After watching Eris being laid down on a makeshift bed in the infirmary, with Herbalist Erwin personally monitoring her condition, Lucas turned and gestured for Celestina to follow him.
As the pair walked down the Manor's hallway, Celestina observed Lucas carefully, flashing a smile as she decided to ask, "You seem quite close with my great-granddaughter. Is there some special relationship between you and her?"
If Lucas had been an ordinary 10-year-old boy, he would probably have been a red flushing mess after being asked this kind of personal and direct question from a stranger, but instead of blushing, he just replied seriously, "She's my big sister. A precious member of my family."
"Oh?" Celestina's eyes flickered, impressed by the boy's calm demeanor. She had asked this question precisely to gauge whether Lucas would become flustered, but he didn't even flinch.
Obviously, he was far more mature than his age would suggest.
"There's no need to test me like this, General Balfour," Lucas followed up, his tone of voice still polite, but carrying a slight edge to it that normally would not have been there.
Make no mistake, Lucas had nothing but respect for Celestina Balfour at this moment.
Even if it wasn't her only intent, this noblewoman was here in Redwood Town offering her aid. As the one receiving this timely assistance, Lucas shouldn't have done anything that might be thought of as offensive, and he knew this, but he wasn't exactly in complete control of his emotions at the moment.
Of course, while she was again surprised that this little boy had discerned her intent so easily, Celestina wasn't about to get upset over something so minor. She could tell that Lucas was deeply concerned about her recently met great-granddaughter, so she didn't hold this slight slip of the tongue against him.
In fact, Lucas' minor outburst actually relieved Celestina slightly, He's an unusual one, that's for sure, but it seems he still has some childish points.
The pair walked in silence for a short time before Lucas finally couldn't hold himself back anymore and asked, "Lady Balfour, do you have a way to restore Big Sister Eris' arm?"
Closing her eyes for a moment, Celestina seemed to ponder on the issue for a bit before she shook her head, "Treating her injuries isn't too difficult, but as far as I know, regrowing an entire limb isn't possible as long as she remains in the Grand Mortal Realm. In order to restore an arm, she'll need to at least reach the Martial Initiate Realm."
Choosing not to focus on the pessimistic undertones of this response, Lucas instead pressed for more information, "Are you saying that as long as big sister can rise above the Grand Mortal Realm and enter the Grand Spirit Realm, specifically becoming a Martial Initiate, she can get her arm back?"
Celestina didn't answer this question immediately, instead pursing her lips slightly as she debated how much information she should disclose.
Obviously, Lucas was extremely intelligent and surprisingly well informed. Most countryside kids didn't casually use terms like 'Grand Mortal Realm' and 'Martial Initiate', as these things were almost never taught to them.
The Grand Mortal Realm consisted of the Body Tempering, Vein Opening, Core Formation, and Sea Establishment Realms.
It is also often referred to as the 'Four Mortal Realms' or just the 'Mortal Realm' and was the phase in which one lays the foundation to begin their cultivation journey.
Most children, even those born in small towns and villages, knew that in the Body Tempering Realm, one would strengthen their physique by absorbing World Qi.
In the Vein Opening Realm, one continued this process by clearing and expanding their meridians.
In the Core Formation Realm, the Dantian, also referred to as the Core, was molded at one's navel.
Finally, in the Sea Establishment Realm, one would open their Soul Sea behind their forehead.
This was all common knowledge, but civilians referring to these four realms collectively as the Grand Mortal Realm was unusual given that the overwhelming majority of them would never exceed this level and reach the Grand Spirit Realm.
In short, it was useless knowledge, so it was never taught to the children of the farmers, labourers, and tradespeople who made up the bulk of the Rockwell Kingdom's population.
Generally, only those who received a noble or military education would study such things as they had much higher hopes of becoming Spirit Initiates.
However, not only did Lucas seem perfectly familiar with these terms, he even understood the distinction between Spirit Initiates and Martial Initiates.
Once one completed their foundation in the Grand Mortal Realm, they were, theoretically, able to break through to the next stage of cultivation, the Grand Spirit Realm. However, the Grand Spirit Realm was far more complicated than the Four Mortal Realms.
