61: The Dark Magic Teacher Found His Beloved Disciple?

A successful magic experiment!
A perfect verification of a hypothesis!
At this very moment, Ian was entirely certain of his inner thoughts.

The true essence contained in Transfiguration indeed differed slightly from other branches of magic. Professor McGonagall had not been wrong; Transfiguration was indeed special among numerous magical arts.

If the incantations of spells like the Killing Curse, the Incendio Curse, or Fiendfyre could be viewed as paths forged independently by brilliant and talented wizards, then the paths pointed to by Transfiguration incantations belonged to a domain jointly explored by both ancient and modern wizards. This domain opened Ian's eyes to an infinitely broader horizon.

"The fog before my eyes has completely dissipated. From now on, the path ahead is entirely unobstructed. All I need to do is keep striving and eventually reach the scenery I have just witnessed."

Six proficiency points in [Transfiguration] had been added to Ian's personal status panel, rivaling even his most exceptional magical talents in certain specialized areas.

Such talent was undoubtedly extraordinary. It turned out that Ian's aptitude for Transfiguration had never been poor; he simply had not found the correct direction until now.

To explore the mysteries along this magical path of Transfiguration, a learner needed to truly possess the vision of a wizard—to understand that a wizard bestows rules upon matter rather than merely twisting it.

Other young wizards might never fully grasp this concept in their lifetimes. After all, they did not overanalyze factors as Ian did; by following their professors' instructions, they could still successfully transform objects.

Of course, such Transfiguration was akin to cramming education—knowing the outcome without understanding the reason behind it. This was why the Transfiguration of most wizards remained merely superficial.

"Transforming inanimate objects into living creatures is the ultimate test of one's proficiency in Transfiguration..." Ian recalled Professor McGonagall's Transfiguration Club, whose entry requirement was reportedly the ability to transfigure a lifelike, breathing creature.

A thought stirred within him.
He raised his wand, preparing to make an attempt.

The owls resting inside the owlery possessed a high degree of intelligence. The moment they saw Ian pull out that stick-like wand once again, they scattered in all directions like startled birds.
Well, naturally, they were birds to begin with.

"Vera Verto!"

Driven by magic, several wisps of straw furiously wove together, their colors beginning to shift. Following a rapid transformation, a lifelike mouse appeared before Ian.

It was remarkably vivid.

Yet, Ian felt that it still lacked a certain quality—it bore a distinct difference from the leopard Professor McGonagall had conjured from a desk, lacking the vibrant, dynamic presence of a genuine living creature.

In other words, true life had not genuinely been breathed into the creation. The little mouse Ian had conjured appeared somewhat dull-witted. While it could move, the posture and rhythm of its movements struck the owls in the loft as utterly bizarre.

What kind of foolish, wooden mouse was this?
A cluster of owls huddled in the distance tilted their heads in unison, completely bewildered.

"As expected, transfiguring living creatures is significantly more difficult."

Ian felt no discouragement; this was merely a Level 3 [Transfiguration]. Once he managed to advance it to Level 5, skills equipped with [Extraordinary Traits] would undoubtedly undergo a qualitative transformation.

"It is getting late. If I don't go eat now, I'll be starving by the afternoon." Ian glanced at the large clock on the tower outside the window and withdrew the [Influence] he had cast.

Instantly, the foolish mouse reverted back into a bundle of straw—a spike-ridden dead mouse resembling a minor monster from Diablo, its spikes "devolving" back into ordinary blades of grass.

"You lot go ahead and eat while it's fresh," Ian suggested to the owls before trotting out of the loft.

Before he even reached the spiral staircase, he noticed a stern-looking wizard walking toward him.

Ronnie Erich.
This year's consumable for the Defense Against the Dark Arts position at Hogwarts.

"Professor Erich." Ian politely greeted the doomed teacher.

Regardless of whether Hogwarts would even remember this teacher next year, at least for this year, the man would give him a front-row view of the effects of Voldemort's curse.
Throwing oneself directly into the game—how could this not be considered another form of meticulous instruction in Defense Against the Dark Arts?

