The Art of Breathing

From then on, Ashen fell into a routine—morning classes, grueling afternoon training, then returning to his room half-dead, collapsing onto his bed like a corpse.

Days blurred together in an endless cycle of exhaustion. Before he knew it, a week had passed. 

And now, once again, he found himself standing on the academy's main training grounds, bracing for yet another thrashing from Coach.

"ATTENTION!" The instructor's voice boomed across the field, snapping everyone to attention.

Expecting another brutal workout, the trainees braced themselves… only to be caught off guard.

"I've got good news for you today."

With his arms crossed and the usual unreadable expression, he continued, "Instead of your usual training, you'll be learning something else. Something you think you know, yet you've only scratched the surface of its wonders…"

The dramatic pause made some trainees lean in eagerly, while most were simply relieved to get a break from his relentless drills.

Then, with a deep voice, the coach finally revealed the lesson.

"Breathing."

A long silence followed. Confused glances were exchanged. A few skeptical eyebrows rose.

Standing beside Ashen, Braun let out a chuckle and muttered, "If it gives me a break from getting my ass kicked, I'm willing to relearn potty training at this point."

Ashen snickered but kept his focus on the instructor, trying to decipher the deeper meaning behind his words.

'Is this about belly breathing or something? No way he'd make such a big deal over that…'

As if reading their thoughts, the coach continued, "Some of you might be wondering what the hell I'm talking about. But let me ask you this… have you ever really paid attention to your breathing?"

He let the question hang in the air for a moment before adding, "More importantly… have you ever considered whether you're even doing it correctly?"

Pacing along the elevated stand, his sharp gaze swept across the trainees.

"You might think breathing is simple… just get some air into your lungs and call it a day. But I'm here to correct that misconception."

He stopped, lifted a finger to his nose, and inhaled deeply.

At that moment, a massive rush of air surged toward him, carrying streaks of luminous blue mana. 

The glowing lines danced in the air, forming intricate arcs before vanishing into his nostrils. 

His chest expanded unnaturally wide, and a faint, blue-tinged mist escaped his mouth when he finally exhaled.

The trainees' eyes widened in shock, including Ashen's.

'What the hell?'

'Is he a damn whale or something? And just how much mana did he gather in one breath to make it visible…?'

"That… is real breathing."

The deafening silence was shattered as the trainees snapped out of their reverie.

Unfazed by their stunned expressions, the coach continued as if his display had been nothing more than a routine demonstration. 

And perhaps, to him, it was—after all, he had only taken a breath. The correct way.

"Of course, you're not expected to breathe like that indefinitely; it's impractical. For regular breathing, you'll be learning specialized breathing techniques."

With a flick of his wrist, more than two hundred silver bracelets materialized in the air. 

A moment later, they shot forward, each one zeroing in on a specific trainee as if drawn by an unseen force.

Stunned, the recruits barely reacted as the bracelets snapped into place around their wrists.

"I made these myself." The instructor's tone remained as no-nonsense as ever. "They will force you to breathe in a specific pattern. This pattern, commonly referred to as a breathing technique, is embedded into each bracelet."

As the last bracelet clicked into place, his expression turned serious.

"Each of you has been given a tailor-made technique, designed after careful observation of your aptitude and traits over the past week." 

"These devices also include detailed explanations of your breathing method and its effects on your body. So don't take them lightly."

Ashen examined the sleek bracelet strapped to his wrist. A small screen dominated most of its surface, accompanied by three buttons.

The first was labeled "General Introduction."

The second, "About Your Technique."

The last one, simply, "Start."

It wasn't hard to guess what that last button did—activating the breathing technique. 

His fingers twitched with the urge to press it, just to see what would happen.

"Alright, everyone. Find a vacant spot to sit. You'll be using your breathing bracelets right now. If you don't understand something, ask me while I'm here. But I highly advise you to go through the first two buttons before anything else."

As the trainees scattered across the training grounds, Ashen picked a relatively secluded corner and sat down.

After briefly admiring the bracelet's craftsmanship, he took the coach's advice and clicked the first button.

A robotic voice echoed in his ears.

[Please close your eyes to commence the introduction.]

His gaze flickered left and right… No one was close enough to whisper in his ear. That meant the voice had come from inside his head. The bracelet was the obvious culprit.

With a deep breath, he complied.

Darkness swallowed his vision for only a moment before glowing symbols materialized, forming words as if they were being etched directly onto his retinas. 

Sentences unfolded before him, and as he focused, he found himself able to scroll through the text just like swiping on a phone screen.

He experimented, opening his eyes made the words vanish. Closing them brought them back.

'Neat.'

Once he got the hang of it, he started reading.

The introduction covered the basics of breathing techniques... their purpose, effects, and benefits. At first, it seemed straightforward, but the deeper he read, the more his brows creased.

'Breathing does this?'

Mana's presence in the body didn't just enhance physical abilities… it gradually reshaped it, evolving it over time. That much, he already knew from Professor Wiseman's lessons. 

But what he hadn't known was how much breathing influenced that process.

A slow, deep, measured breath would guide mana to take on a 'heavy' trait over time, reinforcing the body's structure. Strength and endurance would increase, but at the cost of speed and agility.

On the other hand, rapid, sharp breaths encouraged a 'light' trait, enhancing flexibility and reaction time while making the body leaner and faster. 

The trade-off? Less durability and raw strength.

Ashen's fingers hovered over the bracelet as he absorbed the implications.

'So it's not just about getting stronger. It's about choosing how you develop…'

And that wasn't all.

The text explained that breathing techniques didn't just shape the body, they also increased the amount of mana refined with each breath.

The more refined mana one could accumulate, the greater their overall capacity.

Ashen exhaled slowly, his curiosity growing.

'This is getting exciting. Can't wait to try it out.'