A Professor of Magic at Hogwarts

Chapter 197: The Three-Dimensional Enchanted Runes Sphere

Chapter 197: The Three-Dimensional Enchanted Runes Sphere

Felix Harp waved his wand, conjuring a few plates of snacks. "Please, have a seat. Let's chat for a moment."

He naturally picked up a piece of chocolate biscuit and put it in his mouth, the taste of chocolate revitalizing his spirits.

Hermione looked at him oddly, wondering if the professor hadn't eaten dinner.

"How was your summer?" Felix picked up another biscuit.

"Very nice! My family and I went to France. I saw many interesting magical things and included them all in my magical history paper," Hermione enthusiastically recounted her summer experiences.

Felix nodded occasionally in agreement. Soon, the plates of snacks were emptied, and with a wave of his wand, the small plates were filled once more.

"Professor, haven't you had dinner?"

"Um... yes, indeed. You should try some, though. The taste is quite exquisite."

Felix ate until he was content and then paused, leisurely pouring himself a cup of tea. "I saw the postcard you sent. In fact, I also visited France during the break."

"Really?" The young witch blinked, intrigued. "For a vacation too?"

"For official matters, I stayed in Paris for a few days. Some things happened during that time..." Felix briefly recounted his own experiences, then asked, "You must have practiced runic scripts during your break?"

"Of course!" Hermione didn't want the professor to think she had just played around the entire vacation. She quickly rattled off, "I packed everything into a bead pouch and carried it with me – runic carving tools, chestnut wood parchment, and even my holiday assignments..."

"Let me see." She pulled out a small bag from her wizarding robe and tapped her wand on it. Sheets of chestnut parchment flew out, quickly forming a neat stack.

These parchment sheets were an improved version of chestnut wood, differing in color but otherwise resembling sheepskin parchment greatly.

Felix picked up the top few sheets; these should represent the young witch's highest level. He studied the dense runic symbols carefully.

Hermione explained, "I've allocated about a third of them for practicing individual runes, and the rest for practicing runic circuits, just as you instructed. However, for now, I've only mastered the circuits used on the bead pouch."

"You continuously exceed my expectations." Felix generously praised her.

He led Hermione to a worktable. "Let me be amazed, Miss Granger."

With a serious expression, Hermione sat down in the chair and picked up her chestnut carving knife. She swiftly carved a rune, her skills much improved after a summer of practice. Her magical power flowed smoothly, free from the stiffness and hesitation of the previous school year.

Subsequently, one runic symbol after another emerged, the whole process flowing like a stream of water, carrying a touch of elegance.

Felix's gaze fixed on the tip of the runic carving knife, observing the agile crimson glow pouring out of it. It resembled a dancing sprite, and he unconsciously recalled the discussion about the Scale-Enlarging Charm he had with Flitwick earlier that day.

Balance of magic;

And the liveliness he saw now...

He lightly moved his finger, and the symbols appeared in the air.

Hermione wrote down seventeen runic symbols in one go. These were the most challenging set of runic circuits she had mastered. "Now, it's about connecting them one by one. You can do it!" she encouraged herself.

Carefully, she guided magical lines from the runes, connecting and intertwining them. She was so focused that she completely ignored the world around her.

Felix mimicked Hermione's steps. Runes automatically connected in the air, forming the circuit faster than the young witch, completing the construction of the entire circuit.

A sense of accomplishment washed over him as he seamlessly linked the circuit from start to finish, forming a complete loop.

"It feels just like the patterns in a Pensieve during meditation!"

Felix Harp suddenly had an epiphany. He looked at the ring in his hand, disassembled it, turning it into individual runic symbols, then connected them once more.

Magic flowed within the ring like ripples in water, embodying an exquisite beauty in its movement and stillness. At this moment, a thought struck him: he wanted to attempt reconstructing the complete Scale-Enlarging Charm.

Not the amalgamation he had researched with Flitwick, but the true ancient magic.

He had already invested a significant amount of time in this magic, and today, inspired twice – once by Flitwick's theory of magic balance and once by the sensation of magic liveliness brought by Granger – he felt a surge of inspiration.

"Perhaps today holds the promise of success?"

More symbols appeared. Felix first manifested the known runic components of the Scale-Enlarging Charm. A hollow sphere formed, comprised entirely of runic symbols...

Meanwhile, Hermione let out a sigh of relief. "Successfully completed the first set of runic circuits," she murmured contentedly, gazing at her work. She could hardly find any mistakes – at least not from her perspective.

"Carve the rest and astonish the professor." That's what the young witch thought. Just then, she noticed a bouncing little entity on the edge of the chestnut parchment – something she was familiar with from her time in the Room of Requirement.

