He took a moment to inhale the smoke from the cigar as he took the thought in of who this kid was in front of him. He inspected him with sharp eyes before speaking once more after blowing smoke into the air.
"You're just now coming to the academy? Where are you from kid?"
"Riverant Village."
"You're from the boonies? Ha! I like you already."
"Where are you from sir?"
"Some place down in the dumps, not too important. Though I moved here and did the same thing as you truthfully."
Dante's eyes widened as he picked up his dialect, which was a bit different from Terra and the others; he had wondered if this man was somewhat like Grant in how he came to the village to make a name for himself. He inspected his clothing a bit more in the moment and noticed the insignia that was on his armband. It was a golden sigil of sorts, reminiscent of the ones he'd seen around the kingdom hanging on flags. He'd recognized it a few times before fully realizing who he was speaking to.
"You're not a guard…you're a knight right?"
The man's expression changed to one of intrigue as he looked at Dante.
"Yep, that's what I am. A knight of Auradelle Kingdom."
Dante jumped up and had been curious about them ever since arriving to the kingdom. He'd seen the many guards saluting to certain people during his walks wearing black and gold uniforms. He'd wonder who they were, but he could never figure out as Terra and Xavien seemed busy over the past few weeks.
"You're a knight? How do you even become a knight?" he asked earnestly as he looked at the man with anticipation. He scratched the back of his neck in response and spoke.
"Well if you're going the academy route. Good grades and merit will take you a long way…but if you're going only off of skill alone. You have to stand out amongst the many applicants."
"So…someone like me could become a knight?"