Even before Lucas brought up the subject, Celestina had already decided she would do whatever she could to help Eris.
She had watched as this great-granddaughter she had never met before unhesitatingly rushed in and challenged a foe that was far stronger than herself to save the lives of those she cared about.
What's more, Eris would have succeeded if she had only been a bit more cautious or experienced. Even if the young girl's cultivation was a bit lacking for her age, that could be remedied with time and resources.
Courage and character, on the other hand, were things which couldn't be taught.
Eris didn't deserve to have her future destroyed; she was worth helping. That was a conclusion Celestina Balfour had come to as soon as she met her little descendant.
While her great-granddaughter was indeed impressive, however, it was Lucas who had really caught Celestina's eye.
Lucas was even younger and even weaker than Eris, yet he was the first one to jump out to help, and from what Celestina could gather, he had taken that risk for complete strangers.
While others might consider such behaviour foolish, Celestina considered it a virtue. Some tempering might be required to keep this selflessness from becoming a habit of self-sacrifice or self-destruction, but overall, the experienced General felt it was more a boon than a burden.
Despite thinking all that, the instructor and mentor in Celestina couldn't help but want to test the determination of the boy a bit more, wondering just what kind of surprise he would give her next.
In light of that, Celestina hid her emotions and intentions and asked a final question, "And why should I help you? That girl may be my great-granddaughter, but I have dozens of those. Why do you think I would give her preferential treatment? Or rather, why do you think I should give you preferential treatment?"
To this pointed question, Lucas actually shook his head and replied, "You misunderstand me, Marquess Balfour. I'm not asking for special treatment; I'm asking you to make a deal with me. A fair and equal exchange."
"Pft…" Celestina finally couldn't help herself and broke from character, stopping in the middle of the hall and bursting out into laughter, "Hahaha! Good, very good! You're got even more guts than I expected! En, I'll help you!"
Lucas was a bit taken aback by this sudden change in attitude, but he quickly realized that, from the very start, he was being tested.
In fact, he began to suspect that this new acquaintance of his was planning to help all along, making him blush a bit with embarrassment for having acted so brashly.
Noticing Lucas' embarrassment, but obviously not caring about it, Celestina smiled widely, grabbed him by the shoulders, knelt down so she could meet him on eye-level, and asked a fateful question, "Lucas, would you take me as your Master and become my Disciple?"
If anyone else familiar with the Balfour Marquess had been present, they would surely have had their jaw drop when they heard these words because Celestina had specifically said 'Disciple', not 'student'.
To most, there was only a slight difference between the two titles; but to those in the know, the difference couldn't have been more extreme.
One had to know that although Celestina Balfour had taught thousands of students, and trained tens of thousands of subordinates across her nearly 300 years long life, she had never taken a formal Disciple.
Not even the current king of the Rockwell Kingdom, nor his father, the former king, had received that privilege despite actively seeking it!
And yet here, today, in this remote backwater town, Celestina had suddenly decided to ask a boy she had just met and who had barely even begun cultivating to be her first True Disciple.
Although Lucas had no idea about the significance of this offer, he at least understood that being the Disciple of such a powerful Master was an incredible honour, so he promptly knelt down and shouted, "Disciple Lucas greets Master!"
"En en, you're a sensible one indeed," Celestina nodded, feeling more and more pleased with this new Disciple of hers.
"Get up," Celestina commanded, as she too rose back to her feet.
"Yes, Master!" Lucas got up and shouted.
Seemingly satisfied, the General nodded, "Good, we'll deal with the particulars later. I may not love formalities, but for something like this, a proper ceremony is required."
"That will have to wait until after this crisis is resolved, though. For now, lead me to command centr… to wherever things are being coordinated, so we can discuss the current state of affairs."
"Yes!" Nodding back, Lucas continued leading the way, heading down the corridors towards his Uncle Charles' office.
