Professor McGonagall is a Good Professor
"Very good." Professor McGonagall leaned forward, resting against the edge of the table. "It seems you've really been practicing and have your own thoughts. Any questions today?"
Regulus retrieved his wand, and the Diamond and Graphite ceased their transformation, returning to their original state.
He thought for a few seconds, organizing his thoughts.
"Professor, can Transfiguration only Transfiguration concrete objects?"
Professor McGonagall raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"
"For example, natural phenomena," Regulus said. "Could a bolt of lightning, a ball of fire, a gust of wind be objects of Transfiguration?"
Or, could Magic itself—a spell cast—be Transfiguration during flight?
Professor McGonagall paused for a moment, then tapped her fingers lightly twice on the table.
"Yes," she said confidently, "But that's not easy."
Regulus realized that ordinary wizards couldn't do it, but Professor McGonagall clearly could.
That's for sure. Professor McGonagall is a master of Transfiguration; he's just asking to get the topic started and seek her advice.
"The core of Transfiguration is change," Professor McGonagall continued, her voice calm and clear.
Her tone was unwavering, as if the answer had been prepared long ago and was just waiting for Regulus to ask.
"Theoretically, anything that exists, including Magic forms, can be altered in terms of its shape, properties, and function, but the difficulty varies."
She took a piece of parchment from the drawer, dipped her quill in ink, and began to write.
" To Transfiguration a specific object, such as turning a table into a pig, one needs to understand the material structure of the table and the biological structure of the pig."
Transfiguration natural phenomena, such as turning flames into flowing water, requires understanding the energy structure of flames and the material structure of water, as well as dealing with the conversion between energy and matter.
Transfiguration spell themselves, such as turning a Stunning Spell into Levitation Charm— "
She drew a complex symbol on the paper with the tip of her pen.
"That requires understanding the Magic Power structure of the spell, understanding the essential differences between the two spells, and completing the analysis and reconstruction in a very short time."
There are very few people in the entire UK Wizarding World who can do that.
Even though Professor McGonagall said that, Regulus could still tell that she could do it.
Regulus stared at the symbol, the Ancient Runes word for change, its strokes twisted, carrying a certain dynamism.
"You want to ask these questions because you're thinking about the combat applications of Transfiguration?" Professor McGonagall put down her pen, looked up at him, and cut to the chase.
"A part," Regulus admitted respectfully. "I was wondering if I could simply Transfiguration a spell if my opponent casts one during combat."
For example, turning an attack spell into harmless light, or into a shield.
"Theoretically, it's possible," Professor McGonagall said. "But in practice, it's almost impossible. The spell travels too fast, leaving you too little time to react."
Unless you can predict it, or...
She didn't finish her sentence, but Regulus understood: unless one's strength was overwhelming or one possessed special talent.
He can use spells to collide with spells, and after gaining Spatial Perception, he can detect the trajectory of spells earlier when facing attacks, which is a kind of prediction.
He can even calculate the flight path of spells directly in his mind.
But these methods obviously don't apply to skilled wizards, even if they could.
The cost-effectiveness is too low. Once a mistake is made, you will be at a disadvantage. It would be better to use that time to dodge or defend.
"However, Transfiguration has other applications in combat." Professor McGonagall changed the subject. "For example, altering the environment, turning the ground into a swamp, the walls into spikes, and the air into a solid."
Or change your opponent's equipment, turning their wand into a branch, their robe into a rope, their glasses into barbs.
As she spoke, she gently waved her wand, and a quill pen on the desk began to change. The pen lengthened, forked, and sprouted branches and leaves, transforming into a small twig.
The branch then contracted and thinned, becoming a thin rope.
The thin string then transforms into a small pair of round-framed glasses.
"These applications don't need to be completed instantly; they can be prepared in advance or used to create opportunities during combat," Professor McGonagall continued.
"But the prerequisite is that you have a sufficiently deep mastery of Transfiguration and can maintain precision under pressure."
Regulus nodded. These ideas were consistent with his own deductions: using Transfiguration to change the environment, create favorable conditions, and force the opponent into a predetermined rhythm.
But he knew in his heart that this was just a basic application of Transfiguration, and not at all profound.
As long as you master the basic Transfiguration —not necessarily to an exceptional degree—and have a quick mind, you can come up with these tactics.
