In January, while it was still cold, a boy with yellow hair, around ten years old, wore a new, padded cotton jacket that was clearly too big for him. He sniffled and asked his friend, "Little Snake, do you think we have a chance of being chosen?"
He was still young, but he spoke like a world-weary old man.
The boy called Little Snake had a stern expression, his eyes filled with anxiety. "I don't know," he replied.
The Lord had suddenly announced that he would be testing for aptitude and recruiting Magic Apprentices.
Anyone who wasn't a fool knew what Magic meant.
Those noble scholars, though commoners by birth, earned the respect of Lords and even the King.
Even for those who didn't, the legends of Magic could be heard in the tales of traveling merchants, Minstrels, or the stories told by their elders.
It was said that with Magic, one could escape a life of mediocrity and rise above the common person.
