"Boom!" The massive explosion seemed to shake the entire manor, but it wasn't a mishap in Malfoy's experiment; the real culprit was someone else.????? W? W ·
"Miss… Miss Parkinson, Kreacher suggests you temporarily stick to using Muggle methods for cooking!" In the basement kitchen, Kreacher stood behind Pansy, trembling and stammering. The girl in front of him was simply too destructive when cooking, and Kreacher suspected he might lose his life in one of these explosions.
Just then, another accident occurred.
With a "whoosh," a gleaming, heavy cleaver suddenly flew out of control towards Kreacher, grazing his scalp before embedding itself in the wall behind him. Half of the blade was still quivering, shaking for a long while before finally settling down.
"Kreacher will tell Master Malfoy! Miss Parkinson is destroying his property!" Kreacher exclaimed in horror, his body trembling uncontrollably.
He had hoped to have his head chopped off by his master and hung on the wall only when he was too old and feeble to work. The way he might die at any moment now was not what he desired.
"What happened?" Malfoy pushed open the basement door, looking at the scene before him with some confusion, unsure of what had transpired.
"Miss Parkinson asked Kreacher to teach her how to cook! Master Malfoy agreed yesterday, and Kreacher had no choice but to obey! It's Kreacher's fault for not teaching well! Please punish Kreacher!" Kreacher said timidly. Even though the fault wasn't entirely his, a house-elf's instinct still compelled him to take the blame.
"I think I already know what exactly happened here." Malfoy ignored Kreacher's rambling and instead looked expressionlessly at the girl in front of him, who knew she had done wrong and had lowered her head like an ostrich.
"I just wanted to learn how to cook." Pansy mumbled, staring at the floor, her hands behind her back, lacking confidence. Her motives weren't that simple.
However, being guilty made her nervousness seem reasonable, and Malfoy didn't suspect anything.
"Then start with the basics." Malfoy could only say that. He now understood what Pansy's little request yesterday was all about. If he didn't stop her now, she might end up demolishing the entire manor.
"Okay, okay, I get it. Go do your thing. This kitchen is my territory now." Pansy's face grew even hotter as she spoke, squeezing out those few words. She put her hands on Malfoy's shoulders and pushed him forcefully in the opposite direction, urging him to leave.
"Alright then, but I suggest you don't use magic for now." Malfoy cast one last glance at the chaotic kitchen and said helplessly.
"I know, I know!" Pansy said impatiently, then pushed Malfoy step by step out the door, slamming it shut with a thud. Only then did her heart, which had been in her throat, fall heavily back into place.
Pansy was afraid that Malfoy would press her for details, asking why she wanted to learn to cook, and that she might act unnaturally and give herself away.?? ·
Now that the biggest "crisis" had passed, she regained her imperious demeanor.
"You actually dared to tattle on me!" Pansy glared fiercely at the still-trembling Kreacher, hands on her hips.
"So I'm going to punish you by making you teach me until I learn! You'll be responsible for eating all the failures I make." Pansy said, wrinkling her nose.
Kreacher looked terrified, his body trembling uncontrollably. He could now fully imagine what he would experience in the coming days.
Meanwhile, Malfoy made his way up the stairs to the third floor.
This floor had several bedrooms, one of which he had converted into a laboratory some time ago to facilitate his potion-making and the experimentation of new spells.
The room originally had a small wooden bed and a blank painting frame, but these had been removed. In the center of the room, a large, square, light-colored wooden table had been newly installed, covered with bottles and jars of various potions. In one corner, a cauldron was propped up, and in front of the wooden table was a rough stone stool.
In the corners of the room were two large red sandalwood chests, several rows of bookshelves, and a tattered magical mannequin. Its upper body was waving its arms, its face perfunctorily drawn with black ink to resemble eyes, a nose, and a mouth, like a child's simple drawing. The lower body was missing, replaced by a thick copper spring.
This was equipment used for experimenting with magic. It wasn't possible to keep casting spells at the wall, and the mannequin had been imbued with a powerful permanent restoration charm. Unless it sustained irreparable damage all at once, any injuries would automatically heal over time.
Right now, one of the wooden puppet's fingers was wriggling on the ground, preparing to reattach itself.
Malfoy ignored it. He had just cautiously tested many of the spells that Salazar Slytherin had taught him, and the results were promising.
Neither of them was averse to dark magic. The teacher imparted everything he knew, and the student, even if he couldn't immediately understand, relied on his powerful memory to memorize it whole.
The potion in the cauldron on the wooden table was calmly maintaining its proper state, a serene, blue-green color, like a calm lake, even though the flames beneath the cauldron were burning so vigorously, the potion inside remained still.
"Blood of a fire lizard…" Malfoy muttered, then took out a glass bottle filled with red liquid. He gently pried open the stopper with his thumb, waved his hand, and poured the entire bottle of blood into the pot.
The blue, crystalline liquid mixed with a touch of bright red, then began to boil and churn violently. Smoke of various colors began to spiral upwards, filling the entire room.
"Whether it's true or false, I always have to try." Malfoy seemed to be talking to himself, whispering as he stirred the potion in the pot continuously with a silver spoon. The movements of his hand were regularly clockwise, but after a while, he suddenly switched to counterclockwise.
His hand was like a machine controlled by mechanical parts, perfectly precise.
This potion was very important to him.
According to the potion recipe left to him by Salazar Slytherin, it could enhance a wizard's magical power.
Salazar had not named this potion, even though he had invented it, because there was no need to name a potion that was not meant to be circulated.
