9th February, 3032 B.E.

A tall muscular man could be seen walking through the forest. He was bare-chested and was carrying logs of wood on his strong shoulders. That muscular man had a young face and was fair-skinned. He also had a small beard on his face.

The young man had black eyes and black hair. There was also a small scar right next to his right eye. A few other scars could also be seen on his chest.

That young man was Jacob. He was returning to his home after felling a few thin trees in the forest. He was also wearing a bow along with a quiver on his back and had a sheathed sword dangling from his side. In his left hand was an axe.

By now, almost five years had passed since his father started training him. Due to the intense training, he had grown into a tall muscular man. He was almost six feet tall by now, almost reaching the height of his father.

In addition to that, all of his muscles had developed into a very strong state. His physical strength was also very high. He could crack a wild animal's thick skull with a single punch.

He still had a year or two remaining of height growth according to his father. But it would not make much difference. He would grow an inch or two at most. As compared to that, his muscles had completely developed. All he could do now was to put extra weight and increase their mass.

Soon, he broke out into a large opening and saw his father sitting on a chair near the house. He was holding something in his hands. Jacob could not see clearly what it was since there was some distance between them.

He smiled and started walking toward his father. When he reached the house, he threw down the logs and went to his father. He saw that the object his father was hiding was a small flat stone. His father was looking at it. He became a bit curious about it.

"Morning, father." Jacob greeted him and came to stand near him. He had long stopped bothering his father with his meals. He prepared his own meals and went to the forest on his own for the past couple of years.

He had already completed his weapons training two years ago. He just repeated what he had learned now and then in order to not forget it.

In addition to sparring with his father, he also had some real fighting experience with dangerous wild animals. The scars on his chest were a testament to it.

As for the special poses, he had learned them completely from his father. He could now do it on his own. He did not need to bother his father at all. According to the elder, he had to keep doing it until he became a second-level cultivator.

"Morning." His father looked at him and smiled. After that, he started looking at the flat stone.

Now that Jacob was standing near him, he looked at the stone fragment his father was holding more closely. He found something ineligible written on the stone. He could not identify the language at all. He only knew the common language.

"Father. What is it?"

"It is a fragment of an ancient stone tablet. Written on it is an ancient language."

"Ancient language?" Jacob became interested in the new term he just heard.

"Yes. Ancient language. Ancient languages are the languages that were spoken by people of this world a very long time ago. Nobody speaks them now." His father replied without looking up.

Jacob looked at the strange words with a little interest. Since his father was looking at the fragment, it did not need to be uttered that his father understood those strange words.

So, Jacob pointed at a random strange word and asked the elder a question,

"What is written here?"

"Wania." The elder looked towards the word Jacob was pointing at and replied calmly.

"Wania? What does it mean?"

"It means "a gift.""

"A gift.. Hmm." Jacob soon lost interest in the ancient languages since he could not understand them.

He went inside the house and after a few minutes, came out with a chair in one hand and a newspaper in the other. He also donned his upper garments and was not bare-chested anymore.

He put the chair down in front of his father and sat down. He then started reading the newspaper. Soon, a frown came on his face.

Things are escalating recently. I hope this ends soon. Jacob thought as he read about the recent local political news. Things were escalating quickly.

He still remembered how the Red Horn kingdom's representative insulted the Ursus heir six years ago. By now, many things had happened between them. And all of them led to increased hostilities between the two countries.

Recently, they had started sending scouting parties into each other's territories. It was as if they were preparing for war. Jacob was a bit perturbed at it.

He had a deep understanding of politics now. Although the nobles benefited from such wars, it was always the common population that suffered due to shortages and increased prices.

The Red Horn's king had already made a few non-aggression treaties with some of his neighbouring countries. In response to that, the Ursus king had done to same.

"Son. War is approaching. The Red Horn king has become a bit restless in the past few years. Go to the city and buy whatever we need for the next couple of years. We will not visit any city until the war ends. If we do so, there is a high chance you will be conscripted as a citizen."

The elder put down the stone fragment and ordered his son to go to the city with a serious expression.

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"I understand, father. I will depart immediately." After saying that, Jacob put down the newspaper and got up.

He knew that although the ruling clans were not allowed to mobilize more than half of the forces of their country during a war they had the authority to conscript people from their local population.

He went inside the house and changed into a proper clean outfit. He equipped his weapons and wore a backpack. After that, he came out of the house and took a money pouch from his father. He did not even look into it and set out for the city immediately.

In the next three days, he became very busy. After reaching the city, he noticed that there was a gloomy setting in the city. Everyone had a gloomy expression and the streets were less crowded than before.

He then started a shopping spree. The prices of various items were already rising and they were becoming more and more expensive with each passing day. Especially, the prices for food had already become outrageous.

In addition to the increased prices, he also learned of some rumours that were circulating in the common folk. The contents of the rumours varied but they all had some common points. One of the points was that the war was really coming. It was confirmed.

Another thing that Jacob came to know was that about four armies were being formed currently. One army would be raised from the capital city, one from the next two largest cities combined.

The third army would be led jointly by Agoross and the other two comparable cities. The fourth army would be formed by the rest of the cities. Each army would be led by the respective clans of the cities forming them.

All of the mercenaries were already being hired across the country and the citizen conscription order would pass soon. After hearing the last rumour, Jacob became a bit restless. He did not want to be conscripted in this war at all. So, he increased his efforts.

