After writing his reply to Professor McGonagall, Damon picked up the sealing wax on the table and lit a candle. As the flame danced, the wax slowly melted and dripped onto the envelope's seal. He then pressed down lightly with a stamp bearing a simple pattern, leaving behind a distinctive mark.
Just as he finished preparing everything, a soft call suddenly came from the windowsill, breaking the room's silence.
Damon looked up and saw a tawny owl standing quietly on the windowsill. Its large eyes stared straight at him, and its feathers gleamed with a golden sheen in the sunlight, giving it an unusual air.
"Hoot, hoot, hoot."
The owl on the windowsill gave a soft call and extended one claw to pin down the letter, but it still did not leave. Those eyes seemed to hold some kind of magic, locking firmly onto Damon.
Damon froze for a moment before suddenly realizing that the owl was asking for a reward.
He looked around, but for the moment, he had no idea what he could give the little fellow.
"Hoot, hoot, hoot!"
The little fellow had already waited for quite some time, and what little patience it had left was now gone. It angrily hopped up and pecked Damon's finger. The force was not light, making him hiss in pain. Then it rapidly flapped its wings and flew away without looking back.
"What a temper."
Damon shook his hand. Rather than getting angry as he watched the owl fly away, he laughed.
He was experiencing everything this world had to offer. Naturally, he could not get angry at one part of that experience, even if that part was not particularly pleasant.
Ding! The host has come into contact with a messenger owl. Branch unlocked—Magical Creature Affinity Magical Creature Affinity—LV1 (Beginner) 1/100
Able to establish an initial connection with certain relatively docile magical creatures. Although you can understand their basic emotions, your ability to communicate with them is fairly limited.
Damon looked at the translucent blue panel that had suddenly appeared before him, curiosity and delight rising in his eyes.
Clearly, this animal affinity could be upgraded with Magic Points.
Just like that, even the unpleasant part became pleasant.
Magical creatures? Harry Potter's world had all kinds of magical creatures. The one that had left the deepest impression on him was the fire dragon.
"I wonder if, once I raise it high enough, I'll be able to ride a fire dragon for fun someday?"
Damon imagined the scene and chuckled.
But never mind that he did not have enough points right now—even if he did, he would not waste them on animal affinity. What mattered most at the moment was clearly raising his magic level.
After sending his reply, Damon began waiting patiently.
Day after day passed. Life at the Orphanage remained as plain as ever, while Damon threw himself headfirst into the system.
Sunlight shone into the courtyard, spilling in through the windowsill and falling across the yellowed wooden floorboards. As the windowsill shifted in the wind, light and shadow swayed.
Current Magic Points: 1 Magic required for upgrade: 999/1000
Three days passed. On the fourth day, almost the instant he gathered enough Magic Points, Damon tapped the extra plus sign without hesitation.
As the points were added, a strange power surged up from deep within Damon's body.
At first, it brought a faint swelling warmth, as though he had been gently wrapped in the warm sun.
Then the sensation grew stronger and stronger, as if countless tiny currents were racing back and forth through his veins, bringing a vigorous vitality along with the tingling numbness.
Damon could not help closing his eyes.
At that moment, he vaguely sensed a hazy presence.
Elegant, tranquil, precise, powerful.
"So this is magic?"
Damon opened his eyes and followed the stirring in his heart, lightly waving a hand.
"Whoosh!"
A light breeze seemed to pass through the room, knocking over the fountain pen ink on the table. The ink wound across the floor like a black snake, slowly dripping onto the ground.
Damon stared blankly for a moment, then burst out laughing. He picked up the overturned ink bottle and began cleaning the stain from the floor, enjoying every second of it.
Afterward, he sat back down in his chair and opened the system panel.
Magic System has been upgraded to Level 2 With every breath, you will gain 0.02 Magic Points Current System Level: Level 2 Current Magic Level: Level 2 Current Magic Points: 2 Magic required for upgrade: 1000/5000 Mastered Skills: None
"The Magic Point reward doubled?"
Damon noticed that the Magic Points required for an upgrade now started at one thousand.
In other words, if his current magic were measured numerically, it was one thousand?
"Magic may be shaped by the mind, but magic power can still serve as a reference. Dumbledore's magic power is 180,000 points—hm, can I reach that within a year?"
As Damon planned, he went to the open area that had been set aside specifically for practicing magic and began attempting to make a feather float.
Before they grew out of childhood, wizards could naturally cast magic without wands. This was why many young wizards unconsciously performed magic to varying degrees before enrollment whenever their emotions ran high.
But Damon had the soul of a thirty-year-old inside him. Ever since crossing over, he had almost never become emotional, let alone angry. That was why he had not realized that he was in the Magical World.
Although Damon knew the incantation for the Levitation Charm, he did not dare recite it rashly. After all, the price of pronouncing a spell incorrectly might be more than he could bear.
Relying on his will, he felt magic flowing through his body and imagined the feather floating up under his control.
Professor McGonagall seemed to have run into some unexpected trouble. Damon waited for more than two weeks, and even the Magic System had upgraded twice, yet she still had not come.
Magic System has been upgraded to Level 4 With every breath, you will gain 0.04 Magic Points Current System Level: Level 4 Current Magic Level: Level 4 Current Magic Points: 2 Magic required for upgrade: 10001/20000 Mastered Skills: None
"One eighteenth of Dumbledore's magic power. I should have the magic level of a third-year young wizard by now, right? Though I definitely can't compare to the main cast."
That day, Damon was as usual in his room, feeling his magic slowly grow with every breath, his heart filled with peace.
Suddenly, steady and forceful footsteps sounded outside the door, and he instinctively looked up.
The door was gently pushed open. A tall, black-haired witch in emerald-green robes stood in the doorway. A little dust clung to her robes, and her expression carried a trace of poorly concealed exhaustion. Only her green eyes remained sharp, radiating a gentle authority.
"Damon White." Professor McGonagall's voice rang through the room, calm and forceful.
"Professor McGonagall."
Damon stood respectfully and gave a slight bow. His understanding of Professor McGonagall flashed rapidly through his mind.
A Transfiguration Master, Hogwarts's deputy headmistress. Stern by nature, yet not without warmth. As long as one treated her with seriousness and humility, she was the ideal elder.
"How did you know it was me?"
Professor McGonagall studied the boy, whose temperament seemed somewhat unusual, with a touch of curiosity.
Damon's expression remained calm as he answered steadily:
"There is only one mature, older woman in the entire Orphanage—the matron. You are the second. Besides, I could feel magic stirring in your footsteps."
Professor McGonagall's brows lifted slightly, and a flash of surprise crossed her eyes.
Before enrolling, most young wizards born to Muggles could indeed vaguely sense the existence of magic. However, that perception was usually indistinct, and only caused certain inexplicable strange phenomena when they were emotionally agitated or in danger.
But Damon could identify her magic so directly and be certain of its existence. That was far from ordinary.
Light flashed across Professor McGonagall's lenses as she looked at Damon and said quietly, "Prove it to me."
This child was the last one she had come to collect. Perhaps it would not hurt to spare some time for a conversation.
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