First Taste of Spellcasting

Just as they were about to leave, Eli suddenly made a request.

"What? No, I won't agree to that!"

Mrs. Hall looked rather agitated. Clearly, she was strongly opposed to Eli's request.

Mr. Hall, standing beside her, frowned seriously as well. He looked conflicted.

"Eli, can you tell us why you want to stay here?"

After thinking for a while, Mr. Hall finally managed to phrase his words calmly enough.

Eli's eyes darted about awkwardly. He had known all along that the two elders would probably never agree.

He just hadn't expected his mother to react so strongly.

It turned out that Eli had just suggested that he stay at the Leaky Cauldron until school began.

The suggestion had nearly made Mrs. Hall grab him by the ear.

Of course, Eli had not made the decision on a whim.

As a transmigrator, he knew the general course of the plot to come.

At the same time, he knew just how terrifying the dangers ahead would be.

In the original story, even Dumbledore, the greatest white wizard of the century, died in the chaos unleashed by Voldemort.

The students of Hogwarts suffered devastating casualties as well.

Even the Muggle world would be affected.

It could be said that as long as he was a wizard and remained in Britain, he would never truly be safe.

And he had an exceptionally special background—Harry Potter's twin brother.

He was a character who had never existed in the original story.

Perhaps the butterfly wings of an outsider like him had changed some parts of the plot.

Precisely because of that, he had no idea how drastically the events ahead might change.

If the changes were too great, he would lose the only advantage he had as a transmigrator.

Voldemort would not spare him, because he was a member of the Potter family. He was the younger brother of the child of prophecy!

Dumbledore would learn of his background sooner or later. Before a wizard comparable to a legend, any lie was futile.

He was bound to be drawn into this turmoil.

For the Halls, who had raised him; for his second chance at life; for his brother Harry Potter; and for that little Potter who had helped him survive.

He had to live!

Before Voldemort could hurt these people, he had to kill him!

Killing one of the most dangerous dark wizards in history was easier said than done.

He had far too much to prepare.

Before Voldemort regained his strength, he had to possess sufficiently powerful magical ability.

Besides that, he needed enough magical resources. Those things would help him grow stronger.

They would also give him a certain degree of influence in the wizarding world.

To some extent, that would weaken Voldemort's power as well.

After all, many of his Death Eater followers came from the wizarding world's old, traditional families.

He possessed unparalleled talent. He dared say that not even Voldemort in his prime could compare to him!

What he lacked was time!

Even the month before school began was time he wanted to make full use of.

But according to Ministry of Magic regulations, underage wizards were not allowed to cast spells in the Muggle world.

That was effectively a restriction on Muggle-born wizards.

And he was one of them.

If he stayed home, he would waste an entire month for nothing.

A lack of time made him feel uneasy.

So even though he knew the Halls would oppose it, he still had to try!

"Dad, Mom, please listen to me. I know this request is a little absurd, but I still hope you can support me. I want to make use of this month, but I can't practice magic in the ordinary world. You know that. I don't want to fall behind, and I don't want those little wizards from wizarding families to leave me too far behind. So please!"

After listening, Mrs. Hall turned her head away, unable to bear it.

Mr. Hall's brow furrowed even deeper.

Eli rarely made such a serious request of them, but this request truly made it difficult for them to feel at ease.

Of course, they also understood Eli's drive. He had been like this since childhood.

This child had always acted like a little adult. They had never underestimated him.

As if he had made a difficult choice, Mr. Hall finally came to a decision.

He looked seriously into Eli's green eyes.

"Eli, I agree to your request. But I hope you can keep yourself safe!"

Mrs. Hall looked at her husband and, in the end, did not stop him again. She merely held onto Eli and repeatedly reminded him of one thing after another.

Eli saw the two elders out of the tavern and promised that he would report in safely every day.

Watching them get into the car, he turned and entered the tavern as well.

He rented a room from the owner, Tom, and followed him upstairs.

The upstairs was completely different from the downstairs. It was surprisingly clean and tidy.

A brass plaque hung on every door.

Mr. Tom led Eli to Room 12, which would be Eli's residence for the next month.

The room was clean and bright, with oak furniture arranged neatly inside.

Eli was very satisfied with the room.

He let Dogdan out and allowed him to crawl around the room.

The little fellow was rather obedient. Ever since Eli had fed him, he had followed Eli's every command.

He took out the textbooks he would need for school from his bag and selected The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 1.

His memories of Voldemort did contain an enormous amount of spell knowledge.

But nearly ninety-nine percent of it was dark magic with considerable destructive power.

If he did not want to destroy the room and pay a huge sum in compensation, or suffer spell backlash and die early, he had better not try them lightly.

Finding one or two simple spells in that vast sea of memories was easier said than done.

So he chose to read the textbook instead.

The simplest and most basic spell in it was the Light Spell.

The incantation was Lumos, Lumos.

Its function was to use magical power to produce light at the tip of the wand.

It was remarkably simple and direct.

"A little spell like this? Easy."

After clearing his throat, he solemnly waved his wand according to the gesture in the book.

"Lumos!"

Buzz!

A fierce light suddenly burst out through the gap beneath the room's door.

"Ah!!! My eyes!"

The intense light nearly blinded him.

Dogdan, who had been leisurely strolling around to digest his meal, darted into a corner and trembled.

Chevrolet, trapped in a cage nearby with nowhere to escape, was now cursing furiously at Eli.

A rapid knock sounded at the door.

Rubbing his eyes, Eli went to open it. The one knocking was none other than the owner, Tom.

Tom looked anxious at the moment, his bald head gleaming under the light.

He peered nervously into the room and was relieved to find no damage.

"Merlin's beard, did a war break out in your room just now?"

Eli smiled awkwardly at Tom, though his vision was still somewhat blurry.

"No, no. I was practicing a spell just now, just treating it as preparation before class."

Tom's expression improved slightly. "Then what were you practicing?"

"The Light Spell!"

Tom suddenly looked at Eli with a strange expression, as if his eyes were saying, Are you messing with me?

What kind of Light Spell could cause such a commotion? If you hadn't told me, I would have thought the Muggles were attacking.

Seeing the obvious suspicion in Tom's eyes, Eli helplessly shrugged. "If you don't believe me, I can demonstrate it for you."

Tom thought, How impressive could a Light Spell possibly be? Go ahead and demonstrate it.

"Of course. If necessary, I can offer you a little guidance as well."

This time, Eli closed his eyes in advance and even covered them with one hand.

Tom gave a disdainful smile. How much of a spectacle could a child like you possibly make?

So he watched Eli's performance with great interest.

It was the same familiar incantation and the same familiar result.

"Lumos!"

Buzz!

"Ah!! My eyes!!"

Eli opened a small gap between his fingers and secretly took a peek.

Tom bent over in pain, covering his eyes with both hands.

Looking at Tom's shiny bald head, Eli could not help thinking, The effect should be especially good this time...

Several employees came upstairs and used healing spells to restore Mr. Tom's eyes.

Eli stood nearby with an embarrassed smile, repeatedly apologizing.

Fortunately, Mr. Tom was fairly magnanimous and did not pursue the matter. He merely gave Eli a few more warnings.

Eli sent Mr. Tom off with an obedient expression.

Even after Tom had gone downstairs, Eli could still see his mouth moving as he cursed.