"Insult? That sounds exaggerated," Caelum replied while shrugging casually.

"Besides, it’s not like becoming a knight means you peacefully retire to some farmland afterward, grow vegetables, marry someone, and quietly die there, right?"

He spoke without showing even the slightest discomfort from the immense pressure surrounding him.

After all, this was merely a mental space, and although Zusur had undoubtedly been powerful while alive, countless years had passed since then.

Time had greatly weakened the spirit of the old knight.

"From what I understand a knight serves a lord, but if they fail to find someone worthy enough to follow, then eventually the knight becomes the lord instead. These days there is also a concept of Knight Clans and Families," Caelum continued while waving his hand dismissively.

Then he pointed at himself.

"And in my case, I’m a future lord candidate, so our starting point and job description is different."

For a brief moment, Zusur found himself stunned.

After observing Caelum for some time, he had already realized that the boy possessed extraordinary potential, but it seemed the thoughts inside this child’s head were far stranger than he initially expected.

Eventually, the knight sighed and abruptly changed the topic.

"Do you have regrets?" he suddenly asked.

He had already realized that arguing philosophy with Caelum would lead nowhere meaningful.

Still, attitudes could always be corrected later, usually through a proper beating. At least, that had been how his own elders handled him.

"Regrets... I suppose I do have a few," Caelum muttered thoughtfully.

Zusur nodded slightly before asking another question.

"Were you unable to take revenge for your family or your village?"

It was one of the most common motivations he had witnessed among people obsessed with gaining strength.

Hatred, revenge, grief, loss – he hates to admit it but negative emotions are great fuel too, and he had seen many warriors walk forward carrying something similar.

And honestly, Caelum’s determination felt unusually intense despite his age.

Yet at the same time, Zusur sensed something odd about him.

The boy possessed ambition, but he lacked a clearly defined purpose.

Even surviving the frozen land long enough to arrive at the safe zone where Zusur left his inheritance required immense effort and perseverance.

The mana currents and directional flow within that place were so distorted that most people would wander endlessly without ever finding this location, and it was not like someone would find this place in first try.

Meanwhile, completely oblivious to the knight’s inner thoughts, Caelum looked at him strangely.

He genuinely wondered why Zusur suddenly assumed that his county had been massacred.

"My first regret is something nobody can truly understand..." Caelum finally declared with deep sorrow in his voice.

Zusur listened seriously.

"While everyone else starts at an academy ...I alone started at a school!" Caelum said in a deep voice.

Silence filled the platform.

Although Zusur completely failed to understand what deeper meaning those words carried, for some reason he could still sense genuine pain behind them.

"...I see," the knight muttered unconsciously.

"Now enough talking, even if your personality and mindset have some issues, I think they can still be corrected."

Caelum’s expression twitched slightly at those words before he suddenly laughed.

Meanwhile the dead knight honestly thought that this child was far too strange for his age.

Still, one thing pleased him greatly was that Caelum possessed courage.

And regardless of ideals, beliefs, or ambitions, the first thing that knights must possess was courage.

"Show me what you are truly capable of."

Zusur declared while lifting his massive great sword.

By this point, Caelum too had grown tired of all the talking.

"That, is exactly what I was thinking!" he said.

***

Caelum willed a weapon into existence, and almost instantly a perfectly ordinary sword manifested within his grasp.

Seeing this, Zusur silently nodded inwardly.

’He passed the first test with ease,’ the knight thought.

Since this was a mental space rather than reality, both combatants required weapons formed through their own will and spirit.

Manifesting one’s weapon here was the very first qualification needed to inherit his legacy.

If Caelum had failed to materialize a sword, the trial would have ended immediately.

And to those deemed unworthy of inheriting his path, only death awaited.

Though once a knight, Zusur had never been naive enough to hand his inheritance to the weak-willed or incompetent.

He had clearly left instruction on his book, that if someone wants his inheritance they should be prepared for death.

Then suddenly, an intangible energy erupted outward from Zusur’s body.

The atmosphere shifted immediately as a vast invisible domain spread throughout the platform before completely falling under his perception.

At the same time, he released his Aura into that domain.

This was the Aura Field of a Grand Knight.

Within this field, everything weaker than the user became suppressed while every movement, breath, and fluctuation could be sensed with terrifying precision.

The moment the Aura Field descended, Caelum’s expression changed slightly.

His body instantly felt heavier, as though an invisible mountain had been placed upon his shoulders.

Even the energy circulating within him became unstable under the overwhelming pressure, while his movements themselves felt restricted.

However, instead of frowning, Caelum’s eyes lit up excitedly.

’A free training machine!’ he thought immediately.

The pressure from the Aura Field was not merely suppressing him physically.

It was actively disrupting the control of his energy as well, meaning even the slightest mistake in circulation could have devastating consequences.

Yet from Caelum’s perspective, that simply made it excellent training.

"Although my Aura Field has weakened by nearly ninety percent over the years, it should still be more than enough for someone at your level," Zusur said calmly.

Caelum nearly choked hearing those words.

"Are you joking?" he asked while stabilizing his footing.

"This is ninety percent weakened?"

Zusur snorted lightly.

"If I had still been at my peak, killing hundreds of people at your level would have been no more difficult than breathing," he replied without arrogance, merely stating a fact.

"You do not yet understand the true difference between masters."

Then his gaze sharpened slightly.

"As an expert-level swordsman, you probably assume the gap between levels cannot be too absurd right?" he continued.

"But tell me this, have you ever fought an unrestrained Master? Have you ever even heard of a Master defeating a Grand Master?"

Caelum remained silent.

"Do you truly understand what separates those levels?" Zusur asked again.

Caelum felt slightly awkwardly at the lack of his knowledge before replying honestly.

"Uh... I’m still seven, so I haven’t exactly had time to roam the world yet." he muttered.

The moment those words left his mouth, Zusur froze completely.

"...Seven?"