In the Grand Spirit Realm, one cultivates their Essence, Body, and Soul separately. As such, the three different cultivation paths are referred to as Spirit Cultivation, Martial Cultivation, and Soul Cultivation.
One needs to cultivate their Essence to raise their Spirit Cultivation, their Body to raise their Martial Cultivation, and their Soul to raise their Soul Cultivation.
Of course, things weren't that cut-and-dry.
The three cultivation systems were inextricably linked, and it was basically impossible to solely cultivate one without affecting the others, but this kind of in-depth knowledge wasn't even taught to most noble children until they were on the verge of reaching the Grand Spirit Realm.
Only after years of testing and observation would the most talented and dedicated heirs be singled out and given specialized training in the hopes that they would reach even greater heights, eventually becoming powerhouses that supported their background forces.
As for those youths who didn't show the necessary drive or aptitude, why bother teaching them something they would never need to know?
Even from this brief exchange, Celestina was able to roughly discern how extensive Lucas' knowledge base was.
Clearly, he had been given far more information than an ordinary child would have; and, in light of that, she decided that telling him the blunt truth would be better.
"Reaching the Martial Initiate Realm is only the first requirement to restoring Eris' arm," Celestina replied, "After becoming a Martial Initiate, she will need to undergo special treatment from a Spirit Doctor while taking valuable pills and elixirs from a Spirit Alchemist, both of whom would need to be at least Peak-Rank Grade 1 Professionals."
"If you want a perfect recovery, however, Peak-Rank Grade 2 Spirit Professionals is the minimum you should aim for."
Hearing this, Lucas unconsciously lowered his head and clenched his fists, hesitantly asking, "Are there any such Spirit Professionals in the Rockwell Kingdom?"
Sighing, the General shook her head, "Yes and no."
"…what does that mean?" Lucas almost didn't want to ask, but eventually forced himself to.
"There is a single Peak-Rank 1 Spirit Doctor in this kingdom, but there are no such Alchemist here. As for Peak-Rank 2 Doctors and Alchemists, not just our kingdom, none of the kingdoms in the South-Central Region of the continent have such high-level Spirit Professionals," Celestina replied flatly, seeing no point in sugar-coating things for the young boy.
It was an extremely harsh reality, one that essentially condemned Eris to a life without her right arm, a fate that would certainly cause immense pain to the young girl who loved frolicking, playing, and swinging her sword more than anything other than her friends and family.
Just imagining what the look on his big sister's face would be when she was told this news nearly broke Lucas' heart.
However, the young boy didn't stay depressed for long.
Taking a deep breath to steady himself, he lifted his head and stared directly into the golden-yellow eyes of the woman beside him, declaring firmly, "I'll find a way."
Many thoughts crossed Celestina Balfour's mind at that moment, such as how absurd it was for a mere boy to make such a bold claim, or how much this child was overestimating himself, but seeing the gaze filled with determination and resolve, she couldn't help hoping for him to succeed, despite the odds.
"It will be difficult. Far more difficult than you can imagine. At the very least, you will either have to become stronger, wealthier, or more influential than me; quite possibly all three, in fact," Celestina stated unequivocally, without the slightest attempt to comfort or coddle him like she would any other 10-year-old.
"Then that's what I'll do," Lucas didn't hesitate for an instant to reply before immediately continuing in as formal a tone as he could muster, "Marquess Balfour, I want to make a deal with you."
"Oh? Your goal is to surpass me, yet you want my help to do so?" Celestina Balfour probed, wearing a stern expression as she questioned, "You're not even going to try to save her on your own and instead just depend on others?"
Not flinching under the intimidating gaze being directed at him, Lucas said plainly, "I'm weak, poor, and have no status to speak of, so trying to do everything on my own would be foolish. Even if I could pull that off, who knows how long it would take? I need help, so I'll ask for help. It's as simple as that."
"What about your pride as a man?" Celestina asked, though she immediately felt it was a bit ridiculous questioning a boy about 'being a man'.
"Pride? What good is that? Will preserving my pride somehow help me in this situation?" Lucas asked back, a hint of self-deprecation in his voice.
Of course it won't. You can't eat pride, after all, but most people can't ever bring themselves to admit that, Celestina praised inwardly while keeping her expression flat.