He is like…

'How long has that damn man been laughing?' Maria wondered, annoyed, as she finished wiping away her tears with the sleeve of her dress.

"Calm down, girl. It was a joke," said Hugo, trying to calm her down between laughs.

'A joke...? This was a joke...?'

Maria struggled to process those words.

'What a shitty joke!' She concluded as she let go of the knife.

"How old are you?"

Hugo showed curiosity.

"16..." Maria replied in a low tone, still upset by the magician's joke.

"Wow, at that age shouldn't you already be looking for a husband? You're quite cute, so don't miss that opportunity before you get too old," Hugo joked, resuming his laughter.

'What a shitty sense of humor!'

Suddenly, Maria remembered her father's words, who always told her similar things.

'Are all old men the same? Seriously... this magician doesn't stop disappointing me,' she thought as she looked at Hugo with some disappointment.

"Mr. Magician... can I leave?" Maria asked, wishing to get out of there as soon as possible.

"No," was Hugo's firm answer, and suddenly Maria felt an unknown force making her sit down again.

"What do you want... from me?" she asked nervously.

Hugo adopted a more serious tone.

"I heard that thanks to you, Aria started to read, speak, then walk, write and now even tried to modify a magical circuit. Are you aware that she is only a 2-year-old girl?"

Maria felt lost in the conversation, because of the magician's suddenly serious face.

'Damn it! Why did you have to turn out just like my father!? First you have fun with your shitty jokes and then you ask complex questions! Can't you be normal!?'

"It's... all thanks to her ability... Mr. Magician. I was just doing my job," Maria explained nervously as she stuttered.

"And what do you think about vampires?" Hugo asked, abruptly shifting the conversation.

'What do I think about what?'

Maria felt shocked.

'Focus, Maria! Don't be a mess and don't panic. This magician is a lunatic, and so are the vampires. Both can kill me without the slightest effort so...'

Honesty!

As long as they didn't put her through absurd torture, she was willing to open her mouth.

What else could she do?

Pray to God?

She already did that several times now and in the past and he never did anything!

Hugo was impressed by Maria's abnormal breathing.

'Does she have any health problems?' He thought as he used a spell to check her condition, but everything was fine.

Before Hugo could say anything, Maria started talking quite fast.

"Mr. Magician, with all due respect, I just went on vacation, since that's what the contract said, and I really enjoyed my quality time in the great city of Astarock," she blurted out, disconcerting the magician for a moment.

'What had he asked her that she was now telling him all that?'

Before the magician could respond, Maria continued:

"Seriously, I swear by the most sacred treasures that I don't know, I don't know how the mansion suddenly filled up with vampires. I swear. I just came back from my beautiful vacation to find out from Aria that we were surrounded by vampires."

This last comment from Maria caught the magician's attention.

"It was horrible, really. We tried to escape, but Elizabeth caught us. Didn't you see how strong she is? I almost died of fear when I saw how she finished off a bear 30 times taller than me!" Maria exclaimed with some drama.

'Aria had planned to run away?' The magician wondered, impressed by that statement.

"But the worst..." Maria made a dramatic sigh.

It was embarrassing, but she wanted to share it.

She couldn't take it anymore.

If she died, she had to say it before she did!

"Now from a contract where I had to take care of Aria for 10 hours a day, with breaks included..." Maria said with some regret as she grabbed her legs before continuing.

"Now I'm with her all the time! There's no privacy! Nothing!" she shouted in such a dramatic tone that it made Hugo burst out laughing.

This didn't bother Maria so much because...

She had said it all!

Now... she felt free.

"You're quite a character, girl!" said the magician, laughing.

'Even in that they are alike?' Maria thought, recognizing that gesture.

"Tell me, aren't you afraid that I'm part of those vampires?" Hugo asked mockingly.

Tired of this whole situation, Maria settled herself better in the chair before saying with some regret:

"You're like my father. I don't think... you're a bad person."

She had said it.

Maria knew that, although the attitudes of that magician and those of her father were similar, they did not guarantee that the magician was a good person, but...

What other choice did she have?

That's why, just as she gathered the courage one day to leave her home to fulfill her dream...

She was going to bet everything on that magician.

That, and it was too late to back out, since she had already spilled everything.

"You're interesting," said the magician with a smile.

"Thank you."

"Your father must be a great guy to raise a girl like you."

'No, he's not,' Maria thought, but outwardly smiled at that comment.

"I offer you a deal, girl. I can help you quit that servant role so you can go study at the magic tower as my disciple."