"Hey, young one," Vlad the Serpent inquired, his curiosity piqued. “Tell me. What have you done?”

Edwin regarded him with a quizzical expression. "What do you mean?"

In response, Vlad the Serpent emitted a contemptuous snort before explaining, "You were struck with a highly potent poison. You must have provoked some deep animosity in someone very influential.”

With innocence radiating from his big, doe-like emerald eyes, Edwin responded, "...I can't remember anything like that. I... I just enjoy wandering the capital and playing with my friends. Then I always return to the palace. I promise, I'm a good boy."

Vlad maintained a contemplative silence, his reptilian gaze fixed upon Edwin as he processed the young boy's words.

Unable to hold back his worry any longer, Edwin finally gathered the courage to ask, his voice tinged with anxiousness, "Mister Vlad, when do you think I'll get better? M-my mother must be worried about me."

Vlad, his orange eyes fixed on Edwin, responded matter-of-factly, "Now, now. Don’t be hasty to get up. I have negated the poison with an elixir. But your physical injuries will take some time to heal."

Edwin couldn't help but express his hope, his words simple and heartfelt. "I hope I get better soon."

Vlad held a contemplative silence before he finally spoke, "If you wish to hasten your recovery, there's a method that can assist you."

Edwin took a moment to grasp the significance of Vlad's words before responding with brimming enthusiasm, "Really?! Please, tell me! What should I do?!"

"What do you understand about Chakra? Can you harness it?" Vlad inquired with a calm and inscrutable demeanor.

Edwin recollected his mother's teachings and eagerly narrated, "Mother mentioned it. She said Chakra is the energy used by Father, Grandpa, and all the warriors in the Empire to fight."

Vlad sighed with a tired look in his eyes, realizing that he needed to provide a more thorough explanation to the young prince.

He began to explain, "Chakra is the ethereal force that courses through every living entity, acting as the lifeblood of the world and granting individuals the ability to tap into its extraordinary potential. And yes, it is indeed used to fight by the warriors and the beasts."

Finally, Vlad's tone shifted to a more serious note as he inquired, "Now, do you have any knowledge about Bloodline Spirits?"

Edwin's eyes continued to shimmer with excitement as he responded with youthful enthusiasm, "Yep! It's when a cool creature appears around your body! Mother said mine and father's spirit is an Eagle! Hehe..."

Vlad calmly clarified, "Close. Typically, humans possess a unique Bloodline Spirit within their Spiritual Consciousness, determined by their bloodline, spirit, element, and various other factors. As you grow stronger, you can manifest and utilize it."

He went on to explain, "From what I know, there are Common Bloodlines, Noble Bloodlines, and Royal Bloodlines. Common Bloodlines are often considered the weakest, while Royal Bloodlines are regarded as the most potent. Your family’s Royal Bloodline is that of an Eagle. Now it remains to be seen what exactly you will conjure."

Edwin chimed in with bubbling excitement, "It's gonna be a gigantic and super cool eagle. I'm gonna use it to explore the whole wide world! Hehe..."

Vlad, however, couldn't help but roll his eyes at the young prince's enthusiasm. He continued, "Now, as I was saying, I have a way to speed up your recovery. It’s a breathing exercise that will help you channel nature’s energy to heal your physical wounds. How swiftly you recover depends on how well you can perform this technique."

Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

In response to the Serpent's explanation, Edwin couldn't help but think to himself, 'Breathing technique? Does this snake think I don't know how to breathe? Hmph. How tough can it be? I'll get the hang of it in no time!'

Vlad maintained a calm tone as he explained, "Normally, humans like you can't grasp or utilize this breathing technique because it requires an environment rich in raw chakra. Luckily, this place meets that criterion."

Edwin, showing typical impatience for his age, rolled his eyes and urged, "Just teach me the breathing stuff already."

Vlad continued in a composed manner, "Take a nice, deep breath and inhale as much air as you can."

Edwin obediently followed the instruction, inhaling deeply until his lungs were brimming.

Vlad added, "Now, hold that breath for a count of five. Don't try to control it; let it flow naturally through your body. And once then, exhale."

Edwin complied, holding his breath for a count of five and exhaling as instructed.

"Now, keep doing this without stopping," Vlad instructed with a serious tone.

Edwin, feeling no immediate change, couldn't help but glance at Vlad with skepticism. "I don't feel any different. Is this really gonna help?"

Vlad calmly responded, "You can't sense nature chakra, so it's natural not to feel a difference. It's a slow process, but you'll see results in time."

Despite his initial skepticism about the breathing technique, Edwin resolved to diligently practice it. It was the only option he had at this moment.

