Clue to the Disillusionment Charm

Hoffa, who had finally settled into a stable life at Hogwarts, should have been able to live a lazy, comfortable life like everyone else. Sleep, attend classes, eat meals, play games with friends.

But in reality, he could not do that. Other students might be able to, but not Hoffa.

He was different from everyone else. Europe was a society that valued connections, bloodlines, and families—especially Britain.

Other students could relax and play. If anything happened, their families would stand in front of them. Every student at Hogwarts had relatives, whether they came from Muggles or wizarding families. Even Tom Riddle, who had come from the same orphanage as him, had relatives, whether he liked them or not.

But Hoffa only had himself.

With the future so unpredictable, he had no one he could rely on.

There were roughly ten months left on the countdown to war.

The pressure bore down on him at every moment, like the Sword of Damocles hanging above his head.

It left him constantly feeling insecure. Though he had learned some basic spells and obtained a book of Transfiguration secrets, he was not much more optimistic.

Hoffa often asked himself: Could his body stop bullets? Could he cross a battlefield amid a hail of gunfire without suffering a scratch?

If the answer was no, then he could only keep working.

Work to become stronger.

Learn every kind of knowledge that could benefit him.

So when the weekend arrived and dawn had barely broken, while his roommates were still sleeping in the dormitory, Hoffa headed out carrying the thick book he had worked so hard to borrow.

Borrowing the book did not mean Hoffa could immediately become an Animagus. There were far too many intricacies for him to study. But compared with having no guidance at all, this was already an enormous improvement.

Now that he had some free time, he needed to go out and properly study the Transfiguration contained in this mysterious book.

After a quick breakfast, Hoffa was preparing to leave when he spotted Professor Merrythought of Gryffindor at the base of the clock tower. She was holding a list and checking the number of students heading to Hogsmeade.

Hogsmeade was an all-wizarding village near Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. It had also served as the headquarters of the Goblin Rebellion of 1612. School rules stipulated that only third-years and above could go there on certain Saturdays, and only with signed permission from a guardian.

A group of third-year students stood on the lawn, dressed as they usually were, every face beaming with delight.

Hoffa had little regard for their behavior. They were sitting atop a treasure mountain without appreciating it. Hogwarts was one of Europe's foremost wizarding sanctuaries.

Wouldn't it be wonderful to spend that time in the library learning a few spells?

Wizards—actual wizards! If they did not study magic, could they still call themselves wizards? In Hoffa's view, a wizard, good or evil, needed a powerful spirit of solitude. They had to endure loneliness, resist temptation, and devote most of their energy to exploring the truth of the universe and the true mysteries of philosophy.

Of course, he did not need to go to the library now. What he wanted was already tucked under his arm.

Stretching his legs, Hoffa hugged the book and jogged slowly along the edge of the grounds toward the Black Lake.

The calm lake reflected the rolling hills along the shore and the mysterious castle perched upon them. The ripples glittered with dazzling silver light. Clouds drifted across the water like snow lotuses in bloom. In the distance, he could see stone drainage channels built during the time of King Arthur.

After finding a secluded patch of grass by the Black Lake with decent light, Hoffa eagerly opened the thick book he had borrowed with such difficulty, full of excitement and anticipation.

But after flipping through it with a rustle, the smile and excitement gradually vanished from Hoffa's face. He became calm and solemn, realizing that he had been too optimistic.

This book could be called a highly comprehensive guide to Transfiguration. It explained the process of becoming an Animagus in great detail. Every step, every process of magical flow—yet the clearer it was, the more Hoffa could sense the unfathomable depth of Transfiguration.

Becoming an Animagus was no simple, low-level spell. It was an immensely difficult secret art of Transfiguration, requiring more than a dozen steps and hundreds of magical transformations, all completed in a very short time. Even those blessed with exceptional talent needed at least a year of diligent practice before they could possibly succeed.

At least a year... For now, he still could not complete the task of exploring the school.

Hoffa raised his head from the book, his brows tightly furrowed.

It was not that he was terribly interested in the secrets hidden within Hogwarts. He was not Voldemort, with a collecting obsession and grand ambitions.

But with World War II approaching and the future so strange and uncertain, Hoffa felt pressed for time. He only had one piece of Great God's Lore from the system. As for the spell fragment, he had only acquired two-thirds of it. It would be best to gather the rest as soon as possible.

Otherwise, when faced with the horrors of war, he would have no trump cards at all.

Did he still have to search for the Disillusionment Charm? Hoffa felt irritated.

Animagus training required a great deal of time, while he could not find the Disillusionment Charm for the moment. The task of exploring the school could not be launched either. This was becoming troublesome.

"What a headache." Hoffa muttered as he held the book.

He practiced his meditation method a few times, calming the restless emotions in his heart, then began studying in earnest. No matter how slow it was, doing something was better than doing nothing.

By the Black Lake, Hoffa immersed himself in solitary study. From time to time, he pulled out prepared parchment and a quill to scribble down notes. Occasionally, he took out his wand to test movements and the flow of magic.

