A Professor of Magic at Hogwarts-Chapter 502: Bait - (1)

Newt appeared both surprised and fascinated.

He gazed at an unusually large bird-snake, his focus intense and fervent, murmuring to himself, "Am I dreaming? I hope Tina doesn't wake me up halfway." He cautiously approached, but the bird-snake seemed startled by his demeanor, flapping its wings to create a strong gust, pushing him back a few steps.

"Wow, easy—"

Newt wasn't sure where he found a jar from, filled with beetles. "I know you like these, no harm meant. Look, it's food—uh—" he said while trying to slowly unscrew the lid, only to find the bird-snake gradually shrinking.

"Felix?" he exclaimed, clearly puzzled.

Soon, the bird-snake was no bigger than a newly hatched creature, coiled up. Valen hopped off the table, eyeing the bird-snake; its bright, black eyes shimmered, both little creatures almost the same height.

"Chirp!"

Valen reached out, but the bird-snake darted aside, a mist rising as Felix's figure reappeared. He gestured, his robe draping over him, restoring to his initial form.

"Performance over."

With a snap of Felix's fingers, the mist swiftly dissipated.

Newt visibly showed disappointment.

"You wouldn't want to study me, would you?" Felix cautiously inquired.

"Oh, no, why would I—" Newt, slightly flustered, interrupted, his gaze fixed on him, "Certainly not—I can differentiate between you guys. There's no giant bird-snake in reality, at least not that I've seen. Is it because of you?" He awkwardly changed the subject.

Truth be told, Felix also breathed a sigh of relief. Newt's eyes seemed like he was observing a magical creature he adored, one he hadn't encountered before.

"It's likely because of me," he sat on a nearby rock, "I've been experimenting with magical creature transformations lately, but it seems the most recent bird-snake alteration I've grasped is easier and more complete. I suspect it's due to my adeptness with the scale-reducing charm."

"The one you used on the Blast-Ended Skrewt?" Newt asked astutely.

Felix nodded.

"That explains it," Newt said, "The ancient runes' connection to magical creatures runs deep—I've read your paper—but, um," he pondered his words, "you should understand, the talents of ancient runes and magical creatures are distinct."

"I understand," Felix nodded, "Perhaps initially, ancient runes might have mimicked magical creatures and plants, but when wizards combined purely magical symbols to create the first entirely new magic, the two became distinct."

"However, I'll try to restore their abilities."

His light blue eyes brimmed with infinite desire. "The talents of some magical creatures are truly fascinating." He glanced down at the Invisible Beast, this little creature not only could turn invisible but also had the fleeting ability to prophesy the future. Then his thoughts shifted to the phoenix Fawkes in the Headmaster's office—rebirth from the ashes… that must be incredibly challenging.

"You're the most qualified to talk about this," Newt also remarked, "Everyone underestimated the potential of ancient runes… When will you visit next? I'm eager to see the new changes."

"When I hit a wall," Felix somewhat regretfully said, "I need time to digest the current gains, and these next couple of years might be quite busy."

"Because of the war," Newt murmured.

...

Exiting Newt's house, Felix first strolled around the headquarters of the 'Future World' company in Diagon Alley.

The development of 'Future World' had taken off, and—much to Felix's surprise—most of the employees were rather young, with many recent Hogwarts graduates among them.

"We currently have 267 employees. Following your instructions, the focus in Britain remains steady while we rapidly expand overseas, establishing new bases," Clementine said, holding a thick set of documents.

"Is the plan for integrating alchemy progressing smoothly?"

"People with a foundation in ancient runes are catching on quickly; the rest are progressing slower."

"No rush," Felix nodded, "What about defense training?"

Clementine sighed.

"Not all wizards fancy fighting, especially since dueling classes haven't been offered at school for a few years. You know the level of Dark Arts Defense before… Over a third of the employees don't even know a single combat spell, let alone combat awareness. They might know a fair amount of minor curses, but they're mostly for pranks and lack any real utility."

