The standard Summoning Charm has a sharp, urgent rhythm, almost like a one-way pull.
But when I created a variation, I elongated the vowels, added tiny pauses and slight rises between syllables…
Pa—
Rock snapped the book shut.
His heart was still pounding from what he had just read.
Professor Flitwick hadn't lied at all when he handed him the borrowing slip earlier—
"If you really want to explore the essence of spells, this book has some answers."
Some of the experimental variations looked absolutely ridiculous, yet strangely practical.
And they filled in several of the gaps in his understanding of spell rhythmics.
"Magic is an ocean. Spells are just the ships built to sail it."
"But the author of this book, Grimwald Grant, didn't want a ship—he gave himself goggles and flippers and dived straight into the depths to observe things no one else even knew existed."
Rock had grown genuinely curious about Grimwald Grant.
Behind all the jokes in the text were countless cycles of observation, documentation, and deduction—even if his logic sometimes leaped off cliffs without warning.
And after spending who-knows-how-many years recording all this, no one understood him.
Rock couldn't even figure out how to judge that kind of persistence.
Notes scribbled by past headmasters and upperclassmen filled the margins—
and nearly all of them called the book misleading, nonsense, or dangerous to young wizards.
"Magic really is strange… but the most important part is—"
Rock glanced at the interface.
The spell variations weren't the main treasure of Grimwald's Whimsical Variations.
It was Grimwald's annotations on spell rhythms that skyrocketed his Spell Rhythmatics experience.
[Read rhythmic analysis of Lumos — Spell Rhythmatics +15]
[Read rhythmic analysis of Cleaning Charm — Spell Rhythmatics +15]
[Read rhythmic analysis of Levitation Charm — Spell Rhythmatics +15]
By the time he finished the book, it hadn't taught much else—but every rhythmic breakdown and variation massively expanded his understanding.
[Spell Rhythmatics Lv.3 (850 / 1099) — Structure Compatibility Forecast unlocked]
Seeing the skill already at Level 3, Rock felt a burst of excitement.
It was "just" a support skill, but this one skill alone would help him enormously with future spell modifications and composite magic.
"Origis!"
Rock flicked his wand at the parchment on the table.
It folded itself neatly in half.
"Ori for forming, gis for rapid movement."
Seeing the perfectly folded paper, Rock couldn't help admiring the skill's power.
He had invented this spell spontaneously while reading.
Spell Rhythmatics had taken the words he instinctively thought of and helped structure them into a functioning spell.
"Looks like I can use this skill to fast-track a bunch of spells next."
With that thought—
He suddenly checked his pocket watch… and froze.
"…It's already ten?"
He looked out the window.
Pitch-black night.
"This game is awesome!" Adam barged in, calling to Theo behind him.
"Game? Please," Theo replied smugly, "I barely even showed you anything. Give me more time and I'll show you real transformations. I know this stuff."
"It's fine. Tomorrow's the weekend—we can try again early."
Adam nodded. "And the essay… we'll ask Rock. He'll finish it in no time, and we'll have hours left."
"Agreed!"
"I can't believe you two turned 'copying homework' into something noble."
Rock stuck his head out from behind the bed curtains, openly judging them.
"Huh?! Rock, when did you get back?" Adam jumped, then hurried over.
"I've been back a while. You two just didn't notice."
Rock stepped out—his head still foggy from reading too long.
He grabbed a pudding and took a bite. Surprisingly good when cold—bouncy and chewy.
"No one left in the common room?" Rock asked after finishing.
Theo thought a moment, then shook his head. "A few upperclassmen were still there, but they looked ready to head back."
"You're going out tonight?!"
Theo only now realized why Rock was asking—and he lit up like a kid at Christmas.
"You can't use the Phantom Form Charm," Rock reminded him, patting Theo's shoulder. Then he asked Adam, "You coming?"
"Nope. It's creepy out there at night," Adam refused instantly. He'd learned the charm purely because it looked cool. Midnight adventures weren't his thing.
"Alright then. Get some rest."
Rock waved. "See you."
At the stairwell, he made sure the common room was empty, then slipped out.
A month of nightly excursions had sharpened his stealth enough that unless someone was paying attention, they wouldn't notice him slipping out of Ravenclaw Tower.
But once he entered the main castle, he still cast Phantom Form.
Ever since the troll incident, Filch had been prowling the corridors day and night.
Getting caught now would be… painful.
Rock made his way into the Room of Requirement and once again pulled out Grimwald's Whimsical Variations.
Tonight's purpose: the last page.
Grimwald Grant had finally explained why he pursued all those bizarre spell variations.
The Eye That Sees Spells.
A talent mainstream wizards believed was impossible—
and the very reason the book was dismissed as absurd.
But Rock knew it was real.
He had experienced something like it himself.
The moment he analyzed the Philosopher's Stone for the second time, his soul had felt like it was thrown into a burning forge—
And he'd seen countless colored threads.
On the final page, Grimwald described his experience in detail:
> "I entered a state of inner vision.
> The structure of spells had tiny folds and flowing currents in my 'sight', twisting and rippling at irregular intervals."
Reading that again, Rock couldn't suppress his excitement.
The details didn't perfectly match what he had seen—
but deep in his heart, he knew.
They were talking about the same phenomenon.
Grimwald had simply witnessed a much rougher, simpler version of it.