Rudy (or "Hey You" as he is usually called) is the eldest child of Willibald and Julia. Willibald is a peasant farmer on the estate of the Baron von Gruzelwitz, two days' journey from Prague. His wife Julia attended a convent school and wants to pass on her learning to her children. Her greatest success was with "Hey You," who reads everything. One day the baron orders Willibald and his family to leave his estate. They settle in Prague, which was then the seat of Emperor Rudolph the II. Rudolph is a patron of the arts and sciences, and a lover of magic and alchemy. Moved by the emperor,...