Chapter 136: Talent Enhancement And Another Magic Power Outburst
Arthur and Molly were undoubtedly very poor, but they never considered changing. In the future, after Arthur won the lottery from the 》Daily Prophet》, he had almost no long-term plans. After paying fines and buying new school supplies for his sons and daughters, all the remaining money was used for family travel, going to Egypt to visit Bill.
Why could he be so calm?
Because of the current environment in the wizarding world, wizards had little to spend money on besides their children’s schooling.
Food and clothing were provided by magic, making self-sufficiency possible, even having crops harvest themselves, eliminating the need for farm labor.
Entertainment consisted solely of newspapers, costing five copper nuts each, which was very cheap.
In Harry’s first year, eleven sickles bought him a whole cart of snacks.
Even indulging in a bit of drinking at a pub, a large mug of butterbeer only cost two sickles.
These were the limited avenues of consumption in the wizarding world. For individual wizards, such a pressure-free life was indeed happy, but when magnified to the collective, a lack of pressure meant a lack of motivation.
A civilization without motivation is not far from extinction!
In this regard, Muggles did very well. Capitalists found countless ways to squeeze out people’s surplus value. Food, clothing, housing, and entertainment kept life like walking a tightrope, with the constant threat of falling into the abyss, full of excitement.
Furthermore, with the development of Muggle technology, this situation would only intensify in the future. The advent of various consumer electronics would push people’s desires towards extreme hedonism.
Undoubtedly, it was a society heading towards perversion, but it was also a society of great technological advancement. Under the hedonistic trap of capital, Muggles unleashed unimaginable vitality.
Vaughn felt that such a future was worth his consideration.
“I have not come to bring peace, but a sword… Heh!”
Recalling this famous quote from the Muggle world, Vaughn chuckled.
The matter of establishing the cinema company was delegated to William White, and James Brown accompanied William. William was not a wizard; a werewolf of Muggle origin doing business with wizards—if someone cast a confundus charm on him, he’d be sold and still be counting the money for them!
As for Vaughn himself, he returned to The Burrow to “inspect” the twins’ research progress.
Since the end of the term, when the 》Harry Potter and the World in the Painting》 was shown to the twins at Hogwarts, the movie’s enthusiastic reception had made Fred and George deeply regretful.
The two had lamented vehemently to Vaughn on several occasions, beating their chests.
“That was Harry’s first movie, what a great gimmick, and you showed it for free at Hogwarts, what a huge loss!”
“Yeah, yeah, if you hadn’t charged even one nut per person, that’s still a lot of money!”
The twins, driven by profit, cared little for publicity. Having “lost” a large sum of wealth, they had recently become rather lax in their research.
This was a good opportunity to inform them about the impending establishment of the cinema company and to stimulate them.
Indeed, in the basement near The Burrow’s garden, the twins, who had been listlessly fiddling with some equipment on the table, immediately perked up and their eyes gleamed upon hearing Vaughn’s words.
“Will there be a charge?”
“Of course, cinema operations will definitely require ticket sales.”
“Um… do we have any shares?” Fred asked shyly.
Vaughn nodded: “Of course, you do. You can discuss this with William White yourself later. It’ll be considered a technical investment; how much you get depends on your own capabilities!”
The twins were instantly invigorated, completely forgetting their recent despondency, and excitedly explained their progress to Vaughn, patting their chests and assuring him:
“Give us another month, and we guarantee we’ll have a solution that completely solves the problem of magic interfering with electricity. It’ll be very mature and low-cost, applicable to wires, electric lights, cameras, projectors, and other equipment.”
“Additionally, we also have a concept for simulating electricity with magic. Once this project is completed, we’ll begin experimental work.”
Listening to their confident assurances, Vaughn nodded noncommittally.
It wasn’t that he doubted the twins’ words.
In alchemy, these two had considerable talent, at least more than Vaughn. Moreover, their ideas and creativity were boundless, often leading to astonishing breakthroughs.
For instance, the anti-curse suit they would develop in the future demonstrated a significant degree of innovation—they used alchemy to achieve the same effect as a Full Body-Bind Curse. Wearing the anti-curse suit would be equivalent to having a constant Full Body-Bind Curse cast upon the wearer.
A truly astonishing creation.