These weren't the questions he really wanted to ask.
Professor McGonagall's words and actions today have gone beyond the scope of normal teaching.
The combat application of Transfiguration, even if it's just directional guidance, is not something that should be covered in the first-year curriculum.
This professor, known for his rigor, has always focused on building a solid foundation for his students and would not easily impart this kind of practical knowledge to young wizards, especially first-year wizards.
But she not only said it, she also demonstrated it and explained the principles.
Regulus thought of Professor Sprout.
The Hufflepuff Head of House did the same; when asked about the opposing attributes of Magical Plant, he directly showed the Sunlight Ebony Shrub and explained the concepts that only those at a certain level would encounter.
Although he asked the questions himself, the professors did not give him the time of day or refuse to answer them because he was a first-year student, Slytherin, or Black.
A figure flashed through my mind: Dumbledore, his blue eyes looking through his half-moon spectacles, gentle yet carrying a deep expectation.
Regulus suppressed these thoughts; if the professor dared to teach, wouldn't he dare to learn?
As for the future?
All troubles stem from a lack of strength.
He looked up at Professor McGonagall.
The words lingered in his mouth for a moment, but when he finally asked, he chose a more direct question, "Professor, can space itself be Transfiguration?"
After asking the question, he remained silent, waiting for a response.
Then came a long silence from Professor McGonagall, lasting half a minute.
She sat behind her desk, leaning slightly forward, her hands clasped on the table, her eyes behind her glasses lowered, staring at a certain spot on the desk.
The air in the office seemed to freeze; the flickering of the fireplace flames became exceptionally clear; and even the painting of a cat chasing a butterfly on the wall seemed to pause.
Regulus could sense that the professor was thinking, perhaps about how to answer, or perhaps whether he should answer at all, and how much he should answer.
Just as he thought he wouldn't get a reply and was preparing to politely take his leave, Professor McGonagall stood up from her chair and walked to the open space in the center of her office.
Then Regulus saw her simply raise her wand and flick her wrist.
The next moment, the office space began to change.
The four walls of the office began to move, the space itself stretched, the front and back walls receded into the distance, and the left and right walls moved closer to the center.
The entire room changed from a square shape to a long rectangle, the ceiling rose, and the floor sank.
Then space begins to flip.
Regulus felt a brief disorientation in his sense of direction; the direction of gravity seemed to have changed, and the hem of his robe and hair were floating upwards, but in reality, they were floating downwards.
He noticed that the books on the bookshelf hadn't fallen, and the flames in the fireplace were still burning upwards, but the picture frames on the wall were tilted at a thirty-degree angle.
Finally, there's the distortion.
The space is like dough being kneaded by an invisible hand, with some parts bulging and some parts sunken.
The area near the door is compressed, while the area near the window is expanded. Light travels along different paths in the distorted space, casting strange shadows on the walls with constantly changing shapes.
The entire process lasted about ten seconds, after which Professor McGonagall waved her wand again, and the space returned to its original state.
The walls returned to their original positions, the ceiling and floor regained their height, the sense of direction returned to normal, and the light was straight.
Everything in the office was normal, as if nothing had just happened.
But Regulus knew what had happened.
Professor McGonagall used Transfiguration to directly alter the Spatial Structure, but unlike the Untraceable Extension Charm which expands the internal space, this was a true Transfiguration of the space itself.
He sat in the chair, his mind racing with analysis.
Transfiguration can change matter, change energy, and now it seems it can even change space.
What does this mean?
This means that the scope of application of Transfiguration is much wider and its upper limit is much higher than he imagined.
He recalled Professor McGonagall's words, "Transfiguration is one of the most direct manifestations of Magic altering reality; a strong will can reshape matter."
In retrospect, it wasn't just about reshaping matter, but also about reshaping reality.
"Spatial Transfiguration is one of the advanced applications of Transfiguration." Professor McGonagall walked back to her desk and sat down, her tone as calm as if she had just poured herself a cup of tea.
"The principle is similar to the Transfiguration of matter; it involves understanding the structural characteristics of space and using Magic Power to guide it to Transfiguration."
But it's much more difficult because space has no fixed material basis; its structure is more abstract and relies more on the wizard's perception and understanding.