Mastering the process of Animagus transformation was arduous, but learning made him happy.

The sun gradually rose, the morning light faded, and the clouds changed shape again and again.

The entire morning passed in the blink of an eye as Hoffa studied. At noon, he felt a little hungry. But he was afraid of wasting time, so he could not be bothered returning to the school. He picked some berries by the lake, eating them as he looked at the distant reflection of the castle, resting his eyes. He decided to continue his magical studies that afternoon.

But just then, he suddenly heard someone calling.

"Hoffa!"

Hoffa jolted upright from the lakeside and turned to look.

There was nothing there. Only branches stirred by the breeze. He looked at the lake again, where there were only waves lapping against the pebbles.

"Damn it, was that an auditory hallucination?"

Hoffa muttered and turned another page.

But just as he was about to continue reading, the voice came again. "Hey, Hoffa, are you deaf?"

Hoffa sprang to his feet, snapped the book shut, drew his wand, and warily surveyed his surroundings.

"Who is it? Who's talking?"

Hoffa asked with an unfriendly expression.

"You foolish boy, stop looking. It's me!"

Only then did Hoffa realize something was wrong. The voice was right beside him, like a whisper.

He touched his ear and felt his silver earring.

He recognized the owner of the voice.

Hoffa was shocked. "It's you, Yinduo!?"

Who else would it be? Yinduo said lazily. "What, have you made so many friends at Hogwarts that you've forgotten the voice of your partner?"

With a sigh, Hoffa put away his wand. He was both happy and resentful. So this swindling goblin had installed a Bluetooth earpiece in his ear. No wonder he had left without providing any way to contact him. Come to think of it, Yinduo was probably his first friend in this world.

Yinduo's curious voice came from the earring.

"If I remember correctly, you should be on break today, right? How's life at Hogwarts, Hoffa?"

"Ha." Hoffa tossed a berry into his mouth and mocked him. "Why are you so concerned about me? Did your money-swindling exploits get exposed?"

"Not that," Yinduo sighed. "But I have something urgent I need your help with. Very urgent. Can you meet me now?"

"Meet?" Hoffa froze and looked around.

"How am I supposed to meet you? I'm at Hogwarts."

Yinduo asked, "Do you know Hogsmeade? I'm at the Two Brooms in Hogsmeade. Just come by before dark."

Hoffa was stunned. "Are you crazy? How am I supposed to get out? I'm only a first-year. If the school finds me going to Hogsmeade now, it would be enough to get me expelled."

"Oh, come on." The goblin laughed it off. "Rules are made to be broken. Every Hogwarts graduate I know has broken at least ten school rules serious enough for expulsion, yet they all graduated safely in the end. I'm telling you, there are plenty of secret passages in your school that lead outside..."

"Cut it out!" Hoffa immediately interrupted him. "I'm only eleven, the same height as you. I'm afraid people would spot me the moment I stepped out of a secret passage. What meeting are we talking about then?"

Yinduo sounded surprised from the other end. "Huh? You've been at Hogwarts for nearly a month already. Don't you know any concealment spells? Something like a Disillusionment Charm, a Blurring Charm, or a Disguise Charm?"

He should not have said it. The moment he did, Hoffa's frustration shot up again. Annoyed, he said, "Hey, do you know one? If you do, teach me. Once you teach me, I'll go wherever you tell me to."

"Teach you?" Yinduo sounded astonished. "Human wizards can't learn goblin magic. You have your own spellcasting system."

"Then why the hell are you bringing it up?" Hoffa said irritably. "Can you do it or not? If not, I'm hanging up."

"Hey, hey, hey," the goblin hurriedly said. "Don't rush. I can't teach you, but someone at your school can."

The turn in his words made Hoffa pause, then he asked in delight, "Who?"

"Hmm, I don't know exactly who. But my previous partner told me that when he was at school, he joined a club.

"It was a spell club. When new members joined, each club president would reward them with any one spell they wanted, as long as they could pass the club's test."

Hoffa's eyes widened.

"There's a club like that?"

"Of course. Hogwarts has lots of clubs."

"Where is it?" Hoffa asked impatiently.

"I don't know. I'm not from your school," the goblin said grumpily. "But didn't I give you an earring? My previous partner also wore a goblin earring. His name was Nimon. Go ask at the school's club registration office. You should find something."

Hoffa closed the book and immediately stood up. He turned and headed back toward the school grounds.

Yinduo was still nagging from the other end. "If you learn some sort of invisibility or concealment spell, remember to come find me in Hogsmeade. I'll be waiting for you at the Two Brooms."

Hoffa could no longer take in anything he said. His mind was filled with the Disillusionment Charm.

There was no doubt that Animagus training and study required a great deal of time, but spells were different. Spells could be learned very quickly. As long as he mastered the Disillusionment Charm, many of the school rules blocking his path would be broken in an instant.

Yinduo said a few more things on the other end about how urgent it was and how Hoffa had to come, but Hoffa did not reply.