Therefore, Vaughn’s expectations for the twins were not limited to developing “anti-magic interference coatings” for Muggle machines or simulating electricity with magic.
Those were merely transitional options. He hoped they would innovate and create “alchemical technology”!
He wanted alchemy to develop unique alchemical technology products, much like Muggle electronics.
Vaughn had already conceived of related product ideas, such as developing an alchemical version of a magic smartphone, using the two-way mirror as its core.
Or, using Legilimency and the Pensieve as the core, creating a magical version of a virtual reality world.
Furthermore, Vaughn had even considered researching the Sorting Hat if an opportunity arose and developing artificial intelligence with the twins.
Of course, realizing these ideas was still a distant prospect. At present, neither Vaughn nor the twins possessed the capability to do so.
After boosting his two older brothers’ spirits, Vaughn returned to London. On one hand, he was waiting for William’s progress; on the other, he was preparing for the first WAC plenary meeting at the end of the month.
William White had approached Vaughn earlier to inform him that the WAC had confirmed its headquarters.
Due to the particularity of lycanthropy and the widespread discrimination still prevalent in the wizarding world, the WAC did not choose to establish itself within the wizarding world but, with the assistance of the Wizengamot, continued to be based in Muggle society.
A little over a month ago, after confirming the first plenary meeting would be held at the end of July, the Wizengamot selected several buildings located in Muggle society, suitable for the headquarters’ offices, for the WAC to choose from.
After a month of detailed investigation by William and other werewolves, they finally selected an office building in the western suburbs of London.
This area was an immigrant residential district in London, with a complex demographic, making it suitable for the werewolves’ need for discretion and obscurity, and even more so for wizards who were prone to eccentricities.
On the night of July 19th, Vaughn hosted a small banquet at the newly established WAC headquarters.
It was both to announce that the WAC had a “home” and to “foster relationships.”
In the evening, a cool breeze swept through Hyde Park.
And in the adjacent Notting Hill, a place that bore the name of a mountain though it had none, a rather old office building blazed with magnificent splendor under the night sky.
Lights, festive music, a buffet, and plenty of fine wine.
Groups of people in peculiar attire suddenly appeared in front of the office building, were then welcomed inside, and mingled amidst the dazzling lights, exchanging pleasantries, laughing heartily. These unique scenes were like a carnival （ a special festival of Notting Hill, originating from Latin American immigrants ）.
Vaughn, holding a wine glass, moved through the crowd.
“Mr. Selo, welcome… Hahaha, of course not, the Wizengamot is merely renting the office building to the WAC, please rest assured, the rent will be paid in full.”
“Travers, how have you been recently? Yes, Phil is adapting well to the work here. I must say, I underestimated him before. Should I call him over? No, no, no, don’t disturb him. You know, the first meeting hasn’t even been held yet, everything is still in the preparation stage, there’s not much work to do.”
“Oh—Rogers, that dress… What? You’re disguising yourself as a Muggle? Uh… of course, it looks good, but Rogers, do you understand which gender wears dresses?”
He exchanged pleasantries with his invited “friends,” uttering polite falsehoods that no one would believe.
Vaughn felt he was being quite hypocritical.
But politics was like that. To achieve certain goals through it, you had to actively embrace its less savory aspects and turn those negatives into advantages.
Time wore on into the late night, and the banquet slowly concluded.
After seeing off the last old wizard, Vaughn instructed the temporary staff, who were acting as waiters, to clock off, and then returned to the top floor of the office building alone.
The entire top floor had only two rooms: one was a vast conference hall, and the other was the future office of the WAC president.
However, as early as the 17th, when he first came here, Vaughn had already claimed it.
Pushing open the office door, the approximately 400-square-meter office was both spacious and comfortable, with high ceilings offering a direct view of Hyde Park.
The expansive vista was truly exhilarating.
The office was already occupied by someone: Barty Crouch, that staid high-ranking official from the Ministry of Magic, was sitting on the sofa, reading the newspaper.
Hearing Vaughn enter, he peeked out from behind the newspaper: “Is the banquet over? How did it go?”
“It was alright,” Vaughn shrugged. “These fellows are all seasoned old foxes; expecting definite answers from them is impossible. Currently, only Travers has hinted that he will vote for me.”
