I'd Give Up The World For You

Daisy was surprised Ira had such a reputation at school even among students older than him. Then again, she had already known he was brilliant.

She couldn't help but wonder what things would be like if Leo had chosen to use his brains for academia instead of fighting. They were both fast learners with high critical thinking skills. 

Her mind wandered as she followed Rai through the labyrinthine hallways leading to a lab with a small plaque labeled 'Professor Rothman' on it. He knocked on the door and a deep male voice responded impatiently. 

"What is it?"

"Ira has a visitor, Professor," Rai told him. 

Daisy heard a series of scuffling noises and suddenly Ira stood in the doorway. She could have sworn he grew three inches since the last time she saw him!

"Miss Veronica!" he exclaimed with a small smile on his face. "I didn't think you would be here so soon. How were your travels?"

"They were alright. I'm glad to be off the road though. It's so good to see you! You've grown," she gushed as she moved forward to hug him tightly despite his embarrassment and inability to return it. His arms hung awkwardly at his sides.

She wasn't bothered. He had always been like that. 

Ira coughed and pulled back with a slight blush on his pale face. "I suppose I have grown a little. You should come in and meet my professor. We can take your things to the boarding house afterward."

Daisy nodded before turning to Rai. "Thanks for carrying my trunk for me."

"No problem, ma'am. Have a nice stay," he replied before setting the trunk down and walking back the way they had come. 

Ira took it for her and they walked into the laboratory. Though a bit primitive, it didn't look terribly different than her high school chemistry lab in terms of glass equipment. She hadn't realized they had a concept of chemistry here.

According to Ira's letters, he was helping his professor do medical research. Were they trying to discover new medicines or something here? She supposed she would find out during her visit. 

"Professor Rothman, I'd like to introduce you to Mrs. Veronica May. She took me in after my parents died. I wouldn't have been able to come to the academy without her help," he said to the only other person in the room. 

Professor Rothman appeared to be in his forties with graying hair and a pair of round spectacles. He peered at Daisy curiously before holding out his hand with a broad smile. 

"The academy owes you much, Mrs. May! This boy is a genius and I wouldn't be surprised at all if he surpasses me in the next few years. I understand you run a farm out in Cloverfield? That's quite a distance to travel for a simple visit."

"Oh no, I don't live in Cloverfield anymore. I moved to the capital so I could get married. My husband is a lieutenant colonel in the royal army," Daisy explained. "We grew up together but he never wanted to be a farmer forever and left several years ago shortly before I met Ira."

His eyes widened. "He's only been in the army a few years and is already a lieutenant colonel?!"

"The youngest ever," Ira piped up. "Mr. Leo is very accomplished."

"You're certainly surrounded by talented people, Mrs. May."

Daisy laughed. "I sure am, which is interesting considering I'm as boring as can be."

"I don't think you're boring!" 

"Thanks, Ira, but I'm really not that special. The only things I'm good at are gardening and math. That's alright though; we can't all be geniuses."

He looked as though he wanted to disagree but chose to let it go and addressed his professor. "Sir, I need to go help her get settled. I'll be back in an hour or two to continue my work." 

Professor Rothman shook his head with a smile. "No need, Ira. It's been nearly a year since you've seen her, hasn't it? Take the rest of the day off. I'll see you in the morning."

"Thank you very much, Professor!" 

Ira took the trunk and began heaving it along as he gestured for Daisy to follow him. "Come on, Miss Veronica, I have a lot to show you once we've dropped your things off! I want to show you my dorm room and the best places to study and the cafeteria and the bakery and…"

He didn't so much as stop for breath until they reached the boarding house and she needed to check in. It had been a while since anyone had talked her ear off like this and she couldn't help but smile, feeling rather nostalgic. 

Daisy barely had time to set her trunk down and lock the door behind her before they were off again. He wanted to show her around town today and the academy tomorrow when she came to see him after work. 

That was fine by her. She didn't mind letting him control the itinerary since this was his town. 

Ira told her all about the places they passed and the sort of things he did in each one on top of random information about the history of the town. Most of what he said hadn't been mentioned in his letters. 

"…and I was worried about being the only foreigner there but that hasn't been a problem at all! Since the academy is so famous, people from other countries do exchanges all the time. Plus we're so close to the border with Zel that I'd say about an eighth of the student body is Zelish. And I may be the only Aveleenian but I'm not the only mage." 

Daisy looked at him in surprise. He had never mentioned that. "You aren't? I thought mages were supposed to be really rare!" 

"Some elements are rarer than others. Water and wind mages are actually pretty common. There are several wind mages at the academy. One of them is in my year but we don't interact much," Ira said with a shrug. 

"There is a fourth year who is an ice mage as well but I've never met her. Supposedly, her father's family immigrated from the far north before she was born so she's spent her whole life in Mirea. I think that's all of the mages here though.

"I heard a rumor they're starting a multi-grade magic class next semester. I'd love to learn more about the applications of my magic, specifically for healing. It's going to be taught by a light mage visiting from another country so he won't be able to teach me any water spells but at the very least I'll be able to learn more practical theory so I can practice on my own." 

"That'll be really cool, Ira," Daisy told him though her mind was wandering. 

Had Leo been self-taught? Or had he learned the basics from family members who were also fire mages before she met him and kept the ball rolling from there? He had to be at least partially self-taught considering his age when he lost contact with anyone who could teach him. 

She seriously doubted anyone had bothered teaching him how to use his flames for modern applications the way he had been since finding out about what things were like back in her original world. He had to have come up with those on his own. 

If he could do that Ira should be able to find practical medical uses for his magic no problem. They were both very smart. 

Daisy didn't know exactly how strong Leo's magic was…but flames seemed like they could fight against most other types of magic. So how had his entirely family been killed in front of him? Wouldn't they all be fire mages capable of fighting back? 

She had tried not to think about what Juliet said about both his past and his supposed future while she was on the road but now that she had someone in front of her who knew about magic… It couldn't hurt to ask. 

"You told me once that certain types of magic tended to be common in specific geographic areas because they run through bloodlines. Do you happen to know which type of magic is native to Mirea?" she asked casually. 

Ira nodded. "Yes. Though there are a few scattered mages who immigrated from other countries, the magic native to Mirea is restricted to the royal family. It's plant magic."

Daisy's eyes widened. Plant magic?! Plant magic was able to beat fire magic? That didn't make any sense!

"I don't know many specifics but fire magic originated in the west, water in the north, ice in the far north, light and darkness to the east, wind to the southwest, and stone to the southeast," he continued without being prompted. 

She had already known Leo was from the west. It had been easy enough to guess with the direction his tracks had been coming from when she found him. She didn't know the name of his ruined country though since she wasn't at all familiar with the geography of this world. 

"How powerful is plant magic?" she asked. 

"Any magic is only as powerful as the user makes it. No type is inherently stronger or weaker than another though there are certain types that cancel each other out if they aren't strong enough," Ira replied. 

"For example, light will cancel out darkness unless the darkness mage is very powerful. The same goes for fire and plants, water and fire, stone and plants, etc.. It's really more about the power level of the mage in question than what type of magic they wield."