Magic Academy, headmaster Orin's office.
Gerald and Orin Gezor were talking for a few hours already. Most of the questions were more about detailed explanations and the introduction of Alchemy and different forms of magic.
"I sometimes wonder about the aptitude for the Elements. Could you maybe tell me more about it?" Gerald asked. "Is it true that you can only use a few Elements that you are born with?"
Orin's eyes suddenly lit up as he laughed, "Good question young man! Good and really difficult to answer."
"Why is that?"
"I personally don't think that's the case. But I dedicated countless years of my life studying this phenomenon, and I have to say, I got some pretty interesting results, " said Orin with a smile. "Look at this."
Orin extended his palm and made an expression of intense concentration and said, "Let there be Flame!"
Woosh!
A small flame ignited on his palm. He had a proud smile on his face, Gerald however, was confused.
"I don't get it. Is it something special about this flame?" Gerald asked.
"Nope, it's a completely normal flame." Orin was almost laughing.
"Then….?"
"I was born with the affinity to the Water Element. Water! Can you imagine that?! Ahaha…" Orin burst into laughter.
"So you can use two opposite Elements. Is this something special?" Gerald was scratching his head. He didn't understand why would Orin find this so amusing.
"Of course it is! No one is born with the opposite elements. It was the same for me. I spent most of my life with just Water affinity." Orin said in excitement.
"It was just in the last ten years that I began to study fire in detail. And after I understood it I finally gained the affinity with Fire," he said. "But as you can see, it's not easy for me to use it. I'm too old for this."
"Then everyone can use every Element if they want?" Gerald asked.
"No, I don't think so. It took me nearly a decade to learn to use a new Element. Of course, I began learning it late in life, and my learning ability is not the best. However, if a young person wanted to learn all the Elements, especially Light and Space, they would be basically just wasting their life." Orin sounded kind of sad.
"I would really want to see someone with all six Elements with my own eyes. Sigh. Unfortunately, humans usually have just Earth affinity. I have never seen a human use Wind before." Orin complained.
Gerald was confused again, "No wind? Is it really rare? "
"It's not rare at all. Most Elves have it. It's just that humans nowadays are too used to this grounded lifestyle. When you are a child you can get influenced a lot by your surroundings. I grew up near a river, and that's probably why I got Water affinity." Orin explained. "At least that's my theory."
"Kids nowadays only know how to play with rocks and mud. There are, of course, a few that like fire enough to gain an affinity with it," he complained. "Anyway enough of my rambling. If you want to get somewhere in life, you need persistence, hard work, and knowledge. Knowledge is power and this is especially true for magic."
Gerald nodded in agreement. Knowledge was valued everywhere, no matter the time, historical period, or place.
Orin looked tired from all the talking, so Gerald decided not to bother him anymore.
"Thanks for your insight Headmaster Orin." Gerald slightly bowed and couped his fists to express his sincerity.
Orin waved his hand, "It's nothing. Come back at any time if you got more questions. It's nice to chat with someone that's so interested in magic," he smiled.
As Gerald was preparing to leave, he remembered to ask how long will it take to copy the Elemental Codex. He didn't memorize all the spells yet.
"Just come back in a few days. I will try my best to finish it early," said Orin.
Gerald thanked him again and then left the Magic Academy.
The first thing Gerald did after leaving the Academy was he went to the Crystal Dragon Inn and order some food. He got himself a big portion of lamb sausages with freshly baked bread and a slice of cheese. He washed it all down with two tasty mugs of cold ginger ale.
After satisfying his hunger, he went outside and sat on the bench in front of the Inn, basking in the sunlight. It was really relaxing.
Approximately half an hour later, he took out the Blood Codex and carefully read the recipe of the Mana Elixir. From Orin, he came to know that the now-called God's Joke was actually the famous God's Blood in the book.
According to the book, it was a small plant with sharp dark-green leaves and a single blood-red flower on top. The entire plant was extremely poisonous, however, if you used only the flower, after it fully bloomed, and mixed it with a few more herbs, the poisonous effect would be nullified.
When Gerald read this, his eyes enlarged and his lips curled into a smile. Luckily the Ancient Elves already found out and recorded a way to deal with the plant toxins. If he could only get his hands on some of this potion it would be great.
He realized that just dreaming would do him no good, so he decided to memorize every plant, animal part, and other ingredients for making all kinds of potions. He also read and learned all the potions and their respective recipes, as well as the recipes for poisons and medicines. You never know when they might come in handy.
"Well, time to check out this place." Gerald stood up and stretched his body. After that, he began wandering aimlessly around the city.
Geldern was split into four parts by the main roads that were going from north to south and from east to west.
The city was circular in shape, with strong and tall walls as the border. It was approximately two kilometers in diameter with a big open space and a fountain in the middle.
The Warrior's Guild was located in the southeast part of the city, surrounded by the shops of the craftsmen and blacksmiths. It was also where the Magic Academy was located.
Across the street, on the southwest side, was the Inn where Gerald stayed during the night. Behind it were the living quarters of many citizens and different Inns where travelers stayed.
The market stalls and shops from merchants were on the north-eastern side of Geldern, accompanied by the alchemist's laboratory and potion shops.
Lastly in the north-western part, was the noble-exclusive area, where many noble families resided, including the owner of the city, Lord Serrell Egott, and his family.
After he got a good feel for the city, Gerald took a break to decide how to go on about living in this kind of environment.