Magic Resonance Library

Alphard told Yulian about the world of magic and wizards, about the pure-blood families, about the magical wars, and about how he himself had been disowned by the family—pouring out decades of words he had bottled up inside, all to his grandson.

Finally, he looked at his grandson with a complex gaze. "No matter where you came from, since magic has chosen you, you must learn to control it. Otherwise, you'll only hurt yourself."

He took out a bottle of deep blue potion. "This is a Calming Potion. It can settle magical fluctuations. Drink it."

Yulian obeyed and drank. A cool sensation spread from his throat through his entire body, and the restlessness within him quieted down.

"The family's original plan was that after Christmas, because of the family business, your parents would return to the UK. You would go back with them to study there and apply to a noble secondary school. But now..."

"From tonight until you leave," Alphard said solemnly, "I will teach you some basic spells, magical control, and the history of the Black Family—including both the dark and the light. But you must promise me two things."

"What?"

"First, never use magic in front of Muggles, unless it's a life-or-death situation. The wizarding world and Muggle society each have their own rules. Don't try to break the barrier between them—at least, you don't need to."

"Second, next year you need to attend a magical school for systematic study, not an ordinary Muggle secondary school. I know you're mature for your age and have your own opinions. But the plan has to change now. Of course, I respect your choice, but I hope you choose magic."

Yulian was silent for a moment, then nodded. He fully understood now that this was the world of Harry Potter—and of course, he had other secrets.

Alphard finally smiled. He pulled his grandson up and led him to the skylight. Moonlight spilled over the vineyard, soaking the whole land in a silver wine.

"Look," he said, pointing toward the constellation Aquila. "That's Altair—your father's name. And you, Caelum, are there—the Sculptor, the constellation that can carve the stars."

That night, the winery's celebration continued. Champagne glasses clinked, laughter never ceased.

But in the Chamber of Secrets, ten-year-old Shiloh Yulian Black held his grandfather's wand and spoke for the first time: "Lumos."

A faint light glowed from the wand tip, illuminating a line of nearly worn-away Latin inscription on the wall:

"Sanguis non facit, sed eligit."

(It is not blood that makes a man, but choice.)

As the autumn of 1990 faded, the vineyards of Bordeaux welcomed the stillness of winter. Time slipped quietly by in the interweaving of magic and reality.

Yulian's life was now split in two.

By day, he was the quiet little gentleman of Black Vine Winery, following his Muggle curriculum with a private tutor. The tutor was brought in from the UK to adjust Yulian's studies so they would seamlessly connect with British education.

When night fell, or in the empty hours of the afternoon, he would follow his grandfather Alphard into the chamber carved with star charts and runes, beginning his magical training.

Alphard's teaching was rigorous yet patient. Starting from the most basic magical perception, he taught Yulian how to gather the magic scattered within his body, to release and control it.

At first, Yulian's magic was hard to tame. When he cast "Wingardium Leviosa," the feather could only tremble half an inch off the ground before falling within three seconds, or it would bob up and down uncontrollably.

When he practiced "Scourgify," he couldn't control the scope of the cleaning. For instance, while cleaning a table, he would accidentally sweep the magical books on it onto the floor.

But Alphard never scolded him much. He would simply hold Yulian's hand, guiding him to feel the magical flow through the wand, and whisper, "Magic is resonance with the heart, not the force of brute strength. Shiloh, calm your mind. Feel the magic carefully, like feeling a gentle breeze brushing through the grapevines."

Under his grandfather's guidance, Yulian's progress became evident. After just one month, he could steadily levitate a pebble and spin it in the air, and he could precisely use Scourgify to tidy up the chamber's clutter.

He also mastered the first Defensive Charm his grandfather taught him—"Protego." The barrier formed by the spell was still thin, but it could already withstand light impacts. According to his grandfather, even some third-year Hogwarts students couldn't cast a complete Shield Charm.

Beyond that, Alphard gathered a large collection of magical books for him—from basic texts like Standard Book of Spells, Grade 1 and A History of Magic, to broader works like Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them and Magical Potions and Elixirs, and even a few ancient manuscripts passed down through the Black Family, containing obscure knowledge about the combination of astrology and magic.

Yulian often read late into the night in the chamber. The magical elements that had once only existed in his memory of the Harry Potter stories were now tangible reality, filling him with both excitement and awe.

As for his wand, Yulian used the Willow Wand his grandfather had given him. His grandfather had taken him to buy it at the Ruelle des Étoiles Filantes in Paris.

It was a place similar to Knockturn Alley, which he had seen in Harry Potter and fanfiction in his past life.

France had no proper place to sell wands. Likewise, the Black family had no proper, rule-abiding people.

Of course, what his grandfather didn't know was that Yulian's rapid magical learning came from the library in his mind. Right at the moment of his magical outburst, a library had seemed to appear in his head.

But at the time, his mind had been flooded with a torrent of memories, leaving him dazed. It wasn't until that night, when he was alone sorting through his thoughts, that he fully realized the library looked exactly like the one he used to frequent during his university days in his past life.

Naturally, Yulian wasn't particularly surprised. He had transmigrated—who didn't have a cheat?

And soon, he figured out how to enter the library. It was actually very simple—no physical contact needed. With just a thought, he could naturally step inside. But at the time, the bookshelves in the library were completely empty, not a single book in sight.

"Cheat! Cheat!" Yulian called out. No response.

"Oh, right. System! System!"

"..."

"Golden finger, are you there?"

"..."

"Hurry up and show yourself, you little system!"

"..."

"Dad! I was wrong, System Dad?!"

"..."

Still nothing?

"Grandpa!"

"Mew~" A voice seemed to answer.

"Hogwarts!"

A pitch-black cat, having slipped in from who knows where, sat cross-legged on the empty bookshelf before Yulian. It looked like a Maine Coon mix.

But this cat wasn't just ordinary black—it was the kind of deep, abyssal black that made even a Dementor stop by to borrow some shadow.

Its fur was so sleek it seemed to drink the light, its long tail coiled elegantly in front of it like an ancient scroll yet to be unrolled.

What caught the eye most were its eyes—two large, round orbs. The left was amber, the right silver-gray. In the dim light, its pupils narrowed to thin slits, yet they still gleamed with startling brightness, as if they could see straight through Yulian's thoughts.

It tilted its head and stared at Yulian with an expression that said, "So you finally showed up—three hours and forty-two minutes late."

"Uh... hello?" Yulian raised a hand tentatively in greeting.

The black cat didn't move. It simply flicked its tail, and the row of empty bookshelves behind it let out a whoosh as glowing letters automatically formed: "Magic Resonance Library. Your administrator is currently learning to speak."