“Heh…”
Barty Crouch let out a scoff. “Travers has already placed his bet on you; with sunk costs involved, he’ll undoubtedly support you wholeheartedly. As for the others, you don’t need to worry, they’re all a disorganized mess.”
It was indeed as Crouch said. After the banquet tonight, although many had not given explicit endorsements, Vaughn already knew that his victory at the end of the month was virtually guaranteed.
The logic was simple.
Half of the WAC’s seats belonged to werewolves, and Vaughn was their only choice.
Therefore, the Wizengamot and the International Confederation of Wizards, which held the other half of the seats, would need to nominate a joint candidate to compete with Vaughn if they wished to challenge him.
This banquet itself was a test.
If the Wizengamot had secretly cooperated with the International Confederation of Wizards, then those old wizards would absolutely not have come tonight.
After all, regardless of how you looked at it, Vaughn was their colleague. Despite their cunning, there was still a sense of collegial “friendship,” and they had to maintain some dignity. It would be impossible for them to clearly state they didn’t support you and still come to mooch food and drinks.
Since they came, it proved the two parties had not cooperated. Therefore, whether the Wizengamot had an internal candidate or the International Confederation of Wizards wanted to push someone forward, they couldn’t defeat Vaughn.
Vaughn chuckled and didn’t dwell on the topic further, merely asking Crouch: “Why did you decide to come here today?”
Crouch put on a stern face: “Mr. Weasley, you promised to save my son, but how long has it been since you last visited my home?”
This…
Vaughn calculated and felt a bit embarrassed; it had indeed been a long time: “I’m sorry, Barty. You know, I’ve been very busy these past two months at the end of the semester…”
“I understand you perfectly, which is why I haven’t bothered you until the start of summer vacation… But Mr. Weasley, it’s almost the end of July!”
“Ah, great responsibility, busy affairs…” Vaughn said, unabashedly.
Crouch’s lips twitched. He slammed the newspaper in his hand onto the table. The opened newspaper prominently displayed a photograph.
The photo was taken many days ago in Diagon Alley. At the center of the image, Vaughn and Hermione were walking hand-in-hand down the street.
The headline, in bold letters, read: 【Potions Prodigy Suspected of Publicly Revealing Relationship? 】
“Hmph!”
Crouch snorted, expelling air from his nostrils. “Is this your great responsibility? Busy affairs?”
Vaughn’s expression remained unchanged: “Matters of lifelong importance are indeed significant.”
Crouch was speechless. After enduring for a while, he resentfully said, “No wonder you can cooperate with Dumbledore, you’re birds of a feather!”
Of course, he was just complaining.
Vaughn was also just joking.
In fact, even if Crouch hadn’t come, Vaughn had planned to visit Crouch’s house in a few days. On one hand, he wanted to observe any changes in young Barty Crouch; on the other, he had some questions he wanted to consult about.
Since Crouch had come, it saved him an extra trip.
Therefore, after a few jokes, Vaughn brewed tea for Crouch and said, “…Currently, the development of my Persona Embodiment has had to be halted. According to my original plan, I intended to use the refreshing of Persona Embodiment to suppress the pollution of Dark Arts.”
“However, even with Persona Embodiment advanced to version 3.0, the refresh speed still cannot keep up with the pollution speed of Dark Arts. Moreover, looking into the foreseeable future, further iteration will not yield a qualitative improvement, as real-time memory backup and retrieval both require time. It now appears that to resolve the pollution of Dark Arts, we must start from the soul.”
Saying this, Vaughn pushed the freshly brewed tea towards Crouch and looked at him: “Barty, do you think I can access the soul domain now? I need your experience as a reference.”
Barty Crouch had once led the Aurors. During the wizarding war over ten years ago, it was he who signed the decree allowing Aurors to use Unforgivable Curses against Death Eaters.
Therefore, he had relatively extensive experience in using Dark Arts.
Listening to Vaughn’s words, Crouch’s rigid face remained expressionless. Emotionally, he naturally wished for Vaughn to immediately begin research into the soul domain.
But…
After a moment of silence, Crouch shook his head and said, “Come into my mind and take a look…”
Almost no wizard was willing to have someone intrude into their mind.
Everyone had secrets they didn’t want others to know.
And as wizards, they were even more acutely aware of how fragile a person’s thoughts and memories were. Under the influence of magic, they were softer than clay, easily molded into someone else’s image.
