"Professor, what kind of magic did you use back there?" Fleur asked eagerly as soon as Victor Wick returned to the training center.
By now, the others had also returned, gathering together with curious expressions.
Clearly, in the short time he had been delayed, these young wizards had already heard about the spell he had just performed.
"It was just a little magic of my own creation," Victor said, shaking his head.
"A little magic? You're far too modest!" Brian, the leader of the team that discovered the Chimaera, said excitedly. "The moment your spell appeared, those guys couldn't use magic at all. The ones flaunting their power on broomsticks fell from the sky like raindrops!"
Seeing the insatiable curiosity of these youngsters, Victor knew that if he didn't reveal something today, they wouldn't be able to sleep tonight.
"Alright, I call this spell the Data Palace. I believe those of you who were present saw that the palace was constructed from pure runic sequences," Victor explained.
"I did notice," Field said softly. "The pillars, the floors... they looked illusory, but they were actually made of lines of runes. We just couldn't understand what they meant."
"Exactly. Each line of these runic sequences is an independent spell. So..."
"So even if you hadn't let Brian and the others finish them off, you could have wiped out all the Ashwinders there yourself just by activating those spells!" Fleur interjected.
"Correct," Victor nodded.
This so-called Data Palace was a new magic he had created, taking inspiration from Azkaban and Hogwarts Castle.
In particular, while building a miniature model of Azkaban, Victor had gained crucial inspiration that led to this idea.
However, at the time, Victor only had the concept; he couldn't actually execute it.
It wasn't until he connected to the Hogwarts server and utilized its immense computing power that he finally perfected the spell.
This spell was extremely taxing on mental strength. Had the situation not been so dire tonight—where the two teams would have died within seconds—Victor wouldn't have used it so directly.
"No wonder! Those runic sequences must have contained the Spell-Ending Curse! I saw the professor simply wave his hand to activate the anti-magic function, and those guys were instantly silenced!" Field said enthusiastically.
The young wizards looked at Victor with even more fervor. While their previous instructors were powerful, none had ever been as formidable as Victor.
Victor's strength gave them an unprecedented sense of security.
Victor didn't say more, as the detailed principles would be difficult to explain to them.
In fact, this Data Palace was far more complex than a simple Spell-Ending Curse.
It even incorporated principles from the Firewall...
While the Spell-Ending Curse was an all-encompassing magic suppression, his Data Palace could achieve precise suppression—meaning he could target only enemies while leaving allies unaffected!
"So... Professor, can you teach us this magic?" Fleur couldn't help but ask.
"It's possible, of course, but unfortunately, with your current abilities, you won't be able to use it. It requires immense mental strength," Victor replied with a regretful shake of his head.
These young wizards might have enough magical power, but their mental strength was lacking.
Even he had only been able to cast it after his mental strength surged from drinking the Elixir of Life, and even then, it had drained more than thirty percent of his reserves.
A look of disappointment flickered in the eyes of the young Knights.
"However... I can modify and simplify it. If one person can't use it, then multiple people can work together, much like the communal casting of the Spell-Ending Curse," Victor mused. "Once you master this version, you won't be in such danger the next time you're surrounded."
This was a domain-type magic. Similar spells existed in the wizarding world, such as the Anti-Apparition Charm.
But the Anti-Apparition Charm had a single function, whereas the Data Palace was the complete opposite.
He didn't need to teach them the full Data Palace; just the anti-magic functionality would be enough for them!
In group wizard combat, this spell was a definitive game-changer!
To break this spell, a wizard's magical power would have to far exceed that of these young people combined!
Hearing Victor's words, the youngsters grew excited again.
After chatting with them for a while, Victor sent them to rest and took only Fleur to the training base's basement.
This basement had been carved out temporarily, as Victor intended to build a laboratory here.
Now, the basement had been expanded by the young wizards using Undetectable Extension Charms to the size of an entire football field.
Victor first brought out the Chimaera's corpse and cast several preservation spells on it...
Of course, the source of these spells didn't need mentioning.
Suffice it to say, Victor had suddenly learned them after emerging from certain ancient tombs.
Next, Victor placed the fire dragon in a corner.
Fleur was shocked; she hadn't expected Victor to bring the dragon back as well!
Moreover, the dragon was currently so docile that Fleur barely recognized it!
It had no restraints on its body, yet it was even more well-behaved than Lucky...
"Keep it here for now. Just bring it some food and water regularly. I've modified that collar... as long as you don't take it off, it will remain docile. Take good care of it; this big fellow will surely come in handy later," Victor added.