Jacob hesitated to buy food in bulk due to high prices. Although he had more than enough money in his pouch, he did not want to waste it.

So, after some efforts, he managed to make a deal with a merchant and bought food items in bulk at slightly lower prices. He also hired a few labourers to help him carry the things he bought.

In the end, he hired a wagon and a carriage. The wagon was used to carry the things he bought while the carriage carried him and the labourers he hired. After arriving near the house, Jacob with the help of the labourers moved all the things near the house.

After that, Jacob paid the dues to the labourers and personally accompanied them to the carriage waiting for them on the dirt road. After he bade them farewell, he returned to the house and greeted his father.

He took a rest for a few minutes before he went out and started moving the things he bought to the basement. It took about fifteen minutes for his work to finish.

He was panting a little by the end. He was also a little tired. But he was a strong adult now. In fact, he was way stronger than the adults. So he knew that his tiredness would go away in a few minutes.

It was evening by now. He had been lifting weight for the past couple of hours but he was just a little tired in the end. This was the fruit of his hard work for the last few years. He was a little happy inside of his heart.

He was anticipating the day he formally became a cultivator. These past few years had not dulled his ambitions at all. He still wanted to become a cultivator.

The only difference between him now and the him five years ago was that his thoughts were a bit more mature and realistic.

His reasons for becoming a cultivator did not include flying around or hurling boulders at the beasts now. Neither was he obsessed with the mysterious weapons he saw during that memorable fight.

He now wanted to become a cultivator to protect his father and to adventure endlessly. He also wanted to learn many things. He had abandoned all of his childish thoughts. He still used to smile whenever he remembered his naive thoughts back then.

He was no longer amazed by everything he saw for the first time. His voice was also no longer childish and was a bit thick now.

After finishing his work, he came and sat in front of his father. He then informed him about the recent situation in the city and how he had managed to buy cheaper food. His father praised him for his efforts in return.

After that, he lifted the weapons and went out of the house to train with them. He trained with them until it was completely dark and starry.

He looked up towards the sky for a few seconds before returning to the house. He then checked all the weapons in the rack to know whether any of them needed any maintenance.

He then prepared a large meal for himself and ate until he was full. His food consumption had increased greatly after he had started doing special exercises. He now used to eat three portions of a normal adult meal three times a day. His strong body required a very large amount of energy.

He then bade his father goodnight and entered his room. He took off his upper garments and started doing various kinds of strange poses. He was twisting his body according to what he had learned from his father and took great care of the duration of each pose.

Soon, he started sweating and his muscles started aching slightly. He stopped when the aching was about to become unbearable. He then threw himself on the bed and closed his eyes in order to fall asleep.

His routine became normal after that day. He was not that worried about the war. He and his father were far away from it.

The only thing that perturbed him was that he would become fifteen years old six months later and would set out along with his father towards the sects in the east. He was worried whether the war would interfere with their plans.

Sixteen days later, on the first day of the march, his father went to the city alone while dragging the cart full of wood behind him. Jacob wanted to go with him but was rejected immediately.

The elder told him that he was going to the city to sell wood and to see the war situation. He strictly forbade him from following him to the city.

The next two days passed excruciatingly slow for Jacob. He was worried sick about his father's safety.

In times of war, crime will run rampant. Will not his lonely old looking father in high-quality white robes look like a perfect target to those cruel criminals?

Many times, he made up his mind to go to the city and search for his father. But remembering his father's command, he forcefully stopped himself. He remained extremely restless in those days and felt as if he was sitting on a fire.

Thankfully, his father returned two days later safe and sound. After greeting his son, he said nothing and handed him a newspaper.

Jacob understood his intentions and read it immediately.

This time, the local news occupied the front page. The content of the line in the boldest text caught his attention.

"War Declaration: The Red Horn kingdom has declared war with the Ursus kingdom." After reading it, Jacob concentrated on the details that were written below it.

"According to some reports, the Red Horn armies are already on the move. They are being reported to be four in number. In retaliation, our home country has also raised four strong armies. Each army is about twenty thousand strong. They are already moving to intercept the enemy."

So those rumours were true. They raised four large armies. I wonder how they will fare against the enemy. Jacob was secretly rooting for his home country in his heart.

He then came to sit in front of his father and asked him about the conclusion of this war.

"Father. Who will win? What do you think?"

"It will be a stalemate." The elder replied immediately as if he was waiting for Jacob to ask this question.

"Can you tell me the reasons why you arrived upon such a conclusion?"

"Simple. Although the Red Horn Kingdom is a bit older than our kingdom, there is not much difference between their military strength. Although an older country is stronger normally but due to the good leadership of the Ursus king, he was able to raise his country's strength rapidly."

Jacob nodded and displayed an expression of understanding.

"But the local population always suffers. During wartime, the trade with the neighbouring countries stops and prices increase due to hoarding and shortages. Poor people starve to death." The elder continued and told him about the dark side of a war.

"I understand, father." Jacob nodded with a serious expression. He was also trying to imagine himself as a son of a poor labourer in a city. How he would have to lead a very difficult life then.

He also imagined what would have happened, had his father not found him. He was thankful that luckily, he was found by his father. Otherwise, he would have to suffer from difficult living conditions.