May, early summer.
Bright sunlight pierced through the Black Lake and streamed through the skylights into the dim Dungeon Classroom, lending it a hazy, dreamlike beauty.
One meaning of the number five in Runes was "aether," the fifth element beyond earth, fire, water, and wind. According to classical schools of Alchemy, it was the medium that carried light.
This medium was infinitely small, existing between illusion and reality. Infinite in quantity, it was everywhere, spread throughout the entire universe. Scholars in many other fields had been influenced by the theory of aether and, by chance, invented many marvelous forms of magic. It was later proven that this medium did not exist, and Potions Master before the seventeenth century was one such field.
"...Disproving the theory of aether by comparing the properties of similar potions is an important topic on the Ultimate Wizard Level Exam."
Professor Snape's low voice echoed through the Dungeon Classroom.
Loren sat by the window in the second row, beside Hermione, who was listening intently. This was the first Potions Master lesson after entering May, and also the beginning of their final revision.
This lesson reviewed advanced Potions Master theory. Professor Snape generally paid little attention to textbooks during class. The notes on the blackboard condensed the key knowledge from the lesson, and through the brewing processes of several simple potions, he explained the principles hidden within in simple, accessible terms.
After thousands of years of development, Magical Theory remained an obscure and mysterious puzzle at both the macro and micro levels. No wizard had yet proposed a complete, comprehensive theory capable of encompassing all magic. Yet through the unremitting efforts of generations of wizards, different schools of thought had emerged in certain disciplines to explain the underlying principles of magic.
Over the past century, theory in