If he had made it public back then, it might have been a groundbreaking innovation.
What determines a wizard's strength? Nothing more than knowledge, will, and talent.
Knowledge is easy to understand. Most wizards who have undergone formal training are stronger than so-called wild wizards. Don't even mention the experience gained from actual combat. In people's minds, the latter often has an advantage between the academic school and the practical school. It seems that the more practice, the more advantage they have in battle. However, even Voldemort systematically studied at Hogwarts for seven years to lay the foundation before achieving his "achievements."
Wizards from a "formal" background have already established a systematic learning process. These experiences are something that wizards who rely on their own experiments and explorations can never achieve.
Of course, due to the existence of the Book of Admittance and the Quill of Acceptance, wild wizards are now extinct. The names of every student with magical talent will appear on it, and only the headmaster and deputy headmaster of Hogwarts can read it before each student's enrollment.
If Dumbledore hadn't allowed Voldemort to enroll in the first place, there might not have been so many problems afterward. At worst, there would have just been one more dark wizard who could be easily dealt with by the Aurors.
You need to know that the concept of Horcruxes, and the in-depth understanding of Horcruxes, all occurred during Voldemort's time at Hogwarts.
As for willpower, it goes without saying that when a wizard uses the Avada Kedavra curse, they not only need powerful magic as support, but also the determination to kill the other person. Other dark curses also require a sufficiently firm will to be effectively released. Whether it is the positive Patronus Charm or the negative Cruciatus Curse, the former requires an optimistic and positive attitude, while the latter requires sufficient cruelty and distortion.
Harry's mother was able to use the passive resistance curse brought by love to block Voldemort's killing curse, and even bounce it back. In the original timeline, Mrs. Weasley, who had retired to the second line and became a housewife for who knows how many years, also killed Bellatrix when her relatives died and she was heartbroken. This is enough to show that a strong will is very important to every wizard.
Finally, there is talent. Here, talent refers to the talent of magic. Even if we don't mention Squibs, every adult wizard has different magic power. And the way to increase magic power seems to be only through natural growth with age, but this is also related to talent. It's as if every wizard is born with a mine, and as they get older, more and more magic is developed.
It's cruel, but that's the truth. Talent determines the upper limit that a wizard can reach.
Look at those wizards with extraordinary talents. Snape had already mastered more spells than seventh-year students in the year he entered school. Voldemort could create Horcruxes before he was an adult, and Dumbledore's former invigilator also claimed that Dumbledore did things during the exam at that age that he could never have imagined.
Generally speaking, geniuses begin to show themselves in their youth, while wizards with mediocre qualifications will most likely remain mediocre throughout their lives.
In fact, even if he had foresight, even if his intelligence reached a certain level, in the final analysis, Malfoy's talent was at most above average.
Soul-travel is not body-travel.
And this potion invented by Salazar broke this limit. If possible, even Muggles with no magic at all can become wizards, not to mention those who are already wizards, who can also take it a step further with this potion.
Salazar Slytherin had an unhappy breakup with the other three founders of Hogwarts back then. No one knows where he went. Even Malfoy, who had communicated with him not long ago, didn't know. The old man didn't mention anything in the previous conversation, and should have deliberately avoided a lot.
But Malfoy knew that in those final years, Salazar's power must have been stronger than the other three.
Because he was single-minded.
The other three giants would be tirelessly working for their first students, racking their brains for trivial matters in Hogwarts. Salazar Slytherin, however, was alone, embarking on a journey to explore the truth. Travel and adventure allowed him to uncover more unknown mysteries.
This potion should have been invented after he parted ways with the other three, but in the long river of history, there has never been any related record. The people of Slytherin will bide their time, but they will not refuse glory. I believe that even if Helga Hufflepuff invented this potion, it would not be unknown.
"Yes, drinking this potion will increase magic power, but even more terrible things will happen. Ordinary Muggles, if they can drink this potion, they will gain the same power as wizards! This is even more unacceptable to me than the existence of Mudbloods! Mudbloods at least cannot choose. In a sense, they are innocent, but once this potion spreads, I cannot imagine that there will be so many Muggle-born wizards in the future wizarding society. They will persecute the truly pure-blooded wizards, so I would rather permanently seal the method of making this potion."
This was Salazar's explanation.
"Therefore, I need you to make a vow that you will not leak any information related to this potion no matter what."
Salazar's gloomy voice echoed in Malfoy's heart.
"But there are no other witnesses here," Malfoy said. He immediately thought of the Unbreakable Vow, which he also had experience with.
"In addition to the Unbreakable Vow, there are many more magics related to contracts. The older the era, the more the wizards of that time valued agreements, and the more diverse contract magic was. I have also learned a lot of spells from ancient times in the manuscripts of some wizards' relics..."
Salazar let out a cheerful laugh, not taking it seriously. Mentioning magic always made him feel happy. This was the pride of a wizard who had dedicated his life to pursuing the ultimate in magic.
The more powerful the potion, the longer it takes. This unnamed potion that can enhance magic power is no exception.
It requires a long wait and complex procedures to complete.
Fortunately, Malfoy only needs to consider these few issues. The material problem, on the other hand, has become the easiest to solve.
After all, he doesn't have to worry about wealth. Whether it's his own family's private collection or the medicinal material reserves in the Black ancestral home, everything is available.
Not to mention that after a thousand years, some magical potion ingredients that were considered precious at the time have now become less rare and can be produced in batches.
The times are always progressing, whether it is wizards or Muggles.
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