Havi visited Haleceles as soon as the other professor arrived on campus. The former sorcerer knew the other man's routine after visiting him so many times before and knew to wait outside his office until Haleceles got there. The other man didn't appear surprised to see him. Instead he greeted Havi with a smile and left the door open for him.

The office was as big as Havi's, but appeared bigger due to the available space. The walls were covered in framed works of art and some maps. Haleceles taught art as well as geography so they fit the persona he was currently playing. In addition there were two bonsai trees on his desk with small sheers next to them.

"What brings my old student here so early?" he asked as he set his bag on his desk.

Havi crossed his arms and said, "Magic."

"That's certainly vague. What about it?"

"How to get it. Or, more accurately, how to reclaim it."

Haleceles sighed and sat down at his desk. "You can't reclaim what was never yours."

Havi bristled. "Are you denying the power I had in my former life?!"

"No, just pointing out that it belonged, as you say, to your former life. You had magic then but do not now. It never belonged to your current body and so does not and would not count as reclaiming it."

Havi grunted his acknowledgment.

"But about getting it. That requires having a magical artifact or person from which to extract the magic from."

"You're still magical. Give some to me."

"No."

Havi glared at him. "Why not?"

Haleceles fixed him with a pitying look. "Because it would rob me of some of my power. I am old and it takes a long time for me to replenish my magical stores. It would also take longer than you are expecting, I believe, to regain even a fraction of your previous might."

"I do not expect immediate success."

"Yes you do, just like you always have. Taking my magic would also make you reliant on me, and I know you would hate that. You've always prided yourself in your own power and abilities. You would not be happy if your magic relied on me as a source."

"Would I not eventually possess my own? Be able to replenish my own store of magic?"

"You would be able to, yes, but would need to possess more than I'd be able to give you."

"But I've cast spells already! Doesn't that mean—"

"That you've managed to gain some magic? Possibly. If you used a staff or otherwise magical item, then you might simply have used the magic contained in it. But I do sense a tiny bit of magical energy in you. Not enough to perform spells, but some."

Havi thought about it. "How else would I be able to reach the point of self-reliance?"

"There is no other way. You must take the magic from someone or something that already has it."

"Then how did I manage to get this bit of magic?"

"Only you could say."

Havi thought about it and noticed the other professor staring at him. If he had to have interacted with a magic being or item to get magic, then what possessed magic that he had stolen?

"I obtained a staff recently," Havi began. "Could that be the source?"

"Unlikely," Haleceles said with a shake of his head. "Staffs act as a magical conduit. They contain a little magic to protect themselves from the stress magic places on them, but not enough for you to take. If the previous owner had been powerful, then your staff might have contained enough to cast a spell or two, but that would be all."

Havi thought back and couldn't think of any other object which he could have taken magic from. He shook his head and frowned in frustration. His former master smiled at this.

"Might I brainstorm with you?" Havi nodded. "I believe I have the answer you are looking for. Back when you were my student, you froze our academy, do you remember?"

Havi nodded.

"But then you returned with your demon prince and unfroze it. You ended up leaving and stealing some valuable books. The elders sent for Halrein to retrieve them. I followed shortly after, though in the form of a beetle and very slowly. I caught up to you only once it was too late to save your lives."

Havi didn't have memories for everything Haleceles said, but they sounded familiar and he had no reason to lie. He stayed quiet while the professor continued his story.

"You had traveled to Zenedora for a reason I was not able to determine. There I found you lying dead in a destroyed castle. Your demon prince was lying dead by your side, and Halrein along with some others I could not identify were scattered throughout the ruins. Halrein was still alive and told me what had happened.

"Your death made the demon inside the prince go insane and destroy everything around him. His friends tried to stop him but in the attempt. You had cast a Call Back, but Halrein was unable to complete it for you with you dying as the result. The demon destroyed the castle with you all inside it out of rage or some reason I yet again cannot identify."

His words made Havi's heart hurt. He knew now why he had no memories of his death. He thought that somehow he had let down his beloved prince, and it looked like he had been correct. He had let him down by dying. "What does that have to do with magic?" he asked solemnly.

"Because a normal demon would not go insane simply because a companion had died. I believe that you had a deeper connection than that of simple friends. And from your reaction I can see that I'm not wrong."

Havi took a breath. "So?"

Haleceles smiled politely. "He is your source of magic."