"So you came to see me, Lady Anna, to establish how these astrological constellations relate to Seris concepts such as the Twenty-Eight Lunar Mansions and the Twelve Zodiac Houses?"
Roland gradually came to understand her purpose.
"More precisely, I hoped to arrange a joint terminology translation project between our schools."
This followed the same approach Roland and the others had taken when they translated various spells to construct Runewords.
The difference was that Anna was now taking the initiative.
"Your Seris belongs to a lineage of its own, quite unlike Draconic, Elvish, or their respective branches.
Accurate translation between different linguistic backgrounds is no easy task.
And the accumulation of magical meaning is closely tied to these referential associations. To us astrologers in particular, 'the slightest initial error can lead a thousand miles astray'!"
When Anna brought this up, she even made fluent use of a Seris idiom.
Roland thought of terms such as "prajna" and "yoga."
The Four Symbols, the Five Phases, the zodiac, houses, solar terms...
Then there were Zi, Chou, Yin, Mao, Jia, Yi, Bing, Ding...
"It certainly isn't easy, and I don't know much about your school's disciplines either."
"That's understandable. You were only an apprentice mage in the tower back then, and later devoted yourself to the specialized field of runology. You truly had no time to spare for these matters.
But that brings us to the fact that different schools' technical terms aren't mutually intelligible. Their origins may differ, as may the planes and worlds they involve.
It's effectively a difference between civilizations, or even species.
This is a subject well worth discussing in depth."
"I'm all ears."
"I intend to lead a group of arcanists who follow me to the East Lainer Mage Tower in Lainer World, where we will become resident tower