Vaughn looked at Crouch: “Are you serious?”
“Hurry up!” Crouch said dryly, “Before I regret it!”
Vaughn shrugged, then subtly flicked his wand. Silently, his eyes began to glow.
Crouch, having dropped his Legilimency shields, was instantly mesmerized by the light, his gaze uncontrollably drawn to Vaughn’s eyes.
His golden-brown irises, with a slight reddish hue, seemed to transform into two whirlpools.
Crouch felt the world spinning, stretching, as if he were floating weightlessly, spiraling and turning with the surrounding world around those whirlpools.
Faster and faster!
His heart pounded. It was his brain, sensing something was wrong, trying to influence his body to wake him up.
But he had no control over anything.
In the increasingly frantic rotation, his consciousness began to blur, darken, and when he finally came to, he found himself in a lightless space.
The ground was damp, with shallow water marks. The water surface was pitch black, making it feel as if he were stepping on emptiness.
Against that deep hue, Crouch could clearly perceive his own existence, as well as Vaughn, standing opposite him in a white robe, remarkably conspicuous.
“Where is this?” Crouch asked.
“The fissure in your mind,” Vaughn replied, “located between thought and memory.”
Crouch’s research into memory magic was not deep, so he couldn’t quite grasp the concept of a “fissure” as Vaughn described.
He chuckled self-mockingly: “I thought you’d just plunge directly into my memories…” He then recalled something, squinted at Vaughn, and asked suspiciously: “Is this not your Persona Embodiment? Sending a fake to face me while you yourself roam freely through my memories?”
Vaughn curled his lip: “I’m not that bored. If I wanted to see your memories, I would do so openly. You wouldn’t be able to stop me anyway.”
“…”
That made a lot of sense…
Crouch remained silent for a moment before saying, “Go to my inner Pure Land.”
Pure Land refers to the most beautiful part of a person’s soul, a composite concept of memories, emotions, and the like. It represents a wizard’s positive emotions, and spells like the Patronus Charm require the existence of a Pure Land to be cast successfully.
From a material perspective, a Pure Land does not exist.
However, in the realm of the mind, due to the close connection between memory and emotion, the Pure Land can exist in a certain form in a specific location within the mental space.
Vaughn nodded and stepped forward, grasping Crouch’s shoulder.
“Do not resist.”
In reality, Crouch had no ability to resist. He was merely surprised to discover that Vaughn’s memory magic had grown considerably stronger since he last saw it.
The world before his eyes distorted once more.
When he regained consciousness, Crouch found himself seemingly still in that dark space, with an endless void before him.
“You…”
Crouch was about to say something when he suddenly froze.
He saw Vaughn, beside him, wave his hand in the air, and the next moment, a mass of black mud emerged from the void.
The instant they appeared, wisps of white mist also materialized. These wisps of mist fiercely resisted the black mud, and their collision produced a repulsive smoke.
Accompanied by a sizzling sound.
It was like disgusting rotten flesh being seared over a fire, emitting a foul odor!
“This is…”
“This is your Pure Land,” Vaughn said, watching with keen interest. “You’ve never been here before?”
Crouch stared blankly, his voice calm and unwavering: “No, I haven’t… And there’s no need to come. Years ago, I could no longer summon my Patronus. That’s when I knew that Dark Arts must have corrupted my Pure Land.”
“What are those white mists? Remnants of your Patronus?”
“No…” Crouch finally showed a trace of complex emotion. “That’s what I wanted you to see. It’s an ancient magic passed down in the Crouch family; it can resist the erosion of Dark Arts!”
“Oh? What’s the principle behind it?”
Vaughn’s interest grew.
Crouch shook his head. “If you want to know, I can teach you this magic, but you must promise me that you won’t try to touch the Soul Domain until you’re absolutely sure.”
“…This is the main reason you had me come see the Pure Land, isn’t it?”
Crouch was silent for a long time before saying, “I suppose so. I never expected it to turn out like this. All I know is that this is the price I’ve paid for using the Imperius Curse on my son for ten years…”
That price was indeed rather steep.
Vaughn surveyed the dark void. He didn’t call it a “space” because even in a subjective Mind World, this place was devoid of anything.
All of Crouch’s happy, positive, and good emotions and memories had been corrupted.
