Chapter 115: The Floating Wand Casting System
Chapter 115: The Floating Wand Casting System
"Alright, alright", Olivander grumbled.
"I can sell you a hundred wands made from the same materials, but even if each wand uses laurel and dragon heartstring, and they are all 14 inches long, each wand will still have unique characteristics."
"Besides, you won't be able to get that many right away. Making wands isn't as simple as just stuffing the core into a stick, and I still need to order a batch of fire dragon heartstrings from Romania."
Sherlock wasn't in a huge rush and didn't insist on every wand being exactly the same.
He stroked his chin and asked, "How many wands can you prepare by September?"
Olivander gave him a number. "Around fifty."
"Then I'll take fifty when they're ready, and I'll come back at the end of October for the remaining fifty. How much of a deposit do I need to leave?"
"One-third. You'll need to give me 233 Galleons as a deposit."
Sherlock immediately poured 300 Galleons from his pouch, made arrangements with Olivander, and left the wand shop.
Thanks to Snape spending a large sum to buy the Basilisk, Sherlock had more than enough funds. Even spending 700 Galleons on a hundred wands wouldn't affect his financial situation.
He then spent some time in Diagon Alley, picking out a birthday gift for Harry, before returning home.
Sirius Black's escape from Azkaban had already been reported by the Daily Prophet while Sherlock and Harry were still on their trip.
Now, even the Muggle government had been notified.
The news on television portrayed him as a vicious murderer with a gun, urging the public to call the police immediately if they spotted him.
Sherlock's impression of the third book was that it was a story about manipulating time to fill in historical gaps.
As for Black, he seemed to have escaped as a rat, but Sherlock couldn't recall the details clearly.
Deciding not to dwell on the specifics, he began to study the spell he had been researching since the summer break—the Patronus Charm.
Dementors would inevitably be stationed at Hogwarts this year.
Since someone had discovered that Black's ultimate goal was to find Harry and seek revenge for his master, the guards at Azkaban would naturally set a trap, coming to the castle to closely protect and monitor Harry.
In Sherlock's memory, the Dementors' presence at Hogwarts was far from peaceful.
If anything were to happen, the Patronus Charm would undoubtedly be the best defense against these dark creatures.
Sherlock sat in his study, examining the new wand he had bought from Olivander.
The laurel and dragon heartstring combination was significantly longer than his previous wand and felt much more comfortable to use.
Sherlock waved his wand, transfiguring the teacup on his desk into various shapes, eventually returning it to its original form.
After getting used to the feel, he prepared to cast his first advanced spell with the new wand.
"Expecto Patronum."
Silver light surged from Sherlock's wand, quickly spreading to every corner of the study.
He could feel his Patronus trying to form, but it seemed to lack something, remaining as scattered silver particles that drifted around.
He stopped the Patronus Charm.
Although he hadn't succeeded this time, Sherlock could clearly feel that using this wand made his Patronus Charm much more powerful than with his previous one.
The only thing missing was the right emotional buildup. He needed to accumulate more positive emotions.
Sherlock closed his eyes and sat back in his chair.
He cleared his mind and tried to recall the happiness and joy he felt when he checked his college entrance exam scores and received his university admission letter in his previous life.
He also remembered the satisfaction and happiness he felt when, during his first year as a Defense Against the Dark Arts professor at Hogwarts, a student who had been crying on his shoulder at the end of the term thanked him for his guidance, saying that she felt confident enough to pass her Wizarding exams and achieve her dream of becoming an Auror.
And the relaxed and pleasant days he spent traveling in France during the summer.
Positive emotions built up inside Sherlock, and he couldn't help but smile slightly.
Naturally, he waved his wand and recited the spell again.
"Expecto Patronum."
Silver-white light flashed in the small study.
This time, however, the light didn't disperse. Instead, it burst from the tip of Sherlock's wand, compressing and taking shape.
Sherlock looked expectantly at the silver light converging before him. He could feel that his Patronus Charm had definitely been successful this time.
But what form would his guardian spirit take?
Under his eager gaze, the magic light threads, composed of hope, joy, and other positive emotions, finally combined perfectly.
A bird made of silver light spread its wings and danced under the ceiling. It circled above Sherlock's head for a moment before landing on his shoulder.
Sherlock carefully examined his guardian spirit.
At first glance, he thought it was a dove.
But after a thorough inspection, he was certain.
It was a crow.
The silver light composition made it hard to identify the species at a glance, but it was indeed a crow.
Sherlock gently played with the guardian spirit perched on his shoulder, quite satisfied with its form.
A guardian spirit, once summoned, could not only be used to combat Dementors but also as a messenger to deliver messages.
A flying bird like a crow would undoubtedly be more convenient.
As for the symbolism of crows, that was even better.
While in some places or at certain times, crows might be seen as ominous, in Britain, crows—specifically ravens—have long been considered auspicious.
Even today, to avoid affecting the nation's fortune, the British government keeps a large number of ravens in the Tower of London.
It is said that as long as these ravens do not leave the Tower of London, the country will not suffer misfortune.
To prevent them from flying away, the government has people trim their wings, ensuring the nation's good luck.
With such a practical and auspicious bird as his guardian spirit, Sherlock had no complaints.
After admiring the crow for a while, Sherlock canceled the spell and began experimenting with controlling magic through multiple wands.
Olivander needed time to make the wands, so for now, he only had two wands to experiment with.
Invisible magical power spread from Sherlock's body, causing everything around him to gently float before returning to their original positions.
Only the two wands remained suspended in mid-air.
Sherlock controlled them, aiming at two blank parchments on the table and softly reciting the spell.
"Four Point Oh."
In the next moment, the parchments shattered into countless small pieces.
There were subtle differences in the spell effects from the two different wands.
The new wand Sherlock had received today produced a more effective Shattering Charm on the parchment compared to the previous one.
After multiple tests, it was clear that the original owner's wand was not the best match for Sherlock, while the laurel wand was the perfect combination for him.
Next, Sherlock held the wand and used the Shattering Charm on the parchment, comparing it to the effect when he controlled the wand with magic.
The result was the same as the Petrification Charm he had used against the goblin.
Using magic to control the wand and cast a spell was about 60% to 70% weaker than casting it normally.
However, this weakening was constant.
It did not increase further if Sherlock controlled more wands, nor did it decrease if he controlled fewer.
This laid the foundation for Sherlock to build his wand cluster and floating wand casting system.
But for this tactic to be truly practical in the future, Sherlock needed to conduct a crucial experiment.
He needed to test whether the General Countercharm would affect his magic control.
If he prepared his wand cluster and was about to unleash a barrage of indiscriminate laser beams, only to have the enemy cast a General Countercharm and nullify everything, his efforts would be in vain.
Sherlock used his magic to levitate his old wand and then held his new wand to cast the General Countercharm on the floating old wand.
"Finite."
The countercharm was released, but the old wand remained suspended in the air, unchanged.
Sherlock let out a slight sigh of relief and stood up from his chair.
The General Countercharm is a tiered spell.
"Finite" is the most basic and commonly used form, frequently employed in daily life.
Its advanced form, "Finite Incantatem", is a more powerful countercharm.
Historically, this spell has only been used in large-scale wizard wars and can be enhanced when cast by multiple wizards together.
Both the General Countercharm and the advanced countercharm have the same incantation, "Finite", but the wand movements and emotional expressions during casting are entirely different.
Sherlock pointed his wand downward and cast the advanced General Countercharm, reciting the incantation.
"Finite Incantatem."
Red light immediately spread from the tip of his wand to the floor, then climbed upward, illuminating the study with a bright red glow!
(End of Chapter)
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