As the new Master and Disciple walked through the halls, Celestina couldn't help asking, "By the way, Lucas, you said you wanted to strike a deal with me, yes?"
"That's right," Lucas acknowledged lightly as he continued walking.
"While that won't be necessary anymore, I am curious about what you planned on trading in exchange for my help," Celestina mused, wondering just what this boy thought was so valuable he could use it to gain her assistance.
Halting his steps, Lucas fell silent for a moment, seemingly contemplating his next words extremely carefully.
He hadn't thought too deeply about it before, as his decision had been more spur of the moment. Thankfully, courtesy of his inherited memories, there were many, many things he could offer his new Master, all of which were extremely valuable.
The question was, what should he offer?
After mulling over the issue for a few seconds, Lucas decided that if he was really going to wholeheartedly accept Celestina as his Master, then he should offer her his most valuable possession.
There was no doubt a huge degree of risk with this, but Lucas felt that if he was to have any hope of building a strong, lasting relationship with the powerful woman beside him, he should be as honest as possible right from the start.
With that thought in mind, Lucas turned to the side and asked solemnly, "If I said I had an Auxiliary Cultivation Method which could dramatically improve the efficiency of any other Cultivation Technique, including Master's Flowing Flame Art, would you believe me?"
Celestina Balfour instantly froze in place before staring sharply at her newly accepted Disciple, peering into his eyes, as if trying to see through his very soul.
Previously, she had only postured slightly and exerted a bit of pressure on Lucas in order to test him; but this time, she held nothing back, even unconsciously releasing her aura as she attempted to judge the truthfulness of his words.
'Overwhelming' wasn't a strong enough word to describe the pressure Lucas felt at that moment.
It was as if a massive predator had fixed its gaze on him and was preparing to strike; however, every word he spoke was the truth, so despite his knees feeling weak and sweat pouring down his back, he felt no shame or embarrassment and continued to meet his new Master's glare.
Having been a Marquess and General for many years, Celestina had naturally interacted with many, many people, ranging from prisoners and slaves, to kings and queens.
She had also personally trained, mentored, and taught tens of thousands of people in everything from noble etiquette to the art of war, so she was incredibly adept at reading others and determining whether they were lying or exaggerating.
As such, when she saw not a drop of deception or bluster in Lucas' eyes, Celestina couldn't stop her heartrate from quickening slightly.
Although she didn't completely believe what Lucas had just said, at the very least, she judged that he wasn't lying to her. In other words, this boy really believed he had a way to improve her Cultivation Technique.
As for whether this belief was warranted or not, that would take time to verify.
"If you really have such a method and you are willing to share it with me, then not just I, but the entire Balfour Family will owe you a great debt," Celestina declared, not mincing any words or trying to downplay the importance of this offer.
The favour of one of the Marquess Families in the Rockwell Kingdom was practically priceless to a commoner like Lucas, but in the face of such immense benefits, the young boy actually shook his head decisively and said, "Since you are my Master now, helping you is the same as helping myself. The stronger Master is, the more support I can obtain from you."
This boy isn't just bold, he's also quite pragmatic, Celestina was astounded once more, knowing that there were many in the Rockwell Kingdom who would kill for far less than what she had just offered. It was at that moment that she realized she had still underestimated her new Disciple.
Celestina even began to see hope that Lucas really would one day surpass her and rise to heights she had never even dared to dream of. It also made her wonder just what Lucas had experienced to shape his character to such an extent.
He'd be cuter if he was bit less blunt and a bit more naïve, Celestina quipped to herself, finding it a little strange for a boy so young to be so mature.
She then snickered lightly, Though, at this rate, in a few years, I'm sure he's going to break a lot of young maidens' hearts.
Setting all these distracting thoughts aside, Celestina withdrew her aura and composed herself, "We'll discuss this in detail later. For now, we have more immediate priorities."
Having said so, she motioned for Lucas to continue leading the way, which he did after quickly wiping the cold sweat from his brow.