Weeding the Greenhouse

Chapter 26: Weeding the Wasteland

"Like this, watch closely!"

Hermione waved her wand triumphantly and cast the spell. A cluster of blue, bellflower-like flames landed on the wasteland, and soon a burnt smell arose.

However, the fire extinguished itself almost immediately, failing to ignite the wasteland and only scorching a few weeds black.

Hermione said to Charles with a hint of embarrassment, "I'm not quite skilled with this spell yet, let me try again."

This spell could release blue flames with a soft glow, unaffected by wind or rain, and could be stored in a glass jar to be used as a heater.

Hermione had only just learned it from a book and wasn't proficient yet, so the effect wasn't good.

This patch of wasteland had already been cleared as a firebreak; all that was needed was to burn it off. Charles had decided to let Hermione try after seeing her studying the book on Fire Spells she'd borrowed from the library for the past few days.

Just then, Seamus eagerly chimed in, "Let me try!"

There was a reward for helping Charles weed the wasteland, but the Gryffindor first-years were all discussing their upcoming flying lesson, and no one was interested in Charles's snacks. Only the loyal Seamus and Hermione, who couldn't stand everyone else bragging, were willing to help.

Seamus mimicked Hermione's wand-waving and incantation. His first attempt failed, producing only a few blue sparks.

Hermione pointed out where he went wrong.

It had to be said, Seamus was quite talented. After correcting a small mistake, his wand spewed a blue pillar of fire, about the size of a firefighter's hose, which blasted into the middle of the wasteland.

Without a word, Charles immediately cast the Levitation Charm on Seamus and Hermione. Just as he was preparing to pull them away and run, the flames on the wasteland exploded.

From the older students and Professor Sprout, who were in class in the nearby Greenhouse, to Voldemort, who was watching Charles through Quirrell's eyes from behind a castle window, everyone saw a flash of blue light, followed by a large expanse of sky-blue, crystal-like flames engulfing the entire wasteland.

"Wow!" Seamus excitedly turned to Hermione, "Your spell is amazing!"

Hermione didn't want to answer. It wasn't that Seamus's magic was better than hers, but rather that they were both being carried on Charles's shoulders as he sprinted away.

Charles carried them over a stream and only stopped about a hundred meters away. By then, the flames had begun to slowly recede.

"Oof!" As soon as Seamus was put down, he realized he had no strength left and slumped to the ground.

He rubbed his head and said nervously, "I feel so tired, I really want to sleep."

He yawned as he spoke.

"It's okay," Charles handed him a large piece of chocolate. "You used too much magical power at once. Eat some at dinner, and you'll be fine after a nap back in the dorm."

When Charles handed Hermione another piece of chocolate, he noticed her expression was a bit strange, looking quite unwilling.

"Don't overthink it," Charles tapped her head with the chocolate.

"Oww..." Hermione clutched her head and glared fiercely at Charles. "Even my father never hit me like that."

Charles shoved the chocolate into her hand and smiled, "Don't be envious or jealous. Seamus has a problem."

"A wizard's magical power is like water in a teapot. A normal wizard using their magic is like pouring tea from the spout – it's a small amount at a time, but it's easy to control."

"Seamus is different. He's like opening the lid and tipping the whole pot over. Not only does it spill out of the cup, but it goes everywhere."

Hermione quickly understood and looked at Seamus with a bit of sympathy.

Now it was Seamus's turn to panic. He asked nervously, "What should I do? Should I go see St. Mungo's?"

Charles shrugged and said to him, "The doctors there will tell you... 'We can't treat it, go home, bye.'"

"Playing pranks on classmates is not good," Dumbledore appeared at this moment. With such a large commotion on campus, the Headmaster couldn't not show up.

He said kindly to Seamus, "It's alright, it's not a big problem. You just need to practice more."

Seamus asked the Headmaster with great anticipation, "Is that true?"

"Of course, it's true," Dumbledore replied with certainty. "I wouldn't lie to you."

The implication was that Charles was the one lying.

Seamus thought to himself, Should I borrow Ron's rat tonight and put it on Charles's bed to scare him?

Dumbledore walked to the area that had been burned. Charles and the others followed.

The once barren wasteland was now covered in ashes. The soil was still warm, even warm enough to roast potatoes.

After eating the chocolate, Seamus felt a bit stronger and less sleepy. Looking at his handiwork, he said proudly, "Looks like I'm still pretty good!"

Charles gave him a bag of toffees, the agreed-upon reward.

"It's a Magical Power Outburst," Dumbledore said a technical term Charles hadn't heard before. "Finnigan used too much magical power at once and couldn't control it properly, so it resulted in an explosion-like effect. The power of it is something even a Fire Dragon might not be able to withstand."

He turned to Seamus and said, "I suggest you don't use this kind of magic until you've mastered control. Repairing the castle is very expensive."

Seamus immediately agreed.

Charles then thought for a moment and curiously asked the Headmaster, "Professor Dumbledore, can this method be used to increase the power of spells?"

Dumbledore said to him seriously, "Casting spells is a very delicate process. Even a slight deviation can lead to very serious consequences."

"Controlling chaos is much, much more difficult than controlling order. It's very likely that something irreversible will happen during the attempt."

Charles nodded after serious consideration.

Late-stage Low-Potency Syndrome was one thing, but blindly pursuing power was another, and it could lead one astray.

Compared to power, safety and controllability were more important.

It's like nitroglycerin; pure nitroglycerin is powerful but unstable. After adding diatomaceous earth, its power decreases, but it becomes much safer, allowing for widespread use.

Now that the grass is cleared, it's time to till the soil.

"Professor Dumbledore," Charles asked the headmaster, "what spell is used to make something like a Self-Inking Quill?"

He had actually considered hiring Harry for the job, but the old man inflated Harry's labor price so high that it was unreasonable. Plus, Harry inherited a family fortune and wasn't short on money, so that plan fell through.

He had also considered Seamus, but he was growing flowers and plants, not digging ponds to raise fish, so he gave up on that idea.

Charles thought he couldn't possibly order Voldemort to till the land for him, grab the unwilling Voldemort by the scalp, force him to pick up a hoe, and if he refused, beat him, knock him down, and keep beating him until he obeyed, then order him to work.

Thus, the idea of an automatic hoe and plow emerged. He decided to create farm tools similar to self-writing quills, letting them do the work themselves.

Dumbledore saw through his thoughts and slowly shook his head, saying, "That's a very advanced spell, known only to the wizards who produce the quills, much like how the most crucial spells for making wands are known only to a few wandmakers."

Charles was at a loss. Core technologies wouldn't be revealed so easily.

He could only settle for the next best thing and asked, "What about a spell for a teapot that pours tea by itself?"

Dumbledore smiled and said, "A very good idea, but I believe learning spells should start from the basics. Of course, if you're interested, you can go to the Library to learn more first."

"But don't try it lightly. Someone once made a mistake; they intended to pour a cup of tea but ended up taking a bath."

Charles was stumped again, but the moment he heard "bath," he seized the opportunity. "Professor, I often have to deal with Dragon Dung for composting, and I get a strong odor. Seamus has started complaining about me."

Seamus nodded in agreement beside him.

Charles continued, "I heard there's a bathroom in the castle. May I apply to use it after I finish my work?"

Dumbledore didn't answer, as the Prefects' Bathroom was a privilege for prefects. He, as headmaster, could allow other prefects to bring him in or tell him the password, which was a matter among students. However, granting him a prefect's privilege was another matter entirely.