A young man, about my age, walked in with a confident air. He seemed more refined than I was, bowing to the witch with a politeness that made me raise an eyebrow slightly. "Hello, noble mage. A pleasure to meet you, madam," he said, his voice full of respect.
The witch, as expected, only sighed. Her attention turned back to me, ignoring the boy entirely for a few seconds. She picked up a scroll from the table and handed it to me firmly. "Your exam here is done. You will proceed to another test! I need to attend to other young ones."
I thanked her with a brief nod and stood up. There was a weight in the air that made me want to leave quickly. I passed through the entry curtain, ready for the next step.
