Maximize the benefits.
Dewey was planning something big. He was thinking about how to maximize his combat power.
He wasn't considering spending points to copy either of his two Purple Cards. Neither Avada Kedavra nor Apparition would undergo a qualitative change with just this much essence.
This time, Avada Kedavra hadn't even taken out a single Ministry of Magic agent.
It probably wouldn't be much use against other wizards, either.
Stupefy, Obliviate, and Finite Incantatem, on the other hand, were all worth considering.
Dewey tapped his head.
His essence was enough to copy twenty-three White Cards.
He had sixteen Stupefy cards, so he upgraded Stupefy first, bringing it to Level 3. One of the duplicate cards went toward Stupefy.
Stupefy was copied to Level 4.
He had eight Obliviate cards, plus one duplicate, which was just enough to upgrade it to Level 3.
Dewey thought it over and decided not to spend any more essence on Obliviate.
Judging by Protego, a Level 3 spell was already quite powerful. The Ministry of Magic agents' Stupefy spells had all been stopped by the Armor Charm without hurting him.
Dewey decided to focus on the Armor Charm. As a basic defensive spell, it was extremely practical, and he liked it very much.
Spending 1,700 essence, Dewey raised the Armor Charm to Level 5.
He hadn't expected anything unusual to happen when he raised the Armor Charm to Level 5.
But then he noticed that the Level 5 Armor Charm had undergone a curious change.
He looked at the Armor Charm and saw it glowing faintly.
[Apprentice]
A prefix had appeared before the Armor Charm.
Dewey stared at [Apprentice], sensing that something had changed.
He casually picked up the wand in front of him.
As Dudley and Aunt Petunia watched in terror, he cast "Apprentice Protego."
Apprentice Protego was clearly different from the Armor Charm he'd used before. A gleaming golden shield appeared in front of Dewey, looking just like a real shield. Its shine and texture were flawless.
"Now that's a surprising and delightful change."
Dewey reached out to touch the Armor Charm. The shield was real. It was heavy and solid, yet somehow hovered in midair, defying all reason.
"So this is magic?"
Dewey spoke softly. Even Aunt Petunia had temporarily forgotten to be afraid. She stared at the shield, too. Dewey cast Stupefy at it, and the spell bounced off!
Dewey ducked nimbly. Stupefy struck the wall behind him, giving him a fright.
That was right: the magic that hit the shield wasn't nullified. It was deflected!
A weapon for group battles!
Dewey ducked to avoid the Stupefy bouncing back at him. Looking at the Protego, he smiled.
"Not bad. Very good."
Dewey ran his hand over the shield.
As everyone knew, Avada Kedavra couldn't be stopped by Protego.
But what if he could keep improving the power of Protego?
Dewey remembered the battle between Voldemort and Dumbledore at the Ministry of Magic. Voldemort had conjured a shield and held it in front of himself. It was "as though it were the hardest thing in the world. No spell that struck it left a mark," and even Dumbledore's spells couldn't break through its defenses.
What if his shield could one day reach that level?
Would that mean he could use it to beat up little kids, too?
Dewey waved his wand, making the shield disappear.
He had 350 essence left.
He didn't copy any more cards. Instead, he upgraded Finite Incantatem to Level 2. He still had five Blue Cards, and he didn't try to break them down.
Getting only a quarter of the essence back was a terrible deal.
If he wanted to spend a lot of points, he'd have to fleece the experts.
Dewey's stats now looked like this:
[User: Dewey Jones (Alias) Learned Cards: [(Apprentice) Protego (Level 5)] (Common White) [Stupefy (Level 4)] (Common White) [Apparition (Level 2)] (Epic Purple) [Avada Kedavra (Level 1)] (Epic Purple) [Obliviate (Level 3)] (Common White) [Finite Incantatem (Level 2)] (Rare Blue) [Animagus (Special Card)] Title: None Magic Power: 80 Magic Essence: 350 Dueling Points: 1]
Dewey looked over his cards, then popped one of Dudley's little cakes into his mouth and washed it down with a sip of sweet tea.
"Sugar and happiness are the finest things in the world, aren't they, Dudley, Petunia?
"Come here, Dudley, my boy. Come over and tell me a joke."
Dewey spoke as he basked in the sun. Dudley and Petunia didn't dare say a word. Seeing that Dudley didn't want to come over, and that Uncle Vernon seemed to be stirring, Dewey casually picked up his wand and hit Uncle Vernon with another Stupefy.
