The next day, Miri, Anne, and Isaiah went to Madame Laveau to ask if she’s willing to accept Isaiah as an apprentice.

  “Hmm, let me guess, you’re going to ask me if I’m willing to accept the boy as an apprentice,” Madame Laveau said flatly, having already anticipated what they were going to say before they even said it.

  “Oh, damn! You’ve predicted that already?!” Miri said with slight astonishment. “Guess the Oracle Vision rune strikes again, huh.”

  “So, are you willing to accept him?” Anne asked.

  “That depends,” Madame Laveau answered. “I don’t just accept any urchin off the streets. This isn’t a charity house.”

  “Oh, come on. It’s not like we’re asking you to accept him out of pity,” Miri said. “We thought he might be of some help to you. You know, for keeping an eye on the shop and whatnot.”

  The blind madame darted her white-eyed gaze toward the redheaded mage. Even though she couldn’t see her, she could discern her location based on the sound of her voice. “Young lady, do you honestly think I need help tending this shop? Just because I’m blind? I’ll have you know that I’ve been running this shop blind for over 10 years, with most of that time completely by myself. Thus, I am more than capable of continuing running this shop perfectly on my own, no help required.”

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  “Gee, I didn’t mean to offend you like that. It’s just that…” Miri said, struggling to find words. “...I’m just saying that it couldn’t hurt to take in the kid as an apprentice. You wouldn’t even have to pay for his lodgings. He’s already got a bunch of money left over from selling the runes, even after all the debt had been cleared. It’s not even going to cost you anything to give him a place to stay, at least not for a while.”

  “That is not what I’m mainly concerned about,” Madame Laveau said. “I have a set of standards when it comes to choosing an apprentice. Anyone who studies under my wing must be both intelligent and hard-working. If they do not meet those standards, no amount of money is going to persuade me otherwise.”

  “Well, that’s good then. I’m pretty sure Isaiah here meets both of those requirements,” Miri said, patting the boy on the shoulder. “He’d studied a lot from the notes of Archmage Victorstein so I bet he already knows plenty about those valuable runes as well as runes in general. In fact, it is he who pointed out that Hugo was using the Mana Conversion rune to absorb mana from the mana crystal. We probably wouldn’t have gotten out of there alive without him. Plus, he’s likely not going to shy away from hard work due to how much he and his dad prepared just to get to the keep in the first place. He’s a top-notch kid, I tell you. You won’t find anyone better as an apprentice within this entire city.”

  “So you say. However, it is ultimately up for me to decide whether he meets my standards or not,” Madame Laveau said before stepping out of the counter and onto the main area of the shop. “Isaiah Victorstein, stand before me.”

  With slight apprehension, Isaiah walked up to the blind woman, standing in front of her. “Yes, madame.”