A One-in-Ten-Thousand Magical Genius?

"Each attempt will last ten seconds. I'll use the most superficial level of Legilimency. If you succeed, I'll use Legilimency again after a fifty-second rest..."

Aivina explained the assessment requirements to Manus:

"If you can keep it up for ten minutes, meaning ten rounds, it will prove that you truly have the ability to learn magic. Dad and I won't stop you anymore."

Of course, Aivina's requirement for "holding out" was not that Manus had to block her Legilimency. Even the most superficial Legilimency she cast was not something Manus could block.

All she wanted was for Manus to maintain the act of "blocking"—to continuously focus and resist her Legilimency.

However, she would not deliberately explain the difference to Manus. If the goal was set higher, then even if he could not reach it in practice, he would still try to approach it, making it easier for him to achieve the real goal.

And if he could keep this up for ten rounds, it would mean that under normal circumstances, Manus could maintain his focus for at least an hour without obvious distraction, random thoughts, or an inability to concentrate.

That was already considered fairly outstanding for an eleven-year-old child, and she could rest easy.

"I'm ready. Come on."

"Alright... Let's give it a try first. Focus your mind."

Aivina looked into Manus's eyes and began the countdown:

"Three, two, one."

The instant the countdown ended, the gazes meeting between them changed. Aivina's gaze seemed to gain substance as it entered Manus's consciousness through his eyes.

Clearly, Aivina carefully controlled her strength when casting Legilimency on Manus.

After that tangible gaze entered Manus's consciousness, it turned into a wisp of gauze, like a gentle hand brushing across a still sea and stirring faint ripples.

"Hmm?"

Aivina was somewhat surprised. The feedback from Legilimency showed that Manus's mind was exceptionally resilient. Her Legilimency had received almost no feedback at all; she could only vaguely sense the shallowest, strongest emotions—focus and curiosity.

Ten seconds passed. Aivina stopped her Legilimency thoughtfully and looked at the son before her.

Manus's emotions were not surprising in the least, but this level of mental resilience...

I only taught him beginner-level knowledge, didn't I? Could my son really be a one-in-ten-thousand magical genius? Could he be extraordinarily gifted not only in Potions, but in Charms as well? Did he even succeed at Occlumency on his first try, with exceptional results?

Meanwhile, Manus had deliberately chosen not to resist his mother's magic. He wanted to see what this Charms spell called Legilimency could do. In any case, neither his emotions nor his thoughts contained anything he needed to hide.

As for his memories, he had naturally taken the initiative to sink them into the depths of his Spirit Sea. Although the Enchantment School was not his specialty, he was quite skilled in the relevant defensive measures.

After experiencing one round firsthand, he could tell that the Charms spell had likely been meant to act like a fishing net, hauling up his emotions and memories.

For someone who had never undergone any meditation training, their memories would be like threads or mist. Such a net could easily deal with them, but when faced with his Spirit Sea, it was simply not up to the task.

That was normal. According to Aivina, the strength she used could be resisted merely by concentrating. That standard was clearly not meant for him, but for a genuine seven-year-old child.

Even in his normal state, the power of his mind was surely stronger than that of an ordinary seven-year-old concentrating.

Still, since he had intentionally not resisted just now, his mother should have been able to capture some emotional feedback. That probably fit the standard for a seven-year-old with enough mental strength to learn magic, right?

Manus quietly made his breathing more ragged, as though he had just struggled through something difficult and was finally letting out a breath.

More than forty seconds passed before Aivina spoke again:

"The second round is about to begin. Focus!"

The moment her words fell, Aivina's Legilimency struck again, at the same intensity as before.

Aivina had no intention of using this opportunity to test the limits of Manus's mental abilities. They had agreed to test how long he could resist, so she would only look at the duration. His defensive strength could be discussed later.

Since her son truly had that talent and was already working so hard, what if increasing the intensity of her Legilimency made him unable to sustain Occlumency? Wouldn't that deal him a needless blow?

The second round's ten seconds quickly passed. Under Aivina's slightly excited gaze, Manus's breathing merely became more rapid, while his expression remained calm.

Third round... Fourth round... Fifth round...

By the end of the sixth round, Manus's forehead was covered in fine sweat, and his face had grown much paler.

But he still made it through the sixth round!

"Manu, take a rest. You've already done very well!"

Though it pained her, Aivina could not help speaking up to persuade him.

She had been utterly stunned—not only by her son's performance, but also by the tenacity he had displayed. He had persisted until now without once asking to stop.

Aivina could see clearly that if it was merely a matter of focus, her son had not yet reached his limit. But his Occlumency was about to reach its limit.

After all, he had only just come into contact with Occlumency, and she had only taught him the introductory parts. Relying solely on concentration to make magic passively resist Legilimency was terribly inefficient.

While someone who could last through ten rounds of testing could certainly concentrate for at least an hour, the reverse was not necessarily true. Someone capable of concentrating for an hour might not be able to last through ten rounds. The difference lay in their proficiency with Occlumency.

"...Alright, Mom."

Manus let out a breath. His face held both unwillingness and excitement, perfectly matching the feelings of a child who had failed the assessment but succeeded in casting the spell.

His mother had finally spoken.

Just as it was difficult for someone to voluntarily make the muscles beneath their skin fragile, expecting his Spirit Sea to be breached by magic of this intensity was simply too difficult. Yet he could not pass the assessment in one go—that would be far too absurd.

Left with no choice, he could only resort to this method.

If his mother still did not stop him after the eighth round, then he would have no choice but to faint from mental exhaustion.

Seeing Manus give up, Aivina breathed a sigh of relief. She had also feared that he would stubbornly refuse to admit defeat. When it came to magic, such a mindset would not do.

The magical inheritance of a Pure-blood Family was not limited to those incomprehensible ancient spells. They also had an abundant stock of simple, easily learned Dark Magic. During certain periods, those spells had even been the family's true core inheritance.

Thus, Aivina knew that if her son, who showed such interest in magic, did not understand his limits or know when to stop, then the path of magic would be filled with wrong turns for him.

Tenderly smoothing her son's bangs, Aivina said softly:

"Go back and practice properly. Don't put too much pressure on yourself. Mom believes in you. At most, you'll reach the standard to pass the assessment within half a year."