The breeze rolled down from Mount Daehwa, carrying the scent of pine, steel, and faint incense from the training grounds. Sword cries echoed across the valley — sharp, rhythmic, full of life.
Jin Mu was not among them.
He lay under a crooked willow at the back of the clan's outer courtyard, one arm folded under his head, the other lazily holding a rice cracker. Sunlight danced through the branches above him, flickering across his face.
Perfect temperature, mild wind, distant shouting — truly, a day meant for napping, he thought.
"Jin Mu!"
The shout cracked through the air like a whip. He flinched before even opening his eyes. The familiar heat in that voice told him it was already too late.
He didn't need to look to know who it was.
A shadow fell over him. "Are you skipping morning drills again?"
Jin Seolhwa — his second sister, the clan's fiery prodigy. Sweat gleamed on her forehead, and her training clothes clung tight to her arms. Even her scowl looked heroic.
Jin Mu blinked up at her and grinned. "Sister, I was meditating."
Her eyes narrowed. "Face up, mouth open, and drooling?"
He wiped his chin quickly. "It's… a new breathing method."
"Good. You can breathe while I beat some discipline into you."
A flicker of killing intent spread like heat from her stance. Jin Mu bolted upright, hands waving. "Now, now! Violence solves nothing! You of all people should—"
Wham!
The kick landed square in his ribs, launching him into the dirt.
He groaned, staring at the sky again. "Ah… yes. The air feels lighter after enlightenment."
"Idiot." Seolhwa's voice softened for just a moment before she stomped away toward the main hall.
Jin Mu coughed, spat dust, and rolled over slowly. "Still alive. That's progress."
---
He lay there a while longer, watching clouds drift across the blue. The aches in his body told him he'd skipped too many days of training.
When he finally sat up, something strange pulsed behind his eyes — like a spark.
> [Initializing System Protocol…]
[Analyzing Host Condition…]
[Conclusion: Disgrace detected.]
Jin Mu froze. "…What?"
> [Activating Martial Growth System.]
[Main Directive: Convert this useless host into something marginally respectable.]
He blinked. "...Excuse me?"
> [Quest Generated: Rebuild your body.]
Condition: 100 push-ups, 100 sit-ups, 100 squats, 3 km run.
Reward: +1 Body Conditioning Point.
Failure: Continued embarrassment to your bloodline.
Jin Mu stared into empty air, lips twitching. "A hallucination. Definitely. Sister kicked me too hard."
> [Denial Detected. Reducing reward enthusiasm by 5%.]
"...You can reduce enthusiasm? How do you even—"
> [Talking wastes energy. Begin.]
He rubbed his temple, muttering, "I died once already. Reborn in a clan that names everything after dragons. Now I have a mouthy system. Perfect."
Still, curiosity gnawed at him. His body had grown soft, his qi flow sluggish. Maybe the universe was mocking him into action.
He dropped to the ground and began his first push-up. The muscles in his arms screamed immediately.
"One…"
By the thirtieth, his breath rasped. By the fiftieth, he was cursing his past self for skipping P.E. class.
> [Progress: 52%]
[Encouragement Message: Try not to die before number 100.]
"Thanks for the motivation," he wheezed.
---
By the time the sun began to dip, he collapsed beside the willow again, drenched in sweat, arms shaking.
> [Quest Complete.]
Reward: +1 Body Conditioning Point.]
[Evaluation: You're now slightly less pathetic.]
A faint warmth spread through his body — a pulse of qi he hadn't felt in months. His breath came smoother, his muscles lighter.
For the first time since waking in this world, Jin Mu smiled without sarcasm. "So… this actually works."
> [Host displays signs of motivation. Monitoring for relapse.]
"Yeah, yeah," he said, waving lazily. "You're lucky I'm too tired to argue."
He glanced up at the Blade Clan's main building in the distance — where his father sat trapped by injury, where his sister carried the clan's pride alone, and where the fading banner of the Dragon Fang fluttered in silence.
His grin thinned. "A declining clan, a useless son, and a system that insults me. Not the worst combination I've had."
The wind rustled through the bamboo.
He lay back with a sigh. "Fine. I'll train. But only so she doesn't kick me again."
> [New Quest Generated: Attend morning training tomorrow without collapsing.]
[Reward: +2 Martial Points.]
[Penalty: Sister's wrath.]
"...You're evil," Jin Mu muttered.
> [Compliment acknowledged.]
He chuckled despite himself. "Alright, System. Let's see how far a lazy man can go."
The willow leaves swayed gently above him, and for the first time, the sun felt a little warmer.