After another surprisingly smooth teleportation from Elisa, we are standing in front of a small, yet opulent-looking cafe. There is some outside seating, and we make ourselves comfortable around one of the free tables. A woman almost immediately takes notice of our arrival and emerges from within the building.

"Good morning, Archmage." The server smiles brightly at Elisa and then at me. "Would you like the usual?"

"Not today, Cila." No visible name tag. "A Sun-touched Tree set, please."

Cila nods and briefly glances my way. "Will you be sharing?"

Elisa answers, "Yes. Just this for now."

"Understood. I will be back shortly." She twirls around and disappears back inside.

"I take it you are a regular here?" I ask.

"You tell me, master spy." I make a pout at her and she bursts out laughing.

"What's so funny?"

After calming down a bit, she wheezes out, "The whole dichotomy between you and 'you' is..." Elisa stops herself and waves her hand dismissively. Something shimmers for a moment, and I sense mana forming a sphere of sorts around us. "There we go. As I was saying, seeing you look so pitiful while knowing who you actually are is somewhat comical." I quirk an eyebrow at her. "And now that I've explained it, I realize it's not that funny. Sorry."

I smile, trying to reassure her. "It's fine. Just because I differ in some ways from you, does not mean I am not similar in others. It's something I've come to learn about myself since coming to this world."

The swift return of Cila brings a temporary pause to the conversation. She completely ignores the magical barrier and barrels through it with no restraint, depositing our order on the table, and immediately leaving us to our privacy after. How did she even carry this thing?

The 'Sun-touched Tree' set consists of a dainty, multi-tiered tray, resembling the sprawling branches of a tree reaching toward the sky, drinking in the nurturing rays of the sun. Adorning the branches like a multitude of leaves are a variety of pastries, cakes, and other sweets. As a refreshment, we have also been supplied with a full teapot.

"What is this monstrosity?" I ask.

"A sustenance only for the most sophisticated of palates."

"If what you are sustaining is {diabetes}."

"What's that?"

"A disease from Earth. It affects the body's ability to use blood sugar."

"Do you know how many new questions that raises?" I start to answer but she interrupts me, purposefully, "Way too many." After a session of mildly angry writing, I get a query, "I'll have all the answers in that tablet, right?" I affirm. She hums a happy tune of acknowledgment.

After a couple of the metal branches are plucked clean, and she is sufficiently stuffed, I ask, "Elisa, will you explain to me the very basics of magic?"

"Don't you already know everything?" She grabs another pastry and pops it in her mouth. The question is not condescending. She is genuinely curious about my objective.

"Well, I have a vast amount of information, but I do not know what I do not yet know." The somewhat convoluted statement makes perfect sense to Elisa, and she nods in agreement. "In addition, it would be you explaining." After a swallow, she looks at me questioningly. "You have context. Thus, you can tailor any information specifically for me."

"Okay. You have to call me 'Teacher', though." I can feel the anticipation in her gaze.

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"That is a steep price to pay." I mock great internal strife. "Very well, I shall make this sacrifice for knowledge... Teacher."

Her face twists into some indeterminate amalgamation of emotions. "Changed my mind. Don't do that."

"Please, Teacher. You have to—" She throws a pastry that closely resembles a croissant at me. I deftly catch it and take a bite. "Pity."

"Do you want lessons or not?" I smile and nod. Elisa huffs lightly but proceeds, "Let's start with spellcasting." She counts on her fingers. Thumb. "Intent." Pointer. "Visualization." Middle. "Willpower." She closes her hand. "These are the main components of what we refer to as a 'cast', the utilization of mana to achieve some result. You must direct your intent at what you want to affect, be it yourself, another being, some direction or area, whatever. The more clear your intent is the more"—she tilts her head, somewhat uncertain—"correct your spell will be. As in, the effects will be as you expected. Visualization is similar, meaning that it also affects the spell's correctness, but while intent is concerned with the broader details, visualization takes care of everything else. Being able to precisely visualize and reason about the effect of a spell is vital for more complex casts. And then there is willpower, probably the most abstract of three extremely abstract components. Willpower determines the success of your spell. And I am using the broadest definition of 'success'. It influences the execution of the spell, the power, the duration. It also helps prevent outside interference, but that is a much more advanced topic."

Elisa crosses her arms and contemplates, after a moment she untangles them and tucks an errant curl of hair behind her ear. "Next is enchantment and mana tempering. I think it best I not go into too much specifics. The underlying details are less important compared to spellcasting. For your situation that is." I nod in agreement, and she proceeds, "Enchantment is the process of imbuing magic into a medium. The only way to achieve it is by using crystallized mana—mana crystals. As for mana tempering, the latent mana in a being's body can be used to enhance their physical powers. It is different from spellcasting, but that does not mean it cannot be improved, even if slowly and gradually. Additionally, mana tempering does not consume mana the way spellcasting and enchanting do."

She takes a drink of her tea and resumes, "Continuing on with mana itself. Mana senses allow you to be vaguely aware of the mana around you. With practice and training, one can also detect what specific magic is used. Mana capacity is the total amount of mana a being can hold and utilize. Next, there is mana regeneration and mana absorption. These two are often grouped together, as they have practically the same function. Mana regeneration is the rate at which a being restores mana by themselves. Mana absorption is the rate at which a being absorbs ambient mana. And then, the final and most arbitrary, mana control. As the name suggests, it is how well one can control their mana."

Elisa pauses for a bit, waiting to see if I have any questions. I nod for her to proceed. "You are aware of how some casters use words or gestures. Those are associative actions. They are, generally, notable and easily repeatable, serving as a mental association to the specific spell. Of course, the more experienced a caster becomes with a given spell, they can either drop the associative action or utilize it for an amplified spell aspect. It varies from individual to individual."

She takes another sip, there is a small smile partially hidden behind the cup. Someone's in her element. "Everything I have covered can be improved with training and repetition, like memorizing a poem or strengthening a muscle. Though, as with physique, the magical also has its limits. Higher limits, but limits, nevertheless. And the explanations are fairly simplified, but I am sure you are aware." She regards me with some trepidation and asks, "Did you find anything useful?"

"Maybe... I will need to test some things. Thank you, Elisa."

She makes a small nod. "Don't worry about it. I already got some valuable payment, didn't I?"

"That is true. I hope you will enjoy what I've prepared for you." My answer is a happy smile and some satisfied chewing, finishing up what is left of our unbalanced breakfast. "How about some exercise to help us digest?"

"Oh? Is someone asking for their first practical lesson?"

"Yes, Teacher."

"...How about we call it a truce with the nicknames?"

"Offer declined."

She snorts. "Alright, but remember, you asked for it... Student." Judging by her terribly hidden frustration, that was not one of her best. But I am one to indulge.

"Ouch... So hurtful."

"Oh, Goddess. How did you ever fool anyone." She leaves a few coins on the table and stands up. "Basement, or somewhere else?"

"I have a place in mind. Please return us to your office." She does just that, as we appear back.

A gate materializes next to us, leading to a gray wasteland.

Elisa looks through for a few seconds, and then speaks up, "Is that another... planet?"

"That is correct."

"Oh, wow. Where is it?"

"Approximately ten {megaparsecs} away."

"Megaparsecs? Umm, how far is that?"

"A cluster over."

"Are you deliberately trying to not make any sense?"

"So it is working."

She groans and walks through, not even mildly concerned with the whole breathing situation on the other side.

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