"Mmm." Professor Ronnie Erich gave a slight nod, maintaining a cold and aloof demeanor as he brushed past Ian. He clearly disliked talking; Ian privately thought this professor might actually be the one on the spectrum.

Preoccupied with lunch, Ian trotted toward the staircase, failing to notice that a moment after they crossed paths, Ronnie Erich had halted, turning his head to stare fixedly at Ian's retreating back for a long while.

Not until Ian's footsteps vanished around the corner did Ronnie Erich turn back around and walk toward the owlery. He pulled a letter from the folds of his robes.

"Singer's Stationery Shop in Austria."

Ronnie Erich handed the letter to an owl. The seal of his envelope bore an uncanny, intricate pattern resembling a restriction woven from some sort of arcane rune.

Having instructed the bird on its destination, Ronnie Erich produced a handful of high-grade pet treats. After the owl devoured the snack with relish, it spread its wings with a forceful flap and soared out the window.

Watching the owl vanish beyond the boundaries of Hogwarts until it became an indistinguishable speck against the horizon, Ronnie Erich finally withdrew his gaze and prepared to leave.

"Hmm?"

As he stepped away from the window, he caught sight of the dead mouse lying in the corner—the owls had not eaten it; the straw-pierced dead mouse lay there quietly.

"Oh?"

Ronnie Erich crouched down. Showing no squeamishness, he picked up the dead mouse with his hand and observed it carefully. The blades of straw protruded directly from the interior of the mouse's body.

Could soft straw possess such sharpness?

"Transfiguration, is it?"

The Defense Against the Dark Arts professor murmured softly. His vast repository of knowledge allowed him to reconstruct the events of a short while ago, deducing the cause behind the mouse's bizarre state of death.

"This is getting interesting."

Ronnie Erich crouched by the owlery window, raising his gaze toward the long corridor outside—the very place where he and Ian had crossed paths earlier.

His eyes held a hint of surprise, a trace of fervor, and a sudden, illuminating excitement.

...

Ian was among the last batch of young wizards to arrive for lunch.

Once he had eaten his fill, he did not return to the dormitory for a midday nap like the students of other houses, nor did he retreat to the common room to review afternoon lessons like the Ravenclaws.

The Hogwarts library was a place Ian had kept in mind all along. It housed the richest collection of books in the European wizarding world, encapsulating the accumulated wisdom of countless gifted individuals throughout history.

Even though Dumbledore had relocated the majority of the Restricted Section's collection to his headmaster's office, the remaining books were still more than enough to keep most wizards learning for a lifetime.

Thousands of bookshelves filled the space, covering everything from magical history, magical theory, and magical creatures to potions and spells, alongside specialized areas like the Restricted Section and the Invisible Section.

Countless narrow aisles were lined with towering bookshelves whose sheer scale could easily daunt poor students. The lofty shelves forced Ian to rely on a rolling ladder to hunt down the volumes he desired.

*From Cat to Owl: A Practical Guide to Transfiguration.*
*Taboos and Risks of Transfiguration.*
*Transfiguration and Telepathy.*
...

A pile of books related to Transfiguration sat on Ian's table, stacked high enough to conceal him as he sat in his chair. This was not actually what Ian had initially intended to study in the library.

However, Professor McGonagall's guidance had proven overwhelmingly useful, leaving Ian with a profound interest in Transfiguration.

Once he carefully pondered the various incantations and effects within the domain of Transfiguration, an interesting fact emerged: all knowledge associated with Transfiguration was merely technique. Differing slightly from the established "laws" formulated and explored by others, the incantations of Transfiguration served primarily to reduce the difficulty of casting.

Achieving greater reality-altering effects with the absolute minimum amount of [Influence]—as evidenced by the incantation *Vera Verto*—made it clear that technique-oriented incantations could be universally applied to the transformation of entirely different entities.

The direction it pointed toward was not confined solely to the predetermined outcomes established by predecessors.

In reality, the grand direction indicated by Transfiguration was freedom of will, the realization of every thought into reality—the distant scenery Ian beheld as he stood upon the path explored by those who came before him: the Great Spell of Wish-Granting!

The authority of the Creator!