a really safe spot, and monsters won't dare come there."
Naturally, he left out the part about training beneath one of the most dangerous beasts in the entire territory.
His mother would definitely panic if she knew that detail.
"A safe place in a graveyard?"
She muttered the words quietly to herself.
Then she slowly turned toward him.
Her expression had changed.
Her eyes were now cold and suspicious.
"You didn't go to the Ever Silent Graveyard, did you?"
Sai swallowed.
"Gulp."
"Okay," she said calmly. "No desserts for you."
The moment those words reached his ears, Sai instantly dropped to his knees.
He prostrated himself on the floor, pressing his forehead flat against the ground.
"Please have compassion, my lady, and bestow upon me your blessings," he pleaded dramatically.
For emphasis, he rubbed his forehead against the floor as well.
"Stop it," she sighed. "I was just joking, you know."
A gentle force lifted his body back upright.
Sai looked up and saw his mother already walking toward the door.
"Your father is waiting for you," she said without turning around.
"He's really angry this time."
Sai gulped again as those words sank in.
His father was normally an extremely calm person.
Which was precisely what made it so terrifying whenever he became angry.
Now that Sai thought about it, he vaguely remembered his father mentioning earlier that he had some meeting to attend together with him.
But Sai had been so focused on his training that he had filtered out everything else.
He wondered briefly if any deities existed that might help him escape from this situation.
With that thought lingering in his mind, he slowly dragged his feet down the hallway toward his father's study.
Eventually, he stopped in front of the imposing mahogany door.
Taking a moment to steel his nerves, he spoke.
"Father, I have arrived."
"Come in."
Hearing the response from inside the room, Sai reached for the door.
As he stepped forward, he silently thanked the world for giving him a second chance at life.