Fleur nodded repeatedly, her eyes fixed on Victor with deep admiration.
This was an enemy's mount! In the blink of an eye, it had become one of their own! And so well-behaved!
Professor Wick was truly... incredible!
By the time Victor returned to Hogwarts, it was well past midnight.
He didn't take the suitcase back to his office, leaving it in Fleur's care instead.
However, before he could reach his office, he was intercepted by Mr. Filch, the castle caretaker.
Filch told him that Snape was currently in the hospital wing and was looking for him.
Victor was slightly puzzled. He knew Quirrell would make a move tonight, but... how did Snape end up in the hospital wing?
Had he been grabbed by the ankle by a troll and swung around like a piece of laundry?
Soon, Victor arrived at the hospital wing and saw Snape.
The ever-stubborn Professor Snape had finally been laid low...
He lay on a hospital bed, his face pale, with one leg heavily bandaged and suspended in a traction frame at the foot of the bed.
Dumbledore was sitting beside him, peeling fruit...
In truth, if this had been Snape's first time being bitten by the dog tonight, he could have powered through it.
But... who told him to get bitten by Sirius not long ago?
Now... with the injury on the same leg, there was really no helping it.
"What exactly happened tonight... Dumbledore said to wait until you returned," Snape said, his tone none too friendly.
As Victor was being brought over by Filch, he had gathered some fragments of tonight's events.
A troll had indeed been released, but it hadn't escaped the dungeons.
Then Snape had gone to the fourth floor and was promptly bitten...
"Indeed..." Victor pulled up a chair and sat down.
Dumbledore silently waved his hand to set up a magical barrier so their conversation would remain confidential.
"Quirrell disappeared tonight. I was worried he would try to steal the Philosopher's Stone, so... I went to stop him... Never mind my injury for now. I only want to ask you two one thing. On such an important and critical night, where did the two of you go?"
Snape's sharp gaze fixed on Dumbledore. Dumbledore looked down guiltily, continuing to peel the fruit, not daring to meet Snape's eyes.
Snape frowned and turned his gaze to Victor.
Victor looked up at the ceiling as if it had suddenly sprouted flowers...
It seemed they had, perhaps, presumably... forgotten to tell Snape about tonight's plan.
"Do you have another plan that you didn't tell me about?" Snape asked coldly.
"Ahem... Severus, your dedication to your duty makes me feel quite ashamed..." Victor began to talk nonsense.
"Stop with the useless rubbish! Answer my question! Why do you two seem not to care at all about the safety of the Philosopher's Stone?" Snape glared at the two men before him.
They were supposed to be Hogwarts' greatest safeguards tonight! Yet they had both vanished at once!
"Well... the Philosopher's Stone on the fourth floor is a fake," Dumbledore said quietly.
"You... what did you say?!" Snape struggled to sit up. If his leg weren't strapped down, he would have jumped out of bed.
Dumbledore whispered, "Yes, it's a fake... We actually knew about Quirrell's plan early on, including releasing the troll as a distraction to go to the fourth floor... We agreed it would be better to let him take a fake stone, or let him confirm the stone was there. So... I made an excuse to leave. Victor also deliberately stayed away tonight. It was all to facilitate Quirrell's actions."
Victor didn't speak. Although he had wanted to stay away regardless, he actually did have things to attend to tonight, so he looked less guilty than Dumbledore.
Snape stared at the two men for a long while before slumping back onto the bed.
"The second time... Dumbledore... this is the second time. You didn't tell me the plan, leading to an accident. Remember the first time? If you truly trusted me, you should have told me... If you had been willing to trust me, perhaps she wouldn't have died... and I wouldn't have been injured tonight."
"I'm sorry, Severus. That was an oversight on our part," Victor said, full of apology.
The first time was when they didn't tell Snape about him being a double agent, leading to Snape's misjudgment and delayed information, which resulted in the tragedy of the Potter family.
And this was the second time...
To some extent, Victor and Dumbledore shared a similarity: when they wanted to trap someone, they didn't like to involve too many people.
And so... before the trap for Quirrell could even be sprung, Snape had stumbled into it.
It was truly tragic; Snape was always the one who got hurt...
Snape turned his face away, no longer wishing to speak to these two troublesome men.
Victor looked at Dumbledore, who happened to be looking back at him.
The two of them exchanged a glance, neither knowing what to say...
"Tell me your entire plan! Otherwise... don't come to me for help again," Snape said in a low voice. "I'm afraid I'll unknowingly ruin your 'grand design' once more."
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