Creating a Spell?

The Quidditch uproar had ended, but at the same time, even more new questions had arisen.

Hermione and Ron were bewildered by Damon's brazen spellcasting—there had been a moment when they had almost thought Damon would be given detention for an entire semester.

Yet even after Quidditch ended, when they met up with Harry and headed to Hagrid's hut, not a single professor came to ask about what had just happened.

It was as if Damon and the professors had reached some unspoken agreement.

Hermione was full of questions and wanted to ask more, but seeing that Damon had no intention of volunteering anything, she gave up on pressing him.

At the same time, a defiant thought suddenly arose in her heart—If you won't tell me, I'll figure it out myself!

Ron, meanwhile, had other things on his mind and could not spare any attention for this now.

"Snape did it!" Ron explained to Harry as soon as they sat down in the hut. "Hermione and I saw him. Snape was casting a spell on your Flying Broomstick, muttering under his breath while staring at you the whole time."

"If Damon hadn't interrupted his spellcasting, you definitely would have fallen off your broomstick!"

"Nonsense," Hagrid said. He seemed slow to react to everything that had happened. "Why would Snape do something like that?"

Damon did not join their conversation.

He patiently used a small knife to cut Hagrid's Rock Cakes into small pieces, savoring them with strong tea as he quietly watched the others argue.

Before long, loose-lipped Hagrid let slip an enormous secret—the Three-Headed Hellhound was his pet, and Dumbledore had borrowed it to guard something important, something connected to a man named Nicolas Flamel.

Hagrid was furious over his own mistake and bluntly told Harry and the others that they should not have pressured him like this.

The conversation ultimately ended on bad terms.

Though the three of them felt somewhat sorry for Hagrid, their powerful sense of responsibility and danger drove them to focus more on the new clue they had obtained—finding out who Nicolas Flamel was.

To their surprise, Damon refused to get involved.

"My spell practice has recently reached a very critical stage. I don't have the energy to investigate this for now. Sorry."

Although the trio was somewhat disappointed, they instead began comforting Damon.

"It's all right. We can figure out the answer ourselves. You should focus on practicing Charms."

After witnessing Damon's strength, they had gained a new understanding of his talent. Deep down, they even felt that Damon truly had no need to waste time on such matters—after all, they could just tell him once they figured it out.

And in truth, Damon had not been lying.

When he fired that arrow on the Quidditch pitch earlier, he had felt a strange calling.

In that instant, he seemed to have touched upon some invisible opportunity, but the feeling had lasted only a moment before vanishing the next second.

Now, he needed a great deal of repeated practice to recreate and remember that feeling.

Somewhere deep inside, he could sense that it should be a powerful offensive Charms spell, one that belonged to him alone.

As for the three of them, he would let them explore on their own. Everything could simply proceed along its predetermined track.

Perhaps Dumbledore was waiting right now to see how far the three of them could go.

As for himself... what was Dumbledore's attitude toward him now?

So far, they had not even met face-to-face once.

When he had directly attacked Quirrell in the stands earlier, part of his intent had been to test Dumbledore's attitude. Yet the other man had not chosen to meet with him.

Until Dumbledore figured out what kind of person Damon was, he probably would not make contact rashly.

At this moment, Dumbledore was most likely considering how he should test him.

But Damon was neither worried nor eager to meet Dumbledore. Unlike Harry and the others, he had never intended to rely on Dumbledore's power to settle everything.

What he needed to do most now was continue his grueling training, constantly improving his spellcasting until he stood at the pinnacle of this world.

Ever since Harry made his Quidditch debut and won the match, his standing among the students had steadily risen. The young witches and wizards who had once been somewhat disappointed by the Savior's mediocrity regained their enthusiasm for him.

Even while walking through the corridors, people would greet Harry and praise his graceful movements as he chased the Golden Snitch, leaving him flattered and overwhelmed.

This "Savior," who had always lacked confidence in himself, had finally begun to show the liveliness a child ought to have. There were far more smiles on his face these days.

It had to be said that Quidditch was a fanatical sport that captivated nearly every wizard—except Damon, who practiced Charms all day long.

After the Quidditch match ended, Damon vanished into hiding once again, even more thoroughly than before.

Other than in class, Harry and the others could hardly find him anywhere.

Hermione had once been able to run into Damon in the library, but she discovered that he did not even go there anymore.

Now, they could only exchange a few words with Damon over breakfast each morning. Once class was over, he disappeared again.

A month passed, and Damon finally completed Professor Flitwick's last foundational Charms assignment. At the appropriate moment, he made a request after class.

"Professor, I believe I have fully mastered these low-level spells. Could I begin studying some advanced spells ahead of schedule with you—such as Protego and Expelliarmus?"

"Oh, of course you can, Damon." Flitwick gave Damon a gratified smile. "In fact, I thought you would have asked me about this last month."

"To be honest, at your current level, you have already fully reached the standard required for the O.W.L. examinations that fifth-year students take, perhaps even far surpassed it.

"Seeing that you were able to remain patient and build a solid foundation makes me proud as the professor teaching you."

Watching Professor Flitwick wave his arms excitedly, Damon smiled as well.

He had wanted to ask last month, but his self-created spell had been at a critical stage then, so he had not allowed himself to be distracted.

"Then, child, let me test you—how much do you know about Protego?"

"Protego, also known as the Shield Charm, creates an invisible shield in the direction the caster points their wand after the spell is cast. It serves as a protective barrier between the caster and their opponent.

"The barrier itself does not glow, but it can deflect other spells while reflecting the light they produce.

"It should be noted that the Shield Charm cannot withstand overly powerful spells, such as the Killing Curse and other Unforgivable Curses."

"A very standard answer." Flitwick clapped lightly. He had never been stingy with encouragement for his students. "In that case, why don't we begin learning it today?"

"Okay, Professor." A sincere smile appeared on Damon's face.

Ordinary Wizarding Level Examinations (O.W.L.)

Charms Mastery examination content

Written examination: Levitation Charm, Cheering Charm, the counter-charm for hiccups

Practical examination: Make an eggcup perform several cartwheels, Levitation Charm, Color-Changing Charm, and Growing Charm