Anthony's struggle looked futile and ridiculous from an outside perspective. Even Anthony himself felt ridiculous and embarrassed at his state of weakness. He was sure at least a week had passed since his rebirth, although he had realized his perception of time was lacking, yet he still couldn't even stand up.
However, thanks to Anthony's weak starting point, it was also glaringly obvious when he made progress. His muscles, as small as they were, quickly tired from his attempts at moving around. The fibers broke down and were ready to be rebuilt stronger.
That was where Natural Breathing came in.
Humans had taken inspiration from beasts when they developed the training method. But unlike beasts, humans grew stronger through practice and training. So, it wasn't exactly the same method as what the beasts used.
To make up for their lacking physicality, humans exhausted themselves and their muscles and then weaved mana into the recovering tissue, making it stronger than before and surpassing the limits of ordinary humans.
Well, from what Anthony could glean from his knowledge, it was a slow and arduous process when compared to core or circle methods. It was also purely physical since it locked the mana into the muscles, rendering it impossible to use it for magic.
But Anthony didn't mind.
First of all, it was his only option at the moment. But most importantly, he was a dragon in what could be considered his past life. He had been the pinnacle of all magical beasts. Natural Breathing came as naturally to him as, well, breathing.
He hadn't even bothered looking for any specific methods of Natural Breathing since he doubted that anything could trump his experience of moving mountains of mana with each breath.
It took a little getting used to the difference between his dragon body's lungs and the ability to breathe and interact with mana when he was a dragon and his current state.
But time passed, and Anthony managed to inhale some of the mana in the air to strengthen his body. Thanks to that, it didn't take long before he could stand up with the help of the crib's spokes. It certainly wasn't long compared to his life as a dragon.
However, Anthony wasn't satisfied.
'This sucks!'
He couldn't stand without holding onto the crib. It was enough to deepen his glare. Apparently, his facial muscles also benefited from the Natural Breathing. And with how much Anthony was frowning, it would only get worse.
At least his frown eased up when he passed the next hurdle, which was to defy the overwhelming lack of balance in a newborn human's body and stand upright without leaning against the crib.
"Hey, honey, I think our kid might be a genius."
Thomas whispered to Vira in a hushed voice from the door so as not to startle Anthony.
"Yeah? Isn't that only natural? He's our baby, after all."
"No, seriously. Baby is on a whole different level from what I've heard."
"From what you've heard? What, from the women in the village?"
Thomas cleared his throat awkwardly at his wife's question.
"No. From the parents whose kids I teach. Now and then, they'll mention how their kids were amazing already as babies and how they'll go on to do great things in the future."
Vira glanced at Thomas before continuing to look at Anthony.
"So?"
"I think Malmer's son started walking just short of when he was a year old. I think he said something about crawling after half a year or something along those lines. Most of the other kids were slower in doing the same."
"And? What's the difference between a month and a half and half a year?"
"Four and a half months."
"Ha. Ha."
Thomas couldn't help but giggle a little despite Vira's glare. Since he was in the middle of saying something about their son's development, now obviously wasn't the time for lame jokes.
"Ahem."
Thomas cleared his throat to stop himself from laughing before he continued.
"Anthony didn't even start with crawling. He went straight to standing up in almost a fifth of the time it took for Malmer's kid to crawl."
Thomas' tone was serious as he looked at Vira.
"I see."
Vira nodded her head just as seriously.
"Isn't that a good thing? You seem concerned, darling."
'Shit.'
Anthony had tried to be sneaky about his training at first since he didn't want Thomas and Vira to make a fuss. But he couldn't sacrifice his progress for something like that.
Thomas shrugged.
"I'm just worried."
Vira nodded and gave Thomas a comforting hug.
"Oh, butternups. Everything's going to be alright. Our baby might be a genius, or he just might be good at standing up. Regardless, we'll be there for him no matter what happens. If he has trouble fitting in with the other kids, we'll play with him. If he turns out to be too smart for his own good, we'll teach him how to live properly."
Thomas looked at Vira.
"Oh, honey, I love you so–"
Vira interrupted Thomas with a kiss.
"I love you too, butternups."
'Seriously. Do that someplace else. Don't disturb me.'
Anthony frowned and shook his head. He wasn't so cold that he didn't understand affection or love, even if he hadn't experienced it himself. But he didn't understand the need to do it right in front of him when he was busy training.
But it was at least a good thing his parents loved each other and him since it meant he didn't have to deal with any domestic troubles. He could focus on his training and reduce the time he needed before he could fly the coop.
However, it wasn't looking so bright. Apparently, a month and a half had passed since Anthony's rebirth. He was behind schedule, and his estimation of a human's growth was off, way off.
It was concerning, but it wasn't the end of the world. At least he was better than other babies.
Anthony slumped.
'As if that's something to celebrate.