Chapter 43: Transition
To Old Dumbledore’s inquiry, Vaughn neither agreed nor refused.
He suspected that the old man might want to guide him in some way—Dumbledore’s reputation in this regard was really not very good.
But at the same time, he didn’t want to miss the opportunity to get to know Newt.
A knowledgeable Magizoologist would be very helpful for Vaughn to broaden his horizons.
In a sense, Vaughn was also a Magical Creatures… Materials expert!
For instance, the hair of a Demiguise, the explosive fluid and horn of a Graphorn, the blood of a Fire Dragon, the pouch of a Niffler… He knew by heart the potion ingredients derived from magical creatures, though he had never seen them alive before.
As his research into the Magic Power Extraction Method deepened, Vaughn sometimes wondered what the materials from which he extracted characteristics were like when they were alive. How were they born on the magical creatures?
This even led him to consider a profound and goosebump-inducing topic:
In this world, how was the very first wizard born? Were magical creatures the source of magic? If he dissected them and observed their magic power and physical condition, could he directly find the answer?
Just thinking about it made him uncontrollably interested!
Back in the Slytherin Common Room, Vaughn excitedly recorded his encounters and thoughts from the day in a diary.
The aroma of knowledge and truth, how intoxicating; he believed Mr. Newt would support his cause too, wouldn’t he?
In distant Dorset, Newt, who was preparing fruit for the unicorn herd in the basement, couldn’t help but sneeze.
“Strange, am I catching a cold?”
Tina retorted impatiently, “Perhaps Dumbledore is talking about you again!”
Whether Newt had a cold was unclear, but the next day, a sudden flu swept through Hogwarts.
A large number of Young Wizards with red eyes and runny noses lined up on the Second Floor of Hogwarts.
Madam Pomfrey, with her extensive experience, made an accurate judgment based on previous years and prepared a large pot of Stamina Potion in advance.
This potion was very effective for treating the flu, but like all potions, to reconcile its properties and complete the ritual, its auxiliary ingredients caused a small side effect.
It made one’s ears emit smoke!
The next day, as soon as Vaughn stepped into the Great Hall, he witnessed a spectacular scene—
Hundreds of Young Wizards’ little heads, like boiling teapots, were spewing steam with sputtering sounds.
Enveloping the Long Tables of the four houses in the fog.
Fred and George happily weaved through the crowd, using their wands to turn the steam into all sorts of funny shapes.
And at the teachers’ table, the Professors were not spared. Professor Flitwick’s ears, likely inherited from goblins, due to their peculiar structure, emitted a violent, prolonged whistle as smoke puffed out.
“This is too amusing, Filius!” Dumbledore exclaimed joyfully, also taking a sip of the Stamina Potion before covering his mouth, attempting to imitate it.
Snape, sitting between the two, was then unlucky; the swirling smoke completely obscured his face, leaving only his dark eyes visible, glaring at Dumbledore with chilling intensity, as if he wanted to kill!
When Vaughn arrived at the Gryffindor Long Table, Harry and Ron were sneaking glances at Snape while chuckling.
“Look, he wishes he could eat Dumbledore,” Ron whispered. “What a shame the flu didn’t strike that detestable old bat too?”
Then, he saw Vaughn sit opposite him and point at him: “Guo Guo Cha, fetch Scabbers for me!”
“Meow—”
Guo Guo Cha, who hadn’t had a toy in a long time, excitedly jumped onto the table and, to Ron’s suddenly paling expression, pounced on him.
“Don’t catch Scabbers, you stinky cat… Help—”
Watching Ron scream as he was pinned to the ground by “Cats,” clutching his bag and groveling in fear.
Harry suddenly felt fortunate that he had just taken a sip of Pumpkin Juice and hadn’t had time to speak ill of Snape.
Hermione had also caught the flu.
The white smoke from her ears swirled in her messy hair, making one suspect it might be a steaming basket.
She approached Vaughn with a large tome, asking him about Transfiguration.
After getting an answer, she quickly moved on to another question.
Vaughn’s talent for Transfiguration was better than hers, and he learned naturally faster. He even received extra coaching from Professor McGonagall at the Transfiguration Club, so answering her questions was not difficult.
As mentioned before, he was very patient with cute young girls.
“…During the process of transfiguration, firm will is very important, Hermione. Or rather, any spell requires your emotions to be clear and strong enough.”
“This certainly doesn’t mean you should maintain a calm mind; that would be counterproductive. What you need to do is maintain a limited degree of composure. For example, when turning a button into a beetle, while it’s important to analyze the button’s structure and construct the beetle’s form, you must also generate a strong desire to succeed in the transformation, repeating this thought. The stronger it is, the more likely it is to succeed.”
Vaughn was sharing his insights.
The magic in this world was unreasonable; its foundation was somewhat like wish fulfillment, similar to the manifestation known as “Word Spirit” in some fantasy works from his previous life.
Magic was not a cold, formulaic product; rather, it was an emotional expression. Therefore, wizards’ emotions were very rich. Even if some dark wizards went mad, they could still successfully cast magic.
As long as there were no emotional impediments!
But Vaughn believed that everything in the world had its own internal logic.
Even seemingly chaotic appearances must have objective laws governing their existence.
The only question was whether anyone would discover them.
This was also why, when he began planning his life a few years ago, he had designated another research topic for himself, besides Potions—
The essence and laws of magic!
However, this topic was somewhat too grand and distant.
Hermione, of course, had no idea of Vaughn’s grand ambitions. This studious girl’s biggest worry right now was her studies.
After asking all her questions, Hermione looked at Vaughn expectantly, holding her book: “The exam is coming up soon, and I feel I still have many weaknesses. Vaughn, can I study with you often in the future?”
Before Vaughn could answer, Harry, who had been unable to interject, couldn’t help but exclaim in surprise: “Exam soon? It’s still quite a ways off, isn’t it?”
Hermione glared at him: “It’s still a ways off? We’ve already been at school for several weeks. Of the remaining time, deducting weekends and sleep time each month, how much time is truly left for studying…”
Her torrent of words stunned Harry into a daze, making him feel as if their leisure time had suddenly shortened, and a sense of urgency washed over him, as if wasting a minute would lead directly to death from old age.
He was still in a daze after finishing breakfast and returning to the Gryffindor Common Room with Ron.
A disheveled Ron locked Scabbers in a cage. Looking at Scabbers trembling, Ron said with distress, “Damn Vaughn, damn Guo Guo Cha, they scared Scabbers so much he’s shedding again. My poor little guy will be killed by them one day.”
Then Ron sadly realized that he didn’t seem too angry, as if he had begun to get used to a life where he and Scabbers were bullied.