"Pranks, when used well, aren't bad," Felix said, "However, the company's employees must possess the most basic self-defense abilities. The Rune Armor charm…" he paused for a moment, reconsidering, "scratch that. Not everyone has studied ancient runes. Let's focus on the Shield Charm and Stunning Spell, these two must be mastered promptly. Disillusionment and Bright Flames charm can be postponed. Orders can be delayed or assigned to our overseas employees; we currently have no competition."

Clementine quickly noted it down.

"What about the progress on the Thieffall Barrier?"

"Limes is still negotiating with Gringotts, but the goblins are giving him the cold shoulder," Clementine complained.

"The goblins aim to stay neutral, or the more intense our conflict, the happier they become…" Felix mused, "Isn't there still the Ministry of Magic?"

"The Ministry has the technology, but it hasn't been used for centuries," Clementine said, her expression peculiar, "They can't find the right person to construct the Thieffall Barrier."

"Hasn't the Alchemical Association sent anyone to assist?" Felix inquired curiously.

"It's a magical organization spanning across Europe," Clementine shrugged, "Many are hesitant to come during these sensitive times. As for native British alchemists… there aren't many famous ones, unless you count Zoko."

"Zoko…" Felix was somewhat speechless.

Zoko was the proprietor of Zoko's Joke Shop in Hogsmeade, formerly an alchemist who initially struggled in business. After a few years of barely making ends meet, he nearly starved before reluctantly shifting to researching pranks and magical products, unexpectedly skyrocketing to fame in that field.

What could be done about that? Felix pondered. As his goals expanded, he worried Voldemort might set his sights on the 'Future World' employees. Aside from conventional protective magic, the Thieffall Barrier seemed strategically valuable. It could wash away all enchantments, magical disguises, potentially even covering Polyjuice Potion and the Dementor's Kiss.

"Professor…" Clementine raised her hand, her eyes gleaming at him.

"You want to try, don't you?" Felix understood.

"Exactly," Clementine said, relieved; she felt she and the professor were on the same page, "Our R&D wizards exceed fifty, each skilled in two or three areas, having experienced the development of multiple new products. I can't think of a more cohesive team."

Felix contemplated the feasibility of the plan. The Ministry had the tech, and they had a mature team with enough brainpower. It seemed like a win-win outcome, except he wasn't sure if the Ministry would agree to share the technology. During the first war, the Ministry had collaborated with the 'Prophet.'

The 'Prophet' had seen rapid growth after the war.

"Professor," Clementine urged eagerly, "Now's the chance."

"Alright," Felix agreed, "I'll speak with Ms. Bones. If she doesn't have a better option now, I'm confident I can persuade her. Anything else new?"

"We do!" Clementine said, "But they're just minor things."

She swiftly flipped through the documents.

"The Weasley twins are interning here, and their—"

"Wait, Fred and George are here? At the company? Right now?" Felix asked in surprise.

"Yeah," Clementine nodded, "They came over on the first day of their break, brimming with all sorts of peculiar ideas… Limes values their Anti-Curse Hat and Anti-Curse Cloak series; he appointed them as team leaders and even assisted them personally." She pursed her lips, "However, Limes declined their series of mysterious prank items like the Jump-Scare Box, the Constipation Nugget… Fred kept complaining about Limes being clueless and said you highly praised these things—is that true?"

"Well, I appreciate their design thinking, but joking about Voldemort… certainly isn't advisable; Death Eaters would be cursing them non-stop…" Felix explained, noticing Clementine's doubtful expression.

Coughing, he continued, "Let's continue."

"…because of the Ministry's endorsement, sales of Rune Cards have surged significantly. At this rate, soon every household will have a set… Actually, everything related to rune promotion is selling well, whether it's Andis's released comic extras or the rune guidebooks, all of them are constantly being reprinted… Many people are writing in asking for illumination charm casting techniques; Penelope has been working overtime lately."

Felix wasn't overly surprised by this.

>

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