He looked at the black mud that was still struggling against the white mist.
That black mud was Crouch’s former Pure Land!
If it weren’t for the white mist, Crouch would have likely undergone a drastic personality change and fallen into villainy.
…
Crouch left.
He and Vaughn agreed that he would come to Vaughn’s place to learn magic after some time.
After seeing him off, Vaughn sat in his office and thought for a long time before finally summoning the System Panel again.
【Host: Vaughn Weasley】
【Magic Power Scale: 548 (Normal Adult Wizard is 500)】
【Talents: Charms Mastery 7, Dark Arts 6, Transfiguration 8, Potions Mastery 10, Herbology Mastery 6, Alchemy 6, Divination Mastery 2 (Max is 10)】
【Spells: Legilimency LV5(MAX), Full Body-Bind Curse LV5(MAX), Disarming Charm LV5(MAX), Evanesco LV5（MAX）… Legilimency LV3(21/32), Disillusionment Charm LV3（10/16）, Sectumsempra LV3（3/24）, Apparition（Skill） LV3（3/24）…】
【Alchemy LV0（3/20）】
【Potions: “Vaughn’s Beauty” series, “Vaughn’s Hair Care” series, Wolfsbane Potion, etc…】
【Reputation Points: 19 points】
【Talent Points: 1 point】
Without further hesitation, Vaughn used the talent point he had been saving on Charms Mastery.
Looking at the talent list, 【Charms Mastery 7】 distorted and became 【Charms Mastery 8】. Vaughn held his breath, waiting for the change.
Soon, a strange transformation began to occur.
It was a peculiar sensation.
His brain felt as if it were submerged in ice water, his blood vessels spasming and pumping a large amount of oxygenated blood, making his thoughts clearer than ever before.
It was also like enduring prolonged tinnitus, and then suddenly all the buzzing sounds disappeared, replaced by rare tranquility.
The world in his eyes seemed to brighten by a shade, the colors becoming more saturated.
Then, the air touching his skin suddenly vibrated.
“Magic Power…”
Vaughn lowered his head in surprise, watching his body blur due to the intense vibration of the air, as if covered by a thin veil.
In his perception, the transformation within his body was even more violent. His normally calm magic power seemed to boil, surging and expanding throughout his entire body—beneath his skin, in his muscles, in his blood vessels!
Invisible ripples spread outwards.
The furnishings in the office—the desks, chairs, sofas, scattered files and books, and so on—all floated up.
Vaughn was no stranger to this phenomenon.
In the Wizarding World, its appearance signified a wizard’s awakening!
Magic Power Outburst!
Simultaneously, Vaughn also saw the number in the Magic Power Scale section of his System Panel rapidly changing:
549, 550, 551, 552…
Until everything settled, the floating objects crashed back to the ground, and his magic power returned to Vaughn’s control, a large number flashed before Vaughn’s eyes:
【Magic Power Scale: 584】
…
The Granger’s attic.
Buzz—
The electric lights suddenly flickered wildly under the influence of some unknown force. Vaughn, who had been engrossed in testing materials at the experiment bench, frowned, straightened up, looked at the lights, and then scanned his own body.
Unstable magic power was coursing through him.
The lights were being interfered with because of this.
“Tsk, what a hassle…”
He reluctantly stopped his work, waiting for his magic power to calm down.
However, shortly after, the attic door was knocked on, and Hermione’s worried voice came from outside: “Vaughn, are you alright?”
Vaughn flicked his fingers, and the door automatically opened. Seeing the girl’s worried expression, he reassured her: “It’s just my magic power acting up, nothing to worry about.”
Mr. and Mrs. Granger peeked from the turn of the stairs behind Hermione.
At this moment, the entire Granger house was experiencing electrical disturbances due to Vaughn’s magic power surge. The situation of all the electric lights flickering wildly and appliances frequently restarting was quite frightening.
Glancing back at her peeking parents, Hermione ignored them and carefully sensed the unstable movement of magic power within Vaughn, asking, “How long will the aftereffects last?”
“Based on past experience, probably another day or two!”
Honestly, Vaughn hadn’t expected the improvement in his Charms Mastery talent to have such a significant impact.
It had caused him to experience a magic power outburst again at the “advanced” age of 12.