Meanwhile, Vlad observed Edwin's progress with his orange-slitted eyes and contemplated, ‘…This child is too young. Moreover, he isn’t Blessed by Nature, and due to that, he can only take in a small bit of Nature Chakra with each breaths. But this means he is going to take a long time to recover.’

Soon, Vlad went out of his lair while speaking out, “I will go now. As for you, don’t stop using this breathing technique if you want to heal quickly.”

The next day when he returned, Edwin gave Vlad a huge surprise.

This was because the nature chakra that Edwin was inhaling was much greater compared to the day before.

Although this bit of nature chakra couldn’t be considered large for someone like Vlad as even now, Edwin would need quite some time to recover, but still, to see such huge progress in just a single day was astonishing.

“Did something happen? I can see that you have made some progress in utilizing that breathing technique,” Vlad asked a bit curiously.

Edwin gazed at Vlad quizzically as he responded, “What do you mean? I still don’t feel any different.”

Vlad dismissed the matter, saying, "Never mind, then."

Edwin just continued his breathing technique. Actually, there was indeed something that had changed.

During the entire night, Edwin remained awake as he continued to utilize this breathing technique. He worked so hard because he wanted to return to his mother’s side quickly.

Every time he felt sleepy or felt like giving up, his mother’s worried face seemed to appear in his mind, which shockingly gave him the willpower to persist and continue with this breathing technique.

Before long, the condition appeared where he could no longer keep himself awake.

Even when he eventually succumbed to sleep, Edwin continued to dream about the breathing technique.

In his slumber, he instinctively maintained the proper method, driven by the belief that any pause in his practice would be wasted time which could have been used for recovery.

It had been nearly two days since Edwin arrived at the lair, and his stomach was now growling with hunger.

Anticipating this, Vlad had brought exotic fruits from the nearby forest to satisfy Edwin's hunger.

These fruits were not only delicious but also rich in raw energy, enhancing Edwin's ability to absorb nature's energy and speeding up his recovery as long as he continued practicing the breathing technique.

Since Edwin was still too weak to move his arms, Vlad used his own Chakra to make the fruits float gently toward the young prince. Edwin would take a bite, and Vlad would retract the fruit before repeating the process.

Edwin's eyes widened in amazement as he watched this display of Vlad's mysterious ability.

"Woah!" he exclaimed, thoroughly impressed.

"…Can I do that too?" Edwin inquired, curiosity shining in his eyes.

With his usual composed demeanor, Vlad explained, "Only if you master the breathing technique properly. The technique I've taught you is known as The Primal Breath, the very technique beasts use to absorb nature chakra for themselves. It's in our bloodline to instinctively circulate this natura chakra in our bodies according to our bodies. As this nature chakra circulates, it also stimulates our bodies and enables us to generate our own chakra, enhancing our control over nature chakra."

Edwin pouted cutely as he complained, "It's not fair how you beasts can do it without even thinking. I'm trying my best, but I still don't feel any different."

Vlad sighed and continued, "Initially, humans also used to practice The Primal Breath. However, humans are less attuned to nature chakra than us beasts, so it took them much longer to master it. Thus, only a few humans who persisted were able to use it effectively.”

Vlad continued to explain, his expression growing more serious, "In their relentless pursuit of power, humans altered The Primal Breath to achieve rapid strength gains. They harnessed their breathing techniques to absorb Nature Chakra from their surroundings, integrating spiritual energy into their bodies, but focusing on strengthening the specific physical aspects related to their combat skills."

With a disdainful expression, Vlad added, "This approach indeed led to a swift increase in human strength, prompting more and more people to adopt these techniques. Unfortunately, in the process of these adaptations, an imbalance arises, strengthening only certain parts of the body while leaving others comparatively weak."

Edwin stared at Vlad with wide-eyed amazement and said, “Wow, Mister Vlad, you really know a lot. Are you like a librarian among the snakes? I think only the palace librarian can match your knowledge.”

A small tick mark appeared on top of Vlad’s head, his patience waning as he responded with a touch of irritation, “I've told you countless times that I'm not a lowly snake!”

Edwin, however, remained stubborn, looking at Vlad with wide, innocent emerald eyes as he spoke, “But you really look like the snakes in the portraits my mother showed me. She wouldn't lie to me!”

Vlad could feel his temper rising as he listened to Edwin's words and saw the stubborn look on the young prince’s face.

He couldn't help but think to himself, ‘If it weren't for the rare elixir and my Blood Essence that I used to neutralize that poison and to conduct that experiment, I'd seriously consider leaving him here to fend for himself.'