An astonishing yet unsettling talent

"Where did you get this?"

"Never mind that. Are you trading or not?"

Aberforth grunted, opened the glass bottle, and inspected its contents.

"This isn't venom from an adult Acromantula, so it's worth less. This half bottle is only a little over half a pint."

"So?"

"I'll trade, but you'll have to add some money! This bottle of venom plus fifteen Galleons, and these three vials of dragon blood are yours."

Gerald hesitated for less than a second before counting fifteen Galleons out of his cloth bag and lining them up on the bar.

"Deal."

He carefully tucked the vials into his inner pocket, nodded to Aberforth, and prepared to leave.

The acromantula venom had brought in a sizable sum. Next time he visited the Forbidden Forest, he could venture a little deeper and see whether there were any more lone Acromantulas. He just couldn't let Hagrid find out.

After buying some other potion ingredients and alchemical materials along Hogsmeade's shopping street, Gerald returned to Hogwarts.

Among his purchases were cinnabar and yellow paper.

Cinnabar also had a wide range of uses in alchemy, though in the West it went by another name-cinnabar.

In alchemy, it was often used to help refine the fifth element beyond air, earth, water, and fire.

The Philosopher's Stone.

Now I can finally try drawing an Object-Storing Talisman. If it works, I can say goodbye to lugging all these bags around.

On his way back to Hogwarts, Gerald carried two cloth bags stuffed with materials on his back. Even the air in the secret passage didn't seem quite so foul.

When he returned to the Fourth-Floor Storage Room, Gerald checked his watch. It was just past nine.

It was still a quartz watch from the Muggle World.

He had to admit, the Muggle World had its advantages.

Pocket watches in the Wizarding World were far too expensive. They were generally family heirlooms, and ordinary wizarding families could rarely afford them.

Wizarding watches that told the time using star charts were equally expensive, easily costing dozens of Galleons.

Digital watches and quartz watches from the Muggle World, however, were much cheaper.

That could be another way to make money. It might even earn more than selling pens.

Aberforth-or rather, his Hog's Head-would make a good sales outlet.

Thinking this over, Gerald left the fourth floor and headed to the Transfiguration classroom on the first floor.

Nearly half the Ravenclaw students had already arrived. As usual, Gerald found a seat by the window in the back row.

He leaned against the back of his chair, his fingers tapping the desk absently while his mind wandered elsewhere.

Although Aberforth knew he was a Hogwarts student, he almost certainly didn't know his real name yet.

That meant Professor McGonagall and Dumbledore probably didn't know he was selling potions either.

Even in the worst-case scenario,

if Aberforth did learn Gerald's name, would he tell Dumbledore?

Gerald didn't think so.

After all, judging by the descriptions in the original books, Aberforth's relationship with his brother wasn't exactly good.

Ariana stood between them, and even a hundred years hadn't brought them true reconciliation.

Safe.

Gerald hadn't done anything that seriously broke the rules, but he disliked trouble.

He didn't want incidents like his last summons to Dumbledore's office happening too often.

Gerald opened the copy of Intermediate Transfiguration he had borrowed from the library and began reading. As for the first- and second-year textbook, A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration, he had already learned everything it had to offer, so he hadn't brought it.

Before long, Professor McGonagall arrived in the classroom and began the lesson. Today's topic was Transfiguring a Teacup into a Mouse.

Gerald had already mastered this transformation over the summer. With a wave of his wand, the cup became a grayish-brown mouse that ran two laps around the desk.

Professor McGonagall looked at the mouse and nodded.

She wasn't surprised in the slightest. She had already spent more than two months being astonished.

She had even made a point of telling Dumbledore about it.

By her own estimation, there were no more than ten people in the entire Wizarding World whose talent for Transfiguration surpassed hers.

Yet even she couldn't have achieved this level in her first year.

She had seen such talent in only a handful of people.

Some of those people had become great wizards, while others had become terrifying Dark Lords.

Ah, what an astonishing yet unsettling talent.

Vivian Carrow sat two seats to Gerald's right. The mouse she had made from her teacup did look like a mouse, but its fur still had the texture of porcelain.

She glanced at Gerald's mouse, then at her own, and pressed her lips a little tighter together.

Gerald didn't notice Carrow's gaze.

His attention was on the mouse-shaped Transfiguration Construct. He wasn't sure whether it was because of the Qi-Perception Spell, but he could faintly sense a subtle difference between the construct and a real mouse.

After Transfiguration, Gerald went to the Great Hall for lunch with his roommates.

Gerald took out half the alchemical materials he had bought and handed them to George.

Fred opened the cloth bag and blanched.

"Where did you get the money to buy all these materials? You haven't gone down the wrong path, have you?"

"Oh, shut up. I made potions and sold them. Don't tell anyone."

Fred and George exchanged a glance, a hint of concern in their eyes.

"Is that why you're always going to the Forbidden Forest and Hogsmeade?"

"???"

Gerald was puzzled. How did they know he had been going to the Forbidden Forest?

"Don't look at me like that. If you pay attention to where someone goes, you're bound to notice things. You wouldn't be visiting Hagrid every day for no reason, would you?"

"All right, that's part of it."

Fred turned to George.

"I think you'd better be careful. Even we don't dare go into the Forbidden Forest."

After a pause, Fred changed the subject.

"Gerald, seriously, I never thought you'd care this much about our business. We haven't known each other that long, after all."

"Being brothers is about what's in your heart. How can you measure that by how long you've known someone? Besides, I'm waiting for my share once you two make it big."

Gerald spoke with heartfelt sincerity, but inwardly he was rather pleased with himself.

You two have excellent business sense. What's this little investment compared to that? But how could you possibly imagine what your future selves will achieve?

"True enough. Don't worry. We definitely won't let your money go to waste." George draped an arm around Gerald's shoulders and grinned.

"I know, I know. I have plenty of faith in my own judgment."

As they spoke, the golden plates in front of them were already piled high with food.

After breaking through to refining essence into qi, Gerald could directly absorb spiritual qi and refine it.

His appetite had therefore shrunk considerably, and he was full after eating half a plate.

Beside him, Lee Jordan watched him put down his fork with a look of surprise.

"Why are you eating so little today? Is your stomach bothering you?"

"I'm not hungry."

"Not hungry? You're actually not hungry! Are you really our boss Gerald? Someone hasn't cast a Transfiguration Spell to impersonate you, have they?"

"Just eat your food. Even a drumstick can't shut you up."

"Will do!"

Gerald couldn't be bothered with him.

After lunch, Gerald didn't return to the dormitory with Fred and the others for a nap.

Instead, he went straight to the Room of Requirement on the Seventh Floor.

Once inside the Room of Requirement, Gerald took out all the materials he had bought in Hogsmeade.

He had two things to do: first, try drawing talismans; second, make his first alchemical item.

He had spent more than two months studying alchemical theory, working his way from An Introduction to Alchemy to Advanced Alchemy.

His notes already formed a thick stack, but theory was still only theory.

It was already late November, with Christmas just a few weeks away. It was time to put what he had learned to the test.

Fortunately, he had no classes that afternoon, so he had plenty of time.

"Then let's start by drawing an Object-Storing Talisman."