Apprentice

When I woke up, the sun was just rising, and its first beams crept inside my humble room.

As I stand up from my bed, the sloping roof presses down on me. Its ancient wooden beams groaned as if in pain. A single small window lets in a sliver of light, casting long shadows across the room.

My nose was tickled by the musty scent of old wood and dust. The room was sparsely furnished, but what was there was carefully chosen.

A narrow bed stood in the center, its thin mattress covered in a patchwork quilt that seemed to have been sewn from scraps of every color imaginable.

A small, battered wooden trunk sat at the foot of the bed, its lid propped open to reveal a few neatly folded garments.

It is nothing fancy, but it is enough for my needs. I looked out the window. Down the street, where the morning bustle was in full swing and crowds of people were heading to work.

I wanted to eat something for breakfast, but suddenly the tower bell rang, signaling the start of the first period.

"Ah, crap!"

"I'm going to be late again!"

I immediately forgot about breakfast and glanced at a polished metal plate, which served as a mirror.

From it, a pale young boy looked back. I was quite handsome for my age of ten. With short auburn hair and green eyes. Everyone back in the village used to say, I have eyes after my mother.

I adjusted my hair with my hand so that I looked somewhat presentable and rushed out of the door of my room. Down the old creaking stairs into the street below.

I rushed through the streets, my feet pounding the pavement as I tried to make it on time. I had overslept again, and I knew that Elena was going to give me a hard time. She always did.

As I entered the shop from the back, I was in the workshop, and the scent of countless herbs immediately enveloped me.

I could already feel her eyes on me. She was standing there with her arms crossed, her expression one of disgust. I swallowed hard, trying to ignore her.

"Finally decided to join us, Darian?" Elena sneered.

I felt a knot form in my stomach. I didn't want to deal with her today. "I know I'm a little late, Elena. But you should know I live across the city, and it takes a while to get here."

Elena rolled her eyes. "Of course, you're always making excuses."

"Why are you so fussing about it? I always make up for it by staying late and working hard."

"Hahaha! Working hard? You don't even know what you're doing, Darian."

I gritted my teeth, trying to keep my composure. It's not like I can tell her I stayed up late practicing my magic. I feel like I'm about to make a breakthrough, so right now I spend every free moment practicing.

The problem is that apprentices are supposed to start working before sunrise to prepare everything in the shop for opening. There isn't any convenient thing like an alarm clock to wake me, and since I'm used to waking up much later, I'm always getting to work late.

Normally, it wouldn't be much of a problem. Especially since Isadora doesn't come into the workshop until shortly before it's time to open up the shop.

Everything would be fine without this little vixen named Elena. She's Isadora's other apprentice, a girl about three years older than me. Her light brown hair was neatly braided into a ponytail, accentuating her doll-like face, but there was a coldness in her eyes that chilled me to the bone. She carried herself with a haughty arrogance that made it clear she thought herself above me.

Every time she spoke, her voice dripped with condescension, and I could feel my blood boiling with anger. It was clear that she despised me, and I couldn't help but wonder what I had done to earn her enmity.

As she moved about, her gestures were sharp and jerky, emphasizing her words with a dismissive wave of her hand. It was clear that she had no respect for me or my abilities. I couldn't help but feel a pang of frustration at her smug demeanor.

But despite her nasty personality, I couldn't help but sense a flicker of fear in her eyes whenever I challenged her. It was as if she knew that beneath my humble exterior, there was power and strength that she could never match.

I knew that I would have to be careful around her ever since I started working here as an apprentice a month ago. But I also knew I couldn't let her get the better of me.

I don't know what her problem is. Does she hate me because I'm a boy or because I'm from a poor family in the countryside?

I can't oppose her openly since she comes from a prominent family in the city, which she never hesitates to flaunt in my face at every opportunity, and she is also my senior in the shop, having been here much longer.

I can't afford to lose this opportunity, so I try to mostly ignore her and focus on my work. This is easier said than done since Elena watches for every mistake and promptly reports it to Isadora.

But I learned most of the things about herbs in advance, making sure I never made any serious mistakes giving her no room to snitch on me. That apparently made her even more angry.

Luckily, tomorrow is my first day off, and it can't come soon enough.

All this time, as I was getting lost in my thoughts, Elena stood there waiting for my response. But noticing I was ignoring her and preparing my work for the day, her eyes twitched. She uttered a simple "Hmph!" before stomping off the room.

Hmm, I wonder what she is going to tell Isadora this time. I smiled in my head, finding this absurd situation quite funny.

When I presented Isadora with the Moonlight Aster after I escaped from the cave, she was surprised, to say the least. I was suspicious before, but now I was certain. She never expected me to complete the test. However, she had to make good on her word and accept me as her apprentice.

But unlike Elena, Isadora is quite a pragmatic person. She recognizes my talent and wants to make use of it. Not having to pay me a wage means I'm like cheap labor that she could use to prop up her business.

As long as I don't cause too much trouble for her, she will honor our arrangement despite Elena's constant effort to chase me off. I don't like it, but I'm fine with it. It gives me the freedom to earn money on the side, and when I finish my apprenticeship, I'm free to walk away.

I guess Vogt was right. What he said to me about the dangers of the city all those years ago when I had dinner with him. The city is a nest of vipers, and everyone here wants to take advantage of you just to improve their own standing.

But I won't fight it. I will embrace it. I will become the biggest viper of them all. For I have a dream to fulfill, and nothing will stand in my way.