The Astonishing Wisdom of Local Wizards!

When Roger had first asked Professor McGonagall to verify his path to longevity, he had already shared some of his ideas.

Professor McGonagall knew that Roger intended to use Transfiguration to modify his own body.

But modifying other parts of the body and modifying the brain were entirely different matters! In Professor McGonagall's expectations, even if something went wrong with Roger's bodily modifications, St Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries could still save him. And even if he wanted to modify his brain, that should have been far in the future.

The more vital the organ, the later it should be modified. By then, Roger ought to have grown into a powerful wizard who could put people at ease.

"Bloodline Magic and Transfiguration: Speculations on the Future Age" was a book Professor McGonagall had lent Roger. She had read it herself, so she had not opposed his path.

But brain modification in his first year? That was far too soon! And besides...

"This modification of yours has little to do with longevity, does it?" Professor McGonagall asked as she read the written report Roger had submitted.

Many matters were troublesome to explain with words alone, so before visiting Professor McGonagall, Roger had organized his experimental ideas into a document and written them down.

Roger shook his head. "Actually, it is somewhat related."

"Though I'm a Seer, I'm not omniscient. I know my own limits."

"Professor, let's do a simple math problem."

"Suppose a wizard needs 1 unit of time to learn a spell, and his lifespan is 100 units. Then it's easy to calculate how many spells he can learn in his lifetime."

"Now, let's make the problem a little more complicated. How long does it take him to absorb all the knowledge in a magical book? Once he has established his own system of knowledge, what multiplier does that give his efficiency in learning magic? How much time will he spend on other matters in his life..."

"As long as we know how talented a wizard is and refine the algorithm a little, we can roughly calculate the highest level of achievement a wizard might attain under ideal conditions through normal growth."

By this point, someone as intelligent as Minerva McGonagall could already tell what Roger was getting at.

"You think..."

Roger nodded and continued, "After I truly began researching longevity, I made some rough calculations. If I continued using low-risk magical experiments and developed normally, there was a high chance I could develop my own longevity technique before I turned ninety—but it wasn't a one hundred percent chance. This isn't a lottery. It concerns the continuation of my life! Even a one percent failure rate feels glaring to me!"

"And that is only insignificant longevity. I haven't even touched the edge of Eternal Life yet!"

So Roger chose abnormal growth.

He chose a path of high risk and high reward.

He chose a path that could increase the foundation of his own talent.

"Why have you suddenly become so impatient? No one can become fat in a single bite. You said that yourself." Professor McGonagall roughly understood Roger's thoughts, but there were still things she could not understand.

Once someone truly stepped into magical research and saw through their own future at a glance, it was only natural to want to make changes and improve their odds of success.

But there was no need to make such a huge move right from the start, was there?

Unaware of just how outrageous Roger's Seer ability truly was, Professor McGonagall looked at him in confusion.

"Not becoming fat in a single bite means I won't blindly rush for quick results and do something wrong when I know it can't be done. It doesn't mean I should hesitate out of fear of failure when there is a chance to improve."

After thinking for a moment, Roger said, "Professor, do you know what the world looks like through a Seer's eyes?"

"Hm?"

"I can see many possible futures. Some are good, and some are terrible. There are enormous conflicts between different groups of wizards, like an unlit powder keg that could be blown apart at any moment by a spark called the 'Demon King.' The world we live in is developing rapidly, and a clash between Muggle and wizarding civilizations could happen at any time."

"More importantly, although wizards are people who use magic, we don't know what magic truly is. That alone is a huge problem."

"And remember what I told you, Professor. The world is vast. There are nearly four hundred billion star systems in the Milky Way, and nearly two trillion galaxies like the Milky Way in the universe. According to Muggle scientists, there is a high probability that other life exists beyond our world. So... can 'they,' beyond the stars, use magic too?"

What Roger said was neither a lie nor groundless worry.

Though he had not foreseen these things with his magical Seer ability, Roger had learned them through another kind of "foresight."

After all, even by the time he had transmigrated, Harry Potter-related sequels were still being produced, though Roger had not paid much attention to them.

Logically speaking, hadn't Voldemort already been defeated? Wasn't the world at peace? Then what stories were all those sequels—films, novel spin-offs, stage plays, games, and the like—telling? Would new villains appear beyond Voldemort? And logically, shouldn't those new villains be no weaker than Voldemort?

Theoretically, it was not entirely impossible for the "enemies" Roger had mentioned to appear. "'Accidents' won't give me extra special treatment just because of my age," Roger said.

Ever since taking seven bullets in the Middle East, Roger had abandoned his arrogant belief that he was some sort of chosen one.

Seeing Professor McGonagall hesitate somewhat, Roger did not continue trying to persuade her. Instead, he said, "Professor, if this truly puts you in a difficult position, then let's leave it at that."

"Brain modification is merely one way for me to become stronger. It's not as if this is my only path."

He had not considered this before, but now that the desire to "enhance his talent" had been ignited, Roger, who had lived in the information age, had countless strange and unusual routes to power in his mind. Trying them one by one would be enough to occupy him for decades.

Brain modification was merely the option with the greatest potential, selected because his lifespan was too short.

If the shortest path did not work, Roger had plenty of alternatives. There was no need to stubbornly fixate on it; he could simply change course.

Besides, the so-called shortest route at present was only calculated based on the technology he currently possessed. Perhaps other paths would prove even more promising in the future.

"..." Professor McGonagall stared at Roger's carefree smile and remained silent for a long while.

"...Roger."

"Mm? What is it?"

"I'll help you with the Undetectable Extension Charm."

Professor McGonagall continued, "However, I still think directly modifying the brain is too risky... Do you know about Muggle computers?"

"Huh?" Roger had no idea why Professor McGonagall had suddenly brought that up.

"Your documents say that you possess a technique that can manipulate neural cells to a certain extent. If you set aside the need to increase Mental Power and only consider compensating for your insufficient memory and enabling multithreaded thinking, why not try this direction instead?" A faint smile curled Professor McGonagall's lips.

Professor McGonagall had read every book she had lent Roger! If a computer chip were installed in an arm and linked to the nerves, might it produce effects similar to the brain modification Roger had envisioned? She might not possess Roger's talent or his knowledge of the future, but concepts related to brain-computer interfaces had already existed in 1991.

How could a true master of magic have no thoughts at all about becoming stronger?! The theoretical works left behind by generations past, and modern magic's replacement of Ancient Magic, had long indirectly proven that wizards had never stopped trying to become stronger over thousands of years. It was simply that, much of the time, their ideas could not be realized.

After all, not everyone was like Roger, able to sense danger and conduct eight hundred magical experiments a day with a ninety-nine point ninety-nine percent mortality rate, advancing his research as though riding a rocket.

Every innovation made by ordinary wizards was difficult and slow.

"But computers of this era..." Roger frowned slightly. Being more knowledgeable about Muggle technology, he felt that it would not be so simple.

"If Muggle computers cannot fully meet your needs, why not take a look at the wondrous field of alchemy?"

Alchemy was a course Hogwarts students were only qualified to take as an elective in their sixth year, and it involved exceptionally profound magical knowledge.

Not only was it difficult, it also contained vast knowledge barriers monopolized by various families, magical factories, and special organizations.

It was a field Roger had never touched.

And next, Professor McGonagall intended to lead Roger into this entirely new "world"!