“There is,” Master Ambrosius replied gravely. “And he is quite skilled with both leeches and bloodletting. He is also a terrible gossip.” Emry couldn’t tell whether the old man was joking or not, and before she could make up her mind, he added, “Not everyone wishes their maladies to become common knowledge. Sometimes it’s an ill-gotten black eye, but others, it’s a matter of the utmost discretion. Sir Kay once got himself into quite a lot of trouble with a gerbil.” The wizard shuddered. “Retrieving the poor fellow wasn’t pleasant.”

Emry hoped she’d misunderstood where, exactly, the gerbil had gotten stuck.

“But you’re talking about Corperus magic,” she protested. “My father always warned not to work spells on people unless you’re willing to risk the blowback.”

Emmett’s accident had been an extreme example, but Emry still couldn’t forget the time she’d tried to mend Marion’s sprained ankle and had blacked out from the effort, earning herself a splitting headache that had lasted for days.

Master Ambrosius gave her a look. “And how old were you when your father issued this warning?” he inquired.

“Ten, sir,” Emry admitted.

“I wouldn’t trust a ten-year-old boy with a blunted practice sword, much less a real blade.” Master Ambrosius raised a bushy eyebrow. “There is, of course, a technique to it. One that takes finesse, knowledge, and strength.”

“I’d be interested to learn that,” Emry said.

“Even despite your father’s warnings?”

“I’m not a child anymore,” she replied, lifting her chin. “Besides, I came here to learn.”

The old wizard went to a shelf, plucking down a bundle of dried herbs. “Belladonna. What would you use this for?”

“Insomnia?” Emry suggested. “My gran brews it into a tea.”

“If you’d answered poison, I would have said your father was right not to teach you. A corrupt mind breeds corrupt magic.”

Emry thought of Emmett’s misfired spell, and of what he’d been trying to do when he’d cast it. Had Father scared them away from such spells because he’d suspected what Emmett would use them for? Or had he truly thought them too young to learn?

Whichever it was, Emry’s heart sped up with excitement at the thought of learning an entirely new discipline of magic. One that went far beyond household spells and illusions.

It’s only for a week, she reminded herself. But a week was better than nothing.

The old wizard reached for a quill and a scrap of parchment, scribbling down a few lines. “Come back here first thing tomorrow. You’ll need the Corperus Magicarum and A Practical Herbalist’s Guide, third edition. Fortunately, there are copies of both in the castle library.”

CHAPTER 6