It was unmistakably a runic symbol!

Hermione hesitated and turned back, "Professor..." Her eyes widened, as if witnessing the unimaginable.

"Professor has brought the Room of Requirement into reality?!"

In Hermione's eyes, Professor Harp was holding a complex hollow sphere, surrounded by hundreds of colorful runic symbols. Moreover, new symbols were emerging continuously, filling almost half the room.

Her gaze fixated on the incomplete sphere. A portion of it was missing, resembling a form of art with a beauty in its imperfection – an art piece she had seen in exhibitions before.

But Professor Harp clearly did not appreciate this 'imperfect beauty'. He was attempting to restore the sphere. He summoned runic symbols, making them revolve around the sphere's edge. Occasionally, one or two symbols would connect to the sphere as if drawn by an invisible force.

It was only at this moment that Hermione realized the sphere was constructed using runic symbols.

For a moment, she felt lost. Runic symbols, runic circuits, what comes after that, a runic sphere? Despite her confusion, she slowed her actions, and even her breath became barely audible.

One of the greatest benefits of being an assistant in Ancient Runes class was that Hermione could continuously refresh her understanding of runes and push her knowledge to new horizons.

Felix Harp, on the other hand, found himself in a magical state of mind. He could rely on intuition to eliminate certain options and pinpoint the correct runes. He attempted to fill in the missing parts. Progress was smooth, but the only concern was that this ancient magic might contain runes he had not yet mastered...

The hollow sphere gradually became whole, Felix's confidence growing. He had an intense premonition that he would succeed tonight.

Time passed, and the surface of the hollow sphere started to shimmer with golden arcs of light, symbolizing his proximity to success. It appeared that only one rune was missing.

However, after five more minutes, Felix wiped off a cold sweat. My goodness, could it really be this elusive?

Just one rune?

One after another, free-floating runic symbols formed a row, continuously flying by him. The air in the office rippled with a hunting sound.

"Not this one, nor this..."

He forced himself to stay calm. Even if he failed this time, it wouldn't matter much. He was so close to success, wasn't he?

In a state of relaxation, a revolutionary idea suddenly occurred to him.

"Why not deduce the missing rune based on the existing gaps?"

His gaze fixed on the sphere's single gap.

The more he thought about it, the more feasible it seemed. He had even analyzed some characteristics of the unknown rune.

With a direction in mind, he grew even calmer. The swirling magic subsided. He focused most of his awareness on the Room of Requirement, continuously attempting to construct the rune he imagined.

Soon, the first attempt began. An incomplete symbol manifested in the air, barely half-carved before it vanished into thin air.

A mistake... try again!

The Room of Requirement could only imagine; it couldn't prove. But now, he accelerated his thought process with the Room of Requirement, striving for more time.

Unbeknownst to him, he broke the Room's operational speed, going from threefold to fourfold, continuously ascending.

One could predict that his next few days wouldn't be easy...

From Hermione's perspective, the construction of the hollow sphere seemed to stall at the final step. Professor Harp began sketching a mysterious symbol in the air repeatedly, with minor variations each time.

A terrifying conjecture formed in her mind – was Professor Harp creating his own rune?

What an extraordinary talent!

Wasn't she still in the Room of Requirement?

Half an hour passed. After countless failures, a brilliant golden runic symbol was finally drawn. The instant it appeared, it was drawn towards the hollow sphere, merging with it.

From the gaps of the hollow sphere burst forth a dazzling golden light. Accompanied by a hissing sound akin to metal melting, the gaps slowly sealed, forming a complete sphere.

With one hand, Felix held the hollow sphere, basking in its golden light. In this moment, all pressure vanished. He felt a sense of unprecedented delight, as if his body and soul had been thoroughly cleansed.

Hermione stared dumbfoundedly at the scene before her. She suddenly remembered an incident from her childhood when she read the Encyclopedia Britannica. She came across grand names described in beautiful words: genius, great men, heroes, legends...

She was young then, struggling to hold the oversized book, she asked her father, "Dad, what's a legend?"

Her father gently replied, "Perhaps it's those figures that surpass their era, appearing only once every thousand years."

"They're clever? Or they have powers?"

"I believe it's more than that. History is full of clever people and those with power."

"Then what is it?"

"I can't say for sure, dear, but at least they're people who, with the recognition and blessings of countless others, ascend to the pinnacle."

...

She didn't know why she suddenly thought of this little story, but the notion was like a seed breaking the soil, rapidly growing into a towering tree –

"If legends are to emerge in this era, it must be Professor Harp, right?"

Finally, her perspective on the protagonist of the story was clear – four words to describe him, an ancient millennium legend.

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