Part of the reason Barda had trouble with understanding magic was because of how varied and profound it was. Every time he came close to finding a unifying concept or theory, something would come up and throw him off.
For instance, in all his research, he had learned that Elemental Magic was good magic, natural magic. However, he also learned that there only 4 types of Magical Element, you know them, Wind, Water, Fire, and Rock. That being said, Barda knew of space and shadow magic, and what about composite magic.
Moreover, there was a clear-cut difference in the types of mages. Some mages had control over Elements, while others influenced their bodies. Some received their power from other beings while others found unnatural ways of becoming mages.
The Elemental Mages could be called Elementalists. Most Elementalists specialized on an Element as the main one. Even after growth, they would still prefer the original Element.
Moreover, Elementalists were heavily affected by their character. For instance, while Barda was heavily invested as a Fire Mage, he did not feel quite right in there. Given his propensity to float around issues unaffected, he was more like a wind mage, under the Air Element. Fire personalities were more forceful and more volatile.
The second group had several names, such as Warrior or Body Mage, or an Esper or an Enhanced, for more advanced worlds. They specialized in one ability and grew it. It was not unprecedented for someone to have more than one specialization.
Some of the common improvements on the body included increased basic attributes such as speed and strength, as well as more specialized improvement such as shapeshifting, Enhanced senses, and other paranormal abilities.
One of the most important pieces of information Barda had picked up was that Magic was powered up by a mystical form of energy. Many argued what it should be called, some called it mana, others called it Magicka or Mystic Energy.
The best part about it was, it was quantifiable. Furthermore, the mages could be grouped in tiers. This was a theory based on some unknown research team but became widely used.
All this information had been obtained from the library. Barda had screened for any type of indoctrination or trickery. Moreover, any information obtained had to be taken with a pinch of salt.
However, these theories were very detailed and when applied to an algorithm, they aligned perfectly. Of course, they were subject to further testing, before Barda believed them fully he would thoroughly vet them.
Needless to say, Barda was skeptical of everything Rowan had to say, and that included all the information given to him. That being said, Barda had to admit, this system was a hell of a lot better than any he had encountered so far. If he taught it to Tristanites, it might just change their world view once more.
It had to be said that all living beings contained some form of mystical energy in them. Life itself was a form of mystical energy.
For beings whose mystical energy could not be quantified, they were considered tier 0. The lowest cadre. All normal beings who could not use magic belonged in this category. However, if they came together in common purpose, their combined force could result in amazing things.
You can begin to understand why a logic-based entity like Barda would prefer numerical arrangements over other forms. These looked quite clean and easy.
As you deduced, the higher-tiered one was, the more powerful they were. Barda estimated that there was an upper limit to the tiers, but he had yet to discover them, or read about them.
Barda called up the Interface and decided to create a specialized magical metric system. This would include his theories and understanding of magic, adapted from all the information he had collected.
Just like there was a unit called joules to measure energy, Barda decided to come up with a unit to measure magic. While he could shamelessly name it Barda, that would bring a lot of confusion, so he just named it a mag, since something like that existed anyway.
Without proper measurements, he decided to use himself as the SI unit. However, he was too powerful to be just 1 mag, so he decided he was 1 kilomag (a thousand mags). With this, he would grade everyone he met.
Moreover, he used his present data. If he improved, the stats would rise from 1,000mags to whatever amount he would be based on the metric.
Since it was widely established that tier 0 included anyone who was at 0 mags, Barda determined that anyone with 1,000 mags and below, himself included, was a tier 1. All this was just his deduction and system, so it was subject to change.
There was something else to consider while assigning tiers. One had to have achieved a certain level of mastery in their skills or abilities.
In the case of mages, being able to cast a spell was like writing a sentence. Being able to double-cast, cast 2 spells simultaneously, was like writing with both hands. The complexity depended on the level of the spell and the number of elements.
Another awesome treasure Barda picked up from the library was detailed accounts on how to enchant tools and weapons. Barda could forge, but enchanting involved overlaying objects with runes to give them magical properties. Now he had the skills, why wouldn't he be excited.
Finally, there was a ring that Rowan gave him. It had magical properties, but without proper activation, Barda could not use it. Rowan told him to keep it with him, and when the time was right, it would activate.
Barda was not too excited about this. For all he knew, this could be a listening device or some kind of calamity-homing device, but for all he had seen thus far, this man did not mean him ill.
"So, how do I get out of this dump anyway," after interacting with Rowan for a while, he had come to appreciate and reciprocate his carefree nature.
"The nerve on you!" Rowan gave him a stare. The next moment, Barda found himself awake in the same tower he had been with Lord Abu.
***
A massive pillar of darkness surged to form a gigantic spear that shot like a missile towards Lord Abu. As it moved, it split itself into hundreds of smaller spears. Each attack was from a different angle. It felt as though hundreds of warriors had surrounded him and thrown spears at him.
The worst part about this attack was that it was shadow magic. This was one area that Lord Abu was not very experienced in. However, he was not completely green.
He knew the counter to shadow magic was space magic. Though he was not so experienced in it as well, he knew of a good defense.
As the spears came, a spatial sphere materialized around him. It's hard to discern spatial distortions, most times they just appear as translucent or a reflex mirage. Yet at that moment, Lord Abu was in a separate dimension.
The problem was with shadow magic was how penetrative it was. Basic barriers had natural elements backing them, but upon seeing the ice attack earlier, they knew it had shadow magic ingrained in it.
A shadow could slip through anything, but since he was no longer in the same plane or dimension as the shadows, he was completely protected. No spear could get at him.
He had set up the sphere such that he could send out his attacks while his enemy could not get at him. The next moment, the sphere transformed into a fiery ball and a powerful surge of power shot out headed to Lord Choi.
Under the massive shroud of darkness, there was one thing that shadow magic failed at, and that was defense. However, seeing this attack, Lord Choi simply sneered and raised his arm. A massive ice barrier formed before him, consuming the fiery attack.
"I admit, your defense is very good, and it would have taken a while for me to get to you. I wonder, how good is your control over the space element. Intelligence seems to show you are not that good with it, is it true?"
Lord Abu was shocked by this opponent who took the time to converse in a fight, was this some sort of duel or a life-and-death match? He couldn't be bothered to answer as he launched another attack.
This time, the ground shot out from beneath the offending lord. Since they were flying, this had to be a sneak attack to hit the enemy. He had thought that since the enemy had been foolish enough to converse during the battle he could catch him off-guard, but the enemy was prepared.
"How rude," Lord Choi commented as he dodged the rock that had sprung up to attack him. "No matter, my work here is done. Since you have locked yourself inside that little plane, not even you can get yourself out in time, right? You will have to watch as your precious queen is devoured by the flames!"
Just as he said those words, his chest exploded into several fountains of blood. His life drained from his eyes in a matter of moments and all that was left was a look of disbelief as he tumbled to the ground, lifeless.
"T-take th-that y-you arrogant p-prick!" A very cold Merian could only whisper as he succumbed to hypothermia, but before he did, he had taken out a very important target. The massive machine gun had roared once more, albeit for the last time.