Although Vaughn said he was fine, Hermione still sensed it carefully for a while longer, and only when she confirmed it was just a slight loss of control over his magic power did she relax her concern.
A moment later, the magic power calmed down again, and the attic lights, as well as all the appliances in the Granger house, were no longer affected.
But a new problem arose.
Ding-dong—
The doorbell faintly chimed from downstairs. Vaughn smiled helplessly, walked out of the attic with Hermione, and apologized to Mr. and Mrs. Granger: “Uncle and Aunt, I’m very sorry for the trouble. I’ll take care of it!”
Mr. Granger wanted to say something, but was subtly suppressed by his wife and daughter.
Mrs. Granger smiled, “What trouble, dear? Hermione has had this happen before, we’re quite used to it. Isn’t that right, dear （gritting her teeth）?”
Facing his wife’s threat, what else could Mr. Granger say? He could only smile and say nothing.
Only after Vaughn went downstairs to leave did he complain, “Hmph, Hermione could only affect one room before, but he’s different. He affected our entire house, and our neighbors on all sides. If this…”
“Alright, when did you become so petty?” Mrs. Granger interrupted his complaint and asked, puzzled.
Of course, it’s when you both support that brat and ignore my feelings!
Mr. Granger muttered sheepishly.
Downstairs, amidst the intermittent ringing of the doorbell, Vaughn opened the door. Upon seeing the person standing outside, he immediately apologized, “Sorry, Shackle, to trouble you again. It’s the same situation as the past two days; I was experimenting with potions, and something went wrong.”
The visitor was an Auror, Kingsley Shacklebolt.
Under the 《Statute of Secrecy》, the Ministry of Magic’s Trace monitored all of England. Any suspicious magical fluctuations appearing in a Muggle Community would attract Aurors for investigation.
Kingsley Shacklebolt was a dark-skinned wizard wearing gold earrings, with rather old-fashioned robes. Hearing Vaughn’s words, he shrugged and joked:
“Yes, yes, I suppose you don’t *have* to cast spells in the Muggle Community. The problem is, even though everyone knows you triggered the Trace because of potion experiments, there’s one person who absolutely won’t believe it.”
“He’s demanded that the Aurors keep a close eye on you, investigating any disturbance… I think you know who that person is.”
Vaughn spread his hands. “Heh, who else could it be? It has to be our dear Minister!”
“Hahaha—” Kingsley laughed heartily. “So, Mr. Weasley, I still have to come in and take a look. Of course, you know, it’s just a routine check.”
“No problem at all, please come in.”
Stepping aside to let Kingsley Shacklebolt in, Vaughn then noticed that there was someone else following behind him.
Kingsley also just remembered and quickly said, “Ah, I almost forgot, Mr. Weasley, this is an intern assigned to me by the Ministry. She was studying with me to handle affairs before coming here, so I brought her along. Is that alright?”
It was a witch who seemed a bit restless. Her heart-shaped face looked somewhat pale, but her eyes were dark and bright, full of energy.
Noticing Vaughn looking at her, the witch blew a bubble with the chewing gum in her mouth and extended her hand. “Hello, my name is Nymphadora Tonks, you can call me Tonks. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Weasley.”
As she spoke, she demonstratively raised her eyebrows, motioning for Vaughn to look at her hair.
Her hair color suddenly shimmered like neon lights, changing from yellow to green, then to a rainbow of colors.
In the living room at the end of the entryway, Mr. and Mrs. Granger, who had just come downstairs, covered their mouths in surprise. “Oh—”
“Tonks!”
Kingsley glared fiercely at Tonks, then removed his small bowler hat, placed it over his chest, and bowed to Mr. and Mrs. Granger. “Apologies for disturbing you again, Mr. and Mrs. Granger. This is an intern studying with me; she’s a bit impetuous, I hope you won’t mind.”
The Granger couple was quite familiar with Kingsley Shacklebolt, as he had been handling Vaughn’s occasional magic power outbursts for the past few days, and they quickly assured him it was no problem.
Hermione, however, was more interested in Tonks’s ever-changing hair color.
The girl was envious and quietly asked Vaughn, “What magic is that?”
Before Vaughn could answer, Tonks had already introduced herself familiarly, “Metamorphmagus, a natural ability, you can’t learn it. Hello, my name is Nymphadora Tonks, you can call me Tonks.”