Uncle Vernon's head, which had just lifted off the ground, hit the floor again with a thud, making a sharp sound.
Aunt Petunia screamed.
Dewey sighed.
He'd been found out.
Dewey took out the Magic Coin and handed it to Dudley. "This is a present for you, my boy. It's money from the wizarding world. You probably won't have any use for it, but you can keep it as a souvenir.
"And Petunia, I'll leave you a wand. You've loved magic since you were little, haven't you?
"This is a wand. I'm sure you saw one when your sister came home."
Dewey spoke amiably. He knew that once Petunia screamed, he couldn't stay in the house any longer. It was true that the most dangerous place was often the safest, but the old ladies in the neighborhood really were Dumbledore's spies.
If Dumbledore came here, Dewey was certain he had a thousand ways to stop him from Apparating.
Every transmigrator feared Dumbledore.
Many people thought that if they ever met Dumbledore, they'd have to use Occlumency.
After all, he was a master of Legilimency.
But Dumbledore didn't use Legilimency on every student he met.
Much of the time, he was still a kind, kindly old man. The last time he'd fought was in the decisive battle against his lover, Grindelwald.
Since then, he'd rarely taken action, so much so that many people had no idea how terrifying Dumbledore could be.
Dewey knew that Dumbledore's strength lay in how he rarely needed to cast spells deliberately. He had woven magic into his everyday life.
"Stupefy," "Alohomora," "Apparition," and "Impedimenta" were all instincts woven into the White Wizard's very being.
He cast spells at will. Nonverbal Spellcasting came naturally to him, and he could conjure magic at a moment's notice.
Aside from Grindelwald and Voldemort, no one had ever seen how terrifying he could truly be.
"I'm leaving now, Mrs. Petunia. This is the best cooking I've tasted in years."
Dewey smiled. "Your tea is deliciously sweet. And Dudley, too."
He patted Dudley's round head. Dudley trembled, not daring to resist at all.
Dewey gave Dudley a lesson.
"Bullying people is wrong. We should be good people. Good people, do you understand? Enjoy life, and smile at it."
After saying this with a smile, he Apparated and vanished in an instant.
He had arrived without a sound and left cleanly, without the slightest reluctance.
Sunlight spilled over the table.
The dangerous fugitive was gone.
A Silver Sickle and a wand lay quietly on the table.
He had turned into a wisp of black smoke and disappeared.
Dudley and Petunia clung to each other, completely unable to make sense of what had happened.
Had that man really left?
No one knew.
Time passed second by second. Almost five minutes later, Dudley finally asked cautiously,
"Mum, has he gone?"
Petunia didn't know either. She plucked up her courage, let go of her son, and ran to her husband. She felt his neck with her hand.
"Thank goodness, he's still alive."
Petunia let out a breath of relief and collapsed onto the floor.
Only now did she feel afraid.
Compared to his mother, Dudley adapted much more easily. Having grown up with Harry Potter, he'd developed a strong heart. When he was little, the glass in the reptile house at the zoo had suddenly vanished, and he'd gotten up close and personal with a snake.
A big man had cursed him, making him grow a pig's tail.
Last year, he'd even seen Harry Potter leave home in a flying car.
And there were the spiders that sometimes appeared in the house, though that wasn't Harry's fault.
That was because his dad didn't like cleaning.
He didn't seem all that frightened by things that defied common sense. While Dewey was there, he'd been terrified. After Dewey left, he stared fixedly at the wand and coins on the table.
"No, Dudley. Don't touch those things."
Petunia spoke instinctively, seeing the look in her son's eyes.
Dudley lived up to expectations by ignoring his mother. He stood up and walked toward the table.
Closer, closer. Dudley's eyes were fixed on the things on the table.
His hand touched the wand. Just as he was about to pull it back, a hand appeared out of nowhere and grabbed his wrist.
A white-bearded man with pale blue eyes, dressed in wizard's robes, had appeared.
"All right, my boy. You'd better not touch it."
Dumbledore had quietly appeared. He looked at Dudley, and Dudley turned around to face the old man.
He stared, stunned.
When their eyes met, he felt as if the man's gaze had ensnared his soul. It seemed that the wizard could know every thought in his mind just by looking at him.
In the eyes of the wizard before him, he seemed to have no secrets at all.
Before you continue